Seattle, WA-based fabless semiconductor supplier Impinj Inc., has released its radio frequency identification (RFID) system, GrandPrix, which conforms to the EPCglobal^™ Generation 2 (Gen 2) RFID protocol. According to the developer, it is the first RFID system incorporating Monza^™ Gen 2 RFID tag chip and Speedway^™ multiprotocol reader platform, to support all features of the Gen 2 standard. Impinj said that Monza is the first 100% Gen 2 compliant and certifiable RFID tag chip, and implements all mandatory features of the Gen 2 standard. It is sampling now, and is expected to go into full production by the end of the second quarter.

The Speedway reader platform, architected to support Gen 2 as well as the legacy EPCglobal^™ Class 0 and Class 1 UHF RFID protocols, eliminates ghost reads and supports the most challenging operating modes of the Gen 2 protocol, dense-reader environment and 640 kbps tag data rates. The GrandPrix solution combines advanced radio technology and superlative performance to deliver tag readability, writeability and throughput.

“End users are awaiting improvements in the performance and ease-of-use of RFID systems. The GrandPrix solution leverages Impinj's expertise in radio technology and chip design, as well as its knowledge of the Gen 2 protocol, to deliver improvements in both areas,” said William Colleran, president and CEO of Impinj. “We believe that the GrandPrix solution will catalyze the industry and accelerate deployments by users who require RFID systems that just work. All Monza Gen 2 tag chips are factory tested to ensure 100% reliability.”

In addition to GrandPrix, Impinj's RFID product line includes the ZumaRFID^™ tag chip, the rewriteable Class 0 chip with long range and high-speed readability and rewriteability. Available in production volume quantities, ZumaRFID has up to 192 bits of lockable memory, which can be used to store two independent 96-bit EPCs or user data, and includes consumer privacy features such as the ability to disable or kill fielded tags.

Monza will be available in chip, inlay or label form from Impinj or from its partners. The Speedway reader platform is available for license to Impinj's reader and manufacturing partners.

For more information, visit www.impinj.com