Abstract:
A system for enhanced substantially simultaneously monitoring multiple aggregated RFID-tagged products comprising an RFID reader disposed remote from said aggregated RFID-tagged products and a supplemental antenna disposed intermediate the RFID reader and the RFID-tagged products. The supplemental antenna includes at least a portion thereof in substantially non-interrupted communication with multiple ones of the RFID tags associated with the RFID-tagged products and at least a portion thereof being in substantially non-interrupted communication with said antenna associated with said RFID reader, whereby said supplemental antenna enhances the transmission of coded information between the reader and the RFID tags associated with the RFID tagged products. A slip sheet having a supplemental antennas associated therewith is disclosed.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     Not Applicable  
       STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT  
       [0002]     Not Applicable  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0003]     1. Field of Invention  
         [0004]     This invention pertains to electromagnetic identification of tagging of merchandise employing radio frequencies.  
         [0005]     More particularly, this invention pertains to a method and apparatus for improving the transmissions of electromagnetic (particularly radio frequency) radiation between an RFID reader and a remote product having an RFID tag associated therewith.  
         [0006]     2. Description of the Related Art  
         [0007]     Current practices in inventory management are increasingly employing Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags to monitor the progress of merchandise as the individual items or packages move through the supply chain from the manufacturer to the wholesaler to the retailer shelves and/or even to the end user. In this monitoring system, each item or package of merchandise is provided with an RFID tag which is capable of electronically storing various information such as the identity, quantity, etc. of the item and/or its contents, origination source, and substantial other information deemed to be useful in monitoring the movement of the item through the channels of commerce and/or ultimate disposition of the item.  
         [0008]     Radio frequencies (RF) are subject to distortion, reflection, weakening, and other adverse effects by such materials as liquids and/or metals, and other environmental effects such as the distance of travel of the RF signal and the presence or absence of RF-blocking or distortion materials between the source of the RF and the receiver thereof (RFID reader, for example).  
         [0009]     In commerce, it is common to stack products or cartons containing products on pallets for storage or shipping, for example. If the carton is tagged with an RFID tag, by scanning the individual carton or a plurality of cartons on a single pallet with an RFID reader, the identity and number of items contained within the carton or the identity of the cartons in the stack are ascertainable.  
         [0010]     However, the known limitations on this activity by reason of the presence in the field of the RF of certain materials which hinder the transmission of the signal, for example, strongly adversely affect the accuracy of the detection and reading of RFID tags associated with individual items of merchandise or individual items or clusters of individual items with RFID tags on them. When packages or containers containing liquids or metals are clustered in a typical shipping pallet configuration or on a retail shelf, then the RFID reader may not recognize all of the RFID tags. This will result in a miscount, essentially destroying the value of the inventory controls. This problem of “invisible” RFID tags is particularly troublesome where the individual packages of product are oriented such that the RFID tag is not “visible” to the RFID reader. This situation may occur due to the orientation of cases of product stacked on a pallet, and especially may occur when individual packages of products are disposed on a retail display shelf in side-by-side relationship. That is, on retail display shelves, space is at a premium and retailers tend to arrange packages of like products in abutting relationship to one another, an action which frequently hides the RFID tag from an RFID reader. This problem is compounded when the product container in the package, or the package itself, includes a liquid or metal material. Cigarette packages which may include metallized foil is one example.  
         [0011]     The current EPC standard for RFIDs and their readers are 13.56 MHz and 915 MHz. Both of these frequencies are impacted by the presence of liquids and metals. The inability to read all the RFID tags on packages on a shipping pallet significantly reduces the business value proposition or cost justification for implementing RFID technology in the supply chain. For example, if a shpper must break down a pallet containing 80-120 shipping cases in order to read the RFID tag on each case, then there is no value proposition. Current RFID reader configurations, i.e. dock door portals, stationary readers and hand held readers, cannot read all the RFID tags in a pallet configuration when the products or packaging contain liquids and/or metals. Typically such reader configurations can read those tags that are found on the outer surfaces of the pallet configuration and some of the tags that have a clear read pathway, i.e., no liquids or metals between the reader and the RFID tag.  
         [0012]     Compounding the problem of accessibility to the cartons/packages by RF radiation is the cost of the tags themselves. To make a tag which has greater “broadcasting strength” is materially more expensive than making a tag which has a limited broadcast strength. Thus, increasing the broadcasting strength of the chip in the RFID, to date, has not been an acceptable option.  
       SUMMARY OF INVENTION  
       [0013]     In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the present inventor provides an inhanced pathway from a remote RFID reader to a plurality of target tags associated with single or multiple packages, cartons or cases of packaged or unpackaged merchandise, in the form of a supplemental antenna interposed between a location operatively adjacent one or more of individual cases or packages of products which are disposed in stacked or palletized configuration, for example. This supplemental antenna provides for substantially uninterrupted transmission of RFID signals between an RFID reader and an RFID tag irrespective of the presence of RFID-transmission barriers associated with closely stocked or aggregated RFID tag-bearing cases, cartons or other packaging of products. It further alleviates RF transmission problems due to the process of water, other liquids and/or metal which may be contained in the clustered packages or otherwise interposed between the RFID tag and the reader. In a preferred embodiment, the present invention includes a slip sheet having a plurality of spaced apart supplemental antennas associated therewith, each supplemental antennae being adapted to transmit RF signals to and from a remote RFID reader (having an antennae associated therewith) and a plurality of RFID tags associated with groupings of merchandise, for example. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES  
       [0014]      FIG. 1  is a schematic representation of a system depicting the reading of the RFID tags on adjacent packages of cigarettes on a retail shelf;  
         [0015]      FIG. 2  is a schematic representation of tagged merchandise disposed on a retail (or other storage) shelf for tagged merchandise and including a supplemental antenna of the present invention associated with each such item of merchandise;  
         [0016]      FIG. 3 , is a schematic representation of a conventional slip sheet employed in palletized cases of product and depicting supplemental antennas carried by the slip sheet;  
         [0017]      FIG. 4 , is a schematic representation of a system for reading the tags associated with a palletized grouping of multiple tagged cases of merchandise and depicting slip sheets of the present invention interposed between layers of the cases;  
         [0018]      FIG. 5  is a schematic representation of the system depicted in  FIG. 4  wherein the side edges of the slip sheets are folded upward out of the plane of the slip sheet for more ready accessibility of the RF from an RFID reader to the tags on the tagged cases; and,  
         [0019]      FIG. 6  is a schematic representation of an embodiment of a laminated slip sheet having multiple antennas disposed between top and bottom layers of paper material. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION  
       [0020]     In  FIG. 1 , there is depicted a system  10  for the common application of the use of RF signals  12  as a medium for recognizing multiple containers of merchandise stacked on a retail shelf, for example, employing a remote RFID reader  18 . In this Figure, there are depicted two RFID-tagged cartons  14  and  16  of cigarettes (known to container metallized foil), the two cartons being aligned with one of the cartons  14  disposed between the other  16  of the cartons and a remote RFID reader  18  having an antenna associated therewith. In this situation, the RFID tag # 2  of the second carton will likely not be recognized by the reader due to the metallized foil in the cigarette packages of the first carton  14  blocking or distorting the RF from the reader. In this situation, if the RFID tags are associated with the individual cartons of cigarettes, the reader will consistently recognize RFID tag # 1  associated with the first carton  14 , but will recognize RFID tag # 2  only when there is an air gap 20% greater than about one inch between the cartons. This same result has been observed when the cartons of cigarettes are palletized. That is, the RFID tags associated with those cartons most “inner” of the pallet are not recognized by the RFID reader.  
         [0021]     In  FIG. 2 , there are depicted three cartons  22 ,  24  and  26  of cigarettes disposed on a retail display shelf  28  in side-by-side relationship. In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the shelf is provided with an elliptical supplemental antenna  30 ,  32  and  34  respectively, associated with each individual and/or row of cartons on the shelf. In this embodiment, each of the shelf antennas include a portion  36  thereof which is disposed directly beneath one of the cartons  22  on the shelf and a second portion  38  which projects out from under the same carton, whereby such second portion of the antenna is exposed for substantially uninterrupted access by RF generated signals  12  by a remote RFID reader  18 , and its associated antennae  19 . In this embodiment, the RF signals  12  emanating from the antenna  19  associated with the RFID reader  18  readily reach, and are picked up by, each of the supplemental antennas associated with the shelf and are transmitted to one or more tags  42 ,  44  and  46  which are associated with the cartons of cigarettes. Reverse transmission of RF from the tags to the reader takes place in like manner. The use of supplemental antennae associated with products stored on a shelf provide the advantage that the usual microchip in the RFID tag can be smaller, without a chip antennae, and less power consuming hence, having less expensive. This advantage is directly related to the near proximity of the supplemental antennae to the RFID tag. Further, in this embodiment, the RF signal from the antennae  19 ; in combination with the supplement antennae  20 ,  22  and  24 , can access tags on individual packages of cigarettes within a carton.  
         [0022]     In the embodiment depicted in  FIG. 2 , each of the antenna on the shelf may comprise an individual antenna associated with each of the cartons on the shelf or may be of a size and geometry sufficient to accommodate multiple ones of the cartons on the shelf. Further, each antenna may be applied (releasably or fixedly) to the top surface  50  of the shelf by any of several conventional means. In one embodiment, the multiple antennas may be affixed to a strip of material, such as a strip of paper or paperboard or the like, and the strip itself may be applied to the top surface of the shelf.  
         [0023]     In the embodiment of the present invention depicted in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , there is provided a plurality of individual antennas  52  (typical) affixed to one surface  54  of a conventional paper slip sheet  56 . Individual ones  56 ,  56 ′ and  56 ″ of the antenna-bearing slip sheets are designed to be inserted between rows  58 ,  60  and  62  of cases 64% product stacked on a pallet  66 , for example, as depicted in  FIG. 4  and/or between the bottom row  62  of cases and the pallet  66  itself.  
         [0024]     Each slip sheet  56 , for example, itself may be formed from any material which does not materially interfere with the transmission of RF signals and which provides the normal function of a slip sheet. Preferably the slip sheet material is transparent to RF signals, such as is corrugated paperboard. By this means, RF signals may be transmitted bidirectionally between a reader  18 ″ and its antenna  19 ″ and each of the supplemental antennas  52  and also bidirectionally between the supplemental antennas and those cases in the row above the slip sheet and those cases in the row below the slip sheet. Paper sheet material having a basis weight of between about 40 and about 200 per 3000 ft 2  is commonly employed as slip sheet material. Desirably, the slip sheet material contributes minimally to the cost of the completed slip sheet in that slip sheets commonly are not recycled as slip sheets. However, depending upon the durability of the slip sheet material, if desired, the antennae-bearing slip sheets may be recycled.  
         [0025]     Fixation of the antennas  52  to the top surface  54  of the slip sheet  56  may be by any conventional means for affixing antennas to planar materials. In addition to glue-type affixation of the antennas to the slip sheet, the antennae may be printed on or embossed into the slip sheet, embedded in the slip sheet, plasticized or other wise fixed in their spaced apart locations over the top surface of the slip sheet. Through choice of the size and geometry of the multiple antennas  52 , the present inventors may selectively provide suitable antennas for any of a large variety of shapes and sizes of cases, cartons, etc. on the pallet.  
         [0026]     Whereas the slip sheet depicted in  FIG. 3  includes supplemental antennas  52  on only the top surface of the slip sheet, it will be understood that supplemental antennas may be affixed also to the bottom surface  70  of the slip sheet. In such event, the material of the slip sheet will not be transparent to RF signals.  
         [0027]     In one embodiment of an antenna-bearing slip sheet  56  of the present invention, as shown in  FIGS. 3 and 5 , the slip sheet is wider in at least one dimension than the anticipated stack of cases on the pallet so that when the slip sheet is disposed between adjacent rows of cases on the pallet, short portions  75  and  77  of the opposite ends  72  and  74 , respectively, of the slip sheet project beyond the outer ones of the cases on the pallet. In this embodiment, the inventor provides a perforations or score (fold) line  76  and  78  inwardly of at least two opposite ones of those side edges  72  which project laterally beyond the stacked cases on the pallet. This perforation or score line is disposed inwardly from respective ones of these projecting side edges by a distance substantially equal to the length of each overhang. Thereby, each such side edge may be folded upwardly or downwardly to provide more ready accessibility of RF signals from the reader to the supplemental antennas disposed on the slip sheet interiorly of the palletized cases. Any of the four opposite side edges of the slip sheet may be provided with perforations or score lines, as desired, thereby eliminating directionality of application of the slip sheet between the rows of the cases. That is, one can choose which ones of the opposite sides of the slip sheet are up or down folded to accommodate the known orientation of the pallet at the time it is being exposed to the RF signals, such as when the pallet is passing through a fixed reader apparatus.  
         [0028]     In a further embodiment of the present invention, as depicted in  FIG. 6 , the slip sheet may comprise a lamination  80  which includes a outer top layer  82 , an outer bottom layer  84  and either a plurality of supplemental antennas  86  disposed between such outer top and bottom layers, or a plurality of antennas disposed on a third inner layer. As noted above, each of the outer layers, and any intermediate layer, is transparent to RF signals, thereby permitting RF transmission to take place between the supplemental antennas disposed internally of the laminate and a reader and tags associated with the cases on the pallet. One embodiment includes lamination onto a corrugated paperboard substrate. Conventional laminating apparatus and processes may be employed in the formation of a laminate as depicted in  FIG. 6 .  
         [0029]     In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the ability to create electromagnetic pathways through a palletized grouping of RFID-tagged products opens up the opportunity of eliminating those current limitations of the 915 MHz frequency togs which are associated with the physics of systems currently in use.  
         [0030]     Further, as desired or used, the slip sheet may be seamed or perforated to provide visibility of the electromagnetic pathway to the readers.  
         [0031]     Whereas the present invention has been described employing specific examples, it is intended that the invention be limited only as set forth in the claims appended hereto. Moreover, whereas the permanent slip sheets may not provide for identification of 100% of the RFID tags in an aggregation of tagged products, the present invention has repeatedly demonstrated identification of ninety-plus percent of palletized tagged products which have liquid or metal materials associated therewith.