The Rapid Start Licensing Program provides licensees access to a number of Intermec portfolios of patented RFID technology to including RFID ASICs, inserts, tags, readers, and printers. The program is not limited to any specific RFID standards.
Both Zebra and SAMSys Technologies, the first company to join the program, have exercised the cross-licensing provision of the Rapid Start program, providing Intermec access to both companies' RFID innovations.
No terms of licensing in either case have been made public.
Intermec, a UNOVA Inc. company, holds more than 145 RFID patents covering broad areas of UHF supply chain RFID practices and applications. The company has been in contentious lawsuits with Symbol Technologies for violation on Intermec's patents by Matrics, a company bought out by Symbol.Intermec's 90-day Rapid Start Licensing Program is designed to provide access to Intermec RFID innovations and to clearly indicate which manufacturers and vendors are licensed to use Intermec's patented RFID technologies. It expires on Aug. 31.
Zebra provides various specialty printers with custom capabilities including color printing and 400 dots-per-inch resolution printing which ensures sharp fonts and precise graphics on extremely small labels, such as those used by the electronics industry.