NEC has signed a letter of intent to resell RFID identification and tracking system for prisons from Alanco in Asia. The agreement is non-exclusive in Japan but exclusive in other, unidentified, Asian markets. A definitive agreement, worth several million, will be signed in the next thirty days, said Alanco.
Anticipating that a 950-MHz band will be assigned for RFID applications in Japan, Hewlett-Packard Japan Ltd. will open a RFID verification facility in May in Japan with three partner companies. HP’s partner companies include Toyo Kanetsu Solutions K.K., IDEC Controls Ltd. and ThreeQ. Ltd., all of which are familiar with implementing logistics controlling systems in Japan. Designated an HP RFID Noisy Lab, the lab will be located in Toyo Kanetsu’s plant in Kisarazu, Chiba prefecture, similar to a U.S. lab HP operates in Omaha, Nebraska.
KDDI and Fujistu have introduced a prototype smart phone, or “hybrid information terminal,” that will be available to visitors attending the Aichi World Expo 2005, which begins here in March and runs through to the end of September. The ‘Love and Mate’ [.jpg] (yes, that’s what they’re calling it) handset comes in Orange and Blue; both feature Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition for PocketPC software for PDA and phone operation, and Windows Media Player 9. This is one of the first deployments of Windows on a phone in Japan.
OMRON Corporation, a leading Japanese RFID systems provider, is launching the V740 series EPC reader/writer for UHF-band RFID tags in North America. The first UHF tag reader/writer from a Japanese RFID device manufacturer, the unit supports both EPC Class 0 and Class 1 protocols. It is also designed to accommodate Generation 2 protocol by EPC Global (C1G2) by upgrading its firmware when these specifications become available. Additionally, the product supports standard network protocols including DHCP, UDP/IP over Ethernet, 820.11x (Wi-Fi), HTTP and SNMP, and its superior network adaptability enables its software to be easily implemented from remote sites.
A key patent holder’s demand for royalties has triggered concerns that promising RFID technology could become embroiled in an intellectual-property battle. The protocol is likely to contain certain patented technology from RFID equipment maker Intermec Technologies. The Everett, Wash., company recently demanded royalties for the use of the patents and is suing Matrics, a rival, for allegedly infringing on some of them.
CEATEC JAPAN 2004 was officially launched at a press conference held in Tokyo, attended by some 130 members of the press. Shigeru Ikeda, president of the Communications and Information network Association of Japan (CIAJ), opened the conference with a greeting on behalf of the three sponsoring organizations. Jiro Iriye, director of the CEATEC JAPAN Management Office, then provided an overview of this year’s exhibition, which is rapidly becoming a major international event. CEATEC JAPAN 2004 will be held in the 5-day period from October 5 to October 9. The theme of this year’s event is “Ubiquitous Society–Digitally Enriched, Accelerating to the Next Stage.”
