Data aggregating radio frequency tag

• US 10,204,244 B2
• Filed: 03/15/2018
• Issued: 02/12/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TEGO LLC
• Original Assignee: TEGO LLC
• Inventors: Butler, Timothy P., Mats, Leonid, Puleston, David
• Primary Examiner(s): Labaze, Edwyn
• Application Number:
  US15/921,916
• Publication Number:
  US 20180204029A1
• Time in Patent Office: 334 Days
• Field of Search: 235492, 235380, 235375, 235487, 235451
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 17/0022 arrangements or provisions for transferring data to distant stations, e.g. from a sensing device "transfer between computer elements G06F13/00 "; data-transmission H04L
• 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 19/07309 Means for preventing undesired reading or writing from or onto record carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07749 the record carrier being capable of non-contact communication, e.g. constructional details of the antenna of a non-contact smart card
• 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 7/10198 setting parameters for the interrogator, e.g. programming parameters and operating modes

Abstract

In embodiments of the present invention improved capabilities are described for a radio frequency (RF) tag configured to collect data from a data source when the RF tag is energized by an external RF signal, the RF tag aggregating data collected by the RF tag over time in a memory store of the RF tag, the RF tag comprising (i) an antenna, (ii) an RF and analog block coupled to the antenna, and (iii) a data processing and controller block, wherein the RF tag is at least in part powered by the external RF signal as received by the RF and analog block, wherein the RF tag exchanges information with a memory storage facility connected to a network when the external RF signal is generated by a device connected to the network.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a radio frequency (RF) tag configured to collect data from a data source when the RF tag is energized by an external RF signal, the RF tag aggregating data collected by the RF tag over time in a memory store of the RF tag, the RF tag comprising (i) an antenna, (ii) an RF and analog block coupled to the antenna, and (iii) a data processing and controller block,

wherein the RF tag is at least in part powered by the external RF signal as received by the RF and analog block,

wherein the RF tag exchanges information with a memory storage facility connected to a network when the external RF signal is generated by a device connected to the network.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the memory storage facility is a cloud storage facility and the network is the Internet.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the device provides an indication of a network connection in the external RF signal.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the exchange of information is a synchronization of the aggregated collected data stored on the RF tag memory with data stored on the memory storage facility.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the exchange of information is a transmission of the aggregated collected data from the RF tag memory to the memory storage facility.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the exchange of information is receiving data from the memory storage facility for storage on the RF tag memory.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the data source is computing device.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the data source is a sensor device.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the data source is a second RF tag.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the RF tag data processing and controller block executes a stored data granularity algorithm to delete aggregated collected data stored in the memory store in order to maintain a decreasing time-granularity of aggregated collected data as time increases since a last external RF signal received from the device.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the RF tag memory stores an IP address and the RF tag acts as a computing device on the network while in communication with the device connected to the network.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the RF tag data processing and controller block further communicates with a user computing device connected to the network to report a status indication derived from the aggregated collected data stored in the memory.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the RF tag data processing and controller block communicates with the user computing device based on user contact information stored on the RF tag memory.

14. The system of claim 1, wherein the RF tag further comprises an external communication facility for communicating with the data source.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the external communication facility is adapted to communicate with the data source through a wired serial interface.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the external communication facility is adapted to communicate with the data source through a wireless interface.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein the data is collected from the data source through the RF and analog block coupled the antenna.

18. A method, comprising:

collecting data from a data source with a radio frequency (RF) tag when the RF tag is energized by an external RF signal, the RF tag aggregating data collected by the RF tag over time in a memory store of the RF tag, the RF tag comprising (i) an antenna, (ii) an RF and analog block coupled to the antenna, and (iii) a data processing and controller block,

wherein the RF tag is at least in part powered by the external RF signal as received by the RF and analog block,

wherein the RF tag exchanges information with a memory storage facility connected to a network when the external RF signal is generated by a device connected to the network.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the memory storage facility is a cloud storage facility and the network is the Internet.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the data source is computing device.