EVERETT, Wash., -- A free public internet access project developed by Intermec Technologies Corp., in conjunction with the city of Long Beach, Calif., and its technology partners, has been named an Exhibitor Best Solution at this year's GTC West Technology Conference, to be held May 12 - 16 in Sacramento, Calif.
Exhibitor Best Solutions are awarded to companies who develop solutions designed for a specific customer to help solve a particular problem. The solution must have resulted in significant benefits.
Long Beach's wireless Hot Zone district uses Intermec access points based on the 802.11b standard to allow almost anyone with a laptop computer or PDA equipped with a standard 802.11b wireless card to lunch or dine on the sidewalk patio of their favorite Pine Avenue restaurant and browse the Internet or answer e-mail. Unlike other wireless "hot spots," which typically require monthly or per-minute access fees, Long Beach provides the high-speed access at no charge.
"We wanted to make sure that we provided easy, hassle-free connectivity with no gaps or dead spots," said Bruce Mayes, project manager for the Long Beach wireless HotZone. "Intermec's expertise in wireless network design was one of the keys to making that happen. And since the Intermec MobileLAN 2100D access point is designed to withstand harsh environments, we know people will be able to rely on the wireless network even on the rare days when it rains in Long Beach."
The Hot Zone affords the city an opportunity to promote itself to visitors via the portal site, which is designed to give local businesses and organizations an opportunity to reach an audience that is already in the area. The network is the first step in a plan to develop wireless districts in selected business areas throughout the city.
The system connects to the Internet at the offices of Color Broadband in Long Beach. Using sophisticated radio technology provided by Color Broadband the signal is sent out to Intermec MobileLAN 2100 access points located along Pine Avenue. Access is controlled through Vernier Network's IS 6000 Integrated System. The end user is greeted with an easy to use interface and Web Portal developed by G-site Web Design and hosted at Long Beach's own MMInternet. The portal is accessible by any computer through the Internet at: www.LongBeachPortals.com.
Intermec Technologies Corp., a UNOVA Inc. (NYSE:UNA) company, is a leader in global supply chain solutions and in the development, manufacture and integration of wired and wireless automated data collection, Intellitag RFID (radio frequency identification) and mobile computing systems. For more information, visit www.intermec.com.
