Contactless communication system for exchanging data

• US 6,636,146 B1
• Filed: 12/03/1998
• Issued: 10/21/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 12/10/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Regie Autonome Des Transports Parisiens
• Original Assignee: Regie Autonome Des Transports Parisiens
• Inventors: Wehoski, Frédéric
• Primary Examiner(s): Horabik, Michael
• Assistant Examiner(s): BANGACHON, WILLIAM L
• Application Number:
  US09/194,809
• Time in Patent Office: 1,783 Days
• Field of Search: 340/10.3, 340/10.4, 340/825.72, 340/825.77, 340/10.2, 340/10.42, 342/195, 342/51, 323/220, 380/28
• US Class Current: 340/10.4
• 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: G07B 15/00 Arrangements or apparatus for collecting fares, tolls or entrance fees at one or more control points handling coins or valuable papers, e.g. banknotes, G07D; apparatus for vending or hiring articles or services activated by coins, credit cards, paper currency or the like G07F7/00, G07F17/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/28 the pass enabling tracking or indicating presence

Abstract

The terminal includes a coil co-operating with a data transmitter/receiver. The portable object includes a remotely powered electric circuit including: a coil for picking up the modulated magnetic field from the terminal or for responding by producing modulated disturbance of the magnetic field; a converter including a rectifier stage and a filter stage transforming the magnetic field picked up by the coil into a DC power supply voltage; and a data transmitter/receiver, the receiver including a demodulator for demodulating the amplitude of the signal picked up by the coil, the amplitude demodulator operating on the signal output by the rectifier and filter stages. Each of the coils forms a portion of a tuned resonant circuit radiating the field in free space. The amplitude modulation is a low depth modulation, with a modulation ratio that is typically less than or equal to 50%.

Claims

1. A system for exchanging data, the system comprising:

at least one terminal;

a plurality of portable objects cooperating with the at least one terminal by contactless communication;

wherein the contactless communication is a communication in which an operation of at least one of the plurality of portable objects is clocked by a clock signal remotely generated by the at least one terminal;

wherein the at least one terminal includes a first tuned circuit having a first coil for emitting a magnetic field in free space, a first data transmitter cooperating with the first coil, the first data transmitter including an alternating signal generator and an amplitude modulator, a first data receiver cooperating with the first coil, and a clock generator for generating the clock signal;

wherein the amplitude modulator of the at least one terminal provides amplitude modulation of the magnetic field emitted by the at least one terminal at a modulation ratio less than or equal to 50%,

wherein the at least one of the plurality of portable objects includes an electric circuit remotely powered by the at least one terminal, the at least one of the plurality of portable objects including;

a second tuned circuit having a second coil for at least one of interacting with the magnetic field emitted by the at least one terminal and producing a response by a modulated disturbance of a magnetic field,

a converter cooperating with the second coil to transform a magnetic field signal induced in the second coil into a DC voltage for powering the electric circuit, the converter including a rectifier stage and a filter stage,

a second data transmitter and a second data receiver cooperating with the second coil, the second data receiver including a demodulator demodulating an amplitude of the magnetic field signal induced in the second coil, the demodulator operating on a second signal output from the rectifier stage and the filter stage;

digital processor; and

a clock detector and extractor circuit for receiving a signal from the second tuned circuit and for extracting the clock signal and outputting the clock signal to the digital processor for clocking the digital processor.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the modulation ratio of the at least one terminal is less than 20%.

3. A portable object for contactless communication with a terminal, the portable object including an electronic circuit remotely powered by the terminal;

wherein the contactless communication is a communication in which an operation of the portable object is clocked by a clock signal remotely generated by the terminal;

wherein the portable object comprises;

a first tuned resonant circuit having a first coil for at least one of interacting with a modulated magnetic field emitted by the terminal and producing a response by a modulated disturbance of a magnetic field, the first tuned resonant circuit radiating the magnetic field in free space;

a converter cooperating with the first coil to transform a modulated magnetic field signal induced in the first coil into a DC voltage for powering the electronic circuit, the converter including a rectifier stage and a filter stage;

a data transmitter cooperating with the first coil; and

a data receiver cooperating with the first coil, the data receiver including a demodulator demodulating an amplitude of the modulated magnetic field signal induced in the first coil, and

wherein the demodulator operates on a second signal output from the rectifier stage and the filter stage; and

wherein the portable object further comprises;

digital processor, and

clock detector and extractor circuit for receiving a signal from the first tuned circuit and for extracting the clock signal and outputting the clock signal to the digital processor for clocking the digital processor.

4. The portable object according to claim 3, wherein the demodulator includes a variable threshold circuit comparing an instantaneous value of the second signal applied to an input of the variable threshold circuit with a mean value of the second signal.

5. The portable object according to claim 3, wherein the demodulator includes a circuit responsive to a rate at which an instantaneous value of the second signal increases.

6. The portable object according to claim 3, wherein the converter further includes a stabilizer stage disposed downstream from the rectifier stage and the filter stage, the stabilizer stage including a shunt regulator element connected in parallel with power supply terminals of the electronic circuit, a resistive component being connected in series with a power supply line of the electronic circuit, wherein the shunt regulator element dissipates a variable fraction of a power supply current, and wherein the resistive component and the shunt regulator element dissipate power not required for an operation of the electronic circuit and thereby a power supply voltage at the power supply terminals is stabilized, a voltage excursion at a terminal of the first tuned resonant circuit is limited and an influence on the amplitude of the demodulated magnetic field signal is isolated film a variation in current consumption.

7. The portable object according to claim 6, further comprising a shunt regulator switch for selectively and temporarily inhibiting an operation of the shunt regulator element.

8. The portable object according to claim 7, further comprising a detector capable of detecting at least one of the contactless communications and a contact communication, wherein the selective and temporary inhibition of the operation of the shunt regulator element is in response to detecting the contact communication.

9. The portable object according to claim 3, wherein at least a portion of the first tuned resonant circuit, the converter, the data transmitter, the data receiver and the digital processor are implemented in an integrated monolithic technology.

10. The portable object according to claim 3, wherein the data transmitter further includes a modulator stage modulating a current consumption downstream of the first tuned resonant circuit and wherein the electronic circuit operates in one of a nominal power consumption mode and a low power consumption, the electronic circuit being placed into the low power consumption mode before operation of the data transmitter modulation stage.