RFID News Roundup

Sept. 16, 2010—The following are news announcements made during the past week.

Primera Announces Color RFID Label Printer-Encoder
Plymouth, Minn.-based Primera Technology, a manufacturer of CD and DVD duplication and printing equipment, has announced its RX900 color RFID printer-encoder. The new printer is a full-color RFID printer that prints, encodes, verifies and dispenses RFID labels compliant with the EPCglobal Gen 2 and ISO 18000-6b and 18000-6c RFID standards. The device's built-in RFID reader module is supplied by Intermec. Print resolution is up to 4800 dpi. The printer has separate cartridges for cyan, magenta, yellow and black ink—which, according to Primera, makes label production more cost-effective, since only one cartridge needs to be replaced when the printer runs out of a certain color ink. The system has full-color printing speeds of up to 4.5 inches (114 millimeters) per second. The RX9000 also supports all main linear and 2-D bar-code symbologies, Primera reports. "Printing full-color RFID labels and tags adds a new, value-added feature to the technology," said Mark Strobel, the company's VP of sales and marketing, in a prepared statement. "Now, you can add color coding, high-resolution color graphics and even photo-quality images to RFID labels and tags. In many applications you're adding an extra level of accuracy and safety such as in medical file folder labels, full-color photo wristbands and specimen-tracking labels." The RX9000 supports a variety of substrates, including matte and gloss inkjet papers, vinyl, polypropylene and polyester. The RX900 Color RFID printer, priced at $4,995, is slated to ship in November 2010.

IBM, Mojix Team to Deliver Advanced RFID System to the Japanese Market
IBM and Mojix have announced an exclusive distributorship agreement and the launch of Mojix's STAR system in Japan. The STAR system, unveiled in 2008 (see Mojix Takes Passive UHF RFID to a New Level and The Brightest Star), consists of a distributed network of transmitters, known as eNodes, to power up passive ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) EPC Gen 2 RFID tags, as well as a single STAR receiver to pick up the tags' signals. Under the terms of the agreement, the two companies indicate, Mojix's offering will be coupled with software from IBM, such as IBM WebSphere Sensor Events, enabling the deployment of end-to-end RFID solutions. The STAR system is certified by Big Blue's Ready for IBM WebSphere Sensor Events program, and the integration enables a standards-based path for exploiting the STAR system's functionality. For example, the firms report, the STAR system supports WebSphere Sensor Events Location Aware Services (LAS) to visualize location events using passive RFID tag data, including both tag reads and location data on goods and assets. IBM Japan will provide systems integration services and customer support for the Mojix product offerings in the Japanese market, and will distribute the STAR system both directly to its customers, and through qualified IBM resellers in that country.

Holland 1916 Intros RFID-enabled Steel Cable Locking Zip Tie for Tagging Assets
Holland 1916, a manufacturer of nameplates, panels, labels, touch screens, RFID and other identification products, has announced the Data Cinch, a durable, RFID-enabled, steel cable locking zip tie. The Data Cinch, designed for tagging assets that will be exposed to harsh conditions, comes with either a 1/16th-inch-thick steel cable offering a pull strength of approximately 800 pounds, or a 1/8th-inch-thick steel cable with a pull strength of about 1,000 pounds. The Data Cinch comes embedded with either a passive high-frequency (HF) RFID tag or a passive EPC Gen 2 ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) tag. The HF tag, produced by Holland 1916, operates at 13.56 MHz and is compliant with the ISO 15693 specification, while the UHF tag—Xerafy's Pico tag—is designed specifically for metal environments. The Data Cinch is available now, with pricing dependent upon quantity.