Electronic article surveillance system

• US 5,859,586 A
• Filed: 03/11/1996
• Issued: 01/12/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 03/16/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: ALPS Electric Company Limited (Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: ALPS Electric Company Limited (Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Ichimiya, Nobuyuki, Kinouchi, Shin, Namioka, Seishi, Sasagawa, Shinichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Hofsass, Jeffery A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lee, Benjamin C.
• Application Number:
  US08/613,933
• Time in Patent Office: 1,037 Days
• Field of Search: 340/572, 340/571, 340/551, 340/568
• US Class Current: 340/572.1
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/2474 Antenna or antenna activator geometry, arrangement or layout loop antennae H01Q1/22
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/2477 Antenna or antenna activator circuit
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/2488 Timing issues, e.g. synchronising measures to avoid signal collision, with multiple emitters or a single emitter and receiver

Abstract

An E.A.S. capable of surely detecting magnetic fluxes emitted from transmission antennas irrespective of the position of a reception coil within a tag attached to goods. In order to emit magnetic fluxes into an aisle through which customers pass, the system is equipped with at least two transmission antennas 1, 3. These transmission antennas 1, 3 are driven in a time-sharing way so as not to concurrently emit the magnetic fluxes.

Claims

1. An electronic article surveillance (E.A.S.) system comprising:

at least two adjacent co-planer transmission antennas each for emitting magnetic fluxes both in the same chase to jointly form an interrogation zone;

means for actuating said transmission antennas in a timesharing way such that said transmission antennas do not simultaneously emit the magnetic fluxes, said actuating means including;

an oscillator for generating a transmission signal having a basic frequency and a basic period; and

a switching circuit for connecting said oscillator to said transmission antennas such that each transmission antenna is alternately connected to said oscillator for a time period which is at least two times as long as said basic period; and

a tag for attaching to an article to be detected by the E.A.S. system, the tag including a reception coil for receiving the magnetic fluxes emitted from said transmission antennas;

the magnetic flux radiated from the at least two antennas having an intensity such that the tag may receive it at any location within said interrogation zone irrespective of tag orientation.

2. An E.A.S. system as defined in claim 1, wherein said transmission antennas are placed on a floor surface in a doorway.

3. An E.A.S. system as defined in claim 1, wherein said transmission antennas are placed in planes perpendicular to a floor surface and at both sides of a doorway.

4. An E.A.S. system as defined in claim 1, wherein said transmission antennas are placed in a plane perpendicular to a floor surface and at one side of a doorway.

5. An electronic article surveillance system comprising:

a first transmission antenna;

a second transmission antenna adjacent and co-planar with said first antenna;

a transmission circuit connected to said first and second transmission antennas, the transmission circuit including;

an oscillator for generating a transmission signal, and

a switching circuit for connecting said oscillator to said first and second transmission antennas such that each of the first and second transmission antennas is alternately connected to said oscillator for a predetermined period, thereby causing said first and second transmission antennas to generate magnetic flux both in the same phase to jointly form an interrogation zone; and

a tag including a reception coil for sensing said magnetic flux and an alarm signal generating means for generating an alarm signal when said reception coil senses said magnetic flux in said interrogation zone irrespective of tag orientation.

6. An electronic article surveillance system according to claim 5, wherein said predetermined period during which said first and said second transmission antennas are alternately connected to said oscillator is in the range of 20 msec to 67 msec.

7. An electronic article surveillance system according to claim 5, wherein said transmission antennas are placed on a floor surface in a doorway.

8. An electronic article surveillance system according to claim 5, wherein said transmission antennas are placed in planes perpendicular to a floor surface and at both sides of a doorway.

9. An electronic article surveillance system according to claim 5, wherein said transmission antennas are placed in a plane perpendicular to a floor surface and at one side of a doorway.