Communications: electrical – Condition responsive indicating system – Specific condition
Patent
1993-11-16
1996-06-18
Swarthout, Brent A.
Communications: electrical
Condition responsive indicating system
Specific condition
34082554, G08B 1314
Patent
active
055282210
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an automatic identification system for objects or persons by remote interrogation. It has numerous applications, particularly in the field of detecting persons carrying badges or in the accounting and/or checking of stocked goods or goods sold in stores.
In known automatic identification systems, it is possible to recognize an object or a person carrying respectively a tag or a badge provided with a code circuit and passing under or in the vicinity of a monitoring gate. This gate then emits RF (radio frequency) pulses towards the tag or badge. These pulses are used for energizing the tag and interrogating the code stored therein. The code of the tag or badge carried by the object or person is in this way recognized. Such a device is described in EP-A-241 148.
Such systems do not make it possible to recognize in a quasi-simultaneous manner a plurality of objects or persons by the successive determination of each bit constituting the code contained in the tag or badge of said objects or persons and therefore do not make it possible to process a large number of objects.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the invention is to make it possible to detect and recognize in a quasi-simultaneous manner all the objects or persons in a group by simultaneously interrogating them and thus making it possible to process a large number of objects.
The invention consists of the emission of RF signals by a gate, said RF signals being questions to which the tags reply by a consent signal or by the absence of a signal, thus enabling the gate to determine the elements of codes contained in said group of objects. When a code has been found, the tag containing said code is inhibited in order to permit the detection of other codes.
Use will be made throughout the description and interchangeably of the terms tag, badge or answering E/R (emitter/receiver) means, as well as the terms gate or interrogating E/R (emitter/receiver) means.
In addition, throughout the description, the term "inhibit" will be understood to mean the passage into a silent or inactive mode, i.e. where a tag or answering means no longer reacts.
The invention more specifically relates to an automatic identification system for objects or persons by remote interrogation comprising:
interrogating E/R (emitter/receiver) means incorporating a device for emitting RF (radio frequency) signals having a modulator generating different wave shapes and a RF (radio frequency) signal reception device and
answering E/R means having a circuit for receiving coded information coming from the interrogating E/R means and the emission of an answer, a supply device and storage means in which is stored a digitized code linked with each object or person,
characterized in that:
said answering E/R means has at least one emitting/receiving antenna forming part of said reception and emission circuit, a checking and sequencing circuit controlling all the signals necessary for a complete code search sequence and inhibiting means connected to said checking and sequencing circuit and able to inhibit the answering E/R means, and said interrogating E/R means being able to continuously emit a high frequency signal, control by processing means the tasks necessary for the search of the digitized codes delivered by the answering E/R means and store in a memory said digitized codes.
Advantageously, the inhibiting means comprise at least two flip-flops, the first flip-flop being a temporary inhibiting flip-flop able to inhibit the answering E/R means during a search sequence. The second flip-flop is a definitive inhibiting flip-flop ensuring the inhibition of the answering E/R means when the sought digitized code has been correctly received and stored by the interrogating E/R means.
These inhibiting means remain active for as long as the answering E/R means are energized. When the power supply is interrupted, the answering E/R means are again able to respond to a new interrogation sequence.
The digitized code also has an identification
REFERENCES:
patent: 4471345 (1984-09-01), Barrett, Jr.
patent: 4862160 (1989-08-01), Ekchian et al.
patent: 4924210 (1990-05-01), Matsui et al.
patent: 5124699 (1992-06-01), Tervoert et al.
European Search Report--PCT/FR 92/00469--SA 60117--Aug. 3, 1993.
Jeuch Pierre
Le Roy Alain
Commissariat a l''Energie Atomique
Mullen Jr. Thomas J.
Swarthout Brent A.
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