SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., April
3, 2006 - Wi-Fi is increasingly being utilized in location tracking applications, and Wi-Fi asset tags are expected to reach almost 2 million shipments in 2010, reports In-Stat (http://www.in-stat.com). The Wi-Fi location tracking market is still nascent, and many highly changeable factors will decide how fast it grows over the next few years, the high-tech market research firm says.
Wi-Fi tags are utilized in Wi-Fi Real-Time Location Systems (RTLS) that utilize Wi-Fi access points (APs) to locate devices with external Wi-Fi tags or devices with embedded Wi-Fi.
?Wi-Fi- based RTLS provides the two-fold advantage of being able to 1. leverage standard Wi-Fi infrastructure for location tracking (instead of having to purchase standalone location reader devices), and 2. track any devices with embedded Wi-Fi, including laptops, scanners, phones, etc., right along with those assets with Wi-Fi tags,? says Gemma Tedesco, In-Stat analyst.
?So far, Wi-Fi RTLS has gained the most traction in healthcare, where Wi-Fi infrastructure has already been deployed on a relatively large scale, and where there exists many valuable assets to track, such as patient monitoring devices and wheelchairs.?
This research also found the following:
Vendors offering pure Wi-Fi- based RTLS include Ekahau and PanGo Networks.
AeroScout (which does offer 802.11b-based tags), and WhereNet, offer more complex RTLS systems, providing for hardware for chokepoint applications and, in WhereNet?s case, a variety of vertical-specific asset tags (based on ANSI 371.1).
Expectations are high for Wi-Fi tag chipsets from the likes of G2 Microsystems, which promises to provide higher integration and more functionality in Wi-Fi tag chipsets, and most importantly, significant cost reductions.
With prices of Wi-Fi tags at approximately $60 today, the market could get a big push with lower-priced tags.
Cisco has partnered with many of the Wi-Fi RTLS vendors, viewing location tracking as another valuable application that can be supported by Wi-Fi infrastructure, like data and voice.
Trapeze Networks and Aruba have also begun to stake their ground in this space.
Recent In-Stat research,
Wi-Fi Finds Itself in the Real Time Location Systems Market (#IN0603245WS), covers the emerging trend of utilizing Wi-Fi within RTLS, where RTLS is a superset of the Active RFID market. It includes conservative and aggressive forecasts for Wi-Fi tag unit shipments and revenues, as well as for Wi-Fi enterprise access points, through 2010. It also includes extensive analysis of the technology and profiles of vendors. This research does not cover the Passive RFID market, or the Active RFID market that is based solely on proprietary wireless technologies or on Infrared (IR).
This research is part of In-Stat's Wireless LAN service, which examines new applications for Wi-Fi in the business, home and public sector, including CE, cellular, and RFID. The service covers emerging technology trends such as MIMO and 802.11n, as well as complementary technologies like wireless mesh networking. Included are forecasts, market perspectives, and segmentations (by technology and application) for WLAN ICs, end-products and hot-spots.
This report covers the emerging trend of utilizing Wi-Fi within RTLS, where RTLS is a superset of the Active RFID market. 
