Garrison BT02 Beacon Tag supports Eddystone URL

How to push a simple URL to smartphones? That is a billion dollar question.

QRcode still remains popular even though it requires rarely-installed scan-apps. Many users might not realize that many install messaging apps like LINE or WECHAT can scan QR code too. But until the day all camera apps have scanner feature built-in, it won't take off as the most popular method.

Android Smartphone has the next-best method called NFC, which is useful to pick up URL without any APP; that leaves the lonely and helpless iPhone users.

It is a well-known fact that all street promoters who are delivering FREE ice-cream in return for loading a URL or pressing LIKE a Facebook page or installing an APP, hates iPhone very very much. It is extremely hard to push a message on iphone even with iBeacon technologies, APP-support is a luxury for a short marketing campaign. The most common method is manual key-in search words in itune store.

Now street marketing got a new better method for iphone users; by using Eddystone URL and commonly installed app "Chrome".

At the moment, Chrome is the only browser that supports Eddystone URL beacons. BUT, it won't be long for other OS or App or Browser in the same ecological system doing the same. Why not? they got to have something for their endless update, right?

For iphone users who believe they approached a Eddystone beacons broadcasting URL, and for the promoters who are broadcasting a URL, this is what will happen;

A demo for a iphone to get a URL, by just check on Notification, in Chrome section.



The beacon in the screen: HKRAT-BT02

The Setup procedure is simple:  link.

Review of NODE, a multi-sensor on your smartphone

Today we are gonna to review this gluestick-like stuff.

Its name is NODE.

If I just show you the NODE, without telling you any things about it, I can guarantee that your blind guess can never be right.

It is a Bluetooth-connectable gadget that can connect with up to 2 sensors. And there is a wide choice of sensors; a whole lot of choice for sensors. Extracting the introduction of NODE from the official, it is a handheld sensor powerhouse with BLE 4.0 Smart supporting with different sensors. Each NODE can pair with two sensors at the same time.

They have 8 functions provided at this moment

CLIMA

The upper one is the CLIMA Module, the white sphere up there act as a mini, pocket observatory. It provides the measurement and recording of climatic information include Air Pressure, Light Index, Humidity and Temperature. It just gives you a chance to be a weatherman around your friends and colleagues. I’m sure you will become a weather-checking junkie after using the CLIMA.

A live stream record of the CLIMA module

OXA – CO2 & NO2 (not shown in picture)

The lower one is the OXA – CO2 Module, those tiny holes on the surface of the sensor help you to measure and record the carbon dioxide/nitrogen dioxide level around you. It is actually quite interesting to know about how good the air quality is throughout your daily life. Isn’t it?

Luckily, it shows that my working environment is within the CO2 safety level   
       

Well, this is empty and it is not an error NO2 level should remain zero or very low in normal environment

Now, just have a short summary of NODE, as a cutting edge gadget, NODE is really easy to use even for a novice. Install the apps, turn on your NODE and you can have fun with it. I won’t say NODE is kid-and-grandma-friendly, yet…it’s aimed for student or someone who want to get a taste on mini-scale scientific investigator.

The only real problem is that NODE and their sensors remain a relative high price (for any student to own one) even though it has been released about 2 years ago. What we can do is just to hope that, in one day, NODE will move to large production runs and price will come down hopefully.

Feel free to contact us by email: info@hk-rfid.com

Preview on new features for EM02 latest firmware, BTLE added.

Apart from Empress series transponder such as Hussar/Garrison/Tempcorder series, now Empress EM02 readers can also gather the beacon signal from BTLE devices, especially useful for scanning IDs from wearables such as Fitbit, Jawbone, etc.

Empress EM02 is a FCC CE certified reader, has long been used as data gatherer for telemetry business applications together with Empress series transponders. With the latest upgrade, by simply switching setting by software command, it can read bluetooth device's ID, meaning the reader can now work alone in many other business applications. This reader can be used as gateway for Bluetooth smart devices (BT4.0 or above), which is popular in smartwatch, wearable, health activity recorder, mobile phone apps, etc.

BT4.0 or BTLE USB dongles are common and they can do the same, they are best for small scale development and demo test. However, this EM02 reader provides more options in project implementation, in terms of choice of extendable antenna and network connectivity.

This EM02 is also perfect for projects which requires reading proprietary devices and BTLE devices at the same time (DUAL mode), for example, reading meter readings (proprietary) and staff ID (BTLE) at the same time. See the video for live explanation.

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Video Sharing: Bluetooth 4.0 (BLE) Marketing on i-Devices, ibeacon application demo

This was a fascinating video that was taken in Oct. 2012, edited recently and put on youtube. This internal project made use of the state-of-the-art technology at that time (BLUETOOTH LOW ENERGY or BLE or BT4.0), and it was well-finished by our talented engineers. We are still waiting for related open protocol and faster-development by Apple to encourage us  to plan something bigger.




"We are very excited about this new technology and we can produce tag and readers right-away. It has a very good synergy effect with Empress 2.4Ghz Active RFID product line. While some companies are able to mimick ibeacon and be so pro-active in the field, we are afraid that Apple's coming announcement may not responding the request of the iBeacon players, at the end became another "passbook"."   - commented by CTO, Kevin Wan.

Well, let's wait and see.