Spread spectrum radio communication system

• US 5,179,569 A
• Filed: 02/08/1991
• Issued: 01/12/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 07/19/1985
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Mckesson Technologies Incorporated (UnitedHealth Group Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: CliniCom, Inc. (McKesson Corp.)
• Inventors: Sawyer, Jonathan
• Primary Examiner(s): Gregory, Bernarr E.
• Application Number:
  US07/652,976
• Time in Patent Office: 704 Days
• Field of Search: 375/1, 380/34, 342/37, 342/45, 342/50, 340/505, 340/539, 340/540, 340/573, 340/600, 340/870.03, 340/870.11-870.14, 340/870.18, 340/870.28
• US Class Current: 375/133
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/411 Detecting or monitoring allergy or intolerance reactions to an allergenic agent or substance
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 2205/10 Bar codes
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 2205/50 using icons or symbolic figures, e.g. by a graphical representation symbolising the type of pathology or the organ by an image
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 2205/60 using magnetic or electronic identifications, e.g. chips, RFID, electronic tags
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1684 Constructional details or arrangements related to integrated I/O peripherals not covered by groups G06F1/1635 - G06F1/1675
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1698 the I/O peripheral being a sending/receiving arrangement to establish a cordless communication link, e.g. radio or infrared link, integrated cellular phone details of antennas disposed inside a computer H01Q1/2266
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1633 Protecting arrangement for the entire housing of the computer
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 17/00 Methods or arrangements for effecting co-operative working between equipments covered by two or more of main groups G06K1/00 - G06K15/00, e.g. automatic card files incorporating conveying and reading operations
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10881 constructional details of hand-held scanners
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/27 with central registration
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/28 the pass enabling tracking or indicating presence
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/7136 Arrangements for generation of hop frequencies, e.g. using a bank of frequency sources, using continuous tuning or using a transform
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/7156 Arrangements for sequence synchronisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2001/71365 using continuous tuning of a single frequency source

Abstract

A data entry and retrieval system utilizing a plurality of remote units in radio communication with a plurality of base units in electronic communication with a central processing computer. The base units establish links with transmitting remote units by the remote units choosing the base units with the best signal. The linked remote unit and base unit transmit using frequency hopping spread spectrum modulation, using a predetermined frequency hopping sequence and at a point in the sequence unique to the particular base unit. The system may be configured with a plurality of NODES, each of which has a unique predetermined frequency hopping sequence and assigned base units and remote units.

Claims

1. A method for radio communication of data using a central processing computer, a set of base units, with transceivers, in electronic communication with said central processing computer, and a set of remote units, with transceivers, in RF communication with said base transceivers, all of said transceivers having limited transmission range, comprising:

(a) establishing a set of nodes and node containing at least one base unit and at least one remote unit;

(b) establishing a plurality of radio frequency channels for transmission of radio signals between the base unit transceivers and the remote unit transceivers;

(c) establishing and assigning to each said nodes a channel hopping sequence from said plurality of frequency channels, whereby no two said sequences assigned to nodes with transceivers within transmission range of one another are the same;

(d) transmitting calling signals from the base unit transceivers to the remote unit transceivers;

(e) receiving said calling signals with said remote unit transceivers, monitoring the quality of the received signals with said remote unit, and establishing in the remote unit a preferred list of base units based upon the quality of the received signals;

(f) linking a transmitting remote unit with a base unit drawn from said preferred list of base units; and

(g) transmitting data between said remote unit and said central processing computer utilizing said linked transmitting remote unit and base unit.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said step of monitoring the quality of the received signal with said remote unit is accomplished by measuring error rates.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein said step of measuring error rates is by a cyclic redundancy check.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said calling signals include an identification of the calling base unit transceiver and wherein said calling transmissions are on dedicated calling frequency channels drawn from said plurality of frequency channels.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein said linking step includes:

(a) transmitting from a remote unit transceiver to said base unit transceiver transmitting calling signals, a remote unit linking response; and

(b) transmitting and receiving between said base unit transceiver and said remote unit transceiver on a noncalling frequency channel in said channel hopping sequence.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein said linking step further includes both of said linked remote unit transceiver and base unit transceiver hopping through said assigned channel hopping sequence in unison.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein said base unit transceiver continues periodically transmitting calling signals on said calling frequency channels while linked with said linked remote unit, said calling signals containing an indication that the base unit is linked to a remote unit.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein said linked base unit is unlinked from said linked remote unit if no remote unit response to the linked base unit transmission is received on the noncalling frequency channel within a predetermined time.

10. The method of claim 6, wherein said set of remote units is a plurality of remote units.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein said set of base units is a plurality of base units.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein said set of nodes is a plurality of nodes.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the base units are synchronized.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein said synchronization is accomplished by:

(a) each base unit, upon loss of synchronization, detecting another base unit transmitting on the calling frequencies within said nonsynchronized base unit'"'"'s node; and

(b) synchronizing to said another base unit.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein said plurality of base units have a series of identifying addresses, so that each said base unit has a unique address from said series, wherein said step of synchronizing to said another base unit includes preferentially synchronizing to the synchronized base unit with an address toward one end of said series in the event that the nonsynchronized base unit detects more than one synchronized base units transmitting on the calling frequencies.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein said synchronization includes the nonsynchronized base unit transmitting without being synchronized in the event said nonsynchronized base unit does not detect a synchronized base unit transmitting on the calling frequencies.

8. The method of claim 8, wherein transmissions by said linked base unit to said linked remote unit are in packets, each packet containing a packet number, the packet number being incremented each time the base unit receives response from the remote unit.

17. A system for radio frequency communication of data, comprising:

(a) a central processing computer;

(b) a plurality of base units, with transceivers in electronic communication with said central processing computer;

(c) a plurality of remote units, with transceiver, for radio data communication with said base units, whereby each data communicating remote unit is linked with a base unit;

(d) means for hopping each said linked remote unit and base unit through a predetermined sequence of a plurality of radio data frequency channels;

the plurality of base units and plurality of remote units being grouped into a plurality of nodes, all of the transceivers in each node having a single predetermined channel sequence that is different from the predetermined channel sequence of transceivers in other nodes within the transceiver range.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the base units in each node are on different frequency channels as they hop through said predetermined channel sequence, whereby no two base units in a single node are on the same frequency channel at the same time.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein said remote units are battery operated.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein said remote units include means for displaying data received from the central processing computer.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein said remote units include means for entering data for transmission to the central processing computer.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein said display means and entering means is a touch screen.

23. The system of claim 19, further comprising recharging units for recharging the remote unit batteries.