Patent ID: 7250865

Claim:
An object tracking system for tracking the removal of objects from a storage unit and the replacement of the objects at a storage unit, said object tracking system comprising: a non-contact ID tag attached to each of the object to be tracked, each non-contact ID tag including an electronic storage device carrying a stored code associated with the object corresponding to the non-contact ID tag, each of said non-contact ID tags being capable of transmitting its stored code; a plurality of receptacles in said storage unit wherein each receptacle is configured to receive a single object and to allow each single object to be selectively removed from each receptacle; at least one non-contact sensor associated with a receptacle for polling the non-contact ID tag of an object in a receptacle and detecting the resulting transmission by the non-contact ID tag of the stored code associated with the object; selection circuitry coupled to said sensor for selecting said sensor, said sensor, when selected, detecting the stored code associated with an object if an object is present in the associated receptacle and detecting no code if an object is not present in the associated receptacle; and a controller coupled to said sensor for receiving stored codes detected by said sensor and for determining, based on the received codes, the absence of objects removed from the location and the presence and location within the storage unit of objects present at the location; said non-contact ID tags being adapted to transmit their stored codes to said sensor.