U.S. Department of Defense Places First Orders for DASH7(TM) Wireless Sensor Products

U.S. Department of Defense Places First Orders for DASH7(TM) Wireless Sensor
Products
Orders mark next wave of wireless sensor networking deployments within the DoD

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Oct. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- The DASH7 Alliance, a coalition
of organizations promoting a standard for wireless sensor networks, today
announced that the United States Department of Defense (DoD) has placed its
first order for DASH7 active RFID tracking technologies. The order comes
under the DoD's $429.4 million RFID III procurement contract, and includes
products from three vendors - Evigia, IDENTEC Solutions and Savi Technology,
which are all members of the DASH7 Alliance.

"These contracts mark an important milestone for the DASH7 Alliance," said
Patrick Burns, President of the DASH7 Alliance. "Now NATO customers, and
defense suppliers in industries from aerospace and automotive to logistics can
rely on a single open standard for monitoring and securing critical cargo,
parts and assets, around the world."

The DoD will transition its RF-ITV network to DASH7, providing the foundation
for faster growth in the active UHF segment of the RFID market. The technology
will enable the DoD to track items like cargo containers, vehicles, and
rolling stock, with faster and more effective communication as to their
whereabouts and status across allied defense forces and government
organizations. Standardizing on DASH7 technology will enable the DoD to make
better choices, increase interoperability and achieve its goals at lower
costs.

In the past, wireless sensor networking technologies have been limited by
issues such as poor range, short battery life and the inability to penetrate
certain types of materials. DASH7 is particularly well suited for both
structured and unpredictable, chaotic environments given its range of at least
one kilometer, its ten-year battery life and its ability to penetrate water,
concrete and other materials that can block other Radio Frequency (RF)
signals.

Products purchased in this order by the DoD are certified with the DASH7 1.0
Interoperability Certification, meaning they have successfully completed
baseline interoperability testing for DoD-specific use cases. Official DASH7
Alliance interoperability certification, planned to be available later this
year, will encompass a broader set of interoperability criteria for public
sector and commercial applications. This certification is expected to attract
other commercially-focused DASH7 developers and manufacturers currently
innovating a wide range of new products and capabilities that they intend to
offer to their traditional markets. DASH7 developer resources are available at
http://www.dash7.org/

About the DASH7 Alliance
The DASH7 Alliance is a coalition of organizations from multiple industries
that are committed to collaborating on the promotion of wireless sensor
technologies based on the ISO18000-7 standard for active Radio Frequency
Identification. Participating organizations include Analog Devices, Austria
Microsystems, Dow, Evigia Systems, Hi-G-Tek, IDENTEC SOLUTIONS, KPC, Lockheed
Martin, Michelin, Northrop Grumman, RFind, Savi Technology, ST
Microelectronics, and Texas Instruments Corporation. The U.S. Department of
Energy and three of its laboratories, the Argonne National Laboratory, Oak
Ridge National Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, as well as
the University of Pittsburgh, plan to serve as technical advisors. Membership
is open to end users, technology providers and research organizations. For
more information, please visit www.dash7.org

SOURCE DASH7 Alliance

Ian Bain, Red Consultancy for DASH7 Alliance, +1-415-618-8806,
ian.bain@redconsultancy.com