JP4389598B2 - Loop antenna and wireless communication medium processing apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention provides a wireless communication medium processing apparatus that supplies power and transmission data to a wireless communication medium such as a contactless IC card or IC tag stored in a shelf, box, basket, etc., and acquires received data from the wireless communication medium. It is an object of the present invention to provide a loop antenna and a wireless communication medium processing apparatus that are optimal to use.

  A wireless communication medium having an ID code, such as an IC card or an IC tag, and a wireless communication medium processing apparatus for performing ID code authentication of the wireless communication medium are used for authentication, baggage destination distribution, and the like. It is increasing. When the communication mounted medium exists in the communication range of the communication mounted medium processing apparatus, an induced voltage is generated in the antenna of the wireless communication medium by the magnetic field from the antenna, and this voltage is rectified to supply power and transmission data. In a wireless communication medium to which power is supplied, according to data read from the mounted memory, for example, in a modulation circuit composed of a load resistor and a switch connected to an antenna, according to data 1 and 0 The switch is turned on and off. With this on / off, a load variation occurs on the antenna of the wireless communication medium, and this load variation is transmitted as a signal to the antenna on the communication medium processing apparatus side. The transmitted signal is demodulated and its ID code authentication is performed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  Here, such a wireless communication medium is attached to a product such as a book, medicine, daily necessities, etc., and the product inventory can be confirmed by using the wireless communication medium processing device for the product.

For this reason, a wireless communication medium processing device having an antenna that communicates with a wireless communication medium attached to the product for product management has been used. As such an antenna, an antenna that uses a loop antenna to easily apply a magnetic field to a wireless communication medium is used. Alternatively, a loop antenna is incorporated into a structure such as a box or a shelf, and a magnetic field is applied to a wireless communication medium placed in the internal space of the structure to enable communication. .
JP 2000-163523 A

  However, the antenna used in the conventional wireless communication medium processing device is an antenna determined by the size and shape at the time of manufacture, and for changes or differences in usage when used in an actual wireless communication medium processing device. There was a problem that could not be handled. For example, when a loop-shaped antenna is used for a gate type device used for shoplifting prevention or product inspection, it is practically insufficient if the shape and size of the antenna are fixed. In contrast to the usage mode, when the opening area of the loop antenna is too small, there is a problem that a magnetic field cannot be applied to the wireless communication medium existing at a position exceeding this, and communication cannot be performed. Alternatively, if the loop antenna is too large and the space volume that can be used as the gate device is small, it cannot be mounted and practically cannot be used.

  In particular, when communicating with a wireless communication medium as a gate-type device, the size and shape of an article passing through the gate may change uncorrelated, but the size and shape of the antenna are fixed. If this is done, there may be a case where a magnetic field cannot be applied to the wireless communication medium, resulting in instability in communication.

The structure is also used when a wireless communication medium is attached to a product such as a box or a shelf to form a loop antenna that forms a three-dimensional space for communication. If the size of the antenna cannot be changed, it will be necessary to prepare various antennas, which will cause manufacturing costs, processing costs, labor costs for procedure processing, etc. There was also an adverse effect.

  In addition, even in a wireless communication medium processing apparatus that incorporates an antenna into a structure and communicates with a wireless communication medium attached to a product or the like existing in the internal space, the internal space volume can be flexibly changed according to changes in the usage mode. However, antennas and structures with fixed shapes and sizes are not compatible with these, and wireless communication media processing devices with various sizes and shapes are unnecessarily prepared in advance. There was a problem that was indispensable.

  Furthermore, when not only the size of the antenna but also the shape of the antenna is fixed, the magnetic field generated by the conductor of the antenna exists near the antenna or depends on the position and orientation of the wireless communication medium passing therethrough. There was also a problem that communication was unstable without being granted.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above problems, the present invention is a loop antenna that communicates with a wireless communication medium that easily responds to a change in use mode and reliably applies a magnetic field to the wireless communication medium to improve communication accuracy and stability. It is another object of the present invention to provide a wireless communication medium processing device.

  The present invention includes a conductor, a bent portion provided in the conductor, a conductor expansion / contraction portion provided at an arbitrary position of the conductor, and a power feeding portion that supplies a signal current to the conductor, and the conductor is based on the power feeding portion. It is configured to circulate in a loop shape.

  With such a configuration, the size of a loop antenna that applies a magnetic field to a wireless communication medium can be changed afterwards and easily, and an article that is attached to a wireless communication medium that exists near or passes through the loop antenna. Even if the size and shape of the antenna changes dynamically, the size of the loop antenna changes accordingly, and a magnetic field is applied corresponding to the changed position of the wireless communication medium, thereby communicating with the wireless communication medium. And stability can be improved.

  In particular, by providing a conductor expansion / contraction part at an arbitrary position of the conductor of the loop antenna, the conductor length can be easily extended or shortened, and the opening area of the loop antenna can be easily changed, It is possible to easily cope with fluctuations in the communication range with the wireless communication medium.

  Furthermore, by using a bending movable part for the conductor expansion / contraction part, it is possible to form a fold at an arbitrary position of the loop antenna, and to change the three-dimensional shape of the loop antenna. The magnetic field application can be further changed. Accordingly, there is an advantage that reliable communication can be performed even when the position or orientation of the wireless communication medium changes.

  In addition, when a plurality of these loop antennas are used as opposed gate antennas, even if the size or shape of an article with a wireless communication medium that exists in or passes through each loop antenna is changed. By expanding and contracting the facing area of the loop antenna by the expansion and contraction of the loop antenna conductor, it is possible to realize communication with the wireless communication medium appropriately and reliably.

Also, in a wireless communication medium processing apparatus that incorporates a three-dimensionally configured loop antenna into a structure such as a box-shaped body, and performs automatic management of products with a wireless communication medium existing in the internal space. The expansion and contraction of the loop antenna conductor incorporated inside makes it possible to easily cope with changes in the size of structures such as shelves and boxes. Preliminary loop antennas with various sizes are prepared. Therefore, it is possible to realize cost reduction and work reduction.

  Furthermore, the structure itself incorporating a loop antenna with a conductor expansion / contraction part can be expanded and contracted, and the wireless communication medium processing can be flexibly changed in size and shape according to the type and size of the product placed in the internal space. The system can be realized, and it can reliably handle automatic management of various products at low cost.

  In particular, it is very easy to change the size because the structure and the loop antenna expand and contract in conjunction with each other.

  In addition, by connecting a communication device to the read / write unit, it is possible to send the ID code results from the wireless communication medium processed by the read / write unit to the host, etc., and it is also possible to build a multifunctional system It is. In addition, a plurality of wireless communication medium processing devices can be operated in a centralized and distributed manner. In such a case, the structure and loop antenna used for each wireless communication medium processing device can be expanded and contracted. It is also possible to construct a system for processing devices of the same standard in various sizes depending on the object of use and processing over various articles and products.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an internal space, a structure having an opening that connects the internal space and the external space, a structure expansion / contraction part provided at an arbitrary position of the structure, and a structure The loop antenna is disposed in the internal space of the antenna, and the loop antenna supplies a conductor, a bent portion provided in the conductor, a conductor expansion / contraction portion provided at the same position as the structure expansion / contraction portion, and a signal current to the conductor. A wireless communication medium processing apparatus having a power supply unit, wherein the conductor circulates in a loop shape starting from the power supply unit, and the structure expansion / contraction part expands / contracts in conjunction with the conductor expansion / contraction part. It is possible to easily change the shape and size of the wireless communication medium processing apparatus.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  In addition, the wireless communication medium in the present invention is a medium that can communicate with a processing device in a non-contact manner, such as a non-contact IC card, an IC tag, an ID tag, an identification label, and an RF-ID tag. The processing device is a device that communicates with these wireless communication media, and indicates a so-called reader, reader / writer, and reading / writing device.

(Embodiment 1)
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 11 are perspective views of the loop antenna according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 7, 8, 9, and 10 illustrate the present invention. FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of a conductor expansion / contraction section in the first embodiment.

  1 is a loop antenna, 1b is a gate antenna, 2 is a conductor, 3 is a bent part, 4 is a conductor expansion / contraction part, 5 is a feeding part, 6 is a feeding loop antenna, 7 is a parasitic loop antenna, 8 is a resonance circuit, 9 is Matching circuit, 10 is a terminal resistor, 11 is an electromagnetic wave leakage prevention plate, 12 is a magnetic plate, 13 is a joint, 14 is a slide portion, 15 is an inner conductor, 16 is an outer conductor, 17 is a slide hole, 18 is a set screw , 19 is a bending movable part, 20 is a folding part, and 21 and 22 are rotating shafts.

  First, the loop antenna 1 whose size and shape are freely variable will be described with reference to FIGS.

  First, the loop antenna 1 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  The loop antenna 1 is an antenna that acts as a relay between a wireless communication medium and a read / write unit that performs communication with a wireless communication medium such as an IC tag and an IC card described later, and applies a magnetic field to the wireless communication medium. The loop antenna 1 has a loop shape starting from the power feeding unit 5 and has an opening. In order to realize this loop shape, the bent portion 3 is provided at an arbitrary position of the conductor 2, and in FIGS. 1 to 4, all the bent portions 3 are two-dimensionally formed, and the openings are formed by the loop shape. The part is a plane of a two-dimensional space. On the other hand, in FIGS. 5 and 6, the bent portion 3 is formed three-dimensionally, and an opening formed by a loop shape exists over three dimensions. That is, the loop antenna 1 has a virtual space formed in a three-dimensional space.

The conductor 2 is a conductor that forms the loop antenna 1 and is formed of a magnetic material such as various metals. The cross-sectional shape is various such as a cylinder, an ellipse, a prism, a polygonal column, a chamfered prism, and the strength and processing. It is a balance of sex. The conductor 2 conducts a signal current. When the signal current flows, the conductor 2 generates a magnetic field and an electric field with the conductor 2 as a base point.

  The conductor 2 may be formed of a single metal, may be an alloy, and may be various ones such as a ceramic or a resin coated with a metal coating. Steel, stainless steel, aluminum and the like are suitable, but other materials may be used.

  The bent portion 3 is provided at an arbitrary position of the conductor 2 and is provided to bend the conductor 2 to realize a loop shape. The bent portion 3 is preferably formed with R instead of a right angle in order to ensure its strength. The conductor 2 is appropriately bent by the bent portion 3 to form a loop shape with the power feeding portion 5 as a reference.

  The power feeding unit 5 feeds a signal current to the conductor 2, and a magnetic field is generated by the signal current in the loop antenna 1, and a magnetic field is applied to the wireless communication medium. Alternatively, it also serves as a signal receiver that receives the induced current generated by the mutual inductance with the wireless communication medium and outputs it to the read / write unit. The loop antenna 1 loops with the feeding unit 5 as a base point.

  The conductor expansion / contraction part 4 is a part provided at an arbitrary position of the conductor 2 to extend, shorten, or bend the conductor 2. By the operation of the conductor expansion / contraction part 4, the size of the loop antenna 1 can be arbitrarily determined later. The shape can be changed.

  The conductor expansion / contraction part 4 is the same as the opening changing means (not shown), and the conductor expansion / contraction part 4 causes the loop antenna to have a loop shape by extending, shortening, or bending the length of the conductor 2. The area, shape, or volume of the virtual space formed by the opening is changed. That is, as the opening changing means, there are the conductor expansion / contraction part 4 and the bending movable part 19 described later.

  First, the change in the size of the single loop antenna 1 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  In FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the conductor expansion / contraction part 4 is provided at an arbitrary portion of the conductor, so that the conductor 2 is extended or shortened thereby changing the size of the loop antenna 1. The opening is also changed.

  Here, the conductor expansion / contraction part 4 may be provided only at one pair of sides of the conductor as shown in FIG. 1, or may be provided at two sets of sides as shown in FIG. Also good. In the former case, the length of the conductor 2 extends in the up-down direction with respect to the power supply unit 5, and in the latter case, the length also extends in the lateral direction.

  Thus, due to the presence of the conductor expansion / contraction part 4, the length of the conductor 2 is extended, and the opening area of the loop antenna 1 is enlarged. That is, the area covered by the magnetic field generated by the loop antenna 1 is expanded. On the contrary, if the length of the conductor 2 is shortened by the conductor expansion / contraction part 4 and the size of the loop antenna 1 is reduced, there is an advantage that it becomes easy to install the loop antenna 1 in a narrow place or inside the apparatus. These can be changed flexibly as appropriate according to the situation in which the loop antenna 1 is used.

  Next, a gate antenna 1b obtained by combining a plurality of loop antennas 1 to face each other will be described with reference to FIGS.

  The gate antenna 1b is an antenna in which a gate is configured by combining a plurality of loop antennas 1 so as to face each other. By connecting a read / write unit described later to this, for example, shoplifting prevention at a store entrance, It is used for checks, product shipment checks at airports and warehouses. 3 and 4 show the gate antenna 1b in which two loop antennas 1 are arranged to face each other, three or more loop antennas 1 may be combined.

  Further, the facing of the loop antennas 1 is preferably substantially parallel, but may have a slight crossing angle.

  At this time, each of the loop antennas 1 may be a combination of a feeding loop antenna to which a feeding unit 5 is connected and a signal current is fed. One is a feeding loop antenna 6 and the other is a non-feeding parasitic loop antenna 7. It may be.

  FIG. 3 shows a gate antenna 1b in which a feeding loop antenna 6 and a parasitic loop antenna 7 are combined.

  The magnetic field generated by the feeding loop antenna 6 generates an induced current in the conductor of the parasitic loop antenna 7, and the parasitic loop antenna 7 is as if it is a fed loop antenna while being parasitic with respect to this induced current. A magnetic field is also generated from. Thereby, the communication range of the gate antenna 1b can be expanded with very low power consumption. Further, the magnetic field generated in the parasitic loop antenna 7 is due to the induced current from the feeder loop antenna 6. For this reason, there is no phase difference between the magnetic field generated by the parasitic loop antenna 7 and the magnetic field generated by the fed loop antenna 6, and writing by the phase difference is performed regardless of which magnetic field from any loop antenna reaches the wireless communication medium. There is also an advantage that no read error occurs.

  The resonance circuit 8 is connected to the parasitic loop antenna 7 and the resonance frequency of the parasitic loop antenna 7 is adjusted.

  The matching circuit 9 is connected to the parasitic loop antenna 7 and the impedance matching of the parasitic loop antenna 7 is adjusted.

  Similarly, the termination resistor 10 also plays a role of performing adjustment by impedance matching.

  As described above, the gate antenna 1b configured by the combination of the two loop antennas 1 makes it possible to apply a magnetic field to the wireless communication medium existing in the vicinity of the opposing area, and the single loop antenna 1 Compared with the case of using, it is possible to cover a very wide area and perform communication.

  Further, as in FIGS. 1 and 2, since the conductor 2 is provided with the conductor expansion / contraction part 4, the size of the loop antenna 1 (that is, the area of the opening) can be expanded or reduced. Can be done easily. Of course, the same applies to either the vertical direction or the horizontal direction. As a result, for example, when the baggage attached with the wireless communication medium is very large, the loop antenna 1 is expanded in accordance with this, and in the opposite case, the communication is reliably performed with the wireless communication medium. Can be improved.

  Alternatively, the optimal size and shape of the gate antenna 1b can be realized by performing extension, shortening, and folding at the conductor expansion / contraction part 4 according to the size of the place where the gate antenna 1b is used. it can.

  The same applies to FIG. 4. In FIG. 4, the electromagnetic wave leakage prevention plate 11 and the magnetic plate 12 are disposed outside the loop antenna 1 (outside the region where the two loop antennas face each other). 4 shows a case where each of the loop antennas 1 is a feeding loop antenna 6 to which a signal current is fed from the feeding unit 5. However, as in FIG. It can be a combination of the antenna 6 and the parasitic loop antenna 7).

  The electromagnetic wave leakage prevention plate 11 can prevent the electromagnetic waves generated from the loop antenna 1 from leaking to the distance, and can reduce the far electric field regulated by the Radio Law or the like.

  Further, the presence of the magnetic plate 12 makes it possible to form a closed circuit of the magnetic field between the loop antenna 1 and the magnetic plate 12, and concentrates the magnetic flux density on the facing region between the loop antennas 1, thereby wirelessly It is possible to increase the degree of magnetic field application to the communication medium.

  Even in FIG. 4, the size of the loop antenna can be expanded or shortened in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction by the conductor expansion / contraction part 4 in the same manner. The gate antenna 1b can be obtained.

  As a result, it is not necessary to prepare loop antennas 1 having a large number of sizes and shapes in advance, the cost merit is high, the labor of the replacement process can be reduced, and a flexible response to changes in the usage mode is possible.

  Next, the loop antenna 1 formed in the three-dimensional space will be described with reference to FIGS.

  The loop antenna 1 has a plurality of bent portions 3 at arbitrary locations on the conductor 2, and the plurality of bent portions 3 are bent three-dimensionally, so that a virtual space formed by the outer periphery of the conductor 2 is three-dimensional. It is a space. That is, due to the three-dimensional bending, the opening made by the loop antenna 1 exists over the three-dimensional space.

  This is a form in which there is a second surface 24 facing each other at both ends of a certain first surface 23 in the opening, and the portions of the conductor 2 are X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis that are orthogonal to each other. It is the loop antenna 1 of the form which exists along all the axis | shafts.

  In addition, the center of gravity of the virtual space formed by drawing a straight line from an arbitrary point of the conductor 2 to the other part of the conductor 2 over the entire length of the conductor 2 exists inside the virtual space. It is the loop antenna 1 of the form to do.

  In this way, a magnetic field can be generated with respect to all of the X axis, the Y axis, and the Z axis orthogonal to each other by the loop antenna 1 formed of the conductor 2 that forms a virtual space over a three-dimensional space. Part of the conductor 2 along the X axis generates a magnetic field in the vertical direction, part of the conductor 2 along the Y axis generates a magnetic field in the vertical direction, and part of the conductor 2 along the Z axis However, by generating a magnetic field in the vertical direction, a magnetic field is generated in all directions.

That is, a magnetic field along the magnetic field H _{X in} the X-axis direction, the magnetic field H _{Y in the Y-} axis direction, and the magnetic field H _Z in the Z-axis direction is generated from the loop antenna 1, and the magnetic field is generated regardless of the position and orientation of the wireless communication medium. Can be reliably communicated.

The same applies to the loop antenna 1 shown in FIG. 6, and one of the shapes is selected depending on its strength and manufacturing convenience.

  5 and 6 both show a loop antenna 1 having a virtual space that is a substantially rectangular parallelepiped. However, other than this, a loop antenna having a virtual space such as a substantially polygon or a substantially elliptic sphere. 1 may be sufficient.

  Here, since the loop antenna 1 shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 also has the conductor expansion / contraction part 4, the length of the conductor 2 can be freely expanded and shortened. At this time, since the conductor expansion / contraction part 4 is present in a plurality of portions of the conductor 2, any or all of the conductor part along the X-axis direction, the conductor part along the Y-axis direction, the conductor part along the Z-axis direction, The loop antenna 1 can be expanded or shortened, and the size of the loop antenna 1 in a desired vector direction can be expanded or reduced according to necessity or application.

  That is, depending on the application, the loop antenna 1 can be expanded only in the Z-axis direction, and the loop antenna 1 can be expanded only in the X-axis direction in other cases.

  Here, when the loop antenna 1 formed in the three-dimensional space shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 is stored in a structure such as a box-like body or a shelf-like body, the size and shape of these structures are matched. Thus, the size and shape of the loop antenna 1 can be easily changed. For this reason, it is not necessary to own a large number of various loop antennas 1 in advance, and the cost can be reduced.

  For example, if an article with a wireless communication medium existing in the internal space formed by the three-dimensional loop antenna 1 is very large, the conductor expansion / contraction part 4 is extended to expand the loop antenna 1 to cope with it. When it is necessary to use in a narrow space or when it is necessary to incorporate it into a very small structure, the conductor expansion / contraction part 4 is shortened and the loop antenna 1 is contracted. These can be dealt with flexibly according to the situation.

  Next, the structure of the conductor expansion-contraction part 4 and an opening part change means is demonstrated using FIGS.

  The conductor expansion / contraction part 4 and the opening changing means enable the conductor 2 to be extended, shortened, and bent, and the user can easily and arbitrarily change the shape and size of the loop antenna 1.

  The conductor expansion / contraction part 4 serves as an opening changing means for changing the opening by changing the area and volume of the opening due to the expansion / contraction of the conductor 2.

  7 shows a case where the joint portion 13 is applied as the conductor expansion / contraction portion 4, FIG. 8 shows a case where the slide portion 14 is applied as the conductor expansion / contraction portion 4, and FIG. FIG. 10 shows a case where the folding movable part 19 is applied as the conductor expansion / contraction part 4.

  The length of the joint portion 13 can be extended by fitting the joint conductor 13b to the joint portion 13 provided at an arbitrary portion of the conductor 2 so that the length of the conductor 2 can be changed. Conversely, when it is desired to shorten the length of the conductor 2, the joint portion 13 b fitted in the joint portion 13 may be removed and the joint portions 13 may be connected to each other.

  First, the case where the joint part 13 shown in FIG. 7 is used will be described.

  FIG. 7 shows a case where one joint conductor 13b exists between the joint portions 13. However, the joint portion 13 can be further increased so that a plurality of joint conductors 13b can be removed at separate locations. It is also preferable to further expand the size change range. Of course, joints 13 are provided at a plurality of locations on the conductor 2 of the loop antenna 1 to enable expansion and contraction along each direction such as the vertical direction and the horizontal direction, and the expansion and reduction range of the loop antenna 1 is expanded. It is also suitable. In the case of a loop antenna formed over a three-dimensional space as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the joint portion 13 can be expanded and contracted in all the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis directions. Is formed at a plurality of locations on the conductor 2 and can be widely applied to various modes of use with only a single antenna.

  The joint conductor 13b is not inserted into or removed from the joint section 13, but the joint conductor 13b sandwiched between the joint sections 13 is stored like a fishing rod joint, and the joint conductor 13b is connected to the joint section 13. The length of the conductor 2 may be extended or shortened by being sandwiched and slid.

  Next, the case where the slide part 14 shown by FIG. 8 is used is demonstrated.

  The slide portion 14 is provided at an arbitrary location on the conductor 2. A part of the conductor 2 is slid and its length is extended and shortened to be adjusted, whereby the size of the loop antenna 1 can be expanded and reduced.

  An inner conductor 15 and an outer conductor 16 are connected by a slide hole 17 in a slide portion 14 provided at an arbitrary position of the conductor 2, and a set screw 18 is provided in the slide hole 17. The inner conductor 15 and the outer conductor 16 slide and expand and contract by the slide hole 17, and the stop position is determined by the set screw 18. As a result, the length of the conductor 2 is expanded or shortened to realize expansion and contraction of the loop antenna 1.

  At this time, it is also preferable to enlarge the extension range of the loop antenna 1 by making the slide hole 17 larger so as to increase the room for extension and shortening of the conductor 2.

  Of course, by providing it at a plurality of locations on the conductor 2, it can be extended in either the vertical direction or the horizontal direction. If the loop antenna 1 is formed in a three-dimensional space, the X axis, Y axis, Z axis It is also possible to expand and contract in either direction of the axis.

  Further, the set screw 18 may be replaced with a screw, and it is also preferable that a thumbscrew is used to facilitate measures by the user.

  Furthermore, it is also preferable that the slide hole 17 has a comb shape so that the set screw 18 is caught in the comb-shaped concave portion and stopped at an arbitrary position. As a result, the length of the conductor 2 can be easily finely adjusted at a plurality of stepwise positions, and an easier response for the user is possible.

  Next, the case where the folding part 20 shown by FIG. 9 is used is demonstrated.

  The folding unit 20 has a structure in which a part of the conductor 2 is sandwiched between the rotating shafts 21 and 22, and is provided at an arbitrary position of the conductor 2. Moreover, the folding part 20 provided may be one place or a plurality of places, and by being provided at a plurality of places, the loop antenna 1 can be expanded or reduced in a wide range.

  By sandwiching a part of the conductor 2 between the two rotating shafts 21 and 22 by the folding unit 20, from the folded state (the state shown in the left end of FIG. 9), the two rotating shafts 21 and 22 are used as a base point. The length of the conductor 2 is extended by rotating a part of the sandwiched conductor 2 (the state shown in the center of FIG. 9) and finally extending a part of the sandwiched conductor 2 (see FIG. 9). 9 right end state).

  As shown at the left end of FIG. 9, in the folded state, the entire length of the conductor 2 is short, and the size of the loop antenna 1 is reduced. On the other hand, as shown in the right end of FIG. 9, in the extended state, the entire length of the conductor 2 is increased, and the size of the loop antenna 1 is expanded. Of course, the amount of change of the conductor can be increased or decreased by changing the length of the part of the conductor 2 sandwiched by the rotating shafts 21 and 22 in the folding part 20, and a large number of folding parts 20 are provided. Thus, it is also preferable to change the degree of expansion of the size of the loop antenna 1 by switching only a part of them or all of them.

  Of course, as shown in FIG. 5, FIG. 6 and the like, if the loop antenna 1 has a virtual space formed in a three-dimensional space, only the X-axis direction is expanded or contracted, or only the Y-axis direction is expanded or contracted. By switching between expanding and contracting only in the axial direction, or expanding and contracting a plurality or all of these, it becomes possible to realize expansion of the loop antenna 1 only in the necessary vector direction in a three-dimensional space, and more flexibilities. A loop antenna with a large size and shape is realized.

  Next, the case where the bending movable part 19 represented by FIG. 10, FIG. 11 is used is demonstrated.

  The bending movable part 19 is a bending movable part provided at an arbitrary position of the conductor 2 and capable of bending. This is realized by a joint member or the like. The shape of the opening can be easily changed by the bending movable part 19. For example, an opening existing in a two-dimensional plane is changed to a three-dimensional space, or a square opening is changed to a triangular opening.

  Since any part of the conductor 2 can be bent by the bending movable part 19, for example, the planar loop antenna 1 having an opening surface which is a two-dimensional plane shown in FIG. 1 and the like is shown in FIG. It is possible to change to a three-dimensional shape.

  In this way, depending on the orientation of the wireless communication medium, even when it is difficult to apply the magnetic field from the loop antenna 1, the vector direction of the magnetic field generation can be changed, so that the magnetic field can be applied. Communication with is possible.

  For example, in the case of a gate antenna 1b as shown in FIG. 3 and the like, when a wireless communication medium is added to a portion located between the loop antennas 1 in a package passing between them, the magnetic field Since it becomes a null point, communication may be difficult. In such a case, by bending a part of the conductor 2 using the bending movable part 19, the vector of the magnetic field generation can be changed to enable communication with the wireless communication medium.

  It is also preferable to make the conductor 2 half the length by completely bending it.

  Further, the bending movable portion 19 is provided at a plurality of arbitrary positions of the conductor 2 so that the shape of the loop antenna 1 having higher flexibility can be easily realized by bending in various directions such as a vertical direction and a horizontal direction. be able to.

  As described above, the size and shape of the loop antenna 1 that is one of the components of the operation for performing communication with such a wireless communication medium can be arbitrarily changed.

  As described above, by providing the conductor expansion / contraction part 4 at an arbitrary position of the conductor 2 of the loop antenna 1, the length of the conductor can be extended and shortened, and as a result, the size of the loop antenna 1 can be expanded and reduced. Alternatively, by changing the shape by bending, there is an advantage that a single loop antenna can easily cope with a change in the size and shape of an article to which a wireless communication medium to be communicated is attached. Moreover, it can respond also to the change of the usage condition used, and it becomes possible to respond | correspond according to the convenience of the magnitude | size of a structure incorporating the loop antenna 1, a place, and a shape. As a result, the loop antenna 1 that communicates with the wireless communication medium can be made to have the optimum size and shape in accordance with the state of use and the place of use without preparing the loop antenna 1 having various sizes and shapes in advance. Thus, it is possible to reduce costs, labor, and processing procedures.

(Embodiment 2)
12, 13, 14, 15, 16, and 17 are configuration diagrams of the wireless communication medium processing device according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

  29 and 31 are wireless communication medium processing devices, 30 is a read / write unit, 32 is a structure, 33 is an internal space, 34 is an opening, 35 is an interval, 36 is a shield, 37 is an inner plate, 38 is an outer plate, 39 is A slide hole, 40 is a set screw, 41 is a structure expansion / contraction part, 42 is a communication part, 43 is a wireless unit, 44 is a host, and 45 is a communication path.

  First, a wireless communication medium processing device 29 using a single loop antenna 1 will be described with reference to FIG.

  The read / write unit 30 is connected to the loop antenna 1.

  Here, the read / write unit 30 gives a necessary signal current to the loop antenna 1, generates a magnetic field according to the change of the signal current from the loop antenna 1, and gives necessary power and data to the wireless communication medium. Further, an induced current generated in the loop antenna 1 is received by receiving a magnetic field generated from the wireless communication medium, and this is demodulated as a received signal by means of frequency demodulation, amplitude demodulation, phase demodulation, etc., and digital data is extracted. From the extracted digital data, an ID code or the like possessed by the wireless communication medium is recognized. Further, the read / write unit 30 performs error detection, error correction, and the like as necessary, and uses cyclic code check, parity check, Viterbi composite, and the like.

  In the wireless communication medium processing device 29 shown in FIG. 12, the size of the loop antenna 1 can be expanded or reduced by the conductor expansion / contraction part 4 provided in the conductor 2 as shown in FIG. is there. This is as described in the first embodiment.

  In this way, the size of the loop antenna 1 can be arbitrarily changed, so that the loop antenna 1 can be expanded when communicating with a wireless communication medium attached to a larger baggage, and can be reduced in the opposite case. Flexible response is possible.

  Further, by changing the size and shape of the loop antenna 1 in accordance with the size and shape of the place where the wireless communication medium processing device 29 is installed, the communication with the reliable wireless communication medium is realized, or The wireless communication medium processing device 29 that can flexibly cope with a change in usage mode and installation location can be realized without preparing various loop antennas in advance.

  Next, the wireless communication medium processing device 29 using the gate antenna 1b will be described with reference to FIG.

  The two loop antennas 1 (in FIG. 13, one is a feeding loop antenna 6 to which a signal current is fed and the other is a parasitic loop antenna 7 to which a signal current is not fed) are read from and written to the gate antenna 1b facing each other. The unit 30 is connected.

  As described above, the read / write unit 30 feeds a signal current to the feeding loop antenna 6, applies a magnetic field to the parasitic loop antenna 7, generates a magnetic field from both sides, and applies a magnetic field to the wireless communication medium. Communication.

  Even in this case, since the size and shape of the loop antenna 1 can be changed by the conductor expansion / contraction part 4, for example, when installing at the gate of an airport or a store, the location, size, position, etc. of the gate Accordingly, it is possible to flexibly cope with the situation, and it is not necessary to prepare an extra loop antenna, so that cost and labor can be reduced.

  Although FIG. 13 shows the gate antenna 1b in which the two loop antennas 1 are opposed to each other, three or more loop antennas may be used.

  When the loop antenna 1 is enlarged and the area opposite to the gate antenna 1b is enlarged, it is preferable when a large baggage passes, and vice versa.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 11, the position and direction of the wireless communication medium existing between the gate antennas 1b can be changed by bending the loop antenna 1 and changing the magnetic field generation vectors by the bending movable part 19. It is also preferable to enable communication without depending on the above.

  Note that the wireless communication medium processing device 29 using such a gate antenna 1b is preferably applied to, for example, airport gate luggage check, warehouse inspection, shoplifting prevention at a store entrance, admission restriction confirmation at a concert venue, etc. It is what is done.

  Next, a wireless communication medium processing device 31 in which the loop antenna 1 is incorporated in a structure having an opening that connects the internal space 33 and the external space will be described with reference to FIGS. 14, 15, and 16.

  The structure 32 is, for example, a box-like body such as a shelf or a box, a shelf-like body, and the like, and is applied to a product shelf or a product basket. The structure 32 has an opening 34 connecting the internal space 33 and the external space, and a product or the like with a wireless communication medium is delivered to and taken out from the opening 34 to the internal space 33. The opening 34 may be provided with an openable / closable door, window, curtain, partition, or the like.

  The structure 32 is formed of resin, wood, FRP, or other material, and the material is selected based on a balance of weight reduction and strength. Further, in FIG. 14, a rectangular parallelepiped structure 32 is shown, but other than this, a cube, an elliptical sphere, a sphere, a polygon, or the like may be used.

  The loop antenna 1 is stored inside the structure 32, and may be formed integrally with a wall material forming the structure 32, may be attached later, or may be embedded inside. The read / write unit 30 may be embedded in the structure 32, may be arranged outside or inside, or may be connected to the outside by a connection line.

  As shown in FIG. 15, the outer periphery of the structure 32 may be covered with a shield 36. In this case, the magnetic field generated by the loop antenna 1 does not leak to the outside of the structure 32. . By preventing magnetic field leakage to the outside in this way, even if a plurality of wireless communication medium processing devices 31 using the same structure 32 are stacked or arranged, the internal space of other structures 32 There is an advantage that a problem such as erroneous recognition of the wireless communication medium existing in 33 does not occur. As a result, as shown in FIG. 17, a product management system or the like in which a large number of structures 32 are arranged and wireless communication medium processing devices are stacked can be easily formed.

  The shield 36 is formed of a metallic material or the like, and is easily realized by, for example, a metal case that completely stores the structure 32. Alternatively, it is realized by forming a metal film on the outer peripheral surface of the structure 32 and applying a metal paste.

  In addition, when using a metal case, it is preferable to have a telescopic movable part interlock | cooperated with the change of the shape of the structure 32, and a magnitude | size.

  Further, it is preferable that an arbitrary interval 35 exists between the loop antenna 1 and the shield 36. This is for preventing the magnetic field generated from the loop antenna 1 from being transmitted to the shield 36 made of a metal material and reducing the magnetic field density exerted on the internal space 33. It is also preferable to place a magnetic plate or the like between the shield 36 and the loop antenna 1 instead of the interval 35.

  As described in the first embodiment, the loop antenna 1 has the conductor expansion / contraction part 4 at an arbitrary location, and thus the size and shape of the loop antenna 1 can be changed.

  Here, a configuration in which the size of the structure 32 is changed so as to correspond to a change in the size or the like of the loop antenna 1 will be described with reference to FIG.

  The structure 32 is provided with a structure expansion / contraction part 41 at an arbitrary position. The structure expansion / contraction part 41 is a part where the size of the structure 32 can be arbitrarily changed, and by utilizing this, the structure 32 is enlarged or reduced according to the usage mode or the like. It becomes possible.

  In particular, when the loop antenna 1 is expanded, it is necessary to expand the structure 32 that stores the loop antenna 1 in accordance with this, and it is preferable that the structure is also reduced in the case of reduction. Of course, since the loop antenna 1 only needs to be accommodated in the internal space 33 of the structure 32, when the size of the loop antenna 1 is smaller than the internal space 33 of the structure 32, the size of the structure 32 is changed. Although it is not necessary to change, it is possible to save a user's trouble and to ensure a sufficient usable area of the internal space 33 by changing the change in conjunction.

  The structure expansion / contraction part 41 uses a slide type or the like.

  The inner plate 37 and the outer plate 38 are movably connected through the slide hole 39, and fixed at an arbitrary position by the set screw 40, whereby the structure 32 can be expanded or reduced.

  Also, instead of the set screw 40, a set screw, a butterfly screw, a push button, or the like may be used. By fixing the concave portion of the comb-shaped slide hole 39 with the set screw 40, fine adjustment in several steps is possible. It is also suitable to do.

In addition to the one using the slide hole 39, the wall material forming the structure 32 is added,
It is also public to configure the structure expansion / contraction part 41 by a structure such as folding, pulling out, or bending of the wall material, and it may be selected as appropriate according to the use and the material.

  In addition, by providing these structural body expansion / contraction portions 41 at a plurality of locations of the structural body 32, the structural body 32 can be expanded and contracted in a plurality of directions such as a vertical direction, a horizontal direction, and a width direction.

  Further, the structure expansion / contraction part 41 is provided at the same position as the conductor expansion / contraction part 4 of the loop antenna 1 so that both can be extended and shortened in conjunction with each other. The size and shape of the antenna 1 can be changed in conjunction with the antenna 1.

  As described above, in the wireless communication medium processing device 31 in which the loop antenna 1 and the read / write unit 30 are connected to or incorporated in the structure 32, the size and shape of the loop antenna 1 and the structure 32 can be changed. . This can correspond to, for example, the size, quantity, and shape of a product with a wireless communication medium placed inside the structure 32, or a place where such a wireless communication medium processing device 31 is installed. The wireless communication medium processing device 31 of various sizes can be flexibly dealt with without preparing in advance.

  Further, as described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6 of the first embodiment, even when only the loop antenna 1 has a variable shape and size, the structure 32 to be stored can vary. It is easy to cope with the above, and it is possible to reduce the cost and to make the user friendly.

  Next, the communication operation of the loop antenna 1 with the wireless communication medium will be described.

  A necessary signal current is supplied from the read / write unit 30 to the loop antenna 1. A magnetic field is generated from the conductor 2 by the supplied signal current. At this time, according to the shape of the loop antenna 1, a magnetic field is generated along one of the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis, or along each vector, or in the combined vector direction.

  Here, when a wireless communication medium such as an IC tag or an IC card exists in the space surrounded by the loop antenna 1 or in the vicinity thereof, the magnetic field generated from the conductor 2 is received and incorporated in the wireless communication medium. An induced electromotive force is generated in the internal antenna. As a result, power and signal data are supplied to the IC incorporated in the wireless communication medium. In a wireless communication medium or the like to which power is supplied, a load fluctuation occurs in a modulation circuit composed of a switch and a load circuit according to data from the mounted memory, and this load fluctuation is transmitted to the loop antenna 1 by mutual inductance. The loop antenna 1 receives this load variation as a signal and transmits it as a received signal to the read / write unit. The read / write unit 30 demodulates this signal and performs error detection as necessary to analyze the signal. As a result of the analysis, it is possible to authenticate an ID code or the like that the wireless communication medium has.

  At this time, in the wireless communication medium processing device 29 including the single loop antenna 1, an ID code is acquired from communication with a wireless communication medium existing in the vicinity of the loop antenna. Alternatively, in the wireless communication medium processing device 29 using the gate antenna 1b composed of two or more loop antennas 1, it is possible to communicate with a wireless communication medium attached to a baggage or a person passing through an airport gate, a store gate, or the like. Thus, product ID authentication, visitor ID authentication, and the like are easily performed.

Further, in the wireless communication medium processing device 31 in which the loop antenna 1 is incorporated in the structure 32,
By using the product as a product shelf or a product basket and communicating with a wireless communication medium existing in the internal space 33, product management, automatic inventory, and cash in / out management can be performed automatically. In the wireless communication medium processing apparatus 31 in which the loop antenna 1 is incorporated in the structure 32, the loop antenna 1 exerts a magnetic field in any of the X axis, Y axis, and Z axis orthogonal to each other. Communication is possible regardless of the position and orientation of the device, so that automatic management is further ensured.

  Furthermore, since the size and shape of the loop antenna 1 and the structure 32 are variable in these wireless communication medium processing devices 29 and 31 and can be easily changed by the user, the size and shape of the target article, usage mode, and installation location There is a merit that can respond flexibly according to changes and circumstances. In addition, since it is possible to use a single device, it is not necessary for the user to prepare an extra wireless communication medium processing device or loop antenna 1 in advance, so that the cost is low and the merit of reducing labor is high.

  As shown in FIG. 17, a communication unit 42 is connected to the read / write unit 30, and this and the host 44 are connected to a number of wireless communication medium processing devices 29 by wireless communication via the wireless unit 43 or wired communication. , 31 can be configured in a distributed manner and a centralized manner. In this case, it is possible to perform centralized processing such as automatic management of products by separating them into various products, which is very effective.

  Alternatively, a communication unit is provided in each of the read / write units 30 of the wireless communication medium processing device 29 using the gate antenna 1b, and centralized command processing is performed for a large number of gates, or a large number of information is collected and processed simultaneously in parallel. And can be very useful in large stores.

  Furthermore, when a system using such a large number of wireless communication medium processing devices 29 and 31 is configured, the installation location and the types of articles to be processed vary, and the loop antenna 1 or structure 32 It is preferable that the size and shape can be arbitrarily changed afterwards on the user side, and in this respect, the advantage of the present invention is high.

  As described above, the wireless communication medium processing apparatus in which the conductor expansion / contraction part 4 and the structure expansion / contraction part 41 are provided in the loop antenna 1 or the structure 32 has a merit that it is possible to flexibly cope with a change in situation at low cost. There is something.

  The present invention includes a conductor, a bent portion provided in the conductor, a conductor expansion / contraction portion provided at an arbitrary position of the conductor, and a power feeding portion that supplies a signal current to the conductor, and the conductor is based on the power feeding portion. The looped configuration allows the size of the loop antenna that applies a magnetic field to the wireless communication medium to be changed afterwards and easily, and the wireless communication medium that exists near or passes through the loop antenna Even if the size or shape of the attached article dynamically changes, the size of the loop antenna changes accordingly, and a magnetic field is applied in accordance with the changed position of the wireless communication medium, and the wireless communication medium It can also be applied to applications that require improved communication accuracy and stability.

The perspective view of the loop antenna in Embodiment 1 of this invention The perspective view of the loop antenna in Embodiment 1 of this invention The perspective view of the loop antenna in Embodiment 1 of this invention The perspective view of the loop antenna in Embodiment 1 of this invention The perspective view of the loop antenna in Embodiment 1 of this invention The perspective view of the loop antenna in Embodiment 1 of this invention Configuration diagram of conductor expansion and contraction portion in Embodiment 1 of the present invention Configuration diagram of conductor expansion and contraction portion in Embodiment 1 of the present invention Configuration diagram of conductor expansion and contraction portion in Embodiment 1 of the present invention Configuration diagram of conductor expansion and contraction portion in Embodiment 1 of the present invention The perspective view of the loop antenna in Embodiment 1 of invention Configuration diagram of wireless communication medium processing apparatus in Embodiment 2 of the present invention Configuration diagram of wireless communication medium processing apparatus in Embodiment 2 of the present invention Configuration diagram of wireless communication medium processing apparatus in Embodiment 2 of the present invention Configuration diagram of wireless communication medium processing apparatus in Embodiment 2 of the present invention Configuration diagram of wireless communication medium processing apparatus in Embodiment 2 of the present invention Configuration diagram of wireless communication medium processing apparatus in Embodiment 2 of the present invention

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Loop antenna 1b Gate antenna 2 Conductor 3 Bending part 4 Conductor expansion-contraction part 5 Feeding part 6 Feeding loop antenna 7 Parasitic loop antenna 8 Resonant circuit 9 Matching circuit 10 Termination resistance 11 Electromagnetic wave leakage prevention board 12 Magnetic body board 13 Joint part 14 Slide Part 15 Inner conductor 16 Outer conductor 17 Slide hole 18 Set screw 19 Bending movable part 20 Folding part 21, 22 Rotating shaft 29, 31 Wireless communication medium processing device 30 Read / write part 32 Structure 33 Internal space 34 Opening part 35 Spacing 36 Shield 37 Inner plate 38 Outer plate 39 Slide hole 40 Set screw 41 Structure expansion / contraction part 42 Communication part 43 Wireless unit 44 Host 45 Communication path

Claims (1)

An internal space, a structure having an opening connecting the internal space and the external space, a structure stretchable part provided at an arbitrary position of the structure, and a loop antenna disposed in the internal space of the structure The loop antenna includes a conductor, a bent portion provided in the conductor, a conductor expansion / contraction portion provided at the same position as the structure expansion / contraction portion, and a power supply unit that supplies a signal current to the conductor, The wireless communication medium processing device, wherein the conductor circulates in a loop shape with the power feeding portion as a base point, and the structure stretchable portion expands and contracts in conjunction with the conductor stretchable portion.

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