Radio frequency identification tag and commodity

• US 20070296555A1
• Filed: 05/31/2007
• Published: 12/27/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/15/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Kanno, Masayoshi
• Granted Patent: US 7,633,395 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/10.51
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07779 the inductive antenna being a coil
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07781 the coil being fabricated in a winding process
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 17/0013 with stacked layers
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 2017/0046 with a conductive path having a bridge
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 27/40 Structural association with built-in electric component, e.g. fuse
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2223/54473 for use after dicing
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2223/6677 for antenna, e.g. antenna included within housing of semiconductor device antennas per se H01Q
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/544 Marks applied to semiconductor devices or parts, e.g. registration marks, alignment structures, wafer maps test patterns for characterising or monitoring manufacturing processes H01L22/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/66 High-frequency adaptations
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00 Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/0002 Not covered by any one of groups H01L24/00, H01L24/00 and H01L2224/00
• 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 1/38 formed by a conductive layer on an insulating support patch antennas H01Q9/0407; microstrip dipole antennas H01Q9/065; microstrip slot antennas H01Q13/106; transmission line microstrip antennas H01Q13/206; manufacturing reflecting surfaces using insulating material for supporting the reflecting surface H01Q15/142
• 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

Disclosed herein is a radio frequency identification tag including, a substrate, an antenna provided at the substrate, the antenna formed by winding a conductor in a coil pattern around, and on a plane orthogonal to, a center axis of the substrate, the center axis extending in a direction parallel to the thickness direction of the substrate, a radio frequency identification chip attached to the substrate and operative to perform radiocommunication with a reader/writer apparatus through the antenna, and a package sealing the substrate and the antenna as well as the radio frequency identification chip therein, wherein a mark for specifying the center axis is formed on an outside surface where the package is exposed to the outside.

Claims

1. A radio frequency identification tag comprising:

a substrate;

an antenna provided at said substrate, said antenna formed by winding a conductor in a coil pattern around, and on a plane orthogonal to, a center axis of said substrate, said center axis extending in a direction parallel to the thickness direction of said substrate;

a radio frequency identification chip attached to said substrate and operative to perform radiocommunication with a reader/writer apparatus through said antenna; and

a package sealing said substrate and said antenna as well as said radio frequency identification chip therein,

wherein a mark for specifying said center axis is formed on an outside surface where said package is exposed to the outside.

4. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 1,

wherein an antenna piece is configured by winding a conductor in a coil form around, and on a plane orthogonal to, said center axis of said substrate, said center axis extending in a direction parallel to the thickness direction of said substrate;

and

said antenna has a plurality of said antenna pieces stacked in the thickness direction of said substrate, with an insulating layer therebetween.

5. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 1,

wherein said package has a height along said thickness direction of said substrate;

said package has a first surface and a second surface located respectively at both ends in the height direction;

said antenna is located nearer to either one of said first surface and said second surface;

said one of said first surface and said second surface to which said antenna is located nearer is made to be an antenna plane; and

said mark for specifying said antenna plane is formed on an outside surface where said package is exposed to the outside.

6. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 5,

wherein said radio frequency identification chip is mounted on a surface, fronting on the other one of said first surface and said second surface, of said substrate.

7. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 1,

wherein said package has a height along said thickness direction of said substrate;

said package has a first surface and a second surface located respectively at both ends in the thickness direction; and

said mark is provided on one of said first surface and said second surface.

8. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 1,

wherein an antenna piece is configured by winding a conductor in a coil pattern around, on a plane orthogonal to, and in the surroundings of an area in the vicinity of, a center axis of said substrate, said center axis extending in a direction parallel to the thickness direction of said substrate;

said antenna has a plurality of said antenna pieces stacked in the thickness direction of said substrate, with an insulating layer therebetween;

said package has a height along said thickness direction of said substrate;

said package has a first surface and a second surface located respectively at both ends in said thickness direction;

said antenna is located nearer to either one of said first surface and said second surface;

said either one of said first surface and said second surface to which said antenna is located nearer is made to be an antenna plane;

said mark includes a recess extending along said center axis in an area in the vicinity of said center axis where none of said antenna pieces is located; and

said recess opens in said antenna plane and has a depth extending along said center axis toward the other one of said first surface and said second surface.

9. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 8, wherein a bottom surface of said recess is located in an area in the inside of said substrate, and a side surface and said bottom surface of said recess is formed of said package.

10. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 8, wherein the sectional shape of said recess in a plane orthogonal to the depth direction of said recess is rectangular.

11. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 8, wherein the sectional shape of said recess in a plane orthogonal to the depth direction of said recess is gradually decreased as said bottom surface of said recess is approached.

12. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 8, wherein the center of a section of said recess in a plane orthogonal to the depth direction of said recess coincides with said center axis.

13. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 1,

wherein said mark has a shape integrally formed on an outside surface where said package is exposed to the outside.

14. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 13,

wherein said shape is formed by a recessed part formed in an outside surface where said package is exposed to the outside

15. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 13,

wherein said shape is formed by a projected part formed on an outside surface where said package is exposed to the outside.

16. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 1,

where said package has a height along the thickness direction of said substrate;

said package has a first surface and a second surface located respectively at both ends in the height direction; and

said mark is formed by a hole formed to penetrate from said first surface to said second surface.

17. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 1,

wherein said mark is formed by a seal adhered to an outside surface where said package is exposed to the outside.

18. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 1,

where said mark is formed by a printed surface formed on an outside surface where said package is exposed to the outside.

19. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 1,

where said mark is provided in an area, located on said center axis, of an outside surface where said package is exposed to the outside.

20. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 1,

where a plurality of said marks are provided in an area, in the periphery of said center axis, of an outside surface where said package is exposed to the outside, and said center axis is located at the center of said plurality of said marks.

21. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 1,

where said package is elongate in shape;

said mark is elongate in shape; and

the longitudinal direction of said package and the longitudinal direction of said mark are parallel to each other.

2. A radio frequency identification tag comprising:

a substrate;

an antenna provided at said substrate, said antenna formed by winding a conductor in a coil pattern around, and on a plane orthogonal to, a center axis of said substrate, said center axis extending in a direction parallel to the thickness direction of said substrate;

a radio frequency identification chip attached to said substrate and operative to perform radiocommunication with a reader/writer apparatus through said antenna; and

a package sealing said substrate and said antenna as well as said radio frequency identification chip therein,

wherein said package has a height along said thickness direction of said substrate;

said package has a first surface and a second surface located respectively at both ends in the height direction thereof;

said antenna is located nearer to either one of said first surface and said second surface;

said either one of said first surface and said second surface to which said antenna is located nearer is made to be an antenna plane; and

a mark for specifying said antenna plane is formed on an outside surface where said package is exposed to the outside.

3. The radio frequency identification tag as set forth in claim 2, wherein said mark is formed on said antenna plane.

22. A commodity having a case provided with a radio frequency identification tag,

said radio frequency identification tag comprising:

a substrate;

an antenna provided at said substrate, said antenna formed by winding a conductor in a coil pattern around, and on a plane orthogonal to, a center axis of said substrate, said center axis extending in a direction parallel to the thickness direction of said substrate;

a radio frequency identification chip attached to said substrate and operative to perform radiocommunication with a reader/writer apparatus through said antenna; and

a package sealing said substrate and said antenna as well as said radio frequency identification chip therein,

wherein a mark for specifying said center axis is formed on an outside surface where said package is exposed to the outside; and

said radio frequency identification tag is provided in the inside of said case in such a state that its location in the inside of said case and its orientation in the inside of said case are determined with reference to said mark.

24. The commodity as set forth in claim 22,

wherein said package has a height along the thickness direction of said substrate;

said package has a first surface and a second surface located respectively at both ends in the height direction;

said antenna is located nearer to either one of said first surface and said second surface;

said either one of said first surface and said second surface to which said antenna is located nearer is made to be an antenna plane; and

said mark for specifying said antenna plane is formed on an outside surface where said package is exposed to the outside; and

25. The commodity as set forth in claim 22,

wherein a mark indicative of the position where said center axis is located is provided on said outside surface of said case.

26. The commodity as set forth in claim 22,

wherein said radio frequency identification tag is embedded in the inside of said case.

27. The commodity as set forth in claim 22,

wherein said radio frequency identification tag is attached to an inside surface of said case.

23. A commodity having a case provided with a radio frequency identification tag,

said radio frequency identification tag comprising:

a substrate;

an antenna provided at said substrate, said antenna formed by winding a conductor in a coil pattern around, and on a plane orthogonal to, a center axis of said substrate, said center axis extending in a direction parallel to the thickness direction of said substrate;

a radio frequency identification chip attached to said substrate and operative to perform radiocommunication with a reader/writer apparatus through said antenna; and

a package sealing said substrate and said antenna as well as said radio frequency identification chip therein,

wherein said package has a height along the thickness direction of said substrate;

said package has a first surface and a second surface located respectively at both ends in the height direction;

said antenna is located nearer to either one of said first surface and said second surface;

said either one of said first surface and said second surface to which said antenna is located nearer is made to be an antenna plane;

a mark for specifying said antenna plane is formed on an outside surface where said package is exposed to the outside; and

said radio frequency identification tag is provided in the inside of said case in such a state that its location in the inside of said case and its orientation in the inside of said case are determined with reference to said mark.