Reading out of information using an optoelectronic sensor and an RFID reader

• US 20090015380A1
• Filed: 07/01/2008
• Published: 01/15/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/02/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sick AG (Sick)
• Original Assignee: Sick AG (Sick)
• Inventors: Sotriffer, Ingomar, Weber, Harald
• Granted Patent: US 8,026,815 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/10.100
• 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 7/10128 the step consisting of detection of the presence of one or more record carriers in the vicinity of the interrogation device
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10435 the interrogation device being positioned close to a conveyor belt or the like on which moving record carriers are passing conveying in accordance with bodily destination marks, see B65G47/46, sorting of objects carrying identity markings, see B07C5/34

Abstract

A device (10) is provided for the reading out of information from a transponder (14) arranged at an object (12), said device comprising an optoelectronic sensor (24), a reading device (16) able to excite the transponder (14) to radiate the information and able to read out the radiated information and a control (26) which is made for a control of the reading device (16) and of the sensor (24) as well as for an evaluation of the read out information.

In this connection, the optoelectronic sensor (24) can determine a movement pattern of the object (12) and the control (26) is made only to evaluate the read out information with objects (12) of a preset movement pattern.

A corresponding method is furthermore described.

Claims

1. A device (10) for the reading out of information from a transponder (14) arranged at an object (12), said device comprising an optoelectronic sensor (24), a reading device (16) able to excite the transponder (14) to radiate the information and able to read out the radiated information and a control (26) which is made for a control of the reading device (16) and of the sensor (24) as well as for an evaluation of the read out information, characterized in that the optoelectronic sensor (24) can determine a movement pattern of the object (12);

and in that the control (26) is made to evaluate the read out information only with objects (12) of a preset movement pattern.

2. A device (10) in accordance with claim 1, wherein the control (26) is made only to activate the reading device (16) when the object (12) carries out the preset movement pattern at least in part.

3. A device (10) in accordance with claim 1, wherein the preset movement pattern comprises a direction of movement.

4. A device (10) in accordance with claim 1, wherein the control (26) is made to discard read out information if the object (12) does not completely carry out the preset movement pattern.

5. A device (10) in accordance with claim 1, wherein the optoelectronic sensor (24) and/or the control (26) is/are made for the determination of a geometry class;

and wherein in particular a person, a loaded loading unit or an unloaded loading unit such as a pallet respectively forms a geometry class.

6. A device (10) in accordance with claim 5, wherein the control (26) is made to activate the reading device only for objects of a preset geometry class and/or only to evaluate the read out information of an object (12) of a preset geometry class.

7. A device (10) in accordance with claim 1, wherein the optoelectronic scanner (24) is a laser scanner which can in particular monitor a monitored plane divided into fields (I-VI).

8. A device (10) in accordance with claim 7, wherein the movement pattern is fixed over an order of the fields (I-VI) contacted sequentially by the object (12) and/or the geometry class is fixed with reference to the fields (I-VI) simultaneously swept over by the object (12).

9. A device (10) in accordance claim 7, wherein the preset movement pattern is fixed by the entry into a first field (I), the movement into a second field (II) first and then into a third field (III) and the exiting of the third field (III), with the control (26) in particular being made only to activate the reading device (16) on the movement into the second field (II) and/or to discard the read out information if the object (12) does not first move into the third field (III) and subsequently exit it again after the activation of the reading device (16).

10. A device (10) in accordance with claim 1, wherein the control (26) is made to determine and to record the travel path of vehicles carrying objects (12) by means of a transponder (14) of the vehicle.

11. A device (10) in accordance with claim 1, wherein the control (26) comprises a memory for read out information and is made to discard read out information if it is identical to information already previously read out.

12. A device (10) in accordance with claim 1, wherein a plurality of optical sensors (24, 25), in particular a plurality of laser scanners, are provided and these sensors comprise fields (I-VI) in at least two rows (I-II;

IV-VI) disposed next to one another for the recognition of more complex movement patterns and/or in at least two planes (I-III;

IV-VI) disposed above one another for the recognition of more complex geometry classes.

13. A method for the reading out of information from a transponder (14) arranged at an object (12) by means of a reading device (16) which excites the transponder (14) to radiate information and which reads out the radiated information, characterized in that

a movement pattern of the object (12) is determined by means of an optoelectronic sensor (24), in particular by means of a laser scanner, and the read out information is only evaluated with objects (12) of a preset movement pattern, in particular a preset direction of movement.

14. A method in accordance with claim 13, wherein the laser device (16) is only activated when the object (12) carries out the preset movement pattern at least in part and/or read out information is discarded when the object (12) does not completely carry out the preset movement pattern.

15. A method in accordance with claim 13,

wherein a geometry class is determined;

and wherein in particular a person, a loaded loading unit or an unloaded unit such as a pallet respectively form a geometry class; and

wherein the reading device is only activated for objects (12) of a preset geometry class and/or only the read out information of an object (12) of a preset geometry class is evaluated.

16. A method in accordance with claim 13,

wherein the range of view of the optoelectronic sensor is divided into fields;

and wherein the movement pattern is fixed over an order of the fields contacted sequentially by the object and/or the geometry class is fixed with reference to the fields simultaneously swept over by the object, with fields being provided in at least two rows disposed next to one another for the recognition of more complex movement patterns and/or in at least two planes for the recognition of more complex geometry classes in particular while using a plurality of optoelectronic sensors.

17. A method in accordance with claim 16, wherein the preset movement pattern is fixed by the entry into a first field, the movement into a second field first and then into a third field and the exiting of the third field, with in particular the reading device only being activated on the movement into the second field and/or the read out information being discarded if the object does not move into the third field first and subsequently exit it after the activation of the reading device.

18. A method in accordance with claim 13, wherein the read out information is discarded when it is identical to stored information already read out previously.