MORGAN HILL, Calif., 10 October 2006. Alien Technology Corporation has introduced its new Alien Gen2 UHF RFID Integrated Circuit. A drop-in replacement for currently shipping Gen2 chips, the IC delivers a typical 30 percent longer read range and more than 10 times faster write speeds than currently available Gen2 chips.
Manufactured using Alien's patented, high-volume, low-cost FSA process, the Alien Gen2 chip will be the foundation for Alien UHF RFID tags. This includes the Alien Gen2 Squiggle tag, the newly announced additions to Alien's World Tag family, and Alien's new small form factor tags.
Following its EPCglobal certification in June 2006, the Alien Gen2 chip has been the subject of an aggressive interoperability program involving RFID reader, printer and applicator vendors to ensure its compatibility with RFID tags. At the same time, leading RFID label converters have been engaged in an early-sample and validation program to help ensure a seamless switchover. To date, six of the largest label converters have signed multi-year strategic agreements for the purchase of up to 840 million Alien RFID tags, including tags containing the Alien Gen2 RFID chip.
The Alien Gen2 chip supports programming, or write, speeds that are up to 10 times faster than currently available Gen2 ICs, which translates to increased throughput for label printers and applicators and on assembly lines.
The Alien Gen2 chip features a factory-configurable memory architecture. The basic, or default, configuration contains the standard 96-bit ePC memory and features Kill and Access passwords. Depending on application needs, additional configurations can include extended ePC memory (128 bits), 64 bits of independently lockable user memory, and unique Tag IDs (locked factory-programmable serial numbers) for anti-counterfeiting applications.
