Brooks Automation Supplies an RFID Reliant Factory
Intermech Machinery has decided on an RFID solution to increase efficiency in its plant in Tuas, Singapore. Hardware provided by Brooks Automation (Germany) GmbH (www.brooks.com) will be applied in the form of smart shelves and building components for the tracking of inventory and production. This makes Intermech Machinery one of the first companies in the automation field to fully rely on RFID technology.
The factory contains over 16,000 square feet and is equipped with the latest in wireless technology. Brooks HF70 Long Range Readers were chosen for the smart shelves based on their guaranteed read ratings. Intermech Machinery's Warehouse Management System (WMS) acts as the coordinator, to which inventory inspection readings of completeness and correctness are sent at regular intervals. The system is expected to reduce material loss by up to 50% and raise plant productivity by 40%. Personnel can also use portable "Scan_ID" readers for use of orders. The wireless LAN in connection with the WMS shows the current stock in real time. Visit www.ready4rfid.com.
Groups Discuss RFID's Recycling Challenges
There is a concern in the recycling of metal materials embedded with RFID chips. Use of materials like lead and copper, which are commonly found in RFID tags, creates a potential problem within the recycling process for materials such as steel, plastic, paper, and glass. Agencies and companies alike are developing ways to combat the issue.
The government has become involved in the issue due to the demand for safer recycling measures. An intra-government U.S. RFID Council meets a few times during the year to talk of the issues. The steel industry is asking the government to halt the development of copper-based tags that produce large scale problems within the recycling of steel. The Environmental Protection Agency has also made announcements for their support with industries and government agencies to assure tags as environmentally safe.
While some companies feel that Congress should regulate the use of RFID throughout the U.S., others are taking initiative into their own hands and changing the materials used within the tags. RF Code has announced that their products are now lead-free and now comply with the European Union directive, which bans the use of certain dangerous chemicals. ADASA is a company focused on finding a solution to the threat of tag build-up, and it has pursued methods of removal and the re-usage of tags. AIM, an RFID group founded by the global trade association, composed and submitted a draft to the International Organization for Standardization that voices the concerns of the recycling industry. For more information, visit www.govexec.com.
IPICO Pilots Four Projects in China
IPICO Inc. (www.ipico.com) and the China RFID Alliance will be piloting four projects in Qingdao, in the Shandong province of China. Qingdao government agencies and bureaus will be included, as well as one of the top 100 electronics and information technology companies in China, Haier. This announcement follows the release of IPICO's IP-X® RFID technology during the China RFID Alliance IP-X Forum in July.
IPICO's IP-X® RFID technology will be piloted throughout the next six months in the fields of: Electronic Vehicle Identification (EVI), low cost electronic licensing, electric toll collection, border and access control, container security, logistics throughout global supply chains, animal identification, and meat identification and traceability throughout the supply chain. It will employ products based on IPICO's UHF and Dual Frequency RFID technologies.
The FreeFlow Spotting® of tags will piloted by use of the IP-X® air protocol, which provides free-running RFID tags throughout all frequency bands. This process allows for high-speed sorting, manufacturing, and identification throughout the supply chain.
Digital Angel Receives Patent for Glucose-Sensing Microchip
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has awarded Digital Angel (www.digitalangelcorp.com) a patent for their breakthrough glucose-sensing RFID microchip technology. The chip is a syringe implantable, passive chip with a glucose sensor that can quickly, accurately, and painlessly read the blood sugar levels of diabetic patients. A passive RFID chip transmits the data to the wireless scanner. The new technology offers a more comfortable monitoring process compared to the conventional finger-prick method, which often leads to inaccurate results. Diabetes is also a critical issue within the livestock industry. This new technology could have an equally significant impact within this industry as well.
Digital Angel's sister company, who specializes in human implantable identification technologies, VeriChip (www.verichipcorp.com), will market the glucose-sensing chip. The next step for the companies involves naming the chip, and acquiring international patent protection on the technology.
ACG Receives Two MasterCard Certifications
ACG Identification Technologies (www.acg-id.com) has been awarded MasterCard Paypass certification and MasterCard Quality Management (CQM) certification for its ISO/IEC 14443 contactless payment card inlay. This certification ensures products manufactured at ACG's manufacturing site will reliable and consistently perform according to MasterCard PayPass standards. It is mandatory in order to supply MasterCard products and components to banks or their suppliers. The technology was produced for cost effective and high quality contactless payment options for bank card manufacturers.
The prelaminate, the most critical component of a PayPass, contains the RFID chip and antenna and provides the contactless technology and is tested against both PayPass ISO/OEC 14443 requirements and ensures compliance with PayPass requirements. In terms of form factors and sheet sizes, ACG's prelaminates are considered to be highly flexible among leading card manufacturers.
RFID TagSource Will Represent Confidex In North America
Confidex (www.confidex.fi), based in Finland, has announced that RFID TagSource (www.rfidtagsource.com), based in New Jersey, will be representing the company in North America. RFID TagSource will be providing tagging services to Confidex's North American customers. The decision to use RFID TagSource was based on its reputation for RFID design, manufacturing, and engineering. Both companies see a well executed partnership from the contract.
Customers will primarily be in the Aerospace and Defense industry as well as similar industries. Both companies have been working on a major RFID initiative for the aerospace industry, which includes the production of 64k UHF tags. Currently the initiative is in the requirement gathering process.
WORKABOUT PRO Meets RFID Reader
Psion Teklogix (www.psionteklogix.com) and CAEN RFID (www.caen.it/rfid) have introduced the newest version of the WORKABOUT PRO, which incorporates the technology of rugged handheld computer and the highest UHF RFID reader. The solution creates a wide range of solutions for many European vertical markets.
The WORKABOUT PRO provides reliable performance in harsh conditions and can withstand short falls onto hard surfaces. The computer also runs Windows CE.NET, providing users with their entire real-time communication needs in one module. The UHF reader operates at 896.5 MHz and is mainly used for closed-loop supply chains and asset tracking, and is Class 1 and Gen 2 compliant.
Intermec to Supply Hong Kong Airport With Gen 2 System
Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) has chosen Intermec (www.intermec.com) to install and service its EasyCoder PF2i Baggage Tag Printers with integrated Gen 2 RFID modules to expand their existing RFID baggage sorting system. Hong Kong International is not only Asia's "superhub" as the fifth busiest international airport and the world's largest air cargo operation, but is also the first airport to have a complete end-to-end RFID baggage sorting system.
Printers will be located at every check-in counter and will encode a Gen 2 chip with the same flight and baggage information printed on the baggage tag itself. The bags will be sorted and loaded according to the RFID data. As part of a $4.5 billion series of renovations throughout the airport, the new baggage technology will provide passengers with a higher service standard and a worry-free flight.
Jeco RFID-Ready Pallets 'Worth-a-Look'
Graph Expo 2006 honored Jeco RFID-Ready pallets with the "Worth-a-Look!" Award. As the only pallet manufacturer to receive the award, Jeco prevailed over 108 finalists.
Jeco's RFID-Ready pallets offer permanent tagging options by molding the tag directly into the plastic pallet. A specifically designed slot maximizes readability and protects the tag from warehouse dangers. The slots can also be designed to accept a wide variety of tags. Jeco's plastic pallets and containers are used in the printing, automotive, pharmaceutical, food, appliance, and general logistics industries. Their plastic pallets and containers supply significant cost savings to material handling applications requiring strength and durability, regardless of the industry. Jeco's portfolio includes designs for large press manufacturers, such as: Heidelberg, Bobst, KBA, and Man-Rolannd. Jeco Plastic Products also provides extensive automotive products, including plastic shipping containers, totes, bins, trays, and plastic custom returnable packaging. Visit www.jecoplastics.com.
Stratum Global and Lowry Computer Products Partner
A distribution agreement has been set between Lowry Computer Products, a provider of AIDC and RFID labeling solutions, and Stratum Global, an RFID solutions provider. The partnership will add Stratum's TagNet RFID solution to their already manicured portfolio of products.
The TagNet RFID solution's open architecture allows for a scalable and "platform agnostic" software solution. TagNet has multilingual capability and boasts special features for advanced modules like enabled lift trucks, and conveyors. Both companies are looking forward to the benefits the partnership will bring the both of them. Visit www.stratumglobal.com and www.lowrycomputer.com.
ABI Research Says NFC Payment Trial Will Break Impasse
A new trial in Dallas, TX, bringing together MasterCard, Nokia, and convenience store 7-Eleven's Speak Out wireless MVNO operation, will see NFC-enabled mobile phones equipped with MasterCard "PayPass" contactless payment capability. Up to 500 participants will take part in the six month trial.
A key aspect of the trial is over-the-air NFC payment provisioning using Giesecke & Devrient's (G&D) new chip management offering. Previous trials have relied on card issuers managing the provision of each handset before handing them over to each trial participant—a method that would be a barrier to the wide scale adoption of NFC payments.
Alongside provisioning issues, established operators have also struggled with two key issues around NFC-enabled payments — finding the new revenue streams to cover the cost of including the technology in their handsets and, fundamentally, the reduced control that NFC payments bring into their wireless service infrastructure. NFC payments bring banking organizations into the wireless ecosystem and new business models have to be developed to establish each parties control and revenue streams.
ABI Research Senior Analyst Jonathan Collins says, "This trial tests a trusted third party model, placing G&D's new offering in the middle ground between issuer and operator. Success could help provide a blueprint for other MVNO's and major wireless operators to start to test and deploy NFC themselves."
The trial bears out ABI Research's earlier forecast that while the largest wireless operators struggle to develop business models for NFC payments, it will be MVNOs that will lead the way. ABI Research studies show that NFC-enabled cellular phones will reach 450 million units in 2011, representing nearly 30% of handsets shipped worldwide in that year.
A new Research Brief, "NFC for Mobile Payments: Why Carriers Should Support Near Field Communication, and How to Break the Deadlock," discusses the reasons for the downward revision in the firm's NFC forecast, and suggests ways to break the operators' NFC logjam. It forms part of the Contactless Commerce Research Service. For more information about ABI Research visit www.abiresearch.com.
RFID Tribe Examines Industry Education
The RFID educational process can be a tricky one to master; deciding between online or lab training, distinguishing the right level course to take, and finding a well educated instructor can get to be overwhelming. For a program to be effective, it must match with the goals and aspirations of the student. RFID Tribe has compiled a list of tips for smoothing out this process and assuring each element of it.
First, the consumer should identify his or her educational needs and objects. Are only the essentials for basic understanding required, or a more in depth understanding of the technology and deployment options? Computer based educational CDs, Web based courses, and virtual instructors are an option, along with their more cohesive counterpart that occurs classroom and lab training. So a major part of the decision process revolves around the level of training required by the consumer.
If the training requires an instructed course by industry professionals, ask the educator for multiple references. Find out what businesses trust the instructor. Also, request the instructor's resume and information regarding his or her experience with RFID technology. A simple bit of research can be conducted by searching the instructor's name on the Internet.
Make sure the basics of RFID technology are covered before moving on to more advanced learning. Courses with titles like "RFID 101" or "Basics of RFID" are good places for beginners. These courses usually cover the basics of the industry, technology, and standards.
To take the next step, look for courses that offer lab training where students can receive hands-on education. Typically covered topics include observing the physics of RFID, equipment usage, and familiarization with integrators, printers, and tag application.
To continue the education process requires narrowing topics to industry specifics. Each industry requires special attention in areas specific to that industry. A good RFID education program will recognize the different needs for each industry. Visit www.rfidtribe.com/education_guidelines.html.
RSI ID Technologies Secures Deal with Symbol
A licensing agreement has been made between RSI ID Technologies and Symbol Technologies to manufacture Symbol's RFID tag antenna design portfolio. Symbol's high-performance antennas provide accuracy and reliability for supply chain tracking, and will expand RSI's Gen 2 inlay selection which is currently the largest on the market.
Symbol feels the agreement will extend the availability of the tag technologies, alleviating the demand from the marketplace and allowing the company to focus on the dynamic and ever-changing needs of customers. RSI takes pride in the agreement, which shows a confidence in the company's capabilities.
Shaw Industries Selects ODIN for RFID Pilots
ODIN technologies (www.odintechnologies.com) has been chosen by Shaw Industries group, the world's largest supplier of carpeting and rugs, to pilot its RFID program and Wal-Mart mandate compliancy. The initial pilots will deploy in three Shaw facilities and will provide the company with supply chain visibility and efficiency, along with Wal-Mart mandate compliance. Shaw Industries, who is part of the Berkshire Hathaway portfolio, chose ODIN for the job based on their impressive track record of over 100 projects and is confident in the reliability of ODIN. ODIN takes the decision as an honor and an achievement to pass through Shaw's rigorous selection process which is representative of the Berkshire Hathaway portfolio companies.
Intermec Announces 'Medallion Complete' Extended Service Coverage
Intermec (www.intermec.com) announces Medallion Complete: a new, world-class extended service coverage program for Intermec data collection equipment. Available in 14 countries, Medallion Complete covers eligible Intermec devices against incidental damage experienced in the work environment.
Under normal industry practice, damage to data collection equipment—as opposed to normal wear or component failure—is not covered by standard service agreements. Repairs due to damage are infrequent but can be costly, as they typically involve the most expensive components of a devices, such as touch screen or LCD.
Medallion Complete covers virtually all repairs, including those required due to incidental equipment damage, resulting in lower total cost of ownership than normally experienced without a comparable level of service. Medallion Complete is available on most Intermec data collection devices, including handheld mobile computer, scanners, fixed and mobile RFDI readers, printers, and many accessories.
