• Registered: 2011-02-25
  • Posts: 36

Topic: How do the different tag technologies and specs relate?

I'm a little confused about how the different card types, 14443 specifications, and NFC Forum Tag Types all relate.

In particular...

1. If you know a card is type 14443-A, does that tell you anything about whether it supports 14443-1, 14443-2, 14443-3, 14443-4? What does it imply related to the NFC Forum Tag Types?

2. How flexible are different cards in supporting different protocols? For example, can a Mifare DESFire card be formatted to support any of the NFC Forum Tag Types or only Type 4?

Thanks!

Last edited by ektimo (2011-04-01 13:32:48)

  • rconty
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  • Registered: 2009-04-22
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Re: How do the different tag technologies and specs relate?

ektimo wrote:

I'm a little confused about how the different card types,

Yes, I understand: that's quite hard to learn all specs are encapsulated and that takes me weeks to see how all these specs are related too.

ektimo wrote:

1. If you know a card is type 14443-A, does that tell you anything about whether it supports 14443-1, 14443-2, 14443-3, 14443-4?

ISO/IEC 14443 is a set of specifications that describe how to implement a ISO/IEC 14443 tag.
An ISO/IEC 14443-3 implies the tag respect sub-layers: 14443-2 and 14443-1.
An ISO/IEC 14443-4 implies the tag follow ISO/IEC 14443-3, so it follow sub-layers too.
For example, a Mifare Classic is compiliant with ISO/IEC 14443-3 but absolutely not the -4; on other side a Mifare DESFire is ISO/IEC 14443-4 so follow -4, -3, -2 and -1.

Note: ISO/IEC 14443-3 show how tags can implement their ISO/IEC 14443 support: with or without anticollision, with or without ISO commands.
See fig 6.8 in ISO/IEC 14443-3.

An ISO/IEC 14443-A or 14443-B means ISO/IEC 14443 tag type A or B (respectively).
There are tag that are ISO/IEC 14443-A (eg. Mifare Classic) or ISO/IEC 14443-B (eg. SRI512) but not ISO/IEC 14443-4.

ektimo wrote:

What does it imply related to the NFC Forum Tag Types?

Almost nothing wink
More seriously, to be compiliant with NFC-Forum Tag Type 4, a tag have to be compiliant ISO/IEC 14443-4 and support some ISO/IEC 7816-4 commands.

There are some usual associations between tag type and NFC-Forum tag type, that doesn't mean no other tag could be compiliant with NFC-Forum specs, but that's what we have seen till now:

- Innovision R&T Jewel Topaz tag could be configured as NFC Forum Type 1 tag
- NXP MIFARE Ultralight -> NFC Forum Type 2 tag
- Sony Felica (JIS X 6319-4) -> NFC Forum Type 3 tag
- NXP MIFARE DESFire -> NFC Forum Type 4 tag
- NXP MIFARE Classic -> NFC Forum Compliant tag (not really specified by NFC-Forum, but some devices implement it like Nokia 6212 Classic phone.)

ektimo wrote:

2. How flexible are different cards in supporting different protocols? For example, can a Mifare DESFire card be formatted to support any of the NFC Forum Tag Types or only Type 4?

Due to different features requested by NFC-Forum Tag Type specifications, if a tag could follow one NFC-Forum Tag Type specififcation, it could not follow another NFC-Forum Tag Type specififcation.

I hope it helps.

Last edited by rconty (2011-04-05 08:30:52)

Romuald Conty
  • Registered: 2011-02-25
  • Posts: 36

Re: How do the different tag technologies and specs relate?

Yes, that helps very much in clearing up some of my confusions! Thanks!!

  • rconty
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Re: How do the different tag technologies and specs relate?

NFC-Forum wrote some interesting white-papers that helps to understand NFC:
http://www.nfc-forum.org/resources/white_papers/

ie. this is from http://www.nfc-forum.org/resources/whit … Paper2.pdf :

NFC-Forum wrote:

The NFC Forum chose the initial tag formats to cater for the broadest possible range of
applications and device capabilities:

Type 1 is based on ISO 14443 A and is currently available exclusively from
Innovision Research & Technology (Topaz™). It has a 96-byte memory
capacity, which makes it a very cost-efficient tag for a wide range of NFC
applications

Type 2 is also based on ISO 14443 A and is currently exclusively available from
Philips (MIFARE UltraLight). It has half the memory capacity of Type 1 tags

Type 3 is based on FeliCa and is currently exclusively available from Sony. It
has a larger memory (currently 2kbyte) and operates at a higher data rate
(212kbit/s), which means it is suitable for more complex applications

Type 4 is fully compatible with ISO 14443A/B and is available from a number of
manufacturers, including Philips (typical product example is MIFARE DESFire).
It offers large memory-addressing capability with read speeds of between
106kbit/s and 424kbit/s – making it suitable for multiple applications.

Romuald Conty
  • jerik
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  • Registered: 2011-01-14
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Re: How do the different tag technologies and specs relate?

Hope you had all a merry christmas,

very interessting and helpful post. Do I understand correctly:

1. with ISO 14443-1/2/3/4 you mean the NFC Forum Tag Types 1-4?
2. The difference of tag types can be seen in memory capacity, transfer-rate and set of commands they support? If not, what else?
2a. Taking Type 1 and 2, besides memory and transfer-rate, they have different commands they support? Speaking type 1 has commands a,b,c and type 2 has commans e,f,g?
3. Type 1, can store 96-bytes. Does this mean it can store 96 ASCII characters (e.g. an url) or do I have to substract some memory overhead for configurations that have to be stored as well on the tag?
3a. I am not into the details of bits and bytes, my assumption was 1 ASCII character needs 1 byte. Where to get the information how many memory a character needs?
4. If I have a Midfare Tag like this http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/52063 … _Tag.html, can I then simply configure it with my initiator (nfc-reader/writer). E.g. Can I use my Nokia 700 with the app NFC Tag Writer and wirte an url on it? Or do I have to configure the tag first and if what does it mean and how?

I noticed, that my Nokia 700 cannot read a nfc-visit-card which I created with my ACR 122 reader. This means for me there are some differences and I would like to know on which details I have to look, that a nfc tag is compatible to read via nfc-enabled phones. My assumtion would be that they have to be nfc form tag configured, but if, how?

cheers and happy new year -- jerik

  • jerik
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Re: How do the different tag technologies and specs relate?

Hi,

regarding question 3. I have found an nice overview: http://rapidnfc.com/which_nfc_chip
Meaning there is overhead which reduces the available memory.