CJS Technology
Long-time members of ITSO, CJS Technology Ltd have developed a reader sub-assembly that allows OEMs looking to enter the ITSO market to do so with significantly lower development times. Called the ECSM, the reader takes on the significant task of interfacing with the ITSO Secure Access Module (ISAM) to unlock the ITSO Products (IPEs) stored on the Customer Media (contactless card) and hand them to the OEM application ready for it to use as required. If the OEM application alters the IPE it simply passes the new image back to the ECSM which, again, interfaces with the ISAM to seal the IPE and then places it back onto the Customer Media in the correct manner.
Peter Thompson, CJS Technology's Technical Director, comments, "The multi-application, multi-card platform, multi-terminal approach of the ITSO specification makes it a powerful standard in delivering an integrated transport smart-card - but it comes at a price. The IPE structures, ISAM security and multi-card support require a significant development on the part of those wishing to have their equipment ITSO certified. Whilst it is worth those companies working in the core ITSO related industries undertaking this development themselves, the cost of developing ITSO certified equipment in many of the related niche markets is too prohibitive for the rewards on offer."
"This is where the ECSM comes into its element. By handling all of the IPE types on all of the ITSO Customer Media Definitions (CMD) and presenting them to the OEM application as a simple IPE image, the ECSM takes a large part of the work out of implementing the ITSO specification making it more feasible for the small and medium sized ITSO markets to be addressed. The ECSM generates significant savings in both the time and cost of developing new ITSO equipment and can result in similar savings in accreditation too."
CJS Technology's Managing Director, Nick Walker, goes on to say, "Implementing ITSO on one CMD type is difficult enough but a large part of the power of the ITSO specification is that it demands that all ITSO terminals (referred to as POSTs) are able to handle all CMD types, thus increasing the development requirement for OEM suppliers significantly. The ECSM also handles the passing of transaction files from the ISAM to the HOPS (via the OEM equipment) as well as update files sent in the other direction."
The ECSM was the first POST to be awarded interim ITSO approval and remains so to date. This not only reflects CJS Technology's long-term commitment to the standard but, having been involved in ITSO from an early stage, also to their wider understanding of the specification. In addition to developing the ECSM, CJS Technology offers OEMs and others implementing ITSO, consultancy advice and development facilities.
If you would like to know more about how CJS Technology can help you implement the ITSO specification then please contact Nick Walker on 01282 411546 or visit our web-site at www.cjstechnology.com.
