WIRELESS TAG COMMUNICATION DEVICE AND WIRELESS TAG COMMUNICATION PROGRAM

• US 20140203916A1
• Filed: 01/21/2014
• Published: 07/24/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/21/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: YAGINUMA, Jun, SASAKI, Yasutsugu, SANO, Kouichi, TSUCHIDA, Sunao
• Granted Patent: US 9,842,232 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/10.6
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10089 the interrogation device using at least one directional antenna or directional interrogation field to resolve the collision direction or location finding, such as triangulation techniques, G01S13/00

Abstract

A wireless tag communication device for communicating with a wireless tag through a directional antenna includes a wireless tag communication section configured to communicate with the wireless tag, a calculation section configured to estimate a direction range for communicating with the wireless tag based on transmission output power of the wireless tag communication device and an estimated reading distance to the wireless tag, and a display section configured to display the estimated direction range.

Claims

1. A wireless tag communication device for communicating with a wireless tag through a directional antenna, the device comprising:

a wireless tag communication section configured to communicate with the wireless tag;

a calculation section configured to estimate a direction range for communicating with the wireless tag based on transmission output power of the wireless tag communication device and an estimated reading distance to the wireless tag; and

a display section configured to display the estimated direction range.

2. The device according to claim 1,

wherein the calculation section is configured to estimate the direction range based also on directivity information of the antenna.

3. The device according to claim 1,

wherein the calculation section is configured to generate an image depicting the estimated direction range for display on the display section.

4. The device according to claim 3, further comprising:

a sensor configured to detect a direction of the wireless tag communication device,

wherein the calculation section is configured to generate the image based on an output from the sensor.

5. The device according to claim 4, wherein the image is changed to depict the estimated direction range as being rotated when the sensor detects a change in the direction of the wireless tag communication device.

6. The device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a memory section that stores sensitivity information of the wireless tag; and

a correction section that corrects the estimated direction range based on the sensitivity information.

7. A wireless tag communication device for communicating with a wireless tag through a directional antenna, the device comprising:

a wireless tag communication section configured to communicate with the wireless tag;

a communication condition detection section configured to detect a communication condition between the wireless tag communication section and the wireless tag;

a calculation section configured to generate an image that depicts a position of the wireless tag, such that the depicted position of the wireless tag changes according a value representing the communication condition; and

a display section configured to display the image.

8. The device according to claim 7, wherein the calculation section is configured to estimate a direction range for communicating with the wireless tag based on transmission output power of the wireless tag communication device and an estimated reading distance to the wireless tag, and the image depicts the wireless tag in relation to the estimated direction range.

9. The device according to claim 8, wherein if the value is larger than a predetermined threshold, the estimated direction range is narrowed and a position of the wireless tag depicted in the image is changed.

10. The device according to claim 8, wherein if the value is larger than a predetermined threshold, the transmission output power of the wireless tag communication device is decreased.

11. The device according to claim 8, wherein if the value is smaller than a predetermined threshold, the transmission output power of the wireless tag communication device is increased.

12. The device according to claim 8, further comprising:

a sensor configured to detect a direction of the wireless tag communication device,

wherein the image is changed to depict the estimated direction range as being rotated when the sensor detects a change in the direction of the wireless tag communication device.

13. The device according to claim 8, further comprising:

an image capturing section configured to capture an image in a direction parallel to a maximum transmission direction of the antenna,

wherein the image captured by the image capturing section is displayed with the image depicting the estimated direction range and a position of the wireless tag.

14. The device according to claim 13, further comprising:

a sensor configured to detect a direction of the wireless tag communication device,

wherein the image depicting the estimated direction range and the position of the wireless tag is rotated with respect to the image captured by the image capturing section when the sensor detects a change in the direction of the wireless tag communication device.

15. A wireless tag communication program stored in a non-transitory computer readable medium and executable in a device to cause the device to communicate with a wireless tag through a directional antenna and carry out the steps of:

estimating a direction range for communicating with the wireless tag based on transmission output power of the device and an estimated reading distance to the wireless tag; and

displaying the estimated direction range on a display.

16. The program according to claim 15, wherein the direction range is estimated based also on directivity information of the antenna.

17. The program according to claim 15, wherein the steps further include:

generating an image depicting the estimated direction range for display on the display.

18. The program according to claim 17, wherein the image is generated based on an output from a sensor configured to detect a direction of the device.

19. The program according to claim 18, wherein the image is changed to depict the estimated direction range as being rotated when the sensor detects a change in the direction of the device.

20. The program according to claim 15, wherein the steps further include:

correcting the estimated direction range based on sensitivity information of the wireless tag.