Methods and systems for real time RFID locating onboard an aircraft

• US 10,181,060 B2
• Filed: 12/07/2009
• Issued: 01/15/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 12/07/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Original Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Inventors: Krug, William P., Shetty, Sudhakar S., Kirkland, David T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Wilson, Brian
• Application Number:
  US12/632,501
• Publication Number:
  US 20110133891A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,326 Days
• Field of Search: 340 101- 106, 340945-983
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/0008 General problems related to the reading of electronic memory record carriers, independent of its reading method, e.g. power transfer
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10079 the collision being resolved in the spatial domain, e.g. temporary shields for blindfolding the interrogator in specific directions
• 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: G06K 7/10346 the antenna being of the far field type, e.g. HF types or dipoles

Abstract

An aircraft communications and item tracking system is described. The system includes an RFID reader and a communications device located at fixed locations within the aircraft, a plurality of passive RFID tags operable for association with items within the aircraft, and a distributed antenna system comprising a plurality of antenna units and a wireless distribution system. The wireless distribution system is communicatively coupled to an aircraft communications network. The antenna units are communicatively coupled to the wireless distribution system and disbursed about the aircraft such that the RFID tags within the aircraft may be activated by signals output by at least one of the antenna units. The RFID reader and communications device are communicatively coupled to the wireless distribution system. The distributed antenna system is operable for transmission and reception of signals associated with the RFID reader and RFID tags. The distributed antenna system is further operable for transmission and reception of signals associated with the communications device.

Claims

1. An aircraft communications and item tracking system comprising:

an RFID reader located at a first fixed location within an aircraft;

a communications device located at a second fixed location within the aircraft; and

a distributed antenna system comprising;

a plurality of antenna units defining a wireless network and distributed throughout the aircraft, said plurality of antenna units respectively configured to;

transmit a first radio frequency signal at a transmit power to activate a plurality of passive RFID tags within the aircraft in response to the first radio frequency signal; and

receive a second radio frequency signal from at least one of the plurality of passive RFID tags at a receive power; and

a wireless distribution system configured to communicatively couple to a wired network of the aircraft, said RFID reader, said communications device, and said plurality of antenna units, and further operable as a gateway for communication between said plurality of antenna units and said RFID reader, said communications device, and the wired network;

wherein said RFID reader is configured to utilize physical locations of said plurality of antenna units to enable physical position location mapping of the plurality of passive RFID tags with plus or minus one half meter accuracy.

2. The system according to claim 1 wherein said distributed antenna system comprises respective optical fiber links coupling said plurality of antenna units to said wireless distribution system.

3. The system according to claim 1 wherein said system is configured to utilize the physical locations of said plurality of antenna units to map locations of wireless devices tagged with one or more of the plurality of passive RFID tags to logical network addresses.

4. The system according to claim 1 wherein said plurality of antenna units are disbursed within the aircraft to minimize areas of transmission nulls and increase the receive power throughout the aircraft.

5. The system according to claim 1 wherein said wireless distribution system is further configured for remote integration of onboard wireless data services associated with said communications device over said distributed antenna system, the onboard wireless data services including at least one of a WiFi communications capability and a cellular communications capability.

6. The system according to claim 1 wherein said wireless distribution system comprises an antenna hub, said wireless distribution system operable to interface transmission output from said RFID reader and receiver input to said RFID reader.

7. The system according to claim 1 further comprising:

a second plurality of passive RFID tags operable for association with items within a remote section of the aircraft;

a remote distributed antenna system controller; and

a second plurality of antenna units communicatively coupled to said remote distributed antenna system controller, said remote distributed antenna system controller communicatively coupled to said wireless distribution system, said remote distributed antenna system controller and said second plurality of antenna units operable for transmission and reception of signals associated with said RFID reader and with said second plurality of passive RFID tags.

8. The system according to claim 1 wherein said plurality of antenna units comprises at least one leaky coaxial cable comprising an outer conductor further comprising one or more openings within said outer conductor.

9. A method for tracking items on an aircraft, each item to be tracked associated with at least one passive RFID tag of a plurality of passive RFID tags, said method comprising:

transmitting an activation signal for activation of the plurality of passive RFID tags from a stationary RFID reader within the aircraft to a wireless distribution system configured to communicatively couple to a wired network of the aircraft, the stationary RFID reader, a communications device, and a plurality of antenna units, and further operable as a gateway for communication between the plurality of antenna units and the stationary RFID reader, the communications device, and the wired network;

routing the activation signal from the wireless distribution system for transmission through the plurality of antenna units distributed throughout the aircraft at a transmit power;

routing at least one other communication signal among the communication device and the plurality of antenna units;

receiving, via the plurality of antenna units, signals generated by the plurality of passive RFID tags activated by the transmitted activation signal, wherein the signals are received at a receive power;

routing the received signals through the wireless distribution system to the stationary RFID reader for interpretation by the stationary RFID reader; and

generating a physical position location map of the plurality of passive RFID tags with plus or minus one half meter accuracy based on physical locations of the plurality of antenna units.

10. The method according to claim 9 wherein routing the activation signal from the wireless distribution system to the plurality of antenna units comprises routing the activation signal over respective optical fiber links coupling the plurality of antenna units to the wireless distribution system.

11. The method according to claim 9 further comprising utilizing the physical locations of the plurality of antenna units to map locations of RFID tagged devices to logical network addresses.

12. The method according to claim 9 further comprising disbursing the plurality of antenna units within the aircraft to minimize areas of transmission nulls and increase the receive power of the signals received from the passive RFID tags throughout the aircraft.

13. The method according to claim 9 wherein routing the at least one other communication signal comprises routing at least one of a WiFi communications signal and a cellular communications signal.

14. An aircraft comprising:

an RFID reader;

a plurality of passive RFID tags distributed throughout said aircraft;

a communications device configured to provide a communication service;

a wired network;

a plurality of antenna units defining a wireless network and distributed throughout the aircraft, said plurality of antenna units respectively configured to;

transmit a first radio frequency signal at a transmit power to activate the plurality of passive RFID tags in response to the first radio frequency signal; and

receive a second radio frequency signal from at least one of the plurality of passive RFID tags at a receive power; and

a wireless distribution system configured to communicatively couple said wired network, said RFID reader, said communications device, and said plurality of antenna units, and further operable as a gateway for communication between said plurality of antenna units and said RFID reader, said communications device, and said wired network;

wherein said RFID reader is configured to utilize physical locations of said plurality of antenna units to enable physical position location mapping of the plurality of passive RFID tags with plus or minus one half meter accuracy.

15. The aircraft according to claim 14 wherein said wireless distribution system is operable to modulate a plurality of optical signals received from at least one of said RFID reader, said communications device, and said wired network.

16. The aircraft according to claim 14 wherein said communications device is further configured to provide at least one of WiFi and cellular communications services over said wireless distribution system and said plurality of antenna units.

17. The aircraft according to claim 16 wherein RFID, WiFi and cellular communications are accomplished simultaneously through said wireless distribution system.

18. The aircraft according to claim 14 said plurality of passive RFID tags are deployed on components of said aircraft, said RFID reader operable to interrogate said plurality of passive RFID tags via said wireless distribution system and said plurality of antenna units to determine a component inventory for said aircraft.

19. The aircraft according to claim 18 wherein said RFID reader and said plurality of passive RFID tags utilize backscatter modulation for passive RFID tag to RFID reader communications.

20. The aircraft according to claim 14 wherein said plurality of antenna units are operable to convert an optical signal from said wireless distribution system to RF for wireless transmission.

21. The aircraft according to claim 20 wherein a number of said plurality of antenna units deployed within said aircraft defines:

an output power for individual ones of said plurality of antenna units; and

a dynamic range of respective optical links between said wireless distribution system and said plurality of antenna units.

22. The aircraft according to claim 20 wherein a communicative coupling between said plurality of antenna units and said wireless distribution system comprises at least one of multimode fiber and coaxial cable.

23. The aircraft according to claim 14 wherein said plurality of antenna units comprises openings in an outer conductor of leaky coaxial cable.

24. The aircraft according to claim 14 wherein said RFID reader is operable to support real time location of said plurality of passive RFID tags deployed on said aircraft.

25. The aircraft according to claim 14 further comprising a wireless data concentrator communicatively coupled to said wireless distribution system, said wireless data concentrator operable for communication with a second plurality of antenna units.

26. The aircraft according to claim 14 wherein said wireless distribution system is further operable as the gateway for distributed airplane functions.