Method and system for controlling contactless IC cards

• US 6,352,202 B2
• Filed: 01/12/1999
• Issued: 03/05/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 01/12/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Denso Wave Inc (DENSO Corporation), Fujifilm Imaging Systems Company Limited (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation), Hitachi, Ltd., Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Sato, Tadashi, Ando, Kimiaki, Sato, Hiromi, Date, Shigeru, Miura, Toru, Nishimura, Shinji, Takahashi, Kiyoshi, Hirata, Tatsuya, Takiguchi, Masahiro, Dobashi, Hisanobu
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Michael G.
• Assistant Examiner(s): FRANKLIN, JAMARA ALZAIDA
• Application Number:
  US09/228,412
• Publication Number:
  US 20010040185A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,148 Days
• Field of Search: 235/375, 235/382.5, 235/492, 235/487, 235/451, 340/10.32, 340/825.52, 340/825.53, 340/825.07
• US Class Current: 235/451
• 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 7/10059 transponder driven

Abstract

A reader/writer (RW) requires identification information pieces of respective plural IC cards (A, B, C). The plural IC cards return the respective identification information pieces in response to the requirement by the reader/writer. Logical addresses are assigned to some IC cards among the plural IC cards respectively to cause the reader/writer to select them in response to the return of the identification information pieces by the plural IC cards. The IC cards selected by the reader/writer are controlled. The reader/writer cancels the assignment of the logical address to one of the selected IC cards. The logical address, the assignment of which has been canceled by the reader/writer, is assigned to an IC card among the plural IC cards to which any logical address has not been assigned yet. The IC card to which the logical address has just been assigned is controlled.

Claims

1. A contactless IC card control system comprising:

reader/writer means for sending a request for identification information from a plurality of IC cards;

IC card means for sending respective identification information in response to the request by said reader/writer means;

means for assigning logical addresses to some of said IC cards and for selecting said some of said IC cards in response to the identification information sent by said IC card means;

means for controlling said some of said IC cards;

means for transmitting an address cancel requirement signal from the reader/writer means to one of said some of said IC cards;

means for canceling a logical address assigned to said one of said some of said IC cards in response to said address cancel requirement signal; and

means for reassigning the canceled logical address to an IC card among the plurality of IC cards to which a logical address has not yet been assigned,

wherein said controlling means controls the IC card to which the logical address has been reassigned after said canceled logical address has been reassigned.

2. A method of controlling contactless IC cards, comprising:

sending a request by a reader/writer for identification information from a plurality of IC cards;

sending respective identification information from the plurality of IC cards in response to the request by said reader/writer;

assigning logical addresses to some of said IC cards and selecting said some of said IC cards in response to the identification information sent by the plurality of IC cards;

controlling said some of said IC cards;

transmitting an address cancel requirement signal from the reader/writer to one of said some of said IC cards;

canceling a logical address assigned to said one of said some of said IC cards in response to said address cancel requirement signal;

reassigning the canceled logical address to an IC card among the plurality of IC cards to which a logical address has not yet been assigned; and

controlling the IC card to which the logical address has been reassigned after said canceled logical address has been reassigned.

3. A contactless IC card control system comprising:

a reader/writer including a memory and providing a radio-communication service area;

IC cards including first, second, and third IC cards different from each other, wherein each of the first, second, and third IC cards includes a memory;

means provided in the reader/writer for generating first information representing that a first logical address is assigned to the first IC card;

means for transmitting the first information from the reader/writer to the first IC card by radio;

means provided in the first IC card for storing the first information into the memory in the first IC card;

means provided in the reader/writer for storing the first information into the memory in the reader/writer to complete assignment of the first logical address to the first IC card;

means provided in the reader/writer for generating second information representing that a second logical address different from the first logical address is assigned to the second IC card;

means for transmitting the second information from the reader/writer to the second IC card by radio;

means provided in the second IC card for storing the second information into the memory in the second IC card;

means provided in the reader/writer for storing the second information into the memory in the reader/writer to complete assignment of the second logical address to the second IC card;

means provided in the reader/writer for generating an address cancel requirement signal;

means for transmitting the address cancel requirement signal from the reader/writer to the first IC card by radio when the first IC card is in the radio-communication service area provided by the reader/writer;

means provided in the first IC card for erasing the first information from the memory in the first IC card in response to the address cancel requirement signal;

means provided in the reader/writer for erasing the first information from the memory in the reader/writer to complete cancel of assignment of the first logical address to the first IC card;

means provided in the reader/writer for, after cancel of assignment of the first logical address to the first IC card is completed, generating third information representing that the first logical address is assigned to the third IC card;

means for transmitting the third information from the reader/writer to the third IC card by radio;

means provided in the third IC card for storing the third information into the memory in the third IC card; and

means provided in the reader/writer for storing the third information into the memory in the reader/writer to complete assignment of the first logical address to the third IC card.