JP2014081959A - Method for using article search system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an article search system for easily recognizing the place of an article to be searched and a method for using the same system.SOLUTION: There is provided a method of using an article search system including at least: a display label; a writer device for, before the display label is attached to a corresponding article, replacing the information of the article with a symbol and/or number, and for allowing a memory part of the IC chip of the display label to record it; and a power/article information supply device which does not function as a reader/writer device. There is also provided a method of using the article search system characterized such that the IC chip is allowed to preliminarily store only the symbol and/or number by using the writer device, and the display label is attached to the article, and when there exists an article to be searched by a searcher, the searcher simply inputs the symbol and/or number of the article to be searched to the power/article information supply device, and moves in a room while holding the power/article information supply device in his or her hand, and brings the power/article information supply device close to the article or a plurality of articles including the article to allow the searcher to perceive the place of the article.

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for using an article search system using a wireless IC tag. Specifically, a display label having a wireless IC tag and a display is attached to the article, and the searcher can By supplying power and article information of the article to be searched from the information supply device, by changing the appearance of the display body existing on the same display label as the wireless IC tag storing the article information of the article to be searched for The present invention relates to a method for using an article search system that enables the searcher to know the location of the article, and also relates to an article search system and a display label used in the method for using such an article search system.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an article management system is known in which a wireless IC tag having an “IC chip on which information on the article is mounted” and a “tag antenna” is attached to various articles (for example, Patent Document 1). ~ 6). In this system, communication with a wireless IC tag is performed by sending a radio wave carrying information from a reader / writer device, and it is detected where an article with a wireless IC tag that meets a predetermined condition is located. To do.

  That is, the radio signal output from the transmission antenna of the reader / writer device is received by the tag antenna, and the power generated by the tag antenna by the received radio signal is supplied to the IC chip to operate the IC chip. A part of the radio signal is modulated in accordance with information stored in the IC chip, and a response signal is output to the reader / writer device via the tag antenna.

  Although it depends on the frequency band used, the distance between the reader / writer device and the wireless IC tag is necessarily limited (about 3 to 5 m at the maximum). Therefore, if a system using a wireless IC tag is applied to an article at a remote location, it is necessary to install an antenna near the article group and communicate via the antenna. Thereby, even if the distance between the operator and the article is large, the place where the article exists can be roughly detected.

  Further, in such a system using a wireless IC tag, article information is transmitted from the wireless IC tag attached thereto, and can be read by a reader / writer device.

  However, there are application fields in which it is not necessary to read information transmitted from a wireless IC tag. That is, there is an application field in which information on an article is transmitted to a wireless IC tag, only the location of the article that matches the information is known, and other information that the article has is unnecessary.

  Conventionally, information on an article is transmitted to a wireless IC tag, information on a plurality of articles that match the information is received, conditions are further narrowed down based on the information, and the location of the article that meets a final condition is determined. The knowing system is known. However, in this case, information transmitted from the wireless IC tag is read, and transmission of information from the wireless IC tag via the tag antenna is essential.

  However, in order to transmit information from a wireless IC tag, a large amount of power is required, and this power must be transmitted by radio waves from a reader / writer device or the like. Therefore, in a wireless IC tag, an IC chip or tag antenna existing there Various functions had to be sacrificed. In addition, size and price had to be sacrificed.

  There are quite a few fields where it is only necessary to know the location where an article that meets a certain condition exists, and other functions are not necessary. Few systems are known that do not transmit information using the power from a wireless IC tag attached to an article and do not have a function of detecting a radio wave transmitted from a tag antenna (detection function).

JP 2004-299860 A JP 2007-004678 A JP 2008-242911 A JP 2009-110331 A JP 2009-193115 A JP 2009-205603 A

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described background art, and an object thereof is to provide an article search system in which the location of an article to be searched can be easily determined and the apparatus is relatively simple and a method for using the article search system. .

  As a result of intensive studies to solve the above problems, the present inventor has a function of capturing radio waves of supplied power and article information, but has a function of transmitting to the outside substantially. Only when the article information of the article to be searched for is transmitted from the power / article information supply device to the non-wireless IC tag and matches the article information stored in advance in the memory part of the IC chip of the wireless IC tag. It is found that if a change that can be visually confirmed is caused in the display unit provided in the wireless IC tag, the searcher can easily know the location of the article and the apparatus can be simplified. It came to be completed.

That is, the present invention
(1-1-1) an IC chip having a memory unit for storing article information of an article in advance and a control unit for controlling the memory unit; and
(1-1-2) The IC chip has a function of capturing radio waves between the power supplied from the power / article information supply device and the article information, but the function for transmitting the article information to the outside is substantial. (1-1) a wireless IC tag having a tag antenna
And
(1-2) Display body whose appearance changes by receiving power from the wireless IC tag only when the article information supplied from the power / article information supply device matches the article information stored in advance in the memory unit (1) a display label, and
(2) the power / article information supply device;
A method of using an article search system comprising at least
After storing in advance the article information of the article to which it is attached in the IC chip of the wireless IC tag of the display label, the display label is attached to the article,
When there is an article to be searched by the searcher, the article information of the article to be searched is input to the power / article information supply apparatus, and the searcher moves the power / article information supply apparatus to By supplying power and the product information from the supply device to the product within 5 m,
By changing the appearance of the display body present on the display label having the wireless IC tag having the IC chip in which the article information is stored,
The present invention provides a method for using an article search system, wherein the searcher perceives the location of the article.

  The present invention also provides an article search system that is used in the above-described method of using the article search system.

  The present invention also provides a display label characterized by having a wireless IC tag and a display body and being used in the above method for using the article search system.

  According to the present invention, by solving the above-mentioned problems and problems and visually confirming that the appearance of the display body of the display label attached to the article changes the position of the article that the searcher wants to search, The searcher can easily perceive the location of the article.

  In addition, according to the present invention, since it is not necessary to read information transmitted from the wireless IC tag, it is not necessary to transmit information from the wireless IC tag to the power / article information supply device possessed by the searcher. Therefore, the wireless IC tag can be simplified, reduced in size, and reduced in price. In addition, since the power / article information supply apparatus does not need to read information from the wireless IC tag, it can be simplified, downsized, and inexpensive.

  That is, no information is transmitted from the tag antenna of the wireless IC tag in the display label, and the appearance of the display body in the display label changes. The change of the visible light is transmitted and the searcher's eyes detect the information, which can greatly simplify the wireless IC tag and the power / article information supply device, reduce the size, and reduce the cost. become. Therefore, the power / article information supply device used in the present invention does not substantially have a “reader function for reading a signal from a wireless IC tag” mounted on a conventional reader / writer device. Since there is virtually no feedback from the signal from the power / article information supply device, the wireless IC tag and the power / article information supply device are greatly simplified, reduced in size, reduced in price, etc. It becomes possible.

  The power / article information supply apparatus according to the present invention is moved by the person searching for the article in his / her hand, etc., and close to within 5 m of the article to be searched. In addition, the wireless IC tag and the power / article information supply device can be simplified, downsized, and inexpensive. In a narrow space such as a room in a home, a small warehouse, or a drawer, the searcher can move the power / article information supply device closer to the article or point it in the direction of the article. For a person, it takes almost no drawback to take such labor.

  By using the present invention, the searcher can know the location of the article he / she wants to search from among a plurality of articles attached with the display label, and a plurality of articles without the display label attached. It is possible to easily find an article that the user wants to search from among those in which the article and the article to which the display label is attached are mixed.

It is the block diagram which showed the structure of the display label which has a wireless IC tag in this invention, and the structure of an electric power and goods information supply apparatus. It is a figure which shows the state by which the display label which has a radio | wireless IC tag was attached to various articles | goods. (A) Key (b) Video tape case (c) Book (d) DVD (digital versatile disc), CD (compact disc), MD (mini disc), MO (magneto-optical disc), BR (Blu-ray disc), FD Case of recording media such as (flexible disc) It is a figure which shows an example of an electric power and goods information supply apparatus. It is a figure which shows the aspect of the articles | goods searched using this invention.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described, but the present invention is not limited to the following specific embodiments, and can be arbitrarily modified within the scope of the technical idea.

As shown in FIG.
(1-1-1) an IC chip 10 having a memory unit 12 for storing article information of the article 70 in advance, and a control unit 11 for controlling the memory unit 12, and
(1-1-2) A function for capturing radio waves between the power supplied from the power / article information supply device 60 and the article information to the IC chip 10, but for transmitting the article information to the outside. (1-1) a wireless IC tag 30 having a tag antenna 20 that substantially does not have
And
(1-2) Only when the article information supplied from the power / article information supply device 60 matches the article information stored in the memory unit 12 in advance, the appearance is changed by receiving power from the wireless IC tag 30. (1) a display label 50 having a display body 40 to be
(2) the power / article information supply device 60;
Is a method for using the article search system.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the apparatus used in the method for using the article search system of the present invention includes at least a display label 50 having a wireless IC tag 30 and a display body 40, and a power / article information supply apparatus 60. Have. The wireless IC tag 30 includes at least the IC chip 10 and the tag antenna 20. Further, the IC chip 10 includes at least a control unit 11 that controls information on the article 70 and a memory unit 12 that stores information on the article 70. The wireless IC tag 30 is also referred to as an RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) tag.

  The memory unit 12 can store information on the article 70, but stores and uses information on the article 70 to which the display label 50 is attached. Although the present invention is not limited, the present invention is particularly applicable when used in a narrow space or in a narrow space such as partially in a house, in a drawer, in a document shelf, or in a warehouse. The article 70 is not particularly limited, but electronic such as DVD (digital versatile disk), CD (compact disk), MD (mini disk), MO (magneto-optical disk), BR (Blu-ray disk), FD (flexible disk), etc. Recording media or cases; print media such as books, documents, catalogs or cases; accessories such as keys, ornaments or cases; daily necessaries such as clothing, food, cosmetics, medicines or cases; A partition, a bag, etc. are mentioned as a preferable thing. A typical example of the article 70 is shown in FIG.

  Therefore, taking the above information storage medium as an example, article information includes title / book title, superordinate concept classification / subordinate concept classification, producer name / author name / composer / artist name, issue date, purchase date, searcher's name, etc. Notes and so on. Taking the key 71 as an example, an object that can be used by the key 71; when there are a plurality of kinds of objects, a number corresponding to them, for example, a room number, a locker number, a vehicle number, and the like. Moreover, you may give a symbol and / or a number to the article 70 uniquely (numbering).

  The information of the article 70 is recorded and stored in the memory unit 12 of the IC chip 10, but the recording operation may be provided in the power / article information supply device 60 described later, but separately. There may be a writer device, and the information of the article 70 may be recorded in the memory unit 12 of the IC chip 10. The power / article information supply device 60 is responsible for supplying power to the wireless IC tag 30 and supplying the article information to the wireless IC tag 30, and records information on the article 70 in the memory unit 12 of the IC chip 10. If there is a separate device, the power / article information supply device 60 becomes smaller and lighter, and it becomes easier to carry the power / article information supply device 60 and move it in various directions / locations to search for the article 70. preferable.

  After attaching the display label 50 having the IC chip 10 to the article 70, the information of the article 70 may be stored in the memory unit 12 of the IC chip 10, or the information of the article 70 may be stored in the memory unit 12 of the IC chip 10. Then, the display label 50 having the IC chip 10 may be attached to the corresponding article 70.

  The power / article information supply device 60 of the present invention is not a reader device because it has substantially no function of reading information from the wireless IC tag 30 as will be described later. Further, as described above, since the function of recording the information of the article 70 on the IC chip 10 is not substantially present and it is not a writer device, it is fundamentally different from the conventional reader / writer device.

  The control unit 11 of the IC chip 10 in the wireless IC tag 30 controls the “article information from the power / article information supply device 60” received by the tag antenna 20 also in the wireless IC tag 30, and the IC chip. 10 is sent to the memory unit 12 to determine whether or not the information matches the component information stored in the memory unit 12. If they match, the control unit 11 sends a signal indicating the match from the wireless IC tag 30 to the display body driving means 41, and the display body driving means 41 receives the signal indicating the match from the control unit 11. Only when power is supplied to the display body 40, the appearance of the display body 40 is changed.

  In the present invention, the tag antenna 20 in the wireless IC tag 30 has a function of capturing and receiving power and article information supplied from the power / article information supply device 60, but the memory unit 12 of the IC chip 10 includes There is substantially no function for transmitting stored article information to the outside. In the present invention, article information stored in the memory unit 12 in the IC chip 10 is not substantially transmitted to the outside. The tag antenna 20 is for receiving article information, not for transmitting. The presence of the article 70 that the searcher is searching for is notified to the searcher when the appearance of the display body 40 changes. As a result, the wireless IC tag and the power / article information supply device can be greatly simplified, reduced in size, and reduced in price.

  The display label 50 can be attached to a visible place on the surface of the article 70. The attachment may be any of a pasting type; a winding type; a type fastened with a pin, string, wire or the like; The display label 50 includes the wireless IC tag 30 and the display body 40 described above. Normally, a signal from the wireless IC tag 30 can be supplied to the display body 40 by the display body driving means 41. . On the display label 50, the display body 40 may be positioned above the wireless IC tag 30, or may be positioned side by side as shown in FIG.

  There is no particular limitation on the display body 40 as long as the appearance is changed by receiving power supply and the searcher can be informed of the location of the display body 40. Once power is supplied, the appearance may always be changed thereafter. Although there is no limitation in particular as the display body 40 which changes an external appearance only when electric power is supplied, LED, organic EL, etc. are mentioned specifically, for example. The change in appearance is preferably luminescence.

  Further, if the display body 40 is supplied with electric power and there is a change in the appearance, and if the display body 40 is an irreversible display body that retains the changed appearance once the power supply is lost, Even after the article information supply device 60 is stopped, the searcher can slowly search for the article 70 and can realize energy saving, and even if the searcher does not have the power / article information supply device 60, This is convenient because the article 70 to which the display body 40 whose appearance has already changed can be searched. The irreversible display is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include a display having an electrochromic material, a display having a different appearance on the back and front, and changing its appearance by being repeated. Examples of the electrochromic material include organic / metal hybrid polymers, dyes or dye precursors whose chemical structure changes with voltage. Moreover, the electronic paper display body currently used for electronic paper etc. is also mentioned.

  When the display body 40 is an irreversible display body, after the article 70 is searched, it may be restored by applying a reverse voltage. However, the display label 50 is discarded and the new display label 50 is replaced with the article. Since it is not complicated to attach to 70, it is preferable. Since the irreversible display requires less energy to change its appearance, it matches very well with the present invention where energy can only be supplied by radio waves. Further, since many irreversible displays have a slow response speed, they do not require a high response speed, that is, they match very well with the present invention where the response speed may be slow.

  Since the power supplied from the power / article information supply antenna 61 of the power / article information supply device 60 is small, the power supplied from the power / article information supply device 60 is sufficient for the appearance of the display body 40 to change. It is also preferred that the display label 50 has power storage means for storing up to a quantity. When the power storage means cannot change the appearance of the display body 40 with a small amount of power, the power storage means 41 activates the display body drive means 41 when power sufficient to change the appearance of the display body 40 is stored. The appearance of the body 40 is changed.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the power / article information supply device 60 includes at least a power / article information supply antenna 61, a data transmission unit 62, an article information control unit 63 having a search article information input means 65, and a power source. 66. The article information control unit 63 includes an article information storage unit 64, which may store candidate article information to be searched for in advance.

  The power / article information supply device 60 preferably has an input article information display unit 67. The searcher inputs the item information (for example, “A13” in FIG. 3) of the item 70 to be searched using the search item information input means 65 such as a keyboard. Since the input article information display unit 67 displays the input article information and the like, the searcher can clearly know whether the input has been made correctly and what is currently being searched for. .

  The input article information may be all or a part of the information stored in the memory unit 12 of the IC chip 10. For example, when a certain author name is input from the search article information input means 65 and the article information is transmitted to the wireless IC tag 30, if one or more books having the author name correspond, a plurality of display labels 50 are displayed. The external appearance of the display body 40 may be changed. Then, the searcher can select only one book that he / she was searching for from among the selected books.

  The input article information is sent from the article information control unit 63 to the data transmission unit 62 and transmitted from the power / article information supply antenna 61. If the transmitted article information is a search condition of “article A”, the wireless IC tag 30 storing the article information corresponding to the search condition reacts to the same, and the same display is performed using the display body driving means 41. The appearance of the display body 40 in the label 50 is changed. The searcher can easily find the candidate of “article A” or “article A” being searched from among the plurality of articles 70.

  The article information control unit 63 may include an article information storage unit 64, in which article information can be stored. It is preferable that the article information in the article information storage unit 64 can be initialized (formatted) and replaced with other article information.

The present invention includes at least the display label 50 and the power / article information supply device 60 described above, and is a method of using the following article search system.
That is, after the article information of the article 70 attached to the IC chip 10 of the wireless IC tag 30 of the display label 50 is stored in advance, the display label 50 is attached to the article 70,
When there is an article 70 that the searcher wants to search, the article information of the article 70 that the searcher wants to search is input to the power / article information supply device 60.
The searcher moves the power / article information supply device 60 to supply the power and the product information from the power / article information supply device 60 to the article 70 within 5 m. The searcher perceives the location of the article 70 by changing the appearance of the display body 40 present on the display label 50 having the wireless IC tag 30 having the IC chip 10 in which the article information is stored. This is a method for using the article search system.

  In the present invention, a searcher for an article 70 moves the power / article information supply device 60 described above, and supplies power and the article information from the power / article information supply device 60 to the article 70 within 5 m. By doing so, the appearance of the display body 40 provided alongside the corresponding IC chip 10 changes, and the searcher visually perceives the article 70 to be searched, to which the display label 50 is attached.

  In the present invention, the searcher perceives the location of the article to be searched from among a plurality of articles to which the display label 50 is attached. That is, as shown in FIG. 4A and FIG. 4C, the display label 50 is attached to almost all articles, and the search is performed from among them. Further, in the present invention, the searcher perceives the location of the article to be searched with the display label 50 attached from among a plurality of articles to which the display label 50 is not attached. That is, an article to which the display label 50 that is an article to be searched is attached is searched from among a plurality of articles to which the display label 50 is not attached. Further, as shown in FIG. 4B, the searcher selects a display object from among “a plurality of articles to which the display label 50 is attached” and “a plurality of articles to which the display label 50 is not attached”. It is also possible to search for an article attached with a display label 50 whose appearance is changed.

  The searcher moves the power / article information supply device 60 and supplies the power / article information from the power / article information supply device 60 to the article 70 within 5 m. The location of the corresponding article 70 is perceived by changing the appearance of the display body 40 present on the display label 50 having the wireless IC tag 30 having the stored IC chip 10.

  The searcher preferably moves the power / article information supply device 60 while holding the power / article information supply device 60 by changing the direction of the power / article information supply device 60 or by directing the power / article information supply device 60 toward the direction of the item 70 being searched. The appearance of the display body 40 is changed, and the location of the corresponding article 70 is perceived. Since the present invention does not substantially have an amplifying means between the power / article information supply device 60 and the wireless IC tag 30, the power / article information supply device 60 is limited by the wavelength of the radio wave used by the wireless IC tag 30. The distance between the article 70 and the article 70 is 5 m or less, so that the effects of the present invention can be sufficiently achieved. That is, the searcher moves the power / article information supply device 60 to supply the power / article information supply device 60 to the article 70 within 5 m from the power / article information supply device 60. The article information supply device 60 is brought close to the article 70. Even if it must be approached by trial and error, it is possible to find the article 70 sufficiently quickly in a narrow space such as a part of a house, a drawer, a document shelf, or a warehouse.

  Even the wireless IC tag 30 that reacts only to a distance of less than 5 m is sufficiently effective depending on the type of article to be searched. For example, when searching for an article A from a large number of parts 70 in the drawer, even if the wireless IC tag 30 reacts only at “0.3 cm to 10 cm” or less, the searcher can use the power / article information supply device 60. Can be brought close to the group of articles 70 to change the appearance of the display body 40 of the display label 50 attached to the candidate article A. The present invention is characterized in that although a certain amount of labor is applied to the searcher, the device is made easier to use instead. In addition, applying a certain amount of labor to the searcher hardly causes a defect or an obstacle in the narrow space as described above.

  The frequency band used may be any of 135 kHz, 13.56 MHz, 915 MHz, 2.45 GHz; UHF bands of 950 to 956 MHz (Japan), 868 to 870 MHz (Europe), and 902 to 928 MHz (US). The frequency band to be used is mainly determined by the distance between the power / article information supply device 60 and the article 70 to be searched.

  By using the article search system using the wireless IC tag of the present invention, it is possible to easily find an article that the searcher wants to search by visually confirming a change in the appearance of the display label. Since the searcher moves the information supply device closer to the article, the searcher's effort is necessary. However, the wireless IC tag and the power / article information supply device are greatly simplified, reduced in size, reduced in cost, etc. Can be used not only in homes, factories, warehouses, but also in small spaces such as document shelves, drawers, beverage shelves, food shelves, refrigerators, racks, etc. Therefore, it is widely used not only in the field of industrial equipment manufacturing but also in the field of consumer equipment manufacturing.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 IC chip 11 Control part 12 Memory part 20 Tag antenna 30 Radio | wireless IC tag 40 Display body 41 Display body drive means 50 Display label 60 Electric power / article information supply apparatus 61 Electric power / article information supply antenna 62 Data transmission part 63 Article information control part 64 Article information storage section 65 Search article information input means 66 Power supply 67 Input article information display section 70 Article 71 Key 72 Video tape case 73 This 74 Document 75 Case of recording medium such as DVD, CD, MD

Claims (10)

(1) An IC chip having a memory unit for storing article information of articles in advance and a control unit for controlling the memory unit, and power supplied from the power / article information supply device to the IC chip A wireless IC tag having a tag antenna that has a function of capturing radio waves between the product information and the product information, but has substantially no function of transmitting the product information to the outside, and
A display label having a display body whose appearance changes by receiving power from the wireless IC tag only when the article information supplied from the power / article information supply device matches the article information stored in the memory unit in advance. ,When,
(2) Before attaching the display label to the corresponding article, the information of the article is replaced with a symbol and / or number and recorded in the memory unit of the IC chip of the wireless IC tag of the display label A writer device, and
(3) the power / article information supply device that does not have a function of reading information from the wireless IC tag, has no function of recording information on the article on the IC chip, and does not function as a reader / writer;
A method of using an article search system comprising at least
Only the symbols and / or numbers are stored in advance on the IC chip of the wireless IC tag of the display label using the writer device, and then the display label is attached to the article.
When there is an article that the searcher wants to search, the searcher simply inputs the symbol and / or number of the article to be searched into the power / article information supply apparatus, and holds the power / article information supply apparatus in his / her room. The product information is obtained by moving the inside of the product, approaching the product or a plurality of products including the product, and supplying the power and the product information from the power / article information supply device to the product within 5 m. A method of using an article search system, wherein the searcher perceives the location of the article by changing the appearance of a display body present on a display label having a wireless IC tag having a stored IC chip.   The method of using the article search system according to claim 1, wherein a location of an article to be searched is perceived from a plurality of articles to which the display label is attached.   2. The method for using an article search system according to claim 1, wherein an article to which a display label which is an article to be searched is attached is searched from a plurality of articles to which the display label is not attached.   4. The display label has power storage means for storing the power supplied from the power / article information supply device until the display label has a sufficient amount to change the appearance of the display body. A method of using the article search system according to claim 1.   The article search system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the article is an electronic recording medium, a printing medium, a small article or daily necessities, or a case, a package, a partition or a bag. How to use.   The method for using the article search system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the display is an LED or an organic EL, and the change in appearance is light emission.   6. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the display body is an irreversible display body that retains the once-appeared appearance even if the power supply is stopped if the display body is once supplied with electric power and the external appearance is changed. A method of using the article search system according to claim 1.   8. The method of using the article search system according to claim 7, wherein the irreversible display is a display having an electrochromic material, a display having a different appearance on the back and the front, and changing in appearance by being repeated, or an electronic paper display. .   An article search system that is used in the method for using the article search system according to any one of claims 1 to 8.   A display label comprising a wireless IC tag and a display body, wherein the display label is used in the method for using the article search system according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

Images