RFID transponder manufacturer Sokymat recently unveiled a new line of passive tags designed to withstand harsh industrial processes such as those involving hot-water cleaning, high temperatures and mechanical stress.
The new addition, called the IN Tag, joins Sokymat’s current lineup of other RFID tags designed for industrial and logistics applications. The IN Tag was developed especially to meet the needs of the international food industry. For example, it complies with a European Union directive 2002/72/EC, which stipulates specifications for tags that come in direct contact with food and drinks.
Philippe Held, business unit manager of industry and logistics at Sokymat, says several customers—original equipment manufacturers, RFID integrators and solution providers, and distributors—have already tested and validated the IN Tag’s performance.
One customer in southern Europe, which asked not to be identified, tested and is supplying the tags to a food retailer and distributor that will affix them on plastic crates, Held says. That retailer needed a tag that had a life span of “more than five years and could withstand low temperatures in a deep freezer and regular hot-steam cleanings,” he says.
Sokymat, based in Granges, Switzerland, performed numerous tests on the tags to validate their performance, including qualification tests for all the electrical, chemical, mechanical and thermal specifications for each tag model. Sokymat put the tags through various environmental tests, such as immersing the tags water at 70 degrees Celsius for 21 hours and at -25 degrees Celsius for one hour, Held says. In addition, Sokymat performed environmental tests that combined different parameters, including high temperature. “The IN Tag passed the tests without any slight deterioration,” he says.
The IN Tag comes in several models that vary by size. The all operate at 13.56 MHz and supports the ISO 15693 standard. The IN Tag 500 I-Code SLI is 50 mm in diameter and 3 mm thick; the IN Tag 300 I-Code SLI is 30 mm in diameter and 2.5 mm thick; and the IN Tag 200 I-Code SLI is 20 mm in diameter and 2.5 mm thick.
The IN Tag is available now in samples; volume quantities require a delivery time of eight to 12 weeks. Price depends on the IC features, size and quantity ordered.