Using RFID in the Engineering of Interactive Software Systems: A Systematic Mapping

Abstract

IoT, Industry 4.0, and ubiquitous applications demand an intense exchange of information between actors (humans, animals, plants, or other objects) and things. Different interaction technologies, techniques, and methods can support it, including RFID, a well-known technology capable of identifying and locating actors. However, the variety of application domains and interaction possibilities jeopardize the use of RFID without a clear understanding of its usage issues. Therefore, we have performed a systematic mapping to characterize the adoption of RFID technology in this kind of interactive software system by intercepting human-computer interaction and software engineering issues. Our goal is to reveal (i) which application domains address RFID; (ii) why RFID is used instead of other technologies; (iii) who interacts through RFID and how the interaction is; (iv) what are the requirements and limitations associated with it; and (v) what are the common quality characteristics and measures which should be considered for their evaluation. The results showed that (i) RFID is specially used for implementing implicit interactions in healthcare, embedded systems, and manufacturing applications. (ii) Passive UHF RFID is usually adopted due to being contactless, low-cost, and well-performing indoors. (iii) It interacts with humans and things in the same proportion, most frequently to collect locations of sensor data constantly. (iv) RFID presents limitations, such as causing electromagnetic interference and not working well near metallic walls. However, tags work under high temperatures and can be well hidden in cement or clothes. (v) Interactive system designers usually create applications with invisible infrastructures, which tend to keep users' focus on the real world.?