The NFC Forum, an industry-leading standards body for Near Field Communication (NFC) technology, recently announced its Technology Roadmap through 2028, providing a unique insight into the future of NFC and its potential impact on product development, markets, and business opportunities for the next two to five years.
The roadmap, a collaborative effort from the Forum’s prominent members including Apple, Google, Huawei, Identiv, Infineon, NXP, Qualcomm, Sony, and STMicroelectronics, highlights crucial innovation priorities for the future of NFC.
Five Innovation Priorities for the Future of NFC
1. Increased Power for NFC Wireless Charging
Current NFC Wireless Charging specifications offer up to 1 watt of power. The roadmap plans to extend this capacity to 3 watts, opening up new possibilities for wireless power and charging in smaller form factors, thereby disrupting the industrial design and defining new markets.
2. Increased Range
The NFC Forum aims to extend the NFC connection range, currently limited to 5mm, by four to six times. Even a minor increase would enhance the speed and ease of contactless transactions, improving usability by reducing the precision needed for antenna alignment.
3. Multiple Purpose Tap
This innovation aims to improve the contactless user experience by supporting multiple actions with a single tap. The roadmap identifies key use cases, including point-to-point receipt delivery, loyalty identification, and total-journey ticketing.
4. Modernizing Device-to-Device Communication
The NFC Forum plans to enable NFC-enabled smartphones to function as Point-of-Sale devices (SoftPOS), allowing businesses and individuals to accept payments anywhere.
5. Expanding NFC’s Ability to Share Data Formats Needed for Sustainability
The roadmap includes plans to enable NFC to share data on product composition and recycling methods, meet evolving consumer demands and regulatory requirements, and contribute to a healthy circular economy.
The Executive Director of NFC Forum, Mike McCamon, emphasized the importance of the roadmap in shaping the future of NFC technology, indicating how these planned features have the potential to significantly enhance the way we transact, engage with brands, power our devices, and access sustainable products and services.
