May 28, 2009This article was originally published by RFID Update.
May 28, 2009—Announcements from Europe highlighted a relatively quiet week in the RFID industry, which also saw new information products released to help RFID buyers and integrators.
- The Russian Corporation of Nanotechnologies (RUSNANO) announced it formed a joint venture with Galileo Vacuum Systems to manufacture RFID tags in Russia. The partners are funding the venture with 43 million euros.
- Melexis, a Belgian semiconductor developer, introduced a "sensing system on a chip" that combines a temperature sensor and an ISO 15693-standard RFID chip with 3.2 kilobits of memory in a single tag. Design samples of the new MLX90129 are available now. Full production is planned for November, and the tag is priced at 1 euro for quantities of at least 50,000.
- Italian firm CAEN RFID announced a Gen2, fully integrated Bluetooth reader.
- PANMOBIL, a German equipment manufacturer, announced a series of RFID and barcode scanners in a USB stick form factor.
- American firm RFID Global Solution and UK-based Ubisense announced they are partnering to market solutions to the aerospace industry. The solutions combine RFID Global Solutions' Visi-Trac RFID-based asset tracking software with Ubisense's ultra-wideband (UWB) RTLS technology.
- Xterprise, OATSystems and InSync Software are the top-rated providers of line-of-business software for RFID systems, according to a new ranking released this week by industry analyst and research firm ABI Research. Software vendors were rated on multiple factors, including innovation, customer base, partner ecosystem and ability to deliver.
- Brooks Automation of Chelmsford, Massachusetts introduced its HF80 Series 13.56 MHz RFID reader created specifically to identify solar cells during the manufacturing process.
- Can/US Enviro-RFID, a startup RFID distributor (see New Distributor Forms with Exclusive RFID Focus), introduced a new content delivery service that enables resellers and solution providers to access RFID-related educational, technical and marketing materials online. RFIDWizards.com, which has an online community of more than 55,000 RFID users and professionals, will manage the service for Can/US Enviro-RFID. See the announcement here.
- RFID solutions provider ODIN technologies released the RFID Tag Pricing Guide, a free report for end users that explains tag pricing and the variables that affect it. It is the first in a series that ODIN plans to publish to follow trends in RFID tag pricing.
- RFMicron, an RFID chip developer in Austin, Texas, received a $675,000 grant from the state's Emerging Technology Fund. More details here.
- Wireless asset management and tracking solution provider Alanco Technologies reported its RFID business unit had third-quarter sales of $851,700, a 262 percent increase over the $235,100 recorded in the year-earlier quarter.
- Previously this week RFID Update covered the release of this month's RFID Monthly report from international wealth management, capital markets, private equity and asset management firm Robert W. Baird & Co. Baird reported an optimistic RFID business outlook but noted industry consolidation may be coming soon because the market can't support the current number of competitors (see Highlights from Baird's RFID Monthly for May).
