Reading device

• US 10,366,259 B2
• Filed: 06/14/2017
• Issued: 07/30/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 06/23/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Suzuki, Shigeaki, Namiki, Dai, Tambara, Takahiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Brown, Claude J
• Application Number:
  US15/622,899
• Publication Number:
  US 20170372101A1
• Time in Patent Office: 776 Days
• Field of Search: 235451
• CPC Class Codes: A47F 2010/005 using RFID elements
• CPC Class Codes: A47F 9/048 automatically
• 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: G07G 1/0045 with a code reader for reading of an identifying code of the article to be registered, e.g. barcode reader or radio-frequency identity [RFID] reader
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/009 the reader being an RFID reader
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 3/00 Alarm indicators, e.g. bells

Abstract

According to one embodiment, a reading device is configured to read information from an RFID tag attached to a product. The reading device includes a housing, an antenna, an opening-and-closing lid, a detector, a reading unit, and an alert unit. The housing includes an opening portion, and therein a space for accommodating the product. The antenna is provided within the space. The opening-and-closing lid is opening and closing the opening portion. The detector is configured to detect an open or closed state of the opening-and-closing lid. The reading unit is configured to read the information from the RFID tag. The alert unit is configured to issue an alert on an operation method in accordance with the open or closed state of the opening-and-closing lid and an operation state of the reading unit.

Claims

1. A reading device configured to read information from an RFID tag attached to a product, comprising:

a housing including an opening portion and a space for housing the product;

an antenna provided within the space;

an opening-and-closing lid configured to cover the opening portion;

a detector configured to detect state of the opening-and-closing lid, the state including an open state and a closed state;

a reading unit configured to execute a reading process of reading, via the antenna, the information including a product code from the RFID tag of the product in the housing in response to the detection of the closed state; and

an alert unit configured to issue an alert in accordance with the state of the opening-and-closing lid and an operation state of the reading unit,

wherein the alert unit issues the alert when either one of a first condition and a second condition is satisfied, wherein the first condition is satisfied when the reading process is being executed and the opening-and-closing lid is in the open state, and the second condition is satisfied when the reading process is completed and the opening-and-closing lid has been in the closed state for a predetermined length of time, and

wherein the alert unit issues product information corresponding to the product code read by the reading unit when a third condition is satisfied, wherein the third condition is satisfied when the reading process is being executed and the opening-and-closing lid is in the closed state, and

wherein the alert unit issues an alert to close the opening-and-closing lid when the first condition is satisfied.

2. The reading device of claim 1, wherein the alert unit is configured to issue an alert to open the opening-and-closing lid, when the second condition is satisfied.

3. The reading device of claim 1, wherein the alert unit is configured to issue the alert on a display screen.

4. The reading device of claim 1, wherein the alert unit is configured to issue the alert by sound.

5. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a program being executed by a computer of a reading unit comprising a housing including an opening portion and a space for housing the product, an antenna provided within the space, and an opening-and-closing lid configured to cover the opening portion, the program causing the computer to:

detect a state of the opening-and-closing lid, the state including an open state and a closed state;

execute a reading process of reading, via the antenna, information including a product code from an RFID tag of the product accommodated in the housing in response to the detection of the closed state; and

issue an alert in accordance with the state of the opening-and-closing lid and a state of the reading process,

wherein the alert is issued when either one of a first condition and a second condition is satisfied, wherein the first condition is satisfied when the reading process is being executed and the opening-and-closing lid is in the open state, and the second condition is satisfied when the reading process is completed and the opening-and-closing lid has been in the closed state for a predetermined length of time, and

wherein the alert is issued to inform of product information corresponding to the product code read by the reading unit when a third condition is satisfied, wherein the third condition is satisfied when the reading process is being executed and the opening-and-closing lid is in the closed state, and

wherein an alert is issued to close the opening-and-closing lid when the first condition is satisfied.