Registering multiple similar items with flickers
First Claim
1. A method of counting items in a collection of items, the method comprising steps of:
- attaching to each item to be counted a respective electromagnet radiator, each radiator continually emitting an encoded flicker, the flicker from each radiator being emitted at a regular interval of time, the interval being common to the items be counted and comprising a flicker repetition interval, the flicker repetition interval being longer than a flicker duration;
providing a detector;
registering all of the items with the detector as the items flicker during a time interval equal to the flicker repetition interval; and
counting the items by a number of their flickers registered during the time interval equal to the flicker repetition interval.
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Abstract
Items, for example grocery items in a shopping cart or warehoused items being inventoried, are counted by electronically registering flickers from tags attached to, or incorporated into, the items. The registration takes place during an interval of time equal to the flicker repetition rate of the tags. For example, each item'"'"'s tag might flicker out an identifying signal (preferably from an LED in the tag) in about a thousandth of a second, and repeat this flicker once a second. A detector registers all of the flickers from all of the items during a one-second interval, and thereby counts the items because each will have flickered once during that time. Other items, with different identifying flickers, can be counted during the same interval. Thus, large numbers of various tagged items can be counted rapidly.
29 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method of counting items in a collection of items, the method comprising steps of:
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attaching to each item to be counted a respective electromagnet radiator, each radiator continually emitting an encoded flicker, the flicker from each radiator being emitted at a regular interval of time, the interval being common to the items be counted and comprising a flicker repetition interval, the flicker repetition interval being longer than a flicker duration; providing a detector; registering all of the items with the detector as the items flicker during a time interval equal to the flicker repetition interval; and counting the items by a number of their flickers registered during the time interval equal to the flicker repetition interval. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A system for counting items by flickering, comprising:
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(a) for each item to be counted, a respective tag further comprising; a radiator; a driver driving the radiator to emit an electromagnetic flicker, at a regular interval of time comprising a flicker repetition interval common to each of the items, the flicker repetition interval being longer than a flicker duration; a power source powering the driver; and an attachment of the tag to the item; and (b) a detector registering the flickers, wherein the items are countable by counting the flickers during a time interval equal to the flicker repetition interval; whereby the items are countable by a number of flickers registered during the flicker repetition interval. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A method of counting items, comprising:
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attaching to items in a collection of the items respective tags emitting electromagnetic radiation in a flickering pattern wherein the flickering pattern identifies the items to which the tags are attached; determining a regular flicker repetition interval of each of the tags; providing a detector and using the detector to register the flickers from each of the tagged items, during a time interval that is equal to or longer than the respective flicker repetition interval; and counting the flickers registered during a time interval equal to the respective flicker repetition interval. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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Specification