Qualitative/Quantitative Analysis of a Material Using RFIDs

• US 20090224919A1
• Filed: 03/06/2008
• Published: 09/10/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/06/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Kraemer, James R., Angell, Robert L.
• Granted Patent: US 7,880,611 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/572.100
• CPC Class Codes: B01F 35/213 of the properties of the mixtures, e.g. temperature, density or colour
• CPC Class Codes: B01F 35/2142 using wireless sensors introduced in the mixture, e.g. transponders or RFID tags, for measuring the parameters of the mixture or components to be mixed
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 15/00 Tags attached to, or associated with, an object, in order to enable detection of the object record carriers for use with machines having a detectable tag or marker G06K19/00

Abstract

Unpackaged bulk material is made up of components that have been laced with RFID tags. By interrogating the RFID tags, the different components are identified and quantified, thus providing a quick assay of the bulk material.

Claims

1. A method of determining a composition of a material, the method comprising:

receiving a material that is laced with at least one set of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags to form a laced material, wherein each set of RFID tags identifies a different component of the laced material;

interrogating the RFID tags with an RF interrogation signal; and

receiving identification signals from each set of RFID tags, wherein the identification signals identify different components of the tagged material to determine a composition of the laced material.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the RFID tags are suspended unattached to the laced material to form a colloidal state.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a ratio of identification signals, wherein the ratio of identification signals reflects a relative composition percentage of each different component of the laced material.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

comparing the relative composition percentage of each different component with a known table, wherein the known table provides a relative composition percentage of each component of a known material.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the laced material is an unknown material, and wherein the comparing identifies a makeup of the unknown material.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the laced material is a purportedly known material, and wherein the comparing confirms a quality and makeup of the purportedly known material.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the RFID tags identify a manufacturer, lot number, date of manufacture, chemical composition and emergency procedure information for each of the components in the laced material.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the laced material is composed of only laced components that have been laced with RFID tags.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving identification signals is performed by a grid of RFID sensors that are internal to a pipeline.

10. A method of identifying material, the method comprising:

lacing a material with at least one set of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags to form a laced material, wherein each set of RFID tags identifies a different component of the laced material, and wherein, when interrogated, the RFID tags are able to identify components of the tagged material to determine a composition of the laced material, such that the composition identifies the laced material.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the RFID tags are suspended unattached to the laced material to form a colloidal state.

12. A system for identifying unpackaged material, the system comprising:

a Radio Frequency (RF) transmitter for interrogating at least one set of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags that are laced in unpackaged material, wherein each set of RFID tags identifies a different component of the unpackaged material; and

a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) sensor for receiving identification signals from each set of RFID tags, wherein the identification signals identify components of the unpackaged material to determine a composition of the unpackaged material.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the RFID tags are suspended unattached to the laced material to form a colloidal state.

14. A computer-readable medium for storing computer program code, the computer program code comprising instructions executable by a processor and configured for determining a composition of a material by performing the steps of:

receiving a material that is laced with at least one set of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags to form a laced material, wherein each set of RFID tags identifies a different component of the laced material;

interrogating the RFID tags with an RF interrogation signal; and

receiving identification signals from each set of RFID tags, wherein the identification signals identify components of the tagged material to determine a composition of the laced material.

15. The computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the RFID tags are suspended unattached to the laced material to form a colloidal state.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the instructions are further configured for:

determining a ratio of identification signals, wherein the ratio of identification signals reflects a relative composition percentage of each different component of the laced material.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the instructions are further configured for:

comparing the relative composition percentage of each different component with a known table, wherein the known table provides a relative composition percentage of each component in a known material.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the laced material is an unknown material, and wherein the comparing identifies a makeup of the unknown material.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the computer-usable medium is a component of a remote server, and wherein the computer executable instructions are deployable to a supervisory computer from the remote server.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the computer executable instructions are capable of being provided by a service provider to a customer on an on-demand basis.