KR20130001003A - Apparatus for writing and reading a rfid tag with a plurality of antennas - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A radio frequency identification(RFID) tag recording and reading device with a plurality of antennas is provided to encode a product with an RFID tag, thereby applying the device to a massive production process. CONSTITUTION: Antennas(204) in a first set are used for recording and reading information in an RFID tag. The antennas(206) of a second set are separated from the antennas in the first set and is installed corresponding to a moving direction of a conveyor(202). A controller(412) controls an operation of the antennas corresponding to an RFID profile. The antennas in the first set and the second set are composed of two antennas which are faced in a top and a bottom in the conveyor.

Description

RDF tag recording and reading device having a plurality of antennas {APPARATUS FOR WRITING AND READING A RFID TAG WITH A PLURALITY OF ANTENNAS}

The present invention relates to an RFID tag recording / reading apparatus of the present invention, and more particularly, to a control of a plurality of antennas for facilitating RFID tag recording / reading operations.

In general, the packaging container of the product is marked with a bar code or a bar code sticker for easy product classification, but the bar code system has a limitation of contact information acquisition.

Therefore, in order to overcome the limitations of the bar code system, products that have recently developed a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag as a bar code replacement are being introduced one after another.

RFID technology recognizes information and surrounding environment by using radio waves from tags attached to objects, and collects, stores, processes, and tracks information of each object to locate, remotely process, manage, and exchange information between objects. Various services can be provided.

These technologies are expected to lead innovation in security, safety and environmental management as well as distribution and goods management by networking and intelligent goods management by replacing existing bar codes and forming a huge new market that did not exist before. do.

1A and 1B are conceptual views illustrating a conventional RFID tag encoding and attaching method. As shown in FIG. 1A, a conventional tag encoding process employs a method in which an operator 106 attaches to an article 108 after issuing the tag 104 using the tag printer 102. Meanwhile, as shown in FIG. 1B, the tag 104 printed by the tag printer 102 may be attached to the article 108 using the tag auto-attachment device 110 instead of the worker. .

The conventional RFID tag encoding method consists of a process of issuing a tag using a printer and attaching the issued tag to a product by a worker or through automation equipment.

When using a tag printer, check the paper and toner, set the information to be input to the printer, and operate the printer. When a tag is issued one by one, the operator attaches the tag to the product or the automation equipment picks up the tag issued by the printer and attaches the tag to the corresponding position.

In other words, both methods issue a tag using a printer. Currently, the tag printer is issued at a speed of 40 to 60 sheets per minute, so the productivity is too low to apply to mass-produced items. Consumables, etc., incur cost. In particular, automation equipment can only be tagged with a single product, making it unsuitable for small batch production.

Meanwhile, encoding of RFID tags and screening of error tags are performed in a separate process instead of a single process. In other words, RFID tag encoding is preceded, and after the production of the product, a separate error tag screening process is in progress, and the error tag screening process is performed by a handheld reader or a monitor showing an error situation, which increases process time and labor costs. It is a factor which raises a production cost by the rise.

An RFID device for improving the recognition rate, speed, and the like of RFID tag information recording / operation and a method for controlling the same are proposed.

An RFID device comprising a conveyor for conveying a product with an RFID tag, the RFID device comprising: a first set of antennas for information recording / reading operation of the RFID tag; A second set of antennas for information recording / reading operation of an RFID tag spaced apart from the first set of antennas along a forward direction of a conveying direction of the conveyor; And a controller for controlling the operation of the antennas in accordance with an RFID profile, wherein the first set of antennas consists of two antennas installed facing each other above and below the conveyor, the second set of antennas It may be composed of two antennas installed to face each other above and below the conveyor.

The RFID device of the present invention can perform the information recording / reading operation of the RFID tag in one process, and can be suitable for the mass production process since it is possible to continuously encode at a high speed on the product to which the RFID tag is attached. In addition, even if various products are transferred to the conveyor, it can be implemented by changing the arrangement of the antenna and the change of the RFID profile without mechanical change.

Since verification of the recording of the RFID tag is made in one apparatus, it is possible to achieve the improvement of the RFID tag information recording quality and the speed. In addition, by controlling the arrangement of the antennas according to an embodiment of the present invention, the discontinuity of the RFID tag directionality can be compensated.

1A and 1B show a prior art.
2 illustrates an RFID device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 illustrates an RFID device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 illustrates an arrangement of antennas of an RFID device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
5 illustrates an arrangement of antennas of an RFID device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
6 illustrates a method of operating an RFID device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The terms and words used in the present specification and claims should not be construed as limited to ordinary or dictionary terms and should be construed in a sense and concept consistent with the technical idea of the present invention. Therefore, the embodiments described in the present specification and the configurations shown in the drawings are only the most preferred embodiments of the present invention, and not all of the technical ideas of the present invention are included. Therefore, It is to be understood that equivalents and modifications are possible.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

2 is a perspective view of an RFID device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of an RFID device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2 to 3, an RFID device according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a conveyor 202, a first set of antennas 204, a second set of antennas 206, and a first sensor 250. ), A second sensor 252, and an automatic selector 300, and may further include a tunnel type cover 402, an electromagnetic wave absorber 502, and a lower plate 270.

The conveyor 202 rotates at a constant speed by using the rotational force of the motor and serves to transfer the product P with the RFID tag at a predetermined speed. Conveyor 202 is not limited to the kind of conveyor surface that can transport the product or the box with the RFID tag attached, any conventional conveyor such as a belt conveyor is possible.

The first set of antennas 204 and the second set of antennas 206 are for performing an RFID tag write / read operation, and the form thereof is not particularly limited.

The first sensor 250 and the second sensor 252 are for recognizing that the product has reached the conveyor to detect the product and perform the RFID tag recording / reading operation. Although two sensors are shown in FIG. 2, more or fewer sensors may be disposed.

The automatic selector 300 is spaced apart from the second set of antennas 206 by a predetermined distance along the forward direction of the conveying direction of the conveyor 202, and the RFID tag write operation read by the second set of antennas 206. This classifies products according to whether or not they are in error. In addition, the automatic selector 300 serves to classify other conveyors or logistics warehouses for proper transfer of products according to the RFID tag reading operation as well as whether the RFID tag recording operation is error.

The lower plate 270 is preferably made of a metal material, and the lower plate 270 may include mounting grooves 272 and 274 on which the first set of antennas 204 and the second set of antennas 206 may be mounted. have.

The tunnel cover 402 may be a tunnel cover made of a metal material, and the electromagnetic wave absorbing material 502 may be coated or attached to all or part of the surface of the cover 402.

RFID tag does not have a separate battery (battery), passive RFID tag to use as its own power by rectifying the electromagnetic wave transmitted from the RFID tag recorder / reader to obtain its own operating power and active RFID tag with a separate battery All is possible.

The RFID tag includes an RFID tag having a WORM (Write Once Read Many) type memory which is given a unique ID as RFID tag information and used during its lifespan when the RFID tag is produced (or attached to a predetermined product). The RFID tag may be reusable by recording predetermined ID information as RFID tag information in at least one or more writable memories (WORM and / or write many (WM) type memory).

Specifically, for example, the RFID tag is a tag antenna formed by using a conductive material (Cu, Al, Ag paste, etc.) on a thin film-like base made of PET or polyimide material, and bumps on the antenna. It can be composed of an IC chip to which the IC electrodes are connected through, and a cover sheet adhered by an adhesive to the base covering these antennas and the IC chip.

The first set of antennas 204 and the second set of antennas 206 may each be composed of two or more antennas, but in FIG. 2, two are shown for simplicity. The first and second sets of antennas 204 and 206 each comprise two antennas, and the two first sets of antennas may each be installed above and below the conveyor 202 so that they face each other. Two second sets of antennas may also be installed, each facing each other above and below the conveyor 202. In addition, the antennas facing each other can change the angle with the conveyor according to the system environment.

The two antennas are arranged in pairs for improving the recognition rate of the RFID tag read / write operation and for multiple recognition. The recognition rate of the RFID tag recording / reading may be determined according to the direction of the RFID tag attached to the product. For example, when an antenna is attached to the top of the conveyor, a shaded area that RF cannot reach may be created around the bottom of the conveyor, namely the bottom plate portion. In other words, discontinuity in the RFID tag directionality may occur. When the RFID tag is conveyed toward the lower plate of the conveyor, the RFID tag recording / reading recognition rate may drop significantly. In addition, when the products are not drawn one by one along the conveyor 202 and the plurality of products are mixed together, the RFID tag recording / reading operation of some of the plurality of products is likely to fail.

Meanwhile, in order to improve the RFID tag recording / reading recognition rate, even when the RFID tag recording / reading operation is performed with a plurality of antennas, radio wave interference between the antennas interferes with the RFID tag recording / reading operation. Therefore, there is a need for a method for controlling the antennas to minimize interference between radio waves generated from the respective antennas.

The antenna A 204a of the first set of antennas 204 may be installed in the seating groove 272 of the lower plate 270, and the antenna B 204b may be installed in the tunnel type cover 402. In addition, the antenna C 206a of the second set of antennas 206 may be installed in the mounting groove 274 of the lower plate 270, and the antenna D 206b may be installed in the tunnel cover 402.

The lower plate 270 may be formed of a metal material, and mounting grooves 272 and 274 may be formed on which the antenna A 204a and the antenna C 206b may be seated. The tunnel cover 402 may be a tunnel cover made of a metal material, and the electromagnetic wave absorbing material 502 may be coated or attached to all or part of the surface of the cover 402.

In addition, an electromagnetic shielding curtain (not shown) in combination with the electromagnetic wave absorber 502 or replacing the electromagnetic wave absorber 502 may be provided at a predetermined position inside the cover 402, for example, the first set of antennas 204. It may be provided at a predetermined position between the second set of antennas 206.

The electromagnetic wave absorbing material 502 or the electromagnetic shielding curtain prevents interference of radio waves transmitted and received from the first set of antennas 204 and the second set of antennas 206 to encode ID information only on a specific tag or to identify ID information of a specific tag. Allows you to read

4 illustrates an arrangement of a plurality of antennas according to an embodiment of the present invention. Although four antennas are shown in the present embodiment, the present invention is not limited thereto. The RFID device may include antenna A 204a, antenna B 204b, antenna C 206a, and antenna D 206b. The controller 412 of FIG. 2 may control the operation of these antennas according to the RFID profile. The RFID profile may be a set of variables for an optimal RFID tag writing / reading operation according to each product group to which the RFID tag may be applied. For example, the RFID profile may include the RF power of each antenna, the ON / OFF timing of each antenna, and the RF sensitivity. The sensitivity of the RF may be controlled by a Received Signal Strength Indication (RSSI) measurement algorithm inside the reader. By measuring the RSSI received from the RFID tag, it is possible to determine the RF sensitivity corresponding to the RSSI measured by the algorithm inside the controller, and to adjust the RF sensitivity to optimize the RFID tag writing / reading operation.

In one embodiment, the controller 412 performs an RFID tag write / read operation by turning on the first set of antennas 204a and 204b when the product with the RFID tag attached to the conveyor enters the product. The first set of antennas may be turned off when outside the recording / reading area (first region) of the first set of antennas. Thereafter, when the product enters the write / read area (second area) of the second set of antennas 206a and 206b, the second set of antennas are turned on to perform the RFID tag write / read operation. Outside the write / read area of the second set of antennas, the second set of antennas may be turned off.

The first area or the second area may be set in advance, and the recording / reading area may vary according to the type of product. Meanwhile, whether the products enter or exit the recording / reading area may be performed by the sensors 250 and 252, and for the sake of brevity, the operation of the sensors will be omitted and described in the present application.

The on / off operation of the first or second set of antennas may be based on an RFID profile, and the on / off timing of the first or second set of antennas (eg, a duration to turn on / off) May be stored in an RFID profile. In addition, the on / off timing of the antenna A 204a and the on / off timing of the antenna B 204b may be set differently, and the on / off timing of the antenna C 206a and the on / off of the antenna D 206b may be set. The timing can be set differently. For example, the controller may set the on / off timings of the antennas in order of antenna A 204a, antenna B 204b, antenna C 206a, and antenna D 206b to turn on / off each.

In addition, the controller 412 may adjust the RF power of each antenna as well as the on / off timing of the antennas. For example, the RF power of the first set of antennas may be set to x, and the RF power of the second set of antennas may be adjusted to x * a (eg, 0 <a ≦ 1). In addition, the RF power of the antenna A 204a and the RF power of the antenna B 204b may be set differently, or the RF power of the antenna C 206a and the RF power of the antenna D 206b may be set differently.

In addition, the controller may control the antennas by setting on / off timing and RF power of the respective antennas differently.

5 illustrates an arrangement of a plurality of antennas according to an embodiment of the present invention. This arrangement is, as described above, for improving the recognition rate of the RFID tag write / read operation and for multiple recognition. In addition to the antenna arrangement of FIG. 4, a third set of antennas 208 and a fourth set of antennas 210 are added. The third set of antennas 208 can include antenna E 208a and antenna F 208b, and the fourth set of antennas 210 includes antenna G 210a and antenna H 210b. can do.

The controller may control the first, second, third and fourth sets of antennas according to the RFID profile. The controller may set the on / off timing of the eight antennas to optimize the recognition rate of the RFID tag write / read operation. In addition, it is possible to enable the RFID tag write / read operation of a plurality of products at the same time. For example, a controller can control on / off of the eight antennas in a spiral order. That is, the antennas can be turned on / off in the order of the antennas A-E-B-F-C-G-D-H.

In addition, the controller may control the RF power of the eight antennas. The RF power magnitudes of the eight antennas may be determined according to the RFID profile and may vary depending on the product family.

6 shows a method 600 of RFID tag write / read operation in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. When the product (box) is transferred through the conveyor 202, the first sensor 250 may recognize the product (box) and send a signal to the controller 412 (S610). The controller 412 may control the on / off timing of the antenna or the RF output of the antenna according to the RFID profile of the first set of antennas 204 to perform an RFID tag recording operation attached to the product (box). (S620). The RFID tag recording operation may be an RFID tag encoding operation using an antenna. Next, when the product is transferred through the conveyor 202, the second sensor 252 may recognize the product (box) and send a signal (S630). The controller 412 may control the on / off timing of the antenna or the RF output of the antenna according to the RFID profile of the second set of antennas 206 to perform an RFID tag read operation attached to the product (box). (S640). The controller may determine whether there is an error in the RFID tag recording operation through the RFID tag recording / reading operation (S650). If there is an error in the RFID tag recording operation, the RFID tag recording operation may be performed again using the second set of antennas 206. According to the determination of S650, the faulty product may be sorted by the automatic selector (S660), and the faultless product may be prevented from writing further RFID tags through the second set of antennas 206. The locking operation may be performed (S670).

On the other hand, when there is an error in the RFID tag recording operation, and the RFID tag recording operation is performed again using the second set of antennas 206, a third sensor (not shown) recognizes the product and signals to the controller 412. After sending the controller 412, the controller 412 may perform the RFID tag reading operation using the fourth set of antennas 210. The controller 412 may determine whether there is an error in the RFID tag write operation through the RFID tag write / read operation. According to this determination, the faulty product can be sorted by the automatic selector (S660), and the faulty product is locked to prohibit the further writing of the RFID tag via the fourth set of antennas 210. The operation may be performed (S670).

Embodiments of the present invention have been described above, and those skilled in the art may recognize that the embodiments are merely illustrative, not limiting of the invention, without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. It will be appreciated that variations, modifications, etc. are possible.

Claims (10)

An RFID device comprising a conveyor for transporting a product with an RFID tag,
A first set of antennas for information writing / reading operation of the RFID tag;
A second set of antennas for information recording / reading operation of an RFID tag spaced apart from the first set of antennas along a forward direction of a conveying direction of the conveyor; And
A controller for controlling the operation of the antennas according to an RFID profile,
The first set of antennas consists of two antennas installed facing each other above and below the conveyor, and the second set of antennas consists of two antennas installed facing each other above and below the conveyor. RFID device. The RFID device of claim 1, wherein the RFID profile comprises RF power, ON / OFF timing of each antenna, and RF sensitivity. The method according to claim 1 or 2,
The controller,
And each of the antennas is turned on / off according to the RFID profile to perform a write / read operation. The method of claim 1,
And a lower plate installed below the conveyor and on which at least one of the first set of antennas and the second set of antennas can be disposed. The method of claim 1,
Installed above the conveyor, at least one of the first set of antennas and the second set of antennas may be installed, further comprising a tunnel-like cover through which the product may pass. RFID device. The method of claim 5,
A third set of antennas composed of two antennas installed to face each other on a side wall of the tunnel-shaped cover; And
Further comprising a fourth set of antennas comprising two antennas spaced apart from the third set of antennas along a forward direction of the conveying direction of the conveyor so as to face each other on the sidewall of the tunnel-shaped cover. Device. 7. The method according to claim 1 or 6,
The controller,
And lock the antennas so that the antennas can no longer record the information of the RFID tag. The RFID device according to claim 5, wherein an electromagnetic wave absorber is coated or attached to the inside of the tunnel-type cover. The RFID tag of claim 1, wherein the RFID tag is attached to the second set of antennas by a predetermined distance along a forward direction of the conveying direction of the conveyor, and the RFID tag is attached according to an information recording / reading result of the RFID tags of the antennas. Further comprising an automatic selector for sorting the finished product. The method of claim 1,
A first sensor installed to be spaced apart from the first set of antennas along a reverse direction of the conveying direction of the conveyor to detect the product; And
And a second sensor installed to be spaced apart from the second set of antennas along a reverse direction of the conveying direction of the conveyor to detect the product.

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