Pre-notification with RFID dock door portals
First Claim
1. A radio frequency identification (RFID) system, comprising:
- an inventory tracking system storing a first assignment between a portal and RFID tags, wherein the inventory tracking system comprises a tag database, wherein each entry in the tag database indicates an RFID tag ID, a previous location of an RFID tag, and a second assignment of the RFID tag to at least one door in a building; and
at least two portals disposed opposite one another to form a passageway therebetween, wherein at least one of the portals comprises;
a wide beam antenna configured to emit RFID signals to establish a sensing region;
a narrow beam antenna configured to emit RFID signals to establish a read region;
an RFID reader; and
a portal controller configured to;
activate the sensing region;
upon detecting the RFID tag in the sensing region using the RFID reader, activate the read region;
upon detecting the RFID tag in the read region using the RFID reader, report to the inventory tracking system that the RFID tag is passing through the passageway; and
provide at least one of audio and visual feedback after receiving confirmation from the inventory tracking system that the RFID tag is assigned to the portal.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
Embodiments presented herein describe an RFID system for detecting RFID tags in order to track inventory such as a pallet or individual packages. The RFID system includes at least one portal located in an inventory transport area. For example, the portal may be disposed at or near a dock door in a warehouse in order to detect when an RFID tag (and the corresponding inventory) passes through the door—e.g., when the inventory is loaded onto a truck. In one embodiment, the portal defines at least two RFID detection regions. For example, the portal may generate a RFID sensing region and a RFID read region. In one embodiment, a wide beam antenna generates the RFID sensing region while a narrow beam antenna generates the RFID read region.
52 Citations
15 Claims
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1. A radio frequency identification (RFID) system, comprising:
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an inventory tracking system storing a first assignment between a portal and RFID tags, wherein the inventory tracking system comprises a tag database, wherein each entry in the tag database indicates an RFID tag ID, a previous location of an RFID tag, and a second assignment of the RFID tag to at least one door in a building; and at least two portals disposed opposite one another to form a passageway therebetween, wherein at least one of the portals comprises; a wide beam antenna configured to emit RFID signals to establish a sensing region; a narrow beam antenna configured to emit RFID signals to establish a read region; an RFID reader; and a portal controller configured to; activate the sensing region; upon detecting the RFID tag in the sensing region using the RFID reader, activate the read region; upon detecting the RFID tag in the read region using the RFID reader, report to the inventory tracking system that the RFID tag is passing through the passageway; and provide at least one of audio and visual feedback after receiving confirmation from the inventory tracking system that the RFID tag is assigned to the portal. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
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5. A portal, comprising:
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a first antenna; a second antenna, wherein a beam width of the first antenna is wider than a beam width of the second antenna; an RFID reader; a visual indicator; and a portal controller configured to; activate a sensing region by emitting RFID signals from the first antenna, wherein the sensing region is activated in response to receiving a signal from a sensor indicating that a door at which the portal is located is open; upon detecting an RFID tag is in the sensing region using the RFID reader, activate a read region by emitting RFID signals from the second antenna; determine whether the RFID tag is in the read region based on receiving RFID signals from the RFID tag; and operate the visual indicator to output feedback based on determining whether the RFID tag is assigned to the door. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A method, comprising:
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activating a sensing region in response to determining that a door at which a portal is located is open by emitting RFID signals from a first antenna disposed in the portal; upon detecting an RFID tag is moving in the sensing region, activating a read region by emitting RFID signals from a second antenna disposed in the portal, wherein a beam width of the first antenna is wider than a beam width of the second antenna; determining whether the RFID tag is in the read region based on receiving RFID signals from the RFID tag; and outputting a visual indicator based on determining whether the RFID tag is assigned to the door. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15)
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Specification