Radio frequency identification system with write broadcast capability

• US 20050088286A1
• Filed: 07/26/2004
• Published: 04/28/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 09/09/1994
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intermec IP Corporation (Honeywell International Inc.), L. David Rish
• Original Assignee: Intermec IP Corporation (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Inventors: Goldman, Kenneth Alan, Friedman, Daniel J., McAuliffe, Kevin P., Heinrich, Harley Kent, Cofino, Thomas A., Chan, Shun-Shing, Cesar, Christian Lenz, Greene, Sharon Louise
• Granted Patent: US 7,616,094 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/10.510
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/0421 Multiprocessor system
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2231 Master slave
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/25277 Tristate
• 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 7/10039 interrogator driven, i.e. synchronous
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10108 interrogating only those RFIDs that fulfill a predetermined requirement, e.g. selecting all RFIDs having the same speed and moving in a cloud like fashion, e.g. on the same train; interrogating only RFIDs having a certain predetermined temperature, e.g. in the same fridge, another possibility being the active ignoring of a group of tags that fulfill a predetermined requirement, equivalent to the Boolean NOT operation
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/28 the pass enabling tracking or indicating presence
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 17/02 using a radio link
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/20 Binding and programming of remote control devices

Abstract

A Write Broadcast system and method uses a base station to write sent data to all or some selected number (sub group) of tags in a base station field simultaneously. By unselecting the tags that have been successfully written to, and requesting a response from the remaining tags in the field (or sub group), the system determines, by receiving a response to the request, that there are tags in the field (sub group) that were unsuccessfully written to. Another Write Broadcast signal is sent to these tags. The system is useful for quickly (simultaneously) “stamping” information on the tag memory of a large number of tags in the field of the base station.

Claims

1. A transponder comprising:

a transponder memory having a transponder data location with a data value; and

a transponder receiver for receiving a broadcasted signal not associated with said transponder, the signal having sent data and the receiver writing the sent data to the transponder data location,

the transponder sending a response if the sent data is different than the data value and not sending a response if the sent data is the same as the data value.

2. A radio frequency tag comprising:

a tag antenna for receiving a radio frequency signal from a base station, the radio frequency signal having sent data;

a tag memory having a tag data location;

a tag logic having a selected state and a non-selected state, one or more selection commands placing the tag in the selected state if the tag meets one or more selection conditions; and

a tag receiver for receiving the radio frequency signal from the tag antenna;

the tag writing the sent data to the tag data location if the tag is in the selected state and the tag not writing the sent data to the tag data location if the tag is in the non-selected state.

3. A radio frequency tag, as in claim 2, where writing the sent data occurs in the tag without the tag sending a response containing a tag identifier.

4. A radio frequency tag, as in claim 2, where the tag further comprises a decoder that decodes a further command that causes the tag to communicate a response when the tag is in the selected state and that causes the tag not to communicate a response when the tag is in the non-selected state.

5. A radio frequency tag comprising:

a tag antenna for receiving a radio frequency signal from a base station, the radio frequency signal having zero or more sent data and zero or more sent addresses corresponding to the sent data;

a tag memory having one or more tag data locations, each tag data location having a respective tag data address;

a tag receiver for receiving the radio frequency signal from the tag antenna; and

a tag logic having a selected state and a non-selected state, one or more selection commands placing the tag in the selected state if the tag meets one or more selection conditions; and

the tag logic writing each of the sent data in the tag data location with the tag data address corresponding to the respective sent address if the tag is in the selected state and the tag not writing any of the sent data if the tag is in the non-selected state.

6. A base station for communicating with zero or more tags in a field of the base station, each of the tags having a tag memory, the base station comprising:

a signal generator that develops a signal containing a sent data;

a base station transmitter that encodes the signal on the carrier to create an encoded signal; and

a base station antenna that transmits the encoded signal to two or more tags in the field causing the tags to simultaneously write the sent data into the tag memory.

7. A base station, as in claim 6, where the sent data includes any one of the following types of information:

object identification, object description, object use, object tracking, object location, object status, and object handling.

8. A base station for communicating with zero or more radio frequency tags in a field of the base station, each of the tags having a tag memory, the tag memory having one or more tag data locations and each of the tag data locations having a tag data address, the base station comprising:

a computer that develops one or more selection commands and a write broadcast signal, the write broadcast signal containing zero or more write broadcast commands, zero or more sent data and zero or more sent addresses;

a base station transmitter that encodes the one or more selection commands on a radio frequency carrier to create a selection signal and encodes the write broadcast signal on the radio frequency carrier to create a write signal; and

the base station transmitting the selection signal to all the tags in the field to select a subgroup of the tags, and transmitting the write signal to simultaneously write each of the sent data to the tag data locations having tag data addresses corresponding to the sent addresses.

9. A radio frequency tagging system, as in claim 8, where the tags not in the selected subgroup do not respond to the write broadcast signal.

10. A radio frequency tagging system comprising:

zero or more radio frequency tags, each tag having a tag logic, a tag antenna, and a tag data location; and

a base station having a signal generator, a transmitter, and a base antenna, the signal generator sending a carrier signal through the transmitter and the base antenna to create a field, the transmitter encoding sent data generated by the signal generator onto the carrier signal to produce an encoded carrier signal, zero or more tags in the field receiving the carrier signal through their respective tag antennas and the tag logic of each tag in the field decoding the sent data and causing the sent data to be simultaneously written to the respective tag data location.

11. A radio frequency tagging system comprising:

zero or more radio frequency tags, each tag having a tag logic and a tag antenna and each tag further having one or more tag data locations associated with a tag data address;

a base station having a computer, a transmitter, and a base antenna; and

a process executed by the computer that causes a radio frequency write broadcast signal to be sent through the transmitter and base antenna to create a field, the write broadcast signal having sent data and a sent address corresponding to the sent data, one or more tags in the field receiving the write broadcast signal through the tag antenna, and the tag logic of each tag in the field causing the sent data to be simultaneously written to each of the tag data locations that has a tag data address matching the respective sent address.

12. A system, as in claim 11, where the tag logic causes the tag to send a response if the sent data is different than an old data in the tag data location and not send the response if the sent data is the same as the old data, the base station resending the encoded carrier signal if a response is received from one or more of the tags.

13. A radio frequency tagging system, as in claim 11, where the tags do not all respond to the write broadcast signal.

14. A radio frequency tagging system, as in claim 11, where the base station sends a group selection signal comprising one or more group selection commands, and one or more of the tags that has an old data in the tag data location that does not match the sent data sends to the base station a response to the group selection signal.

15. A system, as in claim 11, where the sent data includes any one of the following types of information:

object identification, object description, object use, object tracking, object location, object status, and object handling.

16. A method performed by a radio frequency tagging system, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) selecting a subgroup of zero or more tags in a field of tags by sending one or more selection commands from a base station, such that only the tags in a selected subgroup are enabled to write a sent data to a respective tag memory of the tags;

(b) sending a radio frequency signal from the base station, the signal having sent data; and

(c) zero or more of the tags in the subgroup being caused by the radio frequency signal to simultaneously write the sent data to a respective tag memory in the tags of the subgroup.

17. A method performed by a radio frequency tagging system, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) sending a radio frequency signal from a base station to a field of zero or more radio frequency tags, the signal having sent data and sent addresses, each sent address associated with a sent data, and

(b) zero or more of the tags in the field being caused by the signal to write the sent data to a tag data location in a tag memory of the zero or more tags, the tag data location having a tag data address matching the sent address associated with the respective sent data.

18. A method, as in claim 17, where the tags in the field are caused to respond if a value in a tag data location with the tag data address corresponding to the sent address does not match the respective sent data, and the base station re-sends the radio frequency signal if a response is received.

19. A method, as in claim 17, where there is no sent address for one or more of the sent data, and the respective tag data locations are pre-assigned.

20. A method, as in claim 17, where there is one sent address that is associated with more than one of the sent data.

21. A radio frequency tag comprising:

a tag antenna for receiving a radio frequency signal from a base station, the radio frequency signal having sent data;

a tag memory having a tag data location; and

a tag receiver for receiving the radio frequency signal from the tag antenna and writing the sent data to the tag data location; and

a tag transmitter for sending a response if the sent data is different than an old data in the tag data location.

22. A base station for communicating with zero or more radio frequency tags in a field of the base station, each of the tags having a tag memory, the base station comprising:

a signal generator for developing a signal containing sent data;

a base station transmitter for encoding the signal with the sent data on a radio frequency carrier to create an encoded carrier; and

a base station antenna for transmitting the encoded carrier to zero or more tags in the field;

the encoded carrier causing the tags to simultaneously write the sent data into their tag memories without first sending a tag identifier to the base station.

23. A radio frequency tag comprising:

a tag antenna for receiving a radio frequency signal from a base station, the radio frequency signal having sent data;

a tag memory having a tag data location;

a tag logic having a first state and a second state, a first one or more commands placing the tag in the first state if the tag meets first one or more conditions and a second one or more commands placing the tag in the second state if the tag meets second one or more conditions,

a tag receiver for receiving the radio frequency signal from the tag antenna, the tag writing the sent data to the tag data location if the tag is in the first state and the tag not writing the sent data to the tag data location if the tag is in the second state.

24. A tag, as in claim 23, where writing the sent data occurs in the tag without the tag sending a response containing a tag identifier.

25. A tag, as in claim 23, where writing the sent data causes the tag to send a response.

26. A tag, as in claim 23, where writing the sent data causes the tag to send a response if the sent data is different from old data in the tag memory.

27. A base station for communicating with a plurality of tags in a field of the base station, each of the tags having a tag memory, the base station comprising:

a signal generator that develops a signal containing a sent data;

a base station transmitter that encodes the signal on the carrier to create an encoded signal; and

a base station antenna that transmits the encoded signal to zero or more tags in the field for causing the tags to simultaneously write the sent data into their tag memories, sends one or more group commands that affect tags that have the sent data in their respective tag memories, and listens for a response from one or more tags.

28. A base station, as in claim 27, where the response causes the base station transmitter to retransmit the encoded signal.

29. A base station, as in claim 27, where the response causes the base station to generate an error code.

30. A base station for communicating with a plurality of radio frequency tags in a field of the base station, each of the tags having a tag memory, the tag memory having one or more tag data locations and each of the tag data locations having a tag data address, the base station comprising

a computer that generates one or more selection commands and a write broadcast signal, the write broadcast signal containing zero or more write broadcast commands, zero or more sent data and zero or more sent addresses;

a base station transmitter that encodes the one or more selection commands on a radio frequency carrier to create a selection signal and encodes the write broadcast signal on the radio frequency carrier to create a write signal; and

a base station antenna that transmits the selection signal to all the tags in the field to affect selectively a subgroup of the tags, and transmitting the write signal to simultaneously write each of the sent data to the tag data locations having tag data addresses corresponding to the sent addresses.

31. A method performed by a base station comprising the steps of:

(a) selecting zero or more the tags in a field of tags by issuing one or more selection commands, the selected tags being in a selected state and the not selected tags being in a non-selected state;

(b) causing certain tags to not respond if the value in each of the tag data locations with tag data addresses corresponding to a sent address are equal to the sent data, and to respond if the value in any of tag data locations does not equal the sent data; and

(c) issuing a write broadcast command if any response is received to step (b).

32. A method, as in claim 31, comprising the further step of:

(d) repeating steps (b) and (c) until no tags respond.

33. A method, as in claim 31, comprising the further step of:

(d) repeating steps (b) and (c) until an allowed number of iterations is reached.

34. A method performed by a base station comprising the steps of:

(a) selecting zero or more the tags in a field of tags by issuing one or more selection commands, the selected tags being in a selected state and the not selected tags being in a non-selected state.

(b) causing certain tags to not respond if the value in each of the tag data locations with tag data addresses corresponding to the sent address is equal to the sent data, and to respond if the value in any of tag data locations does not equal the sent data; and

(c) issuing a write broadcast command if any response is received to step (b).

35. A method, as in claim 34, further comprising the step of:

(d) repeating steps (a), (b) and (c) until no tags respond.

36. A method, as in claim 34, further comprising the step of:

(d) repeating steps (a), (b) and (c) until an allowed number of iterations is reached.