Lucision—eMpower™ Lite Reporting
Lucision announces eMpower™ Lite Reporting, a global reporting system for slot machines. By harnessing existing capabilties of the gaming systems on your slot floor, eMpower Lite is able to deliver an affordable solution without the complexity or integration time of a full blown protocol system. It provides a single view of an entire slot operation, through a web browser, from your desktop PC. The system features dynamic charting which allows you to compare the performance of different vendors, denominations, games, banks, and game titles. You can easily compare the performance of one game with averages for the casino, historical averages, or with other games. In short: with eMpower Lite Reporting, you can explore your data dynamically to find the trends that matter, instead of relying on static reports. eMpower Lite lets slot managers and casino management keep a close eye on their most profitable investments from their desk. Ease of use is the key to eMpower Lite Reporting. A typical slot floor has an extensive amount of collected data, but there is no simple way to visualize that data. Since large amounts of data are only as useful as their visualization, we created eMpower Lite Reporting to be an accessible solution that is as simple to operate as checking webmail.
NCR/Waffletechnology/KIC—Electrostatic Discharge Cleaner
NCR, in cooperation with the engineers at Waffletechnology, has created a product to protect magnetic stripe readers from Electrostatic Discharge (ESD) that can cause MSR failures and system lockups. ESD issues are more common in low humidity environments when customers use the new debit/credit cards with holographic images. A two-step process was developed to clean the readers then treat the magnetic heads with a solution to prevent ESD discharge. This process should be performed on all readers at least once per month. ESD is a significant factor in the premature failure of electronic equipment. ESD has become a common cause of circuit failure, with many devices now sensitive to less than 30 volts. Visa contends electrostatic discharge is causing problems at some credit card terminals. From Visa’s website http://usa.visa.com/about_visa/ask_visa/index.html, it is clear that the probable cause of these problems is ESD resulting from a combination of factors including: low humidity at the point-of-sale, causing higher-than-normal electrostatic voltages; point-of-sale equipment with a relatively low tolerance for ESD, usually at the magnetic read heads; use of payment cards with holographic magnetic stripes, which have higher electrostatic conductivity than conventional magnetic stripes. For more information, visit www.kicproducts.com or www.waffletechnology.com.
Litetronics International—Micro-Brite™ S14
The Micro-Brite™ S14 from Litetronics International, Inc. is specifically engineered to save more than 80 percent in energy costs. The two or three watt Micro-Brite S14 can be substituted in all applications where incandescent S14 lamps are used, such as channel letters, signs on raceways, and building perimeters that steadily burn or operate as chasing, flashing, or scintillating lights. In addition to energy savings, the S14 Micro-Brite also gives a 20 percent increase in lumen output, providing greater visibility. The Micro-Brite’s patented, advanced cold cathode electrode design alleviates the problems of early lamp failure due to regular flashing or vibrations, lasting an average of 25,000 hours regardless of the application. The Micro-Brite™ lamps work in both indoor and outdoor applications and can operate in any temperature from -20° F to 160° F. The longer life significantly reduces labor costs by reducing the need for replacement. The Micro-Brite S14 lamp is available in 2,700K and 4,000K temperatures and in a variety of color finishes. Call Litetronics International, Inc. for additional information at 1-800-860-3392, or visit us at www.litetronics.com.
Stanley Security Solutions Offers —STOPware PassagePoint
Among those companies who have recently selected STOPware’s PassagePoint software solutions as a business partner is Stanley Security Solutions, Inc., one of the country’s premier providers of access control and security solutions. PassagePoint Enterprise v4.5 features increased speed and efficiency with the capability of operating across several servers with delivery verification and registration up to 30 percent faster than other systems in similar environments with scalable operation; integration with IT infrastructures to link to any ODBC or LDAP directory systems, as well as Oracle and SQL database servers. It also uses centralized management to allow remote installations, configurations, and automatic updates of large deployments in multiple buildings with numerous servers and workstations; redundancy protection to assure continued operation even if other supporting programs fail, and federal security links to stay current with links to Homeland Security and other government watch lists. For organizations with hundreds or thousands of employees, the cost/benefit analysis of deploying PassagePoint Enterprise is very attractive. Stanley Security Solutions offers its clients end-to-end security solutions including consulting and design, integration and hosting, financial services and maintenance programs. In addition to the PassagePoint Enterprise software, Stanley will also offer the PassagePoint Professional software. For more information, visit www.stopware.com.
Sanyo—Video Pilot Network Video Management and Recording Solution
Sanyo Security Systems has announced the release of its innovative Video Pilot Network Video Management and Recording Solution. The PC-based, software-driven control solution provides comprehensive control over IP-based video surveillance systems and affords users an unprecedented level of operational versatility and integration. Video Pilot also offers open architecture to provide control over Sanyo’s Pan Focus IP cameras and embedded DVRs, as well as most of the industry’s IP cameras, video servers, and recording systems. Sanyo’s Video Pilot Network Video Management and Recording Solution features an easy to navigate and operate GUI with file tree architecture,
multi-screen configurations, drag and drop camera placement, and a convenient tool bar for frequently used functions. User-friendly wizards and a comprehensive help menu further enhance Video Pilot’s ease of operation. Video Pilot provides digitally enhanced features to improve system coverage capabilities and performance, such as digital motion detection and digital zoom with PTZ control of both network and analog PTZ cameras. Additionally, Video Pilot controls recording functions and real-time playback, with direct access to archives from the file tree. Time/date search of recorded images is easily accomplished through a customizable scale bar, with motion search on playback. Video Pilot also supports protocols supported by network servers to assure seamless integration compatibility. For more information on Sanyo Security Systems, call 1-888-893-7403, or visit www.sanyocctv.com.
Slot-Tickets™—Jumbo Packs
Slot-Tickets™ has announced the immediate availability of Jumbo Packs of their TITO (ticket in/ticket out) slot machine tickets for greater machine ticket capacity and reduced loading frequency. While standard packaging remains at 200, 300, 400, 600, and 800 tickets per pack, Jumbo Packs contain 1,000 tickets securely banded for ease of handling. They also offer an optional cartridge pack containing 2,000 tickets. Depending on machine capacity, Jumbo Packs can save up to 80 percent in ticket loading time and handling. Jumbo Packs come with the Easy-Lift feature that allows easy controlled removal of the first stack from the carton. In addition, all Slot-Tickets slot machine tickets are available with the optional White Phantom security authentication mark. Slot-Tickets, a WS Packaging Group company, headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, is the leading premier worldwide manufacturer of TITO tickets for all coinless slot machines and remains on the forefront in the development of the newest, most efficient coinless gaming solutions. For additional information, call Susan Mitchell (901) 377-1849, via email at susan.mitchell@slot-tickets.com, or on the web at www.slot-tickets.com.
Hitachi—CinemaStar One Terabyte Hard Drive
Hitachi announced a CinemaStar version 1TB hard drive, which provides optimized capabilities specifically designed for digital video recording (DVR) applications. High-definition video requires four to five times more storage capacity than standard-definition video, and a terabyte drive allows viewers to easily store and retrieve almost 250 hours of HD programming. “The industry’s first one-terabyte hard drive represents a milestone that is 50 years in the making, and it reasserts the hard drive’s leadership as the highest-capacity, lowest-cost storage technology,” Shinjiro Iwata, chief marketing officer, Hitachi Global Storage Technologies, said. “In the 51st year, Hitachi is leading a new era for hard drives—not only providing large amounts of affordable storage, but also customizing and optimizing hard drives to deliver products that are smarter, more durable, and more useful to the consumer.” Hitachi’s 1TB products deliver the performance and reliability required for the digital lifestyle. An enterprise version of the TB drive designed for lower duty-cycle, high-capacity enterprise environments is
currently under evaluation at major OEM customers and is expected to be available in the second quarter. The CinemaStar 1TB hard drive will be available in the second quarter. For more information, visit www.hitachigst.com.
Carnus Systems—AI Scheduler™
Carnus Systems has introduced the AI Scheduler™, the first technology to utilize advanced, state-of-the-art artificial intelligence computing to: automatically forecast daily and meal period cover demand for upcoming weeks; calculate daily and meal period labor requirements for upcoming weeks; optimize staff scheduling requirements; generate complete weekly labor schedules for each F&B employee by the hour. The AI scheduler was developed to aid hotel operations by providing high forecasting accuracies between 80 to 90 percent, and automating labor scheduling. Together, these capabilities impact F&B operations by lowering labor costs and increasing profitability. Similar to a human brain, artificial intelligence continually learns from its environment and is capable of performing a variety of very complex forecasting and scheduling tasks within a few seconds, thus alleviating hotel management from manually forecasting and scheduling multiple outlets which can take up to 12 hours per week of valuable management time. Unlike managerial guesswork and capture ratios that often yield poor results and excessive labor costs, the artificial intelligence technology at the heart of the AI Scheduler is truly a novel and innovative approach to forecasting and scheduling.
