Wireless News

- NFC Platform for consumer electronics and mobile applications

NFC, Near Field Communications is to become a major technology according to recent research by ABI research, with 50% of all mobile handsets likely include the technology. To address this market, Innovision Research & Technology, a leading developer of NFC (Near Field Communications) and short-range RFID solutions has announced its low-cost NFC platform for consumer electronics and mobile applications. Named, Topaz, it is designed to make NFC applications such a mobile payments, ticketing transactions and access to digital content using NFC-enabled mobile devices possible.

Topaz has been mandated as the type 1 tag format of the NFC standard as one of only three proprietary tag formats approved by the NFC Forum, who are supported by all of the leading mobile device manufacturers.

Working to the ISO14443A standard, Topaz is targeted for operation with NFC devices in Reader/Writer mode - which means a 'request and answer' communication cycle is set up between the NFC device and Topaz. As a low-cost option, Topaz is ideally designed for applications requiring a small amount of memory (1 to 2KB), such as smart poster or one-touch set-up applications, as well as general ISO14443A based RFID applications.

"The NFC revolution is here. By allowing two devices to communicate wirelessly with one another when in close proximity, communication will become as simple and instinctive as through touching," according to Heikki Huomo, CTO at Innovision Research & Technology.

"It's an exciting time for everyone involved, as it will open up a myriad of opportunities for consumer electronics, PC and mobile phone companies, as well as payment providers, chip manufacturers and systems integrators" Huomo continued, "We believe Topaz will play an important part in all of this and being one of only four mandated tag formats, alongside Philips, Sony, and other providers, reinforces our position as a leading player in the NFC market."

What is NFC? NFC is a standards-based, short-range wireless connectivity technology that enables simple two-way interactions between electronic (such as digital cameras, mobile phones, PDAs and computers) allowing consumers to perform contactless transactions, access digital content and connect devices with a single touch. NFC also simplifies setup of longer-range wireless technologies, such as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi.

NFC technology evolved from a combination of contactless identification and interconnection technologies. NFC operates in the 13.56 MHz frequency range, over a typical distance of a few centimetres. The underlying layers of NFC technology are compliant to ISO, ECMA, and ETSI standards.

NFC technology is supported by the leading mobile device, infrastructure and technology manufacturers and by all major payment providers, and it is compatible with millions of contactless cards already in use worldwide.