Professional NFC Application Development for Android

363 Pages·2013·7.66 MB·English

by  Vedat Coskun

CONTENTS
Chapter 1: Overview of Near Field Communication
Ubiquitous Computing and NFC
Wireless Communication as NFC
RFID Technology
Smart Card Technology
NFC Technology
Summary
Chapter 2: NFC Essentials for Application Developers
NFC Mobile
Standards Used by NFC
NFC Operating Mode Essentials
Standardization of NFC
Diversity of NFC Platforms
Summary
Chapter 3: Getting Started with Android
What Is Android?
Android SDK
What You Need to Start
SDK Packages
Android API Levels
Structure of Android Applications
Dalvik Virtual Machine (DVM)
Platform Tools
SDK Tools
Android Virtual Device
Summary
Chapter 4: Android Software Development Primer
Creating Your First Android Application
Running Applications on Your Mobile Phone
Distributing Android Applications
Understanding Hello World
Using Multiple Views
Android Project Resources
Using an Event Listener
Using Relative Layout
Using Dialog Builders
Using Grid Layout
Android Activity Lifecycle
Implementing Multiple Activities and Intents
Using Menu Items
Summary
Chapter 5: NFC Programming: Reader/Writer Mode
NFC APIs in Android
Tag Intent Dispatch System vs. Foreground Dispatch System
NFC Tag Intent Dispatch System
NFC Properties in the Android Manifest File
Filtering NFC Intents
Checking the NFC Adapter
Tag Writing
Tag Reading
Android Application Record
Foreground Dispatch System
Working with Supported Tag Technologies
Summary
Chapter 6: Reader/Writer Mode Applications
NFC Smart Poster Use Case
NFC Shopping Use Case
Student Transportation Tracking Use Case
Summary
Chapter 7: NFC Programming: Peer-to-Peer Mode
Performing Peer-to-Peer Transactions
Beaming NDEF Messages
Receiving Beams
An Abstract Beam with setNdefPushMessageCallback( )
An Abstract Beam with setNdefPushMessage( )
Declaring Intent Filters
Using Android Application Records in Peer-to-Peer Mode
An Example Beam Application Using
setNdefPushMessageCallback( )
An Example Beam Application Using setNdefPushMessage( )
Beam Support for API Level 10
Android OS to Handle the Incoming Beam
Beaming Files
Summary
Chapter 8: Peer-to-Peer Mode Applications
NFC Chatting
NFC Guess Number
NFC Panic Bomb
Summary
Chapter 9: NFC Programming: Card Emulation Mode
Definition of Card Emulation Mode
Business Ecosystem
Stakeholders in an NFC Ecosystem
Business Models
Card Emulation Mode Use Case Alternatives
Card Emulation Mode Programming
Programming Secure Elements
Programming NFC Reader
Programming Android Applications
Summary
Appendix A: URI Prefixes for NDEF
Appendix B: Android NFC Packages
Introduction
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Chapter 1
Overview of Near Field Communication
WHAT’S IN THIS CHAPTER?
A background for NFC technology
Ubiquitous computing and wireless communication aspects for NFC
Evolution of NFC technology: RFID and contactless smart card
technologies
An introduction to NFC technology and NFC devices: NFC tag, NFC
reader, and NFC mobile
NFC operating modes with generic usage models
Examples for NFC applications in terms of operating modes
Currently, Near Field Communication (NFC) is one of the enablers for
ubiquitous computing. This technology simplifies and secures interaction with
the automation ubiquitously around you. Many applications you use daily such
as credit cards, car keys, tickets, health cards, and hotel room access cards will
presumably cease to exist because NFC-enabled mobile phones will provide all
these functionalities.
The NFC ecosystem is designed from the synergy of several technologies,
including wireless communications, mobile devices, mobile applications, and
smart card technologies. Also, server-side programming, web and cloud services,
and XML technologies contribute to the improvement and spread of NFC
technology and its applications.
This chapter provides a brief background of the fundamentals and evolution of
NFC technology. Then it gives a brief overview of NFC technology and the
touching paradigm, including a comparison of NFC with other wireless
technologies, and an introduction to smart NFC devices and operating modes
with novel NFC applications in the industry.
UBIQUITOUS COMPUTING AND
NFC
The history of modern computers comprises work that’s been performed over the
past 200 years. Personal computers (PCs) were an important step after early
computers, changing the way that users interact with computers by using
keyboards and monitors for input and output instead of primitive options such as
punch cards and cables. The mouse also changed the way that humans interact
with computers because it enables users to input spatial data in to a computer.
Users became accustomed to using their hands to hold the mouse and pointing
their fingers to click it. The movements of the pointing device are echoed on the
screen by the movements of the cursor, creating a simple and intuitive way to
navigate a computer’s graphical user interface (GUI).
Touch screens changed the form of interaction even further and did so in a
dramatic way. They removed the need for earlier input devices, and the
interaction was performed by directly touching the screen, which became the
new input device. In the meantime, mobile phones were introduced, initially for
voice communication. Early forms of mobile phones contained a keypad. Those
mobile phones with touch screens are considered to be state of the art because
the screen is used for both input and output, which is more intuitive for users.
Ubiquitous computing is the highest level of interaction between humans and
computers, in which computing devices are completely integrated into everyday
life. Ubiquitous computing is a model in which humans do not design their
activities according to the machines they need to use; instead, the machines are
adjusted to human needs. Eventually, the primary aim is that humans using
machines will not need to change their daily behaviors and will not even notice
that they are performing activities with the help of machines.
As in modern computers and interfaces, increasing mobility of computing
devices provided by mobile communications is also an important step in the
development of ubiquitous computing capabilities and NFC. Mobile phones
already had several communications options with the external environments
before the introduction of NFC. When mobile phones were initially introduced,
their primary goal was to enable voice communication. GSM (Global System for
Mobile) communication further enabled functionality of mobile phones for
several services, such as voice communication, short messaging service (SMS),
multimedia message service (MMS), and Internet access. Also, the introduction
of Global Positioning System (GPS) and Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) technologies
(e.g., Infrared Data Association or IrDA) changed the way we use mobile
phones. One communication option between mobile phones and computers was
data transfer by USB — a physical port was used for this purpose, and cable was
used for data transfer.
Later, Bluetooth technology was introduced, creating personal area networks
that connect peripherals with computing devices such as mobile phones.
Bluetooth became very popular in the early 2000s. Perhaps the most widely used
function of Bluetooth is data exchange among mobile phones or between a
mobile phone and another Bluetooth-enabled device such as a computer.
Bluetooth enables communication among devices within a particular vicinity.
However, secure data transfer cannot be performed completely with this
technology because it is designed for wireless communication up to 10 meters,
which allows malicious devices to alter the communication.
Currently, a new way of interacting has entered everyone’s daily life: NFC
technology can be identified as a combination of contactless identification and
interconnection technologies. NFC operates between two devices in a short
communication range via a touching paradigm. It requires touching two NFC-
compatible devices together over a few centimeters. NFC communication occurs
between an NFC mobile device on one side and an NFC tag (a passive RFID
tag), an NFC reader, or an NFC mobile device on the other side. RFID is capable
of accepting and transmitting beyond a few meters and has a wide range of uses.
However, NFC is restricted for use within close proximity (up to a few
centimeters) and also designed for secure data transfer. Currently, integration of
NFC technology into mobile phones is considered a practical solution because
almost everyone carries a mobile phone.
The main vision of NFC is the integration of personal and private information
such as credit card or cash card data into the mobile phones. Therefore, security
is the most important concern, and even the short wireless communication range
provided by RFID technology is considered too long. Shielding is necessary to
prevent unauthorized people from eavesdropping on private conversations
because even nonpowered, passive tags still can be read over 10 meters. This is
the point where NFC comes in.
NFC integrates RFID technology and contactless smart technologies within
mobile phones. The evolution of NFC technology is illustrated in Figure 1-1.
The gray areas in the figure indicate the technological developments that support
the NFC environment directly. This chapter provides a brief overview of the
technologies that make NFC evolution possible.
FIGURE 1-1
WIRELESS COMMUNICATION AS
NFC
NFC technology also can be evaluated using a wireless communication aspect.
Wireless communication refers to data transfer without using any cables. When
communication is impossible or impractical through the use of cables, wireless
communication is the solution. The range may vary from a few centimeters to
many kilometers.
Wireless communication devices include various types of fixed, mobile, and
portable two-way radios, cellular telephones, personal digital assistants, GPS
units, wireless computer mice, keyboards and headsets, satellite television, and
cordless telephones. Wireless communication allows communication without
requiring a physical connection to the network.
Wireless communication introduces challenges that are somewhat harder to
handle compared to wired communication; these challenges include interference,
attenuation, unreliability, cost, and security. Wireless communication makes use
of transmission of data over electromagnetic waves within the electromagnetic
spectrum, as depicted in Figure 1-2.
FIGURE 1-2
The most straightforward benefit of wireless communication is mobility,
which, indeed, has a big impact on everyone’s daily life. Mobile communication
supports not only the productivity and flexibility of organizations but also the
social life of individuals because people can stay continuously connected to their
social networks. Widely used wireless technologies include GSM, 3G, LTE
(Long Term Evolution), Bluetooth, WiFi, WiMAX, and ZigBee.
Table 1-1 gives a brief summary and comparison of popular wireless
technologies currently used around the world, according to their operating
frequency, data rate, and operating range. GPRS, EDGE, and UMTS
technologies represent wireless wide area networks (WWANs). Wireless local
area networks (WLAN) follow these technologies with different frequencies and
range, and then come the wireless personal area network (WPAN) technologies
such as ZigBee and Bluetooth 2.0. NFC has the shortest communication range,
which is followed by RFID technology.
TABLE 1-1: Overview of Some Wireless Technologies