Symbol Technologies
Encyclopedia
Symbol Technologies is a manufacturer and worldwide supplier of mobile data capture and delivery equipment. The company specializes in barcode scanners, mobile computers, RFID systems and Wireless LAN
infrastructure. Symbol Technologies is a wholly owned subsidiary of Motorola
, and headquartered in Holtsville, New York
USA.
and physicist Dr. Shelley A. Harrison. At that time, the company focused on handheld laser based scanning of bar codes. Under Dr. Swartz's leadership the company became a leader in handheld laser bar code scanning devices which are commonly seen at point of sale registers. The company focused heavily on the retail industry and began to get involved in inventory management. These activities typically required people to scan items where they are stored and as such needed to be mobile. Symbol began to make small computers that could store data scanned to take inventory counts remotely and then upload the information gathered to a host system. This was the rationale for the purchase of MSI - a mobile computer company that was headquartered in southern California. This acquisition was difficult and a culture shock for many of the company' engineers. A contingent of the core team was transferred to the New York facility.
The mobile computers being manufactured at the time relied on static memory (in this case SRAM) for execution space and general storage. SRAM was extremely expensive and the team determined that it would be an improvement to use a radio to allow the mobile computer to be unteathered but connected to the host system. A thin client architecture was adopted in conjunction with a spread spectrum radio network.
The Enterprise Mobility Management
market was dominated by Symbol Technologies and Telxon, Inc. Most notably, these two companies serviced major retailers such as Wal-Mart
, Kroger
, Safeway
, Federated and others.
A notable turning point occurred in 1994 with a competition for business at Kroger. Symbol Technologies and Telxon were operating radio networks in the 2.4 GHz ISM bands. IEEE 802.11 was not yet ratified, so Symbol and Telxon were free to define competing standards of communication at this frequency band. Symbol settled on frequency hopping as the most robust, agile and interference-tolerant approach to data communications while Telxon selected direct sequence technology which they felt afforded higher transfer speeds with adequate interference immunity. Kroger ordered a head-to-head comparison test. Ultimately and not decisively, Kroger chose Telxon. At about the same time, the IEEE decided to adopt the direct sequence approach in its IEEE 802.11b standard.
The ratification of IEEE 802.11b was a huge blow to the Symbol team which now had to reconfigure and engineer a direct sequence radio system. This was accomplished with great pains and IEEE 802.11b became a reality in the industrial and commercial markets far before the radios were available to the consumer market.
The addition of a radio to a mobile device was roughly estimated to have a real value of between $500 and $1000 per unit. This was paid by enterprise class customers that desperately needed this feature to accomplish their operations.
Later on Symbol would start to sell the radios as PC Card
s as a stand alone product to various OEMs
and private label customers. These included 3Com
, Nokia
and Intel.
The Symbol team had a firm but temporary grip on the IEEE 802.11b market. Telxon was suffering from lower prices being pushed into the market for handheld computers and was treading on dangerous ground related to their ability to cover costs. In the meantime, Intel, Apple Inc. and Cisco
were looking at the technology to see how they would use this to their commercial advantage. Cisco investigated the acquisition of various manufacturers of wireless gear to augment their commanding position in the wired infrastructure field. Cisco performed due diligence
with both Symbol and Telxon, deciding to purchase the Aironet component of Telxon that designed and manufactured the radios. The Cisco purchase of Telxon's Aironet division marked the inflection point of the market moving from a specialized, esoteric market to a mass consumer and enterprise market.
In June 1998, Telxon rejected a hostile takeover bid of $668 million made by Symbol. The ensuing proxy battle
lasted two years, and in December 2000 Symbol was able to complete the takeover at a much lower price of $465 million.
In 2004 Symbol acquired Matrics, helping the company to push further into the RFID field.
On January 9, 2007, Symbol was acquired by Motorola
for $3.9B.
Dr. Fred Heiman - a former chief scientist for Intel, moved to Symbol as a friend of Jerry Swartz. Heiman was instrumental in developing the radio division of Symbol with a focus on making industry firsts. Among the most notable achievements were:
Wireless LAN
A wireless local area network links two or more devices using some wireless distribution method , and usually providing a connection through an access point to the wider internet. This gives users the mobility to move around within a local coverage area and still be connected to the network...
infrastructure. Symbol Technologies is a wholly owned subsidiary of Motorola
Motorola
Motorola, Inc. was an American multinational telecommunications company based in Schaumburg, Illinois, which was eventually divided into two independent public companies, Motorola Mobility and Motorola Solutions on January 4, 2011, after losing $4.3 billion from 2007 to 2009...
, and headquartered in Holtsville, New York
Holtsville, New York
Holtsville is a hamlet in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 17,006 at the 2000 census....
USA.
History
The company was co-founded in 1973 by Dr. Jerome SwartzJerome Swartz
Dr. Jerome Swartz is a physicist that developed early optical strategies for barcode scanning technologies in the United States and co-founded the corporation, Symbol Technologies on Long Island, NY with physicist partner, Dr. Shelley A. Harrison in 1973. Jerry was President, becoming the Chairman...
and physicist Dr. Shelley A. Harrison. At that time, the company focused on handheld laser based scanning of bar codes. Under Dr. Swartz's leadership the company became a leader in handheld laser bar code scanning devices which are commonly seen at point of sale registers. The company focused heavily on the retail industry and began to get involved in inventory management. These activities typically required people to scan items where they are stored and as such needed to be mobile. Symbol began to make small computers that could store data scanned to take inventory counts remotely and then upload the information gathered to a host system. This was the rationale for the purchase of MSI - a mobile computer company that was headquartered in southern California. This acquisition was difficult and a culture shock for many of the company' engineers. A contingent of the core team was transferred to the New York facility.
The mobile computers being manufactured at the time relied on static memory (in this case SRAM) for execution space and general storage. SRAM was extremely expensive and the team determined that it would be an improvement to use a radio to allow the mobile computer to be unteathered but connected to the host system. A thin client architecture was adopted in conjunction with a spread spectrum radio network.
The Enterprise Mobility Management
Enterprise Mobility Management
Enterprise mobility management is the set of people, processes and technology focused on managing the increasing array of mobile devices, wireless networks, and related services to enable broad use of mobile computing in a business context...
market was dominated by Symbol Technologies and Telxon, Inc. Most notably, these two companies serviced major retailers such as Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. , branded as Walmart since 2008 and Wal-Mart before then, is an American public multinational corporation that runs chains of large discount department stores and warehouse stores. The company is the world's 18th largest public corporation, according to the Forbes Global 2000...
, Kroger
Kroger
The Kroger Co. is an American supermarket chain founded by Bernard Kroger in 1883 in Cincinnati, Ohio. It reported US$ 76.7 billion in sales during fiscal year 2009. It is the country's largest grocery store chain and its second-largest grocery retailer by volume and second-place general retailer...
, Safeway
Safeway Inc.
Safeway Inc. , a Fortune 500 company, is North America's second largest supermarket chain after The Kroger Co., with, as of December 2010, 1,694 stores located throughout the western and central United States and western Canada. It also operates some stores in the Mid-Atlantic region of the Eastern...
, Federated and others.
A notable turning point occurred in 1994 with a competition for business at Kroger. Symbol Technologies and Telxon were operating radio networks in the 2.4 GHz ISM bands. IEEE 802.11 was not yet ratified, so Symbol and Telxon were free to define competing standards of communication at this frequency band. Symbol settled on frequency hopping as the most robust, agile and interference-tolerant approach to data communications while Telxon selected direct sequence technology which they felt afforded higher transfer speeds with adequate interference immunity. Kroger ordered a head-to-head comparison test. Ultimately and not decisively, Kroger chose Telxon. At about the same time, the IEEE decided to adopt the direct sequence approach in its IEEE 802.11b standard.
The ratification of IEEE 802.11b was a huge blow to the Symbol team which now had to reconfigure and engineer a direct sequence radio system. This was accomplished with great pains and IEEE 802.11b became a reality in the industrial and commercial markets far before the radios were available to the consumer market.
The addition of a radio to a mobile device was roughly estimated to have a real value of between $500 and $1000 per unit. This was paid by enterprise class customers that desperately needed this feature to accomplish their operations.
Later on Symbol would start to sell the radios as PC Card
PC Card
In computing, PC Card is the form factor of a peripheral interface designed for laptop computers. The PC Card standard was defined and developed by the Personal Computer Memory Card International Association which itself was created by a number of computer industry companies in the United States...
s as a stand alone product to various OEMs
Original Equipment Manufacturer
An original equipment manufacturer, or OEM, manufactures products or components that are purchased by a company and retailed under that purchasing company's brand name. OEM refers to the company that originally manufactured the product. When referring to automotive parts, OEM designates a...
and private label customers. These included 3Com
3Com
3Com was a pioneering digital electronics manufacturer best known for its computer network infrastructure products. The company was co-founded in 1979 by Robert Metcalfe, Howard Charney, Bruce Borden, and Greg Shaw...
, Nokia
Nokia
Nokia Corporation is a Finnish multinational communications corporation that is headquartered in Keilaniemi, Espoo, a city neighbouring Finland's capital Helsinki...
and Intel.
The Symbol team had a firm but temporary grip on the IEEE 802.11b market. Telxon was suffering from lower prices being pushed into the market for handheld computers and was treading on dangerous ground related to their ability to cover costs. In the meantime, Intel, Apple Inc. and Cisco
Cisco
Cisco may refer to:Companies:*Cisco Systems, a computer networking company* Certis CISCO, corporatised entity of the former Commercial and Industrial Security Corporation in Singapore...
were looking at the technology to see how they would use this to their commercial advantage. Cisco investigated the acquisition of various manufacturers of wireless gear to augment their commanding position in the wired infrastructure field. Cisco performed due diligence
Due diligence
"Due diligence" is a term used for a number of concepts involving either an investigation of a business or person prior to signing a contract, or an act with a certain standard of care. It can be a legal obligation, but the term will more commonly apply to voluntary investigations...
with both Symbol and Telxon, deciding to purchase the Aironet component of Telxon that designed and manufactured the radios. The Cisco purchase of Telxon's Aironet division marked the inflection point of the market moving from a specialized, esoteric market to a mass consumer and enterprise market.
In June 1998, Telxon rejected a hostile takeover bid of $668 million made by Symbol. The ensuing proxy battle
Proxy fight
A proxy fight or proxy battle is an event that may occur when a corporation's stockholders develop opposition to some aspect of the corporate governance, often focusing on directorial and management positions. Corporate activists may attempt to persuade shareholders to use their proxy votes A proxy...
lasted two years, and in December 2000 Symbol was able to complete the takeover at a much lower price of $465 million.
In 2004 Symbol acquired Matrics, helping the company to push further into the RFID field.
On January 9, 2007, Symbol was acquired by Motorola
Motorola
Motorola, Inc. was an American multinational telecommunications company based in Schaumburg, Illinois, which was eventually divided into two independent public companies, Motorola Mobility and Motorola Solutions on January 4, 2011, after losing $4.3 billion from 2007 to 2009...
for $3.9B.
Notable Drivers and Accomplishments
Dr. Jerome Swartz - an innovator and charismatic leader, drove the company forward on creative fronts. Often quoted for his "changing atoms to bits" discussion of how to illuminate a target with a laser, decode the physical return of the light and thus taking photons and making data available to the computer systems that they served. Swartz was dedicated to the company and the people. He often used his personal contacts to assist company associates to get the best possible medical care when diagnosed with life threatening diseases. Swartz was a prolific inventor, awarded dozens of patents, awards and recognitions. He is now supporting the development of Neuroscience research related to computational advancement through The Swartz Foundation. Swartz is an alumnus of Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute.Dr. Fred Heiman - a former chief scientist for Intel, moved to Symbol as a friend of Jerry Swartz. Heiman was instrumental in developing the radio division of Symbol with a focus on making industry firsts. Among the most notable achievements were:
- First IP pager for WiFi networks
- First VoIp phone, circa 1998
- First VoIP dataphone - included voice, terminal emulation and bar code scanner in one device
- The wireless switch - concept to use thin access points controlled through Layer 2 (Ethernet) and Layer 3 (IP) by a remote switch; patents received. It is likely that all providers of wireless switch systems, including Aruba NetworksAruba NetworksAruba Networks, Inc. is a networking vendor selling enterprise wireless LAN and edge access networking equipment. The company has over 500 employees and is headquartered in Sunnyvale, CA...
and Cisco SystemsCisco SystemsCisco Systems, Inc. is an American multinational corporation headquartered in San Jose, California, United States, that designs and sells consumer electronics, networking, voice, and communications technology and services. Cisco has more than 70,000 employees and annual revenue of US$...
infringe on this patent and their derivatives.