EP4740157A1

EP4740157A1 - Modular rfid container system

Info

Publication number: EP4740157A1
Application number: EP23744881.6A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Tai Wai PONG; Graham Murdoch
Original assignee: Sato Corp
Current assignee: Sato Corp
Priority date: 2023-07-05
Filing date: 2023-07-05
Publication date: 2026-05-13
Also published as: WO2025008666A1

Abstract

A modular RFID container system comprises a host container and at least one tethered container. The host container comprises an RFID reader with a plurality of antenna ports, and a host container antenna system connected to and in operative communication with a first one of the plurality of antenna ports. The at least one tethered container comprises a tethered antenna system connected to and in operative communication with a further one of the plurality of antenna ports of the RFID reader of the host container, so that RFID operation of the container system is controlled by the host container via the host container RFID reader. The host container antenna system may comprise two or more host container RFID antennas connected together via a daisy-chain connection so that the host container antenna system operatively connects to the RFID reader via one antenna port.

Description

Modular RFID Container System

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure broadly relates to radio-frequency identification (RFID) inventory tracking and, more particularly, to a modular RFID container system for tracking contents of one or more connected containers in the system.

Background

[0002] The sale, stocking and inventory management of some products are managed by sales representatives. In some circumstances a sales representative would travel to the buyer or reseller on a regular basis to check the inventory and restock the products as required. For some products, for example certain medical products such as prostheses, this type of manual checking can be very time consuming and ineffective. For example, if items run out, it may take a long time before the sales representative is able to check the inventory and subsequently restock an item.

[0003] One solution to this problem is to employ an inventory tracking system, for example using barcodes or radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags and readers. Some of these systems may even be able to automatically track the inventory, for example where RFID readers are integrated in a cabinet used to house tagged items. However, such cabinets are very costly not only because the cabinets themselves need to be constructed in a way to facilitate RFID operation (e.g., made from solid metal to provide electromagnetic shielding), but also because the cabinets must then include RFID antennas and RFID readers in order to detect and receive information from the RFID tags applied to the items in the cabinets. In circumstances where a large number of items must be held in stock and multiple cabinets are required, the cost of such automated inventory systems may be prohibitively high.

[0004] Any discussion of documents, acts, materials, devices, articles or the like which has been included in the present specification is not to be taken as an admission that any or all of these matters form part of the prior art base or were common general knowledge in the field relevant to the present disclosure as it existed before the priority date of each claim of this application.

Summary

[0005] In one aspect there is provided a modular RFID container system comprising: a host container comprising: an RFID reader with a plurality of antenna ports; and a host container antenna system connected to and in operative communication with a first one of the plurality of antenna ports; and at least one tethered container comprising a tethered antenna system connected to and in operative communication with a further one of the plurality of antenna ports of the RFID reader of the host container, so that RFID operation of the container system is controlled by the host container via the host container RFID reader.

[0006] The host container antenna system may comprise two or more host container RFID antennas connected together via a daisy-chain connection so that the host container antenna system operatively connects to the RFID reader via one antenna port.

[0007] At least one tethered antenna system may comprise two or more tethered container RFID antennas connected together via a daisy-chain connection so that the tethered container antenna system operatively connects to the RFID reader via one antenna port.

[0008] The daisy-chain connection may comprise at least one length compensation unit and a bypass switch operable to selectively bypass and connect a respective RFID antenna.

[0009] The host container antenna system may comprise a plurality of RFID coil antennas, each associated with a different section within the host container. [0010] Some or each tethered container antenna system may comprise a plurality of RFID coil antennas, each associated with a different section within the respective tethered container.

[0011] The RFID reader may be configured to activate one or more of the antennas that form part of the host container antenna system and the tethered container antenna systems in order to detect RFID tags inside each container to then determine the content of each container.

[0012] The RFID reader may have a number of RFID reader ports, and the total or maximum number of containers in the system may be the same as the number of RFID reader ports.

[0013] One or more of the host container and the tethered containers may comprise an access antenna module configured to control access to one or more of the containers of the system.

[0014] The access antenna module may comprise: an access antenna; and a door control system comprising an access sensor interface, and configured to control access to the containers by confirming user authorisation via the access sensor interface.

[0015] The system may further comprise an access antenna reader configured to monitor access authorisation of one or more of the containers by sequentially scanning the access control module.

[0016] The host container may comprise the access antenna reader.

[0017] The system may further comprise a user interface provided on one or more of the containers. The user interface may be provided by the host container, and the user interface may comprise an authentication interface. [0018] These and other aspects and features will now become apparent to those skilled in the art upon review of the following description of specific non-limiting embodiments in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Brief Description of Drawings

[0019] The detailed description of illustrative (non-limiting) embodiments will be more fully appreciated when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

[0020] Figure l is a schematic representation of an embodiment of a modular RFID container system.

[0021] Figure 2 is a schematic representation of another embodiment of a modular RFID container system.

[0022] Figure 3 is a schematic representation of a daisy-chain RFID configuration.

[0023] Figure 4A is a schematic representation of another embodiment of a modular RFID container system.

[0024] Figure 4B is a schematic representation of an access antenna of the RFID modular container system of Figure 4A.

[0025] Figure 5 is a schematic representation of another embodiment of a modular RFID container system.

[0026] Figure 6 is a schematic representation of another embodiment of a modular RFID container system.

[0027] In the drawings, like reference numerals designate similar parts. [0028] The drawings are not necessarily to scale and may be illustrated by phantom lines, diagrammatic representations and fragmentary views. In certain instances, details that are not necessary for an understanding of the embodiments or that render other details difficult to perceive may have been omitted.

Detailed Description

[0029] Reference will now be made in detail to various non-limiting embodiments of methods and systems for inventory tracking. It should be understood that other nonlimiting embodiment(s), modifications and equivalents will be evident to one of ordinary skill in the art in view of the non-limiting embodiment s) disclosed herein and that these variants should be considered to be within scope of the appended claims.

[0030] Furthermore, it will be recognized by one of ordinary skill in the art that certain structural and operational details of the non-limiting embodiment(s) discussed hereafter may be modified or omitted (i.e. non-essential) altogether. In other instances, well known methods, procedures, and components have not been described in detail.

[0031] In situations where multiple RFID enabled containers or cabinets are required, the cumulative costs of additional cabinets can become prohibitively expensive. One solution to this problem is to reduce the total cost by sharing some of the infrastructure amongst cabinets, for example sharing the RFID reader. Described herein is a modular system architecture that includes one or more host cabinets and a plurality of tethered cabinets that are connected to the one or more host cabinets.

[0032] Figure 1 of the drawings shows a modular RFID container system 100 comprising a host container 102. The host container 102 has an RFID reader 104 with a plurality of antenna ports 106, and a host container antenna system 108 connected to and in operative communication with a first one 110 of the plurality of antenna ports. The RFID container system 100 also comprises at least one tethered container 112 comprising a tethered antenna system 114 connected to and in operative communication with a further one 116 of the plurality of antenna ports 106 of the RFID reader 104 of the host container 102, so that RFID operation of the container system 100 is controlled by the host container 102 via the host container RFID reader 104.

[0033] The “host container” may also be referred to herein as a main container, a master container, a reader container, a primary container etc. In some embodiments, only a host container is used. For example, where the number of items to be held in the container is small, and only one container is required, then only a host container is required. The container may be in any suitable format to hold the relevant items, for example a cabinet with drawers and/or shelves, a fridge, a cupboard with one, two, or more doors, shelves, and/or compartments, etc.

[0034] The RFID reader may be a known, generic RFID reader having two or more ports for controlling operation of one or more RFID antennas (and/or antenna systems comprising more than one antenna each), for example SATO’s Multi -Antenna Reader Systems (MARS) type MARS-3 AT, MARS-4AT, MARS-12AT and MARS-24AT which have 3 ports, 4 ports, 12 ports and 24 port readers respectively. In other embodiments, the RFID reader may be a custom-made RFID reader tailored to the operation of the particular RFID containers of the modular RFID container system described herein.

[0035] In the illustrated embodiment, the host container antenna system 108 includes one or more RFID coil antennas 118, each associated with a defined section 120 of the host container. The RFID reader 104 operates to instruct operation of the host container antenna system 108 so that one RFID coil antenna 118 is switched on at a time, thereby scanning a respective section 120 of the host container 102 in order to obtain information from RFID tags located within the respective section, and thus ascertaining the presence of tagged items within the host container.

[0036] Similarly, the tethered antenna system 114 of the at least one tethered container 112 includes one or more antenna systems 121 with one or more RFID coil antennas 122, each associated with a defined section 124 of the host container. The RFID reader 104 operates to instruct operation of the tethered antenna system 114 so that one RFID coil antenna 122 is switched on at a time, thereby scanning a respective section 124 of the tethered container 112 in order to obtain information from RFID tags located within the respective section, and thus ascertaining the presence of tagged items within the tethered container.

[0037] The same RFID reader, i.e., the RFID reader 104 of the host container 112, controls the antenna systems of both the host container 102 and the at least one tethered container 112, and reads the RFID tags located within the host container 102 and the at least one tethered container 112. In some embodiments the modular RFID container system 100 includes a plurality of tethered containers, for example 2, 3, 4 or more.

[0038] The systems described herein have a minimum of one main cabinet, referred to herein as a host, master, or primary cabinet, container, cupboard etc. The storage system can be expanded by adding one or more additional cabinets, for example 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 11, 12, or more. These may be referred to herein as tethered, slave, or auxiliary cabinets, cupboards, fridges, containers, etc. The main cabinet has an associated RFID reader with multiple antenna ports, for example two or more ports, for example 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 11, 12, or more ports. The main cabinet also includes RFID shelves (having RFID antennas associated with each shelf), and optionally access control hardware, an access antenna and/or a user interface (e.g., screen and built-in application provided via a controller or PC. One antenna port of the RFID reader is used to drive the antenna shelves and the access antenna. These antennas are daisy- chained together.

[0039] The one or more auxiliary cabinets may include the same hardware provided in main cabinet, except for the RFID reader (and in some embodiments also except the user interface, being for example comprised of a user interface controller and screen). The auxiliary cabinet(s) are connected to one of the antenna ports in the main cabinet reader via a length of coaxial antenna cable. In some embodiments this is a fixed length of coaxial antenna cable , for example 6m or 12m long (based on the half wavelength of the system). Preferably, most of or even all the control and communication may be supported by this antenna cabling. [0040] The number of tethered containers that the system can support is related to the number of ports provided by the RFID reader. Figure 2 of the drawings illustrates an example embodiment of a system 200 in which the host container 202 has two sections 220 (for example two shelves), each having an associated RFID antenna 218. Each of these host container antennas is individually connected to the RFID reader, 204 so that a group 210 of two RFID reader ports is used. Each tethered container 212A, 212B also has two sections 224, each having an associated RFID antenna 222. Each of the tethered container antennas 222 is individually connected to the RFID reader 204. In this exemplary embodiment the RFID reader has a maximum of six ports 206, which means that only two tethered containers can be supported.

[0041] In other embodiments, a plurality of RFID antennas (each associated with a container section) may be linked together using a daisy-chain configuration as described in International patent application no PCT/IB2020/055674, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference. The daisy-chain configuration may be understood with reference to Figure 3 of the drawings which illustrates an RFID system 300 for example as implemented in a cabinet 310 having several shelves 312. The RFID system 300 has an RFID reader 302 and a controller 322, and the RFID reader 302 is configured to interrogate RFID antennas, and the system 300 has an antenna array 304 that has two or more RFID antennas 306 serially connectable to the RFID reader 302 via a series of cable links 308, each RFID antenna 306 associated with a respective cable link 308, this respective cable link being the last one of the series of cable links in the connection from the RFID reader to the respective RFID antenna. Each cable link 308 has a certain, respective cable length. The system 300 also has a length compensation unit 315 associated with each RFID antenna 306 and connected between the RFID antenna and the respective associated cable link, and the length compensation unit 315 is configured to adjust a total cable length between the RFID reader 302 and its respective RFID antenna 306 to be an effective cable length. The total cable length comprises a sum of cable lengths for each cable link of the series of cable links connecting the RFID reader and the respective RFID antenna. [0042] In the illustrated embodiment, the system 300 has a bypass switch 314 associated with each RFID antenna 306, each bypass switch 314 operable to either bypass the respective RFID antenna or connect the respective RFID antenna to the RFID reader 302. In some embodiments the bypass switch 314 and the length compensation unit 315 form a combined unit with shared functionality, for example having a shared local controller.

[0043] Each RFID antenna has an antenna impedance, and each antenna’s respective cable link has a cable impedance, and the antenna impedance is different to the cable impedance so that each RFID antenna and its respective cable link are impedance mismatched. The length compensation unit 315 associated with each RFID antenna 306 is configured to adjust for the total cable length between the RFID reader 302 and the respective RFID antenna 306 so that reflection resulting from said impedance mismatch has a predefined phase. The antenna impedance of the respective RFID antenna is transformed along the effective cable length to a final impedance having a resistance and substantially no reactance.

[0044] In this way, the antennas within one container are all daisy-chained, and as a result an antenna system having more than one antenna only requires the use of one RFID reader port. Where both the host and tethered containers include this type of daisy-chain antenna architecture, it means that each container only requires one RFID reader port. Where containers have more than one antenna (e.g. where the containers include more than one section), this daisy-chain configuration allows for connecting even more tethered containers to the main host container than, for example, the embodiment illustrated in Figure 2.

[0045] In the embodiment illustrated in Figure 1, for example, the host container antenna system 108 comprises two or more host container RFID antennas 118 connected together via a daisy-chain connection 130 so that the host container antenna system 108 operatively connects to the RFID reader 104 via only one antenna port 110. In contrast, in the embodiment illustrated in Figure 2 of the drawings, the RFID antennas 218 of the host container 212 require the use of a group 210 of two RFID reader ports.

[0046] Referring to the embodiment of a modular RFID container system 400 illustrated in Figure 4A of the drawings, the system 400 includes at least one, and in this example three, tethered antenna systems 412, each of these having two or more tethered container RFID antennas 414 connected together via a daisy-chain connection 415 so that the tethered container antenna systems 412 operatively connect to the RFID reader 404 (which may be, for example, a pulse jitter modulation PJM RFID reader) of the host container 402 via one antenna port 406.

[0047] The main receptacle 402 has its own RFID reading antenna system 408 and the RFID reader 404, and is connected to at least one secondary receptacle 412 having no reader, but having an RFID reading antenna system 414 adapted to connect to the RFID reader 404 of the main receptacle. In this way, the main receptacle 402 operates as a docking station, to which the secondary receptacles 412 can connect. In some embodiments these are stationary cabinets, each one having two or more RFID reading antennas (i.e. multiple shelves, each with their own antenna), the antennas connected via a daisy-chain configuration so that each receptacle’s antennas use only one port on the RFID reader 404.

[0048] In the exemplary embodiment illustrated in Figure 4A and Figure 4B, one or more of the host and/or tethered cabinets may include an access antenna module 430. In some embodiments, one or more of the access antennas may be advantageously located at the start of the cabinet’s daisy chain (i.e. at a first position in the daisy chain) so that it is read first when the reader port is active, without the need for the reader to reach up through the daisy chain with a series of commands to operate the antenna bypass switches 314 in order to reach the access antenna if it is placed higher up the daisy chain. This is illustrated in the embodiment shown in Figure 4A, in contrast to the illustrated embodiments of Figure 6, for example, where the reader operates the bypass switches to communicate with the access antenna further up the daisy chain of the respective cabinets. [0049] Each access antenna module 430 has an access antenna 432 and a door control system 434. In some embodiments, the door control system 434 includes an access sensor interface 436, for example an RFID door sensor interface. Control signals are provided to the respective RFID cabinet from its access antenna module 430 via an access antenna cable (or similar interface arrangement). In some embodiments, when all cabinet doors are closed, the RFID reader 404 actively scans each access antenna 432 sequentially for authorised access, for example via a user interface where a user presents an RFID card. A user interface may be provided on each of the cabinets, or only on one or some cabinets (for example only on the host cabinet 402). When an authorised access card is presented, for example at the access module 430.2 in tethered cabinet 412.2, the RFID reader 404 grants the user access to this cabinet by unlocking a cabinet door lock. In some exemplary embodiments, while the user is accessing the unlocked cabinet, the reader 404 is actively scanning the access antennas of all cabinets sequentially and also checking the status of the unlocked door (to determine whether the door is open or closed). Once the unlocked door has been opened and subsequently closed (as determined by the reader 404), the reader 404 then relocks the accessed door, initiates a scan of the relocked cabinet (by sequentially scanning each antenna in that cabinet).

[0050] Although the other cabinets may be inaccessible while the reader is performing this inventory scan after the relocked cabinet has been accessed, the advantage of the described method and configuration is that a single multiple port reader 404 may be used for reading multiple cabinets (i.e., the host cabinet 402 as well as one or more tethered cabinets 412.

[0051] Referring to Figure 5 of the drawings, in some embodiments, the modular RFID container system 500, having a host container 502 and one or more tethered containers 512, may include a dedicated access antenna reader 540 to monitor access authorisation by sequentially scanning the access antenna modules 530 of the respective containers that form part of the modular system (i.e., a host container 502, and one or more tethered containers 512). Advantageously, in this configuration any container is accessible at any time so that two or more containers may be accessed simultaneously because the access antenna reader 540 is adapted to unlock a container following receipt of an authorised access request, even if another container of the system has already been unlocked and/or is being accessed.

[0052] In some embodiments, the RFID reader 504 of the system 500 may be configured to control operation of this dedicated access antenna reader architecture so that access control rules or logic can be managed from the main host container 502. This may be done by including a controller and/or control instructions in the RFID reader 504. In alternative embodiments, the access antenna reader may be a separate unit, separate from any of the containers. In yet other embodiments, the access antenna reader may be variably associated with, or form part of, any of the containers forming part of the system.

[0053] Another embodiment of a modular RFID container system 600 is shown in Figure 6 of the drawings. The modular RFID container system 600 has a host container 602 with an associated RFID reader 604 that has a plurality of antenna ports 606. The host container 602 has a host container antenna system 608 connected to and in operative communication with a first set or a first one 610 of the plurality of antenna ports. The RFID container system 600 also comprises at least one tethered container 612; in the illustrated example there are three tethered containers. The tethered containers 612 each have an antenna system 614 connected to and in operative communication with the RFID reader 604 of the host container 602, via a further respective set and/or a further respective one 616 of the plurality of antenna ports 606. In this configuration, RFID operation of the modular container system 600 comprising a plurality of separate containers 602, 612 is controllable via the RFID reader 604 of the host container 602.

[0054] In this exemplary embodiment each container is a cabinet with shelves, each shelf having an antenna that activates to read RFID tags that are on the shelves. This is used for inventory tracking of items with tags on them. [0055] Normally, in the prior art, such cabinets each have an RFID reader with a processor that receives signals from each shelf within the same cabinet via a separate cable; i.e. 4 shelves means 4 cables plugged into that cabinet’s reader. This is expensive.

[0056] In contrast, the containers or cabinets of the systems described herein preferably include a daisy-chain cable arrangement so that, firstly, the main host (or master) cabinet antennas are connected together via daisy-chain arrangement, and the tethered (or slave) cabinet antennas are connected together via a daisy-chain arrangement within each respective cabinet. In this way, each cabinet (be it either a host or a tethered cabinet) requires the use of only one reader port.

[0057] The tethered containers do not include readers, and this means the tethered containers are significantly cheaper than conventional cabinets that each includes a reader, and also cheaper than the host container having the system’ shared reader. In some embodiments, the tethered containers may be mobile (for example a wheeled cabinet or trolley). In other embodiments the tethered containers may be conventional stationary cabinets, but without a reader. Advantageously, this type of modular configuration is flexible and cost-effective.

[0058] In some embodiments none of the containers or cabinets include a user interface. The cabinet is controlled centrally and remotely. In other embodiments, one or more of the system’s containers may include a user interface 650, for example including a screen, touchpad, authentication interface and/or controller etc. The user interface may be used, for example, to select which door to access, which shelf to read, to provide user authentication or access details, etc.

[0059] In some embodiments the user interface and RFID reader are provided together in one standalone unit, with no host cabinet. Instead all the cabinets are tethered readerless cabinets that connect to the reader and interface unit. [0060] It is noted that the foregoing has outlined some of the more pertinent nonlimiting embodiments. It will be clear to those skilled in the art that modifications to the disclosed non-limiting embodiment(s) can be effected without departing from the spirit and scope thereof. As such, the described non-limiting embodiment(s) ought to be considered to be merely illustrative of some of the more prominent features and applications. Other beneficial results can be realized by applying the non-limiting embodiments in a different manner or modifying them in ways known to those familiar with the art. The mixing and matching of features, elements and/or functions between various non-limiting embodiment(s) is expressly contemplated herein so that one of ordinary skill in the art would appreciate from this disclosure that features, elements and/or functions of one embodiment may be incorporated into another embodiment as appropriate, unless described otherwise, above. Although the description is made for particular arrangements and methods, the intent and concept thereof may be suitable and applicable to other arrangements and applications.

In the claims which follow and in the preceding description, except where the context requires otherwise due to express language or necessary implication, the word “comprise” or variations such as “comprises” or “comprising” is used in an inclusive sense, i.e. to specify the presence of the stated features but not to preclude the presence or addition of further features in various embodiments.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. A modular RFID container system comprising: a host container comprising: an RFID reader with a plurality of antenna ports; and a host container antenna system connected to and in operative communication with a first one of the plurality of antenna ports; and at least one tethered container comprising a tethered antenna system connected to and in operative communication with a further one of the plurality of antenna ports of the RFID reader of the host container, so that RFID operation of the container system is controlled by the host container via the host container RFID reader.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the host container antenna system comprises two or more host container RFID antennas connected together via a daisy-chain connection so that the host container antenna system operatively connects to the RFID reader via one antenna port.

3. The system of claim 1 or claim 2, wherein at least one tethered antenna system comprises two or more tethered container RFID antennas connected together via a daisy-chain connection so that the tethered container antenna system operatively connects to the RFID reader via one antenna port.

4. The system of claim 2 or claim 3, wherein the daisy-chain connection comprises at least one length compensation unit and a bypass switch operable to selectively bypass and connect a respective RFID antenna.

5. The system of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the host container antenna system comprises a plurality of RFID coil antennas, each associated with a different section within the host container.

6. The system of any one of the preceding claims, wherein each tethered container antenna system comprises a plurality of RFID coil antennas, each associated with a different section within the respective tethered container.

7. The system of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the RFID reader is configured to activate one or more of the antennas that form part of the host container antenna system and the tethered container antenna systems in order to detect RFID tags inside each container to then determine the content of each container.

8. The system of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the RFID reader has a number of RFID reader ports, and the total or maximum number of containers in the system is the same as the number of RFID reader ports.

9. The system of any one of the preceding claims, wherein one or more of the host container and the tethered containers comprise an access antenna module configured to control access to one or more of the containers of the system.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the access antenna module comprises: an access antenna; and a door control system comprising an access sensor interface, and configured to control access to the containers by confirming user authorisation via the access sensor interface.

11. The system of claim 9 or claim 10, further comprising an access antenna reader configured to monitor access authorisation of one or more of the containers by sequentially scanning the access control module.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the host container comprises the access antenna reader.

13. The system of any one of the preceding claims further comprising a user interface provided on one or more of the containers.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the user interface is provided by the host container, and the user interface comprises an authentication interface.