The Auto-ID Center has begun field testing of its Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) system which supports automated supply chain transactions. One system component is the Physical Markup Language (PML), "an XML-based language for databasing information about physical objects. PML is designed to standardize descriptions of physical objects for use by both humans and machines; the primary objective of PML is to serve as a common base for the software applications, data storage and analytic tools for industry and commerce. The Auto-ID Center's vision is to revolutionize the way we make, buy, and sell products by merging bits (computers) and atoms (humans) together for optimal mutual communication. The system also uses the Electronic Product Code (EPC), a unique numbering scheme for every object in the world and an Object Name Service (ONS). RFID tags are built into objects like food, clothes, drugs or auto-parts, and read' by devices in the environment, e.g., in shelves, floors, doors."

"The Physical Markup Language exists as part of the 'intelligent infrastructure.' The intelligent infrastructure which we envision automatically and seamlessly links physical objects to each other, people and information through the global Internet. This intelligent infrastructure has four major components:electronic tags, Electronic Product Code (EPC), Physical Markup Language (PML), and Object Naming Service (ONS). Electronic tags refer to a family of technologies that transfer data wirelessly between tagged objects and electronic readers. Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags, often used in 'smart cards,' have small radio antennas,which transmit data over a short range. The Motorola BiStatix tags, an Electromagnetic Identification (EMID) technology, uses capacitive coupling to transmit information. Electronic tags, when coupled to a reader network, allow continuous tracking and identification of physical resources. In order to access and identify tagged objects,a unique naming system was developed..."