Drones relay RFID signals for inventory control — MIT — “MIT researchers have now developed a system that enables small, safe, aerial drones to read RFID tags from tens of meters away while identifying the tags’ locations with an average error of about 19 centimeters. The researchers envision that the system could be used in large warehouses for both continuous monitoring, to prevent inventory mismatches, and location of individual items, so that employees can rapidly and reliably meet customer requests.”
RFID
RFID market to reach US$11.2bn in 2017
RFID market to reach US$11.2bn in 2017 — IDTechEx — “In total, IDTechEx expects that 18.2bn tags will be sold in 2017 versus 15.2bn in 2016. Most of that growth is from passive UHF (Rain) RFID labels. However, in 2017 UHF RFID tag sales by value will be 25% of the value of HF tag sales, mainly because HF tags where used for security (such as payments, access etc) have a higher price point versus the cheaper, usually disposable labels used for tagging things.”
Tech company workers agree to have microchips implanted in their hands
Tech company workers agree to have microchips implanted in their hands — ABC News – “Some workers at a company in Wisconsin will soon be getting microchips in order to enter the office, log into computers and even buy a snack or two with just a swipe of a hand… Three Square Market is footing the bill for the microchips, which cost US$300 each, and licensed piercers will be handling the implantations on August 1.”
SingPost to add 50,000 NFC tags to delivery and collection points for greater operational efficiency
Singapore’s postal service provider SingPost is rolling out 50,000 NFC tags to delivery and collection points across the island and is to equip 1,000 postmen with NFC smartphones to “raise postal service quality and improve operational efficiency”... More
French casino to give visitors and employees biometric cards for access and payments
Visitors and employees at the newly opened Pleinair Casino in Marseilles, France will soon be given a biometric smart card equipped with a fingerprint sensor that will enable them to gain access to privileged areas and make payments across the venue... More
STMicroelectronics launches ST25DV chips that can be read by both RFID readers and NFC phones
PARTNER NEWS: STMicroelectronics has introduced a range of dynamic tag chips that support both the NFC Type 5 and the ISO 15693 RFID specifications, enabling them to be read by both standard NFC smartphones and, at a longer range of up to one metre, by RFID readers. More
MSC Cruises passengers to get onboard mobile payments and tailored holidays with NFC, beacons and biometrics
Holidaymakers aboard ships belonging to MSC Cruises will soon be able to make onboard payments, tailor their individual holiday preferences and access features such as a digital personal advisor through facial recognition technology, NFC and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacons, plus a mobile app and interactive cabin TV screens... More
White paper explores how identification technologies are transforming the industrial and commercial landscape
A four-page white paper that explores how identification technologies such as RFID, NFC and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) are transforming the industrial and commercial landscape by making it possible for businesses to generate actionable results from large amounts of data is now available to download from the NFC World Knowledge Centre... More
Fashion retailers test smart mirrors for mobile payments
Fashion retailers Ralph Lauren and Rebecca Minkoff are testing smart dressing-room mirrors that will soon allow shoppers to “wave their phones in front of the mirror and make a purchase using Apple Pay or Android Pay”, Bloomberg reports... More
STMicroelectronics to use NFC assets acquired from AMS to deliver next-generation solutions
PARTNER NEWS: STMicroelectronics (ST) will use its July acquisition of NFC and RFID products, resources, technologies and intellectual property from AMS to create a new generation of high-performance NFC solutions for both mass-market and vertical-market applications, the company’s Sylvain Fidelis and Mark Dickson have told NFC World... More
STMicroelectronics joins the NFC World partner program
NFC World today welcomes global semiconductor company STMicroelectronics as a member of our partner program... More
AMS sells NFC and RFID reader business to STMicroelectronics
PARTNER NEWS: Chip maker AMS has sold its NFC and RFID reader product lines to STMicroelectronics. AMS will continue to retain ownership of its NFC/RFID tag business, including the AS3955 NFC interface chip (NFiC) which AMS unveiled in May 2015. More
French vineyard to safeguard its entire output with NFC
PARTNER NEWS: The Geantet-Pansiot vineyard estate in Burgundy, France is to equip all of its wine bottles with an NFC tag to let its customers authenticate the beverage and receive information about the wine directly on their smartphone. More
US Smart City Challenge adds NXP’s RFID tagging solutions
PARTNER NEWS: The US Department of Transportation (USDOT) has expanded its Smart City Challenge initiative to include NXP’s RFID tagging solutions and smart card ICs... More
Researchers bring sensing capabilities to paper using RFID
Researches from the University of Washington, Disney Research and Carnegie Mellon University have created a way to give a piece of paper sensing capabilities that enable it to respond to gesture commands and connect to the digital world using RFID tags that can be stuck, printed or drawn on the paper. More
NXP and HID Global to enable wearable devices to unlock doors
PARTNER NEWS: NXP has teamed up with HID Global to work on enabling consumers to open electronic locks at commercial buildings, hotels and workplaces with a tap of an NFC wearable device. More
Adobe prototype store uses RFID shopping bags
Shoppers at Adobe’s prototype “store of the future” in Las Vegas are being given RFID chip-enabled shopping bags that allow them to purchase items simply by putting the bags on a checkout counter... More
RapidNFC offers NFC cable ties for easy asset tagging
PARTNER NEWS: Bespoke NFC tag supplier and manufacturer RapidNFC has expanded its range to include NFC asset tags that are designed to make it easy to tag a wide range of assets from cables to shelving and machinery. More
Santa’s little helpers adopt NFC technology
PARTNER NEWS: Children visiting Santa’s Grotto in Blarney Woollen Mills, Ireland, are being given NFC wristbands that are pre-encoded with information provided by their parents. As the child approaches the grotto, the wristband gets scanned by an elf and Santa’s “naughty or nice” book is automatically updated with the information so that he can talk to the children on a personal level. More
AMS unveils NFC chip and antenna for adding payments and ticketing to wearable devices
PARTNER NEWS: Chip maker AMS has introduced an NFC payments and ticketing solution for manufacturers of smartwatches, wristbands and other small devices that only have room for an extremely small antenna... More