Tracking transactions by confluences and sequences of RFID signals

• US 10,121,122 B2
• Filed: 09/14/2016
• Issued: 11/06/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/25/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Russell, Ryan Scott, Lauka, Wesley Scott, Lecky, Ned, Boelter, Joshua Joel
• Primary Examiner(s): Savusdiphol, Paultep
• Application Number:
  US15/265,801
• Publication Number:
  US 20180150787A1
• Time in Patent Office: 783 Days
• Field of Search: 235375, 235376, 235383, 235385
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07758 arrangements for adhering the record carrier to further objects or living beings, functioning as an identification tag
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10316 using at least one antenna particularly designed for interrogating the wireless record carriers antennas in general H01Q1/22
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0833 Tracking
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0875 Itemisation or classification of parts, supplies or services, e.g. bill of materials

Abstract

An RFID device may include one or more manually activated RFID tags configured to transmit unique RFID signals in response to a manual activation thereof. A transaction may be defined upon receiving a confluence of multiple RFID signals at the same time, or at nearly the same time, at an RFID reader. A transaction may also be defined upon receiving multiple RFID signals or confluences of such signals in a predetermined series or sequence. The RFID devices may include a single manually activated RFID tag, or two or more of such tags, which may be individually activated by one or more manual interactions from a user.

Claims

1. An information recording system comprising:

an RFID reader;

a first RFID device physically attached to at least one aspect of a storage facility, wherein the storage facility is configured to receive a first object, and wherein the first RFID device comprises a substrate, a protective layer, a first manually activated RFID tag disposed between the substrate and the protective layer, wherein the first manually activated RFID tag comprises a first circuit configured to be closed by bioelectricity, and a second manually activated RFID tag disposed between the substrate and the protective layer, wherein the second manually activated RFID tag comprises a second circuit configured to be closed by bioelectricity; and

a computing device in communication with the RFID reader,

wherein the computing device is configured to at least;

identify the first object;

receive, at the RFID reader, a first RFID signal from the first RFID device at a first time, wherein the first RFID signal is transmitted by the first RFID device upon contact with at least a first portion of the first RFID device by a user, wherein the first portion of the first RFID device is a first portion of the protective layer;

define a transaction based at least in part on information regarding the first RFID signal and at least one of the first object, the storage facility, the RFID reader or the first time; and

store at least some of the information in at least one data store.

2. The information recording system of claim 1, further comprising an imaging device including at least the at least one aspect of the storage facility within a field of view of the imaging device,

wherein the computing device is in communication with the imaging device, and

wherein the computing device is further configured to at least:

capture at least one image of at least a portion of the first object,

wherein the first object is identified based at least in part on the at least one image.

3. The information recording system of claim 2, wherein the computing device is further configured to at least:

decode the first RFID signal,

wherein the at least some of the information stored in the at least one data store comprises the at least one image and the decoded first RFID signal.

4. The information recording system of claim 2, further comprising a second RFID device associated with the user,

wherein the computer device is further configured to at least:

receive, at the RFID reader, a second RFID signal from the second RFID device at the first time,

wherein the transaction is defined based at least in part on information regarding at least one of the user, the second RFID device or the second RFID signal.

5. The information recording system of claim 1,

wherein the computing device is further configured to at least:

receive, at the RFID reader, a second RFID signal from the first RFID device at a second time, wherein the second RFID signal is transmitted by the first RFID device upon contact with at least a second portion of the protective layer by the user,

wherein the first RFID signal is transmitted by the first manually activated RFID tag and the second RFID signal is transmitted by the first RFID device in response to a swipe of at least the first portion of the first RFID device and the second portion of the first RFID device,

wherein the second time is within a predetermined time interval of the first time, and

wherein the transaction is defined based at least in part by information regarding the second RFID signal.

6. A method comprising:

identifying a first object;

receiving, by at least one RFID reader, a first RFID signal transmitted by a first RFID device physically attached to a storage facility, wherein the storage facility is configured to receive the first object, and wherein the first RFID device comprises a substrate, a protective layer, and a plurality of manually activated RFID tags disposed between the substrate and the protective layer, and wherein the first RFID signal is transmitted by the first RFID device in response to first manual contact with at least a first portion of the first RFID device; and

in response to receiving the first RFID signal,

storing information regarding an association between the first object and the storage facility in at least one data store.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein identifying the first object comprises:

receiving, by the at least one RFID reader, a second RFID signal transmitted by a second RFID device associated with the first object,

wherein the first RFID signal is received at a first time,

wherein the second RFID signal is received at substantially the first time, and

wherein the information regarding the association between the first object and the storage facility is stored in the at least one data store in response to receiving the second RFID signal.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

identifying at least one human associated with the first object,

wherein the first manual contact with the first portion of the first RFID device is made by the human, and

wherein the information regarding the association between the first object and the storage facility comprises an identity of the human.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein identifying the at least one human associated with the first object comprises:

receiving, by the at least one RFID reader, a third RFID signal transmitted by a third RFID device associated with the human,

wherein the third RFID signal is received at substantially the first time.

10. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

capturing, by at least one imaging device, an image of at least a portion of the first object,

wherein the first object is identified based at least in part on the image of at least the portion of the first object.

11. The method of claim 6, wherein the first RFID device further comprises:

a first manually activated RFID tag of the plurality of manually activated RFID tags disposed between the substrate and the protective layer, wherein the first manually activated RFID tag comprises a first circuit configured to be closed by bioelectricity; and

a second manually activated RFID tag of the plurality of manually activated RFID tags disposed between the substrate and the protective layer, wherein the second manually activated RFID tag comprises a second circuit configured to be closed by bioelectricity,

wherein the method further comprises;

receiving, by the at least one RFID reader, a second RFID signal transmitted by the first RFID device,

wherein the first RFID signal is transmitted by the first manually activated RFID tag in response to the first manual contact,

wherein the second RFID signal is transmitted by the second manually activated RFID tag in response to the first manual contact,

wherein the first manual contact is a swipe of at least the first portion of the protective layer corresponding to the first manually activated RFID tag at a first time and a second portion of the protective layer corresponding to the second manually activated RFID tag at a second time,

wherein the second time is within a predetermined interval of the first time.

12. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

receiving, by the at least one RFID reader, a second RFID signal transmitted by the first RFID device physically attached to the storage facility, wherein the second RFID signal is transmitted by the first RFID device in response to second manual contact with at least a second portion of the first RFID device;

identifying a sequence of RFID signals associated with at least one of the first object or the storage facility;

determining whether the first RFID signal and the second RFID signal are consistent with the sequence;

in response to determining that the first RFID signal and the second RFID signal are consistent with the sequence,

generating the information regarding the association between the first object and the storage facility based at least in part on the sequence.

13. The method of claim 6, wherein storing the information regarding the association between the first object and the storage facility comprises:

generating or updating a record of contents of the storage facility in the at least one data store to indicate at least that the first object is in the storage facility.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

receiving, by the at least one RFID reader, a second RFID signal transmitted by a second RFID device associated with a second object; and

generating or updating the record of the contents of the storage facility in the at least one data store to indicate at least that the second object is in the storage facility.

15. The method of claim 6,

wherein each of the plurality of manually activated RFID tags is configured to transmit a unique RFID signal in response to manual contact with a portion of the first RFID device corresponding to one of the manually activated RFID tags, and

wherein receiving, by the at least one RFID reader, the first RFID signal transmitted by the first RFID device comprises:

receiving, by the at least one RFID reader, a plurality of unique RFID signals transmitted by the first RFID device, wherein the first RFID signal is one of the plurality of unique RFID signals; and

defining a sequence based at least in part on the plurality of unique RFID signals received by the at least one RFID reader,

wherein the information regarding the association between the first object and the storage facility is stored in the at least one data store in response to the sequence.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein each of the unique RFID signals is associated with at least one alphanumeric character, at least one symbol or a string comprising the at least one alphanumeric character or the at least one symbol.

17. A method comprising:

providing a first RFID device comprising a plurality of manually activated RFID tags, wherein each of the manually activated RFID tags is configured to transmit an RFID signal upon manual contact with a portion of the first RFID device, wherein the first RFID device comprises a substrate, a protective layer, and the plurality of manually activated RFID tags disposed between the substrate and the protective layer;

receiving, at an RFID reader, a plurality of RFID signals from at least one of the manually activated RFID tags of the first RFID device, wherein each of the plurality of RFID signals is received within a predetermined interval of time;

defining a sequence based at least in part on the plurality of RFID signals received from the at least one of the manually activated RFID tags of the first RFID device;

identifying a transaction associated with the sequence; and

storing information regarding the transaction associated with the sequence in at least one data store.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

receiving, at the RFID reader, an RFID signal from a second RFID device associated with a human; and

determining an identification of the human based at least in part on the RFID signal received from the second RFID device,

wherein the sequence is defined based at least in part on the RFID signal received from the second RFID device, and

wherein the information regarding the transaction associated with the sequence comprises the identification of the human.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the first RFID device further comprises:

a first manually activated RFID tag of the plurality of manually activated RFID tags disposed between the substrate and the protective layer, wherein the first manually activated RFID tag is configured to transmit a first RFID signal upon manual contact with a first portion of the protective layer; and

a second manually activated RFID tag of the plurality of manually activated RFID tags disposed between the substrate and the protective layer, wherein the second manually activated RFID tag is configured to transmit a second RFID signal upon manual contact with a second portion of the protective layer,

wherein receiving the plurality of RFID signals from the at least one of the manually activated RFID tags of the first RFID device comprises;

receiving, at the RFID reader, the first RFID signal at a first time; and

receiving, at the RFID reader, the second RFID signal within the predetermined interval of the first time,

wherein the sequence is defined based at least in part on the first RFID signal, the first time, the second RFID signal and the predetermined interval of the first time.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein the plurality of manually activated RFID tags are provided in a layout corresponding to one of a keyboard or a keypad,

wherein each of the plurality of manually activated RFID tags is marked with at least one of an alphanumeric character, a symbol, or a string comprising the alphanumeric character or the symbol, and

wherein each of the plurality of manually activated RFID tags is configured to transmit an RFID signal associated with the alphanumeric character, the symbol or the string marked thereon.

21. The method of claim 17, wherein the transaction associated with the sequence comprises at least one of a container removal operation, a container transfer operation, a container placement operation, an item removal operation, an item transfer operation, or an item placement operation.