Jan 21, 2021Presented here are recent news announcements regarding the following organizations: BSN, EM Microelectronic, Insight SiP, Litmus, NewAge Industries, Silicon Labs, Steliau Technology, and Yeelight.
EM Microelectronic Offers NFC Authentication IC
RFID company EM Microelectronic has announced the availability of its em|linq Near Field Communication (NFC) tag-authentication integrated circuit for brand protection and consumer engagement. According to the company, the em|linq enables brands to engage with customers via NFC and offer product authentication.
When NFC tag content is dynamic, the company explains, the tags provide protection against cloning. The growing demand for such solutions has faced a scalability challenge, EM reports. While NFC tags have been deployed for consumer engagement as an extension of a typical HF RFID use case, the authentication component adds cost and complexity. The em|linq combines cryptographic mechanisms typically used in smart-card products with RFID technology. The em|linq is built on open standards, allowing flexibility in the authentication service's implementation.
Key management and provisioning can be handled and controlled by the company that implements the solution, whether an inlay or label manufacturer, a systems integrator, a brand or a retailer. Programming the cryptographic keys into chips is segregated from programming the URL for the authentication service, thereby providing flexibility and security. The em|linq's small form factor offers mechanical robustness, EM indicates, and its power efficiency allows for a small antenna form factor for communication. Its electrical characteristics are compatible with most antenna designs on the market.
With its authentication engine built on top of an RFID architecture, the em|linq is designed to offer scalability and authentication functionality. Its RF performance allows for small inlay constructions, facilitating integration. The em|linq is NFC Type-2-compliant. Its cryptographic hardware implementation provides Web authentication brand protection to consumers' smartphones using a dynamically generated HMAC-SHA1 code appended to the URL stored in the NDEF container.
Silicon Labs, Yeelight Partner on Smart Lighting
Silicon Labs, a provider of silicon, software and solutions, and Yeelight, a smart lighting provider, have announced an Internet of Things (IoT) collaboration on a smart LED light bulb for the Google Home app. The Yeelight Smart LED Bulb M2 multi-color light bulb is designed with Silicon Labs' Bluetooth BG21 system-on-chip, enabling reliable wireless connectivity and allowing users to connect and control smart-home devices in the Google Home app without requiring other applications.
"The new M2 Yeelight light bulb meets increasing consumer demands for sophisticated, user-friendly smart-home products with simplified setup requirements and Google Home voice control," said LM Wang, Silicon Labs' VP of Asia Pacific sales, in a prepared statement. "Our Bluetooth solutions play a pivotal role in delivering this enhanced lighting experience, ensuring reliable wireless connectivity, high performance and low power consumption."
Yeelight provides smart lighting integration with Google Seamless. The bulb allows for multi-colored effects, adjustable color temperature, and increased luminance of up to 1,000 lumens. Seamless Setup allows users to set up smart-home devices in the Google Home app quickly. No additional apps are required, and the Google Nest device can act as a hub to connect smart-home devices to the Web.
The bulb offers off-premise access to Google Assistant-enabled devices. Users can ask Google Assistant to turn the bulb on or off, dim the lighting, or change colors by using their voice. The M2 pairs directly with Google Assistant, the company reports, resulting in an improved response time from Google Assistant-enabled speakers or displays. Users can set up Google Assistant Routines in the Google Home app to automatically control lighting in certain settings using simple voice commands.
"Silicon Labs' trusted and secure smart home wireless IoT platforms allow us to build high-performing and uniquely designed smart-home lighting products for our customers," added Wilson Wei, Yeelight's CTO, in the prepared statement. "Silicon Labs' technology is a powerful asset for us as we continue to define new lighting standards in the industry."
Litmus Releases Edge-Computing Platform for Data Analysis
Litmus, an intelligent edge computing company, has announced the release of Litmus Edge 3.0, its platform for collecting and analyzing data, building and running applications, and integrating edge data with cloud or enterprise systems. Litmus Edge 3.0 adds device drivers to bring the total to more than 250, along with analytics, integration connectors, digital twin support and device-management features.
"Litmus Edge is the only modern edge platform on the market that connects to all industrial assets and provides a complete data picture to improve industrial operations," said Vatsal Shah, Litmus's co-founder and CEO, in a prepared statement. "Version 3.0 expands upon the product that already leads the industry with more device drivers, pre-built analytics and OT/IT integration capabilities, so customers can capture edge data and use it to perform local analytics or advanced use cases like machine learning and AI in the cloud."
Features include second-generation industrial communication drivers focused on security and scalability for southbound communications, as well as analytics offering the ability to run Tensorflow and other machine-learning algorithms natively on real-time ingested data. The system's Flows Manager function has been updated to allow multiple instances of flows, which can be tightly integrated or scaled, or isolated with sandbox and production logics.
Cloud and enterprise integration connectors include support for Splunk, Oracle DB and other databases. Device-management improvements include security, backup and restore, and digital twin templates. Litmus Edge collects data from industrial assets; offers pre-built applications, KPIs and analytics; allows users to build and run custom applications; and integrates data with any cloud or enterprise system.
Steliau Technology, Insight SiP Sign RF Module Distribution Agreement
Insight SiP, a supplier of miniature RF modules with embedded antennas based on system-in-package technologies, has signed a distribution agreement with Steliau Technology, a distributor of electronic components in the French market. This agreement allows Steliau Technology to enlarge its portfolio by proposing RF modules with integrated antennas and combining several technologies: UWB-BLE and LoRa-BLE. Insight SIP's multi-radio modules offer integration and miniaturization for all RF functions.
"Representing Insight SiP's solutions certainly strengthens our positioning in the connectivity and semiconductor market," said Pascal Reynoud, Steliau Technology's managing director, in a prepared statement. "This partnership allows us to complete our proposition to Steliau customers and target new prospects that we could not have approached without the solutions of our new partner. We are looking forward to this collaboration and will do our utmost to make it a complete success."
"We are delighted to partner with Steliau Technology, who will add considerable expertise in RF module sales and engineering to our offering, as well as an important sales channel in France," said Michel Beghin, Insight SiP's CEO, in the prepared statement. "We look forward to working with Steliau Technology to meet the RF module needs of its current and potential customers." As part of this partnership, Steliau Technology will provide a support team of product managers and sales engineers trained internally and by its partners, with access to all Insight SiP solutions.
RFID Firm NewAge Industries Now Employee-Owned
In January 2006, NewAge Industries' owners sold thirty percent of the plastic tubing manufacturer to its employees. Now, NewAge—which offers RFID products known as AdvantaPure, BrewSavor and Verigenics—has announced that it is 100 percent employee-owned. The company's employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) rewards long-term employees at retirement and has allowed several to retire earlier than expected.
The ESOP encourages employee commitment, the company reports, since workers understand how their actions and work ethic affect their customers, coworkers and families. Last year, team leaders and team members from NewAge's sales, engineering and marketing departments worked together, learned new assignments and adjusted work hours in order to better serve customers. The company has received several buyout offers, but its owners preferred not to go that route.
"What's the easiest way to squash your competition or to expand your product offering? Buy another company. But I didn't want to take the money that was being offered and walk away from the business my father started in 1954," said Ken Baker, NewAge's CEO and former majority owner, in a prepared statement. "NewAge has been part of my life almost as far back as I can remember. My father and I and my family put a lot of hours and sweat equity into growing NewAge. And there are people who've worked here for 20, 25, 30 years. I wanted to reward them in a meaningful way for their hard work, dedication and loyalty."
"Employee ownership is new for most of the people who come to work here," Baker added. "Every new team member attends classes to learn what an ESOP is, how ours works, the difference between stock and cash accounts, and how money from the ESOP is distributed to retirees. We want everyone to understand how this system works and how it puts into place a succession plan for NewAge and our AdvantaPure, BrewSavor and Verigenics brands."
RFID Solution Provider BSN Sees Growth Despite Pandemic
BSN, a provider of RFID and supply chain technologies, has announced a successful year of industry growth, employee retention and production expansion, despite the disruptive impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic. While navigating the challenging economic and social environment, the company broke ground on its RFID Production and Innovation center, indicating its goal of increasing investment in RFID technology.
At the start of 2020, BSN reports, the growth of ecommerce looked to be threatened, but despite the uncertainty throughout the past 12 months, digital spending has outpaced the previous year with an annual growth of more than 100 percent. Ecommerce sales now account for 28 percent of all retail purchases. BSN says the steadfast pace and growth of the ecommerce industry has encouraged it to break ground on its RFID Technology Centre in Guangzhou, China.
Last year, BSN and the rest of the world navigated through the COVID-19 crisis. With the heightened demand for ecommerce, huge challenges for supply chain and logistics operations followed. As omnichannel capabilities have become a popular option for consumers, services like door-step delivery, BOPIS and curbside pickup have taken preference, leading to an impact on product availability and lead times.
The global pandemic has resulted in all-time-high unemployment, with many of BSN's competitors making redundancies at the factory level. BSN says it was able to buck the trend, stay steady and take care of factory workers at a time when it was crucial to nurture employees. Many team members now work at home, while factory adjustments have been made to incorporate safe social distancing.
In 2021, BSN aims to take a "new normal" approach post-COVID. The pandemic has highlighted the need for item visibility through every phase of the supply chain, the company reports, and it has developed its Trysor RFID solutions to focus on ecommerce and omnichannel strategies, providing real-time item-level visibility. Retailers are recognizing the value of RFID technology, BSN indicates, and the company foresees increased innovation throughout 2021.
"Over the last year, the pandemic has challenged us not only as a company but as individuals," said Philip Calderbank, an RFID consultant at BSN, in a prepared statement. "We are proud to have been able to use these challenges as an opportunity to show our dedication to our team members and our customers, by adapting to changing consumer behaviors. Our company can only grow from here, with fresh innovations and possibilities coming out of the new Technology Centre. It is a testament to our business and we are primed to hit the ground running in 2021."
