Wireless tag reader/writer apparatus

• US 7,956,734 B2
• Filed: 09/05/2008
• Issued: 06/07/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/05/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Kambe, Yukihiko, Oozawa, Shuji
• Primary Examiner(s): Crosland; Donnie L
• Application Number:
  US12/205,306
• Publication Number:
  US 20090058619A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,005 Days
• Field of Search: 340/505
• US Class Current: 340/505
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 17/00 Methods or arrangements for effecting co-operative working between equipments covered by two or more of main groups G06K1/00 - G06K15/00, e.g. automatic card files incorporating conveying and reading operations
• 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: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/203 Inventory monitoring

Abstract

A wireless tag reader/writer apparatus includes a receiving/transmitting antenna configured to transmit an interrogation signal to wireless tags, each having a storage unit with at least a reserved area and an EPC area for storing a group ID unique to the wireless tag, and configured to receive response signals from the wireless tags; a tag-data storing unit configured to store interrogation data and response data, the interrogation data being contained in the interrogation signal to be transmitted to the wireless tags, and the response data being contained in the response signals transmitted from the wireless tags; and a main control unit configured to detect the group ID stored in the reserve area of each wireless tag, from the response data stored in the tag-data storing unit, and configured to determine that at least one of the wireless tags has dropped out, from the number of group IDs stored in the reserved area of each wireless tag.

Claims

1. A wireless tag reader/writer apparatus comprising:

a receiving/transmitting antenna configured to transmit an interrogation signal to wireless tags, each having a storage unit with at least a reserved area and an EPC area for storing a group ID unique to the wireless tag, and configured to receive response signals from the wireless tags;

a tag-data storing unit configured to store interrogation data and response data, the interrogation data being contained in the interrogation signal to be transmitted to the wireless tags, and the response data being contained in the response signals transmitted from the wireless tags; and

a main control unit configured to detect the group ID stored in the reserved area of each wireless tag, from the response data stored in the tag-data storing unit, and configured to determine that at least one of the wireless tags has dropped out, from the number of group IDs stored in the reserved area of each wireless tag.

2. A wireless tag reader/writer apparatus which transmits an interrogation signal to wireless tags, each having a storage unit with at least a reserved area and an EPC area for storing a group ID unique to the wireless tag, and configured to receive response signals from the wireless tags,

wherein each of the wireless tags forming a batch stores, in the reserved area, the group IDs of the other wireless tags of the batch, the group ID stored in the reserve area of each wireless tag is detected, and that at least one of the wireless tags has dropped out is determined from the number of group IDs stored in the reserved area of each wireless tag.

3. The wireless tag reader/writer apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the group ID unique to the wireless tag and stored in the EPC area is a provisional ID assigned to the wireless tags forming a batch.

4. The wireless tag reader/writer apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the group ID unique to the wireless tag and stored in the EPC area is an ID that is inherent to each of the wireless tags forming the batch.

5. A wireless tag reader/writer apparatus which transmits an interrogation signal to wireless tags, each having a storage unit with at least a reserved area and an EPC area for storing a group ID unique to the wireless tag, and receives response signals from the wireless tags, the apparatus comprising:

a reserved-area group ID detecting unit configured to transmit an interrogation signal to the wireless tags forming a batch, each of which stores the group IDs of the other wireless tags of the batch, as related data in the reserved area, to receive response signals from these wireless tags, and to detect thereafter the group IDs stored in the reserved area of each wireless tag;

a group-ID number detecting unit configured to count the group IDs stored in the reserved area and detected by the reserved-area group ID detecting unit, in connection with the wireless tags of the batch; and

a dropped-out wireless tag detecting unit configured to detect that at least one of the wireless tags has dropped out, when the number of group IDs the group-ID number detecting unit has counted is smaller than a prescribed number.

6. The wireless tag reader/writer apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the group ID unique to the wireless tag and stored in the EPC area is a provisional ID assigned to the wireless tags forming a batch.

7. The wireless tag reader/writer apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the group ID unique to the wireless tag and stored in the EPC area is an ID that is inherent to each of the wireless tags forming the batch.

8. A wireless tag reader/writer apparatus which transmits an interrogation signal to wireless tags, each having a storage unit with at least a reserved area and an EPC area for storing a group ID unique to the wireless tag, and configured to receive response signals from the wireless tags, the apparatus comprising:

a group ID detecting unit configured to transmit an interrogation signal to the wireless tags forming a batch, each of which stores the group IDs of the other wireless tags of the batch, as related data in the reserved area, to receive response signals from these wireless tags, and to detect thereafter the group IDs stored in the reserved area of each wireless tag and the group IDs stored in the EPC areas of the wireless tags;

a relation-detecting unit configured to detect a relation between the group IDs stored in the EPC areas and detected by the group ID detecting unit and the group IDs stored in the reserved area;

a group-ID number detecting unit configured to count the group IDs stored in the reserved area and detected by the group ID detecting unit, in connection with the wireless tags of the batch; and

a dropped-out wireless tag identifying unit configured to identify that the some of the wireless tags have dropped out, when the number of group IDs the group-ID number detecting unit has detected is smaller than a prescribed number, on the basis of the relation detected by the relation-detecting unit and a difference between the counted number and the predetermined number.

9. The wireless tag reader/writer apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the group ID unique to the wireless tag and stored in the EPC area is a provisional ID assigned to the wireless tags forming a batch.

10. The wireless tag reader/writer apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the group ID unique to the wireless tag and stored in the EPC area is an ID that is inherent to each of the wireless tags forming the batch.

11. A method of detecting dropping-out of wireless tags, each having a storage unit with at least a reserved area and an EPC area for storing a group ID unique to the wireless tag, the method comprising:

transmitting an interrogation signal from a wireless tag reader/writer apparatus to wireless tags forming a batch, each of which stores the group IDs of the other wireless tags of the batch, as related data in the reserved area, receiving response signals from these wireless tags, and detecting thereafter the group IDs stored in the reserved area of each wireless tag;

counting the group IDs stored in the reserved, in connection with the wireless tags of the batch; and

detecting that at least one of the wireless tags has dropped out, when the number of group IDs counted is smaller than a prescribed number.

12. The method of detecting dropping-out of wireless tags, according to claim 11, wherein the group ID unique to the wireless tag and stored in the EPC area is a provisional ID assigned to the wireless tags forming a batch.

13. The method of detecting dropping-out of wireless tags, according to claim 11, wherein the group ID unique to the wireless tag and stored in the EPC area is an ID that is inherent to each of the wireless tags forming the batch.

14. A method of detecting dropping-out of wireless tags, each having a storage unit with at least a reserved area and an EPC area for storing a group ID unique to the wireless tag, the method comprising:

transmitting an interrogation signal to the wireless tags forming a batch, each of which stores the group IDs of the other wireless tags of the batch, as related data in the reserved area, receiving response signals from these wireless tags, and detecting thereafter the group IDs stored in the reserved area of each wireless tag and the group IDs stored in the EPC areas of the wireless tags;

detecting a relation between the group IDs stored in the EPC areas and detected and the group IDs stored in the reserved area;

counting the group IDs stored in the reserved area, in connection with the wireless tags of the batch; and

identifying at least one of the wireless tags has dropped out, when the number of group IDs counted is smaller than a prescribed number, based on the relation between the group IDs and a difference between the counted number and the predetermined number.

15. The method of detecting dropping-out of wireless tags, according to claim 14, wherein the group ID unique to the wireless tag and stored in the EPC area is a provisional ID assigned to the wireless tags forming a batch.

16. The method of detecting dropping-out of wireless tags, according to claim 14, wherein the group ID unique to the wireless tag and stored in the EPC area is an ID that is inherent to each of the wireless tags forming the batch.

17. A wireless tag comprising:

a storage unit having at least a reserved area and an EPC area for storing a group ID unique to the wireless tag,

wherein a plurality of group IDs, which are stored in EPC areas of storage units of other wireless tags, that exhibit regularity are stored in the reserved area, the regularity being a regularity between the group ID of the wireless tag and the plurality of group IDs of the other wireless tags.

18. The wireless tag according to clam 17, wherein the group IDs stored in the reserved area are consecutive group IDs previously stored in the EPC areas of a plurality of wireless tags, respectively.

19. A wireless tag having at least a first storage area in which data can be rewritten, a second storage area in which unique group IDs can be stored and rewritten and a third storage area in which a unique group ID can be stored but cannot be rewritten,

wherein the group IDs are stored, independently of one another, in the second storage area, and the group IDs stored in the second storage area are stored also in the first storage area, when they exhibit regularity, the regularity being a regularity between the group ID of the wireless tag and the group IDs of other wireless tags.

20. The wireless tag according to claim 19, wherein the group IDs stored in the first storage area are those of the group IDs previously stored in the second storage area, which pertain to consecutive wireless tags.