[March 30, 2004] Crossbow Technology Introduces First In Innovative Series of Plug-and-Play Sensor Boards for Modular Customization of Applications Running On Its Wireless Mesh Networking Platform SAN FRANCISCO --(Business Wire)-- March 30, 2004 -- Boards Are Easy to Integrate and Cost Effectively Add Sensing and Data Acquisition Capabilities Enabling Customers to Get Better Data Faster Crossbow Technology, Inc. a leading wireless mesh networking company at the forefront of providing anywhere anytime wireless networking solutions, today announced the first in a series of easy to integrate application specific sensor and data acquisition peripherals. In response to customer demand for rapid, cost-effective deployment of large-scale wireless mesh networks, Crossbow's customizable plug and play peripheral products support a multitude of application specific requirements for the broadening range of applications enabled by its advanced wireless sensor networking platform. The new multi-sensing peripheral products can provide stand alone multi-parameter sensing, directly capturing, processing and sending data from a variety of devices seamlessly. Fully compatible with the company's wireless mesh networking platform (which consists of intelligent sensing and data acquisition modules, integrated radio/processor boards called motes, and the company's TinyOS-based mesh networking software), the new boards provide greater in-network computing and data processing capabilities and support new multi-sensing and data acquisition requirements without the need for expensive and time consuming customization by the customer. In addition, the peripheral boards have a prototyping area for customers to easily wire in other types of sensors. In the physical monitoring, control and data acquisition realm, Crossbow has been at the forefront of creating smaller, smarter, wireless sensing devices that operate autonomously from, but can also communicate with, other external systems, said Mike Horton, CEO of Crossbow. These innovations have effectively broken through the physical and cost barriers associated with deploying wireless networks for monitoring and control applications. In response to rising customer demand, we have dramatically increased our R&D spending on fully packaged application development support. The introduction of the MTS400/420, MTS510 and MDA300 sensor and data acquisition boards provides an innovative level of out-of the box application-specific customization through specialized configurations of direct sensing capabilities, as well as customization through greater integration and interoperability with existing sensors, sensing modalities, control devices and data acquisition modules. The MTS400/420 and MTS510 sensor boards are new additions to Crossbow's expanding family of low-cost sensor boards which included (MTS300/310) multi-parameter sensor boards that include light, temperature, acoustic, sounder, vibration (2-axis accelerometer) and motion (2-axis magnetometer) and basic/prototyping (MTS101). The MDA300 is the first in a series of highly versatile multi-function data acquisition boards with on board sensing capabilities. MTS400/420 Series: Crossbow's MTS400/420 series was designed to meet the most stringent performance requirements of environmental monitoring by groups ranging from agricultural operators, natural resource developers, industrial and building operators and homeland security. The monitoring of our physical environment frequently requires the ability to deliver fine-grained measurements over a wide area and a range of analytical sensor inputs as well as the ability to aggregate data and communicate in real time. The MTS400 and MTS420 Environmental Monitoring Boards are multi-function sensor boards customized for the complex world of environmental monitoring incorporating five sensing parameters used in related applications including Temperature, Humidity, Barometric Pressure, Light, Acceleration and optional GPS. Additionally, the GPS sensing modality offered in the MTS420, when combined with the built-in integration capabilities of Crossbow's MICA2 and MICA2DOT Motes lowers the cost of deploying a broad range of RFID and asset tracking applications and increase their capabilities by allowing them to measure physical parameters about tracked material such as the status of fragile or perishable goods cost effectively and in real time. The MTS510 is the first sensor board customized for applications requiring ultra small size by adapting light, sound and motion sensing capabilities to the MICA2DOT quarter sized form factor enabling integrated and enhanced sensing capabilities for applications such as Robotics, Seismic Monitoring, Acoustic Tracking, Ubiquitous Computing and Event Detection. The accelerometer, microphone and light sensor circuits are all processor controlled and can be switched on or off via user-defined programs, which when combined with the MICA2DOT wireless reprogramming capabilities greatly enhances flexibility and real-time interaction with wireless networks. Its ultra-compact size, low-cost and ability to mate directly to the quarter-sized MICA2DOT Mote, the MTS510 can bring enhanced sensing and monitoring capabilities to applications requiring dense networks, or fits anywhere applications such as wearable computing. The MDA300 is a multi-function data acquisition board with an on board temperature and humidity sensor and is the first in a series of multi-function data acquisition boards designed to interface directly with and interoperate with a wide variety of existing sensors, sensing modalities, control and monitoring devices commonly found in a broad range of sensing, monitoring and data acquisition applications in Environmental and Habitat Monitoring, Industrial and Vibration monitoring, Building Monitoring and Control. The versatility of the MDA300 data acquisition board increases the ease of deployment and lowers the cost of installation for large-scale networks that need to integrate with and/or enhance existing actuation, control and sensing capabilities. The MDA300, in addition to its comprehensive communications and control features includes numerous analog and digital input and output channels (including up to 11 channels of 12-bit analog input) and easy-access micro-terminals allowing it to interface directly with a host of external sensing and control devices facilitating greater in-network-interaction and more extended remote programming and device control. Founded in 1995, Crossbow's wireless mesh networking products have been deployed to enable ubiquitous sensing and actuation in a broad range of indoor and outdoor environments and facilities. The Company develops and manufactures the only fully battery powered smart dust wireless sensors and mesh networking platform appropriate for use in large scale wireless sensor networks that require high levels of reliability and extensibility. The combination of advanced hardware and software technologies developed by Crossbow, including its enhancements to the TinyOS open-source operating system, provide efficiency and reliability superior to previous generation star, hybrid star and partially battery powered mesh network-based operating platforms. The company's Gateway (Stargate) and interface products (MIB) allow customers to interface its intelligent sensors to PCs, PDAs, the WWW and existing wired networks and protocols. Crossbow is also a leading supplier of inertial sensor systems, including MEMS gyro and FOG gyro-based Inertial Measurement Units, AHRS, and Vertical Gyros for Aviation, Land, and Marine Applications. Crossbow also produces MEMS accelerometers (single and tri-axial), magnetometers, tilt sensors (inclinometers), vibration, seismic and other instrumentation sensors. Crossbow is headquartered in San Jose, California and has distributors in Austria, Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, Finland, France, Germany, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan and the United Kingdom. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]