Intuitively, it feels like technology is progressing faster than ever and many companies agree that the speed is undeniable. Because each generation of technology improves over the last, the rate of progress from version to version speeds up. In business, one way industries could reap the benefits of increased technological innovation is by employing the use of hardware and software simultaneously. The concept of merging hardware and software rather than using them separately is becoming increasingly popular; it even has a name. It's known as "Shardware."
Shardware refers to products resulting from when elements of hardware are combined with software. The advent of Shardware products is groundbreaking due to the fact that for a long time, software and hardware were completely different entities. The combination of hardware and software-based products will revolutionize industries across the board. The way Black Ink Tech companies use Shardware to bring truth and transparency to everyday business transactions by way of using blockchain technology in conjunction with kiosks/nodes.
In fact, there are a variety of industries that Black Ink Tech is bringing Shardware to, which include:
Sports Memorabilia
There are numerous reasons why the world of sports memorabilia requires a level of technological innovation in order to increase transparency when it comes to authentication and sales transactions. Authenticating sports memorabilia and collectibles have never been more transparent than the Shardware solutions Black Ink Tech provides with their subsidiary company, called Sportafi. Sportafi introduces truth, transparency, and technology to the sports memorabilia market.
They utilize a hardware component with a kiosk to create a new digital asset using the location and blockchain for the time of the event. Then biometrics are registered from the owner of the item, league official, and/or player, and added to the record. Biometric confirmations will allow the physical item to be registered as a digital asset. Unique identifiers on the item are paired to create a digital asset immutably connecting it to the physical object and then stored on the blockchain in the owner's wallet and registered under the Sportafi software platform.
The Shardware elements of Sportafi consist of using blockchain technology, registered on the software platform together with its unique hardware, the kiosks/nodes. The kiosks are used to collect the insights needed from the owner, authenticator, and the item. All of the information and data collected are immutably recorded on the blockchain, allowing others to to see the genesis and movement of the sports memorabilia item, which helps eliminate fraudulent items being bought and sold, and helps guarantee authenticity and transparency to whoever has a role in the transaction.
The fact that Shardware has such a huge impact on the sports memorabilia market, demonstrates its potential to transform a wide range of other industries.
Pharmaceuticals
There are numerous ways Shardware will transform the pharmaceuticals industry in order to make it easier for patients to receive their prescriptions. Paired Pharma allows patients to use unique biometric identifiers to pick up their medications instead of having to wait in line at a drugstore. Those unique identifiers can include facial recognition, fingerprints, and GPS geolocation.
The way Paired Pharma works is simple too. In order for patients to obtain their prescriptions, they would visit a Paired Pharma kiosk, provide their biometric information and scan their ID. Then, the administrator confirms the information shared by the patient to ensure that it’s correct prior to releasing the prescriptions. The data is stored on the Paired Inc. platform which works in tandem with the kiosks that issue the pharmaceuticals. This makes Paired Pharma a great example of what Shardware is capable of accomplishing.
Construction
When it comes to industries in desperate need of technological innovation, the construction industry is near the top of the list. SiteSUPER uses Shardware to make sure even the smallest tasks are completed, transforming the way jobs are conducted on construction sites in a variety of ways. When it comes to the hardware involved in helping SiteSUPER innovate construction sites, kiosks are a key component of the service. Kiosks can assist site managers in keeping track of staff hours, ensure the safekeeping of valuable materials stored at construction sites as well as schedule and track inspections.
The software involved in SiteSUPER consists of smart contracts to make payments to contractors and laborers involved in the project as simple as possible. Smart contracts are stored on the Paired platform and can be easily accessed by any of the project’s major stakeholders. The potential for Shardware to completely transform the construction industry as we know it is enormous, and SiteSUPER is proof of that.
Parking
Parking is another industry that is in need of technical developments. In far too many places finding a parking spot and paying for it is increasingly frustrating and time-consuming. Thanks to Shardware, the process of finding and purchasing a parking spot is easier than ever. All you need in order to use Park and Walk is a smartphone and a vehicle with a license plate.
How it works is that once drivers park, they scan a QR code and then snap a picture of their license plate. Then, you can walk away till your time on the spot runs out. Payment is simple since the QR code is connected to payment in Apple Wallet and Google. The software also allows you to register a credit card. Park and Walk serve as Shardware simply due to the robust software of the app, along with the hardware of the phone.
Similar to the impact it has on the world of pharmaceuticals, construction, and sports memorabilia, Shardware has also helped transform the parking industry by helping with solutions to make things easier, faster & more secure.
Financial Services
There are numerous challenges that people face when seeking out financial services as a result of a lack of technological innovations and advancements within the industry. From not being able to receive fast, accurate lending solutions to encountering difficulties with verifying income, challenges in obtaining financial services have been detrimental to businesses and individuals for years. Luckily, Anytime Cash leverages Shardware to close the gaps that exist between financial services and the people that need them.
Anytime Cash uses kiosks to provide services like loans, checks to cash, and income verification. The autonomous kiosks are capable of doing so by collecting unique biometric data and information to help customers find a solution that best suits their needs. What sets Anytime Cash apart from traditional financial services institutions is that geolocation and dynamic customer profiles are used to qualify customers at any time, from any location. With that in mind, it's simple to see how Shardware has the potential to modernize a variety of institutionalized industries.
Reasons to Implement Shardware Into Your Daily Operations
Keeping track of the ever-evolving technological innovations that can be used to gain a competitive edge in your business can get exhausting. Technology’s quickening pace is moving faster now than ever before, and Shardware is a revolution that is becoming more fully integrated in businesses every day and allows for a better quality product, service or system. Some of the biggest reasons to implement Shardware into your daily operations are:
To Add Transparency to Transactions Among the many benefits that come with leveraging blockchain technology, the increased levels of transparency that it delivers may be right at the top. Additionally, blockchain plays an important role in allowing businesses of all types to leverage Shardware. All information recorded using kiosks/nodes is irreversible, and all information relating to things registered on the blockchain is accurately and immutably recorded. This eliminates human error and fraud while increasing the level of transparency available to buyers and sellers during transactions.
To Make Information Management Easier For a variety of reasons, having to manually capture data is inconvenient. Not only is it more time-consuming, but it’s also difficult to keep track of crucial information like the time, place, and date of certain transactions. Not to mention, how does anyone know if the time, place, and date of certain transactions is actually accurate? Shardware is capable of eliminating that concern. Black Ink Tech utilizes Shardware with hardware kiosks to provide GPS location data and biometrics of the customer. This hardware is capable of working with software, like Paired Inc., which is an immutable database that stores what Black Ink Tech has coined "paired digital assets.” Another segment of Black Ink Tech’s system is Paired Pay Inc., which is their smart contract and value transfer company. In the last segment are multiple companies that are all industry-specific that are the data hardening oracle, or node, for each of these industries. These companies all have patented hardware as well as operational software, also known as “Shardware,” and are a way of creating an event of these in an immutable data stream. The ability of Shardware to immutably and autonomously share vital information, gives actual truth, transparency, and accountability to write smart contracts to confirm the transaction and effectuate the step of the transfer between parties. This is how Black Ink Tech is changing the way of business and providing “truth” over “trust.”
It Allows For Increased, More Effective Collaboration Shardware makes it easy to communicate vital information with people associated with that project, which is one of the reasons why it’s so valuable to most companies. For instance, the SiteSUPER kiosk makes information on sight inspections available to anybody on the construction site, rather than just one person or department. Being able to easily share specific insights makes it easier to keep multiple parties on the same page, ultimately leading to getting jobs done faster, reducing time on project development and decreasing cost.
How to Start Implementing Shardware Into Your Operations
Shardware has already started to transform the way businesses operate and that is undeniable. The use of Shardware solves a variety of problems ranging from an inaccurate recording of information or data, to misinformed and convoluted sharing of information. The way it leverages blockchain technology with other technological innovations like GPS anchoring and biometrics, demonstrate the capability it has to work seamlessly with other resources you may depend on. Among the many technological innovations that are so prevalent in today’s society, the Shardware offered by Black Ink Tech could revolutionize your operations completely. In order to start leveraging Shardware in your operations, click here to learn more about Black Ink Tech today.