'The Internet of Things'

So what is this so called 'Internet of Things'? It's an interconnected network formed from everyday objects with radio frequency identity (RFID) tags embedded in them, and the European Commission wants to take a leading role in managing and developing it.

The Commission has launched a 14-point action plan to address the issues raised from such widespread interconnectivity.

"New examples of applications that connect objects to the internet and each other are created [everyday]: from cars connected to traffic lights that fight congestion, to home appliances connected to smart power grids and energy metering that allows people to be aware of their electricity consumption," said EU Commissioner for Information Society and Media Viviane Reding.

RFID tags vary in sophistication, but the devices, which can be embedded in products, have reached a size where they could be undetectable to the naked eye. And now, of course, we're looking at creating them using inkjet technologies. Joseph Jacobson, a professor at MIT who co-founded Kovio, as well as E-Ink and Codon Technologies, is credited with the initial concept behind the new process and technology.

“When Kovio was founded, we contacted ink makers and they didn’t have silicon ink,” said Vik Pavate, Kovio’s vice president of business development. “They looked at us like we were crazy. So we were forced to invent it for ourselves. We also had to develop eight other types of inks to make silicon transistors, and all are equally important in the process.”

He added that Kovio’s new technology has attracted the attention of several key investors, including Japanese company Toppan Forms. “Toppan can do just about anything but print a silicon chip, so this is a huge opportunity for them,” Pavate said.

So the combination of digital printing and the internet is creating yet another 'disruptive technology' that pushes the boundaries of efficiency and effectiveness in the supply chain and in marketing services. Let's hope that the EU's early involvement can have a positive effect on the laws of privacy and competition that will surely become major issues in an unregulated market, using uber-sophisticated tracking mechanisms.

When you realise what all these internet enabled technologies can do, and how businesses are readily adopting these new processes, it makes it all the more important to take your printing business online, now!

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