Wireless communications systems, radio frequency identification devices, wireless communications methods, and radio frequency identification device communications methods

• US 20040066280A1
• Filed: 10/02/2002
• Published: 04/08/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 10/02/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Battelle Memorial Institute
• Original Assignee: Battelle Memorial Institute
• Inventors: Pratt, Richard M., Thompson, Steven B.
• Granted Patent: US 7,019,618 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/10.2
• 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 19/0724 the arrangement being a circuit for communicating at a plurality of frequencies, e.g. for managing time multiplexed communication over at least two antennas of different types
• 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 7/10069 the collision being resolved in the frequency domain, e.g. by hopping from one frequency to the other frequency hopping or spread spectrum techniques H04B7/00

Abstract

Wireless communications systems, radio frequency identification devices, wireless communications methods, and radio frequency identification device communications methods are described. In one aspect, a wireless communications system includes a reader configured to output a plurality of wireless signals including different modulation frequencies and to receive a plurality of second wireless signals, a plurality of communication devices configured to receive the first wireless signals and to output the second wireless signals using backscatter modulation and wherein the communication devices are individually configured to respond to one of the first wireless signals having a first modulation frequency at a first moment in time and to respond to one of the first wireless signals having a second modulation frequency different than the first modulation frequency at a second moment in time.

Claims

1. A wireless communications system comprising:

a reader configured to output a plurality of wireless signals including different modulation frequencies and to receive a plurality of second wireless signals;

a plurality of communication devices configured to receive the first wireless signals and to output the second wireless signals using backscatter modulation; and

wherein the communication devices are individually configured to respond to one of the first wireless signals having a first modulation frequency at a first moment in time and to respond to one of the first wireless signals having a second modulation frequency different than the first modulation frequency at a second moment in time.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the communication devices are individually configured to not respond to the first wireless signals having the first modulation frequency during the second moment in time.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the reader is configured to output a predefined first wireless signal having the first modulation frequency during the first moment in time, and the communication devices are individually configured to change from responding to the first wireless signals having the first modulation signal to responding to the first wireless signals having the second modulation frequency responsive to the predefined first wireless signal.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the communication devices individually comprise a stimulus device, and the communication devices are individually configured to change from responding to the first wireless signals having the first modulation signal to responding to the first wireless signals having the second modulation frequency responsive to the stimulus device.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the communication devices are individually configured to enable a watchdog timer during the second moment in time and to return to responding to the first wireless signals having the first modulation frequency responsive to the watchdog timer counting a predetermined amount of time.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the communication devices comprise radio frequency identification devices.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the communication devices are individually configured to generate a reference signal to control the first wireless signals which are responded to by the respective communication devices.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein the communication devices are individually configured to generate the reference signal having a first frequency during the first moment in time and to generate the reference signal having a second frequency different than first frequency during the second moment in time.

9. The system of claim 1 wherein the reader is configured to control the communication devices to selectively respond to the first wireless signals having the first frequency and the second frequency.

10. The system of claim 1 further comprising a battery configured to provide operational power to the communication circuitry.

11. A radio frequency identification device comprising:

an antenna configured to communicate wireless signals;

radio frequency identification device communication circuitry coupled with the antenna and configured to process a plurality of different first wireless signals received from a reader and to control the outputting of a plurality of second wireless signals to implement radio frequency identifications device communications with the reader; and

wherein the radio frequency identification device communication circuitry is configured to generate a reference signal having a first frequency to control reception of a first type of the first wireless signals and to generate the reference signal having a second frequency different than the first frequency to control reception of a second type of the first wireless signals.

12. The device of claim 11 wherein the communication circuitry is configured to control the outputting of the second wireless signals comprising backscatter modulated signals.

13. The device of claim 11 wherein the communication circuitry is configured to generate the reference signal having the first frequency and the second frequency to control the reception of the first type of first wireless signals having a first modulation frequency and the second type of first wireless signals having a second modulation frequency different than the first modulation frequency.

14. The device of claim 11 wherein the communication circuitry is configured to change the frequency of the reference signal responsive to a reception of a predefined one of the first wireless signals.

15. The device of claim 13 further comprising a stimulus device coupled with the communication circuitry, and wherein the communication circuitry is configured to change the frequency of the reference signal responsive to the stimulus device.

16. The device of claim 11 further comprising a battery configured to provide operational power to the communication circuitry.

17. A wireless communications method comprising:

providing a reader and a plurality of communication devices;

communicating a plurality of different first wireless signals using the reader;

first configuring a plurality of communication devices to respond to a first type of the first wireless signals;

second configuring at least one of the communication devices to respond to a second type of the first wireless signals; and

backscatter modulating radio frequency energy using the communication devices to communicate a plurality of second wireless signals to respond to the first type of the first wireless signals and the second type of the first wireless signals.

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising discovering the communication devices configured to respond to the first type of the first wireless signals using the reader, and wherein the second configuring comprises configuring responsive to the discovering using the reader.

19. The method of claim 17 further comprising receiving a predefined first wireless signal within the at least one communication device, and wherein the second configuring comprises configuring responsive to the receiving.

20. The method of claim 17 wherein the providing comprises providing the at least one communication devices comprising a stimulus device, and wherein the second configuring comprises configuring responsive to the stimulus device.

21. The method of claim 17 wherein the providing comprises providing the communication devices comprising radio frequency identification devices.

22. The method of claim 17 wherein the first configuring comprises configuring the communication devices to respond to the first type of the first wireless signals having a first modulation frequency and the second configuring comprises configuring the at least one communication device to respond to the second type of the first wireless signals having a second modulation frequency.

23. A radio frequency identification device communications method comprising:

providing a radio frequency identification device comprising communication circuitry;

receiving a plurality of wireless communications signals within the radio frequency identification device;

providing a clock signal including a frequency using the radio frequency identification device; and

processing the received wireless communications signals using the communication circuitry, the processed wireless communications signals having a modulation frequency corresponding to the frequency of the clock signal.

24. The method of claim 23 wherein the processing comprises processing received wireless communications signals having a modulation frequency substantially equal to the frequency of the clock signal.

25. The method of claim 23 further comprising changing the frequency of the clock signal from a first frequency to a second frequency different than the first frequency.

26. The method of claim 25 wherein the receiving comprises receiving a predefined wireless communication signal, and wherein the changing is responsive to the receiving the predefined wireless communication signal.

27. The method of claim 25 wherein the processing comprises processing received wireless communications signals having a modulation frequency corresponding to the first frequency before the changing and processing received wireless communications signals having a modulation frequency corresponding to the second frequency after the changing.

28. The method of claim 25 wherein the providing the radio frequency identification device comprises providing a device comprising a stimulus device, and wherein the changing is responsive to the stimulus device.

29. The method of claim 23 further comprising disregarding received wireless communications signals having a modulation frequency not corresponding to the frequency of the clock signal.

30. The method of claim 23 further comprising comparing received wireless communications signals with the clock signal, and wherein the processing and the disregarding are responsive to the comparing.

31. The method of claim 23 further comprising backscatter modulating radio frequency energy responsive to the processing to implement return link communications using the radio frequency identification device.

32. The method of claim 23 further comprising providing electrical energy to the communication circuitry using a battery.

33. A radio frequency identification device communications method comprising:

providing a reader and a radio frequency identification device;

communicating a plurality of forward link wireless signals using the reader including first wireless signals having a first modulation frequency and second wireless signals having a second modulation frequency;

receiving the forward link wireless signals using the radio frequency identification device;

generating a clock signal using the radio frequency identification device and the clock signal having a frequency substantially equal to the first modulation frequency;

processing a predefined one of the first wireless signals using the radio frequency identification device;

changing the frequency of the clock signal to a frequency substantially equal to the second modulation frequency using the radio frequency identification device responsive to the processing;

disregarding others of the received first wireless signals using the radio frequency identification device after the changing;

processing the received second wireless signals after the changing; and

outputting a plurality of backscatter modulation signals comprising return link wireless signals using the radio frequency identification device for communication to the reader to implement radio frequency identification device communications.