SINGLE FREQUENCY LOW POWER RFID DEVICE

• US 20100001842A1
• Filed: 07/07/2009
• Published: 01/07/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Symbol Technologies, LLC (Zebra Technologies Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Symbol Technologies, Inc. (Zebra Technologies Corporation)
• Inventors: Knadle, Richard T. JR., Goren, David, Wulff, Thomas, Brock, Christopher, Duron, Mark, Giebel, James
• Granted Patent: US 7,902,984 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/10.1
• 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

Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatuses for a reader transceiver circuit are described. The reader transceiver circuit incorporates a frequency generator, such as a surface acoustic wave (SAW) oscillator. A reader incorporating the reader transceiver circuit is configured to read a tag at very close range, including while being in contact with the tag. The transceiver can be coupled to various host devices in a variety of ways, including being located in a RFID reader (e.g., mobile or fixed position), a computing device, a barcode reader, etc. The transceiver can be located in an RFID module that is attachable to a host device, can be configured in the host device, or can be configured to communicate with the host device over a distance. The RFID module may include one or more antennas, such as a first antenna configured to receive a magnetic field component of an electromagnetic wave and a second antenna configured to receive an electric field component of an electromagnetic wave. The RFID module may include a detector that is configured to determine if the RFID module is positioned in proximity to an object, such as a RFID tag. The detector may operate as a trigger for the RFID module, to enable or trigger a function of the RFID module.

Claims

1. A radio frequency identification (RFID) module for communicating with RFID tags, comprising:

a transceiver;

a protocol processor to process tag data coupled to the transceiver;

an antenna system coupled to the transceiver; and

a barcode reader interface coupled to the protocol processor, wherein the barcode reader interface includes an interface circuit configured to exchange information with a host system, wherein the barcode reader interface is configured to transmit tag data to the host system in a signal format that emulates a signal format generated by a barcode reader.