LIVE! 2008 Product Roundup

Starport Technologies Rolls Out Two New EPC Gen 2 Tags
Starport Technologies, an RFID solutions provider in Kansas City, Mo., announced the availability of two new UHF EPC Gen 2 RFID tags, that it says are well suited for working with metals, water or glass, or in free space. The two new tags have been tested by a U.S. manufacturer and, according to Starport, have demonstrated improved read and price performance. The Apollo, a durable tag encased in polycarbonate plastic and designed for attachment to cargo containers, offers a read range of up to 70 feet on or near metal, water or glass, or in free space. Its rugged design, the company says, makes it suitable for harsh environmental exposures. The Orion, a foam-backed tag with read ranges of up to 25 feet on metal, is available in custom designs to suit a client's particular needs. Starport's tags employ RFID technology licensed under an exclusive arrangement with the RFID Alliance Lab, a not-for-profit testing facility housed at the University of Kansas. RFID Alliance partners include the Information and Telecommunication Technology Center (ITTC) at the University of Kansas, Rush Tracking Systems, a private RFID systems integrator, and RFID Journal.

Omnitrol Networks and Time Domain Combine RTLS and WIP
Omnitrol Networks, located in Mountain View, Calif., and Time Domain Corp., in Huntsville, Ala., have partnered to combine Omnitrol Networks' Work-in-Process (WIP) Visibility solution with Time Domain's ultra-wideband (UWB) real-time location system (RTLS). The offering is designed to help organizations locate assets in the large and harsh environments of production and manufacturing facilities, particularly those in aerospace and defense manufacturing industries. Time Domain's PLUS platform consists of ultra-wide band (UWB) active RFID tags, interrogators, ceiling-tile antennas, synchronization distribution panels and software. UWB devices emit a series of extremely short signals (billionths of a second or shorter), with each signal spanning a wide band of frequencies. The pulsed signals act much like sonar waves, enabling the system to determine distance by measuring how long it takes a pulse to travel from one point (such as a tag) to another (such as an interrogator), and using time distance of arrival (TDOA) technology to calculate location. Omnitrol Networks' WIP Visibility Solution processes the information from Time Domain's PLUS tags, then integrates that data into the context of manufacturing workflow. The off-the-shelf solution is designed to track each stage of manufacture, from work-order receipt through to shipping. All exceptions and timings are recorded for analysis, and alerts and notifications are easily configured. For instance, the system could automatically generate an alert if a material, such as an avionics component, were moved to an area in the plant where it was not supposed to be, or if a work order did not reach an assembly stage on time. The UWB-enabled real-time Work-in-Process Visibility solution is being demonstrated this week at RFID Journal LIVE! Additionally, Omnitrol Networks also announced that it has embedded IBM's WebSphere RFID Information Center software into the Omnitrol WIP appliance to create an EPC-based traceability and tracking solution for the manufacturing and logistics industries. IBM's WebSphere RFID Information Center enhances the WIP appliance by enabling customers to share product movement information with trading partners using solutions complying with EPCglobal's EPC Information Services (EPCIS) standard.

ODIN Releases EasyMonitor Reader-Management Software
RFID systems integrator ODIN Technologies has begun offering its in-house RFID reader management and monitoring software to resellers or end users of RFID. The software, known as EasyMonitor, is designed to enable customers to quickly and automatically monitor all of the RFID readers on their networks, as well as optimize their performance and perform periodic device maintenance. ODIN has deployed the EasyMonitor software for a number of its customers, the company reports, resulting in reader networks offering 99.5 percent uptime. When a reader fails to function properly, important data may be lost, and the time needed to remedy the situation can be costly and impact a project's deployment time. EasyMonitor is Web-based, so users can monitor all of their RFID hardware, down to the reader antennas, remotely. For resellers, using the software can reduce the number of on-site visits required to address a hardware problem at customer sites. The software is available now, though pricing has not yet been released.

Sybase Upgrades RFID Software Platform
Sybase subsidiary iAnywhere Solutions released RFID Anywhere version 3.5, an upgrade to its RFID software. According to Rob Veitch, the company's senior director of business development for RFID solutions, the software is used primarily by systems integrators and RFID solution providers as a backbone for their RFID software and service products. The new version features upgraded tooling and integration support for the latest Microsoft.NET and visual studio development tools. It also provides enhanced support for RFID interrogators that operate in remote areas and are infrequently linked to an end user's network—such as those used in an agricultural application for tracking produce picked and packed on a farm. Moreover, the new version includes support for a number of fixed and mobile, passive and active RFID readers, including models made by Alien Technology, Intermec, Omron, Psion Teklogix, Sirit, Feig Electronic, IPICO, Impinj, ePlate and Wavetrend Technologies. Version 3.5 will be available in the second quarter of this year; no pricing information has yet been released.