Robot application demonstrates memory functionality at Southern Manufacturing

Nexus will be exhibiting its range of non volatile keys, tokens and receptacles at the Southern Manufacturing show, which takes place in Farnborough, Hampshire on February 13-14, 2013. Nexus, who can be found on stand B30, will be using a custom designed robot application to illustrate the potential of its products to engineers.

Nexus memory in action can be seen at Southern Manufacturing 2013

Nexus’ range of portable memory solutions are designed to work in environments where heat, dust, moisture or accidental damage would cause conventional memory cards and USB devices to fail. They are used in applications ranging from data logging, cashless vending, security, and access control devices. These products have found homes in industry sectors including medical, food and pharmaceuticals.

The custom robot application on the stand will be demonstrating the simple design functionality of the token and receptacle system. This way, the company hopes to make it easier for engineers to immediately see the purpose of the technology. “We often find that once an engineer sees how our tokens work, they are convinced of their benefits,” explained Victoria James, marketing and PR director at Nexus GB. “The robot application offers a simple, visual demonstration of how specialised memory products can be integrated into a variety of applications.”

“Selling specialist industrial memory to OEMs is a continual process of raising awareness,” continued James. “Our competition really comes from forms of memory like SDHC cards and USB sticks which are not actually suitable for industrial applications. Our job is to remind engineers that memory should be fit for purpose and that consumer products are not the only option available. They are less rugged, become obsolete more quickly and are highly susceptible to viruses and malware. In contrast, the tokens, key and receptacles we sell are specifically developed for design engineers to build into original equipment.”

Amongst the systems on display will be the GammaSafe™ memory token for the medical device manufacturing sector. The token is a non-volatile, reprogrammable, portable memory device that survives gamma sterilisation with no loss of data.  It also allows medical device manufacturers to easily add anti-counterfeit and limit-use capabilities to disposable attachments that are sterilised using gamma radiation.

Also on show will be the high capacity RUGGEDrive™ tokens and receptacles, which allow system designers to incorporate large memory devices into their designs, without the shortcomings that consumer-focused solutions bring. The memory tokens are easily integrated into embedded controllers, single board computers and industrial PC designs.

Industrial memory product launched in Scandinavia

After more than 25 years as Datakey Electronics’ exclusive UK and Ireland distributor of portable non-volatile memory, Nexus is launching its product range in the Scandinavian markets and will be active from September 2012. The strategic decision to enter Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland is a result of the company’s success in the British design engineering sector.

The RUGGEDrive - now available in Scandinavia

In industrial, military, medical, telecommunications and secure commercial applications, memory has to continue working even after it has been sterilised, dropped in mud, exposed to chemicals, washed or even run over by a truck. The best option for OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) is to embed professional memory solutions such as the ones distributed by Nexus .

Unlike consumer style memory solutions, the memory products manufactured by Datakey Electronics are well established and will not become obsolete as technology progresses. They are commonly used by design engineers working on long term projects, with millions of units currently in service in Europe and tens of millions globally.


Nexus’ range of specialist memory keys and tokens are used in applications ranging from data logging, cashless vending, security, access control and use-limiting in industries including medical, food and pharmaceuticals.

One of the flagship products in the range is the high capacity RUGGEDrive™ token and receptacle set, which allows system designers to incorporate large memory devices into their projects. RUGGEDrive memory products are easily integrated into embedded controllers, single board computers and industrial PC designs, without the shortcomings that consumer-focused solutions bring.

“Our decision to launch into Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland was prompted by a wave of inquiries coming from those regions, explained Victoria James, Marketing and PR director at Nexus.

“Recently we have witnessed an increased demand for robust, reliable and reprogrammable memory products for engineering projects coming from Scandinavian countries. Launching in this area will allow us to offer a more efficient service to our customers,” she concluded. 

Nexus GB set to help engineers at the Engineering Design Show

NEXUS USB devices

Nexus GB will be exhibiting its range of non volatile keys, tokens and receptacles at the Engineering Design Show, which takes place at the Ricoh Arena in Coventry on October 10-11, 2012. Nexus, who can be found on stand E30, will be using a custom designed robot application to illustrate the potential of its products to design engineers.

Nexus’ range of portable memory solutions are designed to work in environments where heat, dust, moisture or accidental damage would cause conventional memory cards and USB devices to fail. They are used in applications ranging from data logging, cashless vending, security, access control and use-limiting in industries including medical, food and pharmaceuticals.

The custom robot application on the stand will be demonstrating the simple design functionality of the token and receptacle system and making it easier for designers to immediately see the purpose of the technology. “We often find that once a designer sees how our tokens work, they are convinced of their benefits,” explained Victoria James, marketing and PR director at Nexus GB. “There is always a Eureka moment, during which they suddenly realise the system’s potential in their own applications.”

“Selling specialist industrial memory to OEMs is a continual process of raising awareness,” continued James. “Our competition really comes from other, less appropriate for industry, forms of memory; like SDHC cards and USB sticks. Our job is to remind industry that these forms of memory are less rugged, become obsolete more quickly and are highly susceptible to viruses and malware. In contrast the products we sell are specifically built for design engineers to build into original equipment.”

Amongst the systems on display will be the GammaSafe™ memory token for the medical device manufacturing sector. The token is a non-volatile, reprogrammable, portable memory device that survives gamma sterilisation with no loss of data.  It also allows medical device manufacturers to easily add anti-counterfeit and limit-use capabilities to disposable attachments that are sterilised using gamma radiation.

Also on show will be the high capacity RUGGEDrive™ tokens and receptacles, which allow system designers to incorporate large memory devices into their designs, without the shortcomings that consumer-focused solutions bring. The memory tokens are easily integrated into embedded controllers, single board computers and industrial PC designs.

What will we call memory tomorrow?

Decades ago, Ken Olsen, the chairman and co-founder of DEC said, "When I was a teenager in the late 30s and early 40s, electronics wasn't a word. You were interested in radio if you were interested in electronics". I’m reminded of his quote every time I open a search engine to look for a new component or device. 

The trouble with applying other people's new and innovative ideas is first finding out that those ideas exist. In many cases, we don't yet have words describing the concepts, we don't know where to look for them and we may not even know we should look for them. Search engines can’t tell us what to look for yet, they can only answer the questions we type in the box.

This problem is as applicable in design engineering and electronics in 2012 as it was when Olsen made his comment about radio. In my own sector – industrial portable memory, this is particularly true. As engineers, our response is often to simply re-invent the wheel - but unfortunately not every wheel we invent is as efficient as the first.

In memory, as in so many sub sectors of design engineering, developing your own device rather than opting for a specialist solution might be more costly than it seems at first glance. Similarly, choosing to adapt a commercially available memory solution, like a USB or SDHC card, can prove expensive in the long term. The answer isn’t as complicated as it seems – it’s a case of finding out what other people call the product you are looking for. If in the 30s Electronics wasn’t a word – I wonder what industrial memory will be called in a few decades’ time?