DIRECTION DETERMINATION OF A WIRELESS TAG

• US 20190058969A1
• Filed: 08/16/2017
• Published: 02/21/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/16/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Motorola Mobility LLC (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Motorola Mobility LLC (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Inventors: Ambha Madhusudhana, Nikhil, Vissa, Sudhir C., Tyagi, Vivek Kumar, Lautner, Douglas Alfred
• Granted Patent: US 10,212,553 B1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/026 using orientation information, e.g. compass
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/027 using movement velocity, acceleration information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

In aspects of direction determination of a wireless tag, a mobile device can receive wireless signal replies that include signal strength indicators from a wireless tag in response to wireless communications from the mobile device to the wireless tag. The mobile device can include a tracking module that is implemented to track movement of the mobile device based on motion sensor inputs, and identify a location of the mobile device based on the movement of the mobile device. The tracking module is also implemented to determine a direction toward the wireless tag relative to the location of the mobile device based on the signal strength indicators in the wireless signal replies from the wireless tag.

Claims

1. A mobile device, comprising:

a wireless reader to;

transmit interrogation signals requesting that a wireless tag return identifying data stored on the wireless tag, the identifying data representing an object with the wireless tag physically placed in or affixed to the object; and

receive identification responses from the wireless tag, the identification responses including the identifying data and signal strength indicators of the identification responses;

a tracking module implemented to;

track movement of the mobile device based on motion sensor inputs to identify a location of the mobile device in a three-dimensional space and a rotational orientation of the mobile device in the three-dimensional space;

determine a direction toward the wireless tag in the three-dimensional space relative to the location of the mobile device based on the signal strength indicators in the identification responses from the wireless tag and the rotational orientation of the mobile device in the three-dimensional space; and

output an indication of the direction toward the wireless tag relative to the rotational orientation of the mobile device in the three-dimensional space.

2. The mobile device as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

an antenna of the wireless reader via which the interrogation signals are transmitted and the identification responses are received;

the tracking module implemented to;

determine a change in antenna direction of the antenna;

initiate the wireless reader to transmit one or more of the interrogation signals to the wireless tag based on the change of the antenna direction.

3. The mobile device as recited in claim 1, wherein the tracking module is implemented to determine a change in the direction toward the wireless tag based on one or more of a change in the location of the mobile device or a change in the rotational orientation of the mobile device.

4. The mobile device as recited in claim 1, wherein the tracking module is implemented to determine a location of the object associated with the wireless tag based on the direction toward the wireless tag, the location of the mobile device, and the signal strength indicators.

5. The mobile device as recited in claim 4, wherein the determined location of the object is usable as a basis to visually represent the object associated with the wireless tag in an augmented reality system.

6. The mobile device as recited in claim 1, wherein the tracking module is implemented to:

compare the signal strength indicators of previous identification responses to the signal strength indicators of current identification responses; and

determine the direction toward the wireless tag relative to the location of the mobile device based on the compared signal strength indicators of the previous and current identification responses.

7. The mobile device as recited in claim 6, wherein the tracking module is implemented to said compare the signal strength indicators of the previous and current identification responses effective to eliminate attenuation caused by an object that at least partially obstructs the identification responses from the wireless tag.

21. The mobile device as recited in claim 1, further comprising an antenna of the wireless reader via which the interrogation signals are transmitted and the identification responses are received, and wherein the tracking module is further implemented to determine the direction toward the wireless tag based on a known angle of the antenna relative to a plane of the mobile device.

8. A method, comprising:

receiving wireless signal replies that include signal strength indicators from a wireless tag responsive to wireless communications from a mobile device to the wireless tag, the wireless tag being physically placed in or affixed to an object;

tracking movement of the mobile device based on motion sensor inputs to identify a location of the mobile device;

determining a rotational orientation of the mobile device in a three-dimensional space at the location; and

determining a direction toward the wireless tag in the three-dimensional space relative to the location of the mobile device based on the signal strength indicators in the wireless signal replies from the wireless tag and the rotational orientation of the mobile device in the three-dimensional space.

9. The method as recited in claim 8, further comprising:

determining a change in antenna direction of an antenna in the mobile device; and

initiating one or more of the wireless communications from the mobile device to the wireless tag based on the change of the antenna direction.

10. The method as recited in claim 8, wherein:

the wireless tag is a RFID tag;

the mobile device includes a RFID reader and the wireless communications are interrogation signals requesting the RFID tag to return identifying data stored on the RFID tag; and

the wireless signal replies from the RFID tag are identification responses that include the identifying data and the signal strength indicators.

12. The method as recited in claim 8, further comprising:

determining a location of the object associated with the wireless tag based on the direction toward the wireless tag, the location of the mobile device, and the signal strength indicators.

13. The method as recited in claim 12, further comprising:

utilizing the determined location of the wireless tag as a basis to visually represent the object associated with the wireless tag in an augmented reality system.

14. The method as recited in claim 8, further comprising:

comparing the signal strength indicators of previous wireless signal replies to the signal strength indicators of current wireless signal replies; and

said determining the direction toward the wireless tag relative to the location of the mobile device based on comparing the signal strength indicators of the previous and current wireless signal replies.

15. The method as recited in claim 14, wherein said comparing the signal strength indicators of the previous and current wireless signal replies is effective to eliminate attenuation caused by an object that at least partially obstructs the wireless signal replies from the wireless tag.

22. The method as recited in claim 8, wherein said determining the direction toward the wireless tag is further based on a known angle of the antenna relative to a plane of the mobile device.

11. (canceled)

16. A method, comprising:

receiving identification responses that include signal strength indicators from one or more RFID tags responsive to interrogation signals transmitted from a RFID reader;

tracking movement of the RFID reader in a three-dimensional space based on motion sensor inputs to identify a location of the RFID reader;

determining a rotational orientation of the RFID reader in the three-dimensional space; and

determining a direction toward each of the one or more RFID tags in the three-dimensional space relative to the location of the RFID reader based on the signal strength indicators in the identification responses from respective ones of the one or more RFID tags and the rotational orientation of the RFID reader in the three-dimensional space.

17. The method as recited in claim 16, further comprising:

determining a change in antenna direction of an antenna of the RFID reader; and

initiating the interrogation signals from the RFID reader to the one or more RFID tags based on the change of the antenna direction.

19. The method as recited in claim 16, further comprising:

determining respective locations of objects each associated with the one or more RFID tags based on the direction toward each of the one or more RFID tags, the location of the RFID reader, and the signal strength indicators.

20. The method as recited in claim 16, further comprising:

comparing the signal strength indicators of previous identification responses to the signal strength indicators of current identification responses; and

said determining the direction toward each of the one or more RFID tags relative to the location of the RFID reader based on comparing the signal strength indicators of the previous and current identification responses.

18. (canceled)