Becoming Cyborg. NFC implant
Premise:
I’m a cyborg now. Thank Prime Intellect that my ligaments are intact and or that I haven’t been exposed to severe radiation that would deaden my biological components thus requiring electromechanical modifications, however, I am now technically a cyborg.
Today I implanted an NFC tag with an LED in my hand. Although I wish I looked like a robot to the extent that Perry the Platypus’ doppelganger from the Perry the Platypus (2nd Dimension) was, my cyborg modification is discrete.
Implanting an NFC tag in your hand:
I got the implant kit from DangerousThings.com. The implant itself was contained in a 3mm diameter needle and plunger assembly sterilized with EO gas. The kit also came with various implements like a procedure underpad, gauze, and prep pads to reduce risk of infection.
Dangerous Things says the implant should be installed by a professional, but an extra pair of hands was all I needed to complete the installation. Plus, I decided I can tolerate pain better if I’m in control and I could easily back the needle out if something didn’t feel right. All in all, the procedure went smoothly. There's a great video by Nick Poole at Sparkfun about how to install the implant and it’s as easy as he makes it look.
First, I washed my hands twice with soap and hot water. I laid down the underpad and prepared all the implements. After drying my hands, I made a few marks where I wanted the implant to go as described in the video and then used the prep pad to sterilize the injection area. My assistant lifted and rolled the skin to remove large blood vessels while wearing gloves and then using my dominant hand I inserted a needle into the injection mark.
There were a few pops from breaking the skin but it hurt far less than a bee sting. I inserted the needle nearly an inch into the skin then backed it out 5mm before I began to plunge the implant into the void left by the tip of the needle. My assistant covered the entry point with gauze as I removed the needle. There was but a drop of blood which was a good sign that I didn’t hit a blood vessel. In one video I watched the legitimate medical professional hit a blood vein and didn’t cover the site before removing the needle. As a result blood gushed everywhere. Thankfully that wasn’t the case here.
What is NFC?
NFC or near field communication is a form of radio frequency identification (RFID). NFC is used by your iPhone for Apple Pay and you might find other RFID tags used for keyless entry in workplaces. Like its name implies, RFID uses both different radio frequencies (LF: 125.0 kHz, HF: 13.56 MHz) to transmit data. In any case energy is required to transmit a signal. My iPhone transmits NFC data to the card swipe at the gas station, but in most use cases RFID does not contain a battery and instead uses coils to transmit power (like wireless chagrin) to the tag. Such is the case with my implant. When scanned, the tag picks up enough energy from my phone to retrieve a signal from the tag.
How to program and read:
I use an app called NFC Tools program and read data on my tag. The app comes with lots of great features and even manipulates the output of the NFC signal when you select read to ensure you get a more prompt read everytime you scan. This feature is also useful with the write addon which costs an additional $2.99. When writing to the NFC you have a plethora of options. Including but not limited to plain text, phone numbers, contact info, websites, locations, and even a bitcoin address and payment. These are all great features and they can be overwritten/deleted as quickly as you can read a tag.
