Systems, devices, methods, and admixtures of transponders and food products for indication of food attributes

• US 20130049932A1
• Filed: 08/25/2011
• Published: 02/28/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/25/2011
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Elwha LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: Elwha LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Baym, Michael H., Holman, Paul, Hyde, Roderick A., Jung, Edward K.Y., Kare, Jordin T., Lieberman, Erez, Myhrvold, Nathan P., Wood, Lowell L. Jr.
• Application Number:
  US13/199,359
• Publication Number:
  US 20130049932A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/10.1
• CPC Class Codes: A23L 35/00 Food or foodstuffs not provided for in groups A23L5/00 – A23L33/00; Preparation or treatment thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0723 the record carrier comprising an arrangement for non-contact communication, e.g. wireless communication circuits on transponder cards, non-contact smart cards or RFIDs

Abstract

Systems, devices, admixtures, and methods are described including transponder devices (e.g., a palatable transponder, an edible transponder, a palatable radio frequency identification (RFID) tag, an edible RFID tag, etc.) for admixing with a food product.

Claims

1-56. -56. (canceled)

57. A multiplex food-attribute-identification transponder system, comprising:

a plurality of micro-transponder sets, each micro-transponder set including

at least one micro-transponder having

a food-attribute-identification circuit including at least one physical data structure having food-attribute data stored thereon, and

an interrogation-selective interface operably coupled to the food-attribute-identification circuit, the interrogation-selective interface operable to provide food-attribute data in response to electromagnetic interrogation of the interrogation-selective interface that satisfies interrogation-selective criteria;

wherein at least one of the plurality of micro-transponder sets includes an interrogation-selective criteria different from another of the plurality of micro-transponder sets.

58. The multiplex food-attribute-identification transponder system of claim 57, wherein the interrogation-selective interface provides an electromagnetic signal corresponding to a distinct food-attribute upon interrogation.

59. The multiplex food-attribute-identification transponder system of claim 57, wherein the interrogation-selective interface provides an electromagnetic energy signal corresponding to an allergen-specific multi-bit code upon interrogation.

60. The multiplex food-attribute-identification transponder system of claim 57, wherein the interrogation-selective criteria includes a food-attribute-specific frequency.

61. The multiplex food-attribute-identification transponder system of claim 57, wherein the interrogation-selective criteria includes a food-attribute-specific carrier waveform.

62. The multiplex food-attribute-identification transponder system of claim 57, wherein the interrogation-selective criteria includes at least one of an allergen-specific frequency or an allergen-specific carrier waveform.

63. The multiplex food-attribute-identification transponder system of claim 57, wherein the interrogation-selective interrogation interface generates a response signal corresponding to allergen-specific data responsive to interrogation of the interrogation interface that satisfies the response-selective criteria.

64. The multiplex food-attribute-identification transponder system of claim 57, wherein the food-attribute-identification circuit further includes one or more physical data structures having allergen response protocol data or allergen alerting protocol data stored thereon.

65. The multiplex food-attribute-identification transponder system of claim 57, wherein the food-attribute-identification circuit further includes food source data.

66. The multiplex food-attribute-identification transponder system of claim 57, wherein the food-attribute-identification circuit further includes allergic reaction symptom data.

67. The multiplex food-attribute-identification transponder system of claim 57, wherein the food-attribute-identification circuit determines a response state of the plurality of micro-transponder sets at two or more interrogation frequencies.

68. The multiplex food-attribute-identification transponder system of claim 57, wherein the interrogation-selective interface includes at least one of an electromagnetic energy selective antenna, a frequency selective antenna, or a carrier waveform selective interrogation interface.

69. A method for interrogating a plurality of multiplex micro-transponders, comprising:

irradiating an interrogation field with a first radio frequency stimulus of a character and for a duration sufficient to power at least a portion of a plurality of multiplex micro-transponders; and

interrogating the interrogation field with at least one of a first food-attribute-specific frequency or a first food-attribute-specific carrier waveform of a character and for a duration sufficient to communicate with a first set of the plurality of multiplex micro-transponders in the interrogation field.

70. The method for interrogating the plurality of multiplex micro-transponders of claim 69, wherein irradiating the interrogation field with the first radio frequency stimulus includes irradiating the interrogation field with an electromagnetic energy stimulus associated with at least one of an amplitude modulation communication protocol, a code-division multiple access communication protocol, a direct-sequence ultra-wideband communication protocol, a frequency division multiple access communication protocol, a frequency modulation communication protocol, a multi-band orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing-based ultra-wideband communication protocol, an orthogonal frequency division multiple access communication protocol, a time division multiple access communication protocol, an ultra-wideband communication protocol, or a hybrid or combination thereof.

71. The method for interrogating the plurality of multiplex micro-transponders of claim 69, wherein interrogating the interrogation field with at least one of the first food-attribute-specific frequency or the first food-attribute-specific carrier waveform includes interrogating the interrogation field with an allergen-specific frequency or an allergen-specific carrier waveform.

72. The method for interrogating the plurality of multiplex micro-transponders of claim 69, wherein interrogating the interrogation field with at least one of the first food-attribute-specific frequency or the first food-attribute-specific carrier waveform includes interrogating the interrogation field with an interrogation stimulus that satisfies an allergen-selective criterion.

73. The method for interrogating the plurality of multiplex micro-transponders of claim 69, further comprising:

receiving first food-attribute-specific data responsive to interrogation by the first food-attribute-specific frequency or the first food-attribute-specific carrier waveform.

74. The method for interrogating the plurality of multiplex micro-transponders of claim 69, further comprising:

interrogating the interrogation field with a second food-attribute-specific frequency or a second food-attribute-specific carrier waveform of a character and for a duration sufficient to communicate with a second set of the plurality of multiplex micro-transponders in the interrogation field.

75. The method for interrogating the plurality of multiplex micro-transponders of claim 74, further comprising:

receiving second food-attribute-specific data responsive to interrogation by the second food-attribute-specific frequency or the second food-attribute-specific carrier waveform.

76. The method for interrogating the plurality of multiplex micro-transponders of claim 69, further comprising:

interrogating the interrogation field with a third food-attribute-specific frequency or a third food-attribute-specific carrier waveform of a character and for a duration sufficient to communicate with a third set of the plurality of multiplex micro-transponders in the interrogation field.

77. The method for interrogating the plurality of multiplex micro-transponders of claim 76, further comprising:

receiving third food-attribute-specific data responsive to interrogation by the third food-attribute-specific frequency or the third food-attribute-specific carrier waveform.

78. A transponders and a food product, comprising:

a quantity of food product; and

a plurality of micro-transponder sets, each micro-transponder set including

at least one micro-transponder having

a food-attribute-identification circuit including at least one physical data structure having food-attribute data stored thereon, and

an interrogation-selective interface operably coupled to the food-attribute-identification circuit, the interrogation-selective interface operable to provide food-attribute data in response to electromagnetic interrogation of the interrogation-selective interface that satisfies interrogation-selective criteria;

wherein at least one of the plurality of micro-transponder sets includes an interrogation-selective criteria different from another of the plurality of micro-transponder sets.

79. The transponders and a food product of claim 78, wherein the plurality of micro-transponder sets include at least a first micro-transponder set and a second micro-transponder set, the first micro-transponder set including a food-attribute-identification circuit having food-attribute data associated with a first ingredient, and the second micro-transponder set including a food-attribute-identification circuit including food-attribute data associated with a second ingredient.