INFORMATION PROCESSING APPARATUS

• US 20110175709A1
• Filed: 01/14/2011
• Published: 07/21/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/18/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Suzuki, Shigeaki
• Granted Patent: US 8,797,143 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10217 parameter settings controlling the transmission power of the interrogator

Abstract

An information processing apparatus according to an embodiment includes a communication control unit controlling communication of a radio communication device with a data carrier transmitting a signal including communication distance information regarding a communication distance; an output variable control unit varying transmission output of the radio communication device; and a data carrier determination unit determining that the data carrier having a short communication distance is valid as the transmission output is large, and determining that the data carrier having a long communication distance is valid as the transmission output is small.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus comprising:

a communication control unit controlling communication of a radio communication device with a data carrier transmitting a signal including communication distance information regarding a communication distance;

an output variable control unit varying transmission output of the radio communication device; and

a data carrier determination unit determining that the data carrier having a short communication distance is valid as the transmission output is large, and determining that the data carrier having a long communication distance is valid as the transmission output is small.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the data carrier determination unit determines that the data carrier having a first communication distance is valid when the transmission output is first transmission output, and data carrier determination unit determines that the data carrier having a second communication distance longer than the first communication distance is valid when the transmission output is second transmission output smaller than the first transmission output.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

an information processing unit processing information included in a signal received from the data carrier determined to be valid in the data carrier determination unit.

4. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the information processing apparatus stores data included in the signal received from the data carrier in a storage unit.

5. The apparatus according to claim 4,

wherein the data carrier is a tag attached to goods, and

wherein the information processing unit stores goods data included in a signal received from the tag in the storage unit.

6. The apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the goods data includes at least a goods ID.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the output variable control unit converts the transmission output step by step, and

wherein the data carrier determination unit determines that the data carrier is valid based on validity determination information representing the communication distance which is valid for a plurality of levels of the transmission output.

8. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the output variable control unit considerably varies the transmission output of the radio communication device step by step.

9. A storage medium storing a program executing a computer as:

a communication control unit controlling communication of a radio communication device with a data carrier transmitting a signal including communication distance information regarding a communication distance;

an output variable control unit varying transmission output of the radio communication device; and

a data carrier determination unit determining that the data carrier having a short communication distance is valid as the transmission output is large, and determining that the data carrier having a long communication distance is valid as the transmission output is small.

10. The medium according to claim 9, wherein the data carrier determination unit determines that the data carrier having a first communication distance is valid when the transmission output is first transmission output, and data carrier determination unit determines that the data carrier having a second communication distance longer than the first communication distance is valid when the transmission output is second transmission output smaller than the first transmission output.

11. A data carrier comprising:

a memory storing communication distance information regarding a communication distance; and

an antenna transmitting a signal including the communication distance information.

12. The carrier according to claim 11, wherein the communication distance information represents a classification corresponding to the communication distance of the data carrier among a plurality of classifications classified according to the communication distance.

13. The carrier according to claim 11, wherein the communication distance information represents a communication distance value of the data carrier.

14. The carrier according to claim 11,

wherein the data carrier is a tag attached to goods,

wherein the memory stores data of the goods, and

wherein a signal transmitted from the antenna includes the data of the goods.