Systems and methods for automated programming of RFID tags using machine readable indicia

• US 7,772,964 B2
• Filed: 01/30/2006
• Issued: 08/10/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/30/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Warsaw Orthopedic Incorporated (Medtronic Plc)
• Original Assignee: Warsaw Orthopedic Incorporated (Medtronic Plc)
• Inventors: Nycz, Jeffrey H., Varner, Robert, Tethrake, Steven M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee; Benjamin C
• Assistant Examiner(s): SHANNON, MICHAEL T
• Application Number:
  US11/341,488
• Publication Number:
  US 20070188306A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,653 Days
• Field of Search: 340/10.51, 340/10.52, 340/572.1, 235/435
• US Class Current: 340/10.51
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 1/18 by transferring data from one type of record carrier on to another type of record carrier, e.g. from magnetic tape to punched card
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 5/00 Methods or arrangements for verifying the correctness of markings on a record carrier; Column detection devices

Abstract

Methods and systems for automatically programming an RFID tag using machine readable indicia. A dual mode device performs a bar code scan of a bar coded label. Information obtained from the bar code scan is stored. This information may be used to query a database indexed by the bar code information that contains detailed product information. The bar code information as well as the detailed information may be transmitted in an RF signal by the dual mode device to an RFID tag to be stored in a memory structure in the tag. The dual mode device may perform a read operation on the tag after the write operation to confirm that the data was successfully stored and provide an indication thereof. The indication may be a visual indication, a textual indication, an audible indication or combinations of these.

Claims

1. A method of programming an RFID tag, the method comprising:

storing item information in a memory structure, the item information including;

a bar code number; and

additional information including one or more data fields;

reading a bar code label with a bar code reader, wherein reading the bar code label includes;

generating a reflection pattern by illuminating the bar code label with a light beam from the bar code reader; and

converting the reflection pattern into the bar code number;

using the bar code number read from the bar code label to retrieve the additional information from the memory structure;

providing a user interface allowing a user to select, whether or which of the one or more data fields from the additional information are to be transmitted to the RFID tag;

transmitting a radio frequency (RF) signal to the RFID tag, the RF signal including the bar code number and the selected one or more data fields;

storing the bar code number and selected one or more data fields contained in the RF signal in a memory device in the RFID tag,

wherein the memory structure is external to the bar code reader and the RFID tag, and the memory structure is indexed by the bar code number.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the steps of reading and transmitting are performed with the same device.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein transmitting the RF signal including the bar code number and the additional information from the selected one or more data fields comprises automatically transmitting upon successfully reading a bar code label.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

after storing the bar code number and the additional information received at the RFID tag in the memory device in the RFID tag, performing a read operation on the RFID tag to confirm that the bar code number and the additional information has been successfully written to the tag'"'"'s memory.

5. The method according to claim 4, further comprising:

providing an indication of whether the bar code number and the additional information was successfully written to the tag.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein providing an indication includes providing an indication selected from the group consisting of

a visual indication, a text alert, an audible indication, and combinations thereof.

7. A method of automatically programming an RFID tag, the method comprising:

scanning a bar code with a computing device to obtain information encoded therein;

storing the obtained information in the computing device, wherein storing the obtained information includes;

indexing a database containing additional information associated with the encoded information, the additional information including one or more data fields;

retrieving at least some of the additional information; and

storing the additional information with the obtained information;

providing a user interface allowing a user to select, whether or which of the one or more data fields from the additional information are to be transmitted to the RFID tag;

transmitting an RF signal from the computing device to an RFID tag that contains the obtained information, wherein transmitting an RF signal that contains the obtained information comprises transmitting an RF signal that contains both the encoded information and the selected one or more data fields; and

storing the information received at the RFID tag in a memory structure in the RFID tag.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the computing device is a handheld combination barcode reader and RFID reader/writer device.

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein the computing device is a desktop combination barcode reader and RFID reader/writer device.

10. The method according to claim 7, wherein transmitting an RF signal containing both the encoded information and the selected one or more data fields comprises automatically sending an RF signal to an RFID tag upon successfully reading the bar code label.

11. The method according to claim 7, further comprising:

after storing the information received at the RFID tag in a memory structure in the RFID tag, performing a read operation on the RFID tag to confirm that the information has been successfully written to the memory structure in the RFID tag.

12. The method according to claim 11, further comprising:

providing an indication of whether the information received at the RFID tag was successfully written to the RFID tag.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein providing an indication includes providing an indication selected from the group consisting of:

a visual indication, a text indication, an audible indication, and combinations thereof.

14. A system for automated programming of RFID tags, the system comprising:

a dual purpose bar code scanner and RFID reader/writer device; and

a series of computer readable instructions stored in the dual purpose device adapted to cause the device to;

activate a bar scanner operable to scan a bar code label to obtain a bar code input from the bar code label;

store the bar code input; and

transmit an RF write signal containing the bar code input and additional information;

wherein the additional information is determined by providing a user interface allowing a user to select, whether or which of one or more data fields are to be transmitted with the bar code input, and wherein the series of computer readable instructions are further adapted to cause the device to query a database of product information that is indexed by the bar code input, to retrieve at least a portion of the product information as additional information, and to transmit an RF write signal containing the additional information along with the bar code input to an RFID transponder tag.

15. The system according to claim 14, wherein the series of computer readable instructions further comprise instructions adapted to cause the device to transmit an RF read signal to an RFID transponder tag to confirm that the bar code input was successfully written to the tag.

16. The system according to claim 15, wherein the series of computer readable instructions further comprise instructions adapted to cause the device to activate an indicator indicating whether the bar code input was successfully written to the tag.

17. The system according to claim 16, wherein the indicator is selected from the group consisting of:

a

visual indicator, a textual indicator, an audible indicator and combinations thereof.