Source: http://www.google.es/patents/US9391675
Timestamp: 2017-11-23 09:54:49
Document Index: 560095395

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 1', 'art 2', 'Application No. 15179240', 'Application No. 10009341', 'Application No. 10009341', 'art 2', 'art 1', 'art 3']

Patente US9391675 - Multi-element RFID coupler - Google Patentes
An RFID communication system comprising a near field coupler that is capable of selectively communicating with a targeted transponder positioned among a group of multiple adjacent transponders. The coupler is configured to receive communication signals from a transceiver and transmit the signals to a...http://www.google.es/patents/US9391675?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatente US9391675 - Multi-element RFID coupler
Número de publicación US9391675 B2
Número de solicitud US 13/941,300
También publicado como EP1943611A1, EP1943611B1, EP2261835A1, EP2261835B1, EP2261836A1, EP2261836B1, US8078103, US8306474, US20070099566, US20120108170, US20120270501, US20130300543, WO2007053567A1
Número de publicación 13941300, 941300, US 9391675 B2, US 9391675B2, US-B2-9391675, US9391675 B2, US9391675B2
Inventores Yevgeniy Borisov, Karl Torchalski, Daniel F. Donato
Citas de patentes (163), Otras citas (39), Citada por (1), Clasificaciones (11), Eventos legales (1)
US 9391675 B2
1. A near field coupler system comprising:
a near field coupler in electrical communication with the transceiver, the near field coupler configured to transmit wireless signals to a targeted transponder, the near field coupler comprising:
a ground plane adjacent to the second surface of the dielectric substrate;
radiating elements disposed on the first surface of the dielectric substrate, wherein the radiating elements are coupled to the ground plane through one or more terminating resistors; and
at least one switching element coupled to each of the radiating elements, wherein the at least one switching element is:
provided in electrical communication with the transceiver; and
configured to selectively activate one or more radiating elements among the radiating elements to provide selective wireless communications between the transceiver and the one or more of the radiating elements to communicate with the targeted transponder having an unknown orientation relative to the radiating elements; and
a processor configured to determine a transceiver power level required to effectively communicate with the targeted transponder.
2. The near field coupler system of claim 1, wherein the at least one switching element is further configured to selectively activate the one or more radiating elements to minimize inadvertent communications with transponders other than the targeted transponder while enabling a reliable encoding of the targeted transponder.
3. The near field coupler system of claim 1 further comprising a non-transitory storage device used to store data associated with the transceiver power level, wherein the data is accessed to communicate with subsequent transponders arranged in the unknown orientation.
4. The near field coupler system of claim 1, wherein the transceiver power level is a highest transceiver power level possible without allowing inadvertent communication with transponders other than the targeted transponder.
5. The near field coupler system of claim 1, wherein the transceiver power level is the lowest transceiver power level required to effectively communicate with the targeted transponder.
6. The near field coupler system of claim 1, wherein the at least one switching element is comprised of a plurality of switches and wherein the number of switches is equal to or less than the number of radiating elements.
7. The near field coupler system of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to determine a preferred configuration of the at least one switching element to effectively communicate with the targeted transponder while minimizing inadvertent communications with transponders other than the targeted transponder and while enabling a reliable encoding of the targeted transponder.
8. The near field coupler system of claim 7 further comprising a non-transitory storage device used to store data associated with the preferred configuration of the least one switching element to later access the data to communicate with subsequent transponders arranged in the unknown orientation.
9. The near field coupler of claim 1, wherein the radiating elements includes at least three radiating elements and each radiating element is a conductive strip disposed on the first surface of the dielectric substrate.
10. The near field coupler system of claim 1 further comprising a printhead configured to print indicia upon a media unit associated with the targeted transponder.
11. A method of tuning a near field coupler system comprising:
transmitting a communication signal from a transceiver to a near field coupler, the near field coupler comprising radiating elements and at least one switching element, wherein the at least one switching element is configured to provide selective electrical communication between the transceiver and one or more of the radiating elements among the radiating elements to define a plurality of radiating configurations for broadcasting wireless signals into a transponder operating region;
positioning a targeted transponder within the transponder operation region, wherein the targeted transponder is arranged in an unknown orientation;
broadcasting wireless signals into the transponder operating region;
determining a selected radiating configuration of the plurality of radiating configurations, wherein the at least one switching element defines the selected radiating configuration and wherein the selected radiating configuration provides selective wireless communications between the transceiver and the one or more of the radiating elements to communicate with the targeted transponder having the unknown orientation;
storing data associated with the selected radiating configuration; and
accessing the data and utilizing the selected radiating configuration for subsequent transponders arranged in the unknown orientation.
12. The method of claim 11 further comprising determining a power level for each of the plurality of multiple radiating configurations that accommodates a reliable encoding of the targeted transponder, wherein determining the selected radiating configuration is based on the selected radiating configuration having a lowest power level among the power levels for each of the multiple radiating configurations.
13. The method of claim 11 further comprising determining a power level for each of the plurality of multiple radiating configurations that accommodates a reliable encoding of the targeted transponder, wherein determining the selected radiating configuration is based on the selected radiating configuration having a highest possible power level without allowing inadvertent communication with transponders other than the targeted transponder.
positioning a new transponder within the transponder operation region, wherein the new transponder is arranged in an orientation different than the unknown orientation;
determining a new radiating configuration of the plurality of radiating configurations, wherein the at least one switching element defines the new radiating configuration and wherein the new radiating configuration provides selective wireless communications between the transceiver and one or more of the radiating elements to communicate with the new transponder having the new orientation; and
storing new data associated with the new radiating configuration.
15. The method of claim 11 further comprising printing indicia upon a media unit associated with the targeted transponder.
16. A near field coupler system comprising:
a processor configured to determine a preferred configuration of the at least one switching element to effectively communicate with the targeted transponder while minimizing inadvertent communications with transponders other than the targeted transponder and while enabling a reliable encoding of the targeted transponder.
17. A method of tuning a near field coupler system comprising:
determining a power level for each of the plurality of multiple radiating configurations that accommodates a reliable encoding of the targeted transponder;
determining a selected radiating configuration of the plurality of radiating configurations, wherein the at least one switching element defines the selected radiating configuration and wherein the selected radiating configuration provides selective wireless communications between the transceiver and the one or more of the radiating elements to communicate with the targeted transponder having the unknown orientation; and
storing data associated with the selected radiating configuration.
18. A method of tuning a near field coupler system comprising:
storing data associated with the selected radiating configuration;
This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/540,537, filed Jul. 2, 2012, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/300,311, filed Nov. 18, 2011, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/263,093, filed Oct. 31, 2005, each of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
The array of radiating elements includes two or more radiating elements 62, wherein each radiating element 62 is structured to convert the electrical signals produced by the transceiver into an electromagnetic field. In the depicted embodiments, each radiating element 62 is comprised of a conductive strip or line disposed on the first surface 53 of the dielectric substrate 56. Each radiating element 62 generally extends from the first end 55 to the second end 56 of the dielectric substrate 52. More specifically, according to the embodiment depicted in FIG. 4, the array includes three radiating elements 62 the are generally linear and parallel to each other. Also, the radiating elements 62 may include non-linear portions. For purposes of the present specification and appended claims the term “non-linear portion” refers to a segment of a conductive line or strip having one or more turns or changes in direction. A non-linear portion may have sharply defined turns to appear as a zig-zag type structure or may have relatively smooth turns to appear as a wavy structure. Exemplary non-linear portions of the radiating elements 62 are depicted in FIG. 5. The manner of which the radiating elements 62 are deposed on the first surface 53 may vary. For example, the radiating elements may be etched, printed, or deposited onto the first surface.
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Clasificación internacional H04B5/00, H01Q13/20, G06K7/10, H01Q1/22, G06K7/00
Clasificación cooperativa H01Q13/206, H04B5/0062, G06K7/10316, G06K7/0008, H01Q1/2216, H01Q1/22