U.S. patent application number 14/994014 was filed with the patent office on 2017-10-05 for transparent radio frequency identification transponder.
The applicant listed for this patent is NEOLOGY, INC.. Invention is credited to Lauri Johannes Huhtasalo.
Application Number | 20170286819 14/994014 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 56367790 |
Filed Date | 2017-10-05 |
United States Patent
Application |
20170286819 |
Kind Code |
A9 |
Huhtasalo; Lauri Johannes |
October 5, 2017 |
TRANSPARENT RADIO FREQUENCY IDENTIFICATION TRANSPONDER
Abstract
A radio frequency identification (RFID) transponder that
includes an RFID chip, a loop that is electrically connected to the
RFID chip, and a substantially transparent antenna coupled to the
loop. In various embodiments, the RFID transponder can be affixed
over a light source (e.g., vehicle headlights) while preserving the
luminance from the light source. Alternately or in addition, the
RFID transponder can be affixed to a surface (e.g., product
packaging, license plates) without obscuring any marks, designs,
motifs, and/or text on the surface.
Inventors: |
Huhtasalo; Lauri Johannes;
(Bangkok, TH) |
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Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
NEOLOGY, INC. |
Poway |
CA |
US |
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Prior
Publication: |
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Document Identifier |
Publication Date |
|
US 20160203395 A1 |
July 14, 2016 |
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Family ID: |
56367790 |
Appl. No.: |
14/994014 |
Filed: |
January 12, 2016 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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14084565 |
Nov 19, 2013 |
9558385 |
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14994014 |
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13350665 |
Jan 13, 2012 |
8587436 |
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14084565 |
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13175768 |
Jul 1, 2011 |
8237568 |
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13350665 |
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12688666 |
Jan 15, 2010 |
8004410 |
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13175768 |
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11279912 |
Apr 17, 2006 |
7671746 |
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12688666 |
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10615026 |
Jul 9, 2003 |
7081819 |
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11279912 |
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62102529 |
Jan 12, 2015 |
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60394241 |
Jul 9, 2002 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06K 19/07786 20130101;
G06K 19/0776 20130101; G06K 19/0723 20130101 |
International
Class: |
G06K 19/07 20060101
G06K019/07; G06K 19/077 20060101 G06K019/077 |
Claims
1. A radio frequency identification (RFID) transponder, comprising:
an RFID chip a loop that is electrically connected to the RFID
chip; and a substantially transparent antenna coupled to the
loop.
2. The RFID transponder of claim 1, wherein the RFID chip comprises
an ultra-high frequency (UHF) RFID chip.
3. The RFID transponder of claim 1, wherein the RFID chip comprises
a high-frequency (HF) or a near field communication (NFC) chip.
4. The RFID transponder of claim 1, wherein the RFID chip is
adapted to support a plurality of frequencies.
5. The RFID transponder of claim 1, wherein the loop comprises a
substantially transparent material.
6. The RFID transponder of claim 1, wherein the loop comprises a
substantially opaque material.
7. The RFID transponder of claim 1, wherein the antenna comprises
conductive mesh.
8. The RFID transponder of claim 7, wherein the conductive mesh
comprises coated silver mesh.
9. The RFID transponder of claim 7, wherein the conductive mesh
comprises physical vapor deposited copper.
10. The RFID transponder of claim 7, wherein the conductive mesh is
deposited using one of the following: ink jet printing, offset
printing, and lithography.
11. The RFID transponder of claim 7, wherein the conductive mesh is
deposited via chemical vapor.
12. The RFID transponder of claim 7, wherein the conductive mesh is
created subtractively from a solid film.
13. The RFID transponder of claim 7, wherein the conductive mesh
comprises transparent conductors.
14. The RFID transponder of claim 1, wherein the antenna comprises
a plurality of transparent conductors.
15. The RFID transponder of claim 14, wherein the plurality of
transparent conductors comprises at least one conductor constructed
from poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT).
16. The RFID transponder of claim 14, wherein the plurality of
transparent conductors comprises at least one conductor constructed
from indium tin oxide (ITO)
17. An on-metal RFID transponder tag comprising: the RFID
transponder of claim 1; a first layer comprising conductive mesh;
and a second layer comprising an insulator and positioned between
the RFID transponder and the first layer comprising the conductive
mesh.
18. The on-metal RFID transponder tag of claim 17, further
comprising a third layer comprising conductive mesh, wherein the
third layer is a protective layer deposited over the RFID
transponder.
19. The on-metal RFID transponder tag of claim 17, further
comprising a fourth layer comprising an adhesive.
20. The on-metal RFID transponder of claim 19, further comprising a
fifth layer comprising a liner.
Description
[0001] This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C.
.sctn.119(e) to U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/102,529, filed
on Jan. 12, 2015, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by
reference in its entirety.
BACKGROUND
[0002] 1. Technical Field
[0003] The various embodiments described herein are related to
radio frequency identification (RFID), and more particularly to a
transparent RFID transponder.
[0004] 2. Related Art
[0005] RFID technology harnesses electromagnetic fields to transfer
data wirelessly. One of the primary uses for RFID technology is the
automatic identification and tracking of objects via RFID
transponders, which may be attached or incorporated into a variety
of objects. In fact, RFID technology has applications in numerous
areas, including in for example, but not limited to, payment
processing, asset management, and transportation. For example, many
electronic toll collection (ETC) systems are implemented using RFID
technology.
[0006] Conventional RFID transponders, however, are opaque. Thus, a
conventional RFID transponder will obstruct the line-of-sight when
it is placed over an object, such as a windshield. An opaque RFID
transponder will also block light and thus may not be placed over
crucial light source, such as vehicle headlights. In addition,
opaque RFID transponders are generally unattractive and may obscure
painstakingly designed product packaging. For at least these
reasons, conventional RFID transponders may be unsuitable for a
number of applications.
SUMMARY
[0007] A transparent RFID transponder is provided.
[0008] According to various embodiments, there is provided an RFID
transponder. The RFID transponder may include an RFID chip, a loop
that is electrically connected to the RFID chip, and a
substantially transparent antenna coupled to the loop.
[0009] Other features and advantages of the present inventive
concept should be apparent from the following description which
illustrates by way of example aspects of the present inventive
concept.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] The above and other aspects and features of the present
inventive concept will be more apparent by describing example
embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, in
which:
[0011] FIG. 1 illustrates a top view of a transparent RFID
transponder according to various embodiments;
[0012] FIG. 2 illustrates a top view of a transparent RFID
transponder according to various embodiments;
[0013] FIG. 3 illustrates transparent conductive mesh according to
various embodiments; and
[0014] FIG. 4 illustrates a cross section of a transparent on-metal
RFID transponder tag according to various embodiments.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0015] While certain embodiments are described, these embodiments
are presented by way of example only, and are not intended to limit
the scope of protection. The methods and systems described herein
may be embodied in a variety of other forms. Furthermore, various
omissions, substitutions, and changes in the form of the example
methods and systems described herein may be made without departing
from the scope of protection.
[0016] FIG. 1 illustrates a top view of a transparent RFID
transponder 100 according to various embodiments. Referring to FIG.
1, the transparent RFID transponder 100 includes an antenna 110. In
various embodiments, the antenna 110 is substantially transparent.
For example, the antenna 110 can be constructed from a mesh of
conductor lines that are sufficiently fine (e.g., 5-30 microns
wide, 0.1 to 10 microns thick) and widely spaced (e.g., 100-200
micrometers apart) to render the conductor lines substantially
invisible and/or transparent. Alternately, the antenna 110 can be
constructed from a plurality of substantially transparent
conductors that include, for example, but not limited to, poly (3,
4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) and indium tin oxide (ITO).
[0017] In various embodiments, the antenna 110 is coupled to a loop
120. The RFID loop 120 is electrically connected to an RFID chip
130. In various embodiments, the RFID chip 130 may support a
certain frequency including, for example, but not limited to,
ultra-high frequency (UHF) (e.g., 915 megahertz (MHz) or 800 MHz),
high-frequency (HF), or near field communication (NFC) (e.g., 13.56
MHz).
[0018] As shown in FIG. 1, in some embodiments, the loop 120 is
deposited directly on top of the antenna 110 and overlaps with the
antenna 110. In some embodiments, the loop 120 is constructed out
of a substantially transparent material. In other embodiments, the
loop 120 is constructed out of a substantially opaque material but
is sufficiently small (e.g., approximately 20 millimeters) to not
pose a significant visual obstruction.
[0019] In various embodiments, access to the memory on the RFID
chip 130 is granted based on a security key. The provision of
secure identification solutions is described in U.S. Pat. No.
7,081,819, U.S. Pat. No. 7,671,746, U.S. Pat. No. 8,237,568, U.S.
Pat. No. 8,325,044, and U.S. Pat. No. 8,004,410, the disclosures of
which are incorporated by reference herein in their respective
entirety.
[0020] FIG. 2 illustrates a top view of a transparent RFID
transponder 200 according to various embodiments. Referring to FIG.
2, the transparent RFID transponder 200 includes an antenna 210. In
various embodiments, the antenna 210 is substantially transparent.
For example, the antenna 110 can be constructed from a mesh of
conductor lines that are sufficiently fine (e.g., 5-30 microns
wide, 0.1 to 10 microns thick) and widely spaced (e.g., 100-200
micrometers apart) to render the conductor lines substantially
invisible and/or transparent. Alternately, the antenna 210 can be
constructed from a plurality of substantially transparent
conductors that include, for example, but not limited to, PEDOT and
ITO.
[0021] In various embodiments, the antenna 210 is coupled to a loop
220. The loop 220 is electrically connected to an RFID chip 230. In
various embodiments, the RFID chip 230 is an UHF or an HF RFID
chip. Moreover, in some embodiments, access to the memory on the
RFID chip 230 is granted based on a security key. The provision of
secure identification solutions is described in U.S. Pat. No.
7,081,819, U.S. Pat. No. 7,671,746, U.S. Pat. No. 8,237,568, U.S.
Pat. No. 8,325,044, and U.S. Pat. No. 8,004,410, the disclosures of
which are incorporated by reference herein in their respective
entirety.
[0022] As shown in FIG. 2, in some embodiments, the loop 220 is
deposited adjacent to the antenna 210 and does not overlap with the
antenna 210. In some embodiments, the loop 220 is constructed out
of a substantially transparent material. In other embodiments, the
loop 220 is constructed out of a substantially opaque material but
is sufficiently small (e.g., approximately 20 millimeters) to not
pose a significant visual obstruction.
[0023] In various embodiments, the antenna 110 described with
respect to FIG. 1 and the antenna 210 described with respect to
FIG. 2 may be constructed using a variety of methods.
[0024] In various embodiments, instead of the combination of the
loop 120 and the RFID chip 130, the transparent RFID transponder
100 may include an RFID strap coupled to the antenna 110.
Similarly, the combination of the loop 220 and the RFID chip 230 in
the transparent RFID transponder 200 may be replaced with an RFID
strap coupled to the antenna 210. RFID straps are described in U.S.
Reissued Pat. Nos. 44,165 and 43,488, the disclosures of which are
incorporated by reference herein in their respective entirety.
[0025] In various embodiments, the transparent RFID transponder 100
and the transparent RFID transponder 200 may be configured to
support multiple frequencies. For example, in some embodiments, the
transparent RFID transponder 100 and/or the transparent RFID
transponder 200 may support both UHF and HF (or NFC).
Multi-frequency RFID transponders are described in Reissued U.S.
Pat. Nos. RE 43,355 and RE 44,691, the disclosures of which are
incorporated by reference herein in their respective entirety.
[0026] Some applications may require the placement of metallic
material (e.g., retro-reflective material, holographic image) over
the transparent RFID transponder 100 and/or the transparent RFID
transponder 200. In order to preserve the transmission and
reception capabilities of the transparent RFID transponder 100 and
the transparent RFID transponder 200, a selective de-metallization
process may be employed to treat the metallic material. Selective
de-metallization is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,034,688 and
7,463,154, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference
herein in their respective entirety.
[0027] FIG. 3 illustrates transparent conductive mesh 300 according
to various embodiments. Referring to FIG. 3, in some embodiments,
the transparent conductive mesh 300 can implement the antenna 110
described with respect to FIG. 1 and the antenna 210 described with
respect to FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 3, the transparent conductive
mesh 300 can be constructed from a coated silver (Ag) mesh having
high conductive and fine (e.g., 5-10 microns) Ag lines, such as the
AC2ES Ultra-Thin EMI Shielding Film manufactured by ARC
Technologies, Inc. of Amesbury, Mass.
[0028] In some embodiments, the antenna 110 described with respect
to FIG. 1 and the antenna 210 described with respect to FIG. 2 may
be constructed from a physical vapor deposited copper mesh, such as
the UniBoss.TM. Flexible Embossed Conductor Film manufactured by
UniPixel of The Woodlands, Tex.
[0029] In some embodiments, the antenna 110 described with respect
to FIG. 1 and the antenna 210 described with respect to FIG. 2 may
be constructed by printing the conductive mesh. For example, the
conductive mesh may be printed using a variety of methods that
includes, for example, but not limited to, ink jet printing, offset
printing, and lithography.
[0030] In some embodiments, the antenna 110 described with respect
to FIG. 1 and the antenna 210 described with respect to FIG. 2 may
be constructed by depositing the conductive mesh using chemical
vapor. Alternately, in some embodiments, the antenna 110 described
with respect to FIG. 1 and the antenna 210 described with respect
to FIG. 2 may be constructed by creating the conductive mesh
subtractively from a solid film.
[0031] In some embodiments, the transparent RFID transponder 100
and the transparent RFID transponder 200 can be used to preserve
the luminance from a light source. For example, the transparent
RFID transponder 100 and the transparent RFID transponder 200 can
affixed or incorporated onto the headlights of a vehicle.
[0032] In some embodiments, the transparent RFID transponder 100
and the transparent RFID transponder 200 can be used to preserve
visibility. For example, the transparent RFID transponder 100 and
the transparent RFID transponder 200 can be affixed or incorporated
onto the windshield of a vehicle. The transparent RFID transponder
100 and the transparent RFID transponder 200 can also be affixed to
a surface (e.g., product packaging, license plates) without
obscuring any marks, designs, motifs, and/or text on the
surface.
[0033] In some embodiments, the transparent RFID transponder 100
and the transparent RFID transponder 200 may be used to in one or
more account management applications. For example, the transparent
RFID transponder 100 or the transparent RFID transponder 200 may be
applied to a vehicle and used in electronic tolling, parking
access, and border control. At least some applications for the
transparent RFID transponder 100 and the transparent RFID
transponder 200 are described in U.S. patent Ser. No. 14/459,299,
the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its
entirety.
[0034] FIG. 4 illustrates a cross section of an on-metal RFID
transponder tag 400 according to various embodiments. Referring to
FIGS. 1, 2, and 4, the on-metal RFID transponder tag 400 can
include an RFID transponder 402.
[0035] In various embodiments, the RFID transponder 402 can be
implemented using the transparent RFID transponder 100 described
with respect to FIG. 1 or the transparent RFID transponder 200
described with respect to FIG. 2. As such, the RFID transponder 402
may include an RFID chip 414 and an antenna 416 that is
substantially transparent. With reference to FIG. 4, the RFID
transponder 402 can be layered on top of an insulation or spacer
layer 404.
[0036] The on-metal RFID transponder tag 400 can include one or
more additional conductive layers. As shown in FIG. 4, the on-metal
RFID transponder tag 400 can include a first transparent conductive
mesh 406, which is layered beneath the spacer layer 404. In some
embodiments, in addition to the first transparent conductive mesh
406, a second transparent conductive mesh 408 can be layered on top
of the RFID transponder 402. The second transparent conductive mesh
408 can be an optional feature to provide additional protection for
the RFID transponder 402.
[0037] The on-metal RFID transponder tag 400 can further include
backing adhesive 410 and a liner 412. In various embodiments, the
liner 412 is removed to expose the backing adhesive 410 in order to
affix the on-metal RFID transponder tag 400 to a surface (e.g.,
license plate, windshield, product packaging, light source
etc.).
[0038] The accompanying claims and their equivalents are intended
to cover such forms or modifications as would fall within the scope
and spirit of the protection. For example, the example apparatuses,
methods, and systems disclosed herein can be applied wireless
communication devices incorporating HF and/or UHF RFID reader
capabilities. The various components illustrated in the figures may
be implemented as, for example, but not limited to, software and/or
firmware on a processor, ASIC/FPGA/DSP, or dedicated hardware.
Also, the features and attributes of the specific example
embodiments disclosed above may be combined in different ways to
form additional embodiments, all of which fall within the scope of
the present disclosure.
[0039] The foregoing method descriptions and the process flow
diagrams are provided merely as illustrative examples and are not
intended to require or imply that the steps of the various
embodiments must be performed in the order presented. As will be
appreciated by one of skill in the art the order of steps in the
foregoing embodiments may be performed in any order. Words such as
"thereafter," "then," "next," etc. are not intended to limit the
order of the steps; these words are simply used to guide the reader
through the description of the methods. Further, any reference to
claim elements in the singular, for example, using the articles
"a," "an" or "the" is not to be construed as limiting the element
to the singular.
[0040] The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, circuits,
and algorithm steps described in connection with the embodiments
disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware,
computer software, or combinations of both. To clearly illustrate
this interchangeability of hardware and software, various
illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have
been described above generally in terms of their functionality.
Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software
depends upon the particular application and design constraints
imposed on the overall system. Skilled artisans may implement the
described functionality in varying ways for each particular
application, but such implementation decisions should not be
interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the present
invention.
[0041] The hardware used to implement the various illustrative
logics, logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in
connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be implemented or
performed with a general purpose processor, a digital signal
processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC),
a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic
device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware
components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the
functions described herein. A general-purpose processor may be a
microprocessor, but, in the alternative, the processor may be any
conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state
machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of
receiver devices, e.g., a combination of a DSP and a
microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more
microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such
configuration. Alternatively, some steps or methods may be
performed by circuitry that is specific to a given function.
[0042] In one or more exemplary aspects, the functions described
may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any
combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions may
be stored as one or more instructions or code on a non-transitory
computer-readable storage medium or non-transitory
processor-readable storage medium. The steps of a method or
algorithm disclosed herein may be embodied in processor-executable
instructions that may reside on a non-transitory computer-readable
or processor-readable storage medium. Non-transitory
computer-readable or processor-readable storage media may be any
storage media that may be accessed by a computer or a processor. By
way of example but not limitation, such non-transitory
computer-readable or processor-readable storage media may include
RAM, ROM, EEPROM, FLASH memory, CD-ROM or other optical disk
storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices,
or any other medium that may be used to store desired program code
in the form of instructions or data structures and that may be
accessed by a computer. Disk and disc, as used herein, includes
compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc
(DVD), floppy disk, and Blu-ray disc where disks usually reproduce
data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically with
lasers. Combinations of the above are also included within the
scope of non-transitory computer-readable and processor-readable
media. Additionally, the operations of a method or algorithm may
reside as one or any combination or set of codes and/or
instructions on a non-transitory processor-readable storage medium
and/or computer-readable storage medium, which may be incorporated
into a computer program product.
[0043] Although the present disclosure provides certain example
embodiments and applications, other embodiments that are apparent
to those of ordinary skill in the art, including embodiments which
do not provide all of the features and advantages set forth herein,
are also within the scope of this disclosure. Accordingly, the
scope of the present disclosure is intended to be defined only by
reference to the appended claims.
* * * * *