JP5069539B2 - Wireless tag reader, wireless tag system, and program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a wireless tag reader, a wireless tag system, and a program for reading identification information and tag information stored in a wireless tag.

  With the introduction of RFID tag systems using RFID (Radio Frequency Identification), RFID tags are used in various scenes such as products, logistics, and article management. (Refer to Patent Document 1). The introduction of the wireless tag system is not limited to the above-mentioned field, and for example, it is also used for management of a cartridge containing toner or ink used in an image forming apparatus such as a printer or a copying machine.

  FIG. 14 is a block diagram for briefly explaining the electrical configuration of the wireless tag system 1. Hereinafter, a case where the wireless tag system 1 is used in an image forming apparatus will be described as an example. The wireless tag system 1 is installed on the image forming apparatus main body side, and n wireless tags 9 are attached to the cartridges. For example, when the image forming apparatus supports four color cartridges (BK, C, M, Y), at least one wireless tag 9 is attached to each color cartridge. The wireless tag 9 includes a memory and a communication circuit. The wireless tag 9 is attached with identification information unique to the wireless tag 9, the type and characteristics of toner and ink contained in the cartridge, the number of times the cartridge is used, and the like. Information (tag information) about the received article is stored.

  The wireless tag system 1 includes a control device 2 and a wireless tag reader 3. The control device 2 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and its peripheral circuits, executes processing based on a predetermined program, and outputs instructions to the RFID tag reading device 3 and data transfer.

  The wireless tag reader 3 includes an interface (I / F) 4, a control unit 5, and a communication unit 6. The interface 4 performs data transmission / reception between the control device 2 and the control unit 5 according to a predetermined protocol. The control unit 5 includes a CPU and its peripheral circuits (not shown), executes processing based on a predetermined program, performs command output and data transfer to each functional unit constituting the wireless tag reader 3, and performs wireless tagging. The entire reading device 3 is controlled.

  The communication unit 6 is configured to include a carrier wave oscillation circuit, a modulation circuit, a demodulation circuit, and the like in addition to an antenna for performing wireless communication with the wireless tag 9, and wirelessly responds to an instruction signal output from the control unit 5. An electromagnetic wave is transmitted to the tag 9.

  An operation flow of the wireless tag system 1 will be briefly described. When the control device 2 outputs a tag information reading command signal for instructing reading of tag information of the wireless tag 9 and the control unit 5 inputs this signal via the interface 4, the control unit 5 first sends a carrier wave to the communication unit 6. Send it. When a carrier wave is transmitted from the antenna of the communication unit 6, the wireless tag 9 is activated by supplying power to each internal functional unit using this carrier wave. The communication unit 6 transmits a carrier wave until a response signal from the wireless tag 9 is received.

Subsequently, the control unit 5 causes the communication unit 6 to transmit a modulated wave on which a command indicating an output request for tag information is placed. When the wireless tag 9 receives this modulated wave, it returns an electromagnetic wave carrying the tag information stored in the internal memory. The communication unit 6 receives this electromagnetic wave, demodulates it, and reads the tag information.
JP-A-2005-92787

  A series of operations of the wireless tag reader 3 as described above is realized by the CPU reading and executing a basic program, that is, firmware stored in a memory (not shown) of the control unit 5. In order to reduce development time and cost, this firmware often uses common firmware regardless of the number of channels (number of antennas) of the communication unit 6. However, if the operation of the wireless tag reader 3 is performed according to the common firmware regardless of the number of channels, there is a problem in that unnecessary processing increases and tag information reading time increases.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 15, a method of recognizing the number of channels according to the signal level input to the input terminal of the CPU included in the control unit 5 is known. In FIG. 15, reference numeral 500 denotes a CPU included in the control unit 5, and assigns an input terminal PI0 as a channel mode setting terminal. One end of the pull-up resistor R1 is connected to the terminal PI0, and the other end of the pull-up resistor R1 is connected to the power supply voltage VDD.

  The signal level input to the terminal PI0 changes depending on whether or not the jumper resistor R2 is connected between the terminals PI0 and GND. Depending on the difference in signal level, the CPU 500 has set either a single channel or multiple channels. However, this method requires assignment of a channel mode setting terminal to the CPU 500, and there is a problem that it cannot be adopted when there is no room for input terminals. Furthermore, it is necessary to dispose the pull-up resistor R1 and the jumper resistor R2, which requires disposition costs and labor.

  In addition, there is a method in which the control device 2 outputs a signal indicating a single channel or multiple channels to the control unit 5. However, this method has a problem in that transmission / reception of signals between the control device 2 and the control unit 5 increases, and a processing load on the control device 2 increases.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problem, and allows a wireless tag reader using a common firmware regardless of a single channel or multiple channels to read a wireless tag without performing unnecessary processing. It is for the purpose.

  The wireless tag reader according to claim 1 of the present invention performs wireless communication with one or a plurality of wireless tags storing unique identification information and tag information to obtain the identification information or the tag information. When at least the same number of antennas as the wireless tag for reading, and when there are a plurality of antennas, the antenna for performing the wireless communication is sequentially switched according to a predetermined switching pattern, and when switching of all the antennas is completed, the antenna is again Communication means having switching means for sequentially switching the antennas according to a switching pattern, identification information reading control means for causing the communication means to read identification information stored in the wireless tag, and the wireless tag storing Tag information reading control means for causing the communication means to read the tag information to be read, and the information read by the communication means. Storage means for storing information, and determination means for determining the number of antennas using the stored identification information, wherein the tag information reading control means is configured to determine the number of antennas determined by the determination means. The communication means is caused to read the tag information by the same number.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, the program reads the identification information or the tag information by performing wireless communication with one or a plurality of wireless tags storing the unique identification information and tag information. For reading the identification information stored in the wireless tag to the communication unit having at least the same number of antennas as the wireless tag, tag information stored in the wireless tag for the communication unit The tag information reading control means for reading the tag information and the determining means for determining the number of antennas using the identification information read by the antenna, the tag information reading control means is determined by the determining means. The tag information is read by the communication unit by the same number as the number of antennas.

  According to the first and sixth aspects of the present invention, the determining unit can determine the number of antennas by reading the identification information stored in the wireless tag by the communication unit (communication unit), and then the tag information. When the reading control unit causes the communication unit (communication unit) to read the tag information, it can be controlled to read the tag information as many times as the number of antennas. That is, the tag information reading control unit can cause the communication unit (communication unit) to read the tag information as many times as necessary, and eliminates unnecessary processing such as reading the tag information an unnecessary number of times. Can do. Further, the tag information reading time can be shortened.

  The invention according to claim 2 is the wireless tag reader according to claim 1, wherein the identification information reading control means controls the communication means immediately after the wireless tag reader is shifted to an operable state. Thus, the identification information is read.

  The invention according to claim 7 is the program according to claim 6, wherein the identification information reading control means sends the identification information to the communication unit immediately after transitioning to a state in which the computer can operate. It is characterized in that reading is performed.

  According to the second and seventh aspects of the present invention, immediately after the wireless tag reader is shifted to an operable state (for example, immediately after the power is turned on), the identification information reading control unit controls the communication unit (communication unit). By starting reading the identification information of the wireless tag, the determination unit can determine the number of antennas at an early stage, and then the tag information reading control unit reads the tag information from the communication unit (communication unit). When performing control, the determined number of antennas can be effectively utilized.

  A third aspect of the present invention is the RFID tag reading apparatus according to the first or second aspect, wherein the identification information stored in the storage means is the latest each time the identification information is read by the antenna. Detecting means for detecting the same identification information as the identification information read in step, and when the same identification information is detected by the detection means, the identification information reading control means is configured to detect the identification information by the communication means. The determination means determines the number of identification information stored in the storage means as the number of antennas.

  The invention according to claim 8 is the program according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the computer causes the information in the identification information read before each time the identification information is read by the antenna. And further functioning as a detection means for detecting the same identification information as the identification information read most recently, and when the same identification information is detected by the detection means, the identification information reading control means is controlled by the communication unit. The reading of the identification information is stopped, and the determining means determines the number of the read identification information as the number of the antennas.

  According to the third and eighth aspects of the present invention, the detection means is the identification read most recently from the identification information (identification information stored in the storage means) previously read by the communication means (communication unit). By sequentially detecting the same information as the information, when the same identification information is detected, the determining means can determine the number of previously read identification information as the number of antennas. Since the tag information reading control means can cause the communication means (communication unit) to read the tag information as many times as the number of antennas determined, it is possible to omit useless processing related to reading the tag information. And reading time can be shortened.

  A fourth aspect of the present invention is the RFID tag reading device according to the first or second aspect, wherein the identification information reading control means is the same number of times as the maximum number of the antennas that can be owned by the communication means. The identification information is read by the communication unit, and after the identification information is read, the determination unit determines the number of types of identification information stored in the storage unit as the number of antennas. It is said.

  The invention according to claim 9 is the program according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the identification information reading control means performs the identification for the same number of times as the maximum number of the antennas that can be owned by the communication unit. Information is read from the communication unit, and the determination unit determines the number of types of the read identification information as the number of antennas.

  According to the inventions described in claims 4 and 9, the identification information reading control means identifies the identification information for the communication means (communication part) as many times as the maximum number of antennas that can be owned by the communication means (communication part). Thus, the determination unit can determine the type of the read identification information as the number of antennas. Since the tag information reading control means can cause the communication means (communication unit) to read the tag information as many times as the number of antennas determined, it is possible to omit useless processing related to reading the tag information. And reading time can be shortened.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a wireless tag system according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, and a command signal for instructing start of reading tag information stored in the wireless tag. A control device for outputting to the wireless tag reader, and in response to a command signal output from the control device, the tag information read control means is the same as the number of antennas determined by the determination means The communication means is caused to read the tag information as many times as possible.

  The invention according to claim 10 is the program according to any one of claims 6 to 9, wherein the instruction signal instructs start of reading of tag information stored in the wireless tag input from the outside. In response, the tag information reading control unit causes the communication unit to read the tag information as many times as the number of antennas determined by the determining unit.

  According to the invention described in claims 5 and 10, the same effects as in claims 1 to 4 and claims 6 to 9 can be obtained.

  According to the first and sixth aspects of the present invention, the determination unit can determine the number of antennas by reading the identification information stored in the wireless tag by the communication unit (communication unit), and then reading the tag information. When the control unit causes the communication unit (communication unit) to read the tag information, it can be controlled to read the tag information as many times as the number of antennas. That is, the tag information reading control unit can cause the communication unit (communication unit) to read the tag information as many times as necessary, and eliminates unnecessary processing such as reading the tag information an unnecessary number of times. Can do. Further, the tag information reading time can be shortened.

  According to the second and seventh aspects of the present invention, the identification information reading control means reads the identification information of the wireless tag with respect to the communication means (communication unit) immediately after the wireless tag reading device transitions to an operable state. Is determined when the tag information reading control means performs the tag information reading control on the communication means (communication unit). It is possible to effectively use the number of antennas.

  According to invention of Claim 3 and 8, a detection means detects sequentially the same thing as the identification information read most recently from the identification information previously read by the communication means (communication part). When the same identification information is detected, the determining means can determine the number of previously read identification information as the number of antennas. Since the tag information reading control means can cause the communication means (communication unit) to read the tag information as many times as the number of antennas determined, it is possible to omit useless processing related to reading the tag information. And reading time can be shortened.

  According to the inventions described in claims 4 and 9, the identification information reading control means transmits the identification information to the communication means (communication part) as many times as the maximum number of antennas that can be owned by the communication means (communication part). By performing the reading, the determining means can determine the type of the read identification information as the number of antennas. Since the tag information reading control means can cause the communication means (communication unit) to read the tag information as many times as the number of antennas determined, it is possible to omit useless processing related to reading the tag information. And reading time can be shortened.

  According to invention of Claim 5 and 10, there can exist an effect similar to Claims 1-4 and Claims 6-9.

  Hereinafter, a wireless tag system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, a case where the wireless tag system is used for managing a cartridge containing toner, ink, or the like in the image forming apparatus will be described as an example. However, the usage target of the wireless tag system is not limited to this.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of a wireless tag system 1 including a single-channel wireless tag reader 3 having one antenna. The same components as those of the wireless tag system 1 shown in FIG.

  The wireless tag system 1 according to the present embodiment includes a control device 2 and a wireless tag reading device 3 and is installed inside the main body of the image forming apparatus. The wireless tag reader 3 includes an interface 4, a control unit (detection unit) 5, and a communication unit (communication unit) 6.

  The control unit 5 includes an instruction signal output unit (identification information reading control unit, tag information reading control unit) 51, a channel number determination unit (determination unit) 52, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 53, and a ROM (Read Only Memory). 54 is comprised. The instruction signal output unit 51 outputs an instruction signal such as a carrier wave output control signal and a modulation control signal to the communication unit 6 in accordance with a command signal output from the control device 2 and control by the control unit 5. The channel number determination unit 52 determines the number of channels using the identification information of the wireless tag 9 output from the communication unit 6. The RAM 53 is a working memory for the control unit 5 and temporarily stores an identification signal, tag information, and the like output from the communication unit 6.

  The ROM 54 stores a wireless tag reading program 541 (firmware), data, and the like for realizing the basic operation of the wireless tag reading device 3. The wireless tag reading program 541 is a program for determining the number of channels of the communication unit 6 and reading the tag information of the wireless tag 9 in response to the tag information reading command signal output from the control device 2.

  The communication unit 6 performs wireless communication with the wireless tag 9 in response to an instruction signal output from the control unit 5, and includes a carrier wave oscillation circuit 61, a modulation circuit 62, an antenna 63, and a demodulation circuit 64. The The carrier wave oscillation circuit 61 generates a carrier wave in response to the carrier wave output control signal output from the instruction signal output unit 51. The modulation circuit 62 modulates the carrier wave generated by the carrier wave oscillation circuit 61 based on a modulation control signal including command information for the wireless tag 9 output from the instruction signal output unit 51.

  The antenna 63 transmits the carrier wave generated by the carrier wave oscillation circuit 61 and the modulated wave modulated by the modulation circuit 62 and receives the electromagnetic wave transmitted from the wireless tag 9. The antenna 63 converts the received electromagnetic wave into an electrical signal and outputs it to the demodulation circuit 64. The demodulation circuit 64 demodulates the electrical signal output from the antenna 63 to extract information, and outputs the extracted information to the control unit 5 as a demodulated signal.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of a wireless tag system 1 including a multi-channel wireless tag reader 3 having a plurality of antennas. The same components as those of the RFID tag system 1 including the single-channel RFID tag system 3 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, n wireless tags 91, 92,..., 9n (n is an integer equal to or larger than 2; hereinafter, collectively referred to as “wireless tag 9”) are targets of wireless communication. In this case, the communication unit 6 includes at least n antennas 631, 632,..., Antenna 63n (hereinafter collectively referred to as “antenna 63”), and each antenna 63 has a one-to-one correspondence with the wireless tag 9. Attached and set.

  In addition, the communication unit 6 includes a carrier wave oscillation circuit 61, a modulation circuit 62, an antenna switching circuit (switching means) 65, and a demodulation circuit 64. The modulation circuit 62 outputs a modulated wave modulated based on the modulation control signal output from the control unit 5 to the antenna selection circuit 65. The antenna switching circuit 65 selects an antenna that performs wireless communication from the antennas 63 and switches to a state in which transmission and reception are possible. The selected antenna performs wireless communication with the wireless tag 9, converts the received electromagnetic wave into an electrical signal, and outputs it to the demodulation circuit 64 via the antenna selection circuit 65.

  Note that the antenna control signal is output from the instruction signal output unit 51 of the control unit 5 regardless of single channel or multi-channel, whereas in the case of multi-channel, the antenna control signal is input to the antenna switching circuit 65. In the case of a single channel, the antenna control signal is output, but the wiring connection is not input to any circuit. Even if no antenna control signal is input, the input / output of the antenna 63 of the single-channel RFID tag reader 3 is fixedly connected to the control unit 5 via the carrier wave oscillation circuit 61, the modulation circuit 62, the demodulation circuit 64, and the like. ing. Therefore, the electromagnetic wave received by the antenna 63 is demodulated and input to the control unit 5 regardless of the presence or absence of the antenna control signal. Therefore, the RFID tag reader 3 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 can use a common RFID tag reading program.

  The above-described RFID tag reader 3 can operate with a common RFID tag reading program regardless of whether it is a single channel or multiple channels. This means that labor, time, and cost for development of the RFID tag reading program are reduced. I have already mentioned that the benefits are significant. Therefore, in order to compare the conventional RFID tag reading program and the RFID tag reading program of the present invention, each control unit 5 of the single-channel and multi-channel RFID tag reader 3 executes processing according to the conventional RFID tag reading program. The flow of operation when doing this will be described.

FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 are diagrams for explaining the operation of each unit when the control unit 5 of the three-channel wireless tag reader 3 executes processing according to the conventional wireless tag reading program. It is assumed that the wireless tag reading program is configured to be able to read wireless tag tag information for a maximum of three channels. 3 and 4, the wireless tag 91 is replaced with “wireless tag A”, the wireless tag 92 is replaced with “wireless tag B”, the wireless tag 93 is replaced with “wireless tag C”, and the antenna 631 is replaced with “ The description will be made by replacing the antenna A, the antenna 632 with “antenna B”, and the antenna 633 with “antenna C”.

  First, a tag information reading command signal for instructing reading of tag information of the wireless tag A is output from the control device 2 (P11). In response to this signal, the instruction signal output unit 51 outputs a carrier wave output control signal and an antenna selection signal for instructing selection of the antenna 631. The antenna switching circuit 65 switches the antenna to be used to the antenna A (Q11), and the antenna A transmits the carrier wave generated by the carrier wave oscillation circuit 61 (Q12). The wireless tag A receives this carrier wave and activates it (R11).

  Subsequently, the instruction signal output unit 51 outputs a control signal including a tag information reading command (Q13). Based on this signal, the modulation circuit 62 modulates the carrier wave, and the antenna A transmits the modulated wave. When the wireless tag A receives this modulated wave, it demodulates the modulated wave by a demodulation circuit (not shown). When a tag information read command is extracted by demodulation, the wireless tag A reads the tag information from the internal memory (R12), and transmits the tag information on an electromagnetic wave (R13). When the antenna A receives this electromagnetic wave, the demodulation circuit 64 extracts tag information from the electromagnetic wave and outputs it to the control unit 5. The control unit 5 stores the tag information in the buffer A of the RAM 53 (Q14).

  Next, the instruction signal output unit 51 outputs a carrier wave output control signal and an antenna selection signal for instructing the selection of the antenna B. The antenna switching circuit 65 switches the antenna to be used to the antenna B (Q15), and the antenna B transmits the carrier wave generated by the carrier wave oscillation circuit 61 (Q16). The wireless tag B receives this carrier wave and activates it (R14).

  Subsequently, the instruction signal output unit 51 outputs a control signal including a tag information reading command (Q17). Based on this signal, the modulation circuit 62 modulates the carrier wave, and the antenna B transmits the modulated wave. When receiving the modulated wave, the wireless tag B demodulates the modulated wave by a demodulation circuit (not shown). When the tag information read command is extracted by demodulation, the wireless tag B reads the tag information from the internal memory (R15), and transmits the tag information on the electromagnetic wave (R16). When the antenna B receives this electromagnetic wave, the demodulation circuit 64 extracts tag information from the electromagnetic wave and outputs it to the control unit 5. The control unit 5 stores the tag information in the buffer B of the RAM 53 (Q18).

  Next, the instruction signal output unit 51 outputs a carrier wave output control signal and an antenna selection signal for instructing the selection of the antenna C. When the antenna switching circuit 65 switches the antenna to be used to the antenna C, the tag information of the wireless tag C is read by the same operation as described above and stored in the buffer C (Q23).

  Then, the control unit 5 outputs a signal indicating that reading of tag information for three channels has been completed to the control device 2 (Q23). When the control device 2 inputs this signal (P12), the control device 2 outputs a request signal for tag information A (P13). The control unit 5 reads the tag information stored in the buffer A of the RAM 53 (Q24), and outputs the tag information to the control device 2 (Q25). The control device 2 inputs this tag information (P14). Subsequently, the control device 2 sequentially outputs request signals for tag information B and tag information C. In response to this request signal, the control unit 5 reads the tag information B and the tag information C from each buffer of the RAM 53 and outputs them to the control device 2 (Q26 to Q29). The control device 2 inputs the tag information B and the tag information C (P15 to P18), and the tag information reading operation is completed (P19).

  Next, the operation of each unit when the control unit 5 of the single-channel RFID tag reader 3 executes processing according to a conventional RFID tag reading program will be described with reference to FIG. It is assumed that the wireless tag reading program is configured to be able to read the tag information of wireless tags for a maximum of 3 channels as described above. Furthermore, for convenience of explanation, in FIG. 5, the wireless tag 91 is described as “wireless tag A” and the antenna 63 is replaced with “antenna A”.

  First, a tag information reading command signal for instructing reading of tag information of the wireless tag A is output from the control device 2 (P21). In response to this signal, the instruction signal output unit 51 outputs a carrier wave output control signal (Q31), and the antenna 63 transmits the carrier wave generated by the carrier wave oscillation circuit 61 (Q32). The wireless tag A receives this carrier wave and activates it (R21).

  Subsequently, the instruction signal output unit 51 outputs a control signal including a tag information reading command. Based on this signal, the modulation circuit 62 modulates the carrier wave, and the antenna 63 transmits the modulated wave (Q33). When the wireless tag A receives this modulated wave, it demodulates the modulated wave by a demodulation circuit (not shown). When a tag information read command is extracted by demodulation, the wireless tag A reads the tag information from the internal memory (R22), and transmits the tag information on an electromagnetic wave (R23). When the antenna 63 receives this electromagnetic wave, the demodulation circuit 64 extracts tag information from the electromagnetic wave and outputs it to the control unit 5. The control unit 5 stores the tag information in the buffer A of the RAM 53 (Q34).

  Then, the same operation (R21 to R23 for the wireless tag A) of the tag information received from the output (Q31) of the carrier wave output control signal (Q34) is repeated two more times. That is, the tag information reading operation of the wireless tag A is performed for a total of three channels (three times).

  And the control part 5 outputs the signal which shows that reading of tag information was complete | finished to the control apparatus 2 (Q43). When the control device 2 inputs this signal (Q22), the control device 2 outputs a request signal for tag information A (P23). The control unit 5 reads the tag information stored in the buffer A of the RAM 53 (Q44), and outputs the tag information to the control device 2 (Q45). The control device 21 inputs this tag information (P24), and the tag information reading operation is completed.

  Thus, in the conventional RFID tag reading program, the number of channels of the RFID tag reader 3 is not recognized. In other words, in the case of the above example, even if the RFID tag reader 3 is a single channel, the tag information reading operation is always performed for three channels (three times). That is, in the operation of the wireless tag reader 3 shown in FIG. 5, the wireless tag reading program is configured for 3 channels even though the reading of the tag information of the wireless tag A is completed in operations Q31 to Q34. Therefore, the same content reading operation is performed twice thereafter. That is, it can be said that the tag information reading operation for two times of operations Q36 to Q42 and operations R24 to R29 is a useless operation that is not necessary.

  Further, in the tag information reading operation of the multi-channel RFID tag reader 3 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, for example, when the RFID tag reading program is configured so that tag information for eight channels is always read. After the tag information reading operation for three channels, useless reading operations are performed five times. Although the wireless tag reader 3 can be operated with a common wireless tag reading program regardless of whether it is a single channel or a multi-channel, there is a great merit. It takes a long time for the tag information to be input to the control device 2, and the subsequent processing executed in the control device 2 is also hindered.

  Therefore, in the present invention, a wireless tag reading program that uses a common wireless tag reading program 541 regardless of the number of channels of the wireless tag reading device 3 and reduces wasteful processing by recognizing the number of channels by executing the program. Propose.

  First, the flow of operation of each unit when the control unit 5 of the multi-channel wireless tag reader 3 executes the wireless tag reading process according to the wireless tag reading program 541 according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. This wireless tag reading process is executed by reading the wireless tag reading program 541 from the ROM 54 by the control unit 5 when the wireless tag reading device 3 becomes operable (for example, immediately after power-on).

  First, the instruction signal output unit 51 outputs a carrier wave output control signal and an antenna selection signal for instructing the selection of the antenna A. Here, the antenna selection signal may be a trigger signal for instructing the antenna switching circuit 65 to switch the antenna. The antenna switching circuit 65 switches the antenna to be used to the antenna A (Q51). Thereby, the antenna A transmits the carrier wave generated by the carrier wave oscillation circuit 61 (Q52), and the wireless tag A receives this carrier wave and activates it (R31).

  Subsequently, the instruction signal output unit 51 outputs a control signal (identification information reading instruction signal) including an identification information reading command (Q53). The identification information is information stored in the internal memory of the wireless tag, and is a number unique to the wireless tag set when the wireless tag is manufactured. In addition, although the wireless tag is attached to each cartridge, if color information (BK, C, M, Y) of toner or ink contained in the cartridge is stored as tag information, the color information is identified. It may be used as information.

  Based on the identification information read instruction signal, the modulation circuit 62 modulates the carrier wave, and the antenna A transmits the modulated wave. When the wireless tag A receives this modulated wave, it demodulates the modulated wave by a demodulation circuit (not shown). When a read command for identification information is extracted by demodulation, the wireless tag A reads the identification information from the internal memory (R32), and transmits the identification information on an electromagnetic wave (R33). When the antenna A receives this electromagnetic wave, the demodulation circuit 64 extracts identification information from the electromagnetic wave and outputs it to the control unit 5. The control unit 5 compares the extracted identification information with the identification information stored in the RAM 53 (Q54). If the same identification information as the extracted identification information does not exist in the RAM 53, the control unit 5 stores the extracted identification information in the RAM 55 (Q55).

  The wireless tag identification information reading operation (Q51 to 54, R31 to R33) is performed each time the antenna is sequentially switched by the antenna switching circuit 65 with a predetermined antenna switching pattern. That is, the antenna switching circuit 65 switches the antenna to be used from antenna A → antenna B → antenna C in response to the antenna selection signal output from the instruction signal output unit 51, and identifies from the wireless tags A to C each time. Receive information. The antenna switching circuit 65 may switch the antenna to be used in response to the carrier wave output control signal or the modulation control signal. 6 and 7, the identification information reading operation of the wireless tag A is Q51 to 55 and R31 to R33, the identification information reading operation of the wireless tag B is Q56 to 60 and R34 to R36, and the identification information of the wireless tag C is The reading operation is Q61-65 and R37-39.

  When the antenna switching circuit 65 finishes selecting all the antennas, it again selects the antennas according to a predetermined antenna switching pattern. That is, when the antenna selection signal is output from the instruction signal output unit 51 after the reading operation of the wireless tag C is completed, the antenna switching circuit 65 switches the antenna to be used to the antenna A. Accordingly, the identification information reading operation (Q66 to 68, R40 to 42) for the wireless tag A is performed again.

  Then, the control unit 5 compares the identification information of the wireless tag A extracted by the demodulation circuit 64 with the identification information stored in the RAM 53 (Q69). Since the identification information of the wireless tag A is already stored in the RAM 53 in the operation Q55, the control unit 5 determines that the same identification information as the extracted identification information is already stored in the RAM 53. That is, the control unit 5 determines that identification information has been acquired from all wireless tags capable of wireless communication. Then, the channel number determination unit 52 determines the number of channels to be “3” from the number of identification information stored in the RAM 53 (Q70). A series of operations for determining the number of channels is automatically performed only once immediately after the RFID tag reader 3 is turned on.

  The RFID tag identification information reading operation is performed the same number of times as the maximum number of antennas m (m is an integer greater than or equal to n; hereinafter simply referred to as “maximum number of antennas”) on which the RFID tag reader 3 can be disposed. Repeated to the upper limit. When the read operation of the identification information is repeated m times without the coincidence between the read identification information and the identification information stored in the RAM 53, the wireless tag reader 3 includes m antennas, That is, the identification information is read from all the wireless tags corresponding one-to-one. Therefore, when the identification information reading operation is performed m times, the channel number determination unit 52 determines the channel number to be m even if the same identification information as the read identification information is not detected from the RAM 53.

  After the determination of the number of channels, when the tag information read command signal for instructing the reading of the tag information of the wireless tag A is output from the control device 2 (P31), the control unit 5 is determined by the channel number determination unit 52 The antenna is sequentially switched by the number of times of the number of channels (three times), and the tag information reading operation of the wireless tags A to C is performed (Q71 to 82, R43 to 51). Here, the antenna control signal output from the instruction signal output unit 51 may be a simple trigger signal as described above. Since the number of channels is already known, a desired antenna is selected from a plurality of antennas. It may be a signal indicating an antenna number for selection. Thus, since the control unit 5 recognizes the number of channels before the tag information read command signal is output from the control device 2, the control unit 5 can perform the tag information read operation as many times as necessary. A useless reading operation can be omitted.

  When the control unit 5 outputs a signal indicating that the reading of the tag information has been completed to the control device 2 (Q83), the control device 2 outputs a request signal for each tag information, and in response to this request signal, the wireless tag reading is performed. The device 3 outputs the tag information stored in each buffer (P32 to P39, Q84 to Q89).

  Next, the operation flow of each unit when the control unit 5 of the single-channel RFID tag reader 3 executes the RFID tag reading process according to the same RFID tag reading program 541 according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. To do. When the wireless tag reader 3 is operable, the instruction signal output unit 51 outputs a carrier wave output control signal (Q91), and the antenna 63 transmits the carrier wave generated by the carrier wave oscillation circuit 61 (Q92). The wireless tag A receives this carrier wave and activates it (R61).

  Subsequently, the instruction signal output unit 51 outputs a control signal (identification information reading instruction signal) including an identification information reading command (Q93), and the antenna 63 transmits a modulated wave. When receiving the modulated wave, the wireless tag A reads the identification information from the internal memory (R62), and transmits the identification information on the electromagnetic wave (R63). The antenna 63 receives this electromagnetic wave, and the demodulation circuit 64 extracts identification information from the electromagnetic wave and outputs it to the control unit 5. The control unit 5 compares the extracted identification information with the identification information stored in the RAM 53 (Q94). If the same identification information as the extracted identification information does not exist in the RAM 53, the control unit 5 stores the extracted identification information in the RAM 53 (Q95).

  As described above, until the same identification information as the extracted identification information is detected from the RAM 53, the instruction signal output unit 51 outputs the carrier wave output control signal with the same number as the maximum number of antennas m as an upper limit. Accordingly, the carrier wave is transmitted again from the antenna 63, and the identification information reading operation of the wireless tag A is performed (Q96 to 98, R64 to 66).

  And the control part 5 will input the identification information extracted from the demodulation circuit 64, and will compare the extracted identification information with the identification information stored in RAM53 (Q99). Since the identification information of the wireless tag A is already stored in the RAM 53 in the operation Q95, the control unit 5 determines that the same identification information as the extracted identification information is already stored in the RAM 53. That is, the control unit 5 determines that identification information has been acquired from all wireless tags capable of wireless communication, and the channel number determination unit 52 determines the number of channels to be “1” from the number of identification information stored in the RAM 53. (Q100).

  After the determination of the number of channels, when the tag information reading command signal for instructing the reading of the tag information of the wireless tag A is output from the control device 2 (P41), the control unit 5 is determined by the channel number determination unit 52 The carrier wave output control signal and the modulation control signal are transmitted by the number of channels (once), and the tag information reading operation of the wireless tag A is performed (Q101 to 104, R67 to 69). When the control unit 5 outputs a signal indicating that the reading of the tag information has been completed to the control device 2 (Q105), the control device 2 outputs a request signal for the tag information of the wireless tag A (R43). In response, the wireless tag reader 3 outputs the tag information stored in the buffer A (Q106, 107).

  As described with reference to FIG. 5, when the control unit 5 of the single-channel RFID tag reader 3 executes processing according to the conventional RFID tag reading program, the RFID tag A is recognized without recognizing the number of channels of the RFID tag reader 3. Therefore, there are many useless operations such as performing the same reading operation on the wireless tag A three times. However, when the control unit 5 of the apparatus 3 executes processing according to the wireless tag reading program 541 in the present invention, the control unit 5 recognizes that the number of channels is 1 based on the identification information read from the wireless tag 9. Can do. Then, when a tag information reading command signal is output from the control device 2 thereafter, the control unit 5 causes the wireless tag A to read the tag information only once. As described above, before the tag information reading command signal is output from the control device 2, the control unit 5 recognizes the number of channels, so that useless operations at the time of reading tag information can be omitted. Reading time can be shortened.

  FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a flow when the control unit 5 executes processing according to the wireless tag reading program 541. The flow of the wireless tag reading process will be described. However, since there are many portions overlapping the above-described operation description of each unit, a brief description will be given.

  First, the control unit 5 sets a variable i (i is an integer of 1 or more) to 1 (step S11). In response to various control signals output from the instruction signal output unit 51, the communication unit 6 transmits a carrier wave to the wireless tag 9 to activate it, and receives identification information from the wireless tag 9 (step S12). .

  Subsequently, the control unit 5 compares the received identification information with the identification information stored in the RAM 53 (step S13). If there is no identification information identical to the received identification information in the RAM 53 (step S13; NO) and the variable i is not equal to the maximum number of antennas m (step S14; NO), the control unit 5 stores the received identification information in the RAM 53. Store and add 1 to the variable i (step S15), and proceed to step S12.

  When there is the same identification information as the received identification information in the RAM 53 (step S13: YES), the channel number determination unit 52 sets the channel number to the number indicated by the variable i (step S16). If the control unit 5 determines in step S14 that the variable i and the maximum number of antennas m are equal (step S14; YES), the channel number determination unit 52 sets the number of channels to the number indicated by the maximum number of antennas m (step S14). S17).

  Next, when a tag information reading command signal is output from the control device 2 (step S18; YES), the control unit 5 sets the variable i to 1 (step S19). In response to various control signals output from the instruction signal output unit 51, the communication unit 6 transmits a carrier wave to the wireless tag 9 to activate it, and receives tag information from the wireless tag 9 (step S20). The control unit 5 stores the received tag information in the buffer of the RAM 53 (step S21). The control unit 5 repeats the processes of steps S20 and S21 by the number of channels determined by the channel number determination unit 52, and then outputs a tag information reading end signal to the control device 2 (step S24).

  Next, when a tag information request signal is output from the control device 2 (step S25; YES), the control unit 5 reads the tag information stored in the buffer of the RAM 53 and outputs it to the control device 2 (step S26). ).

  As described above, when the tag information read command signal is output from the control device 2 by reading the identification information of the wireless tag 9 and determining the number of channels using the read identification information, the control unit 5 The tag information reading process to the wireless tag 9 can be performed as many times as the number of channels. That is, since the tag information reading process is not performed more than the required number of times for the wireless tag 9 as in the prior art, useless processing can be omitted and the tag information reading time can be shortened.

  The present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made. For example, in the above embodiment, the reading process of the identification information of the wireless tag 9 is repeated until the same identification information is detected from the RAM 53. As another method, the reading process of the identification information of the wireless tag 9 is performed. It may be repeated as many times as indicated by the maximum number of antennas m, and the number of types of identification information received may be the number of channels.

  FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing a flow when the control unit 5 executes processing according to a modification of the RFID tag reading program 541. First, the control unit 5 sets a variable i to 1 (step S31). In response to the various control signals output from the instruction signal output unit 51, the communication unit 6 transmits a carrier wave to the wireless tag 9 to activate it, and receives identification information from the wireless tag 9 (step S32). .

  Subsequently, the control unit 5 compares the variable i with the maximum number of antennas m (step S33). If the variable i and the maximum number of antennas m are not equal (step S33; NO), the control unit 5 stores the received identification information in the RAM 53, adds 1 to the variable i (step S34), and shifts the processing to step S32. . On the other hand, if the variable i and the maximum number of antennas m are equal (step S33; YES), the channel number determination unit 52 sets the number of types of identification information stored in the RAM 53 as the number of channels (step S35). Since the process after step S36 is the same as the process after step S18 shown in FIG. 12, description is abbreviate | omitted.

1 is a block diagram illustrating an electrical configuration of a single-channel wireless tag system in this embodiment. 1 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of a multi-channel wireless tag system 1 in the present embodiment. The figure explaining the flow of operation when processing is performed according to the conventional RFID tag reading program. The figure explaining the flow of the operation | movement following FIG. The figure explaining the flow of operation when processing is performed according to the conventional RFID tag reading program. The figure explaining the flow of operation | movement when a process is performed according to the radio | wireless tag reading program of this Embodiment. The figure explaining the flow of the operation | movement following FIG. The figure explaining the flow of the operation | movement following FIG. The figure explaining the flow of the operation | movement following FIG. The figure explaining the flow of operation | movement when a process is performed according to the radio | wireless tag reading program of this Embodiment. The figure explaining the flow of the operation | movement following FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a flow when processing is executed in accordance with the wireless tag reading program in the present embodiment. The flowchart which shows the flow when a process is performed according to the modification of the RFID tag reading program in this Embodiment. The block diagram for demonstrating the electrical schematic structure of a wireless tag system. The figure for demonstrating the method of recognizing the number of channels using the input terminal of CPU.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Wireless tag system 2 Control apparatus 3 Wireless tag reader 4 Interface 5 Control part 51 Instruction signal output part 52 Channel number determination part 53 RAM
54 ROM
541 Radio tag reading program 6 Communication unit 61 Carrier wave oscillation circuit 62 Modulation circuit 63 Antenna 64 Demodulation circuit 65 Antenna switching circuit 9 Radio tag

Claims (10)

At least the same number of antennas as the wireless tag for performing wireless communication and reading the identification information or the tag information with respect to one or a plurality of wireless tags storing unique identification information and tag information, and a plurality of the antennas In this case, the communication means includes switching means for sequentially switching the antennas for performing the wireless communication according to a predetermined switching pattern, and switching the antennas sequentially according to the switching pattern again after switching of all the antennas is completed. When,
Identification information reading control means for causing the communication means to read identification information stored in the wireless tag;
Tag information reading control means for causing the communication means to read tag information stored in the wireless tag;
Storage means for storing identification information read by the communication means;
Determining means for determining the number of the antennas for performing wireless communication using the stored identification information;
The tag information reading control means causes the communication means to read the tag information by the same number as the number of antennas determined by the determining means.   2. The identification information reading control unit causes the communication unit to read the identification information immediately after the wireless tag reading device transitions to an operable state. Wireless tag reader. Each time the identification information is read by the antenna, it further comprises detection means for detecting the same identification information as the identification information read most recently from among the identification information stored in the storage means,
When the same identification information is detected by the detection means, the identification information reading control means stops reading the identification information by the communication means, and the determination means determines the number of identification information stored in the storage means. The wireless tag reader according to claim 1, wherein the wireless tag reader is determined as the number of antennas. The identification information reading control means causes the communication means to read the identification information as many times as the maximum number of the antennas that can be owned by the communication means,
3. The wireless tag reader according to claim 1, wherein after the reading of the identification information is completed, the determination unit determines the number of types of identification information stored in the storage unit as the number of antennas. . The wireless tag reader according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
A control device that outputs to the wireless tag reader a command signal instructing to start reading tag information stored in the wireless tag;
In response to the command signal output from the control device, the tag information reading control means transmits the tag information to the communication means as many times as the number of antennas determined by the determination means. A wireless tag system characterized in that reading is performed. Computer
For a communication unit having at least the same number of antennas as the wireless tag for performing wireless communication with one or more wireless tags storing unique identification information and tag information and reading the identification information or the tag information Identification information reading control means for reading the identification information stored in the wireless tag,
Tag information reading control means for causing the communication unit to read tag information stored in the wireless tag;
Determining means for determining the number of the antennas for performing wireless communication using the identification information read by the antenna;
The tag information reading control unit causes the communication unit to read the tag information by the same number as the number of antennas determined by the determining unit.   The program according to claim 6, wherein the identification information reading control unit causes the communication unit to read the identification information immediately after the computer transitions to an operable state. The computer,
Each time the identification information is read by the antenna, it further functions as detection means for detecting the same identification information as the identification information read most recently from among the identification information previously read,
When the same identification information is detected by the detection means, the identification information reading control means stops reading the identification information by the communication unit, and the determination means determines the number of identification information read by the antenna. The program according to claim 6, wherein the program is determined as a number of the program. The identification information reading control means causes the communication unit to read the identification information as many times as the maximum number of the antennas that the communication unit can own,
The program according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the determining unit determines the number of types of the read identification information as the number of antennas.   In response to a command signal for instructing to start reading tag information stored in the wireless tag input from the outside, the tag information reading control means is the same number of times as the number of the antennas determined by the determining means. The program according to claim 6, wherein the tag information is read by a communication unit.

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