Metallurgical vessel having a plurality of transponders

• US 10,366,256 B2
• Filed: 09/10/2015
• Issued: 07/30/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 11/11/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Primetals Technologies Austria Gmbh
• Original Assignee: Primetals Technologies Austria Gmbh
• Inventors: Hartl, Franz, Kuehas, Thomas, Rohrhofer, Andreas
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Nam V
• Application Number:
  US15/525,341
• Publication Number:
  US 20180285603A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,419 Days
• Field of Search: 340 101- 105
• 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 19/07749 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

Abstract

A metallurgical vessel (2) having an outer surface (2a) and an identification tag (1, 1′, 1″) on the outer surface (2a). The tag has a carrier matrix (11) formed of an electrically and thermally insulating material. At least two passive transponders (3, 3a, 3b) are embedded in the carrier matrix (11). Within a metallurgical plant, a reading station (4) for tracking the path of the metallurgical vessel (2) is arranged at a tracking position. An antenna (5) of the reading station (4) initiates activation of the passive transponders (3, 3a, 3b), provided that the metallurgical vessel (2) is in a sensing range of the reading station (4). A reading unit (6) of the reading station (4) reads out the activated passive transponders (3, 3a, 3b) and transmits the result to an evaluating unit (7) of the reading station (4). The evaluating unit (7) determines which and/or how many of the passive transponders (3, 3a, 3b) were actually activated. The evaluating unit (7) thereafter associates a wear state with all the passive transponders (3, 3a, 3b) of the metallurgical vessel (2) as a whole.

Claims

1. A metallurgical vessel, comprising:

an exterior of the vessel;

an identification tag at the exterior of the vessel;

the identification tag comprises;

a carrier matrix comprised of an electrically and thermally insulating material and at least two passive transponders embedded in the carrier matrix;

the carrier matrix is comprised of several layers,

each layer is above another layer inward from a side of the metallurgical vessel;

each of the layers has a respective thickness measured inward from the side of the metallurgical vessel;

the thicknesses of the layers decreases with increasing distance from an outer surface at the side of the metallurgical vessel; and

at least one of the passive transponders is arranged between two adjacent ones of the layers;

wherein each passive transponder is configured to output a signal sufficient to identify the metallurgical vessel and to distinguish itself from remaining passive transponders of the metallurgical vessel.

2. The metallurgical vessel as claimed in claim 1, wherein the identification tag is arranged on the outer surface of the vessel.

3. The metallurgical vessel as claimed in claim 1, further comprising at least two sets of the adjacent layers, and a respective passive transponder is performed between each two of the layers of a set of at least two of the adjacent layers.

4. The metallurgical vessel as claimed in claim 1, wherein the exterior of the vessel includes an outer surface thereof and the tag is at the outer surface of the vessel.