Information carrier arrangement, washable textile goods and electronic ear tag for living beings

• US 7,808,384 B2
• Filed: 07/14/2006
• Issued: 10/05/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/14/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Eyes Open Corporation
• Original Assignee: Eyes Open Corporation
• Inventors: Stobbe, Anatoli, Knop, Werner
• Primary Examiner(s): Wu; Daniel
• Assistant Examiner(s): Thompson; Bradley E
• Application Number:
  US11/486,839
• Publication Number:
  US 20080012709A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,544 Days
• Field of Search: 340/572.1, 340/572.4, 343/748
• US Class Current: 340/572.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/04 characterised by the shape
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07758 arrangements for adhering the record carrier to further objects or living beings, functioning as an identification tag
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/2417 having a radio frequency identification chip
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/2437 Tag layered structure, processes for making layered tags
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/2445 Tag integrated into item to be protected, e.g. source tagging

Abstract

An information carrier arrangement for an item to be identified includes a detection plate connected to the item and an electric antenna associated with the item. An electronic chip or an electronic chip module is provided on the detection plate, and a coupling element is disposed on the detection plate and connected to the electronic chip or electronic chip module. The coupling element is inductively and/or capacitatively coupled to the electric antenna. The item to be identified can be a product, a living being, a label, a tag, a single package, a containerized package or a transport aid.

Claims

1. An information carrier arrangement, comprising:

at least one detection plate comprising an electronic chip and a coupling element disposed on an item to be identified; and

at least one electric antenna connected or coupled to the at least one detection plate;

wherein the coupling element on the detection plate is connected to the electronic chip, and said coupling element is coupled to the electric antenna by at least one of an inductive coupling and a capacitative coupling;

wherein the item to be identified is selected from the group consisting of textile goods, textile labels, an item of clothing, and a safety belt, and the electric antenna is connected to the item, integrated in the item, or a component of the item;

wherein the detection plate is embodied separately from the electric antenna or a carrier of the electric antenna; and

further comprising a fixing means for affixing the detection plate to the item to be identified without stiffening the item, said fixing means comprising discrete joining points or very fine perforated adhesive film to avoid stiffening the item.

2. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the electric antenna is a structure selected from the group consisting of a dipole, a half-wave emitter, a full-wave emitter, and a groundplane, and the coupling element is arranged at a location of the electric antenna where at least one of a minimal standing wave ratio, an optimal band width of the entire system, and an optimal antenna gain occurs.

3. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the electric antenna is mechanically shortened and has an inductance with a meandering pattern.

4. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 3, wherein the coupling element provides an inductive coupling with simultaeous impedence matching with the electric antenna.

5. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 3, wherein the coupling element is embodied as a coupling loop and is arranged within a meander of two parallel conductors and another conductor at right angles thereto.

6. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the electric antenna is formed by a continuous electric conductor which is separated at two locations to form a dipole which is in resonance with a working frequency.

7. The information carrier arrangement according claim 1, wherein the fixing means is a reversibly detachable or irreversibly non-detachable fixing means.

8. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 7, wherein the fixing means is embodied as at least one pin attached to the detection plate that penetrates through the item to be identified, and a knob for receiving one end of the pin disposed on the detection plate on the opposite side of the item to be identified.

9. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 7, wherein the fixing means comprises at least one of welding, bonding, pasting, laminating, gluing, crimping, adhesive film attachment, and a patch bond produced under heat and pressure.

10. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 7, wherein the fixing means is embodied as hot melt adhesive or reaction adhesive.

11. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the fixing means is embodied as discrete joining points.

12. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 7, wherein the fixing means is embodied as weaving yarns which are laid in the area of the detection plate above the detection plate and are woven outside the detection plate with a fabric of the item to be identified.

13. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 7, wherein the fixing means is embodied as a hook and pile-type closure.

14. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the detection plate is sealed with a coating.

15. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 14, wherein the coating forms an adhesive surface.

16. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the detection plate comprises a coupling loop which comprises a shortenable coupler structure and can be adapted to the width of the item to be identified by cutting while retaining a closed coupling loop.

17. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the detection plate and the item to be identified comprises at least one of a multi-part antenna and coupling elements that only produce frequency or impedance matching jointly or under mutual addition.

18. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 17, wherein the components of at least one of the multi-part antenna and coupling elements are attached to different carriers that are uniquely locally allocated among one another to ensure proper functioning.

19. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 17, wherein at least part of the elements of at least one of the multi-part antenna and the coupling element are concealed in at least one of the detection plate and in or on the item to be identified.

20. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 1, wherein at least two detection plates are provided that can be interrogated jointly.

21. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 20, wherein at least two spatially separated detection plates are allocated to a common electric antenna.

22. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 20, wherein at least two spatially separated detection plates are allocated to a plurality of electric antennae.

23. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 22, wherein the electric antennae have different designs.

24. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 20, wherein one detection plate is allocated to a plurality of electric antennae.

25. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 20, wherein the detection plates comprise mutually complementary information and can be evaluated as valid or invalid by joint interrogation.

26. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 20, wherein the detection plates exchange complementary information among one another with the aid of a reader and can be evaluated as valid or invalid by individual or joint interrogation.

27. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the item to be identified is selected from the group consisting of textile goods, an item of clothing, and a safety belt.

28. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the item to be identified is embodied as a textile label.

29. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the coupling element is constructed as a coupling loop that forms an additional magnetic antenna to the existing electric antenna.

30. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 29, wherein the coupling loop can be read by a magnetic antenna or multi-antenna of the reader, which is configured as both magnetic and electric.

31. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 2, wherein the coupling element provides an inductive coupling with simultaeous impedence matching with the electric antenna.

32. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the coupling element provides an inductive coupling with simultaeous impedence matching with the electric antenna.

33. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the electric antenna and the fixing means for the detection plate are constructed in a single industrial process.

34. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 33, wherein the item to be identified is embodied as a textile label, and the electric antenna is produced industrially using conventional textile methods such as weaving or embroidery.

35. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the item to be identified is embodied as a textile label, and the electric antenna is produced industrially using conventional textile methods such as weaving or embroidery.

36. The information carrier arrangement according to claim 28, wherein the electric antenna is produced industrially using conventional textile methods such as weaving or embroidery.