Grifs project

GRIFS PROJECT LAUNCHES ON-LINE DATABASE OF
INTERNATIONAL RFID STANDARDS

GRIFS, the EU-funded project promoting closer co-operation between RFID standards organisations, has launched the first comprehensive on-line database of international RFID standards. It is expected to become the reference tool for anyone wanting upto date information on the progress of international RFID standards.

The GRIFS project team has also issued a Memorandum of Understanding to support the organisation of the Global Forum of Collaboration on RFID standardisation. The GRIFS Forum kick-off meeting will be in Washington DC on June 30 and July 1.

The three GRIFS partners, GS1, CEN and ETSI, have launched a comprehensive on-line database summarising all current RFID standards, whether published or in development. Based on the RFID standardisation report produced earlier in the project, the database represents an extensive reference tool for anyone needing a snapshot on the status of international RFID standardisation. The database allows a search by areas of applications, standards organisations, or status, and contains a wealth of reliable and clear information about each of the 163 standards currently listed.

The database will be updated by designated editors and will be open to comments by registered users, enabling fruitful interaction and better communication between standards makers and users. The database is accessible via the website http://www.grifs-project.eu.db

Parallel to the development of the database, the GRIFS partners have published a Memorandum of Understanding to support the organisation of the Global Forum of Collaboration on RFID standardisation. The GRIFS MoU states the criteria of membership and the way the Forum will work. The GRIFS project team expects that major international standardisation bodies active in RFID will sign the MoU and make use of the GRIFS Forum to collaborate on a voluntary basis with their peers.

A series of workshops around the world has helped to promote the Forum and receive opinions on how it should be organised for effective collaboration. Important principles of the MoU include decision-making by consensus and working through existing standards-making processes. In the coming year four Forum meetings will be organised, together with public information sessions. These meetings will begin to address co-ordination issues identified through the workshop process. In addition, they will address any outstanding organisational issues, especially how the Forum will operate when the GRIFS project ends at the end of 2009.

More information: http://www.grifs-project.eu