Antenna device, radio identification system and method for emitting a radio signal

• US 10,068,169 B2
• Filed: 05/12/2017
• Issued: 09/04/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 11/14/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fraunhofer Gesellschaft Zur Foerderung Der Angewandten Forsching E.V.
• Original Assignee: Fraunhofer Gesellschaft Zur Foerderung Der Angewandten Forsching E.V.
• Inventors: Weisgerber, Lars, Strauss, Wolfram, Schuehler, Mario, Popugaev, Alexander, Wansch, Rainer, Bernhard, Josef
• Primary Examiner(s): Haupt, Kristy A
• Application Number:
  US15/593,616
• Publication Number:
  US 20170249546A1
• Time in Patent Office: 480 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0723 the record carrier comprising an arrangement for non-contact communication, e.g. wireless communication circuits on transponder cards, non-contact smart cards or RFIDs
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07773 Antenna details antennas for wireless devices, e.g. RFID tags, in general H01Q1/22
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10356 using a plurality of antennas, e.g. configurations including means to resolve interference between the plurality of antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/2216 used in interrogator/reader equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 3/2682 Time delay steered arrays
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/27 for locating or positioning the transmitter
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/45 Transponders
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/72 for local intradevice communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/77 for interrogation
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/79 for data transfer in combination with power transfer
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0408 using two or more beams, i.e. beam diversity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/003 locating network equipment

Abstract

An antenna device has a radiating unit having a plurality of antennas, configured to emit a radio signal with a radiation pattern. In addition, the antenna device has a calculator configured to generate and to apply to the plurality of antennas a plurality of feed signals based on an identification signal provided in order to generate the radio signal. The calculator is additionally configured to control the feed signals in a time-varying manner so that the radio signal is emitted with a time-varying radiation pattern.

Claims

1. An antenna device comprising:

a radiating unit comprising a plurality of antennas, configured to emit a radio signal with a radiation pattern; and

a calculator configured to generate and apply to the plurality of antennas a plurality of feed signals based on an identification signal provided in order to generate the radio signal;

wherein the calculator is further configured to control the feed signals in a time-varying manner in order to emit the radio signal with a time-varying radiation pattern; and

wherein the calculator comprises a terminal and is configured to acquire the identification signal from an external radio identification reader at the terminal.

2. The antenna device in accordance with claim 1, wherein the calculator comprises a storage configured to store information relating to a temporal succession of a change in the time-varying radiation pattern.

3. The antenna device in accordance with claim 1, wherein the calculator is configured to control the feed signals such that the radio signal is transmitted with one of a plurality of radiation patterns, each radiation pattern being associated to a sub-region of a detection region of the antenna device.

4. The antenna device in accordance with claim 1, wherein the plurality of antennas comprise mutually different radiation patterns, wherein the calculator is configured to derive a feed signal from the identification signal and apply same to the plurality of antennas such that a first radiation pattern of a plurality of possible radiation patterns of the plurality of antennas is acquired, wherein a second radiation pattern of the plurality of possible radiation patterns is not acquired.

5. The antenna device in accordance with claim 1, wherein the calculator is configured to apply a plurality of feed signals to the plurality of antennas such that these generate a plurality of mutually superimposing radio signals from the plurality of feed signals, superimposing comprising the radiation pattern, wherein the calculator is configured to control the plurality of feed signals such that the superimposing generated comprises a time-varying radiation pattern.

6. The antenna device in accordance with claim 1, wherein the calculator further comprises:

a controllable distributor configured to receive the identification signal at a signal input and to provide a drive signal which is based on the identification signal at one of a plurality of signal outputs;

a beam shaper comprising a plurality of signal inputs, wherein the plurality of signal inputs are each coupled to a signal output of the distributor and configured to receive a drive signal, wherein the beam-shaper is configured to provide feed signals at signal outputs based on a drive signal received, wherein each feed signal is associated to an antenna of the radiating unit, and wherein a radiation pattern of the radio signal at the radiating unit is associated to each signal input of the beam shaper;

a distributor controller configured to control the controllable distributor in a time-varying manner so that the controllable distributor outputs the drive signal at time-varyingly changing signal outputs or with a time-varying signal characteristic.

7. The antenna device in accordance with claim 6, wherein the calculator is configured to control the controllable distributor such that it provides at least one drive signal at at least one signal output with a signal characteristic influenced by driving, wherein the signal characteristic relates to a phase, an amplitude or to one of a plurality of signal outputs at which the at least one output signal is provided.

8. The antenna device in accordance with claim 6, wherein the beam shaper comprises a first number of signal inputs and an equal first number of signal outputs and is implemented as a butler network.

9. The antenna device in accordance with claim 1, wherein the radiating element is configured to receive a response signal transmitted by a transponder device responsive to the radio signal, and wherein the calculator is configured to determine, based on evaluating the response signal and the radiation pattern with which the radio signal has been transmitted, a presence of the transponder device in a sub-region of a detection region of the radiating unit, wherein the sub-region is associated to the radiation pattern, and wherein the calculator is additionally configured to provide position information indicating the presence of the transponder device in the sub-region, at a signal output.

10. The antenna device in accordance with claim 9, wherein the calculator is configured to provide movement information indicating a movement of the transponder device from the sub-region to the other sub-region when the presence of the transponder device is determined at first to be in the sub-region and, subsequently, in the other sub-region.

11. The antenna device in accordance with claim 9, wherein the calculator comprises an internal radio identification reader for evaluating the response signal configured to correlate the presence of the transponder device which has transmitted the response signal responsive to the radio signal, with the sub-region, wherein the calculator is configured to control the radiation pattern of the radio signal such that the radio signal, in a subsequent time interval, is emitted with a radiation pattern associated to another sub-region.

12. The antenna device in accordance with claim 11, wherein the internal radio identification reader is configured to provide the identification signal.

13. The antenna device in accordance with claim 11, wherein the calculator is configured to provide the feed signals such that, in a first time interval, the radio signal is transmitted with a first radiation pattern and, in a second time interval which follows the first interval, is transmitted with a second radiation pattern,

wherein the internal radio identification reader is configured to correlate a first response signal with a first sub-region associated to the first radiation pattern and to correlate a second response signal with a second sub-region associated to the second radiation pattern,

wherein the calculator is configured to provide a position signal comprising information on a presence of a transponder device which transmits the response signal, in the first sub-region during the first time interval and, during the second time interval, in the second sub-region.

14. The antenna device in accordance with claim 13,

wherein the calculator is configured:

to determine, in the first time interval, a presence of at least one transponder device in a first sub-region of a detection region of the antenna device based on the response signal and to control the radiation pattern such that the radio signal is transmitted with a first radiation pattern associated to the first sub-region at least with a time slice of 50% and such that the radio signal is emitted, at least occasionally, with a radiation pattern associated to a second sub-region of the detection region which is arranged adjacent to the first sub-region in the detection region;

to determine, in a second time interval which follows the first time interval, a presence of the at least one transponder device in the second sub-region and to control the radiation pattern such that the radio signal is transmitted with a second radiation pattern associated to the second sub-region at least with a time slice of 50% and such that the radio signal is emitted, at least occasionally, with the first radiation pattern associated to the first sub-region when the calculator does not determine the presence of a transponder device in the first sub-region;

wherein the calculator is configured to provide the position signal in the first and second time intervals such that a direction of movement of the at least one transponder device in the receive region is allowed based on a temporal succession of the sub-region in which the transponder device is determined to be.

15. A radio identification system comprising:

an antenna device in accordance with claim 9; and

a communicator for receiving a data signal comprising information relating to a position of a transponder device detected by the antenna device.

16. The antenna device in accordance with claim 1, further comprising a terminal for receiving the identification signal from an external radio identification reader and a terminal for transmitting the response signal to the external radio identification reader.

17. The antenna device in accordance with claim 16, further comprising a generator for generating energy configured to couple out a signal portion from the identification signal and to generate electrical energy for operating the calculator based on the signal portion coupled out.

18. The antenna device in accordance with claim 1, further comprising a control signal input for receiving a control signal, wherein the calculator is configured to determine a temporal succession of a change in the radiation pattern based on the control signal and to change the radiation pattern based on the temporal succession.

19. A radio identification system comprising:

an external radio identification reader;

an antenna device in accordance with claim 1; and

a communicator for providing a control signal comprising information relating to a temporal succession of the radiation pattern with which the radio signal is transmitted.

20. A method comprising:

acquiring an identification signal from an external radio identification reader at a terminal;

emitting a radio signal which comprises a radiation pattern using a radiating unit comprising a plurality of antennas;

generating a plurality of feed signals based on the identification signal and applying the feed signals to the plurality of antennas in order to generate the radio signal; and

time-varyingly controlling the feed signals so that the radio signal is emitted with a time-varying radiation pattern.