Patent US5594448A successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
US5594448A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Highly accurate RF-ID positioning system
Assignee: Texas Instruments Inc
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Filing: 1994-12-15
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Granted: 1997-01-14
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Expires: 2014-12-15
Abstract
Abstract A balanced receive antenna circuit configuration determines an accurate position of a transponder within the antenna field pattern of the reader antenna. The balanced receive antenna configuration consists of two antennas physically rotated 90 degrees relative to one another, disposed concentrically on top of one another. Furthermore, each receive antenna consists of two coils located a predetermined distance apart. The optimum distance separating the coils is determined by trading off zero position detection with the transponder detection range. A third receive reference antenna is concentrically disposed, sharing the same horizontal plane with the balanced antenna coilsets. The transmitter antenna is disposed separately from the receive antennas. In operation, initially the transmitter antenna sends a power burst signal for a predetermined duration to charge up the transponder to the maximum charge possible. Then for a very brief duration, the transmitter antenna is damped to permit the receive antennas to better receive the transponder response telegram. Then simultaneously, one receive antenna receives the `X` position component and the other receiver antenna receives the `Y` position component in the form of induced phase and voltages. Depending upon which quadrant of the antenna pattern the transponder is disposed, the phase and field effect voltage of the X component and the Y component is detected. These received voltages are then narrow band filtered around a center frequency and rectified via phase information received from the reference antenna. These rectified signals are then gated for a small portion of the length of the entire response telegram, and those outputs are combined in a signal processor which outputs the exact position data information.
Inventors
- 👤 Loek D'Hont
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-04 23:09
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06K; G06K7/00; G06K7/10; G06K7/10009; G06K7/10316; G06K7/10346; G01; G01S; G01S3/00; G01S3/02; G01S3/14; G01S3/28; G01S3/30; G01S3/32; G01S3/36; G06K7/0008; H; H01; H01Q; H01Q7/00; G01S13/00; G01S13/74; G01S13/75; G01S13/751; G01S13/753; G01S13/82
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 22
Claim 1
Independent Claim
188 words
An antenna configuration for accurately determining the position of a transponder in an RF-ID system comprising: a first and a second balanced receive antenna for receiving a fieldstrength voltage and a phase measurement of a response telegram wherein said first and second receive antennas are physically rotated 90 degrees relative to one another; a third reference antenna for receiving a fieldstrength voltage RF signal and a phase measurement of said response telegram and for providing a phase measurement of said response telegram; a transmitter antenna for transmitting a charge-up signal to said transponder wherein said transponder is charged to a maximum allowable voltage; a first, a second and a third receiver for narrowband filtering said receive fieldstrength voltages of said response telegram; a synchronous detector circuitry for rectifying said filtered response signal via phase information of said response telegram provided by said reference antenna; a first, a second and a third sample and hold circuit for sampling said synchronized signals for a first portion of said response telegram; and a processing circuit for generating a position coordinate relating to a position of said transponder from said sampled signals.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
188 words
An antenna configuration for accurately determining the position of a transponder in an RF-ID system comprising: a first and a second balanced receive antenna for receiving a fieldstrength voltage and a phase measurement of a response telegram wherein said first and second receive antennas are physically rotated 90 degrees relative to one another; a third reference antenna for receiving a fieldstrength voltage RF signal and a phase measurement of said response telegram and for providing a phase measurement of said response telegram; a transmitter antenna for transmitting a charge-up signal to said transponder wherein said transponder is charged to a maximum allowable voltage; a first, a second and a third receiver for narrowband filtering said receive fieldstrength voltages of said response telegram; a synchronous detector circuitry for rectifying said filtered response signal via phase information of said response telegram provided by said reference antenna; a first, a second and a third sample and hold circuit for sampling said synchronized signals for a first portion of said response telegram; and a processing circuit for generating a position coordinate relating to a position of said transponder from said sampled signals.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
27 words
The antenna configuration system of claim 1, wherein said narrowband filtering limited said receive fieldstrength voltages to a 600 MHz band centered around some predetermined center frequency.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
24 words
The antenna configuration of claim 1, wherein said processing circuit logically "AND" said receive fieldstrength voltage signals to yield the coordinates of the transponder.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
29 words
The antenna configuration of claim 1, wherein said processing circuit performs an analog to digital conversion on each received fieldstrength voltage signals to yield the coordinates of the transponder.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
16 words
The antenna configuration of claim 1, wherein said reference antenna is disposed surrounding said receiver antennas.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
22 words
The antenna configuration of claim 1, wherein at least one of said receiver antennas is comprised of two coils, having equal area.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
21 words
The antenna configuration of claim 1, wherein the transponder telegram is realized as an induced fieldstrength voltage at said receiver antennas.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
33 words
The antenna configuration of claim 1, wherein the induced fieldstrength voltages of each receiver antenna cancel each other out when the transponder is disposed substantially at the center of the antenna field pattern.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
29 words
The antenna configuration of claim 8, wherein the point at which the induced fieldstrength voltages cancel each other out provides a reference for determining an absolute (X,Y) coordinate location.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
26 words
The antenna configuration of claim 1, wherein said synchronous detector circuitry comprises a switch which is triggered upon a zero crossing of said reference RF signal.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
188 words
An antenna configuration for accurately determining the position of a transponder in an RF-ID system comprising: a first and a second balanced receive antenna for receiving a fieldstrength voltage and a phase measurement of a response telegram wherein said first and second receive antennas are physically rotated 90 degrees relative to one another; a third reference antenna for receiving a fieldstrength voltage RF signal and a phase measurement of said response telegram and for providing a phase measurement of said response telegram; a transmitter antenna for transmitting a charge-up signal to said transponder wherein said transponder is charged to a maximum allowable voltage; a first, a second and a third receiver for narrowband filtering said receive fieldstrength voltages of said response telegram; a synchronous detector circuitry for rectifying said filtered response signal via phase information of said response telegram provided by said reference antenna; a first, a second and a third sample and hold circuit for sampling said synchronized signals for a first portion of said response telegram; and a processing circuit for generating a position coordinate relating to a position of said transponder from said sampled signals.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
188 words
An antenna configuration for accurately determining the position of a transponder in an RF-ID system comprising: a first and a second balanced receive antenna for receiving a fieldstrength voltage and a phase measurement of a response telegram wherein said first and second receive antennas are physically rotated 90 degrees relative to one another; a third reference antenna for receiving a fieldstrength voltage RF signal and a phase measurement of said response telegram and for providing a phase measurement of said response telegram; a transmitter antenna for transmitting a charge-up signal to said transponder wherein said transponder is charged to a maximum allowable voltage; a first, a second and a third receiver for narrowband filtering said receive fieldstrength voltages of said response telegram; a synchronous detector circuitry for rectifying said filtered response signal via phase information of said response telegram provided by said reference antenna; a first, a second and a third sample and hold circuit for sampling said synchronized signals for a first portion of said response telegram; and a processing circuit for generating a position coordinate relating to a position of said transponder from said sampled signals.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
27 words
The antenna configuration system of claim 11, wherein said narrowband filtering limited said receive fieldstrength voltages to a 600 MHz band centered around some predetermined center frequency.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
24 words
The antenna configuration of claim 11, wherein said processing circuit logically "AND" said receive fieldstrength voltage signals to yield the coordinates of the transponder.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
29 words
The antenna configuration of claim 11, wherein said processing circuit performs an analog to digital conversion on each received fieldstrength voltage signals to yield the coordinates of the transponder.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
16 words
The antenna configuration of claim 11, wherein said reference antenna is disposed surrounding said receiver antennas.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
22 words
The antenna configuration of claim 11, wherein at least one of said receiver antennas is comprised of two coils, having equal area.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
21 words
The antenna configuration of claim 11, wherein the transponder telegram is realized as an induced fieldstrength voltage at said receiver antennas.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
33 words
The antenna configuration of claim 11, wherein the induced fieldstrength voltages of each receiver antenna cancel each other out when the transponder is disposed substantially at the center of the antenna field pattern.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
29 words
The antenna configuration of claim 18, wherein the point at which the induced fieldstrength voltages cancel each other out provides a reference for determining an absolute (X,Y) coordinate location.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
26 words
The antenna configuration of claim 11, wherein said synchronous detector circuitry comprises a switch which is triggered upon a zero crossing of said reference RF signal.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
GB2075301A
Cited
WO1982000378A1
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DE3135543A1
Cited
GB2133660A
Cited
EP0186483A2
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EP0257688A1
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2000-01-14 | 2000-07-15 | 2001-01-14 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2004-01-14 | 2004-07-15 | 2005-01-14 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2008-01-14 | 2008-07-15 | 2009-01-14 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |