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Database software maker Sybase is heading deeper into the RFID market with its iAnywhere subsidiary, which announced Tuesday at the Frontline Solutions conference in Chicago the 2.0 version of its RFID Anywhere platform.
With an eye toward developers, system integrators and ISVs (independent software vendors), the RFID (radio frequency identification) Anywhere platform provides an RFID application development and management environment.
To that end, Sybase Inc. also announced Tuesday the launch of its “RFID Insider” developer program, an online resource for developers to download iAnywhere RFID software, tools and educational materials.
The RFID Anywhere platform handles interfaces with RFID readers and printers, as well as with non-RFID data collection devices like bar-code scanners and remote monitoring devices.
An RFID Simulator allows new code to be tested without users having to actually buy the tags and readers beforehand.
What the 2.0 version of the platform brings to the table is management capabilities for configuring and monitoring RFID networks.
This latest version allows for multiple data protocols in a single network, officials said.
The recently ratified EPCglobal Generation 2 hardware standard is supported, as are other EPC and ISO protocols.
A new Data Protocol Processor essentially operates as a translator for handling tag formats and protocols.
At the same time, the 2.0 platform brings a couple of other new technologies.
An Enterprise Manager console—offered as a standalone product as well—enables the configuration of groups of hardware based on location or device type.
It helps users to distribute and update software and system configurations, officials said.
A Data Protocol Processor decodes tag data after reads, as well as the encoding of RFID tag data.
The upgraded platform also comes with some security enhancements, including authentication against network-based directories—LDAP, Active Directory or Windows NT domain directory—that lets users implement role-based security features.
The 2.0 version of RFID Anywhere is available as a middleware component of Sybases RFID Enterprise software, which provides process management and business intelligence functionality to better interpret RFID data.