Patent ID: 8730011

Claim:
Apparatus for tracking an object, comprising: a position transducer, which is adapted to be fixed to the object, and which comprises: a digital microcontroller, comprising a plurality of output pins, and which is operative to generate an alternating digital output at a selected frequency on at least one of the output pins; and at least one transmit antenna coupled directly to the at least one of the output pins, so that the at least one antenna transmits a magnetic field at the selected frequency responsively to the alternating digital output, the at least one transmit antenna comprising a coil, having a resonant frequency in a vicinity of the selected frequency; at least one location pad comprising a field sensor, which is adapted to sense the magnetic field and to generate a signal responsively thereto; and a processor, which is coupled to receive and process the signal in order to determine location and orientation coordinates of the position transducer.