JP2001291080A - Non-contact type ic card - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To realize efficient reading and writing operations by switching an antenna to a resonance type or a non-resonance type according to the situation of reading and writing. SOLUTION: In an IC card 10, a resonance circuit is constituted by serially connecting a capacitor 14 and an antenna (coil) 16 to an IC chip 12, and a switch part 18 connected in parallel to this capacitor 14 is arranged. Since this resonance circuit is constituted when the switch part 18 is opened, a power can be efficiently generated even with the weak magnetic field at the time of generating a magnetic field by an IC card reader/writer 20, and data reading and wiring operations can be performed with the IC reader/writer 20. When the switch part 18 is closed, the capacitor 14 close not function, and a non- resonance circuit is constituted so that resonance frequencies can be prevented from being changed even in a state that a plurality of IC cards are overlapped. Thus batch reading or writing operations can be performed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a non-contact type IC card, and more specifically, to generate electric power on the IC card side by a magnetic field formed by an IC card reader / writer and operate the IC chip with the electric power. A non-contact type IC card for reading and writing IC card data.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a card on which a certain amount of data is written is carried around, and the data is read from the card by using a card reader / writer. It is used in various fields by using a data update type card on which data can be written. As this type of card, in addition to a magnetic card used for a prepaid card, a credit card, and the like, recently, an IC card having a large amount of readable / writable information and excellent security performance has been put into practical use. The IC card reader / writer for reading and writing data of the IC card is provided with an electrode pad exposed on the IC chip, and a contact type in which a terminal such as a probe is brought into contact with the electrode pad. There is a non-contact type that transmits and receives data. The non-contact type IC card used in this non-contact type IC card reader / writer has I
In some cases, electromotive force is generated in an IC card by a magnetic field generated by a C card reader / writer, and IC power is read or written by operating an IC chip using this power. An antenna used for the non-contact type IC card includes a non-resonant type in which a coil (L) is connected to an IC chip and a resonant type in which a coil (L) and a capacitor (C) are connected in series to an IC chip. There was.

[0003]

However, in such a conventional non-contact type IC card, when the above-mentioned resonance type antenna is used, required electric power can be efficiently obtained with a small magnetic field strength. On the other hand, if a plurality of non-contact type IC cards are stacked and read and written by the IC card reader / writer at once, the adjacent IC cards mutually affect each other and the resonance frequency changes, and the necessary frequency is changed. There is a problem that power cannot be obtained and reading and writing cannot be performed. In addition, when the above non-resonant type antenna is used, even if a plurality of IC cards are stacked, the influence of adjacent IC cards is small, so that a plurality of IC cards are read and written collectively using an IC card reader / writer. On the other hand, since the electromotive force is small, there has been a problem that the magnetic field intensity generated from the IC card reader / writer must be increased in order to obtain the power required for operating the IC card. As described above, if the antenna used for the conventional non-contact type IC card is either the resonance type or the non-resonance type, the use situation is limited depending on the type of the antenna, so that it is possible to flexibly cope with various situations. It is desirable to be able to read and write. The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and switches the antenna between a resonance type and a non-resonance type according to the reading / writing situation, so that one card can efficiently respond to a plurality of situations while improving efficiency. It is an object of the present invention to provide a contact type IC card capable of performing a read / write operation.

[0004]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, electric power is generated on the IC card side by a magnetic field formed by an IC card reader / writer, and the IC chip is operated by the electric power. A contactless IC card for reading and writing IC card data,
The IC chip is provided with an antenna unit for generating electromotive force by connecting a capacitor and a coil in series, and for transmitting and receiving IC card data. The capacitor of the antenna unit is further provided with switch means in parallel. It is characterized by being connected. According to this, IC
An antenna unit in which a capacitor and a coil are connected in series is provided on the chip, and switch means is connected in parallel to the capacitor of the antenna unit. When the switch unit is opened, the coil (L) and the capacitor (C) are connected in series. It becomes a connected resonance type antenna, and when the switch part is closed,
Both ends of the capacitor (C) are short-circuited, so that a non-resonant type antenna having only the coil (L) can be obtained. As described above, both the resonance type and the non-resonance type antennas can be obtained simply by opening and closing the switch means, and the switching can be freely performed according to the situation. You can use them properly.
For example, when performing read / write operations on a plurality of IC cards collectively, the switch means is closed to form a non-resonant type antenna so that the influence of an adjacent IC card is reduced, and reading / writing is performed by an IC card reader / writer. To do. Further, when reading and writing one IC card at a time, by opening the switch means and using a resonance type antenna, the IC card can efficiently obtain the required power with a small magnetic field strength. Can read and write.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, a non-contact method is used in which electric power is generated on the IC card side by a magnetic field formed by an IC card reader / writer, and the IC chip is operated with the electric power to read and write IC card data. A type IC card, wherein a capacitor and a coil are connected in parallel to the IC chip to generate an electromotive force,
An antenna unit for transmitting and receiving IC card data is provided,
Switching means is further connected in series to the capacitor of the antenna unit. According to this, the antenna unit in which the capacitor and the coil are connected in parallel to the IC chip is provided, and the switch means is connected in series to the capacitor of the antenna unit. Therefore, when the switch unit is closed, the coil (L) is connected. When the capacitor (C) is connected in parallel, the antenna becomes a resonance type antenna. When the switch section is opened, a non-resonance type antenna having only the coil (L) to which the capacitor (C) is not connected can be obtained. As described above, it is possible to obtain both the resonance type antenna and the non-resonance type antenna simply by opening and closing the switch means, and the switching can be freely performed according to the situation.
It can be easily used depending on the reading / writing situation of the IC card. For example, when reading and writing to a plurality of IC cards collectively, the switch means is opened to make a non-resonant type antenna so that the influence of an adjacent IC card is reduced, and reading and writing are performed by an IC card reader / writer. To do. Also, when reading and writing one IC card at a time, by closing the switch means and using a resonance type antenna, the IC card can efficiently obtain the necessary power with a small magnetic field strength. Can read and write. According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the contactless IC card according to the first or second aspect, the switch means is a semiconductor switch, and the opening / closing operation of the semiconductor switch is performed by the IC.
It is controlled by a signal from a chip.
According to this, a semiconductor switch is used as the switch means, and the opening and closing operation of the conductor switch is controlled by a signal from the IC chip. Therefore, without touching the IC card, either the resonance type or the non-resonance type is used. The antenna type can be easily switched and used. According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the non-contact type IC card according to the first or second aspect, the switch means is opened and closed by a physical force. According to this configuration, since a switch that opens and closes by a physical force is used as the switch means, it is possible to switch and use the antenna type of either the resonance type or the non-resonance type.

[0006]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. In the present embodiment, as an example, destination data, sender data, content data, mailing form (express delivery, registered mail, etc.) data, etc. are written on each piece of mail handling packages of various sizes such as sealed letters and parcels. The following describes an example of attaching express IC cards and reading the IC cards with an IC card reader / writer to preferentially process express mail and automatically classify each mailing destination. To FIG. 1 is a perspective plan view illustrating a schematic configuration of an IC card 10 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, an IC card 10, an IC chip 12, a capacitor 14, an antenna 16 as a coil,
And a switch section 18 as switch means.

FIG. 2 is an equivalent circuit diagram of FIG. 1, and the same or corresponding components are denoted by the same reference characters. As shown in FIG. 2, the IC chip 12 can be represented by a resistor (R). A capacitor (C) 14 and an antenna (L: coil) 16 are connected in series to the resistor 12, forming a resonance circuit. are doing. A characteristic configuration of the IC card according to the present embodiment is that a switch unit 18 for short-circuiting or opening both ends of the capacitor 14 is provided. In the switch section 18, a resonance circuit (resonance type antenna section) is formed by the antenna (L: coil) 16 and the capacitor (C) in an open state, so that when the IC card reader / writer 20 forms a magnetic field. Power can be generated efficiently even with a weak magnetic field, and the IC chip 12 can be driven by this power to read and write data with the IC card reader / writer 20. When the switch section 18 is closed, the capacitor (C) does not function, and a non-resonant circuit (non-resonant type antenna section) is formed. Therefore, when the IC card reader / writer 20 forms a magnetic field, power is reduced. Although it is generated, the electromotive force is smaller than that of the resonance type. However, in the non-resonant type, the resonant frequency does not change even when a plurality of IC cards are stacked, so that collective read and write operations can be performed. Various types of configuration examples of the switch unit 18 can be considered. Here, a semiconductor switch (for example, an FET switch) as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 can be used. The feature of this semiconductor switch is that it is not so large as a mechanical switch and is electrically switched instead of a physical force, so that it can be easily controlled. For example, in the case of the semiconductor switch 30 in FIG. 3, the switching operation can be performed only by changing the base voltage and the gate voltage applied to the semiconductor switch 30, and the change in the voltage is applied to the flip-flop (F / F) circuit 32. This is done by inputting a command to.

In the case of the semiconductor switch 30 shown in FIG. 4, a predetermined base voltage or gate voltage written from the IC chip 12 to the nonvolatile memory 34 is applied to the semiconductor switch 30.
When it is desired to switch by applying a different voltage, the value of the nonvolatile memory 34 is rewritten by the IC chip 12 again. FIG. 5 shows an example in which the mechanical switch 36 is used to short-circuit or open both ends of the capacitor by physical force. This mechanical switch 36
Is not only capable of recognizing the switching state from the outside, but also useful when it is not necessary to frequently switch between the resonance type and the non-resonance type. FIG.
In the schematic configuration diagram of the IC card 10 shown in FIG. 1, the switch unit 18 and the capacitor 14 are externally attached to the IC chip 12, but the present invention is not limited to this configuration example. 18 and capacitor 1
4 may of course be formed. Further, the circuit diagram of the IC card shown in FIG.
This is a series resonance type in which the capacitor 16 and the capacitor 14 are connected in series. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 6, a parallel resonance type in which the antenna (coil) 16 and the capacitor 14 are connected in parallel can be configured. It is. In this case, the switch section 18 is connected to the capacitor 14 in series. When the IC card reader / writer 20 forms a magnetic field, the switch section 18 forms a parallel resonance circuit (resonance type antenna section) by the antenna (coil) 16 and the capacitor in the closed state.
Power can be generated efficiently even with a weak magnetic field, and this power drives the IC chip 12 to
A data read / write operation can be performed with the card reader / writer 20. When the switch unit 18 is opened,
Since the capacitor stops functioning and a non-resonant circuit (non-resonant type antenna unit) is formed, power is generated by the IC card reader / writer 20 forming a magnetic field, but the electromotive force is smaller than that of the resonant type. Become. But,
In this non-resonance type, the resonance frequency does not change even when a plurality of IC cards are stacked, so that a collective read or write operation can be performed. Further, regarding the configuration example of the parallel resonance type switch section 18, the above-described FIGS.
This is the same as that described for the series resonance type in FIG. 5, a combination of a semiconductor switch and a flip-flop (F / F) circuit (see FIG. 3), a semiconductor switch and a nonvolatile memory 3
4 (see FIG. 4) or a mechanical switch (see FIG. 5).

Next, the operation will be described. In the present embodiment, an IC card configured using the switch means as shown in FIGS. 3 to 5 is used. FIG. 7 and FIG.
Mails 22 and 24 with IC card according to the present embodiment affixed to the read / write position of IC card reader / writer 20
It is a perspective view which shows the state which inserted. As shown in FIG. 7, an IC card 10 is provided at a read / write position inside an IC card reader / writer 20 formed of a cubic casing.
a, 10b,..., and 10e, a plurality of thin mail items 22 are laminated like a sealed letter. As described above, when a plurality of IC cards are read and written collectively by using the IC card reader / writer 20, all the IC cards are used to prevent the adjacent IC cards from affecting each other and changing the resonance frequency. Needs to be switched to the non-resonant type. In FIG. 3, the flip-flop circuit 32 switches the semiconductor switch 30
If the voltage applied to is not the voltage at which the switch is closed, the state of the flip-flop circuit 32 is switched by a command. In FIG. 4, when the voltage applied from the nonvolatile memory 34 to the semiconductor switch 30 is not the voltage at which the switch is closed, the value of the nonvolatile memory 34 is rewritten by the IC chip 12 again. In the case of FIGS. 3 and 4, the switches can be switched simultaneously by controlling the IC chips 12 using the IC card reader / writer 20. In FIG. 5, when the mechanical switch 36 is not closed, the user operates the mechanical switch 36 to close it. In this manner, since the antennas of all the IC cards in the IC card reader / writer 20 can be of the non-resonant type, the read / write processing can be performed at a time without any trouble. In the case of FIG. 8, a mail 24 having a size like a parcel to which the IC card 10f is attached is placed at a read / write position inside the IC card reader / writer 20 formed of a cubic casing. ing. As described above, one IC card is connected to the IC card reader / writer 20.
In the case of reading and writing by using an antenna, since there is no influence between IC cards as in the example of FIG. 7, it is necessary to switch to a resonance type antenna that efficiently generates power with a small magnetic field.

In FIG. 3, a flip-flop circuit 32
If the voltage applied to the semiconductor switch 30 is not the voltage to open the switch, the state of the flip-flop circuit 32 is switched by a command. FIG.
, The nonvolatile memory 34 to the semiconductor switch 30
Is not the voltage to open the switch, the value of the nonvolatile memory 34 is rewritten by the IC chip 12 again. In the case of FIGS. 3 and 4, the switch can be switched by controlling the IC chip 12 using the IC card reader / writer 20. In FIG. 5, when the mechanical switch 36 is not open, the user operates the mechanical switch 36 to open it. Thus, the IC card reader / writer 2
Since the antenna of the IC card within 0 is of the resonance type,
Electric power can be efficiently generated with a small magnetic field, and the read / write processing can be performed without any trouble. 7 and 8, the operation using the series resonance type IC card shown in FIGS. 3 to 5 has been described. However, the parallel resonance type IC card shown in FIG. 6 is used. It is also possible to carry out. At this time, the opening and closing of the switch section 18 is opposite to that of the series resonance type, and the switch section 18 is controlled to be closed to form a resonance type antenna section, and the switch section 18 is controlled to form a non-resonance type antenna section. Control to open. Also in this case, the same advantageous effects as described above can be obtained.

[0011]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, an antenna unit in which a capacitor and a coil are connected in series is provided on an IC chip, and switch means is connected in parallel to the capacitor of the antenna unit. Thus, when the switch section is opened, a resonance type antenna can be obtained, and when the switch section is closed, a non-resonance type antenna can be obtained. As described above, both the resonance type and the non-resonance type antennas can be obtained simply by opening and closing the switch means, and the switching can be freely performed according to the situation. You can use them properly. According to the second aspect of the present invention, the antenna unit in which the capacitor and the coil are connected in parallel to the IC chip is provided, and the switch means is connected in series to the capacitor of the antenna unit. When the switch unit is opened, a non-resonant type antenna can be obtained. As described above, both the resonance type and the non-resonance type antennas can be obtained simply by opening and closing the switch means, and the switching can be freely performed according to the situation. You can use them properly. According to the third aspect of the present invention, a semiconductor switch is used as the switch means, and the opening and closing operation of the conductor switch is controlled by a signal from the IC chip. The antenna can be easily switched to any of the non-resonant antenna types. According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, since a switch for short-circuiting or opening both ends of the capacitor by a physical force is used as the switch means, the switch means can be switched to a resonance type or a non-resonance type. can do.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective plan view illustrating a schematic configuration of an IC card according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is an equivalent circuit diagram of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram of an IC card in which a switch section of the IC card can be switched using a semiconductor switch and a flip-flop circuit.

FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram of an IC card in which a switch section of the IC card can be switched using a semiconductor switch and a nonvolatile memory.

FIG. 5 is a circuit diagram of an IC card in which a switch section of the IC card is configured using a mechanical switch.

FIG. 6 is a circuit diagram of an IC card having a parallel resonance type antenna unit.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a state in which a plurality of thin mail items having the IC card according to the present embodiment attached thereto are inserted into a read / write position of the IC card reader / writer.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a state in which one parcel post attached with the IC card according to the present embodiment is inserted into a read / write position of an IC card reader / writer.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 IC card, 12 IC chip, 14 capacitor, 16 antenna (coil), 18 switch part (switch means), 20 IC card reader / writer, 22 mail, 24 mail, 30 semiconductor switch, 32 flip-flop circuit (F / F circuit), 34 nonvolatile memory, 36 mechanical switches.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) G07F 7/08 A

Claims (4)

[Claims] An electric power is generated on an IC card side by a magnetic field formed by an IC card reader / writer, and the electric power is used to generate an IC.
What is claimed is: 1. A non-contact type IC card in which reading and writing of IC card data are performed by operating a chip, wherein an electromotive force is generated in said IC chip by connecting a capacitor and a coil in series. A non-contact type IC, wherein an antenna unit for transmitting and receiving data is provided, and a switch means is further connected in parallel to a capacitor of the antenna unit.
card. 2. An electric power is generated on an IC card side by a magnetic field generated by an IC card reader / writer, and the electric power is used to generate an IC.
What is claimed is: 1. A non-contact type IC card in which reading and writing of IC card data are performed by operating a chip, wherein a capacitor and a coil are connected in parallel to the IC chip to generate an electromotive force, and A non-contact type IC, wherein an antenna unit for transmitting and receiving data is provided, and a switch means is further connected in series to a capacitor of the antenna unit.
card. 3. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein the switch means is a semiconductor switch, and controls the opening and closing operation of the semiconductor switch by a signal from the IC chip.
Or the non-contact type IC card according to 2. 4. The non-contact type IC card according to claim 1, wherein the switch is opened and closed by a physical force.