products

RFID tag

Ross Systems’ RFID2Go is an electronic product code-compliant solution that validates downloaded order and line-item requirements and controls the tagging process to support tag-at-receipt and tag-to-ship practices. To support the tag-to-stock practice, clients can manually pull a product from storage, tag cases and pallets using RFID2Go and then restock the product, the company said.
www.rossinc.com

Ruggedized wireless keyboard

IKEY’s DW-860 wireless industrial keyboard is constructed using a sealed, industrial silicone keypad and ABS polycarbonate case for harsh environments. The keyboard incorporates 2.4 GHz USB technology, allowing for a 30-foot signal range, and offers built-in mounting holes for use with vehicles and in other mobile applications, the company said.
www.ikey.com

800 MHz rebanding duplexer

K&L Microwave’s WSD-00420 800 MHz rebanding duplexer provides signal interference protection for communications equipment used by police, fire and emergency medical personnel. It operates between 817 MHz to 824 MHz within its receiver filter, while its transmit filter operates between 862 MHz to 869 MHz, the company said.
www.klmicrowave.com

VoIP over Wi-Fi handset offers seamless roaming

DaVitas Networks used G-Tek Electronics’ wireless PWG-600 handset to test seamless interoperability using VoIP-over Wi-Fi applications. The dual-mode, session initiation protocol, Wi-Fi handset integrates GSM, GPRS and Wi-Fi modules to support roaming between Wi-Fi and 2G/2.5G cellular networks. The companies claim that together they can now offer customers end-to-end service with low-voice latency and uninterrupted roaming.
www.g-tekgroup.com

Dual-radio mobile printers

Zebra Technologies introduced dual-radio support — a Bluetooth radio and a Symbol Compact Flash 802.11b radio — for mobile printers, which lets users leverage Bluetooth technology as a back-up connection for hand-held devices. In application, the printer communicates with the Bluetooth hand-held and acts as an intermediary to the network, allowing for real-time information capture, the company said.
www.zebra.com

Hybrid coupler increases power output

Innovative Power Products’ Model IPP-2013 is a 3 dB, 90° hybrid coupler for the 500 MHz 2500 MHz frequency range that combines two signals with up to 200 W (CW) of total output power. The coupler offers insertion loss of less than 0.5 dB, VSWR of less than 1.3:1 and isolation greater than 18 dB, the company said.
www.innovativepp.com

Power amplifier for WLAN devices

Avago Technologies’ MGA-412P8 power amplifier is designed for IEEE 802.11b/g mobile WLAN devices. It can be used in conjunction with radio frequency identification transmitters, Bluetooth devices and other applications in the 2.4 GHz band, the company said. The MGA-412P8 provides 25.5 dB gain and a +19 dBm linear power output with IEEE 802.11g orthogonal frequency division multiplexing modulation at a 54 Mb/s data rate.
www.avagotech.com

Ethernet radio claims 60-mile range

FreeWave Technologies released the 900 MHz FGR-Htplus radio, which has a 60-mile range that can be extended through repeaters. It was built for customers that require an industrial-grade, high-throughput Ethernet radio with frequency-hopping technology for interference rejection and accurate data transfer, according to the company.
www.freewave.com

RFID reader/writer

Wireless Dynamics launched the SDiD 2010, a near-field communications and RFID reader/writer. The device integrates NFC, RFID and Smart-Card functions into a mini-SD card, the company said. It operates at 13.56 MHz and offers an embedded antenna with a 2.5 cm read/write range. It also is capable of peer-to-peer communications using NFCIP-1 and ISO 18092 standards.
www.wdi.ca

Multi-service mesh device

BelAir Networks’ BelAir300 multi-service, wireless mesh network solution for mobile operators now integrates with a GSM base station and an optional T-1/E-1 circuit emulation module. The device delivers legacy time devision multiplexing, broadband, 2G and Wi-Fi services through UMTS- and wideband-CDMA-supported modular IP architectures, the company said.
www.belairnetworks.com

Mesh network solution

Strix Systems expanded its Access/One product line with the addition of the Outdoor Wireless System (OWS) 2400-30, a third-generation solution for building large-scale mesh networks. The mesh architecture of the OWS 2400-30 is a self-configuring, self-tuning, self-healing and scalable network with re-route and roaming, according to Strix.
www.strixsystems.com

Mobile enterprise platform adds printer driver

Zebra Technologies announced that Germany-based SAP AG has added a driver for Zebra mobile printers to its NetWeaver mobile communications platform that lets mobile enterprise users print a variety of documents — including receipts, invoices and delivery confirmation notices — directly from their mobile SAP applications. Currently available is a driver for Zebra Cameo 3 mobile printers. Drivers for Zebra’s QL and RW series printers are expected to be available late in the second quarter of 2006, according to SAP.
www.zebra.com
www.sap.com

DC/DC converters reduce power consumption

Microchip Technology’s positively regulated charge pump DC/DC converters automatically switch between 1.5x and 2x boost operation to reduce power consumption. All are designed for use in low-power devices that use LED backlights, such as pagers, hand-held meters and scanners, and hand-held GPS devices.

The MCP1256 and MCP1257 operate in “sleep” mode, where quiescent current is lowered but regulated output voltage stays the same. The MCP1258 and MCP1259 offer a bypass feature that connects the input voltage to the output, which biases the system’s real-time clock and microprocessor/microcontroller with little power drain from the charge pump itself. All devices have a low-noise output ripple of less than 20 mVpp at load currents up to 100 mA, resulting in less system interference, the company said.
www.microchip.com

Wireless transceiver

Integration Associates released the IA4421, its next-generation EZ Radio FSK wireless transceiver. The device was updated to improve phase-noise performance, to meet European regulations in the 868 MHz band and to provide a higher output power for the 434 MHz, 868 MHz and 915 MHz bands. It also offers automatic antenna tuning, automatic frequency control and frequency hopping, according to the company.
www.integration.com

WLAN management client

Siemens Communications announced the HiPath Wireless Manager Advanced, a modular extension for the company’s HiPath Wireless family of WLAN solutions. The solution offers user-location and intrusion-detection applications and provides a management interface for real-time overviews of the networks, including charts, reports and statistics on wireless usage, the company said.
www.siemens.com

Mesh system operatesin multiple bands

Trango Broadband Wireless’s high-speed mesh system operates across multiple frequency bands, including the 4.9 GHz band allocated by the FCC for public-safety broadband wireless communications, and the 5.3 GHz, 5.4 GHz and 5.8 GHz unlicensed bands. It can be used for security-related applications, including nuclear power plants, airports, port districts, military bases, water treatment facilities and railroads, the company said.

The system supports WiMAX-ready radios and 802.11g devices for Wi-Fi hotspots and includes support for Layer 3 functionality such as QOS, VLAN, NAT, DHCP and PPPoE, as well as OSPF and BGP self-healing routing protocols.
www.trangobroadband.com

Wireless backhaul alternative to TDM

Axerra Networks’ AXN Pseudo-Wire solution provides a backhaul alternative to time division multiplexing for wireless voice and data networks. The scalable solution supports end-to-end latency of less than 8 ms and combines circuit emulation with service emulation, which uses statistical multiplexing to make all bandwidth available in real time, to support high-speed data services such as EV-DO. The solution’s access devices and gateways easily integrate with previously installed base transceiver station equipment, the company said.
www.axerra.com

Array technology increases antenna capacity

TenXc Wireless’s PCS Bi-Sector Array technology applies the principles of higher order sectorization to almost double the capacity provided by a given antenna at an existing cell site at a fraction of the cost of adding another site. Although the PCS Bi-Sector Array is applicable for GSM, UMTS and CDMA operations in the 1.8 GHz to 2.2 GHz frequency range, the technology can be designed to work at other frequencies and other technologies, including those used by public-safety entities, the company said.
www.tenxc.com

Mobile data solution for first responders

InMotion Technology and SkyPilot Networks have combined to offer a mobile-data networking infrastructure that integrates 4.9 GHz mesh-networking technology with carrier mobile data networks. InMotion’s onBoard Mobile Gateway provides a wireless communications gateway for use in police cars, fire trucks, ambulances and other public-safety vehicles. It enables multiple Ethernet, Wi-Fi or serial devices in the vehicle to connect with the agency’s headquarters over SkyPilot’s 4.9 GHz technology or cellular data carrier networks, the companies said.
www.inmotiontechnology.com
www.skypilot.com

MRT TV

John Ode, information security specialist for Idaho Power, talks with Editor Glenn Bischoff about the challenges public utilities face in protecting sensitive data transmitted by wireless asset monitoring and control systems.
www.mrtmag.com