Intelleflex Rolls Out Fob-size BAP Tag

By Claire Swedberg

April 8, 2008—Intelleflex, a developer of ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) RFID systems that utilize battery-assisted passive (BAP) tags, has released a new, smaller version of its FBT 7400 tag that fits on a key ring. The new tag allows users to track small items such as keys from a distance of up to 75 feet.

Intelleflex developed the original FBT 7400 tag one year ago, for such customers as casinos and law enforcement agencies to track keys used in their operations. Casino staff members often carry keys for storage areas or lock boxes, then return them at the end of their shift. While the keys themselves have little value, they provide access to valuable assets. Law enforcement agencies use the tags for similar applications.

Sam Liu

The new tag, known as the FBT 7400 Fob, is designed in the form of a key fob—about 1 inch by 1 inch by a half-inch—so it can be easily attached to keys and other small high-value items, which can then be tracked. The previous tag measured 2.5 by 2.5 inches—too large to fit in a pocket. "Casinos were one big driver," for the smaller form factor, says Sam Liu, Intelleflex's director of marketing.

While the company's earlier version of the tag had a read range of 150 feet, the latest model, small enough to fit in a pocket, offers a range half that distance. The tag contains a battery-assisted passive chip that complies with EPCglobal's as-yet-unratified Class 3 RFID specification for BAP UHF tags, and remains quiet until interrogated by a reader. The battery life is about five years.

The Intelleflex tags previously used by casinos and law enforcement agencies were too cumbersome, Liu says, which is why it developed the smaller model. Those customers wanted to employ the tags to track keys that may themselves have little value, but that can allow people access to valuable assets. Such keys, often carried by employees on belt loops or in pockets, are occasionally misplaced.