Sep 23, 2010The following are news announcements made during the past week.
Zebra Intros Next-Gen RTLS Leveraging Ultra-Wideband Technology
Zebra Enterprise Solutions (ZES), a division of Zebra Technologies, has announced the availability of its Dart ultra-wideband (UWB) real-time locating system (RTLS). The RTLS is built on the current Sapphire UWB RTLS' core capabilities, but will provide a common platform for UWB active RFID tags for tracking the locations of personnel and equipment, in operations in the United States, Canada and the European Union (EU) markets. According to the company, Dart UWB is designed particularly for industries with highly metallic environments, such as IT, aerospace, financial, federal government, and aerospace and defense. Dart UWB also includes a full set of location products certified for use in potentially hazardous and explosive environments, as defined by Europe's ATEX directive. These intrinsically safe location products have been designed for use in extreme, regulated environments, such as petrochemical and other process-focused manufacturing industries. The Dart UWB portfolio is complaint with the FCC Part 15.250 and draft ETSI EN 302 500-1 V2.1.1 specifications, and provides real-time location accuracy of better than 30 centimeters (1 foot). The tag's battery life is designed to last up to seven years at a 1 Hz blink rate, and the system supports a long read range of up to 200 meters (650 feet). The RTLS includes the Planning Software System Builder, a virtual planning tool designed to aid in the installation and optimization of the Dart UWB system. The Dart Hub provides power, data and clock to the Dart Sensors over a single shielded Ethernet cable. The Dart Sensors are placed throughout the site, originating from the hub and then typically daisy-chained to one another. The DartTag and DartTag Badge are dustproof and waterproof (IP67 rated). The DartWand Module enables end-user configuration and inventorying of DartTags, and is capable of activating and deactivating a DartTag, as well as programming its blink rate at several nominal iterations, from approximately 0.01 Hz (one blink every 75 seconds) to 200 Hz (one blink every 0.005 seconds). RFID Global Solution (RFIDGS), a ZES partner and a provider of real-time asset-visibility solutions for the commercial, defense and government markets, piloted the Dart UWB solution and has been using ZES' first-generation Sapphire RTLS. According to RFIDGS, the benefits of Dart UWB include improved ease of system and tag configuration, more ruggedized tags for harsh environments, extended battery-life options and global interoperability. Zebra first unveiled its plans regarding its Dart UWB solution this past July (see RFID News Roundup: Zebra Unveils Next-Gen Ultra-Wideband Real-Time Locating System). RFID Journal will host a Solution Showcase about this new product next month, featuring Craig Fransen, Zebra Enterprise Solutions' product manager.
Axcess International 433 MHz Active Tags Incorporate HID iCLASS 13.56 MHz RFID Technology
Axcess International has announced that it has successfully integrated HID Global's iCLASS 13.56 MHz contactless smart-card technology into its Axcess Dot Wireless ID product. Axcess manufactures the Dot chip, which provides dual active-passive capabilities so it can be employed as both a passive EPC Gen 2 tag and a 433 MHz active tag. Optimized to make physical access control more powerful, the iCLASS 13.56 MHz read/write contactless smart-card technology supports multiple applications, such as biometric authentication, cashless payment and PC log-on security, Axcess International reports. iCLASS readers also support the U.S. federal government's HSPD-12 directive for secure credentialing. "By integrating HID iCLASS technology into the Axcess DOT credential, customers have the ability to leverage their investment in existing access control systems," said David Koma, the director of business development for HID Global's HID Connect, in a prepared statement. "The combination of these two technologies creates a single, powerful credential that efficiently solves a number of common business problems." According to Axcess International, the integrated solution will be on display in HID Global's booth at the annual American Society of Industrial Security (ASIS) trade show, to be held in Dallas, Texas, on Oct. 12-14. Axcess International and HID Global have worked together on other integration initiatives as well. In October 2009, Axcess announced plans to integrate HID Global's 125 KHz proximity tags in its Dot Wireless Credential system (see RFID News Roundup: Axcess Licenses HID Global Proximity Technology). That integration was aimed at extending existing access-control systems into more advanced workforce-management solutions, including local location identification, tracking and control capabilities.
ABI Research Forecasts RFID Market in 2011 Greater Than $6 Billion
In what seems to be an indication that the RFID market is coming out of the slowdown caused by the recent recession, the value of the overall RFID market should exceed $6 billion next year, according to market research and analysis firm ABI Research. The market covered in the forecast, the firm reports, includes both traditional applications, such as access control, automobile immobilization, electronic toll collection and e-ID/ID documents, as well as "modernizing" applications, such as animal ID, asset management, baggage handling, cargo tracking/security, contactless payment and ticketing, real-time location systems (RTLS), and supply chain management. The forecasts and key market trends are part of the 2010 edition of the firm's annual overview of the entire RFID market. In a prepared statement, Michael Liard, ABI Research's practice director, summed up the "big picture" as generally optimistic despite last year's economic woes, adding that the weakened economy caused many to reduce marketing expenditures, staff size and on-hand inventory levels, beginning in late 2008 and continuing throughout last year. But by the end of 2009, ABI Research heard more positive talk from vendors and solution providers. "Overall 2009 continued the forward momentum for both RFID solution providers and the user community," Liard said in the statement. "That trend continues in 2010." The latest research indicates compound annual growth rates of between 21.7 percent and 28.8 percent for the five primary applications over the period of 2010 to 2014. Last year, ABI Research did not release overall RFID revenue figures, preferring instead to focus on RFID's "bright spots," such as the retail market (see For Clothing Retailers, Item-level RFID on Upswing).
RFID Solutions Provider Galbital Announces UHF-based Smart Logistics System
Galbital RFID Solutions, an RFID systems integrator and solutions provider headquartered in Israel, has introduced its Smart Logistics System (SLS), an RFID system designed to help organizations improve their logistics operations. The solution includes the RFID Sleeve, an all-in-one integrated ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) RFID reader in a standard metal tine extension that fits onto forklifts. The RFID Sleeve supports the EPC Gen 2 and ISO 18000-6C specifications, and includes a unique antenna, a short-range wireless communication device, a load-sensing device and a battery pack. The Smart RFID Pallet is a UHF solution for wooden and plastic pallets that is an "RFID Cube" installed in the center of a pallet. The EPC Gen 2 RFID passive RFID tag embedded in the Cube can be read by the RFID Sleeve from any direction, independent of the types of goods stored on the pallet. SLS also includes the SLS Forklift Controller, a processing unit to be installed on the forklift that includes RFID software, as well as an indication panel. SLS also includes an optional 13.56 MHz floor reader designed to identify the floor and drive-in locations. Galbital intends to market its SLS solution worldwide, according to Israel Master, Galbital's VP of business development, and is currently running a beta implementation at Carmel Containers Systems, located in Israel.
TagMaster, a provider of RFID solutions for railway applications, has unveiled a new handheld RFID reader for its range of 2.45 GHz ID tags. The company is launching its product, known as the HR-2 handheld RFID reader, at InnoTrans 2010—an international trade fair for transport technology taking place this week in Berlin. The HR-2 is a portable reader designed for a range of applications and tough environments in which ID tags need to be read, verified and recorded. In railway applications, TagMaster reports, the tags can be permanently installed on trains and wagons and along the tracks, which often requires a portable device to verify or maintain these installations. The HR-2 is built around the firm's existing long-range (LR) series hardware platform and the Linux operating system (OS). It combines a touch-screen user interface with configurable functionality, and the Linux OS provides system integrators with the flexibility to customize or enhance that functionality. The HR-2 includes an Ethernet interface that allows direct access to the built-in Web interface, where the user can adjust settings and gain access to stored event logs. TagMaster has also announced it is partnering with Confidex, a supplier of RFID tag solutions. Under the terms of the deal, the two companies have agreed to cooperate in the field of RFID tag technology, with a focus on the ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) frequency band, where the products will conform to the EPC Gen 2 standard. The initial focus will be to introduce a rugged, heavy-duty ID tag that meets the requirements of the railway industry, which the companies say is increasingly looking to use standard EPC Gen 2 RFID tags for asset-tracking applications. Confidex will hold the rights to manufacture the jointly specified RFID tag, while TagMaster will hold the rights to market and sell the specified RFID tag within the railway transportation industry market. What's more, the two companies will explore future cooperation opportunities to develop or supply additional RFID tags or related technologies for use in other application areas and markets.
Bethesda Hospitals' Emergency Preparedness Partnership Selects Versus RTLS
Bethesda Hospitals' Emergency Preparedness Partnership (BHEPP)—comprising Suburban Hospital (a member of Johns Hopkins Medicine), the National Naval Medical Center and the National Institutes of Health's Clinical Center and National Library of Medicine—has announced that it has selected Versus Advantages, from Versus Technology, to support its RFID and Real-time Location System (RTLS) initiative. The goal of the BHEPP RFID/RTLS project, according to Versus, is to have a system in place that can track patients to room-level accuracy throughout designated emergency-care areas, regardless of whether care takes place in a traditional emergency room, in a BHEPP surge-capacity mobile hospital or at multiple locations. Ultimately, BHEPP wants to provide an immediate and sustained response to any local, regional or national emergency, and to develop an exportable, proven model for emergency preparedness and response that can be replicated in other metropolitan areas. Some of the partnership's requirements included the ability for the RFID/RTLS solution to provide both hardware and software, integrate to existing and future BHEPP applications, and locate patients with room-level or better precision at a minimum 95 percent accuracy rate, as well as offer practical experience and the ability to provide reliable locating to partner facilities on a daily basis (when not responding to a crisis). Versus' RTLS leverages tags that transmit infrared (IR) signals, as well as RFID as a back-up solution, in the event that the IR signal is blocked or not operating properly. When a tag's IR signal, emitted every three seconds, is received by the IR reader at that location, the reader transmits its own ID number, along with that of the tag, to the Versus software. If the tag's IR signal is not being received (if, for example, a blanket is covering the tag and its infrared beacon), the RFID system provides a backup: The tag emits a 433 MHz RFID signal, which also beacons every three seconds, using a proprietary air-interface protocol. For the initiative, Versus is supplying both the hardware and software for the mass-casualty drill to the facilities. The application is expected to go live in mid-October, according to a Versus spokeswoman.
TI Launches Portfolio of Microcontroller Development Kits for RFID, ZigBee
Texas Instruments (TI) has announced new wireless kits that serve as modular extensions to TI's Stellaris DK-LM3S9B96 development kit. The new kits, the company reports, are designed to provide engineers with complete software and reference design solutions for adding RFID and ZigBee capabilities to designs. With this offering, TI is building on its portfolio of 16-bit, ultra-low-power MSP430-based wireless connectivity solutions, and is now providing 32-bit Stellaris microcontroller (MCU) performance for the execution of additional connectivity and control functions. When coupled with the DK-LM3S9B96 development board, TI says, each kit includes the hardware and software necessary to jumpstart design. The Stellaris 13.56 MHz RFID Wireless Kit includes TI's TRF7960TB HF RFID reader module target board, two ISO 14443A (Mifare-1K) contactless smart cards, additional TRF7960-supported tags and inlays, the Stellaris DK-LM3S9B96-EM2 Expansion Board, an example ISO/IEC 14443A application, firmware and documentation (with support for additional protocols coming soon), and multiple software sample applications, including RFID Classic 1K and 4K card reader, simultaneous dual- or single-card access, command-line access over serial port and more. The Stellaris ZigBee Networking Kit includes multiple heterogeneous network nodes, with one CC2520 evaluation module, two battery-operated sensor modules and two CC2530 evaluation modules preprogrammed with a temperature sensor application, along with one Stellaris DK-LM3S9B96-EM2 Expansion Board. The Stellaris 13.56 MHz RFID Wireless Kit costs $99, while the Stellaris ZigBee Networking Kit is priced at $249.
