Coordination of transmission of data from wireless identification tags

• US 9,070,026 B2
• Filed: 10/29/2011
• Issued: 06/30/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/2011
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Kangas, P. Daniel, Thomas, Jeff D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Zimmerman, Brian
• Assistant Examiner(s): NGUYEN, LAURA N
• Application Number:
  US13/284,883
• Publication Number:
  US 20130106582A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,340 Days
• Field of Search: 340 101- 106, 3405721-5729, 340/539.11, 340/539.13, 235/375, 235/376, 235/377, 235383-386
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/01 Details
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10039 interrogator driven, i.e. synchronous

Abstract

Methods and systems for coordinating transmission of data from wireless identification tags are disclosed. According to an aspect, a wireless identification tag includes a communication module configured to wirelessly transmit data in response to receipt of an instruction. The wireless identification tag also includes a timer configured to communicate the instruction to the communication module for transmission of the data within a timeslot based on a stored first identifier of the wireless identification tag. Further, the timer module is configured to receive second identifier. The timer module is also configured to change the first identifier based on the second identifier.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a first read cell associated with a first set of contiguous identifiers and a reserve set of contiguous identifiers;

a second read cell associated with a second set of contiguous identifiers, the second set of contiguous identifiers being different from the first set of contiguous identifiers, and the reserve set of contiguous identifiers, wherein the first set, reserve set, and second set of contiguous identifiers together complete a substantially contiguous sequence of identifiers;

a plurality of wireless identification tags, each wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags comprising;

a communication module configured to wirelessly transmit data in response to receipt of an instruction; and

a timer module configured to;

communicate the instruction to the communication module for transmission of the data within a timeslot based on a stored first identifier of the wireless identification tag;

receive a second identifier from among the reserve set of contiguous identifiers; and

change the stored identifier based on the second identifier.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the communication module and the timer module are components of one of a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag and a transponder.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the second identifier uniquely identifies each wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags from among the plurality of wireless identification tags, and

wherein the timer module is configured to select the timeslot from among a plurality of timeslots based on at least a portion of the second identifier.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the communication module is configured to:

wirelessly receive the second identifier; and

communicate the second identifier to the timer module.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the timer module is configured to:

receive the second identifier from the communication module; and

replace the first identifier in memory with the second identifier.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the communication module is configured to receive an activation signal over a wireless connection, and

wherein the timer module is configured to:

initiate a timer and define a plurality of timeslots in response to receipt of the activation signal, wherein the timeslot is one of the plurality of timeslots; and

communicate the data in response to the timer reaching the timeslot.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the communication module includes an antenna and a radio frequency identification (RFID) circuit configured to:

receive the activation signal from an RFID read cell; and

communicate the data to the RFID read cell in response to the timer reaching the timeslot.

8. A method comprising:

at a system comprising a first read cell, a second read cell, and a plurality of wireless identification tags;

storing, at the first read cell, a first set of contiguous identifiers and a reserve set of contiguous identifiers;

storing, at the second read cell, a second set of contiguous identifiers, the second set of contiguous identifiers being different from the first set of contiguous identifiers, and the reserve set of contiguous identifiers, wherein the first set, reserve set, and second set of contiguous identifiers together complete a substantially contiguous sequence of identifiers;

storing, at a wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags, a first identifier of the wireless identification tag;

receiving, at the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags, a second identifier via wireless communication from among the reserve set of contiguous identifiers;

replacing, at the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags, the first identifier with the second identifier;

defining, at the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags, a timeslot based on the second identifier;

receiving, at the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags, an activation signal; and

in response to receipt of the activation signal, wirelessly transmitting, at the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags, data within the timeslot.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags is one of a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag and a transponder.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the second identifier uniquely identifies the wireless identification tag from among the plurality of wireless identification tags, and

wherein defining the timeslot comprises selecting the timeslot from among a plurality of timeslots based on at least a portion of the second identifier.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein replacing the first identifier comprises replacing the first identifier in a memory of the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags with the second identifier.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein receiving the activation signal comprises receiving the activation signal over a wireless connection,

wherein the method further comprises initiating, at the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags, a timer of the wireless identification tag and defining a plurality of timeslots in response to receipt of the activation signal, wherein the timeslot is one of the plurality of timeslots, and

wherein wirelessly transmitting the data comprises communicating the data in response to the timer reaching the timeslot.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein receiving the activation signal comprises receiving, at the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags, the activation signal from an radio frequency identification (RFID) read cell, and

wherein wirelessly transmitting the data comprises communicating the data to the RFID read cell in response to the timer reaching the timeslot.

14. A computer program product for coordinating transmission of data from a wireless identification tag of a plurality of wireless identification tags, said computer program product comprising:

a first non-transitory computer readable storage medium having a first computer readable program code embodied therewith, the first computer readable program code comprising;

computer readable program code configured to store, at a first read cell, a first set of contiguous identifiers and a reserve set of contiguous identifiers;

computer readable program code configured to store, at a second read cell, a second set of contiguous identifiers, the second set of contiguous identifiers being different from the first set of contiguous identifiers, and the reserve set of contiguous identifiers, wherein the first set, reserve set, and second set of contiguous identifiers together complete a substantially contiguous sequence of identifiers;

a second non-transitory computer readable storage medium having a second computer readable program code embodied therewith, the second computer readable program code comprising;

computer readable program code configured to store, at the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags, a first identifier of the wireless identification tag;

computer readable program code configured to receive, at the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags, a second identifier via wireless communication from the reserve set of contiguous identifiers;

computer readable program code configured to replace, at the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags, the first identifier with the second identifier;

computer readable program code configured to define, at the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags, a timeslot based on the second identifier;

computer readable program code configured to receive, at the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags, an activation signal; and

computer readable program code configured to control, at the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags, wireless transmission of data within the timeslot in response to receipt of the activation signal.

15. The computer program product of claim 14, further comprising computer readable program code configured to select, at the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags, the timeslot from among a plurality of timeslots based on at least a portion of the second identifier.

16. The computer program product of claim 14, further comprising computer readable program code configured to replace, at the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags, the first identifier in a memory of the wireless identification tag with the second identifier.

17. The computer program product of claim 14, further comprising:

computer readable program code configured to initiate, at the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags, a timer of the wireless identification tag and define a plurality of timeslots in response to receipt of the activation signal, wherein the timeslot is one of the plurality of timeslots; and

computer readable program code configured to communicate, at the wireless identification tag of the plurality of wireless identification tags, the data in response to the timer reaching the timeslot.