Wireless ID Managing Apparatus, Wireless ID Managing Method And Wireless ID Recorder

• US 20100013603A1
• Filed: 07/10/2007
• Published: 01/21/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Computer Entertainment Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Numaoka, Chisato, Chatani, Masayuki
• Granted Patent: US 8,446,261 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/10.600
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/903 Querying for retrieval from the web G06F16/953
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising

Abstract

The RFID reader 20 reads out an RFID stored in an RFID tag in the vicinity through wireless communication. The clock 28 acquires an RFID readout time. The location sensor 24 acquires an RFID readout location. The memory 16 stores the RFID in association with the readout time and the readout location. The communication I/F 22 acquires RFID-related information from a server asynchronously with readout of the RFID. The processor 10 generates in the memory 16 an RFID aggregate structure, which is a data structure of RFID aggregates constructed by classifying a plurality of RFIDs stored in the memory 16 based on the readout time and the readout location and in which RFID-related information is stored in association with the constructed RFIDs.

Claims

1. A wireless ID management apparatus comprising:

a wireless ID reader which reads out a wireless ID stored in a wireless ID tag in the vicinity through wireless communication;

a time information acquirer which acquires readout time of the wireless ID;

a location information acquirer which acquires readout location of the wireless ID;

a memory which stores the wireless ID in association with the readout time and the readout location;

a communicator which acquires wireless ID related information, which is information associated with the wireless ID, from a server asynchronously with readout of the wireless ID;

a classifier which generates in the memory a wireless ID aggregate structure, which is a data structure of wireless ID aggregates constructed by classifying a plurality of wireless IDs stored in the memory based on the readout time and the readout location and in which the wireless ID related information is stored in association with the constructed wireless ID; and

a notifier, which upon finding that the readout location of the wireless ID is within a specified distance range from the present location of a user, gives notification that a wireless ID having the wireless ID related information is in the vicinity of the present location.

2. The wireless ID management apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the classifier generates in the memory a wireless ID aggregate structure hierarchically constructed by classifying the plurality of wireless IDs based on the readout location and further by classifying them based on the readout time.

3. A wireless ID management method comprising the steps of:

automatically reading out a wireless ID stored in a wireless ID tag existing in the vicinity of a user using a wireless ID reader without conscious operation by the user;

storing in a memory the wireless ID, which was read out, in association with the wireless ID'"'"'s readout time and readout location;

acquiring related information of the wireless ID from a server;

classifying the related information of a plurality of wireless IDs stored in the memory based on the readout time and/or the readout location; and

upon finding that the readout location of the wireless ID is within a specified distance range from the present location of a user, giving notification that the wireless ID having the related information is in the vicinity of the present location.

4. The wireless ID management method according to claim 3, wherein the step of classifying generates a wireless ID aggregate structure hierarchically constructed by classifying the plurality of wireless IDs based on the readout location and further by classifying them based on the readout time and stores related information of the wireless IDs in association with the wireless IDs hierarchically constructed.

5. A data structure of a wireless ID aggregate structure which is an aggregated data structure of a plurality of wireless IDs read out from wireless ID tags through wireless communication, wherein a wireless ID aggregate structure hierarchically constructed by classifying the plurality of wireless IDs based on the readout location of each wireless ID and further by classifying them based on the readout time of each wireless ID is aligned as data in a form readable with a wireless ID management apparatus, and includes information which specifies an address on a network related to the readout location.

6. A wireless ID recorder comprising:

a wireless ID reader which reads out a wireless ID stored in a wireless ID tag in the vicinity through wireless communication;

a time information acquirer which acquires the wireless ID readout time;

a location information acquirer which acquires the wireless ID readout location;

a memory which stores the wireless ID in association with the readout time and the readout location;

a communicator which acquires wireless ID related information, which is information associated with the wireless ID, from a server asynchronously with readout of the wireless ID;

a classifier which generates in the memory a wireless ID aggregate structure, which is a data structure of wireless ID aggregates constructed by classifying a plurality of wireless IDs stored in the memory based on the readout time and the readout location and in which the wireless ID related information is stored in association with the constructed wireless ID; and

a notifier, which upon finding that the readout location of the wireless ID is within a specified distance range from the present location of a user, gives notification that the wireless ID having the wireless ID related information is in the vicinity of the present location.