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Q-Free unveils new on-board unit and parking and access transceiver

 The OBU615 is a Dedicated Short-Range Communication-based (DSRC) On-Board Unit (OBU) with typical application in Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) and congestion charging, Automatic Vehicle Identification (AVI), Electronic Registration Identification (ERI), access control and parking, and features an industry-leading 10-year lifetime in its OBU615L form. The RSE620 is a small, lightweight CEN TC278 DSRC-compliant transceiver intended for parking and access control applications, which features ultra-low power consumption.

The OBU615S/L is a new OBU built on an innovative new CPU platform. It features ultra-low power consumption combined with the fastest DSRC processing capability in the industry.

The new OBU also utilizes advanced signal discrimination techniques, which enable it to only wake up when signalled by a legitimate DSRC source. With this technology, the OBU615 also achieves full immunity to other radio frequency sources, such as Wi-Fi in the 5GHz (802.11a, ac, p) band. This addresses issues caused by the deployment of smartphones with Wi-Fi capabilities in the 5GHz band, a development that is increasingly creating interference and draining the batteries in OBUs that do not feature this technology. While the existing OBU610 from Q-Free has a nominal lifetime of seven years with normal exposure to Wi-Fi-enabled smartphones, the OBU615L achieves a record-breaking lifetime of 10 years even when fully exposed to such devices. The OBU615S is delivered with a nominal lifetime of more than seven years in the same operational environment.

The OBU615 is delivered in the same encapsulation as the OBU610, enabling it to be mounted on existing in-vehicle brackets as used for the OBU610. This reduces logistic and operational costs for the OBU issuer while also providing environmental benefits through less waste and handling. The height of the OBU is reduced to 19mm, enabling cost-efficient postal distribution in all countries in the world. The same height change has been implemented for the existing OBU610.

The RSE620 is a new DSRC transceiver specifically for the parking and access market, and for general stop-and-go payment services. One of its first applications will be for payment services in gas stations where the mounting height is more than 6m. This large reading distance is achieved with a record low-power consumption of less than 4W. The RSE620 has a family resemblance to its big brother, the RSE650, but is only 40mm thick. This makes it the smallest DSRC transceiver in this category with all-weather in- and outdoor applicability and IP65 dust and water protection.

The RSE620 also has an ‘instant on’ feature where the reader is fully operational only 10ms after powering up. This enables the transceiver to be used in very low-power applications. Its ultra-low power consumption makes it ideal for all type of access applications, including for areas where main power is not available.

The RSE620 transceiver may be run from a variety of power sources such as batteries, solar panels or wind turbines. Its standalone embedded application enables easy integration to any access system without previous experience of the DSRC protocol and standards. For standalone embedded applications, the RSE620 may also be equipped with a Secure Application Module (SAM) for secure DSRC key management. The new transceiver is also fully backwards-compliant with the earlier MD5859 DSRC transceiver serial protocol, allowing easy drop-in replacement without changes to the parking controller application.

Availability

The OBU615S/L is available for sampling now and will be available for volume delivery from mid-July 2014. The RSE620 will be available for volume delivery from August 2014.

For further information, please contact:

sales@q-free.com

Tel. +47 73 82 65 00

About Q-Free

Q-Free is a leading global supplier of Road User Charging and Advanced Transportation Management System products and solutions. The company has approximately 350 employees in 17 countries and is represented on all continents. The company’s main office is in Trondheim, Norway. Q-Free is listed on Oslo Stock Exchange under the ticker QFR.

q-free.com

Twitter: @Q-FreeASA

 Product release