March/April 2005

The famous Crypta Data electronic seal for truck bodies, now produced by Unisto Electronic Seals, has been redesigned under ownership of the Unisto parent company, and now boasts a glass-filled nylon outer casing to replace the original aluminium version. Apart from looking rather more futuristic, the new "manta ray" design is said to be stronger and more resistant to salt-induced corrosion.

There is also a functional agenda behind the change. As sales and marketing director Mark Hayward explains, it was necessary to move to a plastics body to take advantage of developments in radio-frequency and RFID technology. Metal housings are less friendly towards such systems - especially to RFID.

The company has also introduced new electronic circuitry including flash memory, allowing additional functionality to be uploaded to the devices to reflect future requirements. And an IrDA (infra-red) capability enables data to be downloaded to any IrDA-equipped PDA or laptop for detailed analysis. Additional security features have also been included to prevent tampering.

RF integration in the Crypta Data II Tag version enables the seal to communicate alarms to remote readers located on loading docks, yards, security gates or vehicle cabs. Also being electronic, remote sensors can be easily incorporated so that a multiple access load requires only one securing point.