Basic HTML Version
innovations
www.binfo.co.uk
20
magazine
6
i
The need to replace batteries or recharge
them with mains power may be a small price
to pay for wireless operation, but it’s still an
inconvenience, which is why battery-free and
wireless power are so appealing.
One of the key players in this emerging area,
Texas Instruments, develops ultra-low power circuits
and energy harvesting systems that enable battery-
free operation of devices such as smoke detectors,
wearable medical devices, energy monitoring
systems and mobile accessories.
It has just released an ultra-low power DC/
DC converter (the TPS62736) that increases the
amount of harvested energy a device can use by as
much as 70%.
Sami Kiriaki, senior vice president of TI’s
Power Management, said: “Imagine not having to
change the battery in your smoke detector – ever.
TI continues to develop circuits with very low
operating current and high power efficiency that
can manage microwatts to milliwatts and extract
ambient energy.”
It also develops wireless re-charging systems
for smartphones, notably Nokia’s newWindows
phones, and accessories. It has just taken this to the
next level with a single chip wireless power receiver
with integrated battery charger that enables faster
charging and a new circuit that expands the charge
area by 400%, from 18mm
2
to 70mm x 20mm.
TI says the two bqTESLA circuits will help
designers integrate wireless power technology into
office furniture and other products.
www.ti.com/wirelesspower-pr
New Apps...
Online meetings
iPad owners can now use LogMeIn’s
online meeting tool, join.me, to host
meetings and present files from
anywhere with an Internet connection.
Previously iPads could only be used to
participate in a meeting. The update
for join.me pro accounts (£97 per year
or £12 per month) allows iPad users
to host a meeting on their tablet;
invite attendees via email or a link;
present and share files with up to 250
guests; store files in the app for future
meetings; and talk to attendees via VoIP
or a free teleconference line.
Maps on demand
Ordnance Survey has launched its first
official mobile app for the iPhone, iPad
and iPod Touch. OS MapFinder includes
free overview mapping for the whole
of Great Britain and gives users the
ability to purchase and download maps
in 10 km by 10 km tiles costing from
69p. Maps are cached on the device so
they can be used even when noWiFi
or mobile signal is available. Users can
search for locations by place name,
postcode or Ordnance Survey Grid
reference.
Train times
More than 2 million people have
installed the National Rail Enquiries
(NRE) smartphone app since its launch
in May 2012. The free app provides
information on train times plus a
real-time journey planner, station
locator, live progress reports and
push notifications of interruptions to
services on a chosen route. Another
useful feature is a ‘wake-me-up’ alarm
that alerts passengers when they are
approaching their destination. An
advert-free version is available for £4.99.
Maximise your data
allowance
Millenoki’s Datasquasher lets you
track and control how much mobile
data you use and, if necessary, reduce
mobile browsing usage by up to 90%
by switching off videos, adjusting image
quality, removing unwanted ads and
blocking adware, spyware and malware.
This can save you money and increase
browsing and download speeds.
http://datasquasher.com/download
Smartphones unloved as a
marketing gimmick
QR codes, those funny square barcodes printed
on packaging that provide a gateway to online
content when scanned with a smartphone, are
widely seen but rarely used, according to market
research company Canadean Consumer.
Its study of 2,000 consumers found that fewer
than one in five (17%) consumers has ever bothered
to scan one, even though nine out of 10 had noticed
them on printed material. Amongst consumers over
the age of 45, only 13% have tried them.
MarkWhalley, lead consultant at Canadean
Consumer, says that brands must do more to
promote the technology.
“It would be foolish to write off QR codes as
an idea that simply doesn’t work, because we’ve
seen in markets like Japan that they can. However,
the situation will not change until brands make a
conscious effort to educate the consumer as to how
to use the codes and – more importantly – why
they need to,” he said.
NFC technology provides another way of
interacting with customers. Last Christmas, Proxama
and Posterscope gave online retailer Very.co.uk a
high-street presence by converting a disused store
front into a touchpoint where customers could
download information, sales incentives or web
links by tapping a tag on a poster with their mobile
device.
In the US, Samsung unveiled the first permanent
installation of interactive Samsung NFC tags to
coincide with the 2013 Consumer Electronics
Show. In an agreement with Caesars Entertainment,
Samsung installed more than 4,500 interactive
Samsung TecTiles throughout eight of the
company’s Las Vegas hotels and casinos.
The programmable stickers interact with any
NFC-enabled smartphone and offer a range of
additional information. For example, a TecTile
attached to a slot machine could provide a tutorial
or win/loss statistics; while one outside a restaurant
might let the user make a reservation, view the
menu or read a review.
www.samsung.com/us/tectiles
www.proxama.com
TI expands wireless power possibilities
Easy in, easy out
Business travellers can look forward to faster check-in and check-out
procedures at Concorde Hotels & Resorts following the Group’s adoption of
Smart Way e-check-in/check-out by Ariane Systems. Once a guest has checked
in online at www.concorde-hotels.com, a code is sent to their smartphone.
All they have to do is enter the code into a Smart Way terminal in the hotel
reception area and a room key will be issued. To check out, the guest just
checks their bill on a smartphone and leaves the key in the room.