COMPOSITE MULTIPLE RFID TAG FACILITY

• US 20090289776A1
• Filed: 02/26/2009
• Published: 11/26/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/11/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TEGO LLC
• Original Assignee: TEGO LLC
• Inventors: Moore, Larry, Beckhardt, Steve, Hamlin, Robert W., Mats, Leonid, Puleston, David
• Granted Patent: US 8,242,911 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/10.410
• 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: G06Q 20/308 using the Internet of Things
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/321 using wearable devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/352 Contactless payments by cards
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/2216 used in interrogator/reader equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks

Abstract

In embodiments of the present invention improved capabilities are described for a composite RFID tag, where the composite RFID tag may include a plurality of individual tags that are arranged to respond to a reader as one tag.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

reading a composite RFID tag wherein the composite RFID tag includes a plurality of individual tags that are arranged to respond to a reader as one tag.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the individual tags communicate through separate antennas to the reader and provide different information to the reader.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the individual tags communicate with each of the plurality of individual tags through their own respective antennas.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of individual tags is a beacon tag.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the beacon tag is a long range tag.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the beacon tag is a tag that communicates with the reader at long range.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein the beacon tag contains a large antenna.

8. The method of claim 4, wherein the beacon tag is coupled to the plurality of individual tags.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the coupling is electromagnetic coupling.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the coupling is physical coupling.

11. The method of claim 4, wherein the plurality of individual tags communicate with the reader through the beacon tag.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of individual tags include memory.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the memory of at least one of the plurality of individual tags is a larger size memory.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the memory of the plurality of individual tags is shared.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the sharing presents a contiguous memory to the reader.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of individual tags are mounted on a platform.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the platform is a substrate.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the platform is a product container.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein the platform is a shipping container.

20. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of individual tags includes a passive tag.

21. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of individual tags includes an active tag.

22. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of individual tags includes both an active and a passive tag.

23. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of individual tags includes a multi-chip tag.