Test equipment

Vigitron, Inc, the manufacturer of complete networking solutions designed for security applications announces major new product releases for ISC West 2019. These products cover areas of PoE Midspans, Network Health Monitoring, Testing and Installation Tools, Building Infrastructure and Network Switching. Reliable and cost-effective products “Vigitron continues to lead as a comprehensive source of networking solutions,” stated Neil Heller, Vigitron’s Vice President of Business Development. “Several years ago, we expanded our engineering team to include software and firmware developers in addition to our existing hardware engineers. We continue to work with major hardware providers in the areas of IP cameras, access control, and LED to develop products resulting in the most reliable and cost-effective performance. “In addition to our advanced engineering and product development, Vigitron continues to lead in the support areas with our Design Centre team providing dealers with complete bills of materials designed for their specific applications.” Vigitron’s new products will be on display at ISC West booth # 8130, April 10-12, at the Sands Convention Center, Las Vegas.

As part of the ongoing expansion of its banking and payments security and consultancy offering, FIME has confirmed the appointments of Arnaud Crouzet and Edouard Baroin. “Banking and retail are experiencing unprecedented change and, while the digitalisation of payments represents significant opportunities, each stakeholder must overcome a range of challenges,” comments Lionel Grosclaude, CEO at FIME. “Banks must balance the need to transform their strategies and infrastructures for long-term success, while ensuring short-term revenue growth. Retailers and merchants need to make increasingly complex strategic decisions to reduce costs and increase revenues in today’s omnichannel world, but with margins constantly squeezed, it is difficult to know where to focus resources.” Digitise payments Arnaud holds a degree in telecom engineering from EPITA and an executive MBA in business strategy and management from CNAM Paris Arnaud will head up FIME’s security and consultancy offerings, helping banks and merchants to secure, automate and digitise payments while improving the buying experience. For the last eight years he has been in charge of payments strategy at Auchan Group, the world’s 11th largest food retailer. He is also General Secretary of nexo standards, the association dedicated to delivering fast, interoperable and borderless card payment acceptance, and previously worked for American Express Group and Ingenico. Arnaud holds a degree in telecom engineering from EPITA and an executive MBA in business strategy and management from CNAM Paris. “This is an extremely exciting time to join FIME,” adds Arnaud. Digital transformation projects “Regulations, standards and new technologies are changing the game, and key stakeholders are completely reevaluating their roles in the payments ecosystem. FIME is perfectly placed to support banks and merchants throughout every stage of their digital transformation projects. Our consultants, engineers and testing experts are removing pain and friction from payments and helping our customers to deliver richer, more secure omnichannel buying experiences. I look forward to collaborating with my new colleagues.” Edouard Baroin brings extensive consultancy experience to FIME, having led teams at Deloitte, Beobank and Eurogroup Consulting Edouard Baroin joins FIME to support banks, merchants and other payment ecosystem stakeholders to define and launch the best solutions for their customers and their business models. He brings extensive consultancy experience to FIME, having led teams at Deloitte, Beobank and Eurogroup Consulting. He holds a degree in mathematical sciences and an MBA in corporate finance. Navigating regulatory challenges “We enable our customers to innovate in a secure and sustainable way. Testing and compliance are therefore essential, but on many projects we are helping to define the future of payments and standards are yet to catch up. This is where our expertise and consultancy comes in,” concludes Lionel. “The arrival of Arnaud and Edouard is another step towards excellence as we revolutionise our consultancy offering and app security testing methodologies. We have some important new services to launch this year to help our customers define, design, develop, validate and launch new products and services, so please join me in welcoming Arnaud and Edouard to help us achieve our ambitious goals.” FIME supports every phase of the digital transformation process by navigating regulatory challenges, reducing risk and complexity, upgrading legacy systems, and ensuring security and interoperability.

The newest addition to Viking’s line of VoIP paging speakers is a 2’ x 2’ drop-in ceiling tile IP speaker for SIP endpoint or multicast/paging. As an added benefit it can also make standard and/or emergency SIP calls. “Why pay extra installation expenses when you can simply drop in one of the most functional VoIP SIP paging speakers on the market today?” – Greg Yocom, Viking Electronics Engineering Manager PoE powered paging speaker The 22TB-IP is a PoE powered paging speaker. It can operate as a SIP endpoint device for one-way and two-way voice paging. It can also operate as a multicast paging device with the ability to receive up to 10 multicast paging streams. A hard-wired button connected to the 22TB-IP can initiate a SIP phone call. The built-in microphone enables monitoring of an area in the event a silent alarm is activated. The 22TB-IP can be programmed to automatically adjust to ambient room noise. IP Programming software Separate audio outputs from the 22TB-IP can connect to the line level input of an external amplifier or power up to 5 additional 8 Ohm speakers or horns. An on-board form-c relay contact can be programmed using the included IP Programming software to trigger a strobe light, door strike, doorbell and more.

Following the successful launch of Kisi Labs with its first product vision ‘Drone Guard’, Kisi Inc., a pioneer in cloud-based keyless access control and security management, has reported the launch of a new security card test to drive physical access innovation through exposing the vulnerability of key cards. Anyone concerned about the security of their access card can send it to Kisi Labs to be tested for free. The original access card will be sent back to the user with a cloned or copied card and a report on how difficult it was for Kisi’s technicians to hack. Rather than hiring a security consultant or paying thousands of dollars for a penetration test, Kisi Labs aims to automate the process and offer this free service to as many people as possible. Different options to test card security Our goal is to make it easy and free to understand card security" There are three free options to test cards. Users can locate their card model in Kisi’s card security hacking database to see if it’s already listed. The second option is for users to send the card type and model for Kisi to check against its database of known exploits or hacks, as well as what tools are typically enlisted to breach the card. The third option requires sending the card to Kisi Labs to be tested by a technician for a full diagnosis, complete with video proof of the process as well as a cloned or copied card sent along with the original. Bernhard Mehl, Kisi’s Founder and CEO comments, “Our goal is to make it easy and free to understand card security, so that expensive physical penetration tests can focus on taking your security to the next level rather than doing your homework." Awareness about card security Mehl adds, "During our work with hundreds of security-sensitive companies we were surprised at how little awareness and knowledge there is surrounding card security. When we looked into the reason, we discovered that methods that should be available to everyone are buried under complicated penetration testing, which often costs thousands of dollars.”

Hytera Communications Corp. Ltd., Hytera America, Inc., and Hytera Communications America (West), Inc. (collectively, "Hytera") has filed a petition at the US International Trade Commission (ITC) requesting review of a Final Initial Determination issued on July 3, 2018 by ITC Administrative Law (ALJ) Judge MaryJoan McNamara that features in Hytera's Digital Mobile Radio (DMR) products sold in the US infringe patents of Motorola Solutions, Inc. (MSI). Hytera files petition at US ITC Hytera's position remains that its products sold in the US do not infringe MSI's patents, and that the initial determination is incorrect. MSI originally asserted seven patents in its complaint but later withdrew three. ALJ McNamara ruled that a limited number of claims in the four remaining patents at issue are infringed, but also determined that MSI did not satisfy the technical industry prong of the domestic industry requirement as to another of its patents and did not find Hytera to have violated the statute with respect to that patent. During proceedings in this case, before the period for factual discovery ended, Hytera had produced for the ALJ's consideration documents and source code related to several new designs. In addition to asking the ITC to reverse the ALJ's initial determination, Hytera has also petitioned the Commission to affirm that these latest products are not infringing. Hytera is confident that our designs for our next-generation DMR product portfolio do not infringe any of the asserted patents of MSI" Digital Mobile Radio products "Hytera is confident that our designs for our next-generation DMR product portfolio do not infringe any of the asserted patents of MSI," said Tom Wineland, Vice President of Hytera Communications America (West), Inc. "MSI did not oppose our new designs based on six of the asserted patents." In June of 2018, Hytera announced a new range of features for its digital mobile radio (DMR) portfolio, including its mobile radios, portable radios, and repeaters. These new features include extending full-duplex calling into repeater-mode operation (RMO) and direct-mode operation (DMO), enlarging full-duplex coverage beyond trunking mode without requiring extra hardware. Hytera also extended its over-the-air programming capability to conventional repeater operation, allowing individual radios to be reprogrammed remotely. Furthermore, optimised push-to-talk (PTT) functionality allows users to talk instantly after PTT even before a call is established.  Hytera portable radios and repeaters Hytera's new features for digital mobile and portable radios and repeaters promote higher productivity" "Hytera's new features for digital mobile and portable radios and repeaters promote higher productivity, help improve the safety of users, and offer a better user experience," added Hytera's Wineland. "They boost Hytera’s leading position in providing innovative, versatile, high-quality DMR solutions that also present a compelling value to our dealers and customers." Hytera's petition before the ITC remains confidential by terms established by the Commission, which typically completes reviews within 120 days. Since the Commission has not issued its final decision, there is presently no constraint on the import or sale of any of Hytera’s products. Hytera also learned in May of 2018 that the US Patent and Trademark Office's Patent Trial and Appeal Board has accepted three Hytera petitions to invalidate MSI's patents based on prior art. "Hytera looks forward to the disposition of this case at the ITC and to resolving the series of nuisance litigations our competitor has filed against us," adds Wineland. "Hytera is focused on innovation and prefers to compete fairly in the marketplace rather than in the courtroom. Hytera is confident that our products do not infringe."

Paige DataCom Solutions, the developer of GameChanger, a new cable designed to significantly exceed the reach of traditional category cable, announced the results of an independent performance evaluation completed by UL LLC as part of its Marketing Claim Verification program. The UL assessment evaluated the performance of the award-winning GameChanger cable technology and verifies the claim that it delivers 1 Gbps performance and PoE+ over 200 meters. "We are thrilled that the leading independent testing facility verifies that GameChanger delivers this type of performance at over twice the standard cable length," said David Coleman, VP of business development for Paige Electric Co., LP. “These results independently document that Paige’s GameChanger Cable really lives up to its name. With a reach that far exceeds traditional cable, it can save integrators and end-users an enormous amount of time, money and hassle across many different applications." Paige’s GameChanger cable Paige’s GameChanger cable extends the reach for any Ethernet application including high definition video and PoE+ to 850’ without a repeater making it ideal for replacing a CCTV and for use in applications that are beyond the 100m reach of a traditional category cable. This cable eliminates intermediate IDF requirements and the need to install repeaters or transceivers, which are costly and introduce additional points of failure. In April 2018, GameChanger was recognised by the Security Industry Association (SIA) as the best in Video Surveillance Hardware and Accessories in the New Product Showcase at the ISC West trade show. Previously, GameChanger was presented with the Platinum Award in the Cabling Installation & Maintenance 2017 Innovators Awards Program at the BICSI trade show.

IHS Markit projects that the market for physical electronic access control solutions has grown to over $5.2 billion in 2018. The market has experienced stable and predictable growth rates that have hovered around 6 percent over the past several years. Electronic locks remain both the largest and the fastest growing product type in access control, representing nearly 40% of the global market size for all access control equipment. Impact of technological developments While market growth rates have been consistent, technological developments have dramatically impacted the market in 2018. The most prominent trend involves mobile credentials, which are poised to revolutionise the longstanding business model for access control system sales. The mobile credentials market was still in its infancy in 2018, but many end-users are already anticipating a transition to these credentials by installing compatible readers in their systems. By 2020, over 10 percent of all new readers sold in the market will be compatible with mobile credentials. Access Control as a Service Other trends to watch in 2019 and beyond include Access Control as a Service (ACaaS), which allow end-users to avoid the need to invest in costly on-site IT infrastructures to support their access control equipment. ACaaS solutions will be particularly popular to support small and mid-sized projects that service less than fifty doors. In addition, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacons will support geopositioning in an increasing number of the world’s most advanced access control systems. Through geopositioning, the exact location of specific personnel can be identified at any site in real-time. The top fifteen access control vendors represent more than half of the total size of the global access control market, but there are pockets of opportunity for new vendors, particularly to accommodate small and mid-sized projects. The mobile credential and ACaaS markets will also be highly competitive in 2019 and should attract an influx of new market entrants.

To grasp the current manufacturing trends and seize the Zeitgeist of Industry 4.0, a new smart IoT industrial park in Hangzhou has been put to use by Dahua Technology, a video surveillance solution provider. Dahua Smart (IoT) Industrial Park occupies in total 512 acres in Fuyang district of Hangzhou, about 20 minutes’ drive from Dahua headquarters, designed to host 6000 staff (by 2017, 4500 people have been working/living in the 262 acres of phase one area). With topnotch technologies, personnel, materials and other benefits, Dahua’s smart industrial park will bring productivity and quality to a brand new level. Efficient information integration The automatic production solution based on integrated information system not only grants a higher productivity that significantly shortens the delivery cycle time for Dahua customers, but also a greater flexibility to specialised requests and ever-changing reality.The employment of software such as ERP, PLM, PDM, MES, APS and WMS helps to achieve information integration The employment of software such as ERP, PLM, PDM, MES, APS and WMS helps to achieve information integration, which, combined with industrial cameras, RFID sensory technologies and automation technologies, can integrate personnel, logistics, works, engineering projects and finance from respective sections of production(preparation, assembly, testing, packaging, inspection, shipment), rendering the whole process visible, traceable and digital. The mounter serves as a good synecdoche to illustrate the incredible efficiency of the whole production system. The concerning high-end devices (including mounter, printer, automated optical inspection equipment, Ersa reflow soldering tools, etc.) provided by ASM (originally Siemens) achieve a speed among the fastest in the world. Fast processing According to IPC standard, X4iS, the latest high-speed mounter can process 125,000 components per hour, or 35 per second. X35 multifunctional mounter can do 54000 components per hour, or 15 per second. A production line in X series can enhance the productivity by 2.7 times while reducing the consumption of energy by 52%, comparing to the original production line in D series under the same conditions. Dahua Smart Industrial Park provides the great benefit of internal synergy The faster speed also applies to the development of new molding, since Dahua Smart Industrial Park provides the great benefit of internal synergy, allowing the end-to-end vertical supply chain with marketing, R&D and manufacturing efficiently integrated. The advanced organising system is supported by topnotch equipment, such as MAKINO high-speed graphite processing machine, GF CNC, GF WEDM-LS machine, Hexagon 3D Nikon projectors and electronic displays. With a processing accuracy of +/-0.002 to +/-0.005MM, while also supporting CAD / CAM / CAE collaborative development and simultaneous manufacturing, these machines enable Dahua to develop new mechanical molding in as short as 7 days.Higher quality results in less likelihood for products to malfunction especially when they are used in critical situations Time- and cost-saving solution By far, this developing system has already produced high precision molding for Lechange Robots, monitoring cameras in TP1-TC6 series, G20 intelligent head-gears, smoke alarm for fire detectors, etc., all of which proving the effectiveness of the system in shortening the development cycle and keeping the competitive edge with new products in the business. Higher quality saves lots of time and economic costs for clients. Even more importantly, higher quality results in less likelihood for products to malfunction especially when they are used in critical, not-allowed-to-go-wrong situations. Dahua’s products are guaranteed with a higher quality for two reasons: first, Dahua has set a high standard of accuracy in production; second, with a reliability lab at the production end, Dahua has put together an effectively closed loop for quality control in the manufacturing process. Accuracy has always been one vital index defining the manufacturing ability because it directly sets the limit to quality and range of products to be produced. Again, take the mounter mentioned above for example: it can process components, in metric size, as small as 03015(0.3x0.15mm), with a +-0.025mm SMD precision (within the 3-stigma range), boasting world leading performance and capable of covering basically all types of components used in the industry.Dahua industrial camera plays an important role in IoT, providing a closed loop for quality control in the manufacturing process Enhanced vision and intelligent analytics Dahua industrial camera plays an important role in IoT, providing a closed loop for quality control in the manufacturing process, in which all materials, personnel and devices are connected and products are traceable to the specific production line and precise time it got made. Boasting a variety of functions, Dahua industrial cameras are used in different sections of production, enabling automatic assembly, high-precision graphic inspection and product flaw inspection. Through high-definition machine vision, Dahua industrial cameras automatically and precisely locate the components, limiting the assembly error to micron level. Equipped with enhanced vision and intelligent analytics algorithm, the industrial camera can spontaneously detect and recognise flaws in the performance and outlook of products, thus promising not only the volume of cameras production but also the steady quality of each and every one of them.In the future phase, this industrial park is expected to be more intelligent to enable a safer society and smarter living Safe society and smart living Reliability must be put to test, in R&D as well as in manufacturing process. The reliability lab at the production end serves to assure quality by randomly taking products from production lines and put them into reliability tests simulating falling, high/low temperature, worn-out conditions, which are conducted by industry leading testing equipment in the lab. Thus what’s conceived in R&D is confirmed from the production line, the synergy of both ends promising better products (for common use or specialised needs). This lab is also responsible for testing all the raw materials. Thanks to the aforementioned information integration, all tests are automatically conducted, recorded and traceable. In conclusion, Dahua Smart (IoT) Industrial Park is endowed with the latest and world leading manufacturing equipment/system boasting high level automation and intelligence, which is essential to satisfy the ever higher demands from clients in terms of delivery time, specialised use and quality. There is still great potential to this new smart industrial park. It is literally only in its phase one. And in the future phase, it is expected to be more intelligent, to realise client-centred flexible production and to enable a safer society and smarter living.

For many students, the best part of their education comes outside of the classroom, often in parts of the world far from home. While they embrace the lure of worldwide travel, with its exotic cultures and unfamiliar lifestyles, students also long for the familiar and the affordable as they travel. Now standardized International Student Exchange (ISE) Cards can provide them with both. Helping students navigate today’s global marketplace economically and safely has been one of the goals of ISE Cards, Inc. since its creation in 1958. ISE Cards are internationally recognized ID cards that save students money when they travel. In addition to worldwide discounts on hotels, restaurants and tourist attractions, the cards provide medical benefits, 24-hour worldwide assistance in more than 20 languages, special international phone rates and even airline bankruptcy protection. Single point of contact “Giving students an opportunity to experience different cultures and people is more important today than ever before,” said Franz Jost, ISE Cards president. “We are excited to help students learn about the world around them.” Popular discounts used by students carrying ISE cards include the Eurostar Rail Pass under the English Channel, the Arc de Triomphe and the Sydney Aquarium. Today, ISE Cards issues ID cards to students in more than 50 countries around the world. ID card printers are usually installed in the office of a travel agency or a university study abroad office Making sure those cards uphold the company’s high standards and provide a common look is important to Jost. That’s why he sought a global supplier to standardise the purchase of ID card printers and supplies on a worldwide basis, offering his agents a single point of contact for ordering a printer and supplemental equipment. ID card printers are usually installed in the office of a travel agency or a university study abroad office. Improved issuance technology In the past, agents were ordering printers and supplies on an individual basis from whichever vendor they chose. Not only was the result an inconsistent mixture of ID cards that didn’t represent ISE Cards very well, but it also left Jost without standard pricing or turnkey installation processes. In 2005, he purchased 15 Fargo C30 printers from Impuls ID Systems in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., to replace a variety of units. In some cases, the printers actually replaced manual processes. “Before we switched to Fargo printers, many agents provided hand-written cards,” said Jost. “The difference is like night and day, especially in terms of look and presentation. The change and the new look were very welcome.” “Worldwide availability and service capability were the most important features in selecting a printer,” he said. As an added benefit, Jost thinks the improved issuance technology may enhance his sales to agents. Easy and user-friendly “We are now ahead of the competition, which uses a clear label stick-on technology,” he said. “We are pleased with having moved to newer technology.” “We never had ID cards printed by us in the office before, so this is our first experience,” said Customer case study Paris travel agent Patti Brown, Parenthèse. “It is very easy and user friendly.” “For now, a magnetic stripe on the back of the card is all the technology we need, but we may consider adding holograms for greater security at some point in the future,” Jost said. Jost estimated that 100,000 cards were printed using Fargo equipment in 2006 “Mostly we need a printer to ensure worldwide coverage, guaranteed output and a consistent look of the final product.” No technical upgrades are needed in agency offices to implement the Fargo equipment. The printers are simply connected to existing computer systems. Jost estimated that 100,000 cards were printed using Fargo equipment in 2006. “Most are single-sided with a colour photo of the student,” he said. Internationally recognisable ID card The important factor is that the ISE Card has an internationally recognized logo, and thus is accepted from Nicaragua to Thailand as proof of student status. “International travel is essential today,” said Brown. “Students and professionals traveling abroad can only be bettered by their experiences while enriching the lives of those they meet along the way.” “International travel is important to students and society,” added Jost, “because it brings about understanding and compassion, and it fosters friendships.” But global travel can be unpredictable, especially in today’s unsettled world. Having an internationally recognizable ID card provides students with a little piece of home to take with them.

Airbus Defence and Space supplies core systems and contributes decisively to the successful test To test the interaction between secure radio networks during international visits, the European Research & Development project ISITEP successfully simulated a summit in Brussels with six European countries in late September. As a result of the two-day demonstration, different mission-critical communication systems operated on common technical platforms to facilitate the exchange of information between various organisations. Airbus Defence and Space played a major role in supplying the necessary technology. Enhancing cross-border communication  The technical set-up enabled communication between Tetra and Tetrapol systems from Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Denmark, Finland and Luxembourg. For instance, police actors protected fictitious foreign delegations as they moved through the city and attended conferences. The realistic scenario echoed the complex security coordination required during high-level missions abroad. ISITEP, the Federal Police of Belgium and the governmental network operator ASTRID initiated the operation. “Airbus Defence and Space technology was decisive in conducting this interoperability test,” said Olivier Koczan, Head of Secure Land Communications at Airbus Defence and Space. “We supported the event together with our partners and our commitment shows that we are developing solutions to improve cross-border communications,” he added. Two independent radio network platforms  To manage the roaming processes, the project set up two technically independent radio network platforms. One was composed of the three operative networks from Belgium, France and the Netherlands, the other consisted of four laboratory networks from Denmark, Finland, Luxembourg and Belgium. On each platform, the participants’ terminals were able to migrate from one network to another. Pivotal to the success of the demonstration was the nationwide mission-critical network of Belgium and its corresponding test network located in Brussels. Both were provided by Airbus Defence and Space and are run by ASTRID. Rising need for secure common communications infrastructure International cooperation between the police and emergency services in Europe has increased in recent years. Consequently, the need for a secure common communications infrastructure has become more pressing. Even though different standards from different vendors exist throughout Europe, the demonstration in Brussels showed how to bridge the gap between various radio technologies. ISITEP aims to find a comprehensive solution for interoperability between mission-critical communications systems with different standards. The project team comprises a consortium of 15 leading companies, including Airbus Defence and Space, and academic institutions from ten countries. This three-year undertaking to strengthen the cooperation between national emergency services started in 2013 and received EU funding of around 10 million euros. The international Tetra Association as well as first response organisations from nine countries are also supporting the project’s activities. Save