We are all familiar with the ubiquitous concept of cordless technology in our everyday lives. We've migrated from hardwired desktop computers to WiFi Internet connections on laptops; from corded to cordless phones and cell phones. Wireless technology is being adopted at a faster and faster pace in many environments.

 

An obvious candidate for cordless technology is barcode reading in retail Point of Sale and office environments. Industrial users have benefited from cordless technology for many years, and we are currently seeing expansion in general purpose applications. Customers understand the importance and benefits of "going cordless." More than 23 percent of the barcode reader market has already gone cordless or expects to go cordless within the next year, according to Venture Development Corporation, leading industry analysts for this market. The cordless sector of the handheld scanning market is clearly growing at a much faster rate than the corded segment.

 

There are several reasons for this growth rate. Cordless devices have several benefits over corded products, including taking the scanner to the item that is to be scanned, rather than the other way around; extending the working area beyond the limits of cable length; improving workplace safety (no cords to trip over); increasing order and efficiency by removing tangled cables; and optimizing reliability by removing the greatest failure point.

 

There are many applications where cordless scanning can improve safety while increasing productivity. These include retail POS, health care, inventory, warehousing and logistics. In the retail environment, cordless scanners eliminate the need to lift bulky or heavy items and allow management of multiple self-checkout stations. Used in health-care environments, cordless readers provide accuracy and flexibility in scanning a barcode on a patient's wristband at the bedside. Inventory and warehouse applications, stock receiving, pulling, loading, docking, and forklift applications can all benefit from the flexibility of cordless scanning.

 

There are several different wireless technologies available for handheld scanning devices, including Bluetooth wireless technology, IrDA (Infrared Data Association) and various narrow band (either 433Mhz or 910Mhz) radio technologies. Each has advantages and disadvantages, depending upon the specifics of the installation.

 

Bluetooth wireless technology has the advantages of being an open industry standard, widely adopted in many countries. This technology offers high-speed data transmission and provides quality data protection/ encryption. Bluetooth-enabled wireless devices can be paired with either a dongle or a host and are capable of transmitting from 10- to 100-meter ranges, depending upon the class of the device. Of course, along with those advantages come disadvantages. Bluetooth wireless technology is limited to -- at most -- one-to-seven pairings. Other disadvantages include high power consumption, potential interference with 802.11 networks and the evolving nature of industry standards.

 

IrDA's main advantage is its lower cost. Disadvantages include line-of-sight issues requiring a close environment, along with a shorter transmission distance.

 

Narrow Band radio systems (433MHz/910MHz) are a stable technology with clear advantages in many applications. Advantages include less sensitivity to obstacles or transmission noise. Narrow band systems have networking and roaming capability and can support more than 100 devices to one wireless network. Overall, they provide a better cost-to-performance ratio. The only disadvantages are a somewhat slower transmission rate and different bands in different countries. The device-tobase station transmission varies from 10 to 50 meters, but that limitation is easily solved through networking.

 

As cordless scanning solutions become the norm, it is of utmost importance to make cordless solutions more accessible to customers.