Information processing device, information processing system, information processing method, and program

Abstract

To appropriately make a determination about passage through a gate by means of an RFID tag, when making a determination by using an RSSI.SOLUTION: An information processing system 1 includes: a plurality of antennas 2; a weight calculation unit 3 configured to calculate, for each of the antennas 2, a weight value based on the number of read RFID tags and a total sum of RSSI ranges; a score calculation unit 4 configured to calculate a score based on values obtained by weighting the RSSI ranges of respective antennas 2 for a target tag with the weight values corresponding to the antenna 2 and the number of antennas 2 that receive information about the target tag; and a passage determination unit 5 configured to use a result of comparison between a prescribed threshold value and the score to determine whether the target tag has passed through the gate.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information processing system, an information processing method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Various technologies related to RFID (radio frequency identifier) ​​tags have been proposed. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technology that uses the RSSI (Received Signal Strength Indicator) of a signal from an RFID tag to determine whether the RFID tag has passed through a gate. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2022-140078 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] When using RSSI to determine whether an RFID tag has passed through a gate, there is a risk of erroneous determination if there is an RFID tag that is merely present near the gate but has not actually passed through. While such erroneous determinations can be reduced by improving the physical environment, such as by using radio wave absorbers or establishing no-entry zones, creating such an environment requires a sufficiently large area for the gate to be installed. Therefore, there is a need for a method other than the aforementioned environmental improvements to properly determine whether an RFID tag has passed through a gate. Therefore, one of the objectives of the embodiments disclosed herein is to provide a novel technology for properly determining whether an RFID tag has passed through a gate when using RSSI to determine whether an RFID tag has passed through a gate. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] The information processing system according to the first aspect comprises: a plurality of antennas provided at the gate in a distributed manner to receive signals from the RFID tags in order to read information from the RFID tags; a weight calculation unit that calculates a weight value for each of the antennas based on the number of the RFID tags read via the antenna in a specific period and the sum of the RSSI ranges of the RFID tags read via the antenna in the specific period; a score calculation unit that calculates a score based on a value obtained by weighting the RSSI range for each antenna of the RFID tag to be determined by the weight value corresponding to the antenna and the number of antennas that have received information from the RFID tag to be determined; a pass determination unit that determines whether the RFID tag to be determined has passed through the gate using a result of comparison between the score and a predetermined first threshold value; It has.

[0006] In the information processing method according to the second aspect, For each of a plurality of antennas that are distributed among the gates and receive signals from the RFID tags in order to read information from the RFID tags, a weight value for the antenna is calculated based on the number of the RFID tags read via the antenna in a specific period and the sum of the RSSI ranges of the RFID tags read via the antenna in the specific period; Calculating a score based on a value obtained by weighting the RSSI range for each antenna of the RFID tag to be determined by the weight value corresponding to the antenna and the number of antennas that have received information from the RFID tag to be determined; Whether or not the RFID tag to be judged has passed through the gate is judged using the result of comparing the score with a predetermined first threshold value.

[0007] The program according to the third aspect comprises: a weight calculation step of calculating a weight value for each of a plurality of antennas provided at the gate and receiving signals from the RFID tags in order to read information from the RFID tags, based on the number of the RFID tags read via the antenna in a specific period and the sum of the RSSI ranges of the RFID tags read via the antenna in the specific period; a score calculation step of calculating a score based on a value obtained by weighting the RSSI range for each antenna of the RFID tag to be determined by the weight value corresponding to the antenna and the number of antennas that have received information from the RFID tag to be determined; a pass-through determination step of determining whether the RFID tag to be determined has passed through the gate using a result of comparison between the score and a predetermined first threshold value; to be executed by the computer. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the above-described aspect, it is possible to provide a novel technique for appropriately determining whether an RFID tag has passed through a gate by using RSSI. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of an information processing system according to an overview of an embodiment. [Figure 2] 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of an information processing system according to an embodiment. [Figure 3] This is a schematic diagram of the gate seen from the side. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating a sensor, showing the gate as viewed from above. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a period of data used by an information processing device. [Figure 6]10 is a graph comparing an example of a typical transition in RSSI of an RFID tag that passes through a gate with an example of a typical transition in RSSI of an RFID tag that does not pass through the gate. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of the information processing device. [Figure 8] 10 is a table summarizing the RSSI data of 10 RFID tags read by a reader during a data acquisition period and the number of times the tags were read by the reader during the data acquisition period. [Figure 9] This is a table that summarizes, for each antenna, the number of tags, the sum of the RSSI ranges, and the antenna weight values ​​calculated from these. [Figure 10] This is a table summarizing the weighted range values ​​of 10 RFID tags read by a reader during a data acquisition period, their sum, the number of detected antennas, the score, and the results of comparing the score with a predetermined threshold. [Figure 11A] 1 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an operation of the information processing system according to the embodiment. [Figure 11B] 1 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an operation of the information processing system according to the embodiment. [Figure 12] 11C is a flowchart showing details of the process of step S110 in FIG. 11B. [Figure 13] 11C is a flowchart showing details of the process in step S112 of FIG. 11B. [Figure 14] 11C is a flowchart showing details of the process in step S113 of FIG. 11B. [Figure 15] 11C is a flowchart showing details of the process in step S114 of FIG. 11B. [Figure 16] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of an information processing device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] <Outline of the embodiment> Before describing the embodiments in detail, an overview of the embodiments will be described. Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of an information processing system 1 according to the outline of the embodiments. The information processing system 1 is a system that determines whether an RFID tag has passed through a gate, and as shown in Fig. 1, includes a plurality of antennas 2, a weight calculation unit 3, a score calculation unit 4, and a pass determination unit 5.

[0011] A plurality of antennas 2 are provided at different locations at the gate. Each antenna 2 receives a signal from an RFID tag in order to read the information from the RFID tag. Each antenna 2 can read the information from a plurality of RFID tags.

[0012] The weight calculation unit 3 calculates a weight value for each antenna 2. For each antenna 2, the weight calculation unit 3 calculates a weight value based on the number of RFID tags read via that antenna 2 in a specific period and the sum of the RSSI ranges of the RFID tags read via that antenna 2 in this specific period. Here, the RSSI range is the difference between the maximum and minimum RSSI values ​​of the signal from one RFID tag received by one antenna 2. In other words, the RSSI range is the difference between the maximum and minimum RSSI values ​​for the antenna 2 of interest for the RFID tag of interest.

[0013] The score calculation unit 4 calculates a score based on a value obtained by weighting the RSSI range for each antenna 2 for the RFID tag to be determined by a weight value corresponding to the antenna 2, and the number of antennas 2 that received information from the RFID tag to be determined.

[0014] The passage determination unit 5 determines whether or not the RFID tag to be determined has passed through the gate using the result of comparing the score with a predetermined first threshold value.

[0015] In this way, in the information processing system 1, whether an RFID tag has passed through the gate is determined not by simply comparing the RSSI range of the RFID tag with a threshold value, but by comparing the RSSI range weighted by a weight value according to the antenna 2 with the threshold value. As a result, even if an RFID tag that does not pass through the gate is present around the gate, whether the RFID tag has passed through the gate is determined more appropriately than when this determination method is not adopted.

[0016] <Details of implementation form> Next, details of the embodiment will be described. Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of an information processing system 10 according to the embodiment. In Fig. 2, in addition to the information processing system 10, an RFID tag 80 is also shown.

[0017] The information processing system 10 is a system that determines whether the RFID tag 80 has passed through a gate 90 by using the results of signal transmission and reception between an antenna 102 and an RFID tag 80. FIG. 3 is a schematic side view of the gate 90. In addition to the gate 90, FIG. 3 also illustrates a person 70 (RFID tag 80) passing through the gate 90. For example, the gate 90 is installed in a store that sells products 81. The products 81 are each attached with an RFID tag 80 that stores identification information, etc., and the customer 70 passes through the gate 90 with the product 81 they wish to purchase. As a result, the RFID tag 80 passes through the gate 90. In the example shown in FIG. 3, the person 70 carries a basket 82 containing one or more products 81 with RFID tags 80 attached, moves in the direction indicated by the arrow, and passes through the gate 90. The information processing system 10 then identifies which RFID tag 80 has passed through the gate 90. In such a use case, the information processing system 10 determines whether the RFID tag 80 has passed through the gate 90, thereby making it possible to identify the product 81 that the customer 70 is trying to purchase. However, the use case described above is merely an example, and the information processing system 10 may be used for other purposes. For example, the object to which the RFID tag 80 is attached is not limited to a product, and may be any item. Furthermore, the RFID tag 80 does not necessarily have to be attached to an item.

[0018] As shown in FIG. 2, the information processing system 10 includes a reading device 100, a sensor 200, and an information processing device 300.

[0019] The reading device 100 is a device for communicating with the RFID tag 80 and reading information stored in the RFID tag 80, and includes an RFID reader 101 and an antenna 102. The reading device 100 is connected to the information processing device 300 so as to be able to communicate with the RFID tag 80 via wired or wireless communication. The RFID tag 80 is, for example, a passive RFID tag. An EPC (Electronic Product Code) and a TID (Tag identifier) ​​are pre-recorded in the RFID tag 80. The EPC is a unique number assigned to the RFID tag 80, and the RFID tag 80 can be uniquely identified by the EPC. For this reason, the EPC may be referred to as tag identification information. The TID is information that can identify the type of the RFID tag 80, and may be referred to as tag type identification information. The reading device 100 reads these pieces of information stored in the RFID tag 80. The reading device 100 may also read other information stored in the RFID tag 80.

[0020] The RFID reader 101 is a control circuit that communicates with the RFID tag 80 via the antenna 102 in accordance with a predetermined communication protocol and reads information stored in the RFID tag 80. The RFID reader 101 also measures the RSSI of the signal from the RFID tag 80 that is received by the antenna 102. The RFID reader 101 outputs the information read from the RFID tag 80 and the RSSI of the signal from the RFID tag 80 to the information processing device 300. In this way, the information processing device 300 acquires the RSSI of the signal received to read the RFID tag 80.

[0021] In this embodiment, the gate 90 is configured by, for example, a first side surface 91a and a second side surface 91b, and the person 70 passes between the first side surface 91a and the second side surface 91b together with the RFID tag 80. The length of the gate 90 in the passing direction, i.e., the length of the passageway of the gate 90, is, for example, 120 cm, but is not limited to this. The distance between the first side surface 91a and the second side surface 91b, i.e., the width of the passageway, is, for example, 90 cm, but is not limited to this.

[0022] A plurality of antennas 102 are distributed at the gate 90. The antennas 102 receive signals from the RFID tags 80 in order to read information from the RFID tags 80. Specifically, the antennas 102 transmit radio waves toward the RFID tags 80 and receive the radio waves transmitted by the RFID tags 80. The transmission of radio waves from the antennas 102 is executed repeatedly. Therefore, a response may occur from the same RFID tag 80 multiple times. In other words, the antennas 102 may receive radio waves (signals) from the same RFID tag 80 multiple times. Therefore, the RFID reader 101 may execute the reading process and the RSSI measurement process for the same RFID tag 80 multiple times.

[0023] In this embodiment, specifically, the gate 90 is provided with an antenna 102_1, an antenna 102_2, an antenna 102_3, and an antenna 102_4. Note that the number of antennas 102 is merely an example and does not necessarily have to be four. Hereinafter, when referring to the antennas 102_1, 102_2, 102_3, and 102_4 without any particular distinction, they will be referred to as antennas 102.

[0024] In this embodiment, the antennas 102 are distributed and arranged at the entrance and exit of the gate 90. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, the antennas 102 are distributed and arranged on both sides of the entrance of the gate 90 and on both sides of the exit of the gate 90. The antenna 102_1 is provided on one side (specifically, the first side surface 91a) of a predetermined first point on the entrance side of the gate 90, and the antenna 102_2 is provided on the other side (specifically, the second side surface 91b) of the first point on the entrance side of the gate 90. Similarly, the antenna 102_3 is provided on one side (specifically, the first side surface 91a) of a predetermined second point on the exit side of the gate 90, and the antenna 102_4 is provided on the other side (specifically, the second side surface 91b) of the second point on the exit side of the gate 90.

[0025] Further, the gate 90 is provided with a sensor 200 that detects the passage of the person 70. In the present embodiment, specifically, a sensor 200_1 and a sensor 200_2 are provided. Hereinafter, the sensor 200_1 and the sensor 200_2 will be referred to as the sensor 200 when they are not particularly distinguished from each other.

[0026] The sensor 200_1 is a sensor that detects the time when the person 70 passes through the entrance of the gate 90. The sensor 200_2 is a sensor that detects the time when the person 70 passes through the exit of the gate 90. More specifically, the sensor 200_1 detects the time when the person 70 passes through a point in the passage of the gate 90 that is closest to the antennas 102_1 and 102_2 on the entrance side (i.e., the first point described above). The sensor 200_2 detects the time when the person 70 passes through a point in the passage of the gate 90 that is closest to the antennas 102_3 and 102_4 on the exit side (i.e., the second point described above). In FIG. 3, as an example, the sensor 200_1 is provided on the upper part of the second side surface 91b directly above the antenna 102_2, and the sensor 200_2 is provided on the upper part of the second side surface 91b directly above the antenna 102_4. However, the installation positions of the sensors 200 are not limited thereto. The sensor 200 is communicably connected to the information processing device 300 via wire or wirelessly, and transmits to the information processing device 300 information indicating the time when the person 70 passed by.

[0027] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating the sensor 200 according to this embodiment, which is a view of the gate 90 as seen from above. As shown in FIG. 4, in this embodiment, the sensor 200 is an infrared sensor that irradiates infrared rays 210 in a direction that intersects with the path of the person 70 passing through the gate 90, and detects the timing of the person 70 passing by the reflected light. Note that a dashed arrow is shown in FIG. 4, and this dashed arrow indicates a maximum RSSI acquisition period T (to be described later) that is determined based on the time point at which the person 70 passes by as detected by the sensor 200. B 1 shows an example of the movement range of a person 70 (RFID tag 80) in the area.

[0028] The sensor 200 may detect the time when the person 70 passes through a specific point by detecting the movement path of the person 70. In this case, the sensor 200 may detect the movement path of the person 70 by irradiating each partial area in the area where the gate 90 is provided with infrared light and identifying which partial area the person 70 passed through based on the reflected light of each infrared light. The sensor 200 may be any known sensor capable of identifying the time when the person 70 passes through a specific point in the gate 90, and the specific configuration is not limited to the configuration described above. For example, a camera that captures an image of the gate 90 may be used as the sensor 200.

[0029] The information processing device 300 is communicably connected to the reading device 100 and the sensor 200. The information processing device 300 is a device that determines whether the RFID tag 80 read by the reading device 100 is a tag that has passed through the gate 90 or not, based on the detection result of the sensor 200 and the RSSI measured by the reading device 100.

[0030] Because an RFID tag 80 passing through the gate 90 approaches the antenna 102 and then moves away from the antenna 102, the RFID tag 80 that passes through the gate 90 generally tends to have a relatively high RSSI and a relatively wide RSSI range. In contrast, an RFID tag 80 that does not pass through the gate 90 does not move like a passing RFID tag 80, and therefore tends to have a relatively low RSSI and a relatively narrow RSSI range. By utilizing these characteristics, it is possible to determine whether the target RFID tag 80 has passed through. However, because the RSSI of a wireless signal can fluctuate due to various factors, it may not necessarily exhibit the above-described characteristics. Therefore, simply comparing the maximum RSSI with a threshold or the RSSI range with a threshold may not be an appropriate determination, and there is a risk of erroneous determination. Therefore, in this embodiment, in order to prevent such erroneous determination, the information processing device 300 performs the determination process described below.

[0031] First, a description will be given of what period of data the information processing device 300 uses in this embodiment. In this embodiment, the information processing device 300 uses a data acquisition period T A In particular, for the maximum RSSI, the information processing device 300 uses the maximum RSSI acquisition period T B 5 is a schematic diagram showing the period of data used by the information processing device 300. As shown in FIG.

[0032] As shown in FIG. 5, in this embodiment, the data acquisition period T A is the period from a first time point, which is a predetermined time α before time point t1, to a second time point, which is a predetermined time β after time point t2. Here, time point t1 is the time point when the entrance-side sensor 200_1 detects the passage of the person 70, and time point t2 is the time point when the exit-side sensor 200_2 detects the passage of the person 70. By using data from such periods, it is possible to appropriately obtain data when the person 70 and the RFID tag 80 pass through the gate 90.

[0033] In addition, the maximum RSSI acquisition period T B is the data acquisition period T A The maximum RSSI acquisition period T is a predetermined period corresponding to the time t1 or the time t2. B is a predetermined time (2γ) period centered on time t1 or time t2. As shown in FIG. 5, the maximum RSSI acquisition period T B The maximum RSSI acquisition period T B1 and the maximum RSSI acquisition period T defined by the time point t2. B The maximum RSSI acquisition period T B2 In this embodiment, as an example, α=1 second, β=0.5 seconds, and γ=0.25 seconds (2γ=0.5 seconds), but these are merely examples and other values ​​may be used.

[0034] Data acquisition period T Aand the maximum RSSI acquisition period T B With this definition, the data acquisition period T A is a period corresponding to the period from the time when the person 70 (RFID tag 80) enters the vicinity of the entrance of the gate 90 to the time when the person 70 leaves the vicinity of the exit of the gate 90. In addition, the maximum RSSI acquisition period T B is the period corresponding to the period when the person 70 (RFID tag 80) is closest to the antenna 102 (see the dashed arrow in FIG. 4).

[0035] Fig. 6 is a graph comparing an example of a typical change in the RSSI of an RFID tag 80 that passes through gate 90 with an example of a typical change in the RSSI of an RFID tag 80 that does not pass through gate 90. Hereinafter, an RFID tag 80 that actually passes through gate 90 may be referred to as a passing tag, and an RFID tag 80 that does not actually pass through gate 90 may be referred to as a non-passing tag. Note that the graph shown in Fig. 6 focuses on the maximum RSSI among the RSSIs measured via each antenna 102 and shows its change over time. In Fig. 6, the graph shown with a solid line shows an example of the change in the RSSI of a passing tag, and the graph shown with a dashed line shows an example of the change in the RSSI of a non-passing tag.

[0036] As shown in Fig. 6, the RSSI of an RFID tag 80 that actually passes through the gate 90 tends to peak at times t1 and t2 when the tag passes the position of the antenna 102. In contrast, the RSSI of an RFID tag 80 that does not pass through the gate 90 does not tend to peak, and changes irregularly. For this reason, the maximum RSSI acquisition period T B1 or T B2By extracting the maximum RSSI from the data, it is possible to reduce the possibility that a large value will be extracted as the maximum RSSI for a non-passing RFID tag 80. As a result, as shown in FIG. 6, it is possible to reduce the possibility that a large value will be calculated as the RSSI range value for a non-passing tag. In other words, it is possible to prevent an RFID tag 80 that has not actually passed through the gate 90 from being erroneously determined to be a tag that has passed through the gate 90. In this way, in this embodiment, the RSSI range is calculated based on the maximum RSSI for a specific period (data acquisition period T A ) within the partial period (maximum RSSI acquisition period T B ) and the maximum RSSI in the specific period (data acquisition period T A ) and the minimum RSSI.

[0037] 7 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the information processing device 300. As shown in FIG. 7, the information processing device 300 includes a communication control unit 301, a reading control unit 302, a data acquisition unit 303, a weight calculation unit 304, a threshold setting unit 305, a score calculation unit 306, and a pass determination unit 307.

[0038] The communication control unit 301 communicates with other devices and transmits and receives information to and from other devices. Specifically, the communication control unit 301 acquires information stored in the RFID tag 80 from the RFID reader 101 of the reading device 100. The communication control unit 301 also acquires RSSI from the RFID reader 101 of the reading device 100. As described above, acquisition of stored information and RSSI for the same RFID tag 80 is repeated while the reading device 100 is operating. The communication control unit 301 also acquires detection results from the sensor 200.

[0039] The reading control unit 302 controls the startup and end of operation of the reading device 100. For example, the reading control unit 302 starts up the reading device 100 or ends its operation by transmitting a control signal to the reading device 100. When the reading device 100 starts up, transmission and reception of radio waves by the antenna 102 begins. Note that in this embodiment, the operation of the reading device 100 is remotely controlled from the information processing device 300, but it is not necessarily required that the operation be remotely controlled. In this case, the reading control unit 302 may be omitted from the information processing device 300.

[0040] The data acquisition unit 303 performs a process of acquiring data required for the process described below from information received from other devices by the communication control unit 301. Specifically, the data acquisition unit 303 determines a data acquisition period T A In addition, the data acquisition unit 303 acquires data for a data acquisition period T based on the time points t1 and t2 in order to identify the maximum RSSI. A From the data, the maximum RSSI acquisition period T B The data acquisition unit 303 extracts RSSI data for each of the read RFID tags 80 during the data acquisition period T A The minimum RSSI and the maximum RSSI acquisition period T B The data acquisition unit 303 calculates the RSSI range from the maximum RSSI in the data acquisition period T A The average RSSI is calculated in the above manner. Here, the average RSSI is the average value of the RSSI measured at each antenna 102. Although the processing of the data acquisition unit 303 has been described above, some or all of the above processing may be performed by any of the other components of the information processing device 300.

[0041] The weight calculation unit 304 calculates a weight value for each antenna 102. Specifically, the weight calculation unit 304 calculates a weight value for each antenna 102 when the number of tags N i and the sum of the RSSI range S i and the weight value W of the antenna 102_i is calculated based on iIn this embodiment, i=1, 2, 3, 4. Also, the number of tags N i is the data acquisition period T A is the number of RFID tags 80 read via the antenna 102_i in the i is the data acquisition period T A is the sum of the RSSI ranges of the RFID tags 80 read via the antenna 102_i in the above-mentioned time period. More specifically, the weight calculation unit 304 calculates the sum of the RSSI ranges S i the number of tags, N i By dividing by , the weight value W of the antenna 102_i is obtained. i That is, the weight value W of each antenna 102_i is calculated. i is calculated using the following formula (1):

[0042] W i =S i / N i ···(1)

[0043] In this way, the weight calculation unit 304 calculates the sum S of the RSSI ranges. i the number of tags, N i The weight value of the antenna 102_i is calculated by dividing by . The weight value is calculated every time the person 70 passes through the gate 90.

[0044] Here, a specific example of the calculation of the weight value is shown. A The RSSI data of the ten RFID tags 80 read by the reader 100 during the data acquisition period T A8 is a table summarizing the number of times each RFID tag 80 was read by the reader 100 and the number of times each RFID tag 80 was read by the reader 100. In the example shown here, five RFID tags 80 (tags No. 1 to No. 5 in the table) are tags that actually passed through the gate 90. The remaining five RFID tags 80 (tags No. 6 to No. 10 in the table) are tags that did not actually pass through the gate 90. The table shown in FIG. 8 shows the maximum RSSI and minimum RSSI of the antenna 102_i, and the RSSI range calculated from these, for each RFID tag 80. As mentioned above, the minimum RSSI in FIG. 8 is the maximum RSSI and minimum RSSI of the antenna 102_i during the data acquisition period T A The minimum RSSI value extracted from the data within the data acquisition period T A Maximum RSSI acquisition period T B 8, the RFID tag 80 for which the maximum RSSI and minimum RSSI values ​​detected via the antenna 102_i are both 0 indicates that the RFID tag 80 could not be read via the antenna 102_i. Therefore, for example, the signal from tag No. 10 could be received by the antennas 102_1 and 102_4, but not by the antennas 102_2 and 102_3.

[0045] When data such as that shown in Fig. 8 is obtained, the weight calculation unit 304 calculates a weight value for each antenna 102 as shown in the table in Fig. 9. Fig. 9 shows the weight value for each antenna 102 when the number of tags N i and the sum of the RSSI range S i and the weight value W of the antenna 102_i calculated from these. i In this example, the largest weight value is calculated for the antenna 102_3.

[0046] Next, a description will be given of the threshold setting unit 305. In the present disclosure, the RFID tag 80 that is the target of determination as to whether or not it has passed through the gate 90 will also be referred to as the target tag.

[0047] The threshold setting unit 305 sets a maximum RSSI threshold according to the type of target tag. Here, the maximum RSSI threshold is a threshold used for comparison with the maximum RSSI of the target tag. The read distance of an RFID tag 80 varies depending on the power consumption of the chip constituting the RFID tag 80 and the configuration of the antenna of the RFID tag 80. In other words, the read distance of an RFID tag 80 varies depending on the type of tag. Here, the read distance refers to the maximum distance between the RFID tag 80 and the antenna 102 that receives the response signal from the RFID tag 80, at which the RFID tag 80 can respond when a signal is output from the antenna 102 of the reader 100 to the RFID tag 80 at a predetermined transmission power. The read distance can also be referred to as the communication distance or the response distance.

[0048] The characteristics of the RFID tag 80 with respect to the read distance can be identified by the TID stored in the RFID tag 80. Therefore, in this embodiment, the threshold setting unit 305 sets the maximum RSSI threshold for the target tag based on the TID read from the target tag. The information processing device 300 stores the maximum RSSI threshold for each TID. For example, the maximum RSSI threshold for each TID is stored in a storage device such as the memory 351 (described later) of the information processing device 300. Here, the longer the read distance of the RFID tag 80 identified based on the TID, the higher the maximum RSSI threshold value stored in association with the TID. Therefore, the threshold setting unit 305 sets a higher value as the maximum RSSI threshold for an RFID tag 80 with a longer read distance. Note that the specific value of the maximum RSSI threshold for each TID is experimentally determined in advance depending on the installation environment of the gate 90.

[0049] The threshold setting unit 305 also sets the data acquisition period T A The RSSI range threshold is set according to the total number n of the RFID tags 80. Here, the RSSI range threshold is a threshold used for comparison with the RSSI range of the target tag.A The total number n of times that the RFID tag 80 is read is determined by the number of times that the RFID tag 80 is read via the antenna 102_i during the data acquisition period T A Number of times read by n i That is, in this embodiment, n=n1+n2+n3+n4. Hereinafter, the data acquisition period T A The total number of times the data was read is also simply referred to as the number of reads.

[0050] More specifically, the threshold setting unit 305 sets the data acquisition period T A When the total number n of target tags exceeds the reference value R, the threshold setting unit 305 determines to use a higher threshold as the RSSI range threshold compared to when the total number n does not exceed the reference value R. Specifically, when the total number n of target tags exceeds the reference value R, the threshold setting unit 305 determines to use the higher threshold of two different predetermined thresholds as the RSSI range threshold. Conversely, when the total number n of target tags does not exceed the reference value R, the threshold setting unit 305 determines to use the lower threshold of two different predetermined thresholds as the RSSI range threshold. These two thresholds are stored in advance in the information processing device 300. For example, the two thresholds used as the RSSI range thresholds are stored in a storage device such as a memory 351 (described later) of the information processing device 300. Note that the specific values ​​of these two thresholds are experimentally determined in advance depending on the installation environment of the gate 90.

[0051] In this embodiment, the above-mentioned reference value R is a reference value defined as shown in the following equation (2), for example.

[0052] R=n MAX / twenty two)

[0053] where n MAX is the data acquisition period T A This is the number of times that the RFID tag 80 that has been read the most out of all the RFID tags 80 that have been read in the above process has been read.

[0054] Here, a specific example of setting the threshold value for the RSSI range is shown. Data acquisition period T A is assumed to have obtained the data shown in FIG. 8. In FIG. 8, it shows how many times each RFID tag 80 has been read by the reader 100. In this case, consider the threshold value for the RSSI range used when the target tag is the RFID tag 80 numbered No. 3 in the table of FIG. 8. In the example shown in FIG. 8, the RFID tag 80 with the most read times is the tag numbered No. 1 in the table of FIG. 8, and the number of times is 180 times. Therefore, in this case, n MAX = 180. Thus, R = 180 / 2 = 90. Also, the number of times the target tag has been read is 50. Therefore, n = 50. Thus, in this case, since n < R, the threshold setting unit 305 determines to use the lower threshold value among the two different predetermined threshold values as the threshold value for the RSSI range for the RFID tag 80 numbered No. 3.

[0055] Note that in the above example, the reference value R is defined according to Equation (2), but the reference value R only needs to be a reference value for determining whether the number of times n of the target tag read is large or small, and its definition is not limited to Equation (2). For example, the reference value R may be defined using the average value of the number of times each tag read during the data acquisition period T A or a fixed value specified experimentally may be used.

[0056] Next, the score calculation unit 306 will be described. The score calculation unit 306 calculates a score for each target tag for determining whether the target tag has passed through the gate 90. In the present embodiment, the score calculation unit 306 uses the weight value W i calculated by the weight calculation unit 304 to calculate the score S w Specifically, the score calculation unit 306 weights the RSSI range for each antenna 102 of the target tag by the weight value corresponding to the antenna 102, and based on the number of antennas 102 that have received the information of the target tag, calculates the score S wMore specifically, the score calculation unit 306 first calculates the RSSI range for the antenna 102_i of the target tag and the weight value W calculated for this antenna 102_i. i The product of this and the weighted range value is calculated for all antennas 102. This calculates a weighted range value, which is a value obtained by weighting the RSSI range for each antenna 102 for the target tag by the weight value corresponding to the antenna 102. The score calculation unit 306 then calculates the score S by dividing the sum of the weighted range values ​​for each antenna 102 by the number of antennas 102 that received the information from the target tag. w That is, the score calculation unit 306 calculates the score S by normalizing the sum of the weighted range values ​​of each antenna 102 using the number of antennas 102 that received the information of the target tag. w That is, the score S is calculated using the following formula (3). w where the RSSI range for the target tag's antenna 102_i is defined as r i and the weight value for the antenna 102_i is W i and the weighted range value for the antenna 102_i of the target tag is R i Let the number of antennas 102 that receive the information of the target tag be n a Also, ΣR i is R for i i Indicates the sum of.

[0057] S w =(ΣR i ) / n a ···(3) However, R i =r i ×W i

[0058] Here, the score S w A specific example of the calculation of the data acquisition period T A 8 is obtained. As described above, the weight value for each antenna 102 is calculated by the weight calculation unit 304 as shown in the table in FIG. 9. In this case, the score S for each RFID tag 80 is wis calculated as shown in the table in FIG. 10. FIG. 10 shows the data acquisition period T A The weighted range values ​​R of the ten RFID tags 80 read by the reader 100 are i , R i The sum of ΣR i , the number n of antennas 102 a、 Score S w , and score S w 10 is a table summarizing the results of comparing the predetermined threshold value with the predetermined threshold value. In the example shown in FIG.

[0059] Next, the passage determination unit 307 will be described. The passage determination unit 307 determines whether or not the target tag has passed through the gate 90. In this embodiment, the passage determination unit 307 uses the results of the first comparison, the second comparison, the third comparison, and the fourth comparison to determine whether or not the target tag has passed through the gate 90.

[0060] Here, the first comparison is a comparison between the maximum RSSI threshold set by the threshold setting unit 305 according to the type of tag and the maximum RSSI of the target tag. Note that the maximum RSSI of the target tag here refers to the maximum RSSI among the RSSIs measured for the target tag via each antenna 102 during the period of interest. In other words, it is the maximum value among M1, M2, M3, and M4 defined as follows. Here, M i (where i=1, 2, 3, 4) is the maximum value of the RSSI for the target tag measured via the antenna 102_i during the period of interest. In this embodiment, the period of interest is specifically the maximum RSSI acquisition period T B However, the period of interest is a specific period (for example, the data acquisition period T A), or may be a period that coincides with the specific period. In this way, in this embodiment, the passage determination unit 307 determines whether or not the target tag has passed through the gate 90 by using the result of comparing the maximum RSSI of the target tag during a period of interest included in the specific period with a threshold set according to the type of tag. According to the first comparison, it is possible to determine whether or not the target tag has passed through the gate 90 by using a threshold corresponding to the read distance of the target tag. Therefore, even when various RFID tags 80 with different read distances are used, it is possible to appropriately determine whether or not the target tag has passed through the gate 90.

[0061] The second comparison is a comparison between the score calculated by score calculation unit 306 and a predetermined threshold value. Note that this predetermined threshold value is experimentally determined in advance depending on the installation environment of gate 90. As described above, in this embodiment, passage determination unit 307 determines whether or not the target tag has passed through gate 90 using the result of the comparison between the score calculated by score calculation unit 306 based on the weight value of each antenna 102 and the predetermined threshold value.

[0062] The reason why such a determination is made in this embodiment will be explained. The inventors discovered the following from the data when the RFID tag 80 passes through the gate 90. That is, the inventors discovered that the data acquisition period T AIn this study, it was discovered that there is a tendency for the RSSI range detected for non-passing tags to be less likely to be large for antennas 102 that read relatively few non-passing tags. In other words, it was discovered that for antennas 102 that read relatively few non-passing tags, such as antenna 102_3 shown in FIGS. 8 to 10, an ideal RSSI range for non-passing tags tends to be obtained. For this reason, by focusing on the RSSI range corresponding to antennas 102 that read relatively few non-passing tags and comparing the RSSI range with a threshold, it is possible to more appropriately distinguish between passing tags and non-passing tags. In other words, by applying a large weight value to the RSSI range corresponding to antennas 102 that read relatively few non-passing tags and then comparing the RSSI range with a threshold, it is possible to more appropriately distinguish between passing tags and non-passing tags. Therefore, in this embodiment, the weight calculation unit 304 calculates a weight value as shown in the above formula (1) for each antenna 102. The sum S of the RSSI ranges in formula (1) is i As mentioned above, the data acquisition period T A is the sum of the RSSI ranges of the RFID tags 80 read by the antenna 102_i in the above-mentioned case. As mentioned above, the RSSI range of passing tags tends to be relatively large, while the RSSI range of non-passing tags tends to be the opposite. Therefore, the larger the proportion of passing tags among the tags read by the antenna 102_i, the smaller the sum S i In other words, the smaller the proportion of non-passing tags among the tags read by the antenna 102_i, the larger the sum S i In the antenna 102_i where the number of non-passing tags read is small, the sum S i Therefore, the weight value W calculated in this embodiment becomes i is larger for antennas 102 that read fewer non-passing tags. As a result, in the determination using the results of the second comparison, the target tag is determined with emphasis on the detection results of the RSSI range corresponding to antennas 102 that read fewer non-passing tags, reducing the possibility of an erroneous determination.

[0063] By using the results of the second comparison, it is possible to distinguish, for example, passing tags that did not achieve the ideal RSSI range for passing tags, i.e., RFID tags 80 that actually passed through gate 90 but detected a relatively small RSSI range, from non-passing tags. It is difficult to distinguish passing tags that did not achieve the ideal RSSI range for passing tags from non-passing tags (especially non-passing tags that obtained an RSSI range different from the ideal RSSI range for non-passing tags) based on the RSSI range. In other words, it is generally difficult to set a threshold value that distinguishes between the two. In contrast, when comparing a score calculated using a weighted value with a threshold, a large weight is assigned to the detection result by an antenna that achieves the ideal RSSI range for non-passing tags, making it easy to set a threshold value that can distinguish between the two.

[0064] Here, a second comparison will be described with reference to the examples shown in Figures 8 to 10. As can be seen from the tables shown in Figures 8 and 9, the antenna 102_3 acquires the A In this data acquisition period, there are many readings of passing tags and few readings of non-passing tags. A In determining the data acquired in step 1, the weight value for antenna 102_3 is set to be the largest compared to the other antennas 102. As a result, the scores for each of RFID tags 80 No. 1 to No. 10 are calculated as shown in FIG. 10. When these scores are compared with a predetermined threshold (specifically, 45), tags No. 1 to No. 5, which are passing tags, can be properly determined as passing tags, while tags No. 6 to No. 10, which are non-passing tags, can be properly determined as non-passing tags. In particular, tag No. 3, which did not have the ideal RSSI range for a passing tag, can be properly distinguished from non-passing tags.

[0065] Next, the above-mentioned third comparison will be explained. The third comparison is a comparison between the RSSI range threshold set by the threshold setting unit 305 according to the number of times the target tag has been read and the RSSI range for the target tag in a specific period. In this embodiment, as described above, the RSSI range for the target tag in a specific period is specifically set as the RSSI range for the data acquisition period T A The minimum RSSI value and the maximum RSSI acquisition period T B The RSSI range is calculated from the maximum value of the RSSI in r1, r2, r3, and r4. The RSSI range for the target tag here refers to the maximum RSSI range among the RSSI ranges for each antenna 102 for the target tag. In other words, it is the maximum value among r1, r2, r3, and r4. i (where i=1, 2, 3, 4) is the RSSI range for the antenna 102_i of the target tag. In this manner, in this embodiment, the passage determination unit 307 determines whether the target tag has passed through the gate 90 by using the result of comparing the RSSI range for the target tag during a specific period with a threshold set according to the number of times it has been read.

[0066] The reason for such a determination in this embodiment will be explained. The inventors discovered the following from data obtained when the RFID tag 80 passes through the gate 90. That is, the inventors discovered that a passing tag tends to have a large RSSI range value when it is read many times. Therefore, by comparing the RSSI range with a threshold value according to the number of reads, it is possible to more appropriately distinguish between passing tags and non-passing tags. Specifically, the threshold setting unit 305 sets a strict threshold (a relatively large threshold value) for target tags whose read count is greater than the reference value R, and sets a lenient threshold (a relatively small threshold value) for target tags whose read count is not greater than the reference value R. By using the result of the second comparison, it is expected that an appropriate determination will be made for passing tags that have been read few times but for which a certain RSSI range has been obtained. It is also expected that an appropriate determination will be made for non-passing tags that have been read many times but for which a sufficient RSSI range has not been obtained.

[0067] In this embodiment, if the first comparison results in a comparison that the maximum RSSI of the target tag is higher than the maximum RSSI threshold, the pass determination unit 307 determines that the target tag is a pass tag. If the first comparison does not result in such a comparison, the pass determination unit 307 performs a second comparison on the target tag. If the second comparison results in a comparison that the score calculated by the score calculation unit 306 is higher than a predetermined threshold, the pass determination unit 307 determines that the target tag is a pass tag. If the second comparison does not result in such a comparison, the pass determination unit 307 performs a third comparison on the target tag. If the third comparison does not result in a comparison that the RSSI range of the target tag is higher than the RSSI range threshold, the pass determination unit 307 determines that the target tag is a non-pass tag.

[0068] If the comparison result obtained in the third comparison indicates that the RSSI range for the target tag is greater than the RSSI range threshold, the pass determination unit 307 may determine that the target tag is a pass tag. However, in this case, a target tag that is actually a non-pass tag may be mistakenly determined to be a pass tag. For this reason, in this embodiment, a fourth comparison is performed to reduce such erroneous determinations.

[0069] The fourth comparison is the number of times the target tag is read and the number of times it is read above a predetermined threshold, Th A The fourth comparison is the comparison between the average RSSI of the target tag and a predetermined threshold Th B The threshold value used in the fourth comparison is experimentally determined in advance depending on the installation environment of the gate 90. In this embodiment, when the comparison result obtained in the third comparison is that the RSSI range of the target tag is greater than the threshold value for the RSSI range, the passage determination unit 307 performs the fourth comparison on the target tag. Then, the passage determination unit 307 determines whether the number of times the target tag has been read is greater than a predetermined threshold value Th Aand the average RSSI of the target tag is greater than a predetermined threshold Th B If it is higher than , it is determined to be a passing tag, and if not, it is determined to be a non-passing tag.

[0070] Since passing tags pass near each antenna 102, they are generally read by the antennas 102 more often, and the detected RSSI tends to be larger. Therefore, by using the fourth comparison, target tags whose number of reads does not exceed the threshold or whose average RSSI does not exceed the threshold are classified as non-passing tags, making it possible to tighten the conditions for classification as passing tags. This reduces the possibility of erroneously determining that a non-passing tag is a passing tag.

[0071] In the fourth comparison, only one of the comparison of the number of times the target tag has been read or the comparison of the average RSSI may be performed. Although the fourth comparison is preferably performed to make a more accurate determination, as described above, if the target tag is not determined to be a non-passing tag in the third comparison, the target tag may be determined to be a passing tag without going through the fourth comparison. The fourth comparison may also be performed regardless of the result of the third comparison. The pass determination unit 307 may perform a determination by any combination of the first through fourth comparisons, or by performing only some of these comparisons. When a determination is made by performing only some of the first through fourth comparisons, processing related to the unused comparisons or components of the information processing system 10 that perform such processing may be omitted.

[0072] In this embodiment, the weight values ​​calculated by the weight calculation unit 304 are used to calculate the score for the second comparison, but may be used for other purposes. As described above, the greater the proportion of passing tags among the tags read by the antenna 102_i, the greater the sum S i The larger the proportion of non-passing tags among the tags read by the antenna 102_i, the larger the sum S iwill be a small value. Therefore, the weight value for an antenna 102 that reads many passing tags will be large, and the weight value for an antenna 102 that reads many non-passing tags will be small. Here, if there is an antenna 102 with a weight value that is too small, it is possible that an error has occurred in the installation of the antenna 102, or that the RFID tag 80 has been left in a location very close to the gate 90 or inside the gate 90. In other words, if the calculated weight value is too small, there is a possibility that an abnormality has occurred. Therefore, a weight value may be calculated to detect an abnormality. In this case, for example, the weight calculation unit 304 may output a notification informing the user of the occurrence of an abnormality if the calculated weight value is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value.

[0073] Next, a description will be given of the flow of operations of the information processing system 10. Figures 11A and 11B are flowcharts showing an example of operations of the information processing system 10. Below, the flow of operations will be described along the flowchart.

[0074] In step S100, the reading control unit 302 of the information processing device 300 starts the reading device 100, and reading of the RFID tag 80 is started. Specifically, radio waves are transmitted from the antenna 102, and a response signal from the RFID tag 80 is received by the antenna 102. Then, the communication control unit 301 of the information processing device 300 receives the information and RSSI stored in the RFID tag 80 from the reading device 100.

[0075] When the person 70 enters the gate 90 with the RFID tag 80, in step S101, the sensor 200_1 on the entrance side of the gate 90 detects the passage of the person 70 and transmits information indicating the time when the person 70 passed through the point on the entrance side to the information processing device 300. Then, the communication control unit 301 of the information processing device 300 receives this information.

[0076] Thereafter, in step S102, the sensor 200_2 on the exit side of the gate 90 detects the passage of the person 70, and transmits information indicating the time when the person 70 passed through a point on the exit side to the information processing device 300. Then, this information is received by the communication control unit 301 of the information processing device 300. As described above, in the present embodiment, since the information processing system 10 has the sensor 200, it is possible to easily detect the time when the person 70 passed through a specific point on the gate 90.

[0077] Next, in step S103, the data acquisition unit 303 of the information processing device 300 calculates the data acquisition period T A Get the data.

[0078] Next, in step S104, the data acquisition unit 303 determines the data acquisition period T A Maximum RSSI acquisition period T B Extract data in

[0079] Next, in steps S105 to S109, the data acquisition unit 303 acquires the data during the data acquisition period T A The RSSI range is calculated for each of the RFID tags 80 read in step S105. That is, the loop process shown as steps S105 to S109 is executed for each RFID tag 80.

[0080] First, in step S106, the data acquisition unit 303 acquires the maximum RSSI of the RFID tag 80 for which the RSSI range is to be calculated, for a maximum RSSI acquisition period T B Extracted from data. Next, in step S107, the data acquisition unit 303 calculates the minimum RSSI of the RFID tag 80 for which the RSSI range is to be calculated, for a data acquisition period T A Extracted from data. Then, in step S108, the data acquisition unit 303 calculates the RSSI range by calculating the difference between the maximum RSSI obtained in step S106 and the minimum RSSI obtained in step S107. Data acquisition period T A When the RSSI ranges have been calculated for all of the RFID tags 80 read in (that is, when the loop process from step S105 to step S109 has ended), the process proceeds to step S110.

[0081] In step S110, the weight calculation unit 304 calculates a weight value for each antenna 102. Fig. 12 is a flowchart showing details of the process of step S110. In step S110 shown in Fig. 11B, the processes of steps S200 to S202 shown in Fig. 12 are performed.

[0082] First, in step S200, the weight calculation unit 304 calculates the weight of the data acquisition period T A From the data, the number of detected tags N for each antenna 102 is calculated. i Identify. Next, in step S201, the weight calculation unit 304 calculates the sum S of the RSSI ranges of the detected RFID tags 80 for each antenna 102. i Calculate. Next, in step S202, the weight calculation unit 304 calculates the number of detected tags N i and the sum of the RSSI ranges S i Based on this, a weight value W i Calculate.

[0083] After the process of step S110, that is, after the processes of steps S200 to S202 described above, the data acquisition period T A 11B, a process of classifying all the RFID tags 80 read in order as either passing tags or non-passing tags is performed. That is, in FIG. 11B, a loop process shown as steps S111 to S118 is performed for each RFID tag 80.

[0084] First, in step S112, the pass determination unit 307 performs the first comparison described above. That is, the pass determination unit 307 determines whether the maximum RSSI of the target tag is higher than the threshold value. Fig. 13 is a flowchart showing the details of the process of step S112. In step S112, the processes of steps S300 to S302 shown in Fig. 13 are performed.

[0085] First, in step S300, the threshold setting unit 305 identifies the TID of the target tag based on the information received from the target tag. Next, in step S301, the threshold setting unit 305 sets a threshold (maximum RSSI threshold) to be used for the target tag based on the TID. Next, in step S302, the pass determination unit 307 compares the maximum RSSI of the target tag with the threshold set in step S301. If the maximum RSSI is higher than the threshold, the process proceeds to step S116; otherwise, the process proceeds to step S113.

[0086] In step S113, the pass determination unit 307 performs the second comparison described above. That is, the pass determination unit 307 determines whether the score of the target tag is greater than the threshold value. Fig. 14 is a flowchart showing the details of the processing of step S113. In step S113, the processing of steps S400 to S403 shown in Fig. 14 is performed.

[0087] First, in step S400, the score calculation unit 306 calculates the RSSI range for the antenna 102_i of the target tag and the weight value W calculated for this antenna 102_i. i A weighted range value is calculated for each antenna 102 by calculating the product of Next, in step S401, the score calculation unit 306 identifies the number of antennas 102 that have detected the target tag. Then, in step S402, the score calculation unit 306 calculates the score of the target tag by normalizing the sum of the weighted range values ​​of each antenna 102 using the number of antennas 102 that detected the target tag. Next, in step S403, the pass determination unit 307 compares the score of the target tag with a predetermined threshold. If the score is greater than the threshold, the process proceeds to step S116; otherwise, the process proceeds to step S114.

[0088] In step S114, the pass determination unit 307 performs the third comparison described above. That is, the pass determination unit 307 determines whether the RSSI range of the target tag is greater than the threshold value. Fig. 15 is a flowchart showing the details of the process of step S114. In step S114, the processes of steps S500 to S503 shown in Fig. 15 are performed.

[0089] First, in step S500, the threshold setting unit 305 sets the data acquisition period T A From the data, the data acquisition period T A Identify the number of times the target tag is read in Next, in step S501, the threshold setting unit 305 sets a threshold (RSSI range threshold) to be used for the target tag based on the number of times the target tag has been read. Specifically, when the number of times the target tag has been read exceeds a reference value, the threshold setting unit 305 sets a higher threshold to be used for the target tag compared to when the number of times the target tag has not exceeded this reference value. As described above, in this embodiment, the threshold setting unit 305 sets a threshold for the data acquisition period T A Among all the RFID tags 80 that have been read in step 1, half the number of times that the RFID tag 80 that has been read the most is calculated as the reference value. Next, in step S502, the pass determining unit 307 identifies the maximum RSSI range among the RSSI ranges for each antenna 102 for the target tag. Then, in step S503, the pass determining unit 307 compares the maximum RSSI range, which is the RSSI range identified in step S502, with the threshold value set in step S501. If the maximum RSSI range is greater than the threshold value, the process proceeds to step S115; otherwise, the process proceeds to step S117.

[0090] In step S115, the pass determination unit 307 performs the fourth comparison described above. That is, the pass determination unit 307 determines whether the number of times the target tag has been read and the average RSSI are greater than a threshold. Specifically, in step S115, the pass determination unit 307 compares the number of times the target tag has been read by the reader 100 with a predetermined threshold Th A The average RSSI of the target tag is compared with the predetermined threshold value Th B If the number of times it has been read is greater than the threshold and the average RSSI of the target tag is higher than the threshold, the process proceeds to step S116; otherwise, the process proceeds to step S117.

[0091] In steps S116 and S117, the pass determination unit 307 determines whether the target tag is a passing tag or a non-passing tag. In step S116, the pass determination unit 307 determines that the target tag is a passing tag. That is, the pass determination unit 307 determines that the target tag is a tag that has passed through gate 90. In contrast, in step S117, the pass determination unit 307 determines that the target tag is a non-passing tag. That is, the pass determination unit 307 determines that the target tag is a tag that has not passed through gate 90.

[0092] The above describes the embodiment. According to the present embodiment, even if an RFID tag 80 that does not pass through the gate 90 is present around the gate 90, the passage of the RFID tag 80 through the gate 90 is determined more appropriately than when the determination method of the present embodiment is not adopted.

[0093] The information processing device 300 described in the above embodiment may be configured as a computer. Fig. 16 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the information processing device 300. As shown in Fig. 16, the information processing device 300 includes a communication interface 350, a memory 351, and a processor 352.

[0094] The communication interface 350 is used to communicate with other devices, for example, the communication interface 350 includes an interface for communicating with the reader 100 and an interface for communicating with the sensor 200.

[0095] The memory 351 is configured by, for example, a combination of a volatile memory and a non-volatile memory. The memory 351 is used to store software (computer programs) including one or more instructions executed by the processor 352, data used for various processes of the information processing device 300, and the like.

[0096] The processor 352 reads and executes software (computer programs) from the memory 351 to perform processing of each component element shown in Fig. 7. The processor 352 may be, for example, a microprocessor, an MPU (Micro Processor Unit), or a CPU (Central Processing Unit). The processor 352 may include multiple processors.

[0097] In this way, the information processing device 300 may have the functionality of a computer. Note that other devices in the information processing system 10, such as the reading device 100, may also have a processor and memory and the functionality of a computer. As such, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the functions of the information processing system 10 can be realized in various ways using only hardware, only software, or a combination thereof, and are not limited to any of these.

[0098] The program includes instructions (or software code) that, when loaded into a computer, cause the computer to perform one or more functions described in the embodiments. The program may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium or a tangible storage medium. By way of example and not limitation, computer-readable media or tangible storage media include random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), flash memory, solid-state drive (SSD) or other memory technology, CD-ROM, digital versatile disc (DVD), Blu-ray disc or other optical disk storage, magnetic cassette, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage device. The program may also be transmitted on a transitory computer-readable medium or communication medium. By way of example and not limitation, transitory computer-readable media or communication media include electrical, optical, acoustic, or other forms of propagated signals.

[0099] The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and can be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the invention. For example, in the above embodiment, the data acquisition period T A The data within the maximum RSSI acquisition period T B Although the data was extracted by focusing only on the data for that period, the maximum RSSI value does not necessarily have to be identified from such a period.

[0100] Furthermore, some or all of the above-described embodiments can be described as, but are not limited to, the following supplementary notes.

[0101] (Appendix 1) a plurality of antennas provided at the gate in a distributed manner to receive signals from the RFID tags in order to read information from the RFID tags; a weight calculation unit that calculates a weight value for each of the antennas based on the number of the RFID tags read via the antenna in a specific period and the sum of the RSSI ranges of the RFID tags read via the antenna in the specific period; a score calculation unit that calculates a score based on a value obtained by weighting the RSSI range for each antenna of the RFID tag to be determined by the weight value corresponding to the antenna and the number of antennas that have received information from the RFID tag to be determined; a pass determination unit that determines whether the RFID tag to be determined has passed through the gate using a result of comparison between the score and a predetermined first threshold value; An information processing system having the above. (Appendix 2) a threshold setting unit that sets a second threshold in accordance with the total number of times the RFID tag to be determined has been read during the specific period; The passage determination unit determines whether the RFID tag to be determined has passed through the gate by also using a result of comparing the RSSI range of the RFID tag to be determined in the specific period with the second threshold value. 10. The information processing system of claim 1. (Appendix 3) The passage determination unit determines whether the RFID tag to be determined has passed through the gate by using at least one of a result of comparing the number of times the RFID tag to be determined has been read with a predetermined third threshold value and a result of comparing an average RSSI range of the RFID tag to be determined with a predetermined fourth threshold value. 10. The information processing system of claim 2. (Appendix 4) a threshold setting unit that sets a fifth threshold according to the type of the RFID tag to be determined; The passage determination unit determines whether the RFID tag to be determined has passed through the gate by also using a result of comparing a maximum RSSI of the RFID tag to be determined in a period of interest included in the specific period with the fifth threshold value. 4. An information processing system according to any one of claims 1 to 3. (Appendix 5) The antennas are distributed and arranged at the entrance and exit of the gate, The specific period is a period from a first time point to a second time point, the first time point being a predetermined first time point before the time point when the person passes through the entrance of the gate, and the second time point being a predetermined second time point after the time point when the person passes through the exit of the gate. 5. An information processing system according to any one of claims 1 to 4. (Appendix 6) The antennas are distributed and arranged on both sides of the entrance and on both sides of the exit. 6. The information processing system according to claim 5. (Appendix 7) A sensor is provided to detect when a person passes through the entrance or exit of the gate. 7. The information processing system according to claim 5 or 6. (Appendix 8) the RSSI range is defined by a maximum RSSI in a sub-period within the specific period and a minimum RSSI in the specific period; The partial periods are a predetermined period corresponding to a time when a person passes through the entrance of the gate and a predetermined period corresponding to a time when the person passes through the exit of the gate. 8. An information processing system according to any one of appendices 1 to 7. (Appendix 9) The period of interest is a partial period within the specific period, and is a predetermined period corresponding to a time when a person passes through the entrance of the gate and a predetermined period corresponding to a time when the person passes through the exit of the gate. 5. The information processing system of claim 4. (Appendix 10) The weight calculation unit calculates the weight value of the antenna by dividing the sum of the RSSI ranges of the RFID tags read via the antenna in the specific period by the number of the RFID tags read via the antenna in the specific period. 10. An information processing system according to any one of appendices 1 to 9. (Appendix 11) When the total number of times the RFID tag to be determined has been read in the specific period exceeds a reference value, the threshold setting unit sets a higher threshold as the second threshold compared to when the total number of times the RFID tag to be determined has not exceeded the reference value. 10. The information processing system of claim 2. (Appendix 12) The threshold setting unit sets a higher value as the fifth threshold for the RFID tag having a longer read distance. 5. The information processing system of claim 4. (Appendix 13) For each of a plurality of antennas that are distributed among the gates and receive signals from the RFID tags in order to read information from the RFID tags, a weight value for the antenna is calculated based on the number of the RFID tags read via the antenna in a specific period and the sum of the RSSI ranges of the RFID tags read via the antenna in the specific period; Calculating a score based on a value obtained by weighting the RSSI range for each antenna of the RFID tag to be determined by the weight value corresponding to the antenna and the number of antennas that have received information from the RFID tag to be determined; Whether or not the RFID tag to be determined has passed through the gate is determined using a result of comparing the score with a predetermined first threshold value. Information processing methods. (Appendix 14) a weight calculation step of calculating a weight value for each of a plurality of antennas provided at the gate and receiving signals from the RFID tags in order to read information from the RFID tags, based on the number of the RFID tags read via the antenna in a specific period and the sum of the RSSI ranges of the RFID tags read via the antenna in the specific period; a score calculation step of calculating a score based on a value obtained by weighting the RSSI range for each antenna of the RFID tag to be determined by the weight value corresponding to the antenna and the number of antennas that have received information from the RFID tag to be determined; a pass-through determination step of determining whether the RFID tag to be determined has passed through the gate using a result of comparison between the score and a predetermined first threshold value; A program that causes a computer to execute the following. [Explanation of symbols]

[0102] 1. Information Processing Systems 2 antennas 3 Weight calculation section 4 Score calculation section 5 Passage determination section 10 Information Processing Systems 70 people 80 RFID tags 81 items 82 Basket 90 Gates 91a First Aspect 91b Second Aspect 100 Reading device 101 RFID Reader 102 Antenna 200 sensors 210 Infrared 300 Information processing device 301 Communication Control Unit 302 Reading control unit 303 Data Acquisition Department 304 Weight calculation unit 305 Threshold setting unit 306 Score Calculation Unit 307 Passage determination section 350 Communication Interface 351 memory 352 processors

Claims

1. a weight calculation unit that calculates, for each antenna, a weight value for the antenna based on the number of RFID tags read via the antenna in a specific period and the sum of the RSSI ranges of the RFID tags read via the antenna in the specific period; a score calculation unit that calculates a score based on a value obtained by weighting the RSSI range for each antenna of the RFID tag to be determined by the weight value corresponding to the antenna and the number of antennas that have received information from the RFID tag to be determined; a pass determination unit that determines whether the RFID tag to be determined has passed through a gate using a result of comparing the score with a predetermined first threshold value; An information processing device having the above.

2. a threshold setting unit that sets a second threshold in accordance with the total number of times the RFID tag to be determined has been read during the specific period; The passage determination unit determines whether the RFID tag to be determined has passed through the gate by also using a result of comparing the RSSI range of the RFID tag to be determined in the specific period with the second threshold value. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

3. The passage determination unit determines whether the RFID tag to be determined has passed through the gate by using at least one of a result of comparing the number of times the RFID tag to be determined has been read with a predetermined third threshold value and a result of comparing an average RSSI of the RFID tag to be determined with a predetermined fourth threshold value. The information processing device according to claim 2 .

4. a threshold setting unit that sets a fifth threshold according to the type of the RFID tag to be determined; The passage determination unit determines whether the RFID tag to be determined has passed through the gate by also using a result of comparing the maximum RSSI of the RFID tag to be determined in a period of interest included in the specific period with the fifth threshold value. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

5. The antennas are distributed and arranged at the entrance and exit of the gate, The specific period is a period from a first time point to a second time point, the first time point being a time point that is a predetermined first time before the time point when the person passes through the entrance of the gate, and the second time point being a time point that is a predetermined second time after the time point when the person passes through the exit of the gate. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

6. the RSSI range is defined by a maximum RSSI in a sub-period within the specified period and a minimum RSSI in the specified period; The partial periods are a predetermined period corresponding to a time when a person passes through the entrance of the gate and a predetermined period corresponding to a time when the person passes through the exit of the gate. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

7. The period of interest is a partial period within the specific period, and is a predetermined period corresponding to a time when a person passes through the entrance of the gate and a predetermined period corresponding to a time when the person passes through the exit of the gate. The information processing device according to claim 4 .

8. The weight calculation unit calculates the weight value of the antenna by dividing the sum of the RSSI ranges of the RFID tags read via the antenna in the specific period by the number of the RFID tags read via the antenna in the specific period. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

9. a sensor for detecting an object; a plurality of antennas provided at the gate in a distributed manner to receive signals from the RFID tags in order to read information from the RFID tags; a reader that communicates with the RFID tag via the antenna and reads information stored in the RFID tag; Information processing device Equipped with The information processing device includes: a weight calculation unit that calculates a weight value for each of the antennas based on the number of the RFID tags read via the antenna in a specific period and the sum of the RSSI ranges of the RFID tags read via the antenna in the specific period; a score calculation unit that calculates a score based on a value obtained by weighting the RSSI range for each antenna of the RFID tag to be determined by the weight value corresponding to the antenna and the number of antennas that have received information from the RFID tag to be determined; a pass determination unit that determines whether the RFID tag to be determined has passed through the gate using a result of comparison between the score and a predetermined first threshold value; An information processing system having the above.

10. For each of a plurality of antennas, a weight value of the antenna is calculated based on the number of RFID tags read via the antenna in a specific period and the sum of the RSSI ranges of the RFID tags read via the antenna in the specific period; Calculating a score based on a value obtained by weighting the RSSI range for each antenna of the RFID tag to be determined by the weight value corresponding to the antenna and the number of antennas that have received information from the RFID tag to be determined; Whether or not the RFID tag to be determined has passed through the gate is determined using a result of comparing the score with a predetermined first threshold value. Information processing methods.

11. a weight calculation step of calculating a weight value for each of a plurality of antennas based on the number of RFID tags read via that antenna in a specific period and the sum of the RSSI ranges of the RFID tags read via that antenna in the specific period; a score calculation step of calculating a score based on a value obtained by weighting the RSSI range for each antenna of the RFID tag to be determined by the weight value corresponding to the antenna and the number of antennas that have received information from the RFID tag to be determined; a pass-through determination step of determining whether the RFID tag to be determined has passed through a gate using a result of comparison between the score and a predetermined first threshold value; A program that causes a computer to execute the following.

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