IC chip for identification, method for reading out data therefrom, and method for writing data thereinto

• US 7,598,864 B2
• Filed: 05/26/2005
• Issued: 10/06/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/03/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Fec Co., Ltd., Government of Malaysia
• Original Assignee: Fec Co., Ltd., Government of Malaysia
• Inventors: Taniguchi, Shuhei, Kobayashi, Hideki, Sugimura, Shiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Wu; Daniel
• Assistant Examiner(s): GIRMA, FEKADESELASS
• Application Number:
  US11/138,103
• Publication Number:
  US 20050206504A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,594 Days
• Field of Search: 340/572.1, 340/572.4, 340/10.5, 340/10.51, 340/10.52, 235/492
• US Class Current: 340/572.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0723 the record carrier comprising an arrangement for non-contact communication, e.g. wireless communication circuits on transponder cards, non-contact smart cards or RFIDs
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0728 the arrangement being an optical or sound-based communication interface
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/145 at least one of the further markings being adapted for galvanic or wireless sensing, e.g. an RFID tag with both a wireless and an optical interface or memory, or a contact type smart card with ISO 7816 contacts and an optical interface or memory
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 7/01 Testing electronic circuits therein

Abstract

In order to eliminate limitation upon the frequency of a carrier wave from externally, this IC chip for identification includes: a power supply section which receives this carrier wave from outside and creates an internal power supply; a clock signal generation section for read out which generates an internal clock signal for read out based upon a clock signal pulse which is superimposed upon an optical signal from externally; a memory section; and an output section which serially reads out data in the memory section according to the internal clock signal for read out, and load modulates the carrier wave from outside based thereupon.

Claims

1. An IC chip for identification, comprising:

an antenna which receives an external carrier wave;

a power supply section which takes advantage of said external carrier wave to create an internal electrical current;

a light reception element which receives an external optical signal upon which a clock signal pulse is superimposed;

a clock signal generation section for read-out which generates an internal clock signal for read-out based upon said clock signal pulse;

a memory section; and

an output section which serially reads-out data in said memory section according to said internal clock signal for read-out, and load modulates said external carrier wave based thereupon.

2. An IC chip for identification as described in claim 1, further comprising a clock signal generation section for writing-in which generates an internal clock signal for writing-in based upon a clock signal pulse that is superimposed upon said carrier wave, and a write-in section which serially reads in data which is superimposed upon said external optical signal according to said generated internal clock signal for writing-in, and stores said data in said memory section.

3. An IC chip for identification as described in claim 2, wherein said write-in section detects overflow of said data, and blocks said memory section so that writing in to said memory section becomes impossible.

4. An IC chip for identification as described in claim 3, wherein said clock signal generation section for writing-in discriminates said clock signal pulse which is superimposed upon said carrier wave.

5. An IC chip for identification as described in claim 1, wherein said antenna is an on-chip antenna, and said IC chip further comprises, upon said on-chip antenna which is connected to said output section, a bump contact connected to an external antenna.

6. A method for reading out data from an IC chip for identification, including:

receiving an external carrier wave;

creating an internal electrical current by taking advantage of said external carrier wave;

receiving an external optical signal upon which a clock signal pulse is superimposed;

generating an internal clock signal for read-out based upon said clock signal pulse; and

serially reading out data which is stored in a memory section according to said internal clock signal for read-out, and load modulating said external carrier wave based thereupon.

7. A method for writing in data to an IC chip for identification, including:

receiving an external carrier wave upon which a clock signal pulse is superimposed;

creating an internal electrical current by taking advantage of said external carrier wave;

generating an internal clock signal for writing-in based upon said clock signal pulse;

receiving an external optical signal upon which data is superimposed;

serially storing said data according to said internal clock signal for writing-in; and

writing the data which has been stored into a memory section, and blocking said memory section so that any further writing-in into said memory section becomes impossible.