RFID Toys: Cool Projects for Home, Office and Entertainment (ExtremeTech)

Imagine shedding your keys and passwords, entirely unlocking your car, your front door, even logging into your computer with just a simple wave of your hand.

Sounds like science fiction, doesn't it?

It really does. Well, Get ready because today we're embarking on a deep dive into the fascinating world of radio frequency identification or r FID.

That's right, And for this deep dive, we're drawing our insights from a truly unique source. The book are FID Toys Cool Projects for Home, Office and Entertainment by Amal Grafstra.

Yeah, it's a great one. Our mission today isn't just to explain RFID and dry technical terms. It's to cut through the jargon and show you how this star trek like tech which used to be mostly for big business, big.

Warehouses, right supply chains and stuff.

Exactly how it's surprisingly accessible now and applicable in your daily life. We're going to uncover some surprising ingenuity behind these projects, and.

We'll also delve into the author's own remarkable personal journey. It all started with this, well, this real aha moment, fra him.

Oh yeah, tell us about that. That's quite the story, it really is.

Yeah, Amal Grafster's motivation came after he learned about contactless RFID technology being used for like pet identifications.

Okay, little chips and casts and dogs.

Exactly, And he thought, wait a minute, why couldn't I use that same tech for myself, you know, skip the access cards, build his own systems.

And he actually got implants he did.

To avoid carrying cards, that personal quest, that desire for ultimate convenience and control. That's what really ignited the passion that led to this whole book.

Wow. Okay, so to really appreciate these these cool projects, we first need to understand the basics. What exactly is RFID at its core?

Well, fundamentally, think of it as a two part system wireless communication. You've got interrogators, those are the readers, and then you have the tags, the little things you attached to objects.

Okay, so it's a bit like a barcode scanner and a barcode label kind of.

Yeah, that's a good analogy. But here's the key difference. R FID is completely contactless, which means you can identify objects even if they're hidden, you know, inside a box, moving down an assembly line, even wrapped in paper. No line of sight needed.

Okay, that immediately sounds way more powerful than a traditional barcode. Oh it is, and it gets more specific too, right. Barcodes usually identify a type of thing, like all oranges have the same code exactly right.

Our codes label the type like isku quanti three four means oranges. But RFID, well, it can assign each individual item its very own unique serial number.

So not just the bin of oranges, but potentially each orange.

Potentially yes, or each apple. Or think about a hospital tracking every single medical chart as it moves around. That's a huge leap in granular tracking, pinpoint inventory traceability.

That is a powerful distinction. Now, when we talk RFID systems, you often hear active versus passive. What's the main difference there? Why does it matter?

It's all about power how the tag gets its energy. Passive RFID tags have no internal power source, zero battery.

Okay, so how do they work them?

They actually draw their energy from the magnetic field the reader emits. The reader powers them up wirelessly just long enough for them to respond.

Interesting, So what does that mean for performance?

It means they generally have a shorter read range usually you know, inches up to maybe several feet. The big advantages though, they're cheaper, much lower cost per tag, and they have an essentially indefinite lifespan because there's no battery to die.

Makes sense. The downsides the.

Shorter range obviously, and they can be a bit sensitive to interference from things like metal and liquids, especially the higher frequency ones.

Okay, so if passive tags are powered by the reader, then active RFID tags must carry their own power supply correct.

Active tags have a little internal battery and.

What does that unlock? What's the benefit?

Range? Much much longer range, typically around say thirty feet sometimes even hundreds of feet.

Wow, Okay, big difference, huge difference.

The advantage is that impressive range and they can transmit constantly if needed. But the trade off is well, they cost more per tag.

And the battery runs out eventually, exactly.

Limited lifespan usually around three to five years, depending on the tag and how often it transmits. But it really extends the reach of RFID tracking dramatically.

So beyond just identifying things, some tags are also read write. How does that expand what you can do? What's the insight there?

Ah, this is where it gets really interesting. Read write tags mean you can store data directly on the tag itself. Okay, so the tag isn't just an ID number pointing to a database somewhere. It can actually carry relevant information with the item.

Like what kind of information?

Well, the book uses the example of say, white gym socks. Instead of the tag just spitting out an ID that your system then has to look up, the words white gym socks could literally be stored right on that tag.

Huh. So the tag itself knows what it's attached to precisely.

It makes the item sort of autonomous, carrying it its own data, and that can save a lot of money because you don't need network connectivity at every single scan point just to look up what an ID means. Right.

It reduces the reliance on a central database exactly.

It transforms a simple identifier into like a portable data packet. Really useful, very useful.

But speaking of cost and ease of use, the book does mention a security aspect for some of these DIY projects, specifically using open format tags. What's the deal there, Yeah, that's.

An important trade off to understand. These common tags like EM four one h two used in many projects. They can be read or even duplicated by anyone with the right equipment, and that equipment isn't very expensive.

So not super secure then not in a high.

Security sense, no, But the book kind of embraces this. It makes these projects cheap, easy and fun for hobbyists. Okay, and you know, for a home setup, it's often an acceptable compromise. As the author points out, the real world threat for your front door probably isn't someone sophisticated least boofing your RFID tag.

Right, Someone's more likely to just break a window exactly.

You have to consider the practical threat model.

Okay, let's unpack that's further though, because a Mallgraf's just book. It isn't just theory, right, It's about making RFID personal using it in some surprisingly intimate ways. Absolutely, like the RFID enabled front door project. That sounds pretty cool. How does that actually work?

It is cool. So for a home door, you're usually looking at using either an electronic strike what's that. It's a replacement for the strike plate in your doorframe. When it gets power, it essentially gives way and lets the

So you're adapting existing hardware. How does the RFID part actually connect and control to lock?

Then? Right, you build a little control box. The book shows how to integrate a simple say one hundred and twenty five Killer Herds RFID reader with a relay. A relay is just an electronic switch. It takes the signal from the reader and uses it to switch the power on or off to the electronic strike or the modified dead bolt.

Gotcha, and there's usually an indicator light too, Yeah.

Often an LED. The author shows how you can carefully modify the reader board like de Sodern and moving the USB connector to hide all the wiring inside the wall for really clean covert setup. The relay clicks the lock open, the LED might blink to show it worked. Visual feedback and what about the brains?

Is there software involved? What does it do?

Yes? Definitely. The author developed custom software called door FID. Its job is basically to listen for tag scans from the reader. Okay, then it checks the scan tag ID against a list of authorized IDs. If it's a match, it tells the relay to unlock the door, and it controls that led blink.

And you can manage the tags, add new ones, remove old ones exactly.

What's clever is it also lets you manage tags. Add your tag, your partner's tag, maybe a temporary tag for a guest. And you could even set time restrictions.

Oh like for a cleaner or dog walker.

Precisely their tag might only work, say Tuesday afternoons.

That's neat.

And again the book brings up that practical security point for a home door. Is someone really going to try and clone your tag from two inches away? Maybe, but breaking a window is probably faster and easier for most burglars. It forces you to think about the real vulnerabilities.

That is a good dose of reality. Okay, so you've liberated your front door. The next logical step for many people their car.

Right.

How does RFID make keyless entry even more seamless, like no button presses at all?

Yeah, the concept here is fantastic for convenience, especially when your hands are full. Imagine just bumping your hip where your keys are in your pocket against the spot.

On the car and it unlocks, and it unlocks.

The project uses a pretty simple, inexpensive access control kit. These kits can store say forty or fifty tags. They usually have a master tag for easy programming, and maybe give you an audible beep conformation.

Antenna placement sounds like it would be critical here too. Where do you put it? Any challenges?

Absolutely vital. The antenna coil is often quite delicate. You need to secure it carefully to a non metallic surface.

Why non metality metal.

Interfered badly with one hundred and twenty five kJ ever signal, Even though that frequency is generally more tolerant than higher ones, it just kills the range. So ideally you mount it near a window, maybe tucked under some plastic trim inside the car. Getting reliable reads without having to fumble around takes some careful placement. Every millimeter counts makes sense?

And how does it actually talk to the car's locking system?

A couple of ways. You can interface it with your existing keyless entry remote fob. Basically, you wire the RFID kits relay to simulate pressing the unlocked button on a spare fob you hide in the car, AH clever or you can wire more directly to the car's power lock actuators. The book tends to focus on simplicity here, so direct integration usually just handles unlocking, not locking, to keep the wiring easier.

Gotcha, okay, front door car. What about your digital life? Logging into Windows XPI know a bit dated, but the concept with an RFID keyboard? How's that possible?

This project is really neat. It involves physically modifying a standard USB keyboard like an old Microsoft Natural Elite. You basically open it up and integrate a small USB RFID reader and maybe a tiny USB hub inside the keyboard casing.

So it all fits inside.

Yeah. The goal is to have just one single standard USB cable coming out of the keyboard to your PC. It makes the RFID part completely invisible, totally seamless.

With just typing, and when you wave your hand.

It feels like magic. You just wave your authorized tag over a spot on the keyboard and boom, you're logged in.

Okay, so the hardware is custom What about the software side? How do you make Windows accept an RFID tag instead of a password.

That's where a clever bit of open source software comes in a tool called pgina, or specifically a module for it called Polgina dot dlll pgina. Yeah. It essentially acts as a replacement for this stand Windows login screen. The gena module pull Gina works as a kind of middleman. It intercepts the login process. It lets you link specific

Wow. That sounds incredibly convenient, but also maybe a little concerning from a security standpoint.

Does the book address that or absolutely it highlights a critical security aspect.

Yeah.

By default, the tag IDs and the link usernames and passwords are stored in plaintext right in the Windows.

Registry plaintext, so anyone with admin access could just.

Read them exactly. Anyone who can access the registry editor with admin rights could potentially see that mapping. The book suggests maybe trying to secure those specific registry keys as a possible mitigation.

But is that fool proof?

Well? It also notes that poule Gina itself runs with system privileges, which is the highest level on Windows, so it always has access regardless. It's really a classic example that trade off amazing convenience versus potential security exposure, especially on a shared or less secured machine. You have to weigh the risks for your situation. And what's fascinating here is how these components, these ideas from personal projects, they

Think businesses, right, like the RFID enabled smart shelf. I can totally see that for business inventory tracking, medical supplies, maybe parts in a warehouse.

Exactly common business applications, supply chains, tracking files.

But how does that translate to home use. What's the insight for you and me?

Well, the concept scales down perfectly. You could adapt it for your DVD collection, your books, maybe tools and garage.

Okay, I see, so you always know what's on the shelf without having to look.

Pretty much. The core idea is real time inventory without manual scanning. And a crucial feature for this, especially for shelves with lots of items, is something called anti collision.

Anti collision.

Yeah, the reader module used in the book's project, it's a thirteen point five to six Megohurst read write module supports it. It basically means the reader can talk to multiple tags on the shelf at the same time without them all trying to respond at once and just creating noise.

Ah, so it can sort them out right.

It interrogates them intelligently so they don't talk over each other. That means you can literally just glance at a screen connected to the shelf reader and get an instant list of everything that's currently sitting there.

That's pretty powerful, so reading many tags at once. What are the practical challenges in setting up the antenna for something like that, like a whole shelf.

Well, that thirteen point five to six Melhurst frequency. It's particularly sensitive to interference from metal and also liquids. Okay, so the pad antenna used in the project has to be mounted to a non metal shelf, wood, plastic, fine metal. Big problem, it'll absorb or reflect the signal badly.

And getting good coverage over a whole shelf.

That's the trick. It's a delicate balance. You might need moultiple readers and antennas for larger areas, or you'd have to invest in a much more powerful and therefore more expensive reader setup. Getting reliable reads across every spot on a full shelf. It's a bit of a tight rope walk right.

Okay, So beyond organizing our stuff, the book also shows how our FID can help with our pets. The RFID pet door sounds like a fun one.

Oh, it's a great project. And what's neat about this one is unlike some of the earlier projects that needed a PC connect it.

Like the log and keyboard, right, the pet.

Door is designed as a fully autonomous system. It uses an RFID module, but it's paired with a small microprocessor like a basic.

Stamp, meaning it runs by itself exactly.

It functions completely independently. It reads the tag on your pets caller and decides whether to unlock the flap, all without needing a computer nearby. Only opens for your pets tag.

Okay, I can imagine antenna orientation being absolutely critical here the pets moving the tag on the caller might be flopping around.

You've hit on a really key point. This project is a perfect illustration of a fundamental principle of passive RFID. It's not just about being.

Close enough, it's about alignment.

Yes, alignment is crucial for the tag to get enough energy from the reader's field. To power up and respond, the coil antenna inside the tag needs to be aligned more or less parallel with the reader's antenna coil. If it's perpendicular turn the wrong way, the magnetic coupling is really weak. It won't get enough power.

Like trying to charge your phone wirelessly, the putting it on the charger.

Sideways exactly like that. So the challenge is, how do you make sure the pets tag is facing the right way when they walk up to the door.

Yeah, how do you solve that? You can't exactly train your cat to hold its head just right.

Uh huh No. The book offers a really clever practical solution. It's suggest using those small, flexible wristband style RFID tags. Okay, got the band part off, So you just have the tag module. Then you actually sow that module into the pets collar. And here's the trick. You also so in something with a bit of weight like their metal name tag positions so it naturally pulls the RFID tag module downwards.

Ah, So gravity helps keep the tag oriented correctly facing the reader antenna, which would be low down in the doorframe.

Precisely. It leverages the weight of the name tag to ensure the tag is usually facing downwards for an optimal read as the pet approaches. It's a really neat example of the kind of practical, ingenious problem solving you find throughout the book.

That is clever. Okay, moving beyond Homan pets. Now, RFID scales up dramatically for tracking things like employees or valuable assets, right, and for that you need longer range. So we're talking active RFID exactly.

Active RFID is a whole different ballgame because the tags have their own battery, right.

We covered that power equals.

Range yep, they don't need to rely on harvesting energy from the reader. This breaks that close range limitation. Systems like the four hundred and thirty three Meggahertz ones discussed in the book can offer ranges of you know, tens or even hundreds of feet. True wide area tracking.

Becomes possible, and the book highlights a specific reader for this, the Wavetrend LRS two one. What's special about that one? For larger scale.

Stuff, it has a few key features for that kind of application. One is support for RS four eight five networking. What's that It's a robust industrial communication standard unless you chain multiple readers together, up to two hundred and fifty five of them on a single long cable run, all connecting back to one PC. So you could cover a huge warehouse or office building with relatively simple wiring.

Okay, that makes sense for big areas anything else.

It also has adjustable gain. Think of it like a volume control for the reader's sensitivity or reach.

Why would you need that.

To fine tune the coverage area of each reader. You might want to prevent readers in adjacent zones from accidentally picking up the same tags, causing confusion. Adjustable gain lets you create more defined read zones.

Gotcha? Any downsides for hobbyists? Well?

The one quirk is that Wavetrend's official software development Kit, the SDK you'd normally use to write custom software for it. Yeah, it's proprietary. You usually need to sign a non disclosure agreement and NDA to get access.

So not quite as open as some of the other.

Stuff, right, A bit more of a hurdle for casual experimentation.

And what about the act of tags themselves? Are there different types? Any clever tricks?

Yeah, the wave Trend L series has various tags. There are standard personnel tags like badges, Domino style tags for sticking onto non metallic assets, keyfob tags.

Uh huh.

But one particularly clever one is the metallic asset tag. It's specifically designed to work even when attached directly to metal.

How does it do that? I thought metal was bad for RFID.

It usually is, especially when the tag is inside or sandwiched against metal. But this tag is designed to be affixed to the side of a metal object. Its antenna is tuned and positioned to radiate effectively even with the metal nearby. It's a neat solution to a very common RFID problem.

That is useful, and some of these tags even have tempered detection. How does that work?

It can, Yeah, It's usually a simple mechanism. A small magnet is mounted on the asset and a red switch which is sensitive to magnetic fields, is inside the tag housing. Okay, When the tag is attached correctly, the magnet holds the read switch closed or open, depending on the design. If someone tries to remove the tag from the asset, the magnet moves away, the switch flips state, and the tag immediately transmits a tamper alert signal.

Clever does it always get picked up?

It relies on a reader being close enough to hear that alert pretty quickly, so it's most effective if the tagged asset is usually within a monitored zone. But it adds a nice layer of security for valuable items.

So you've got all these readers, all these tags reporting in. How do you actually manage all that data and make sense of it?

Well, the book mentions some generic track stuff software as an example concept showing how you'd process the raw tag reads you know, tag id, reader id timestamp into meaningful information like asset x last seen at door y at

AH, so you can use the powerful wave Trend readers and tags.

Exactly get the long range the networking, the tamper detection, but.

Without needing the official Wave Trend software or SDT.

Precisely, it makes that high end active RFID hardware much more accessible for diiers or people building custom automation systems. You can integrate the tracking data directly into your smart home rules or other custom applications. It really opens up possibilities.

Okay, here's where it gets really interesting. I think, what if RFID could do more than just identify something. What if it could actually tell you something new about an item, or even change how we interact with the world around us.

Yeah, this is where read write tags really come into their own, pushing beyond just simple ID touched on it earlier. The idea of data on.

The tag right, like the white gem socks example.

Exactly, but scale that up. The book uses a great example brewery barrels. Okay, imagine each barrel has a ReadWrite tag. When it's filled, the system writes what product is inside, maybe which dispenser filled it, and crucially whether the barrel is currently sealed or tapped.

Ah. So the barrel itself carries its status.

Yes, so when that barrel arrives somewhere else, the scanner doesn't need to check a central database to know what's in it or if it's ready to use. The tag tells it directly. This enables autonomous logic. The item itself holds the critical info.

Which as you said, saves needing network connections everywhere.

Right, big cost saving in large operations.

But these tags don't have much storage do they? Like you mentioned four bytes per block earlier, how do you cram all that information product, dispenser, sealed status into such a tiny space that.

Requires some cleverness bit level manipulation, bit level.

Like dealing with individual ones and zeros exactly.

Instead of thinking in whole bytes, where one byte might store one number or one character, you design a data schema that uses specific bits within a byte or across a few bytes to represent different pieces of information.

Can you give an example?

Sure? Maybe the first three bits of a byte represent the dispenser ID allowing eight IDs, the next three bits represent the product ID another eight products, and the last two bits could represent the status zero zero means empty, zero one means filled, sealed, ten means tapped, eleven means maybe needs cleaning.

Wow, So you pack multiple data points into a single byte.

Precisely, you maximize every single available bit of storage on the tag. It's a bit of a hack, but a really necessary one to get meaningful data onto these low cost, limited memory tags.

And is this just for fixed readers or can you build something portable to read and write this data on the go.

Oh yeah, the book absolutely covers that. It describes building a handheld read write device basically taking one of those common packed RFID modules like the SkyTech M one, pairing it again with a microprocessor like the Basic Stamp, adding a battery and an LCD screen, and stuffing it all into a small project box.

So you can walk around and update the tags on things.

Exactly, you could walk up to that brewer barrel, scan it, maybe updated status to tap directly on the tag using the handheld device. It highlights the engineering challenge of cramming it all in, but it shows the amazing versatility of having that autonomous read write power out in the field. It extends RFID into real hands on data management.

That really does feel like extreme RFID, turning a hobby project into a serious tool. And the book explores other extreme applications too, right like integrating with home automation.

Definitely we mentioned home ser You can connect RFID readers passive or active to it. Then you can create rules. If my tag is detected by the hallway reader, then turn on the living room lights and the kitchen lights to fifty percent.

So your house reacts to your presence automatically.

Yeah, using systems like X ten you were smart home tech. The book mentions specific X ten modules. An RFID event scanning your tag, maybe even an active tag detecting you entering a room, can trigger pretty much any automated action. Lights, fans, music, thermostat changes. Your house can genuinely greet you or adjust itself as you move around.

And then there's this more conceptual idea SPyME and how artists are using RFID right.

Spme. It's a term coined by the science fiction author Bruce Sterling Ok. It refers to objects that could be tracked through space and time, objects that have a history associated with them, often via embedded tech like RFID. They're not just static things. They have a life cycle, a location history.

Interesting concept. How does art come into it?

Artists Megan Trainer did a project called with Hidden Numbers that really brings this to life. Her artwork uses embedded RFID tags. When a specific tagged object a spine, is detected in a certain area, it can trigger artistic actions like what like invoking specific audio clips related to that object's history. We're even causing a physical sculpture somewhere else to animate or change in response to the object's presence. It directly links the physical object and its identity to

That's fascinating. And then, perhaps the most personal and most extreme application, implantable RFID tags. The author Amal Grafstra is kind of famous for this.

He is. He's definitely a pioneer in the self implantation space. For practical use. Now, there is an SDA approved tag, the Vaship, intended for human implantation, mostly for medical ID purposes, but am All went further for his own access control. He actually has two implants, a simple one or twenty five Kilohertz tag in his left hand.

How did that get in?

That one required a small incision with a scalpel, And then he has a more advanced thirteen point five to six millerherz read write tag in his right hand, which was inserted using a large gauge injection needle assembly.

Wow. And he uses these for everyday things.

Yeah, purely for personal access control, opening his front door, unlocking his car, logging into his computer, even opening a safe just by waving the correct hand, it's the ultimate embodiment of his original vision, a completely keyless, passwordless existence.

That's incredible dedication to the idea. But are all tags that could be implanted safe or suitable? The book must address that.

It does, and it's a critical safety point. It warns specifically against using common ampool tags the little glass tubes often sold for pet identification for human implantation.

Why not? They look similar.

They often have a porous anti migration coating like perilene C or something similar. It's designed to let body tissue actually grow into the coating slightly to stop the tag from moving around under the skin.

Okay, sounds good for pet, but it.

Makes removal in humans incredibly difficult and potentially very painful or damaging if it ever becomes necessary. Tags specifically designed for human use, like the type amal uses, are typically uncoded, smooth glass or biocompatible polymer designed for easier remove if needed. It's a very important distinction for anyone even remotely curious.

Good to know. Are there communities for people interested in this?

Yeah? The book mentions online communities like one hosted at tagged dot cows, dot gen, dot n sns, where people with implants or those considering it can share experiences and information safely.

Okay, Now, all this tracking, all this identification, especially as it becomes more widespread, it inevitably brings up big questions about privacy and how this data gets used. The bookshares are really compelling story about Florida toll roads.

Yeah, that's a striking example of let's say, function creep or unintended consequences.

What happened?

So the RFID tags people use for automatic toll payment, like some pass in Florida? It turned out the highway authority had also installed readers along non toll sections of major highways, officially for traffic monitoring. They were reading the toll tags every half mile or so to anonymously calculate average travel times between points anonymously. Well that was the claim. Yeah, but the system was reading the unique idea of each tag.

Wow, that really highlights the issue convenience meets potential surveillance exactly.

It shows how easily an infrastructure built for one purpose can be used for another, and why consumer awareness and transparency about data usage are so crucial as RFID becomes ubiquitous.

Are there other, maybe less obvious, tracking examples the book covers sure.

Casinos are another big one. They're increasingly tagging high value poker chips multiple reasons. Security, mainly readers built into the tables can detect if bets are placed after the dealer calls no more bets. They can track chip movements, spot counterfeit chips, or see if someone pockets chips they shouldn't. Cashier's trays can automatically count tag chips, so.

Real time inventory and security on the gaming floor precisely.

It gives the casino owners a much clearer, real time picture of their assets and helps prevent cheating or theft.

And the book even speculates about tagging cash itself.

Yeah, it throws that out there as a future possibility. Imagine currency notes with tiny embedded RFID tags. What would be the point automatic counting? For one, a bank could verify a deposit instantly without manual accounting, Maybe tracking large cache movements to fight crime your wall. It could potentially even tell you exactly how much cash is inside.

That's a mind bending thought. The privacy implications there seem huge, absolutely.

Huge, and it really circles back to that core question the technology forces us to confront. As this RFID infrastructure keeps expanding and it definitely will, how do we as a society strike that balance. How do we harness the innovation and the convenience.

Without sacrificing personal privacy or allowing opaque data collection?

Exactly? We need to be aware, We need to ask questions, and we need to demand transparency and how this powerful technology is deployed and used.

What a fascinating deep dive. We've really covered a lot, from the basic principles of RFID active versus passive read write.

All the way to these really extreme applications building your own access control, smartshelves, pet.

Doors right, and then the bigger ideas like spime, integrating with home automation and even implannable tech. The ingenuity is just incredible.

And hopefully knowing all this helps you the listener, not just appreciate the tech itself, but also grasp the implications as it becomes more and more embedded in our world.

Yeah, you now have a much deeper sense of the trade offs involved, the clever engineering hacks, and that really important ongoing conversation around privacy and data use.

It stops being just some abstract technology and becomes something tangible, something that affects or will affect your everyday life.

So where does this leave us? What's the final thought? As RFID continues this rapid climb weaving itself into the fabric of everything around us. What surprising new toys or maybe what challenging new ethical dilemmas do you think it will create next?

And perhaps more importantly, what role will inform citizens like yourself play and actually shaping that future, ensuring this technology serves us well.