ANTENNA DESIGN AND INTERROGATOR SYSTEM

• US 20140015648A1
• Filed: 03/12/2013
• Published: 01/16/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/13/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SATO Holdings Corporation
• Original Assignee: Magellan Technology Pty. Ltd (SATO Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: MURDOCH, Graham Alexander Munro, Zollinger, Heinz
• Granted Patent: US 10,032,103 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/10.3
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0723 the record carrier comprising an arrangement for non-contact communication, e.g. wireless communication circuits on transponder cards, non-contact smart cards or RFIDs
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10336 the antenna being of the near field type, inductive coil
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10376 the interrogation device being adapted for being moveable
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/22 by structural association with other equipment or articles
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/2225 used in active tags, i.e. provided with its own power source or in passive tags, i.e. deriving power from RF signal
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 7/00 Loop antennas with a substantially uniform current distribution around the loop and having a directional radiation pattern in a plane perpendicular to the plane of the loop

Abstract

The present invention relates to the identification of RFID devices that are arranged closely together and placed on shelving for logistical and storage purposes. Furthermore, the aspects of the present invention relate to an arrangement and/or layout of antenna coils for example in an interrogator. There is disclosed a RFID interrogator and/or method of interrogating comprising an antenna, when activated, being adapted to radiate an interrogation signal in a first area, means adapted to shift the antenna within a second area, the second area being larger than the first area. The antenna may be mechanically moveable.

Claims

1. An RFID interrogator comprising:

an antenna, when activated, being adapted to radiate an interrogation signal in a first area,

means adapted to shift the antenna within a second area, the second area being larger than the first area.

2. An interrogator as claimed in claim 1, wherein the antenna is adapted to be shifted from a first position in the second area to a second position in the second area.

3. An interrogator as claimed in claim 1, wherein the antenna is configurable to operate as a virtual antenna, the virtual antenna having an area larger than the first area.

4. An interrogator as claimed in claim 3, wherein the virtual antenna has an area larger than the first area, and less than the second area.

5. An interrogator as claimed in claim 1, wherein the means adapted to shift the antenna is a mechanical means.

6. An interrogator as claimed in claim 1, wherein the antenna is adapted to be shifted in at least one, or in any combination of the x, y and/or z directions

7. An interrogator as claimed in claim 1, wherein the antenna comprises a single coil.

8. An interrogator as claimed in claim 1, wherein the antenna comprises a coil which is smaller in size than the first area.

9. An interrogator as claimed in claim 1, wherein the antenna is shifted to a series of positions within the first area, and where at each position, interrogation is undertaken or activated.

10. An interrogator as claimed in claim 1, wherein the antenna comprises a two or more coils

11. An interrogator as claimed in claim 10, wherein the coils are sequentially switched, and when activated, being adapted to radiate an interrogation signal in a first area.

12. An interrogator as claimed in claim 1, wherein the antenna is shifted to a series of positions within the second area, and where at each position, interrogation is undertaken or activated

13. An interrogator as claimed in claim 1, wherein antenna movement may be continuous, in discrete steps, and any combination thereof.

17. A logistics system adapted to identify an item having an associated RFID tag, the system comprising:

storage means adapted to store the item, and

interrogation means as claimed in claim 1 and adapted to interrogate the RFID and thus corresponding identify the item.

18. A system as claimed in claim 17, further comprising memory means adapted to store the correspondence between RFID and item.

14. A method of interrogating a first and/or second area by an RFID interrogator, the method comprising the steps of:

providing an antenna adapted to radiate an interrogation signal in the first area, and

shifting the antenna, while interrogating, within a second area, the second area being larger than the first area.

15. A method as claimed in claim 14, wherein while interrogating, the antenna is shifted from a first position in the second area to a second position in the second area.

16. A method as claimed in claim 14, wherein the antenna is adapted to be shifted in at least one, or in any combination of the x, y and/or z directions.

19. Apparatus adapted to interrogate a first and/or second area with an RFID interrogator, said apparatus including:

processor means adapted to operate in accordance with a predetermined instruction set,

said apparatus, in conjunction with said instruction set, being adapted to perform the method as claimed in claim 14.

20. A computer program product including a computer usable medium having computer readable program code and computer readable system code embodied on said medium for enabling interrogation of an RFID within an area in association with a data processing system, said computer program product including computer readable code within said computer usable medium adapted to operate according to the method of claim 14.