JP4802395B2 - RFID tag exchange gloves - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a glove for cargo handling, and more specifically, an antenna of a reader / writer that can communicate information with an RFID tag attached to a package without contact, and communication with the RFID tag has been completed normally. In particular, the present invention relates to a glove for RFID tag exchange, which is provided with means for emitting a confirmation sound and / or confirmation light.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, as a method of communicating information with an RFID tag, a dedicated gate having a reader / writer for communicating with the RFID tag is provided, or communication is performed by holding a baggage using a glove with a built-in reader / writer function. A method is known from JP-A-11-296628.
[0003]
However, in both the method of providing a dedicated gate having a reader / writer and the method of incorporating a reader / writer function in a glove, the confirmation of whether or not the communication with the RFID tag has been completed normally is not possible. There is a drawback that even if there is a package that could not be read, it cannot be discovered without collecting and collecting data. Also, even if you try to re-read the package that could not be read, there is a problem that it is difficult to find the package because it has already been shipped or loaded on the truck, which is not suitable for actual operation .
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
Therefore, in order to solve such a problem, the present invention provides a confirmation sound and / or when the communication with the RFID tag is normally terminated to the RFID tag communication glove in the event that the reading is impossible. The present invention has been completed with the idea of providing means for emitting confirmation light.
[0005]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above problems, the gist of the present invention, in the gloves RFID tag communication provided an antenna of the reader-writer communicating with the RFID tag and a contactless integrally, palm of the glove of the RFID tag communication An antenna and a piezoelectric switch are provided on the side, and the switch is automatically turned on when pressed with a cardboard force, reads the attribute information of the RFID tag, and confirms when the communication with the RFID tag is normally completed It means for emitting a sound and / or confirmation light, characterized in that provided on the glove.
[0006]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
First, the RFID tag used in the present invention is a tag capable of non-contact information exchange using radio waves as a medium of an RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) system. The RFID tag includes an antenna pattern and an IC chip provided on a base material such as paper or plastic, and a resonance circuit is formed by the antenna pattern and a capacitive element built in the IC chip. When the resonance circuit receives a calling radio wave having a certain frequency from the reader / writer, the resonance circuit transmits information stored in the memory to the reader / writer serving as a transmission source and returns the information. In this way, the RFID tag can communicate information with the reader / writer in a non-contact manner.
[0007]
The “RFID tag” includes “contactless IC tag”, “contactless data carrier”, “wireless IC tag”, “contactless IC”, “contactless IC label”, “contactless IC card”, “ Since it may be expressed by various names such as “transponder” or the like, in the present invention, it is expressed as “RFID tag” as a representative and includes the names expressed as described above. .
[0008]
There are UHF-SHF bands (850 to 950 MHz, 2.4 to 5 GHz), HF bands (10 to 15 MHz), and LF-MF bands (100 to 500 KHz) as frequencies used by the RFID tag for communication. An RFID tag using any frequency can be applied. An electromagnetic induction type RFID tag using a frequency in the UHF-SHF band or the HF band has a long communication distance but is expensive. The capacitive coupling type RFID tag using the frequency of the LF-MF band has a relatively short reading distance, but the price of the entire system including the RFID tag, the reader / writer and the control device is comparatively low and has a wide range of applications. The present invention can be preferably used.
[0009]
FIG. 1 is a plan view and a cross-sectional view showing an example of an RFID tag used in the present invention.
1A is a plan view of the RFID tag, and FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view. In the RFID tag 10, an antenna pattern 14 is formed on an RFID tag base 17, and a resonance circuit is formed by the antenna pattern and a capacitive element built in the IC chip 11. When the resonance circuit receives a paging radio wave of a certain frequency from the reader / writer, it also receives the driving power of the RFID tag and transmits the information stored in the memory of the IC chip 11 to the reader / writer as the transmission source and returns it. .
[0010]
The antenna pattern 14 has a coil shape and a conductive member 13 that forms a jumping circuit on the back surface of the RFID tag base 17 and is connected to the bumps or pads of the IC chip 11 by the coil connection elements 15 and 16. The material of the RFID tag base 17 is not particularly limited as long as it is an insulating material. For example, films such as polyethylene terephthalate, polyvinyl chloride, polypropylene, polycarbonate, polyethersulfone, polyamide, and cellulose acetate can be applied. . The thickness of the film is not particularly limited, and is preferably about 12 to 100 μm. The RFID tag substrate 17 may be mixed with additives such as a colorant, an antistatic agent, a lubricant, and a stabilizer as long as the function is not affected.
[0011]
In such an RFID tag 10, an antenna pattern 14 is formed by forming a metal foil such as aluminum foil or copper foil laminated on the RFID tag base 17 into a coil shape by photo etching or etching after resist printing, and the IC chip 11 is mounted. Can be formed. The size can be 50 mm × 50 mm or less. Specifically, the product name “accuwave” manufactured by Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd. can be exemplified.
[0012]
FIG. 2 is a plan view showing another example of the RFID tag used in the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a plan view of an electrostatic coupling type RFID tag in which an IC chip label 100L having an IC chip 100 is attached so as to be connected to both of a pair of antenna patterns 111 and 112. The pair of antenna patterns 111 and 112 is formed by offset, gravure, flexo, silk screen printing or the like using conductive ink. As the conductive ink, an ink in which carbon, graphite, aluminum powder, silver powder, or a mixture thereof is dispersed in a vehicle is used.
[0013]
Specifically, the product name “Bistatix” manufactured by Motorola can be exemplified, and it is inexpensive, highly reliable, and has a short communication distance with the reader / writer, but the cargo handling gloves having an antenna function as in the present invention, and RFID In the case of using a communication distance that is short enough to contact the tag, it can be suitably used.
[0014]
The “IC chip label” refers to a state in which an IC chip 100 in which an integrated circuit and / or memory is provided on a silicon substrate is tack-labeled so that it can be attached to the pair of antenna patterns 111 and 112 of the RFID tag 101. In some cases, the tack label itself has a small pair of sub antenna patterns connected to the IC chip.
[0015]
Generally, the IC chip label 100L is used by being attached to the antenna patterns 111 and 112 formed by printing on the base of the RFID tag, but the IC chip label 100L also has a small pair of sub antenna patterns. It is printed with conductive printing ink.
[0016]
The antenna patterns 111 and 112 printed on the base of the RFID tag 101 and the pair of sub antenna patterns of the IC chip label 100L are bonded and bonded with an anisotropic conductive or non-conductive adhesive. The adhesive is applied in advance to a pair of child antenna pattern surfaces of the IC chip label 100L to form a tack label.
[0017]
As for the recording capacity of the RFID tag, in the case of a general IC memory of the IC chip 100, 128 characters can be recorded at 1024 bits, and it can be sufficiently applied to the minimum information recording of normal products and packed packages. . In addition, if it is several kilobits, it is possible to record more than the two-dimensional barcode used in conventional package management. Further, unlike the two-dimensional bar code, there is an advantage that information can be additionally recorded and rewritten sequentially as necessary, and can be used for product delivery and quality control as well as package carry-in / out management.
[0018]
The baggage handled using the gloves of the present invention is not particularly limited as long as it can be affixed with an RFID tag. For example, daily goods, beverages, foods, apparel products, machines and mechanical parts, electrical products, A product such as a building article or a box in which a plurality of them are packed may be used. It can also be applied as an automatic recognition system for loading / unloading and lending such as for airline industry packages, transportation / distribution industry distribution, library collection management, rental CD and video management.
[0019]
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a baggage with an RFID tag attached for cargo handling using the glove of the present invention.
In the present invention, the RFID tags 10 and 101 have various shapes such as a label shape, a card shape, a coin shape, and an inlet shape, but any shape RFID tag can be applied, as shown in FIG. A product is attached to an exterior body such as a decorative box, cardboard, wooden box, wrapping, sealed letter, handbag, container, or the like in which one or more products are packaged or packed, or directly attached to various products. The sticking method is not particularly limited, and may be stuck with an adhesive or a cellophane, or put in a small bag such as paper or polyethylene, and the RFID tag is attached as a tack label in advance. May be.
[0020]
The RFID tags 10 and 101 can communicate with each other wirelessly, but they are not beautiful in appearance, so they cover the RFID tags 10 and 101 and are attached to the middle of the nameplate labels that are normally used. Is preferred. The RFID tags 10 and 101 are attached to the nameplate label and the product or cardboard, or formed on the back surface of the nameplate label or laminated on the back surface of the nameplate label, so that the outsiders can receive the RFID tag 10. Therefore, it is more suitable to use management such as quality management in addition to the package management by the RFID tags 10 and 101 because the presence or absence of 101 is unknown.
[0021]
The nameplate label is displayed by handwriting or printing such as offset printing, resin letterpress printing, gravure printing, flexographic printing, silk screen printing, etc. Adhesive labels and tack labels can be applied. Moreover, various things, such as a cylindrical shrink label printed on a shrinkable plastic film by gravure and silk screen printing, and a stretch label, are applicable.
[0022]
The base of the above-mentioned glued label, tack label, shrink label, and stretch label is not particularly limited. For example, paper such as fine paper, coated paper, impregnated paper, synthetic paper, polyethylene terephthalate, polypropylene, Synthetic resins such as polyvinyl chloride / ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer, metal foils such as aluminum, and laminates of two or more layers thereof can be applied.
[0023]
FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a cargo handling state using the glove of the present invention.
The baggage 2 to which the RFID tags 10 and 101 are attached is in a state where it is lifted for cargo handling while wearing a RFID tag exchange glove 1 of the present invention described later. By handling the cargo in this way, the distance between the RFID tags 10 and 101 attached to the luggage 2 can be communicated, and the reader / writer can connect the RFID tag via the antenna built in the glove 1. Information recorded in the memory can be read.
[0024]
FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram of a glove provided with means for emitting confirmation sound and / or confirmation light according to the present invention.
The RFID tag exchange glove 1 includes an antenna 31, a connection terminal 33, a wiring 34, a confirmation sound unit 35, and a confirmation light unit 36. The invention of claim 2 is a case where a switch 32 for turning on / off the reader / writer is also provided. The antenna 31 is a reader / writer antenna that communicates with the RFID tag, the switch 32 is a switch for turning on / off the reader / writer main body, the terminal 33 is a terminal for electrically connecting the antenna 31 and the reader / writer main body, and the wiring 34 Is a wire connecting the antenna 31 and the main body of the reader / writer.
[0025]
The confirmation sound means 35 can be confirmed from the ear by generating sound when the communication with the RFID tag is normally completed by an electronic sound IC chip, a film speaker, a speaker or the like. The confirmation light means 36 is composed of a light emitting element such as an LED, and can be confirmed from the eyes by emitting light when the communication with the RFID tag is normally completed. Is preferred. Thus, the confirmation sound means 35 and / or the confirmation light means 36 can confirm the reading sensuously at the moment of holding the load. Even if the confirmation sound means 35 and / or the confirmation light means 36 are installed in the reader / writer main body, the same effect can be obtained.
[0026]
As the antenna 31 for the reader / writer, a general antenna in which a metal wire such as a copper wire or an aluminum wire is formed into a coil shape, or a copper foil or an aluminum foil is formed into a coil shape by etching or the like can be applied. When the switch 32 is provided, a piezoelectric switch that can be turned on by pressing pressure can be applied. The pressure applied between the glove when the load is held and the glove 1 for RFID tag exchange can be grasped. A piezoelectric switch that can be turned on by pressing with one hand can be applied. Further, the reader / writer is set so that the switch is automatically turned OFF when communication with one RFID tag is completed.
[0027]
The method of integrally providing the confirmation sound means 35 and / or the confirmation light means 36, the antenna 31, the switch 32, and the connection terminal 33 to the cargo handling gloves is not particularly limited. Then, it may be sewn between the other coated fabrics or once stored in another bag-like material and then fastened with Velcro or the like, as long as it does not fall off during the cargo handling operation. In the case where the confirmation light means 36 is provided, a transparent or light cloth having a large aperture ratio is preferable.
[0028]
FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram showing the arrangement of the glove, reader / writer, and battery of the present invention.
The cargo handling worker puts the RFID tag exchange glove 1 on at least one hand, and the confirmation sound means 35 and / or the confirmation light means 36 of the glove 1, the antenna 31, and the switch 32 are connected via the wiring 34. The reader / writer main body 40 is connected. The reader / writer main body 40 includes a battery 70 for supplying power and a transmission / reception means 41 for communicating with a management host computer. The reader / writer main body 40 and the battery 70 are usually attached to the waist and the like.
[0029]
FIG. 7 is a configuration diagram of system elements that handle cargo using the gloves of the present invention.
The cargo handling system of the present invention includes RFID tags 10 and 101 attached to a package, a glove 1 provided with an antenna 31 and a switch 32, a reader / writer body 40, a battery 70, and a host computer 80.
[0030]
As the RFID tag, the electromagnetic coupling type RFID tag 10 and the electrostatic coupling type RFID tag 101 have been described, but the functional elements are the same. The antenna 21, the transmission / reception circuit 22, the power reception circuit 23, the CPU 24, the ROM 25, the RAM 26, and the EEPROM 27 are included. The power receiving circuit 23 receives the calling radio wave from the reader / writer, converts the radio wave coming from the power transmission circuit 43 into electric power for driving the RFID tag, and activates the RFID tag.
[0031]
The CPU 24 of the activated RFID tag uses the memory RAM 26 and the primary memory EEPROM 27 according to the program of the ROM 25 to transmit the pre-recorded product and package attribute information via the transmission / reception circuit 22 and the antenna 21. Send back as radio waves in contact.
[0032]
The radio waves are received by the antenna 31 of the RFID tag exchange glove 1 and sent to the reader / writer main body 40. The reader / writer main body 40 includes a transmission / reception circuit 42, a power transmission circuit 43, a CPU 44, a ROM 45, a RAM 46, and a confirmation control unit 48. The received radio wave is read by the CPU 44 by a program in the ROM 45 via the transmission / reception circuit 42. When cargo handling operations are performed one after another, the package information is stored in the RAM 46.
[0033]
In this manner, when the reader / writer main body 40 has normally completed communication with the RFID tag, the confirmation control unit 48 confirms the confirmation sound means 35 and / or the confirmation light means of the RFID tag communication glove 1 for each communication. 36 is instructed to execute the confirmation means. The confirmation sound means 35 generates a confirmation sound, and the confirmation light means 36 emits light. The power transmission circuit 43 is a circuit for supplying power to the RFID tag.
[0034]
The transmission / reception means 41 of the reader / writer main body 40 is a host device, and sends the package information sequentially or accumulated through the transmission / reception means 51 of the host computer 80 to the host computer 80 that manages the loading / unloading. As the transmission / reception means 41 and 51, a method by wire from a terminal or a method by wireless communication by radio waves or infrared rays can be applied. As wireless communication by radio wave, short-range wireless communication standard "Bluetooth" using 2.45 GHz microwave proposed by 5 companies of Ericsson, Nokia, IBM, Intel and Toshiba, and 5 GHz band Other microwaves can also be used.
[0035]
The battery 70 is for supplying driving power to the reader / writer, and a primary battery and a secondary battery can be applied. When driving power is always supplied to the reader / writer, the battery must be replaced frequently when using a primary battery, and carry a relatively heavy battery when using a secondary battery. Or, the secondary battery must be charged frequently.
[0036]
However, according to claim 2 of the present invention, the switch 32 for turning on / off the reader / writer is provided on the glove 1 for RFID tag exchange, so that it is sufficient to supply power only at the moment of holding the load. The time for communicating with the RFID tag of the luggage at most is in units of seconds, and the battery that supplies a small amount of power only for the communication time is sufficient even for the accumulated time of daily cargo handling work, The effect of reducing the weight and weight of heavy batteries is significant.
[0037]
The host computer 80 may be a personal computer or a server, and generally has a CPU 54, a ROM 55, and a RAM 56, and includes a printer 61, a monitor 62, a recording unit such as an FDD 52, a CDD 53, and an HD 54, and input / output units 58 and 59. It consists of an input unit 63 such as a keyboard.
[0038]
The package information sent from the reader / writer 40 to the host computer 80 is subjected to predetermined processing, displayed on the monitor 62, and can be printed out by the printer 61. Thus, since the data for loading / unloading can be automatically collected, aggregated, and output, the burden on the cargo handling worker is light and the efficiency can be improved. In addition, by sequentially sending in / out data to the host computer, the situation can be grasped in real time, and the progress of physical distribution management and emergency cargo handling can be handled.
[0039]
【Example】
(Example 1) Using the product name “accuwave” manufactured by Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd. as an RFID tag, the side of a dummy cardboard box, the surface of high-quality paper 110 g / m ² , and the delivery destination, product name, quantity, and manufacturer are inkjet The product was stuck on the back side of the product tack label printed by the printer. On the other hand, a general IC card reader / writer is used, and is further pulled out by a cord wiring, and the confirmation sound means 35 and / or the confirmation light means 36, the antenna 31 made of a copper wire coil, and the piezoelectric switch 32 are placed on the palm side of the glove. Inserted into the pocket. An electronic sound IC chip was used as the confirmation sound means 35, and a red LED was used as the confirmation light means 36.
[0040]
The cargo handling worker puts on the right hand a glove that communicates with the RFID tag, and puts an ordinary glove on the left hand. The reader / writer is powered by four AA batteries installed in the reader / writer body, attached to the waist, the switch attached to the right hand is pressed with the left hand, the reader / writer is turned on, and the dummy tag with the RFID tag attached is attached. When the cardboard box was lifted, the reader / writer was turned off after reading the attribute information of the RFID tag. At the moment of reading the attribute information of the RFID tag, the LED emitted red light, and a sound “ping pong” was emitted from the electronic sound IC chip. It is preferable to manually turn on the switch because it is difficult to switch on in the case of an uneven shape or a soft product.
[0041]
Example 2 The product name “Bistatix” manufactured by Motorola was used as the RFID tag, and the gloves and reader / writer were the same as in Example 1. The cargo handling worker puts on the right hand the glove that communicates with the RFID tag, and puts the left hand on the waist together with the reader / writer main body with a normal glove.
[0042]
When the operator lifted the dummy cardboard box with the RFID tag attached, the switch attached to the right hand was automatically turned on by pressing the cardboard force, and the attribute information of the RFID tag was read. Later, the reader / writer was turned off. Thus, every time 10 cardboard boxes were lifted one after another, the LED emitted red light, and a “ping pong” was emitted. After loading the cardboard boxes onto the truck, sending data to the host computer and printing it out, information on 10 products was launched.
[0043]
【The invention's effect】
As described above , the antenna and the piezoelectric switch are provided on the palm side of the RFID tag exchange glove 1 , and the reader / writer is automatically turned on when the switch is pressed with a cardboard force. / or than the confirmation light unit 36 is provided, to check sound and / or confirmation light is emitted for each read information of the RFID tag, it can be found read miss from occurring. It can be used without actually knowing that an unread package has been shipped after cargo handling or searching for the package. In actual operation, it is very effective to know the reading sensuously.
[Brief description of the drawings]
1A and 1B are a plan view and a cross-sectional view showing an example of an RFID tag used in the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a plan view showing another example of an RFID tag used in the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a luggage with an RFID tag attached for cargo handling using the gloves of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a cargo handling state using the glove of the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram of a glove provided with means for emitting confirmation sound and / or confirmation light according to the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram showing the arrangement of gloves, a reader / writer, and a battery according to the present invention.
FIG. 7 is a configuration diagram of system elements that handle cargo using the gloves of the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Gloves 2 Luggage 10, 101 RFID tag 11, 100 IC chip 12 IC board 13 Conductive member 14, 111, 112 Antenna pattern 15, 16 Connection element 17 RFID tag base 22, 42 Transmission / reception circuit 23 Power reception circuit 24, 44, 54 CPU
25, 45, 55 ROM
26, 46, 56 RAM
27 EEPROM
31 Antenna 32 Switch 34 Wiring 40 Reader / writer main body 41, 42 Transmission / reception means 52 FDD
53 CDD
54 HD
58, 59 Input / output unit 61 Printer 62 Monitor 63 Input unit 70 Battery 80 Host computer 100L IC chip label

Claims (1)

An RFID tag exchange glove in which a reader / writer antenna that communicates with an RFID tag in a non-contact manner is integrally provided. An antenna and a piezoelectric switch are provided on the palm side of the RFID tag exchange glove , and the switch has a cardboard. The glove is provided with means for automatically turning on, reading the attribute information of the RFID tag, and emitting a confirmation sound and / or a confirmation light when the communication with the RFID tag is normally completed . RFID tag exchange gloves characterized by that.

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