In ubiquitous ID architecture, various real-world objects are embedded with ubiquitous ID tags (ucode tags) made up of RFID elements, sensors, or other components. The fundamental approach is that ucode tags will store information about the objects, but current limitations in memory capacity make it unfeasible to store comprehensive information. Thus, ucode tags simply store ID codes (ubiquitous IDs) to distinguish their objects, along with some additional identifying information. Information that cannot be stored in ucode tags is maintained in the database across the network.

Terminals designed to read ucode tags are called ubiquitous communicators (UCs). After reading the ucode, a UC can access services and servers to receive corresponding information services. In ubiquitous computing environments, there will be a tremendous amount of ucode tags and information services with servers scattered all around the world, so a large-scale distributed directory database (on ucode Solution Servers) will maintain ties between the ucodes and the information services and servers. This is the key infrastructure system bridging the gap between the real world expressed by data on ucode tags and the virtual world on information servers.

Communication using ubiquitous ID technology requires a certification authority for secure transactions that takes privacy into consideration. Even after objects with ucode tags have become popular with the general public, the special protection afforded by the contactless communication interface of ucode tags will prevent unauthorized users from attempting to read the information.