Signal processing circuit, and non-contact IC card and tag with the use thereof

• US 20060244676A1
• Filed: 04/28/2006
• Published: 11/02/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 04/28/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Uesaka, Kouichi
• Granted Patent: US 7,439,933 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 343/895
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/22 by structural association with other equipment or articles
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 9/27 Spiral antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 9/285 Planar dipole H01Q9/065 takes precedence; patch antenna H01Q9/0407

Abstract

To provide an RFID (a signal processing circuit) equipped with a single rectangular spiral antenna and being capable of transmitting and receiving an electric power and signal by a plurality of frequency bands therewith, the present invention limits a longitudinal dimension (long sides) of the rectangular spiral antenna designed for transmission and reception of carrier of the HF band thereby to the length suitable for transmission and reception of carrier of the UHF band thereby as well as a widthwise dimension thereof so as to prevent a current waveform due to the carrier of the UHF band from reversing in phase at one of the long sides thereof.

Claims

1. A signal processing circuit comprising an IC including an RF circuit and a rectangular spiral antenna being a planar coil and communicating by using at least two carrier frequencies.

2. The signal processing circuit according to claim 1, wherein

when the two carrier frequencies are taken as f₁ and f₂ (where, f₁<

f₂) and wavelengths corresponding to the carrier frequencies f₁ and f₂ are taken as λ

₁ and λ

₂ (where λ

₁>

λ

₂) respectively,

the line length L of the rectangular spiral antenna satisfies a relationship of L<

<

λ

₁, and

the outer and the inner dimension L_xo and L_xi in the longitudinal direction of the antenna and the outer and the inner dimension L_yo and L_yi in the widthwise direction thereof satisfy a relationship of 2×

(L_xi+L_yi)<

λ

₂<

2×

(L_xo+L_yo).

3. The signal processing circuit according to claim 1, wherein

the IC is connected to a feeding point provided at the long side of the rectangular spiral antenna and the feeding point is located in the center of the long side or in the vicinity thereof.

4. The signal processing circuit according to claim 1, wherein

the rectangular spiral antenna is formed by sequentially connecting N conductor lines having opposing first and second long sides and opposing first and second short sides and running from the first long side to the first long side through the first short side, the second long side and the second short side, and

the N conductor lines are so arranged that one of the conductor lines at the outer periphery of the rectangular spiral antenna is spaced by pitch “

p”

away from the other conductor line being adjacent to the one conductor line and being connected to the one conductor line at the first long side, and the N conductor lines do not intersect with each other.

5. The signal processing circuit according to claim 4, wherein

the IC is connected to the feeding point provided on one of the N conductor lines arranged at the outermost periphery of the rectangular spiral antenna at the first long side of the rectangular spiral antenna, and

the feeding point is formed at the midpoint of the one conductor line at the first long side or at a position being Σ

8np|_{n=1 to N} away from the midpoint along the first long side.

6. A non-contact IC card including a base material on which the signal processing circuit according to claim 1 is mounted.

7. A tag including the signal processing circuit according to claim 1.

8. A signal processing circuit comprising:

a first circuit element responding to a first signal transmitted by the carrier of a first frequency;

a second circuit element responding to a second signal transmitted by the carrier of a second frequency being higher than the first frequency; and

a rectangular spiral antenna formed on a plane composed of a first and a second side opposing each other and a third and a fourth side opposing each other and being shorter than any of the first and the second side;

wherein

the rectangular spiral antenna is formed by connecting the other end of one of an adjacent pair of N conductor lines running from one end of the first side on the plane to the other end of the first side via the third, the second and the fourth side in that order and not intersecting with each other to one end of the other of the adjacent pair of N conductor lines, and

the first and the second circuit elements are connected to the one end of one of the N conductor lines provided at the outermost periphery on the plane.

9. The signal processing circuit according to claim 8, wherein

when the wavelengths of carriers of the first and the second frequency are taken as λ

₁ and λ

₂ respectively (where λ

₁>

λ

₂),

the rectangular spiral antenna formed by connecting the N conductor lines in series is shorter than the wavelength λ

₁ in length, and

the wavelength λ

₂ is shorter than the length from the one end of one of the N conductor lines provided at the outermost periphery on the plane to the other end thereof and longer than the length from the one end of the other one of the N conductor lines provided at the innermost periphery on the plane to the other end thereof.

10. The signal processing circuit according to claim 9, wherein

when the length of one of the N conductor lines provided at the outermost periphery on the plane at the second side is taken as L_xo and the length of the other one of the N conductor lines provided at the innermost periphery on the plane at the second side is taken as L_xi,

the length L_xo is greater than λ

₂/4 relative to the wavelength λ

₂, and the length L_xi is smaller than λ

₂/2.

11. The signal processing circuit according to claim 9, wherein

when the length of one of the N conductor lines provided at the outermost periphery on the plane at the third or the fourth side is taken as L_yo,

the length L_yo is smaller than λ

₂/4 relative to the wavelength λ

₂.

12. The signal processing circuit according to claim 8, wherein

the one end of the one of the N conductor lines provided at the outermost periphery on the plane is connected to the first circuit element via a first filter element for passing the carrier of the first frequency and blocking the carrier of the second frequency, and

the one end of the one of the N conductor lines is connected to the second circuit element via a second filter element for passing the carrier of the second frequency and blocking the carrier of the first frequency.

13. The signal processing circuit according to claim 8, wherein

the one end of the one of the N conductor lines provided at the outermost periphery on the plane is connected to the first circuit element via a first filter element for passing the carrier of the first frequency and blocking the carrier of the second frequency, and

the one end of the one of the N conductor lines is connected to the second circuit element via a second filter element for passing the carrier of the second frequency and blocking the carrier of the first frequency.

14. The signal processing circuit according to claim 8, wherein

the first frequency is in the HF band and the second frequency is in the UHF band.

15. The signal processing circuit according to claim 14, wherein

the second frequency is 100 times higher than the first frequency.