Capacitive method and apparatus for accessing information encoded by a differentially conductive pattern
First Claim
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1. A reader for acquiring information encoded by a differentially conductive pattern comprising:
- a plurality of electrodes positioned within one or more electrical fields generated by at least one of the electrodes;
a signal processor that obtains capacitive coupling measurements of the differentially conductive pattern between at least three different pairings of the electrodes as the differentially conductive pattern is relatively moved through the one or more electrical fields; and
a logic processor that performs a first comparison between coupling measurements from at least two of the pairings to initiate a second comparison between coupling measurements involving other of the pairings to distinguish features within the differentially conductive pattern.
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Abstract
Barcode patterns or other meaningful patterns are printed with a differentially conductive ink. A sensor incorporating a plurality of capacitive couplings distinguishes features of the patterns by comparative measurements that are largely independent of variations between the sensor and the patterns affecting all of the couplings. The patterns can be distinguished despite being hidden from view, such as inside sealed envelopes.
128 Citations
69 Claims
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1. A reader for acquiring information encoded by a differentially conductive pattern comprising:
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a plurality of electrodes positioned within one or more electrical fields generated by at least one of the electrodes;
a signal processor that obtains capacitive coupling measurements of the differentially conductive pattern between at least three different pairings of the electrodes as the differentially conductive pattern is relatively moved through the one or more electrical fields; and
a logic processor that performs a first comparison between coupling measurements from at least two of the pairings to initiate a second comparison between coupling measurements involving other of the pairings to distinguish features within the differentially conductive pattern. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A barcode reader comprising:
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an array of electrodes positioned along a common axis and together with at least one more electrode providing at least three different capacitive couplings; and
a processor that compares simultaneous measurements from a first grouping of the capacitive couplings to locate reference points in the barcode and that compares simultaneous measurements from a second grouping of the capacitive couplings to distinguish variations in a dimension of the barcode. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25)
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26. A reader for acquiring information encoded by a differentially conductive pattern comprising:
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an array of transmitting electrodes together with at least one receiving electrode providing at least three different capacitive couplings;
frequency generators for powering the transmitting electrodes at different frequencies;
a demultiplexer that distinguishes capacitive coupling measurements at the different frequencies; and
a processor that compares the capacitive coupling measurements at the different frequencies to distinguish features within the differentially conductive pattern. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32)
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33. A system for processing hidden patterns imprinted in a succession of covered substrates and exhibiting a differential conductivity with respect to the substrates comprising:
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a transporter that conveys the succession of covered substrates imprinted with the hidden patterns in a first direction;
an array of electrodes positioned along the first direction and together with at least one more electrode providing at least three different capacitive couplings that are affected by the conductivity characteristics of the hidden patterns; and
a processor that performs a first comparison among a first grouping of the capacitive couplings and initiates a second comparison among a second grouping of the capacitive couplings coinciding with a predetermined outcome from the first comparison for distinguishing features of the hidden patterns. - View Dependent Claims (34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42)
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43. A method of acquiring information encoded by a differentially conductive pattern comprising the steps of:
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relatively moving the differentially conductive pattern in a first direction past a capacitive coupling device having a plurality of electrodes positioned within one or more electrical fields generated by at least one of the electrodes;
obtaining capacitive coupling measurements of the differentially conductive pattern between at least three different pairings of the electrodes;
performing a first comparison between coupling measurements from at least two of the pairings to initiate a second comparison between coupling measurements involving other of the pairings; and
performing the second comparison to distinguish features within the differentially conductive pattern. - View Dependent Claims (44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54)
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55. A method of reading barcode encoded by a differentially conductive pattern comprising the steps of:
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relatively moving the barcode past an array of electrodes positioned along a common axis and providing at least three different capacitive couplings;
obtaining simultaneous measurements of the capacitive couplings; and
comparing the simultaneous measurements to each other independently of variations having similar effects on the compared measurements to distinguish meaningful variations in a dimension of the barcode. - View Dependent Claims (56, 57, 58, 59, 60)
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61. A reader for acquiring information encoded by a differentially conductive pattern comprising:
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a plurality of electrodes positioned within one or more electrical fields generated by at least one of the electrodes;
a signal processor that obtains simultaneous capacitive coupling measurements of the differentially conductive pattern between at least three different pairings of the electrodes as the differentially conductive pattern is relatively moved through the one or more electrical fields; and
a processor that compares the simultaneous measurements to each other independently of variations having similar effects on the compared measurements to distinguish meaningful features of the differentially conductive pattern. - View Dependent Claims (62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69)
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Specification