Single chip RF tag oscillator circuit synchronized by base station modulation frequency

• US 5,912,632 A
• Filed: 01/08/1997
• Issued: 06/15/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 01/08/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Intermec IP Corporation (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Goldman, Kenneth Alan, Friedman, Daniel Joseph, Heinrich, Harley Kent, Dieska, David E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Horabik, Michael
• Assistant Examiner(s): Asongwed, Anthony A.
• Application Number:
  US08/780,765
• Time in Patent Office: 888 Days
• Field of Search: 340/825.5, 340/825.54, 340/825.36, 340/825.69, 340/825.72, 342/51, 455/31.1, 455/37.1, 455/34.3, 455/38.3, 331/23
• US Class Current: 340/10.5
• 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 7/0008 General problems related to the reading of electronic memory record carriers, independent of its reading method, e.g. power transfer
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 56/0035 detecting errors in frequency or phase

Abstract

A Radio Frequency (RF) transponder (tag), method, and system, whereby the tag has a low current tag oscillator, the oscillation frequency of the tag oscillator set by RF signal from a base station.

Claims

1. A passive radio frequency (RF) transponder (tag) for receiving an RF signal from a base station, comprising;

a tag antenna for receiving the RF signal fron the base station the RF signal having a carrier frequency;

a tag rectification power supply connected to the tag antenna;

a tag logic section and a tag memory section the tag logic section and the tag memory section receiving power only from the tag antenna through the tag rectification power supply;

a receiver section connected to the tag antenna; and

a tag oscillator connected to the receiver section, the tag oscillator having a plurality of possible discrete frequencies of oscillation, the tag oscillator having a tag oscillation frequency much less than the carrier frequency, the tag oscillator frequency used to determine a tag modulation frequency of an RF signal backscattered from the tag antenna, the tag oscillation frequency determined by the RF signal sent from the base station.

2. The RF tag of claim 1, where the RF signal is modulated at a modulation frequency f₁, and the frequency of oscillation of the tag oscillator is determined by f₁.

3. The RF tag of claim 2, where the RF signal is amplitude modulated at a modulation frequency f₁.

4. The RF tag of claim 2, where the RF signal is frequency modulated at a modulation frequency f₁.

5. The RF tag of claim 2, where the RF signal is phase modulated at a modulation frequency f₁.

6. The RF tag of claim 1, wherein the tag oscillator further comprises;

a current source section;

a capacitor section, the capacitor section charged from the current source section;

a voltage comparator section, the voltage comparator section comparing the voltage across the capacitor section to a preset comparison voltage; and

a switch, the switch discharging the capacitor section when the voltage across the capacitor section reaches the preset comparison voltage.

7. The RF tag of claim 6, where the current source section comprises a plurality of defined current sources, at least one of the plurality of defined current sources being controlled to charge the capacitor section in response to the RF signal sent from the base station.

8. The RF tag of claim 7, where at least one of the defined current sources is a defined current transistor in series with a transistor switch.

9. The RF tag of claim 6, where the capacitor section source comprises a plurality of capacitances connected in parallel, at least one of the plurality of capacitances being controlled to receive current or not to receive current from the current source section in response to the RF signal sent from the base station.

10. The RF tag of claim 6, where the comparator section source further comprises a plurality of defined current sources for delivering current to a voltage comparison circuit, at least one of the plurality of defined current sources being controlled to deliver current in response to the RF signal sent from the base station.

11. The RF tag of claim 1, where the tag oscillator uses less than 500 microamperes of current.

12. The RF tag of claim 11, where the tag oscillator uses less than 1 microampere of current.

13. A method of setting a tag oscillation frequency of a tag oscillator of a passive RF tag comprising;

a) receiving an RF signal from a base station, and;

b) adjusting the tag oscillation frequency in response to the RF signal from the base station, wherein the tag oscillation frequency is much less than a carrier frequency of the RF signal, and wherein the tag oscillation frequency is used to determine a tag modulation frequency of an RF signal backscattered from the tag.

14. The method of setting an oscillation frequency of claim 13, where the RF signal is modulated at a modulation frequency f₁ and the oscillation frequency is set as a function of f₁.

15. The method of claim 14, where the RF signal is amplitude modulated at a modulation frequency f₁.

16. The method of claim 14, where the RF signal is frequency modulated at a modulation frequency f₁.

17. The method of claim 14, where the RF signal is phase modulated at a modulation frequency f₁.

18. The method claim 14, where the tag counts the number of tag oscillator pulses in one period of the base station modulation frequency, and adjusts tag oscillator frequency so that the number is approximately equal to a preset number.

19. A method of setting an oscillation frequency of a tag oscillator of a passive RF tag, where the tag adjusts the oscillator frequency according to the following steps;

a) setting the tag oscillator so that the tag oscillation frequency is the lowest possible frequency by setting all control bits equal to one;

b) resetting the most significant bit equal to zero;

c) resetting a local counter of tag oscillator pulses on a rising edge of the steadily modulated RF field sent out by the base station;

d) counting pulses of the tag oscillator until the next rising edge of the steadily modulated RE field sent out from the base station;

e) if the count value is greater than a preset number, resetting the local counter, setting the last bit reset to one, resetting the next significant bit to zero, and returning to step (c);

f) if the count value is less than the preset number, resetting the local counter, resetting the next significant bit to zero, and returning to step (c); and

g) continuing until all control bits have been set or reset and the count value is approximately equal to the preset number.

20. The method claim 19, where the tag further adjusts the oscillator frequency in the additional step;

h) slowing the tag oscillator so that the count value is definitely less than the preset number, and definitely more than the preset number minus one.

21. The method claim 19, where the tag further adjusts the tag oscillator in the additional step of;

resetting the tag oscillator phase on the rising edge of the steadily modulated RF field sent out by the base station.

22. A system for sending and receiving modulated RF signals, comprising;

a base station for sending modulated RF signals, the RF signals having a carrier frequency; and

at least one passive RF tag for receiving the RF signals, the RF tag comprising a tag antenna for receiving the RF signal from the base station, a tag receiver section connected to the tag antenna; and

a tag oscillator connected to the tag receiver section, the tag oscillator having a tag oscillation frequency much less than the carrier frequency, the tag oscillation frequency used to determine the a modulation frequency of an RF signal backscattered from the tag antenna, the tag oscillator frequency determined by the Rf signals sent by the base station.

23. The system of claim 22, where the base station sends RF signals modulated at a modulation frequency f₁, and the frequency of oscillation of the tag oscillator is determined by the modulation frequency f₁.

24. The system of claim 23, where the RF signal is amplitude modulated at a modulation frequency f₁.

25. The system of claim 23, where the RF signal is frequency modulated at a modulation frequency f₁.

26. The system of claim 23, where the RF signal is phase modulated at a modulation frequency f₁.

27. The system of claim 22, where the base station further comprises a computer for receiving and sending data from and to the tag.

28. A passive radio frequency (RF) transponder (tag) for receiving an RF signal from a base station, comprising;

a tag antenna for receiving the RF signal from the base station, the RF signal having a carrier frequency;

a receiver section connected to the tag antenna;

a tag rectification power supply connected to the tag antenna;

a tag logic section and a tag memory section, the tag logic section and the tag memory section receiving power only from the tag antenna through the tag rectification power supply; and

a tag oscillator connected to the receiver section, the tag oscillator having a tag oscillation frequency much less than the carrier frequency, the tag oscillation frequency used to determine a tag modulation frequency of an RF signal backscattered from the tag antenna, the tag oscillation frequency determined by the RF signal sent from the base station.