Loop antenna

• US 20050140564A1
• Filed: 10/27/2004
• Published: 06/30/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/2003
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Mizoguchi, Yoshitaka, Deguchi, Futoshi
• Application Number:
  US10/974,031
• Publication Number:
  US 20050140564A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 343/866
• 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 7/10316 using at least one antenna particularly designed for interrogating the wireless record carriers antennas in general H01Q1/22
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/2474 Antenna or antenna activator geometry, arrangement or layout loop antennae H01Q1/22
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/2216 used in interrogator/reader equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/2225 used in active tags, i.e. provided with its own power source or in passive tags, i.e. deriving power from RF signal
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/36 Structural form of radiating elements, e.g. cone, spiral, umbrella; Particular materials used therewithH01Q1/08, H01Q1/14 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 7/00 Loop antennas with a substantially uniform current distribution around the loop and having a directional radiation pattern in a plane perpendicular to the plane of the loop

Abstract

It is an object of the invention to provide a loop antenna constituted by a single element which can apply a magnetic field to carry out a communication reliably with high precision irrespective of the position and direction of a radio communication medium.

The invention provides a loop antenna 1 including a conductor 2, a plurality of bending portions 50 provided on the conductor 2, and a feeding portion for supplying a signal current to the conductor 2, the conductor being turned circumferentially like a loop by setting the feeding portion to be a base point, wherein the conductor 2 forms a three-dimensional space. Consequently, it is possible to generate a magnetic field to all dimensions, thereby carrying out a communication irrespective of the position and direction of a radio communication medium.

Claims

1. A loop antenna comprising:

a conductor, comprising a plurality of bending portions provided on the conductor, the conductor being turned circumferentially like a loop;

wherein the conductor forms a virtual three-dimensional space.

2. The loop antenna according to claim 1, wherein the loop antenna applies a magnetic field to a radio communication medium in the three-dimensional space or in the vicinity thereof.

3. The loop antenna according to claim 1, wherein the loop antenna applies a magnetic field to all of X, Y and Z axes which are orthogonal to each other.

4. The loop antenna according to claim 2, wherein the loop antenna applies a magnetic field to the radio communication medium, thereby carrying out a communication with the radio communication medium.

5. The loop antenna according to claim 1, wherein a feeding portion is provided on an end of the conductor.

6. The loop antenna according to claim 1, wherein the bending portion takes a square shape, an arc shape, a round shape or a curved shape or a combination between the square shape, the arc shape, the round shape or the curved shape.

7. The loop antenna according to claim 1, wherein a part of the conductor includes at least an arc shape or a straight shape.

8. The loop antenna according to claim 1, wherein the conductor has a conductor portion along all of X, Y and Z axes which are orthogonal to each other.

9. The loop antenna according to claim 1, wherein a portion of the conductor is present in at least one of a side, a surface and a diagonal line possessed by the virtual three-dimensional space formed by the conductor.

10. The loop antenna according to claim 1, wherein the conductor is formed on a side other than a side to be an intersection of two opposed surfaces and a surface interposed between the opposed surfaces in a polyhedral space to be the three-dimensional space formed by the conductor.

11. The loop antenna according to claim 1, wherein the conductor is present to connect all vertexes present in the virtual three-dimensional space formed by the conductor.

12. The loop antenna according to claim 1, wherein a center of gravity of the virtual three-dimensional space formed by drawing a straight line from an optional point of the conductor to the other portion of the conductor over the whole conductor is present in the virtual three-dimensional space.

13. The loop antenna according to claim 1, wherein the loop antenna comprises an opening surface, the opening surface being present across different planes where the opening surface crosses three-dimensionally.

14. The loop antenna according to claim 13, wherein the opening surface of the loop antenna includes a first surface, and second and third surfaces which are opposed to each other at both ends of the first surface.

15. The loop antenna according to claim 13, wherein the opening surface of the loop antenna is formed on almost the same plane.

16. The loop antenna according to claim 1, wherein a magnetic member is provided close to or in abutment on at least a part of the conductor forming the loop antenna.

17. The loop antenna according to claim 1, further comprising a housing for containing the loop antenna.

18. The loop antenna according to claim 17, wherein a magnetic member is provided between the loop antenna and the housing.

19. The loop antenna according to claim 17, wherein a shield is provided around the housing.

20. The loop antenna according to claim 17, wherein the housing is provided with an opening portion.

23. A radio communication medium processing device comprising:

a housing including an opening portion;

the loop antenna according to claim 1 which is provided in the housing or in a member forming the housing; and

a reading/writing portion for reading and/or writing data from/to a radio communication medium through the loop antenna.

24. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 23, wherein a magnetic member is provided between the loop antenna and the housing.

25. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 23, wherein a shield is provided around the loop antenna.

26. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 25, wherein the shield is provided around the magnetic member.

27. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 23, wherein the housing is a hexahedron, a box member or a rack member which has an opening portion on a part.

28. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 23, wherein a feeding portion is provided on an end of the loop antenna.

29. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 23, wherein the loop antenna applies a magnetic field to a radio communication medium in the housing.

30. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 28, wherein the loop antenna applies a magnetic field to all of X, Y and Z axes which are orthogonal to each other.

31. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 23, wherein a bending portion provided on the loop antenna takes a square shape, an arc shape, a round shape or a curved shape or a combination between the square shape, the arc shape, the round shape or the curved shape.

34. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 25, wherein the shield is an external surface of the housing, and the radio communication medium processing device is formed on at least an adjacent portion to the other radio communication medium processing device.

35. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 25, wherein the shield is an external surface of the housing and is formed at all portions but the opening portion.

36. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 25, wherein the shield is a metal case for containing the housing therein.

37. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 25, wherein the shield has a predetermined interval in the closest portion to the loop antenna.

38. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 37, wherein a predetermined interval between the shield and the antenna is maintained by a member forming the housing.

39. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 23, wherein an electric field shield is provided in an inside of the loop antenna in an internal space of the housing.

40. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 39, wherein the electric field shield is a bag-shaped comb type array conducting line including a comb type array to cover the loop antenna.

41. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 23, wherein a part or all part of at least one of the loop antenna and the shield and the magnetic member and the electric field shield and the reading/writing portion is/are united with the housing.

42. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 23, wherein an obstacle for impeding an installation of a radio communication medium is provided in a position to be a null point of a magnetic field generated from the loop antenna in an internal space of the housing.

43. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 23, wherein the opening portion of the housing is provided with an openable or removable lid portion or cover portion.

44. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 23, wherein a communicating portion for carrying out a communication with a server machine is connected to the reading/writing portion.

45. A radio communication medium processing system comprising:

a plurality of radio communication medium processing devices according to claim 44;

and

a server machine for carrying out a control and a data processing for the radio communication medium processing devices,

wherein the radio communication medium processing devices are provided in a matrix and data sent from each of the radio communication medium processing devices are transmitted to the server machine through the communicating portion and are thus processed.

46. The radio communication medium processing system according to claim 45, wherein a communication between the radio communication medium processing device and the server machine which is carried out through the communicating portion is a cable communication.

47. The radio communication medium processing system according to claim 45, wherein a communication between the radio communication medium processing device and the server machine which is carried out through the communicating portion is a radio communication.

48. The radio communication medium processing system according to claim 45, wherein a data set distributing device is provided between the radio communication medium processing device and the server machine, and a communication between the radio communication medium processing devices and the server machine is carried out in parallel.

49. The radio communication medium processing system according to claim 45, wherein the server machine is provided with a display device for displaying a processing result received from the radio communication medium processing device.

21. A loop antenna device comprising a plurality of loop antennas including an opening portion,

the loop antennas including a feeding loop antenna to which a signal current is supplied, and

a non-feeding loop antenna to which the signal current is not supplied,

wherein a virtual three-dimensional space is formed by the loop antennas.

22. The loop antenna device according to claim 21, wherein the loop antenna device applies a magnetic field to a radio communication medium in the three-dimensional space or in the vicinity thereof.

32. A radio communication medium processing device comprising:

a housing including an opening portion;

the loop antenna device according to claim 21 which is provided in the housing or in a member forming the housing; and

a reading/writing portion for reading and/or writing data from/to a radio communication medium through the loop antenna device.

33. The radio communication medium processing device according to claim 32, wherein a magnetic member is provided between the loop antenna device and the housing, and a shield is provided around the magnetic member.