RFID Reader: Datalogic Automation's RFID Business Unit Announces PROFIBUS For Cobalt HF, An Enhanced Cobalt HF Platform, New Gateways, And The New Cobalt HS
Datalogic Automation's RFID Business Unit announces several new Escort Memory Systems products for industrial auto-ID applications. PROFIBUS communications are now available for the EMS Cobalt HF product family of high-frequency industrial RFID systems. PROFIBUS (Process Field Bus) is an international standard for field bus communication in automation technology and was first promoted (1989) by BMBF (a German department of education and research).
With the addition of PROFIBUS connectivity the Cobalt HF RFID product family extends an already impressive list of communications options available to the factory automation engineer, such as TCP/IP, DeviceNet, Ethernet IP, Modbus TCP, USB, RS-485, RS-232, and RS-422.
Brad Todd, Sales Manager for the Americas, says "PROFIBUS connectivity will not only assist our European and Asian customers, but will benefit many American installations where PROFIBUS has been adopted as the factory automation networking standard."
At the same time, the standard Cobalt HF platform has been enhanced with improved installation options, more accessible diagnostics, and an attractive graphical design in a new product revision, Cobalt HF Rev 02. PROFIBUS connectivity is just the first in a series of new features to be added to the Cobalt product family.
In support of the Cobalt product line, two new models of the Gateway are now available: GWY-01-DNT and GWY-01-232. The Gateway is a network device that hosts a local RS-485 Subnet16TM of up to 16 RFID read/write stations. Those stations are then presented through a single connection point to an external network such as TCP/IP or industrial Ethernet. The two newest Gateway models provide external connection to DeviceNet and RS-232.
Cobalt's flexible architecture has also been extended into Escort Memory Systems' highly successful and long-running HS family of RFID tags, antennas, and controllers. With these new Cobalt HS systems, current installations of HS tags can benefit from the direct Ethernet communications and from the powerful C-Macro command set offered in all Cobalt products.
About RFID Business Unit
The RFID Business Unit of Datalogic Automation (Escort Memory Systems - EMS), has delivered rugged, industrial fixed-base and mobile RFID solutions to leading companies worldwide for over twenty years. EMS is recognized for high performance, highly connected and rugged RFID solutions that set the standard for RFID within the automotive, pharmaceutical, electronic, food processing and other demanding settings.
About Datalogic Group
Datalogic Group is the third largest world manufacturer and leader in Europe for bar code readers, rugged mobile computers, and RFID systems. Datalogic offers innovative business solutions, specifically in the retail, manufacturing, transportation and logistics markets. The Group has been quoted on the techSTAR segment of the Italian stock exchange since 2001 as DAL.MI, with headquarters located in Lippo di Calderara di Reno (Bologna). Datalogic has about 1900 employees worldwide, in over 40 countries in Europe, Asia, the United States and the Pacific Rim. In 2007, the Datalogic Group achieved revenues of over $600M, an increase of 6% over the previous year.
SOURCE: Datalogic Group and RFID Business Unit