Inclusive or Exclusive RFID Tag Interrogation and Query Round

• US 20100148933A1
• Filed: 09/03/2009
• Published: 06/17/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/11/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Zest Labs, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Intelleflex Corporation
• Inventors: Dacus, Farron
• Granted Patent: US 8,994,508 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/10.300
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0716 at least one of the integrated circuit chips comprising a sensor or an interface to a sensor
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0717 the sensor being capable of sensing environmental conditions such as temperature history or pressure
• 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 7/10108 interrogating only those RFIDs that fulfill a predetermined requirement, e.g. selecting all RFIDs having the same speed and moving in a cloud like fashion, e.g. on the same train; interrogating only RFIDs having a certain predetermined temperature, e.g. in the same fridge, another possibility being the active ignoring of a group of tags that fulfill a predetermined requirement, equivalent to the Boolean NOT operation
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/47 using RFID associated with sensors
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/75 by polling or interrogating the sub-stations
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/753 where the polling of the sub-stations is synchronous
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 9/00 Arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station, in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom

Abstract

Embodiments of the present invention allow for dynamic selection and query of different types of RFID tags into a session. Embodiments of the present invention also allow for dynamic activation of different types of RFID tags. In certain embodiments of the invention, an inclusive operation is performed on the RFID tags and in other embodiments an exclusive operation is performed.

Claims

1. A method for interrogating a plurality of RFID tags having a diverse set of characteristics, the method comprising:

creating a query command that identifies a first set of RFID tag characteristics within the diverse set of characteristics;

inserting a bit within the query command that identifies a type of tag interrogation to be performed;

transmitting the query command to the plurality of RFID tags;

selecting a first set of RFID tags based at least in part on the first set of RFID tag characteristics and the type of tag interrogation; and

interrogating the first set of RFID tags.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the type of tag interrogation is an exclusive interrogation.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the type of tag interrogation is an inclusive interrogation.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the first set of RFID tag characteristics is a single tag characteristic.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein first set of RFID tag characteristics includes a characteristic related to passive tags.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the first set of RFID tag characteristics includes a tag class identifier.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the tag class identifier is selected from a group consisting of class 1 identifier, class 2 identifier, class 3 identifier, class 3 plus identifier, class 4, and class 4 plus identifier.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the first set of RFID tag characteristics includes a security characteristic.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the first set of RFID tag characteristics includes a sensor characteristic.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the first set of RFID tag characteristics includes a memory characteristic.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the first set of RFID tag characteristics includes an alarm characteristic.

12. An RFID system comprising:

a plurality of a RFID tags that have a diverse set of characteristics;

a reader that queries the plurality of RFID tags and takes a first set of RFID tags, within the plurality of RFID tags, into a query round based at least in part on a first set of RFID tag characteristics and a type of tag interrogation; and

wherein the query of the plurality of the RFID tags comprises the reader transmitting a command having an flag that defines a relationship of the first set of RFID tag characteristics as being inclusive or exclusive.

13. The RFID system of claim 12 wherein the first set of RFID tag characteristics comprises at least one characteristic related to tag class.

14. The RFID system of claim 12 wherein the first set of RFID tag characteristics comprises at least one characteristic related to tag security.

15. The RFID system of claim 12 wherein the first set of RFID tag characteristics comprises at least one characteristic related to sensor types.

16. The RFID system of claim 12 wherein the first set of RFID tag characteristics comprises at least one characteristic related to tag memory.

17. The RFID system of claim 12 wherein the first set of RFID tag characteristics comprises at least one characteristic related to tag alarm status.

18. An RFID tag comprising:

an antenna coupled to receive an interrogation command from an RFID reader; and

a processor, coupled to receive the interrogation command, the processor processes a set of RFID tag characteristics, the set of RFID tag characteristics being embedded within a query command transmitted by a reader that queries the RFID tag and takes the RFID tag into a query round based at least in part on the set of RFID tag characteristics; and

wherein the query of the RFID tag comprises the reader transmitting a command having a flag that defines a relationship of the first set of RFID tag characteristics as being inclusive or exclusive.

19. The RFID tag of claim 18 wherein the at least one RFID tag characteristic comprises at least one characteristic related to tag class.

20. The RFID tag of claim 18 wherein the at least one RFID tag characteristic comprises at least one characteristic related to tag security.

21. The RFID tag of claim 18 wherein the at least one RFID tag characteristic comprises at least one characteristic related to sensor types.

22. The RFID tag of claim 18 wherein the at least one RFID tag characteristic comprises at least one characteristic related to tag memory.

23. The RFID tag of claim 18 wherein the at least one RFID tag characteristic comprises at least one characteristic related to a tag alarm.

24. A method for activating a first set of RFID tags within a plurality of RFID tags having a diverse set of characteristics, the method comprising:

creating an activation command that identifies a first set of RFID tag characteristics within the diverse set of characteristics;

inserting a bit within the activation command that identifies a type of tag activation to be performed based on the RFID tag characteristics being inclusive or exclusive;

transmitting the activation command to the plurality of RFID tags; and

activating the first set of RFID tags based at least in part on the first set of RFID tag characteristics and the bit defining inclusive or exclusive.

25. The method of claim 24 wherein the first set of RFID tag characteristics comprises a single tag characteristic.

26. The method of claim 24 wherein the first set of RFID tag characteristics comprises a tag class identifier.

27. The method of claim 24 wherein the tag class identifier is selected from a group consisting of a class 3 identifier and a class 3 plus identifier.

28. The method of claim 24 wherein the first set of RFID tag characteristics comprises a security characteristic.

29. The method of claim 24 wherein the first set of RFID tag characteristics comprises a sensor characteristic.

30. The method of claim 24 wherein the first set of RFID tag characteristics comprises a memory characteristic.

31. The method of claim 24 wherein the first set of RFID tag characteristics comprises an alarm characteristic.