Method for delivering radio frequency identification device control and data signals

• US 20060227365A1
• Filed: 03/29/2005
• Published: 10/12/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Varga, John Thomas, Stone, David Earl, Hohensee, Reinhard Heinrich, Sickenius, Louis Stephen
• Granted Patent: US 8,681,368 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 358/1.150
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07749 the record carrier being capable of non-contact communication, e.g. constructional details of the antenna of a non-contact smart card

Abstract

A method of communicating non-native print objects in MO:DCA Architecture for controlling and operating RFID writer or reader devices without requiring separate control data streams or systems to be implemented at the host computer. Data references and command identifiers are placed by application program means at the host computer into the page description data so that RFID information can be retrieved and downloaded to the printer and RFID apparatus when the print data is being processed in the print server or main processor of the printer without interfering with normal operation of the printer itself.

Claims

1. A method of delivering control commands to a printer having an RFID means for writing or reading RFID memory devices on a printing base medium, comprising steps of:

placing an identifier for RFID data objects into the printer data and command stream at a computer;

detecting said RFID data object identifier at a printer server or printer control means; and

delivering any said RFID data or commands indicated by said RFID data object identifier to said RFID means for use thereby.

2. A method as described in claim 1, further comprising steps of:

extracting from a database any RFID commands or data indicated by said RFID data object identifier, and;

delivering said extracted RFID commands or data to said RFID means for use thereby.

3. A method as described in either claim 1 or claim 2, further comprising steps of:

detecting said identifier for RFID data objects in said printer data stream and, responsive thereto,

downloading RFID data and commands indicated by said RFID identifier from said computer to said printer server or printer control means; and

delivering said RFID data and commands to said RFID means.

4. A method as described in claim 3, further comprising steps of:

recording said downloaded RFID data and commands into a database for later extraction therefrom for delivery to said RFID means.

5. A computer program product for delivering control and data objects to a RFID writer or reader means in a printer means, the computer program product comprising a computer useable medium having computer readable program code thereon, including:

program code for inserting an identifier for RFID data objects into the printer data and command stream at a computer;

program code for detecting said RFID data object identifier at a printer server or printer control means; and

program code for directing any said RFID data or commands indicated by said RFID data object identifier to said RFID means for use thereby.

6. A computer program product for delivering control and data objects to a RFID writer or reader means in a printer means as described in claim 5, the computer program product comprising a computer useable medium having computer readable program code thereon, further including:

program code for extracting from a database any RFID commands or data indicated by said RFID data object identifier, and;

program code for delivering said extracted RFID commands or data to said RFID means for use thereby.

7. A computer program product for delivering control and data objects to a RFID writer or reader means in a printer means as described in claim 5 or claim 6, the computer program product comprising a computer useable medium having computer readable program code thereon, further including:

program code for detecting said identifier for RFID data objects in said printer data stream and, responsive thereto

program code for downloading RFID data and commands indicated by said RFID identifier from said computer to said printer server or printer control; and

program code for delivering said RFID data and commands to said RFID means.

8. A computer program product as described in claim 7, further comprising:

program code for recording said downloaded FRID data and commands into a database for later extraction therefrom for delivery to said RFID means.

9. A computer program product for reading or writing RFID data objects from or to a RFID memory means on a print medium in a printer system having a print server which processes a formatted data stream and a printer which has an RFID means for reading or writing to RFID memory means on a print base medium and which communicates with the print server, the computer program product comprising a computer useable medium having computer readable program code thereon, including:

program code for examining the resource data of each of the RFID objects and for storing a single copy of resource data and discarding any duplicate copies;

program code for inserting into the formatted data stream RFID data and a reference to the resource data at the point in the formatted data stream where the RFID object is to be read or written on a page;

program code for using the resource data reference in the formatted data stream to retrieve the resource data copy;

program code for sending the retrieved resource data copy to the RFID means;

program code which uses the RFID data reference to send the referenced RFID data and the resource data reference to the RFID means; and

program code for combining the resource data and the RFID data in the printer in response to the resource data reference; and

program code for processing the combination for writing or reading by said RFID means.

10. A program product as described in claim 9 wherein the RFID data in the formatted data stream comprises actual RFID data content to be written into the RFID memory device on the print base medium.

11. A computer program product as described in claim 9 wherein the RFID data in the formatted data stream comprises a reference to the actual RFID data content to be written.

12. A computer program product as described in claim 9 wherein the examining program code comprises program code for storing the RFID data of each of the RFID objects in the formatted data stream into a resource database.

13. A computer program product as described in claim 12 wherein the program code which uses the RFID data reference to send the referenced RFID data and the resource data reference to the RFID means comprises program code for retrieving the RFID data from the resource database in response to the RFID data reference;

and program code for sending the retrieved RFID data to the RFID means.

14. A computer program product as described in claim 9 wherein the examining program code comprises program code for storing the resource data of each of the RFID objects in a resource database.

15. A computer program product as described in claim 9 wherein the examining program code comprises program code for storing the resource data of each of the RFID objects in the formatted data stream.

16. A computer program product as described in claim 9 wherein the program code for inserting references into the formatted data stream comprises program code for inserting into the formatted data stream a second reference to the resource data together with the reference to the RFID data at the point in the formatted data stream where the RFID object is to be written or read.

17. A computer program product as described in claim 16 wherein the program code for sending the resource data reference and the RFID data to the RFID means comprises program code for sending the second resource data reference and RFID data to the RFID means.

18. A computer program product as described in claim 9 wherein the program code for sending the resource data copy to the RFID means comprises:

program code, operable before sending the resource data copy to the RFID means, for determining whether the RFID means already has a copy of the retrieved resource data; and

program code for preventing a resource data copy from being sent to the RFID means when the RFID means already has a copy of the resource data.

19. A computer program product as described in claim 18 wherein the RFID means has a memory and the program code for sending the resource data copy to the RFID means comprises program code for storing the resource data copy in the memory.