RFID investment

Omron Corporation, the US$5.5 billion Japanese manufacturer of automation and sensing products, has revealed more specific plans related to the November 2005 announcement of a US$20 million worldwide investment in the RFID business over a two-year period. The company announced that RFID inlay manufacturing capacity will be increased to support production of more than 250 million inlays per year at its Minakuchi factory in Shiga, Japan.

This factory location was chosen to take advantage of its more than 30 years of experience with semiconductors and class 10,000 clean room standards. The inlays produced at Minakuchi are marketed and distributed globally by Omron's RFID division.

Omron RFID inlays are manufactured using a patented process called 'Jomful'. Instead of applying adhesives, Jomful utilises an ultrasonic welding method to bond the chip and strap to the substrate. Inlays are produced up to 10 times faster than adhesive-based processes and contain a more robust electrical connection. The results are higher survivability and reliability for label conversion and application for the supply chain. (See the March edition of What's New in Process Technology, page 6, for a full description of the process.)