Following up on the revelation WBT’s Tara Servatius made yesterday on the radio frequency ID (RFID) chips embedded in the city of Charlotte’s new green rollout recycling bins, here are a couple pictures which reveal the location of the RFID chips on the bins.
The first give away is the US Patent number on the front lip, followed by the small rectangle on the center of the lip. That is the street facing edge, up high, a prime location for truck mounted sensors to pick up. When you invert the bin and look up into the cavity created by the front lip bracing, the outlines of the chip are quite visible, especially with bright back-lighting. Someone with a better camera rig could probably get a very good shot looking at the bottom of the chip that way.
In any event, now that we know where it is, the chip’s bleeps could be blocked by relatively simple non-destructive means.
Remember, the bin is the property of the city of Charlotte — you don’t want Rodney Monroe or Mac McCarley coming after you for drilling a hole in it. A strip of aluminum foil duct tape across the top of the chip on the lip paired with a wad of aluminum foil jammed up against the bottom of the chip inside the cavity should do the trick.
Next up, a closer look at Otto Industries, the home town, Charlotte firm responsible for selling the city this recycling “solution.”
