Odin gets FCC license that may affect RFID security applications

DULLES, Va.--Odin Technologies, a forerunner in RFID technology consulting and testing, announced November 16 a new ability to test RFID equipment. Thanks to a license from the Federal Communications Commission, which Odin believes to be unique, the company is now able to test products at frequencies outside of the legal 902-928 MHz range. The FCC will now allow Odin to test RFID equipment at frequencies ranging from 866-956 MHz, at up to eight watts of power, so that they can test products here that will be eventually used in Europe, Japan, or other global locations where regulations for frequency use are different than in the United States. Without the license, unlicensed frequencies can only be used at one watt per channel, which doesn't allow for effective product testing. For instance, said Odin's vice president of operations and marketing Bret Kinsella, "UHF RFID is a very compelling new technology for mobile asset security. For global companies looking to install a RFID mobile asset security solution globally, they need to be able to test equipment and use cases in a variety of UHF frequencies." India regulates RFID at 865-867 MHz, for example. Without this testing facility, it's possible that what works in the U.S. between 902 and 928 might be unreliable at 866, and there'd be no way of knowing without the expense of testing the equipment halfway around the world, according to an Odin press release. Odin, said Kinsella, "has already worked with a U.S. federal agency to pilot a complex multi-frequency RFID security solution." The new FCC licenses enables the company to test frequencies for Europe, Japan, India, Korea, Australia... all in its RFID performance lab. "It is one-stop shopping for scientific RFID testing and design services on a global basis," said Kinsella. Read more, including comment from the FCC, in the January edition of Security Systems News.