Nov 29, 2012The following are news announcements made during the past week.
Tagsys Teams Up with RYB on Solution to Detect Underground Infrastructure
Tagsys has announced that it has signed an agreement with RYB, a provider of products for the transport of gas, water, electricity, telecommunications, irrigation and geothermal energy, to supply industrialized RFID technology to support RYB's ELIOT (Equipment for Localization and Identification by Object Technology) program. ELIOT is designed to improve the safety, security and accessibility of underground infrastructure, by providing a means of detecting underground infrastructure at depths of up to 1.5 meters (4.9 feet) with extreme accuracy, through any kind of surface. As part of the agreement, Tagsys will provide ruggedized custom-made RFID tags to be placed on underground assets, thereby providing new levels of visibility for pipes and conduit location and monitoring, to avoid accidental damage and allow rapid detection of problems throughout infrastructure networks. The RFID tags and systems for the program must meet stringent requirements, Tagsys reports, including the ability to operate under extreme environmental conditions; provide accurate transmissions through earth, concrete and other materials; operate with efficient power consumption, and on specific frequency ranges utilized by ELIOT; and connect to an integrated monitoring system for each utility network. In addition, the tags must operate effectively while contained within a protective and hermetically sealed housing mounted on pipe measuring 20 to 1,000 millimeters (0.8 to 39.4 inches) in diameter. The tags must be compatible with all types of conduit materials, including polyethylene, cast iron, PVC, concrete and steel. For the project, Tagsys is providing its 13.56 MHz passive RFID tags, compliant with the ISO 15693 standard and featuring 2 kilobits of memory. There are two versions of the tag: one designed to be integrated into a specific ruggedized box (for existing, in-ground tubes or metallic tubes), the other built to be directly integrated inside the tube at the production level. Each tag is personalized and encoded on the production line at an RYB factory. Tags will be affixed 1 meter (3.3 feet) apart along the length of the pipe. Readers are custom-developed, but Tagsys is not at liberty to disclose the manufacturer.
Ubisense Joins the Manufacturing Technology Centre to Provide RTLS Expertise to British Manufacturers
Ubisense Group, a provider of location-based smart technology, has announced that it has joined the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) as an industrial member. MTC is a research facility that develops and showcases advanced production solutions with the potential to shape the future of British manufacturing. Ubisense's Smart Factory solutions leverage ultra-wideband (UWB) location RFID tags that transmit signals to nearby receivers, with location-tracking information analyzed and visualized using Ubisense's software. The solutions, according to Ubisense, will be installed at MTC's facilities in Coventry, England, to demonstrate how precise real-time location systems (RTLS) improve manufacturing processes, from automated product location and identification, tool control, error proofing, and line side supply to complete process visualization. Ubisense plans to work with MTC on a number of projects—many of which are confidential—as an opportunity to help manufacturers improve productivity and speed up the delivery of lean objectives, according to Michael Ledzion, Ubisense's chief product and marketing officer. Ubisense will initially install a tool-control solution on a test production line project already under way at MTC, which will enable MTC's partners to use the line to optimize workstations, reduce takt time (cycle time) and increase the traceability and visibility of the process in order to improve quality and reduce waste—all lean objectives, Ledzion says. "The partnership," he explains, "means that all MTC members will have access to Ubisense's suite of Smart Factory solutions, of which we expect Asset Manager, Assembly Control (the initial deployment) and Visible Industrial Process will be in the highest demand at the MTC." Ubisense's location-aware Smart Factory solutions are in use at a range of manufacturers worldwide, and are widely adopted in the automotive sector—where, according to Ubisense, the principles of lean manufacturing first originated. Customers include Aston Martin (see Aston Martin Speeds Cars Through Production), Airbus (see Airbus Installs RTLS for Large-Component Assembly), BAE Systems, BMW (see BMW Finds the Right Tool), Cummins, Daimler, Eurocopter, Fiat, General Motors, Honda (see Honda Italia Shifts Its RFID Deployment Into Second Gear), Toyota and Volkswagen. MTC is currently working with companies that span a wide range of sectors, including automotive and aerospace manufacturing.
Centre Hospitalier Côte de Lumière Implements AeroScout Wi-Fi RTLS
The emergency department of the Centre Hospitalier Côte de Lumière, in Sables d'Olonne, France, is employing an asset-management solution provided by AeroScout, a division of Stanley Healthcare Solutions, to track staff members and quickly respond in the event of a worker encountering an emergency situation. The Centre Hospitalier Côte de Lumière is a 498-bed hospital, with 212 beds designated for short stays, 240 allocated for long-term care of the elderly and 46 for adults with disabilities. Nurses and physicians wear the AeroScout tags and simply press a call button if a situation arises in which help is required. The solution alerts the security team and also provides the real-time location of the specific employee in duress, so that the team can arrive as quickly as possible. The hospital is using AeroScout's battery-powered Wi-Fi RFID tags—specifically, the T2s, T3 and T4b models. The T2s tag can be worn by patients, staff members or other individuals, and be attached to a variety of equipment, such as small medical devices. The T3 is similar, but is smaller and flatter in size; has a longer battery life (more than four years); and includes two call buttons and a tamper-proofing mechanism that triggers an immediate alert if the tag is in any way removed or tampered with. The T4b facilitates bidirectional connectivity with any standard Wi-Fi network infrastructure. The bidirectional communication between the T4b tag and the Wi-Fi network enables advanced application capabilities. For example, patients at hospitals can request assistance and then be acknowledged by the tag buzzing or vibrating, thus informing them that help is on the way. The AeroScout Staff Safety solution implemented by Stanley Healthcare's partner, BE-IP, includes AeroScout MobileView software.
RFIDSpan Technology Announces New LLRP RFID Reader
RFIDSpan Technology, a developer of RFID antennas and networking technology, has announced a new ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) RFID reader that can support as many as 256 antennas, thereby providing 256 separate read points. The iReader-998 unit is suitable for a range of applications, according to RFIDSpan, such as smart shelves, smart cabinets other types of item-level location-tracking applications. The device leverages Impinj's Indy R2000 EPC Gen 2 interrogator chipset (see Impinj Adds New Products, Agreements to Its Portfolio), and features software that supports the industry-standard EPCglobal Low-level Reader Protocol (LLRP) to interface the reader with RFID enterprise applications. The support for the LLRP protocol is to standardize end-user applications development and eliminate the use of proprietary communication protocols, and makes it easier to integrate the iReader-998 device into a range of RFID enterprise infrastructures and business systems, RFIDSpan reports. Although the basic iReader-998 model comes with eight monostatic antenna ports, the reader is available with as many as 256 antenna ports, which—according to Albert Hong, RFIDSpan's VP—is crucial for applications that require multiple antenna read points. The technology can significantly simplify the large-scale item-level tracking deployment, the company reports, as well as lower the total hardware cost. Typically, building and deploying large-scale RFID smart shelves or real-time item-level asset-tracking systems is very costly, the firm notes, mostly due to the RF cabling's complexity. The iReader-998 unit, with eight monostatic antenna ports, is available now for $599, with volume discounts available.
Tagonic, a provider of services designed to help companies create and implement interactive campaigns, is calling on customers to offer ideas regarding how to use Near Field Communication (NFC) RFID technology to drive consumer engagement. The best submission will win 1,000 NFC tags, in addition to free use of and access to Tagonic's platform for a minimum of one year. The platform is designed to support interactive campaigns that utilize mobile technologies, such as NFC and QR codes, according to Rupert Englander, Tagonic's managing director. The platform provides a cloud-based tag-management service and allows full management of campaigns (including virtual reprogramming of tags) and campaign statistics. It tracks scans and conversions, enabling Tagonic's clients to determine how effectively their campaign is performing, including tracking individual points of sale. "Because each tag is unique, if you have 10 tags in the campaign, we will break down the interactions and conversions of each individual tag," Englander explains. "Say, for example, you are a retailer and you have a tag at your front window and a tag at the point of sale, your campaign statistics will help you determine which tag is working more effectively for you by the number of interactions and conversions." Tagonic will provide tags to its customers, Englander says—and if it does, the first year's campaign hosting and management is included in the tag price (prices vary due to volumes and requirements). Starting in the second year, hosting and managements costs will apply, based on a penny per tag per year, and a sliding scale based on the number of tags under management. If tags are sourced elsewhere but the customer wants to use the Tagonic platform for its management and reporting capabilities, Tagonic can provide a range of URLs to be programmed onto the tags, with the company charging for its services from the onset on a per-tag basis. Englander says the contest's goal is to "give people who have a great idea the opportunity to implement it. By removing the cost of the tags, we hope we can go some way to reducing the barriers for people to implement it." The competition is slated to run until the end of 2012.
Broadcom Contributes NFC Software Stack for Android
Broadcom, an Irvine, Calif.-based manufacturer of semiconductors for wired and wireless communications, has announced the contribution of its Near Field Communication (NFC) software stack to the Android Open Source Project (AOSP). Led by Google, AOSP is tasked with the maintenance and further development of Android. Broadcom's software will also be included in the Android 4.2 operating system, and the company reports that its software is designed to enable an open interface between the NFC controller and the main application processor by supporting NFC Forum specifications, including the NFC Controller Interface (NCI), thus eliminating proprietary ties between software and hardware. By contributing its NFC software stack to Android, Broadcom says it will ensure that applications will work across the entire range of future smartphones and tablets. Broadcom's BCM20793 NFC chip will be the first in a family of products to leverage the Android software stack.
NFC-Enabled Mobile Payments Coming to Australia
Australians who subscribe to cell phone service provider Vodafone Vodafone will soon be able to make mobile payments. Vodafone and Visa are teaming up to launch a mobile payments application that leverages Near Field Communication (NFC) and payWav, Visa's contactless payment technology. The solution, expected to be made available in early 2013, will allow consumers using their smartphones to pay for everyday goods, such as newspapers or groceries, by waving the handset in front of a contactless payment terminal. Higher-value purchases can also be made with the solution, though consumers will need to enter a PIN in addition to waving their smartphone by the terminal. The Vodafone SmartPass application—the first result of a partnership formed by Visa and Vodafone earlier this year—is based on a virtual Visa reloadable prepaid card, stored on an NFC-enabled subscriber identity module (SIM). Once the app is activated, customers can load funds using their existing Visa or MasterCard debit or credit cards. The app is protected by layers of security, according to the two companies. In addition to the use of a PIN for higher-value purchases, each transaction is backed by Visa's global processing network and is analyzed for fraud in real time, while Vodafone SmartPass accounts can be deactivated in the event of a lost or stolen phone. Like all Visa transactions, Vodafone SmartPass is protected by Visa's Zero Liability policy. The solution has been built in collaboration with Visa, Vodafone, ANZ (the bank providing the prepaid card, and the acquiring bank for loading funds) and Rêv, a prepaid payment processor that connects into VisaNet to process the transactions. The beta-testing program will employ Samsung Galaxy SIII smartphones equipped with the Vodafone SmartPass app, according to the companies. The Vodafone SmartPass app will be accepted at hundreds of thousands of payWave-enabled contactless terminals across Australia and around the world, including large retailers Coles, Woolworths, JB Hifi, McDonalds and Bunnings Warehouse.
