Patent ID: 12241120

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The Faraday bag10disclosed herein was created to provide signal blocking protection (radio frequencies) to companies using Internet-of-Things (IOT) and other similar signal transmitting devices in the warehousing & transport industries—where the safekeeping of sensitive data and blocking of all wireless/Bluetooth/cellular/RFID signal is required for Radio Frequency (RF) interference purposes in transit and also when inside IOT connected warehouses.

Applicant's preferred embodiment of a warehouse bag10that can be combined into a cardboard box40to form a storage/shipping box100is best understood with reference to the figures and following description.

The preferred warehouse bag10is formed from the following fabric or fabric-like materials, combined with Velcro® strips for securement to a suitably sized and apertured box40:External: One layer of 100% rip-stop nylon; andInternal: three layers of shielding material, e.g. 58% polyester/28% copper/14% nickel

The warehouse bag10also features a unique trapdoor30and a large, roll-down top that are designed to maintain an RF tight enclosure.

How it Works

1. The Faraday bag10comes equipped with external sewn-on mounting strips (the loop- or fuzzy-side of Velcro®) that are easily secured to mating strips (the hook-side of Velcro®) adhered to the inside of a standard cardboard shipping box, preferably to the bottom of the box and also to the side where an opening is cut to align with the bag's trapdoor30.

2. The Faraday bag's top roll-down opening is rolled down three times and firmly held in a closed, and then rolled-down position by two pairs of mating Velcro® strips to ensure signal blocking protection. The large opening is sealed by one pair of Velcro® strips with the inside shielding material on opposing panels in contact with one another, and then the top of the bag is rolled over and held in the roll-over configuration with the other pair of Velcro® strips to maintain the conductive contact that block signal.

3. The Faraday bag10is then placed into a cardboard shipping box40that has a small cut out hole (or flap) that aligns to the magnetic trapdoor30of the Faraday bag10. This hole (or flap) is manually cut into the box and is relatively small so it can be easily sealed up when the box/bag combo is full and ready for shipment.

4. Warehouse workers are then able to easily drop in large quantities (30+) signal transmitting IOT's11(connected through Bluetooth, GPS and cellular) into the box/bag combo100formed from faraday bag10and the box40, through the magnetic trapdoor30—secure the hold (or flap) in the cardboard box40, and return the devices11securely, ensuring no signal or data is leaked, transmitted or scanned while in transit. And further the devices11are not sending out interfering RF signals while stored in the bag10inside the warehouse.

5. The large roll-down Velcro® opening and closure system allows for efficient removal of the devices11at the final destination, i.e. for recycling, refurbishments, or repurposing.

The Presently Preferred Embodiment

FIGS.1and2show some typical freight tracking devices11, including one small, low cost device11athat is intended for one-time use and several other more expensive freight tracking devices11b,11c,11d, and11ethat are relatively expensive and are intended for recovery, restoration, and re-use. These devices form part of the IOT environment.

The illustrated warehouse bag10is a Faraday bag that is specifically designed for receiving, holding, and shipping IOT devices like the freight tracking devices11. It is suitable for any device that connects to a cellular, GPS, Bluetooth, Wireless, WiFi, or RFID signal.

The warehouse bag10is designed to fit into a standard cardboard box40, e.g. a Uline box, that is easily retrofitted to allow devices to be received in the bag10, where they can remain until ready to return while simultaneously blocking signal.

This allows the user, or company, to know that all private information or data is completely blocked from the outside world, and to prevent the stored devices from interfering with other communication channels, until it is time to open the box40and bag10from the top.

As shown, the preferred warehouse bag10is designed for functionality and ease of use. It features a magnetic self-closing trapdoor30, a Velcro® top seal that operates on a roll-down basis, Velcro® connection to the side of the cardboard box in the area of the trapdoor30, and Velcro® connection to the bottom of the cardboard box.

FIGS.3and4show a presently preferred Faraday bag10, or “warehouse bag,” in a plastic shipping bag20ready for delivery to a shipping logistics service provider for assembly into a storage/shipping box that is deployed in a customer warehouse that routinely receives freight tracking devices11that need to be returned to the logistics provider who owns the devices11and which, if not neutralized prior to return, may interfere with other RF communications in the warehouse;

FIGS.5to11shows the warehouse bag10from various sides, revealing the preferred location of the trapdoor30, the Velcro® strips, etc.

FIGS.12and13show the selection of a suitably dimensioned cardboard box, here 15″×12″×8″. The presently preferred warehouse bag10is 17″H×14″ L×11.5″ D, so the deformable bag will fit tightly within the box40.

Assembly

FIG.14is a series of illustrations showing a presently preferred assembly process where a cardboard box40is modified to have an open four-sided window41that is located so the warehouse bag's trapdoor30aligns with the opening when the bag10is dropped into the box40, thereby forming an easily accessed, RF-tight storage/shipping box100;

FIG.15shows an alternative approach to modifying the cardboard box40by cutting out a three-sided flap41′ rather than a four-sided window41;

Use

In use, the RF-tight storage/shipping box100is simply located in a convenient location for warehouse workers to drop in tracking devices11after removing them from goods or pallets containing goods. A possible scenario, for example, is locating the RF-tight storage/shipping box100on a rolling table in the loading dock area of a warehouse.

Eventually, the box will fill up and be ready for return.FIG.16shows a shipping/storage box100that is full of asset tracking devices11and now read to be returned to the logistics provider. The warehouse bag10could, of course, be used to store and transport multiple cell phone (e.g.20) or other electronic device without connection.

Preferred Construction

As noted above, the preferred warehouse bag10is formed from the following fabric or fabric-like materials, combined with Velcro® strips for securement to a suitably sized and apertured box40:External: One layer of 100% rip-stop nylon; andInternal Lining: three layers of Multishield™ shielding material, e.g. 58% polyester/28% copper/14% nickel

The presently preferred trapdoor30is formed from450 gm paperone layer of 0.8 mm PP boardthree layers of Multishield™ Faraday lining signal blocking shielding material20 small magnets, 10 in the frame and 10 in the flap;several strips of Velcro

FIGS.17and18are exploded views of the above-listed components that are assembled into the magnetic frame that forms one half of the presently preferred trap door30and magnetic flap that forms the other half of the presently preferred trap door30. As shown, an arrangement of magnets on the frame and flap allow the trapdoor30to be pushed open, but then automatically closes due to gravity in combination with the magnets to pull it closed and keep it firmly closed for RF-tightness.

The presently preferred Faraday bag10features a self-closing RF-tight device passage for recovering, temporarily storing, and then returning freight-tracking transmitters. The preferred device passage is a trapdoor30that is configured as a top-hinged flap that closes due to gravity and integrated magnets, but there are many possible configurations in terms of shape and closure biases, including an overlapping slit-like arrangement of fabric, and closure biases provided by other elements such as springs, living hinges, etc.

FIGS.19to20are cross-sectional sides views that show the detailed construction of the presently preferred trapdoor30of the warehouse bag10, and it being secured to the window in the box40with Velcro® to form the RF-tight storage/shipping box100shown inFIGS.14and16. The dashed lines represent the presently preferred stitching that generally provides for a robust assembly that further allows for a continuously conductive connection in the trapdoor region when the trapdoor30is closed.

FIGS.21to23show an asset tracking device11being inserted through the trap door30, past the magnetic closing forces between the magnets in the frame and flap, and then dropped into the storage/shipping box100.

FIGS.24to27show the cutting patterns used to mark and cut the layers of special fabric and other components that are stitched and glued together in order to make the presently preferred Faraday bag30.

FIG.28shows an alternative embodiment that uses a hard-sided container10′ instead of a soft-sided bag10, the hard-sided container10′ being equipped with a suitable flap30′. As should be apparent, the hard-sided container could be formed from a case like those sold under the Pelican® brand, which has been modified to be RF-tight and equipped with a suitable flap or trap door30′ that allows for the insertion of a shipping tracker or other electronic device.

In order to even more effectively block electronic signals, the inventors contemplate that the warehouse bag10's trapdoor30area may later feature the parallel rib structures that were incorporated into the security pouch disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 9,460,309.