Classifications

• • G—PHYSICS
  • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
  • G06K—GRAPHICAL DATA READING; PRESENTATION OF DATA; RECORD CARRIERS; HANDLING RECORD CARRIERS
  • G06K19/00—Record carriers for use with machines and with at least a part designed to carry digital markings
  • G06K19/06—Record carriers for use with machines and with at least a part designed to carry digital markings characterised by the kind of the digital marking, e.g. shape, nature, code
  • G06K19/067—Record carriers with conductive marks, printed circuits or semiconductor circuit elements, e.g. credit or identity cards also with resonating or responding marks without active components
  • G06K19/07—Record carriers with conductive marks, printed circuits or semiconductor circuit elements, e.g. credit or identity cards also with resonating or responding marks without active components with integrated circuit chips
  • G06K19/077—Constructional details, e.g. mounting of circuits in the carrier
  • G06K19/07749—Constructional details, e.g. mounting of circuits in the carrier the record carrier being capable of non-contact communication, e.g. constructional details of the antenna of a non-contact smart card
  • G06K19/07758—Constructional details, e.g. mounting of circuits in the carrier the record carrier being capable of non-contact communication, e.g. constructional details of the antenna of a non-contact smart card arrangements for adhering the record carrier to further objects or living beings, functioning as an identification tag
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
  • B65D5/00—Rigid or semi-rigid containers of polygonal cross-section, e.g. boxes, cartons or trays, formed by folding or erecting one or more blanks made of paper
  • B65D5/42—Details of containers or of foldable or erectable container blanks
  • B65D5/4212—Information or decoration elements, e.g. content indicators, or for mailing
  • B65D5/4233—Cards, coupons, labels or the like formed separately from the container or lid
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
  • G06K—GRAPHICAL DATA READING; PRESENTATION OF DATA; RECORD CARRIERS; HANDLING RECORD CARRIERS
  • G06K19/00—Record carriers for use with machines and with at least a part designed to carry digital markings
  • G06K19/06—Record carriers for use with machines and with at least a part designed to carry digital markings characterised by the kind of the digital marking, e.g. shape, nature, code
  • G06K19/067—Record carriers with conductive marks, printed circuits or semiconductor circuit elements, e.g. credit or identity cards also with resonating or responding marks without active components
  • G06K19/07—Record carriers with conductive marks, printed circuits or semiconductor circuit elements, e.g. credit or identity cards also with resonating or responding marks without active components with integrated circuit chips
  • G06K19/077—Constructional details, e.g. mounting of circuits in the carrier
  • G06K19/07749—Constructional details, e.g. mounting of circuits in the carrier the record carrier being capable of non-contact communication, e.g. constructional details of the antenna of a non-contact smart card
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
  • G06K—GRAPHICAL DATA READING; PRESENTATION OF DATA; RECORD CARRIERS; HANDLING RECORD CARRIERS
  • G06K19/00—Record carriers for use with machines and with at least a part designed to carry digital markings
  • G06K19/06—Record carriers for use with machines and with at least a part designed to carry digital markings characterised by the kind of the digital marking, e.g. shape, nature, code
  • G06K19/067—Record carriers with conductive marks, printed circuits or semiconductor circuit elements, e.g. credit or identity cards also with resonating or responding marks without active components
  • G06K19/07—Record carriers with conductive marks, printed circuits or semiconductor circuit elements, e.g. credit or identity cards also with resonating or responding marks without active components with integrated circuit chips
  • G06K19/077—Constructional details, e.g. mounting of circuits in the carrier
  • G06K19/07749—Constructional details, e.g. mounting of circuits in the carrier the record carrier being capable of non-contact communication, e.g. constructional details of the antenna of a non-contact smart card
  • G06K19/07773—Antenna details
  • G06K19/07786—Antenna details the antenna being of the HF type, such as a dipole
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
  • B65D2203/00—Decoration means, markings, information elements, contents indicators
  • B65D2203/10—Transponders

Definitions

• This invention relates to the field of packaging, and more particularly to systems for
• seals are implemented to further aide in the visual inspection of the
• the present invention is embodied in a package for protecting and displaying goods
• the package includes a wireless smart package assembly and a Radio Frequency Identification
• the assembly comprises a package having at least one sheet of material adapted
• conductive material is distributed along a portion of the sheet so as to form a non-planar
• the sheet is folded to form multiple interior and exterior surfaces to surround the
• the electrically conductive material is arranged to form a non-planar layer and is
• Another embodiment of the assembly relates to a product that is a roll of paper.
• package is a cylindrical core having an inner surface surrounding a hollow center and an outer
• the electrically conductive material is arranged to
• FIG. 1 is a functional overview of a radio frequency identification system
• FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic view of an RFTD tag
• FIG. 3a and 3b are details of nonplanar RFT-D antennas
• FIG. 4a is a schematic of an inventory monitoring system of the present invention that
• FIG. 4b is a schematic of an alternative inventory monitoring system of the present
• FIG. 5 is a top view of the inventory monitoring system of FIG. 4a;
• FIG. 6 is a schematic showing vertical dipole antennas arrayed in a circular pattern on
• FIG. 7 is a top view of the cylindrical core of FIG. 6;
• FIG. 8 is a schematic representation of a wave signal as it travels through a medium
• FIG. 9 is a functional overview a system employing the present invention.
• FIG. 10 is a diagrammatic view of an RFTD tag with one time transmit capabilities.
• RFTD Radio Frequency Identification
• interrogator antenna or coil 102 a transceiver (with decoder) 104; and a transponder,
• RF or RFTD tag 106 programmed to hold and exchange information
• the interrogator antenna 102 emits radio signals to activate the RFID tag 106 and to
• Interrogator antennas come in a variety of shapes
• a common form of interrogator antenna is built into a doorway of a store or other
• RFTD tags placed on goods, and when in range of the interrogator antenna, cause an
• the electromagnetic field produced by the interrogator antenna 102 can be
• a sensor device used with the transceiver 104 can activate the field.
• the antenna 102 is configured with the transceiver/decoder 104 as a single unit
• a reader or interrogator 108 which can be configured either as a handheld or a
• the reader 108 emits radio waves 110 in ranges of anywhere from one
• the reader's activation signal and responds by emitting radio waves 114.
• the reader 108 decodes the data encoded in the tag's integrated circuit and the data is passed to a host computer for processing.
• RFTD tags 106 come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. RFTD tags 106 are categorized as either active or passive. Active RFTD tags 106 are powered by an internal battery and are typically read/write, i.e., tag data can be rewritten and/or modified. An active tag's memory size varies according to application requirements; some systems operate with up to 1MB of memory. In a typical read/write RFTD system 100, a tag 106 can provide a set of instructions, and the tag 106 can receive information. This encoded data then becomes part of the history of the tagged product 116. The battery-supplied power of an active tag generally gives it a longer read range. The trade off is greater size, greater cost, and a limited operational life.
• Passive RFID tags 106 operate without a separate external power source and obtain operating power generated from the reader 104. Passive tags 106 are consequently much lighter than active tags 106, less expensive, and offer a virtually unlimited operational lifetime. The trade off is that passive tags 106 have shorter read ranges than active tags and require a higher-powered reader.
• An RFTD tag 220 is comprised of an antenna 222, a transponder 224 and an energy storage device 226.
• the RFT-D tag 220 in response to being interrogated transmits a response to the interrogation. Portions of the RFTD tag 220, such as the antenna 222 and the energy storage device 226 may be printed on a package or label.
• the transponder 224 can be manufactured from an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or other suitable technology which is known to those skilled in the art.
• ASIC application specific integrated circuit
• transponder 224 activates a transceiver 230.
• Read-only tags are typically passive and are programmed with a unique set of data
• Read-only tags most often operate as a key or index
• linear barcodes reference a database containing modifiable
• RFTD systems also vary according to frequency ranges. Low-frequency, 30 kHz to 500
• Tags can be read through a variety of substances such as
• the range that can be achieved in an RFTD system is essentially determined by: power
• the field or wave delivered from an antenna extends into the space adjacent to it and its strength
• the antenna design will determine the shape of the field
• liquors may be shipped in a decorative decanter that is stored within a decorative box.
• the placement of the RFTD tag may consider placement of the tag within the box
• the location may require considerations of aesthetics as well as
• the related packaging may include the core at the center of the roll. Again, providing a
• the present invention provides antenna configurations that can be
• FIGs. 3a and 3b there is shown two representative embodiments of
• nonplanar RFID antennas adapted for use with an RFTD tag.
• 300 and 310 can be excited with either linear or circular polarization.
• width of the nonplanar RFTD antennas is a function of frequency, application, package size,
• FIG. 3a shows a nonplanar RFTD antenna 300 comprised of two planar surfaces 302
• nonplanar RFTD antenna 310 comprised of three planar surfaces 312, 314 and 316 which are
• 310 can be located at one edge or corner of the package as well as at multiple edges or corners of the packages.
• the use of multiple nonplanar RFTD antennas 300 and/or 310 improves the field of view of the coupled antennas over that of a single RFTD antenna 300 and/or 310.
• RFTD antennas 300 and/or 310 are electrically coupled and may be printed directly on the package or on a label which is attached to the package.
• the corner antenna is
• the antenna is formed from an electrically
• the conductive layer which covers a portion of the package material.
• the layer is preferably
• the layer may be applied to the outside of the package.
• the electrically conductive circuit is configured to form a box
• the RFTD tag i.e., as an active or passive device.
• the antenna also affect the length and width of the layer.
• the layer preferably has a thickness
• the antenna is adapted to operate with a 5% VSWR
• the NSWR bandwidth may be increased by resistively loading the
• Detecting attributes of physical products contained in packages such as may be
• present invention provides a system that is designed to detect packaged product attributes and,
• the system is
• transponders comprised of one or more transponders, one or more readers, and one or more antennas.
• One or more transponders or tags may be utilized in connection with the present
• Data signals coded with unique identification information carried by each transponder are transmitted from the transponder to one or more
• the information transmitted may, for example, relate to the presence of, or location
• a passive transponder which does not require a separate
• an active transponder that has an internal power source, e.g. a battery, may
• a passive transponder is used in the system.
• Passive transponders have
• a passive transponder generally is associated with a shorter
• the gain of a transponder can be increased so that the power associated with the
• the transmission range increases by about a factor of 2.
• Radio Frequency Integrated Circuit RFIC
• the gain of the system is increased by
• the half-power beamwidth (HPBW) is approximately 60° for a ⁇ /2 dipole.
• Wilkinson power combiner/divider type circuit suitable for this purpose is a Wilkinson power combiner/divider type circuit.
• circuit uses a resistor, preferably embodied on an integrated circuit chip, and can be used to
• the present invention also contemplates the use of one or more readers.
• a reader is a reader
• a reader communicates with a transponder to effect data transfer.
• a reader also generates an electric
• Antennas e.g. dipoles serve as relay points between transponder and reader.
• An antenna produces an electromagnetic field that may be continuously present, where there are
• the electromagnetic field may be intermittently present, depending on
• Fig. 4A a preferred embodiment is depicted where two half wavelength ( ⁇ /2)
• dipoles 410, 420 are arrayed together and their outputs are combined by a well-known
• First dipole 410 is coupled to one input of RFIC
• RFIC 450 In an alternative embodiment shown in Fig. 4B, the system also includes a chip
• resistor 470 A rectangular spacer is used in the embodiments of Figs. 4A and 4B. However,
• the spacing between dipoles is greater than one-quarter wavelength ( ⁇ /4).
• the dipoles must be phased so that they do not
• the present invention is particularly useful where inventoried items have a cylindrical
• antennas 610, 620 are arranged around a cylinder corresponding to a ring array around a core
• Fig. 7 shows a practical application where
• a roll of paper 700 has a hollow core 710.
• Core 710 may be filled with air, foam, or dielectric
• Paper has a dielectric loss factor of about 15 with a real permittivity of about 2.0. Considerable loss is created by the dielectric loss of paper. Additional loss is incurred by boundary impedance mismatches, Brewster angles, and the angle of incidence of the wave signal into the paper from the reader. Mismatch of Impedances at the boundaries:
• Fig. 8 illustrates that, depending on the angle of incidence into the core from the reader, a certain portion of the wave signal will be reflected. Assuming a TE (transverse electric) field wave, a certain portion of the incident wave will be transverse magnetically. Snell's law is used to calculate the angle of the reflected wave. The relationship between the dielectric is sufficient for calculating the reflection and transmission coefficients. A thorougl analysis matching boundary conditions to modes, to internally generated modes would produce the desired information or a geometrical optics approach may be used.
• TE transverse electric
• Each reflected wave accounts for 0.5 dB powe loss, which amounts to a loss of about 10% of the power at each boundary.
• the power loss a the paper to air boundary at the paper's core varies according to which side the antenna is disposed on compared to the angle of incidence. On the same side as the incident wave, there is no loss due to impedance mismatches. On the opposite side there is about 0.5 dB loss each way, receiving and transmitting.
• the array of the present embodiment is
• a passive RFTD tag with low cost and long operational life may be more suitable than an active
• the present invention provides for an embodiment of the present invention
• the identification tag 912 contains an identification tag 912.
• the identification tag 912 may be an RFT-D or other
• the identification tag 912 contains encoded data
• a reader 914 interrogates the identification tag 912.
• the interrogator 914 is coupled to a computer system 916.
• An RFTD tag 1020 is comprised of an antenna 1022, a transponder 1024 and an energy storage device 1026.
• the RFTD tag 1020 in response to being interrogated utilizes an energy storage device 1026 to transmit an active response to the interrogation. Portions of the RFTD tag 1020, such as the antenna 1022 and the energy storage device 1026 may be printed on a package or label.
• the transponder 1024 can be an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or other suitable technology which is known to those stilled in the art.
• ASIC application specific integrated circuit
• the transponder 1024 couples a transceiver 1030 through a switch 1028 to the energy storage devicel026.
• the RFTD tag can function as a passive system until a predetermined alert or security code is activated.
• the energy storage device 1026 can be a capacitor storing electrical charge. The capacitor may be printed, or thin film technology.
• a reader 1014 can activate the RFTD tag 1020 and receive a response at a greater distance than when the RFTD tag 1020 operates in the passive mode. Greater data can be transferred than with a passive system.
• a satellite reader/interrogator such as one based on a LEO or GEO satellite system, can be utilized, thus enabling global tracking
• a satellite system as the reader, a lost or stolen package can be signaled to emit a response.
• a phased array utilizing digital beaming can be employed to home in on the product. Typical return power levels from passive RFTD systems are 50dB below the input
• the information provided by the RFTD tag with one time transmit capability can be communicated to a remote computer system over the internet using wireless internet connection circuitry such as the type used in cellular telephones and DDA devices, thus enabling a shipper, manufacturer, security personnel or other concerned party to monitor and track the status and integrity of the package.
• the energy storage device may be charged by a variety of methods including external application of power, chemical generation, and electrostatic discharge (such as from peeling a wrapper from the product label. Accordingly, this description is to be construed as illustrative only and is for the purpose of teaching those skilled in the art the best mode of carrying out the invention. Details of the structure may be varied substantially without departing from the spirit of the invention.

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• 2001
  • 2001-03-15 WO PCT/US2001/008669 patent/WO2001069525A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 2001-03-15 EP EP01918807A patent/EP1266355A1/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 2001-03-15 AU AU2001245845A patent/AU2001245845A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2001-03-15 CA CA002402683A patent/CA2402683A1/en not_active Abandoned

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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