Method and apparatus for associating radio frequency identification tags with participants

• US 9,698,841 B2
• Filed: 06/05/2014
• Issued: 07/04/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 06/06/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Zebra Technologies Corporation
• Original Assignee: ZIH Corp. (Zebra Technologies Corporation)
• Inventors: Alonso, Rodrigo, Senerchia, David, Turner, Belinda, Ameti, Aitan
• Primary Examiner(s): Lim, Steven
• Assistant Examiner(s): Littlejohn, Jr., Mancil
• Application Number:
  US14/297,361
• Publication Number:
  US 20150002272A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,125 Days
• Field of Search: 455138, 4554561, 340 101
• CPC Class Codes: A41D 1/002 adapted to accommodate electronic equipment patients' garments for medical monitoring A41D13/1281; luminous ornaments A41D27/085
• CPC Class Codes: A41D 1/005 with embedded cable or connector
• CPC Class Codes: A41D 1/04 Vests, jerseys, sweaters or the like
• CPC Class Codes: A41D 2600/10 for sport activities
• CPC Class Codes: A42B 3/30 Mounting radio sets or communication systems
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2024/0025 Tracking the path or location of one or more users, e.g. players of a game
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2024/0028 Tracking the path of an object, e.g. a ball inside a soccer pitch
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2024/0056 for statistical or strategic analysis
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/12 Absolute positions, e.g. by using GPS
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/40 Acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/836 Sensors arranged on the body of the user
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2225/50 Wireless data transmission, e.g. by radio transmitters or telemetry
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2225/54 Transponders, e.g. RFID
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 24/00 Electric or electronic controls for exercising apparatus of preceding groups; Controlling or monitoring of exercises, sportive games, training or athletic performances
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 24/0021 Tracking a path or terminating locations
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 71/0686 Timers, rhythm indicators or pacing apparatus using electric or electronic means
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9537 Spatial or temporal dependent retrieval, e.g. spatiotemporal queries
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/955 using information identifiers, e.g. uniform resource locators [URL]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9554 : by using bar codes
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10227 : loading programming parameters or programs into the interrogator, e.g. for configuring the interrogator
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10297 : arrangements for handling protocols designed for non-contact record carriers such as RFIDs NFCs, e.g. ISO/IEC 14443 and 18092 cryptographic protocols H04L9/00; network security protocols H04L63/00; real-time communication protocols in data switching networks H04L65/00; network protocols for data switching network services H04L67/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10306 : ultra wide band
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10366 : the interrogation device being adapted for miscellaneous applications
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 5/02 : Knowledge representation; Symbolic representation
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 7/01 : Probabilistic graphical models, e.g. probabilistic networks
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 90/00 : Systems or methods specially adapted for administrative, commercial, financial, managerial or supervisory purposes, not involving significant data processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/23 : Recognition of whole body movements, e.g. for sport training
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 17/02 : using a radio link
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/0038 : Sports
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 : for remote operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/30 : for calculating health indices; for individual health risk assessment
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/50 : for simulation or modelling of medical disorders
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/1036 : with automatic suppression of narrow band noise or interference, e.g. by using tuneable notch filters H04B1/123 takes precedence; filter circuits H03H
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/7097 : Interference-related aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/71635 : Transmitter aspects H04B1/7174 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/71637 : Receiver aspects H04B1/7183 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/719 : Interference-related aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/04 : Processing captured monitoring data, e.g. for logfile generation
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 9/00 : Arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station, in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 : Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 : Location-based management or tracking services

Abstract

Systems, methods, apparatuses, and computer readable media are disclosed for associating a radio frequency identification tag with a participant. In one embodiment, a method is provided for associating an unassociated RF location tag with a participant. The method may include determining an unassociated RF location tag to be associated with the participant, receiving sensor derived data from one or more sensors, determining an identity of the particular participant using the sensor derived data, and associating the identity of the particular participant with the unassociated RF location tag.

Claims

1. An apparatus for associating a participant identifier with an unassociated radio frequency (RF) location tag, the apparatus comprising at least one processor, and at least one non-transitory memory including computer program code, wherein the at least one non-transitory memory and the computer program code are configured, with the at least one processor, to cause the apparatus to:

receive tag derived data originating from an unassociated RF location tag;

determine unassociated tag location data for the unassociated RF location tag based on the received tag derived data;

receive second tag derived data originating from a plurality of associated RF location tags;

determine associated tag location data for the plurality of associated RF location tags based on the received second tag derived data;

determine tag proximity location data for each of the plurality of associated RF location tags by comparing the unassociated tag location data to the associated tag location data;

determine a constrained set of associated RF location tags from the plurality of associated RF location tags based on determining, by the processor, whether the tag proximity location data for each of the plurality of associated RF location tags satisfies a proximity radius;

determine a participant identifier for each associated RF location tag of the constrained set of associated RF location tags;

in a circumstance where two or more unique participant identifiers are determined from the constrained set of associated RF location tags, determine whether one of the two or more unique participant identifiers is associated with a malfunctioning RF location tag;

in a circumstance where one of the two or more unique participant identifiers is determined to be associated with the malfunctioning RF location tag, output a tag participant correlator for associating the one of the two or more unique participant identifiers with the unassociated RF location tag.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the unassociated RF location tag comprises an ultra-wideband (UWB) transmitter.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the UWB transmitter is configured to transmit a plurality of time of arrival (TOA) timing pulses.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the UWB transmitter is configured to transmit an information packet comprising 112 bits.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the proximity radius is one of three feet, ten feet, or ten yards.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to cause the apparatus to:

in a circumstance where only one unique participant identifier is determined from the constrained set of associated RF location tags, output a second tag participant correlator for associating the only one unique participant identifier with the unassociated RF location tag.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the tag participant correlator is configured for storing with a participant profile comprising biometric data and role data.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the tag derived data and the second tag derived data comprise time of arrival measurement data and tag information packets.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to cause the apparatus to:

determine whether one of the two or more unique participant identifiers is associated with the malfunctioning RF location tag by comparing a known number of participant-associated RF location tags to the second tag derived data.

10. A system for associating a participant identifier with an unassociated radio frequency (RF) location tag, the system comprising:

an unassociated RF location tag configured to transmit blink data;

a plurality of associated RF location tags, each of the plurality of associated RF location tags associated with a participant identifier, and wherein each of the plurality of associated RF location tags are configured to transmit second blink data;

a plurality of receivers that are configured to;

receive the second blink data transmitted by the plurality of associated RF location tags and receive the blink data transmitted by the unassociated RF location tag;

determine tag derived data from the blink data; and

determine second tag derived data from the second blink data;

a receiver processing and distribution system configured to;

receive the tag derived data originating from the unassociated RF location tag;

determine unassociated tag location data for the unassociated RF location tag based on the received tag derived data;

receive the second tag derived data originating from the plurality of associated RF location tags;

determine associated tag location data for the plurality of associated RF location tags based on the received second tag derived data;

determine tag proximity location data for each of the plurality of associated RF location tags by comparing the unassociated tag location data to the associated tag location data;

determine a constrained set of associated RF location tags from the plurality of associated RF location tags based on determining whether the tag proximity location data for each of the plurality of associated RF location tags satisfies a proximity radius;

identify the participant identifier for each associated RF location tag of the constrained set of associated RF location tags;

in a circumstance where two or more unique participant identifiers are identified from the constrained set of associated RF location tags, determine whether one of the two or more unique participant identifiers is associated with a malfunctioning RF location tag;

in a circumstance where one of the two or more unique participant identifiers is associated with the malfunctioning RF location tag, output a tag participant correlator for associating the one of the two or more unique participant identifiers with the unassociated RF location tag.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the unassociated RF location tag comprises an ultra-wideband (UWB) transmitter.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the UWB transmitter is configured to transmit blink data comprising a plurality of time of arrival (TOA) timing pulses.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the UWB transmitter is configured to transmit an information packet comprising 112 bits.

14. The system of claim 10, wherein the proximity radius is one of three feet, ten feet, or ten yards.

15. The system of claim 10, wherein the receiver processing and distribution system is further configured to:

in a circumstance where only one unique participant identifier is determined from the constrained set of associated RF location tags, output a second tag participant correlator for associating the only one unique participant identifier with the unassociated RF location tag.

16. The system of claim 10, wherein the tag participant correlator is configured for storing with a participant profile comprising biometric data and role data.

17. The system of claim 10, wherein the tag derived data and the second tag derived data comprise time of arrival measurement data and tag information packets.

18. The system of claim 10, wherein the receiver processing and distribution system is further configured to:

determine whether one of the two or more unique participant identifiers is associated with the malfunctioning RF location tag by comparing a known number of participant associated RF location tags to the second tag derived data.