Tag associating system, tag associating method, and tag moving direction detection system

• US 8,816,821 B2
• Filed: 11/10/2008
• Issued: 08/26/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/12/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Omron Corporation
• Original Assignee: Omron Corporation
• Inventors: Iwahashi, Naomasa
• Primary Examiner(s): SYED, NABIL H
• Application Number:
  US12/675,340
• Publication Number:
  US 20100237995A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,115 Days
• Field of Search: 340 101- 1051, 3405721-5727, 340/539.1, 340/5.2, 340/5.3, 340/5.32, 340/5.8, 340/8.1, 340/5.61, 340/5.65
• US Class Current: 340/10.1
• 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 17/0029 the arrangement being specially adapted for wireless interrogation of grouped or bundled articles tagged with wireless record carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10346 the antenna being of the far field type, e.g. HF types or dipoles
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management

Abstract

[Problems to be Solved]

It is an object to provide a tag associating system that, when a plurality of RFID tags are collected to move as a tag group, associates the RFID tags belonging to the tag group with a representative RFID tag ranked as a representative of the tag group; its associating method; etc.

[Means for Solving the Problems]

The present system associates an RFID tag (2A) ranked as a representative of the tag group (2). A communication area (J) of a first antenna (4A) to read out data from the representative tag group (2A) is arranged to partially overlap with a communication area (K) of a second antenna (4B) to read out data from each RFID tag (2B) of the tag group (2). When the first antenna (4A) reads out a plurality of times data from the representative RFID tag (2A), the second antenna (4B) reads out data from each RFID tag (2B) of the tag group (2), so as to make the data read out from the representative RFID tag (2A) and the data reads out from the RFID tag (2B) of the tag group (2) into a pair of associated data.

Claims

1. A tag associating method of associating RFID tags belonging to a tag group, and a representative RFID tag ranked as a representative of the tag group;

the associating method comprising;

partially overlapping a communication area of a first antenna to read out data from the representative RFID tag and a communication area of a second antenna to read out data from said each RFID tag of the tag group;

reading out data from said each RFID tag of the tag group by the second antenna while the first antenna reads out data a plurality of times from the representative RFID tag;

making the data read out from the representative RFID tag and the data read out from said each RFID tag of the tag group into a pair of associated data;

wherein reading by the first antenna is temporarily interrupted if the readout number of times of said representative RFID tag has reached a first defined number, followed by collective read out by the second antenna;

resuming said read out by the first antenna,

terminating said read out by the first antenna if the read out number of times of said representative RFID tag has reached a second defined number different from the first defined number,

estimating a moving direction of the representative RFID tag;

wherein an attribute of said representative RFID tag is used as an attribute of said each RFID tag belonging to the tag group when said each RFID tag belonging to the tag group and the representative RFID tag are associated with each other;

and wherein information of the moving direction of the representative RFID tag, which is the attribute of the representative RFID tag, is used as information of a moving direction of said each RFID tag of the tag group, which is the attribute of said each RFID tag belonging to the tag group.

2. A tag moving direction detection system for detecting moving direction of RFID tags belonging to a tag group, the system comprising:

a representative RFID tag ranked as a representative of the tag group;

a first antenna configured to scan a radio wave beam toward a movement path of the representative RFID tag and reading out data from the representative RFID tag;

a second antenna configured to collectively read out data from each RFID tag of the tag group;

wherein said reading by the first antenna is temporarily interrupted if the readout number of times of said representative RFID tag has reached a first defined number;

resuming said read out by the first antenna,

terminating said read out by the first antenna if the read out number of times of said representative RFID tag has reached a second defined number different from the first defined number;

and

estimation means for estimating a moving direction of the representative RFID tag based on the data read out from the representative RFID tag by the first antenna, a readout time, and a scan angle at the time of readout of the representative RFID tag,

wherein information of the moving direction of the representative RFID tag estimated by the estimation means is added as information of the moving direction or an attribute of said each RFID tag belonging to the tag group when said each RFID tag belonging to the tag group and the representative RFID tag are associated with each other;

wherein the first antenna does not read out data from said each RFID tag of the tag group, other than the representative RFID tag, and

wherein the scan angle is an angle indicating the radiation direction of beam when scan antenna scans the beam of transmitting radio wave.

3. The tag moving direction detection system according to claim 2, wherein a communication area of a first antenna and a communication area of a second antenna partially overlap;

wherein the second antenna is configured to collectively read out data from said each RFID tag of the tag group while the first antenna reads out data a plurality of times from the representative RFID tag,

wherein the data read out from the representative RFID tag and the data read out from said each RFID tag of the tag group are made into a pair of associated data.

4. The tag moving direction detection system according to claim 2,

wherein said each RFID tag belonging to the tag group and the representative RFID tag have a directional direction of NULL,

wherein a first radio wave beam output from the first antenna is directed in the directional direction of NULL of said each RFID tag belonging to the tag group,

wherein a second radio wave beam output from the second antenna is directed in the directional direction of NULL of the representative RFID tag.

5. The tag moving direction detection system according to claim 2, wherein an output intensity of the first radio wave beam output from the first antenna is adjusted to a level communicable with only the representative RFID tag.

6. The tag moving direction detection system according to claim 4, wherein an output intensity of the first radio wave beam output from the first antenna is adjusted to a level communicable with only the representative RFID tag.