Timeout durations for radio frequency identification tags

• US 10,176,449 B1
• Filed: 12/09/2015
• Issued: 01/08/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/08/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Krohn, Justin Joel, Wilson, Steven Augustine, Qian, Kun, Camp, Wyatt David, Boyapati, Sridhar, Kumar, Dilip
• Primary Examiner(s): Vo, Tuyen K
• Application Number:
  US14/964,299
• Time in Patent Office: 1,126 Days
• Field of Search: 235375, 235383, 235385, 235451, 235492, 340 101, 340 102, 340 1034, 3405721
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders

Abstract

This disclosure describes the establishment, use and adjustment of timeout durations for individual RFID tags. Each RFID tag within an inventory system has a timeout duration that is based at least in part on a time duration between receipts of a RFID tag identifier associated with the RFID tag.

Claims

1. A method for tracking inventory, comprising:

determining a first receipt by an antenna element of a first radio frequency identification (“

RFID”

) tag identifier;

determining a second receipt by the antenna element of the first RFID tag identifier;

determining that the first RFID tag identifier is not included in an inventory table;

determining a first timeout duration for the first RFID tag identifier based at least in part on a first time duration between the first receipt by the antenna element of the first RFID tag identifier and the second receipt by the antenna element of the first RFID tag identifier;

storing the first RFID tag identifier and the first timeout duration in the inventory table;

determining a third receipt by the antenna element of a second RFID tag identifier;

determining a fourth receipt by the antenna element of the second RFID tag identifier;

determining that the second RFID tag identifier is not included in the inventory table;

determining a second timeout duration for the second RFID tag identifier based at least in part on a second time duration between the third receipt by the antenna element of the second RFID tag identifier and the fourth receipt by the antenna element of the second RFID tag identifier, wherein the first timeout duration for the first RFID tag identifier and the second timeout duration for the second RFID tag identifier are different; and

storing the second RFID tag identifier and the second timeout duration in the inventory table.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a fifth receipt of the first RFID tag identifier by the antenna element;

determining that a third time duration between the second receipt of the first RFID tag identifier and the fifth receipt of the first RFID tag identifier is less than the first timeout duration and exceeds a threshold; and

increasing the first timeout duration based at least in part on the third time duration between the second receipt of the first RFID tag identifier and the fifth receipt of the first RFID tag identifier.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining that an amount of time equal to the first timeout duration has elapsed without a fifth receipt of the first RFID tag identifier being received;

removing the first RFID tag identifier from the inventory table; and

sending an event notification that includes the first RFID tag identifier.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the event notification is an item pick of an item associated with the first RFID tag identifier.

5. A computing system, comprising:

a processor; and

a memory coupled to the processor and storing program instructions that when executed by the processor cause the processor to at least;

receive from a radio frequency identification (“

RFID”

) reader a first instance of a first RFID tag identifier;

receive from the RFID reader a second instance of the first RFID tag identifier;

determine a first timeout duration for the first RFID tag identifier based at least in part on a first time duration between the receipt of the first instance of the first RFID tag identifier and the receipt of the second instance of the first RFID tag identifier, wherein the first timeout duration for the first RFID tag identifier is different than a second timeout duration for a second RFID tag identifier included in a table; and

include the first RFID tag identifier and the first timeout duration in the table.

6. The computing system of claim 5, wherein the program instructions that when executed by the processor further cause the processor to at least:

receive from the RFID reader a second RFID tag identifier;

determine that the second RFID tag identifier is included in an event table;

increase a third timeout duration associated with the second RFID tag identifier based at least in part on a time duration between the receipt by the RFID reader of the second RFID tag identifier and a receipt by the RFID reader of a prior instance of the second RFID tag identifier;

remove the second RFID tag identifier from the event table; and

include the second RFID tag identifier in the table.

7. The computing system of claim 5, wherein the program instructions that when executed by the processor further cause the processor to at least:

determine that the first RFID tag identifier has been received a defined number of times, prior to inclusion of the first RFID tag identifier in the table.

8. The computing system of claim 5, wherein the program instructions that when executed by the processor further cause the processor to at least:

subsequent to including the first RFID tag identifier in the table;

determine that an amount of time equal to the first timeout duration has elapsed without a third instance of the first RFID tag identifier being received;

remove the first RFID tag identifier from the table; and

provide an event notification.

9. The computing system of claim 8, wherein the event notification is a notification of an item pick of an item associated with the first RFID tag identifier.

10. The computing system of claim 5, wherein the program instructions that when executed by the processor further cause the processor to at least:

subsequent to including the first RFID tag identifier in the table;

receive from the RFID reader and prior to an amount of time equal to the first timeout duration elapsing, a second instance of the first RFID tag identifier;

determine that a third time duration between receipt of the first instance of the first RFID tag identifier and receipt of the second instance of the first RFID tag identifier exceeds a threshold; and

increase the first timeout duration.

11. The computing system of claim 10, wherein the first timeout duration is increased based at least in part on at least one of:

an average time duration between a plurality of instances of receipt of the first RFID tag identifier;

a longest time duration between a plurality of instances of receipt of the first RFID tag identifier;

a standard deviation of a plurality of instances of receipt of the first RFID tag identifier;

a signal strength of at least one of a plurality of instances of receipt of the first RFID tag identifier;

an amount by which the threshold is exceeded;

input received from a sensor;

or

the first timeout duration.

12. The computing system of claim 10, wherein the program instructions that when executed by the processor further cause the processor to at least:

determine a longest time duration between a plurality of receipts of the first RFID tag identifier; and

adjust the first timeout duration to be a multiple of the longest time duration.

13. The computing system of claim 5, wherein the program instructions that when executed by the processor further cause the processor to at least:

subsequent to including the first RFID tag identifier in the table;

determine, based at least in part on a first input received from a sensor at a location associated with the RFID reader, that the location is in a first state;

monitor for receipt from the RFID reader and during the first time duration the first RFID tag identifier;

determine, based at least in part on a second input received from the sensor, that the location is in a second state;

adjust the first time duration while the location is in the second state; and

monitor for receipt from the RFID reader and during the adjusted first time duration the first RFID tag identifier.

14. The computing system of claim 13, wherein:

the first state is an active state when activity is occurring at the location;

the second state is an idle state when no activity is occurring at the location; and

the adjustment to the first time duration is an increase of the first time duration.

15. A method for monitoring radio frequency identification (“

RFID”

) tags, comprising;

maintaining an inventory table of a plurality of RFID tag identifiers representative of a plurality of RFID tags within a detectable range of a RFID reader;

for each of the plurality of RFID tags;

determining a timeout duration; and

periodically adjusting the timeout duration based at least in part on a time duration between a first instance of receipt by the RFID reader of the representative RFID tag identifier and a second instance of receipt by the RFID reader of the representative RFID tag identifier; and

wherein a first timeout duration for a first RFID tag of the plurality of RFID tags and a second timeout duration for a second RFID tag of the plurality of RFID tags are different.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

for at least one of the plurality of RFID tags;

receiving, before an amount of time equal to the timeout duration elapses, a receipt from the RFID reader of an instance of the representative RFID tag identifier;

determining that a time duration between the receipt of the representative RFID tag identifier and a prior receipt of the representative RFID tag identifier exceeds a threshold; and

increasing the timeout duration.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

for at least one of the plurality of RFID tags;

receiving, before an amount of time equal to the timeout duration elapses, a receipt from the RFID reader of an instance of the representative RFID tag identifier;

determining that a time duration between the receipt of the representative RFID tag identifier and a prior receipt of the representative RFID tag identifier is below a threshold; and

decreasing the timeout duration.

18. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

for at least one of the plurality of RFID tags;

receiving, after an expiration of an amount of time equal to the timeout duration, a receipt from the RFID reader of an instance of the representative RFID tag identifier;

determining that the representative RFID tag identifier is included in an event table;

increasing the timeout duration associated with the RFID tag;

removing the RFID tag identifier from the event table; and

including the RFID tag identifier in the inventory table.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein:

a RFID tag identifier is added to the event table upon expiration of an amount of time equal to an associated timeout duration without receipt from the RFID reader of the RFID tag identifier; and

the RFID tag identifier is removed from the event table after a defined period of time.

20. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

prior to receiving the receipt from the RFID reader of the instance of the representative RFID tag identifier;

determining that an amount of time equal to the timeout duration associated with the RFID tag has elapsed without a RFID tag identifier representative of the RFID tag being received;

removing the RFID tag identifier from the inventory table; and

generating an event of an item pick for an item associated with the RFID tag.