Wireless transmitter-receiver information device

• US 5,850,416 A
• Filed: 09/16/1997
• Issued: 12/15/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/1993
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Lucent Technologies, Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Lucent Technologies, Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Myer, Robert Evan
• Primary Examiner(s): Pham, Chi H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): LUTHER, WILLIAM A
• Application Number:
  US08/931,261
• Time in Patent Office: 455 Days
• Field of Search: 375/219, 375/221, 375/222, 375/223, 375/249, 375/252, 375/282, 340/825.54, 340/825.35, 340/825.17, 340/505, 178/4.1 A, 343/702, 343/741, 343/742, 343/788, 235/385, 455/274
• US Class Current: 375/221
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/147 using display panels
• 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 7/10346 the antenna being of the far field type, e.g. HF types or dipoles
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2380/04 Electronic labels

Abstract

The disclosure is of an indoor transceiver system in which first electromagnetic waves at 20 KHz are transmitted from a single loop primary coil in or adjacent a room to a plurality of data storage devices in the same room and having respective multi-turn secondary coils coupled by an induction coupling to such primary coil to receive such waves which provide both operating power and signals for such devices. Each device is responsive to a signal transmitted thereto by such first waves to transmit information from such device via second electromagnetic waves at 900 MHz. Each device has a panel providing a non-volatile display of information which represents the price of goods proximate the device, and which price is updated from time to time by signals transmitted to the device by such first waves.

Claims

1. A battery-less informative device comprising,

a panel for providing a display of information and responsive to electrical inputs to update said display,

an antenna to receive low frequency electromagnetic waves from a control system for controlling the display of information on said panel,

a first power generating circuit coupled to said antenna and energizable by said received low frequency electromagnetic waves to provide power to operate the informative device,

a circuit communicatively coupled to said antenna that decodes the information from said received low frequency electromagnetic wave to provide said electrical inputs to said panel, and

a transmitter coupled to said circuit that is energizable by said received low frequency electromagnetic waves to transmit a short burst of microwaves modulated with a feedback signal to the control system;

and

a second power generating circuit coupled to said transmitter that generates power directly to said transmitter, wherein said first power generating circuit provides the dc power input to said second power generating circuit, the second power generating circuit does not provide power to the information device,

wherein the informative device operates solely from energy derived from the received low frequency electromagnetic waves.

2. The informative device of claim 1 in which the information displayed by said panel is non-volatile so as to be retained after an interruption of reception by said informative device of said low frequency electromagnetic waves.

3. The informative device of claim 1 wherein said circuit is operable to decode Manchester encoded signals in the received low frequency electromagnetic waves.

4. The informative device of claim 1 wherein said first power generating circuit comprises at least one capacitor-rectifier circuit.

5. The information device of claim 1, wherein the received low frequency electromagnetic waves are between 20 KHz and 50 KHz.

6. The information device of claim 1, wherein the received low frequency electromagnetic waves are between 3 KHZ and 30 KHz.

7. The information device of claim 1, wherein the received low frequency electromagnetic waves are between 30 KHz and 300 KHz.

8. The information device of claim 1, wherein the received low frequency electromagnetic waves are between 3 KHz and 300 KHz.

9. The information device of claim 1, wherein the short bursts of microwaves have a frequency of 900 MHz.