Tego simplifies RFID with drag-and-drop interface

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Tego, Inc., the provider of RFID solutions for smart assets, has unveiled its TegoDrive software at RFID Journal LIVE! in Orlando. TegoDrive treats information stored on RFID tags as files and folders on the desktop. By installing the software on a handheld RFID device or on an end-user's desktop connected to a fixed reader, tasks such as adding new content to a tag are as simple as 'save-as' or drag-and-drop.

With TegoDrive, RFID tags are represented as folders on the desktop, and files in the folder correspond to data stored on the tag in User Memory. High-memory TegoChips in particular are ideal when using tags to store data such as photos, documentation, scanned forms or web content via common file formats including pdf, jpg, htm, or txt data files.

TegoDrive eliminates the bottleneck and cost of customizing proprietary RFID reader applications to work with existing enterprise software. Microsoft Windows becomes the reader application program, and accessing RFID assets becomes a simple drag-and-drop extension of desktop computing. TegoDrive allows tag users to store and retrieve their own data, regardless of the format it is in, and to access tags using standard operating system commands already familiar to them.

"As RFID progresses to fulfil its promise as the 'Internet of Things,' TegoDrive takes RFID usability to another level with a simple plug-and-play addition to enterprise networks," said Timothy Butler, Tego president and CEO. "By eliminating the challenge of integrating readers into business computing environments, TegoDrive transforms RFID into a readily networked extension of user applications for immediate benefits."

As Simple as Drag-n-Drop

"Seeing TegoDrive for the first time, our users were amazed by its simplicity," said Dennis Khoo, CEO at Xerafy. "Now, TegoDrive makes it easy for customers to write data directly to our high-memory XL tags without requiring special programs or data formatting for tag encoding."

TegoDrive will allow more first-time users to bring RFID into their business without the upfront cost and effort of customisation with IT support. It transforms RFID from being a specialized adjunct technology into something as familiar as a USB flash drive.

In aviation, for example, an FAA Form 8130-3 must accompany each aircraft part. The industry has not yet developed a standardised format for including this document on RFID tags. TegoDrive resolves this issue since the complete Form 8130-3 can easily be put onto the part's tag as a pdf, jpg, htm, or txt file and then universally accessed at point of use.

The shipping industry provides another example. The Advance Shipping Notice (ASN) is a commonly used form that serves as a packing list or manifest for shipping containers and cargo pallets in almost every supply chain. The efficiency of including ASNs on tagged goods for easy inspection during transport, without needing customized reader software, will spur RFID adoption across this industry.

"It is critical for end users to understand how to effectively leverage and manage RFID data using today's passive UHF systems," said Michael Liard, Director of RFID at VDC Research Group (Natick, MA). "As a result, software has become more important than ever, serving as a key component to maximising the value of RFID systems and data. Software innovations such as the drag-and-drop functionality achieved via TegoDrive enhance the value proposition of RFID for a broad range of applications and simplify the use of RFID technology."

TegoDrive is a standards-based solution that works with both low- and high-memory RFID tags. The user experience is identical to current practices like dragging data between applications or saving files to a new location. At work beneath its simple interface, however, TegoDrive technology provides users with additional benefits such as:

• Optimised storage of information on tags, in terms of both speed and capacity;
• A complete and auditable history of changes/additions to tag data, including the ability to resurrect the information as it existed on a defined date or time;
• The ability to split tags into multiple memory segments, so that different organizations can have their own region,
• Encryption and authentication of sensitive data (NSA Suite B) to prevent cloning of tags or counterfeiting of data or author.

To view a TegoDrive instructional video or to download a copy of the TegoDrive software, go to: http://www.tegoinc.com/products/products_tegodrive.php