ON Semiconductor said it has offered its custom hybrid circuit for an ultra-small radio transmitter that was used to track hornets to prevent them from wiping out honeybee colonies.
NanoPin, a radio transmitter developed by Canada-based telemetry technology company Lotek which uses ON Semiconductor’s custom hybrid circuit, were attached to captured Asian Giant Hornets.
One tagged hornets led researchers in Washington State to find the entire nest of hornets which were subsequently removed.
NanoPin with the battery, antenna and encapsulation has a mass of about 130 milligrams, while the body of the tag in cylindrical (11mm long and 3mm in diameter).
ON Semiconductor and Lotek has collaborate for a decade and this has allowed them to reduced the size of what were NanoTags to NanoPins so that species such as hornets, dragonflies and even butterflies can be tracked, the company said.
