Cypress Semiconductor Collaboration Drastically Reduces Zwipe Card’s Power Use

“The companies worked together to develop a new Microcontroller Unit based on Cypress Semiconductor’s PSoC 6 line, resulting in a new inlay solution that uses 70 percent less power.”

Ahead of an important certification push, Zwipe has announced that it has reduced the power consumption of its dual interface biometric payment card.

The technological achievement is the result of collaboration with Cypress Semiconductor Corp. The companies worked together to develop a new Microcontroller Unit based on Cypress Semiconductor’s PSoC 6 line, resulting in a new inlay solution that uses 70 percent less power.

In announcing the development, Cypress Semiconductor Corp.’s Microcontrollers and Connectivity Division VP, John Weil, said that it’s the result of a year-long collaboration between his firm and Zwipe.

Zwipe CEO André Løvestam, meanwhile, explained that “minimized power consumption, optimized processing capabilities and power harvesting are essential performance requirements” for biometric payment cards, adding that the new inlay solution marks “a key milestone” in an ongoing supply chain readiness project.

The company says that the new inlay solution is currently being integrated into the latest version of its biometric payment card, with the company’s card manufacturing partners expected to submit the solution for certification in the first half of next year. Zwipe appointed a new Head of Certification just about a week ago.

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November 9, 2018 – by Alex Perala