General

1. What makes RPAL your best rewrite card solution provider?

• World-class products from Panasonic, Mitsubishi(Japan) and Clearjet(Austria)
• One-stop in house technical development and full backup by strategic partners
• Tailor-made solution to cope with customer's sustainable business growth
• Total solution from card production to CRM logistic
• Professional team to market cross-promotional plan, card marketing scheme and partnership programme
• Intelligent rewrite card system to ensure customer return-on-investment(ROI)
• Customer endorsement with excellent comment and proven reference cases

2. What are the powerful features of Rewrite Card System?

• Real time update on card surface
• Intelligent security control
• One-to-many controlling panel
• Flexible system architecture

3. What are the benefits of intelligent rewrite card system?

• One-to-one customer relationship management platform
• Brand building and corporate image enhancer
• Impressive gimmick to increase sales and customer visits
• Campaign and marketing event enforcement
• Minimum investment for maximum return
• Analytic reports for in-depth market insight

Product - Card

1. What is "Thermal Rewrite Card"?

• Officially named "Thermal Rewritable Leuco PET Card".
• The latest 4th generation thin magnetic pet card with thermo rewritable surface
• Thermo Rewrite Technology invented and patented in Japan.
• Thermo rewrite technology applicable to pet card, PVC thick card, MiFARE card and IC chip card.

2. What are the differences between "Thermal Rewrite Card" and other thermal card?

• The lastest 4th generation of thermo rewrite card which is made of rewritable material
• Better image density and contrast ratio than the old transparent opaque card
• Greater flexibility in card design with double side color printing(4C+4C)
• Thermal card is made of non-rewritable card material

3. What is the material of "Thermal Rewrite Card" ? How long will it last for?

• Made of biodegradable material, water-proof, bendable, ultra thin(1/4 thickness of PVC card)
• Reprinted up to 500 times under proper usage and normal conditions
  
• Thermo rewritable printed data not affected below 120 degree centigrade
• 2 times longer life than traditional magnetic strip cards

4. What are the functions of "Thermal Rewrite Card"?

• Over 500 times printing and reprinting on card surface
• Data storage and update in each transaction
• Visualized ad hoc message and promotion

5. What is the storage capcity of "Thermal Rewrite Card"?

• 3 hidden read/write magnetic tracks for electronic data storage

• 1750 Oe coercivity (normal magnetic card 300-650 Oe)

• Data well protected, not easy to be affected by typical magnet source

• ISO standard, 1st track = 79 characters, 2nd track = 40 characters & 3rd track= 107 characters

• Data processed and stored by the encryption procedure designed by RPAL

• Huge data capacity storage or high data encryption system better to process on thermal rewritable MiFARE card or IC card

6. What is the dimension of the printing area on rewrite card? How many characters can be recorded? What is the resolution? Can it print the Chinese characters?

• 85.6mm Length 54mm Width 0.27mm Thickness for thin Pet card
• Maximum Thermal printing area 55.6mm x 40mm or up to 75mm x 48mm
• Maximum no. of characters for printing 500 (12x24 font size each) and determined by CRW machine specification
• 8 dots/mm or 210 dpi - 300dpi
• Support Chinese, English and Graphics printing with choice of black, blue or red color thermal printing

Product - CRW

1. How many types of Card Reader/ Writer (CRW)?

• Standalone Model and Online Model
• Comprehensive models available to support different card types
• All Panasonic models can support both thermal rewritable TC card (named Silver film card) and PET cards (also named 3rd and 4th generation cards)
• Panasonic rewritable card reader/writer series (CRWs) allow temperature adjustment on heat bars via hardware switch (DIPSW) and/or application commands. Applications can be developed to adjust the print head and erase head energy levels for matching different card material specifications
• All Panasonic models employ international magnetic stripe formats such as ISO or JIS (3 tracks) which faciltiate the most compatibility with other system platforms. The full 3-tracks read/write capability and common magnetic card standard offer greater scalablility to solution or program enhancement
• Panasonic card reader/writers are all made in Japan original

2. What are the functions of Standalone Model?

• Capable of 2 operating models (Combo Model)
• Work like a mini computer and operate with customized software program by RPAL to fulfill customer needs
• Simple and configurable
• Build-in keypad to perform various commands and functions
• Ideal model for loyalty, point card, game card and bonus card etc.

3. What are the functions of Online Model?

• Only be used at online mode operation system(integrated with PC/POS system)
• Suitable for card information needed for POS/Database access at real time
• Customer records and transactions stored in the control unit or central database
• Ideal model for appointment card, membership card and prepaid card, etc.

4. What are the operating advantages of Standalone Model?

• Standalone (Combo) model CRW can support both standalone mode and online mode operation.
• Simple and easy operation, controlled by internal CPU, SPRAM & flexible card program software developed by RPAL
• Compact design and high portability without PC link up
• Store daily transaction data in the large memory of  standalone CRW upload to backend server at any time via len or telephone line for CRM data processing
• Graphics and ad hoc messages stored for flexible and changing promotion
• Amend content by content Management update software
• Lower operation software development cost because of shorter development time and simplified system integration processes
• Stable and robust operatioin
• Optional external connection for operation flow required
• Require no expensive PC software licence

5. What are the operation advantages of Online Model?

• Slightly smaller in size and weight than standalone model
• No keypad and LCD
• Offer both KS232 and USB interface
• Lower price than standalone model, require less memory size
• All command and data transfer on external control devices and other software programs
• Allow easy integration with customer legacy systems and third parties' solutions through developed application interfaces
• SDK bundles provided for user easy development, including DDL, sample program, printer drive

6. How many transaction data can be recorded by CRW in standalone model? Can the data be taken away for further data processing use?

• Contain 4Mbit static memory SRAM., transaction of 256 bit storage recorded around 10,000 transactions
• 1 or 2 serial port(9-pin RS232C) for connection to other operation system, storing the output data for further processing or analysis
• Connect to the peripheral devices (e.g. receipt printer, modem, barcode scanner and handheld)
• Smart media 2Mbyte to handle huge data or records input and output
• More to be advised upon user requirement

Security

1. What are the procedures to be employed to deal with fraud on card machine operation?

• Only concern with the standalone model
• Transform into encrypted data
• Set up security checksum
• Make use of operator password and administrator password for different function setting
• Set the highest transaction and highest point
• Verify the maximum card usage

2. How to guarantee the data security?

• Security program already sets in every piece of rewrite card, rewrite card machine and the system solution design

Operation

1. What is the procedure and time required from inserting card to finishing rewrite process?

• Read magnetic strip data
• Processing & calculating
• Update magnetic strip data
• Erase visual data on card
• Reprint new visual data
• Rewrite time dependable on the software program design and graphic size
• Within less than 5 seconds to finish the whole process

CRM

1. Why should we spend on keeping existing customer loyal?

• Cost of gaining new customer is high
• High presales cost for selling small transactions
• The longer customers stay loyal, the more profitable they become

Maintenance

1. What can I do if there are system problems?

• Provide 1 year free maintenance service
• Flexible maintenance plan upgraded and designed for specific request(e.g. extended service hours, etc)
• After 1st year, different maintenance service plans offer for renewal with reasonable prices
• Maintenance service effective after signing of agreement

2. What is the useful life of CRW machine? How much does it cost for the maintenance?

• Has all the advantages of thermal rewrite technology
• Durable and reliable
• Consume no ribbon or toner
• No extra fee charged for clients with valid maintenance agreement except for change of consumable parts such as thermal head, erase head and magnetic head

Support

1. What support services can be obtained from RPAL, if the client company gets technical problem on CRW?

The technical and development department is responsible for one stop service of CRW!|s maintenance and repair. All engineer staffs are trained from Japan who serve in all professional technical support. All technical issues are also backed up by manufacturer.

2. In terms of card visual content, what is the flexibility given to customers?

The printing content depends on the client's requirement and software design. For the system design, RPAL will help on the function selection or the software amendment of program parameters to suit with the marketing strategies which will be changed frequently. For instance, point conversion ratio, tier level, premium, news update can be amended by the clients themselves.

Those simple variables can be changed from keypad operation directly with secure controls. The promotional message and graphic updates will require our software product "Visual Content Manager" to refresh and upload to the card machines. To manage more than multiple pieces of standalone type CRWs in a large and distributed environment, CRWs could connect to the central distribution machine running our "VCM Server Edition" for deploying the updates. The benefit is to make use of the minimum extra resources to launch the latest marketing strategies the best time to approach.

3. What is the useful life of CRW? How much does it cost for repairing?
CRW is proud of the thermal rewrite technology. It does not consume any ribbon or toner. Apart from the one year basic matintence service, RPAL can provide the extended maintenance services (e.g. onsite support, extended service hours, etc). If the client company signs up the maintenance agreement, no extra fee will be charged for parts repairing.

Rewrite Card (Unknown Tips)

1. What is the latest version of thermal rewrite card?

Thermal Rewritable Leuco Pet Card is the latest version and the 4th Generation thin magnetic pet card with double side full color printing (4C+4C). The 2nd Generation (Silver Film Material) and 3rd Generation (Silverback Material) rewrite cards are restricted on full colour printing and are not commonly used nowadays.

2. Will the color printing on the thermal rewrite card fade out?
The rewrite card technology has employed a specific printing material to resist high temperation up to 120-140 degree without image failure. Only under unusal and unrealistic conditions, the image will be affected.

3. Are there any conditions that will record a blurred image?
Dirt and dust on card surface and spare parts of card reader/ writer will affect the printing quality. Routine print head & parts cleaning is required.

4. Under consecutive printing, can the thermal rewrite card stand against bending possibility?
There is no bending phenomenon under normal operation. With appropriate adjustment of temperature in card reader machine, it will effectively avoid the bending risk.

5. What are the differences comparing the thermal reader/ writer from Panasonic (Japan) and CLEARjet (Europe) to other OEM machines?
The thermal reader/ writer machines form Panasonic and CLEARjet consist of 2 independent components-Dual Head " the Thermo Head and the Erase Head". Whereas the other OEM machines, the Thermo Head and the Erase Head are in "Single Heat Bar System" design. The life span of the single head is much shorter than the duel heat bar system.

6. What are the advantages for an independent component operation of a Dual Head Bar System?
It can allow a consistent sharp and clean printing image with longer machine durability. As thermal printing and erasing require totally different thermal energy (temperature), dedicated dual heat bar can provide and maintain stable energy level to optimize a quality print/ erase output.

7. What are the disadvantages of the Single Heat Bar System?

A single heat bar design requires frequent temperature level switching throughout the print/erase processes. Due to the technological limitation of temperature switching, single heat bar system cannot erase clearly especially when the cards are printed after certain period of time.

The printing image is blurred and the machine rewritability is less than 300 times. In addition, the life span of the single heat bar is much shorter than the dual heat bar system. The cost of thermal erase head (integrated function) is very significant and will be an overhead in terms of support and maintenance.

8. How to deliver a quality printng performance? What is the best operating temperature for the Thermo Head and the Erase Head in the Card Reader/ Writer?
120 degree centigrade is the suitable temperature for printing image. In the course of erasing, the temperature is 140 degree centigrade. It is not appropriate to apply average temperature to operate on single head bar system.

9. Can we install a programmed temperature switching to maintain a quality erasing performance?

Under a high temperature up to 120 degree centigrade to 140 degree centigrade frequent print/erase operation, the programmed temperature switching cannot supply enough and steady thermal output for a good erasing performance. Only with the use of dual heat bar system architecture especially designed for erasing purpose, it can always deliver a quality print/erase output.

10. What are the functions of 3-track Magnetic Stripe Read/Write?

The full 3-track magnetic stripe read/write maximizes the extra space for storing magnetic data in rewrite card from value-added functions to feature-riched applications. This provides more flexibility and expansion to loyalty card programs under whatever online or offline operations of one-to-one marketing and member differentiations which are the keys to most successful membership programs. Also, it protects the customer investment and caters for the rapid market changes.

11. What are the disadvantages of the Single Magnetic Strip Read/Write in old models?
This is the lowest level model and outdated with only one space for storing magnetic data into rewritable card from value-added functions to feature-riched applications, such as security coding, purchasing data, birthday etc. Multi-purpose and instant applications are restricted on expansion to loyalty card programs under whatever online or offline operations of one-to-one marketing and member differentiations. Whereas system to cater for the rapid market changes is limited.