Tim,
You could have your "property of ...." screen printed on the device just
like the front of modems, printers, etc. It is not an expensive excercise
in the quantities you refer to. The process is known as Pad or Tampo
printing. We have companies (here in Australia) that will print minimum
runs of 200 (or pay the same) for about $1.00 per color printed. The plate
for the logo is about $50 each.
Regards,
Ray
----- Original Message -----
From: Tim Hewitt <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Tuesday, December 21, 1999 9:42 AM
Subject: Disable a Visor if Springboard removed
> Here's an interesting question, potentially too early to answer since
> Visors seem to be hard to come by, but..
>
> I'm looking at deploying 1000+ Palm OS devices in a factory environment.
> These will be attractive to certain people and may "walk" if we don't
> protect the asset somehow. We've talked about many different ways to
> keep the devices inside the four walls of the factory. Here's the
> suggestion that has risen to the top internally. I'm interested in
comments.
>
> The idea was to create a springboard module for a Visor that, if
> missing, would disable the device. The module would incorporate an RF
> tag that would trigger an alarm if it were carried outside the building.
> This function is similar to the protection schemes used by department
> stores to protect merchandise. The Visor would not function without the
> springboard module inserted, thus making it less likely to be "borrowed"
> and taken home.
>
> Since we would order in large quantities, we would also try to get the
> devices made with a custom case - imprinted with "Property of Fairchild
> Semiconductor" or something equally annoying to carry with you - as a
deterrent.
>
> It is my understanding that the Visor is not flashable, so I would not
> be able to replace the standard ROM image with my own, but if I could,
> the drill would be to replace the ROM image with one that held only the
> application we would use in the factory, would not run at all without
> seeing the springboard/rf-tag module, and would not allow itself to be
> re-flashed. A custom ROM would also be possible, but we would need to
> maintain the ability to replace this ROM image when the application
> needed to be upgraded.
>
> Does it make any sense to any of you to continue down this path?
>
> Options include having Palm or Handspring or another licensee,
> manufacture a custom device that meets our needs, however the closer we
> can stay to a production device, the lower our total costs, and the more
> attractive the option to deploy the device in the first place.
>
> Thanks for your opinions.
>
> -Tim
> --
> Tim Hewitt
> Principal Software Engineer
> Fairchild Semiconductor
>
>
