Frequency hopping spread spectrum scheme for RFID reader
First Claim
1. A radio frequency identification (RFID) system, comprising:
- an RFID base station adapted to communicate with at least one RFID transponder;
said RFID base station comprising;
a transmitter adapted to transmit radio frequency (RF) signals to said at least one RFID transponder;
a receiver adapted to receive RF signals backscattered from said at least one RFID transponder; and
a processor electrically connected to said transmitter and said receiver, and adapted to;
determine the amount of time available on a first carrier frequency;
determine the amount of time it would take to perform a particular transaction; and
change to a second carrier frequency before said amount of time available on said first carrier frequency expires if said amount of time on said first carrier frequency is less than said amount of time it would take to perform said particular transaction.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A system and method is provided for implementing forced frequency “hops” if the time it takes to perform a particular transaction is greater than the time available on a particular carrier frequency. In one embodiment of the present invention, a radio frequency identification (RFID) base station processor (in conjunction with program information stored in a base station memory) is adapted to (i) determine the amount of time available on a particular carrier frequency (e.g., pursuant to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulations, European Telecommunications Standardization Institute (ETSI) regulations, etc.), (ii) determine the amount of time it would take to perform a particular transaction, and (iii) force the base station to “hop” to another carrier frequency if the transaction time is longer than the available time. In one embodiment of the present invention, the time it would take to perform a particular transaction is the time it would take to perform the next transaction. In another embodiment of the present invention, the time it would take to perform a particular transaction is the time it would take to perform the longest (or “worst-case”) transaction. In alternate embodiments of the present invention, a transaction is defined as the transmission of information (e.g., data, commands, etc.) or both the transmission of information and the reception of related information.
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Citations
25 Claims
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1. A radio frequency identification (RFID) system, comprising:
an RFID base station adapted to communicate with at least one RFID transponder;
said RFID base station comprising;
a transmitter adapted to transmit radio frequency (RF) signals to said at least one RFID transponder;
a receiver adapted to receive RF signals backscattered from said at least one RFID transponder; and
a processor electrically connected to said transmitter and said receiver, and adapted to;
determine the amount of time available on a first carrier frequency;
determine the amount of time it would take to perform a particular transaction; and
change to a second carrier frequency before said amount of time available on said first carrier frequency expires if said amount of time on said first carrier frequency is less than said amount of time it would take to perform said particular transaction. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A method for improving transmission rates in a radio-frequency-identification (RFID) base station, comprising:
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performing a first transaction with at least one RFID transponder over a first carrier frequency;
determining the amount of time available on said first carrier frequency;
determining the amount of time it would take to perform a particular transaction;
forcing said RFID base station to hop to a second carrier frequency before said amount of time available on said first carrier frequency expires if said amount of time on said first carrier frequency is less than said amount of time it would take to perform said particular transaction. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A frequency-hopping-spread-spectrum (FHSS) method for use in a radio-frequency-identification (RFID) device, comprising:
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transmitting a first radio frequency (RF) signal over a first carrier frequency;
determining the amount of time available on said first carrier frequency;
determining the amount of time it would take to transmit a particular RF signal;
transmitting a second RF signal over said first carrier frequency if said amount of time available on said first carrier frequency is greater than said amount of time it would take to transmit said particular RF signal; and
transmitting a second RF signal over a second carrier frequency if said amount of time available on said first carrier frequency is less than said amount of time it would take to transmit said particular RF signal. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25)
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Specification