CLEVELAND /BUSINESS WIRE/ -- Blue Spark Technologies, a leading supplier of thin, flexible, eco-friendly printed batteries, announces it has formed a strategic technology partnership with Swiss RFID chip producer, IDS Microchip, to jointly promote new battery-assisted passive BAP RFID sensor solutions for use in a host of industries and applications. One high-value application Blue Spark and IDS Microchip have developed is a BAP RFID tag reference design enabling real-time time-and-temperature monitoring and data logging of consumables and other temperature-sensitive products as they move through the supply chain.
The BAP RFID sensor tags can be used on cases, pallets, containers, and even individual packages of perishable foods, such as meat, fish, frozen, and dairy products. They can also be used with beverages such as fruit juices and wine, as well as temperature-sensitive chemicals and pharmaceuticals, such as vaccines and biologicals. And because the embedded tags are EPC Gen2–compliant, the BAP RFID sensor solutions can allow real-time status monitoring and communication with the host system through the existing RFID infrastructure.
"IDS's SL900A reduces the cost and technological complexity of these second-generation tags, enabling many key and central applications where these factors have always been an impediment," pointed out Kurosh Hayat Davoudi, Marketing and Sales Director at IDS Microchip, "I am sure that these BAP RFID sensory tag samples will play an essential role in paving the way for an easier adoption of sensory tags."
Matt Ream, Blue Spark VP of Marketing and Product Development, notes: "The merging of IDS Microchip's RFID-enabled integrated circuit with a sensor and a printed battery within a single tag can offer food, beverage, pharmaceutical and chemical processors, and their logistics providers, a revolutionary breakthrough in cold chain monitoring. Design engineers can now integrate printed electronic elements into systems that make consumables and other products safer and better, while minimizing waste and costs for their producers."
Reference Designs for Tag and Sensor Developers
As a first step in their partnership, Blue Spark and IDS have jointly funded the creation of a thin, flexible, RFID temperature data logger tag reference design that will be available to RFID and sensor designers for their own product development. The fully functional sensor tags will be available in both inlay and label form factors, and will be included in IDS's SL900A developer's kits.
IDS Microchip's sensory RFID chips are in fact second-generation tags that incorporate sensory functionality, in addition to providing a unique ID. The company's SL900A tag adds a new dimension to RFID in that it is EPC Gen2–compliant. These single-chip sensory tags/data loggers incorporate an integrated temperature sensor, interface for various external sensors, data logging control logic, and integrated real-time clock to time stamp events.
Attendees at the 2012 Sensors Expo in Rosemont, IL, June 6–7, can learn more about thin printed batteries and RFID-enabled sensor solutions by visiting Blue Spark Technologies at Booth #831. To receive information on Blue Spark products and industry news, please follow us on Twitter.
About IDS Microchip
IDS Microchip is an innovative semiconductor company, focusing on RFID and sensor solutions. With a mission to provide the next-generation RFID products to its clients, IDS Microchip is constantly investing in its product roadmap, ensuring cost-efficient solutions with superior performance. Currently, IDS Microchip has one of the broadest RFID semiconductor portfolios, which comprise readers and enhanced sensory tags for HF and UHF, as well as NFC and microSD for mobile payment systems.
About Blue Spark
Blue Spark Technologies Inc. is a leader in developing flexible, printed, "green" proprietary power sources for battery-powered printed electronic systems. The company was founded as Thin Battery Technologies in 2002, with patented technology and technical leadership from Energizer (Eveready Battery Company). Blue Spark customers include manufacturers, product designers, and integrators across multiple industries, including interactive packaging, RFID, pharmaceutical, powered smart cards, and novelty items. Users of products powered by Blue Spark batteries enjoy increased efficiency, greater convenience and portability, improved safety, lower manufacturing and assembly costs, higher profit margins, and greater environmental responsibility. For more information, call 440-249-5400.
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