Location Based Systems

German companies KSW Microtec and Melzer have announced a collaborative initiative to produce a multi-layer UHF label for customised applications in access control and asset tracking. Drawing on the flexible engineering of KSW's windshield inlays and powered by Melzer's new SL-600 processing machine for converting selfadhesive label stock and dry inlays to fully functional RFID tags, the partners claim the labels offer the best and consistent read range for all types of applications.

Swiss positioning and wireless chip and module supplier u-blox has announced immediate availability of two new products equipped with the company's automotive dead reckoning (ADR) technology. Based on u-blox' tightly coupled Kalman Filter algorithm, the NEO-6V GPS module (pictured) and UBXG6010- SA-DR single chip deliver drop-in, self-calibrating GPS dead reckoning performance for high precision vehicle navigation systems.

Esri CityEngine 2011, the latest version of Esri's software for creating high-quality 3D content, is now available.

Johnson Controls has received the 2010 Supplier Award in the category Innovation from Philippe Varin, chairman of the managing board of PSA Peugeot Citroën, in Paris, for its new Head Medium Display.

Mikoh Corporation has been awarded an exclusive five-year partnership contract, with a five-year option, to implement a national EVR (Electronic Vehicle Registration) system in Thailand, the second-largest ASEAN economy.

TransCore has launched ROVR (real-time onboard vehicle reporting), a compact GPS device with GSM communications that allows infrastructure-free tolling and includes an optional driver safety monitoring feature. The company says the system is ideal for HOT lanes or greenfield tolling environments, both domestically and internationally, and can also easily facilitate mileage based user fee data.

Romec, one of the UK's largest facilities management companies, has improved the safety of its mobile workers after equipping 1,000 service vehicles with Masternaut satellite tracking.

From an enforcement perspective at least, Toyota's recent recalls over problems with accelerator pedal assemblies had a positive outcome in that for the first time a major motor manufacturer outside of the US acknowledged publicly what many have known or suspected for quite a while: that the capability exists within certain car companies to extract data from a vehicle onboard unit which can be used to help ascertain, if not prove outright, just what was happening in the vital seconds up to an accident or cr