Smart low-power display for inventory management

Abstract

In some aspects, a method of wireless communication performed by an electronic label, includes receiving, from an energy harvesting tag (eTag) coupled to the electronic label, a trigger to switch a radio of the electronic label to a receive mode for receiving eTag beacon signals; receiving, via the radio, one or more beacon signals from one or more eTags, wherein the one or more eTags are affixed to one or more items within a container with which the electronic label is associated; and updating a display of the electronic label based on information conveyed in the one or more beacon signals.

Description

Qualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO1 / 43SMART LOW-POWER DISPLAY FOR INVENTORY MANAGEMENTCROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] The present Application for Patent claims the benefit of U. S. Provisional Application No.20250100246, entitled “SMART LOW-POWER DISPLAY FOR INVENTORY MANAGEMENT,” filed March 28, 2025, assigned to the assignee hereof, and expressly incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE1. Field of the Disclosure

[0002] Aspects of the disclosure relate generally to wireless technologies.2. Description of the Related Art

[0003] Electronic shelf labels (ESLs) are used by retailers for displaying product pricing or other product information to consumers. ESLs typically use electronic paper (e-paper) or liquid crystal display (LCD) to display the current information. E-paper (also referred to as e- ink) is widely used for ESLs, as it provides a sharp display and supports full graphic imaging while only needing power during updates and no power to retain an image.

[0004] ESLs are increasingly being integrated with existing retail technologies, such as electronic article surveillance, digital signage, and people counters. For example, retailers can upload a floor plan of the sales area into the ESL management software. Consumers can then be tracked (in real time) through a network of people-counting devices, or via their personal BLUETOOTH® devices, in order to determine their position within the store at all times. This allows an individual customer to receive targeted, customized marketing initiatives, such as discounts, individual pricing, etc.SUMMARY

[0005] Tire following presents a simplified summary’ relating to one or more aspects disclosed herein. Thus, the following summary should not be considered an extensive overview relating to all contemplated aspects, nor should the following summary be considered to identify key or critical elements relating to all contemplated aspects or to delineate the scope associated with any particular aspect. Accordingly, the following summary has theQC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO2 / 43sole purpose to present certain concepts relating to one or more aspects relating to the mechanisms disclosed herein in a simplified form to precede the detailed description presented below.

[0006] In an aspect, a method of wireless communication performed by an electronic label includes receiving, from an energy harvesting tag (eTag) coupled to the electronic label, a trigger to switch a radio of the electronic label to a receive mode for receiving eTag beacon signals; receiving, via the radio, one or more beacon signals from one or more eTags, wherein the one or more eTags are affixed to one or more items within a container with which the electronic label is associated; and updating a display of the electronic label based on information conveyed in the one or more beacon signals.

[0007] In an aspect, a method of wireless communication performed by an electronic label includes receiving initial state information for a set of energy harvesting tags (eTags) affixed to one or more items within a container with which the electronic label is associated; detecting removal from the container of one or more eTags of the set of eTags; and updating the initial state information fortlie set of eTags based on the removal from the container of the one or more eTags.

[0008] In an aspect, an electronic label includes one or more memories; one or more radios; and one or more processors communicatively coupled to the one or more memories and the one or more radios, the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to: receive, from an energy harvesting tag (eTag) coupled to the electronic label, a trigger to switch a radio of the one or more radios to a receive mode for receiving eTag beacon signals; receive, via the radio, one or more beacon signals from one or more eTags; and update a display of the electronic label based on information conveyed in the one or more beacon signals.

[0009] In an aspect, an electronic label includes one or more memories; and one or more processors communicatively coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to: receive initial state information for a set of energy harvesting tags (eTags) affixed to one or more items within a container with which the electronic label is associated; detect removal from the container of one or more eTags of the set of eTags; and update the initial state information for the set of eTags based on the removal from the container of the one or more eTags.QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO3 / 43

[0010] In an aspect, an electronic label includes means for receiving, from an energy harvesting tag (eTag) coupled to the electronic label, a trigger to switch a radio of the electronic label to a receive mode for receiving eTag beacon signals; means for receiving, via the radio, one or more beacon signals from one or more eTags; and means for updating a display of the electronic label based on information conveyed in the one or more beacon signals.

[0011] In an aspect, an electronic label includes means for receiving initial state information for a set of energy harvesting tags (eTags) affixed to one or more items within a container with which the electronic label is associated; means for detecting removal from the container of one or more eTags of the set of eTags; and means for updating the initial state information for the set of eTags based on the removal from the container of the one or more eTags.

[0012] In an aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium stores computer-executable instructions that, when executed by an electronic label, cause the electronic label to: receive, from an energy harvesting tag (eTag) coupled to the electronic label, a trigger to switch a radio of the electronic label to a receive mode for receiving eTag beacon signals; receive, via the radio, one or more beacon signals from one or more eTags; and update a display of the electronic label based on information conveyed in the one or more beacon signals.

[0013] In an aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium stores computer-executable instructions that, when executed by an electronic label, cause the electronic label to: receive initial state information for a set of energy harvesting tags (eTags) affixed to one or more items within a container with which the electronic label is associated; detect removal from the container of one or more eTags of the set of eTags; and update the initial state information for the set of eTags based on the removal from the container of the one or more eTags.

[0014] Other objects and advantages associated with the aspects disclosed herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art based on the accompanying drawings and detailed description.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] The accompanying drawings are presented to aid in the description of various aspects of the disclosure and are provided solely for illustration of the aspects and not limitation thereof.QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO4 / 43

[0016] FIG. 1 illustrates an example electronic shelf label (ESL) system, according to aspects of the disclosure.

[0017] FIG. 2 illustrates example components of an example ESL, according to aspects of the disclosure.

[0018] FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C are simplified block diagrams of several sample aspects of components that may be employed in a user equipment (UE), a base station, and a network entity, respectively, and configured to support communications as taught herein.

[0019] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example ESL deployment scenario, according to aspects of the disclosure.

[0020] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example positioning scenario using a weighted centroid algorithm, according to aspects of the disclosure.

[0021] FIG. 6 illustrates an example electronic tag, according to aspects of the disclosure.

[0022] FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example scenario in which an electronic label is attached to a container containing a set of energy harvesting tags (eTags) affixed to items within the container, according to aspects of the disclosure,

[0023] FIGS. 8 and 9 illustrate example methods of wireless communication, according to aspects of the disclosure.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0024] Aspects of the disclosure are provided in the following description and related drawings directed to various examples provided for illustration purposes. Alternate aspects may be devised without departing from tire scope of the disclosure. Additionally, well-known elements of the disclosure will not be described in detail or will be omitted so as not to obscure the relevant details of the disclosure.

[0025] Various aspects relate generally to electronic label devices and associated wireless radios.Some aspects more specifically relate to smart low-power display inventory management. In some examples, standalone electronic shelf labels (ESLs) utilizing energy harvesting tags (eTags) display updated container contents information for efficient inventory management. A first technique described herein conserves battery life by using an energizing signal to activate ESL radios only when eTag beacons necessitate an update. A second technique described herein independently tracks item removal from boxes based on initial information states and updates ESL displays.QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO5 / 43

[0026] Particular aspects of the subject matter described in this disclosure can be implemented to realize one or more of the following potential advantages. In some examples, by activating ESL radios only when eTag beacons necessitate an update, the described techniques can be used to reduce power consumption, increase cost-effectiveness, and provide real-time inventor}' updates,

[0027] Tire words “exemplary” and / or “example” are used herein to mean “serving as an example, instance, or illustration.” Any aspect described herein as “exemplary” and / or “example” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects. Likewise, the term “aspects of the disclosure” does not require that all aspects of the disclosure include the discussed feature, advantage or mode of operation.

[0028] Those of skill in the art will appreciate that the information and signals described below may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referenced throughout the description below may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof, depending in part on the particular application, in part on the desired design, in part on the corresponding technology, etc.

[0029] Further, many aspects are described in terms of sequences of actions to be performed by, for example, elements of a computing device. It will be recognized that various actions described herein can be performed by specific circuits (e.g., application specific integrated circuits (ASICs)), by program instructions being executed by one or more processors, or by a combination of both. Additionally, tire sequence(s) of actions described herein can be considered to be embodied entirely within any form of non- transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored therein a corresponding set of computer instructions that, upon execution, would cause or instruct an associated processor of a device to perform the functionality’ described herein. Thus, the various aspects of the disclosure may be embodied in a number of different forms, all of which have been contemplated to be within the scope of the claimed subject matter. In addition, for each of the aspects described herein, the corresponding form of any such aspects may be described herein as, for example, “logic configured to” perform the described action,

[0030] As used herein, the terms “user equipment” (UE) and “base station” are not intended to be specific or otherwise limited to any particular radio access technology (RAT), unlessQC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO6 / 43otherwise noted. In general, a UE may be any wireless communication device (e.g., a mobile phone, router, tablet computer, laptop computer, consumer asset locating device, wearable (e.g., smartwatch, glasses, augmented reality (AR) / virtual reality (VR) headset, etc.), vehicle (e.g., automobile, motorcycle, bicycle, etc.), Internet of Things (loT) device, etc.) used by a user to communicate over a wireless communications network, A UE may be mobile or may (e.g., at certain times) be stationary, and may communicate with a radio access netw ork (RAN). As used herein, the term “UE” may be referred to interchangeably as an “access terminal” or “AT,” a “client device,” a “wireless device,” a “subscriber device,” a “subscriber terminal,” a “subscriber station,” a “user terminal” or “UT,” a “mobile device,” a “mobile terminal,” a “mobile station,” or variations thereof. Generally, UEs can communicate with a core network via a RAN, and through the core network the UEs can be connected with external networks such as the Internet and with other UEs. Of course, other mechanisms of connecting to the core network and / or the Internet are also possible for the UEs, such as over wired access networks, wdreless local area network (WLAN) networks (e.g,, based on the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 specification, etc.) and so on.

[0031] Electronic label displays (or electronic display devices), such as electronic shelf labels (ESLs), are used by retailers for displaying product pricing or other product information to consumers. ESLs typically use electronic paper (e-paper) or liquid crystal display (LCD) to display the current information. E-paper (also referred to as e-ink) is widely used for ESLs, as it provides a sharp display and supports full graphic imaging while only needing power during updates and no power to retain an image, thereby significantly reducing power consumption.

[0032] ESLs are increasingly being integrated with existing retail technologies, such as electronic article surveillance, digital signage, and people counters. For example, retailers can upload a floor plan of the sales area into the ESL management software. Consumers can then be tracked (in real time) through a network of people-counting devices, or via their personal BLUETOOTH® devices, in order to determine their position within the store at all times. This allows an individual customer to receive targeted, customized marketing initiatives, such as discounts, individual pricing, etc.

[0033] FIG. 1 illustrates an example ESL system 100, according to aspects of the disclosure. An ESL system generally includes three components: label management software (e.g.,QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO7 / 43running on a central management entity 110, such as a local server at the retail location or a cloud-based server), one or more wireless communication access points 120 (e.g., Wi-Fi® access points), one or more rail controllers 130, and one or more (usually many) ESLs 140. The label management software is responsible for the configuration of tire system, configuration of the properties of the ESLs 140 themselves, and storing the database of information to be displayed by the ESLs 140. Tire software mainly covers the network management, file systems, and transmission of data. It also processes and packs the data to be displayed into packets of information. The data packets are then sent to one or more wireless communication access points 120 via a wireless network (e.g., Wi-Fi®) for distribution to the ESLs 140 via the one or more rail controllers 130.

[0034] A wireless communication access point 120 is responsible for the stability and reliability of transmissions from the label management software (on the central management entity 110) to the ESLs 140. There may be multiple wireless communication access points 120 deployed in a single retail location based on the size of the space and / or the number of ESLs 140 deployed.

[0035] A wireless communication access point 120 communicates with one or more rail controllers 130 via a short-range wireless communications protocol, such as BLUETOOTH® Low Energy (BLE). A rail controller 130 may therefore include a BLE radio (or other short-range wireless communications protocol radio). A rail controller 130 may be powered by a battery (e.g., a lithium-ion battery') or a wired connection. A rail controller 130 is coupled to, or integrated into, a rail to which multiple ESLs 140 can be “clipped” or otherwise attached. Once clipped to the rail, each ESL 140 has a wired connection to the rail controller 130 (e.g., via a three-wire bus for power, ground, and data).

[0036] An ESL 140 functions as a receiver from the wireless communication access point 120 (via the rail controller 130) to display- the information configured from the label management software. Hie ESL 140 then acts based on the instructions that were provided in the data packets from the label management software. An ESL 140 includes a display- and optionally a camera. ESLs 140 generally do not include batteries, as they are typically powered by- the rail to which they are attached. However, in some cases, an ESL 140 may be powered by a coin-cell battery', which may provide an operational life of eight to nine years. In some cases, an ESL 140 may not have a short-range wirelessQC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO8 / 43communications radio (e.g., a BLE radio), as it receives data from the wireless communication access point 120 via the wired rail connection to the rail controller 130.

[0037] An ESL application programming interface (API) is included in the current BLUETOOTH® specification and permits a 7-bit group identifier of 8-bit unique ESL identifiers, allowing for a total of 32,640 ESLs 140 to be allocated for one wireless communication access point 120. With those constraints, multiple wireless communication access points 120 may be needed to cover a typical grocery store ESL application,

[0038] FIG. 2 illustrates example components of an example ESL 140, according to aspects of the disclosure. Mote that in some cases, rather than an ESL 140 having its own wireless radio (e.g., a BLE radio) as shown in FIG. 2, multiple ESLs 140 may be attached (e.g., clipped) to a rail attached to a retail shelf. In this case, the rail (specifically a rail controller 130) contains the short-range wireless communications radio and the ESLs 140 have just the display. The rail controller 130 in the rail communicates locally to the clipped-on ESLs 140 over a wired protocol (the act of clipping on connects the ESLs 140 to the wires of the rail controller 130). As such, an ESL 140 itself may not have a radio but may connect locally to one (i.e., the rail controller 130). Mote that in either case, the radio may also be referred to as a transceiver.

[0039] FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C illustrate several example components (represented by corresponding blocks) that may be incorporated into a UE 302 (which may correspond to any of the UEs described herein), a base station 304 (which may correspond to any of the base stations or access points described herein), and a network entity' 306 (which may correspond to or embody any of the network functions described herein, such as a private network) to support the operations described herein. It will be appreciated that these components may be implemented in different types of apparatuses in different implementations (e.g., in an ASIC, in a system -on-chip (SoC), etc.). The illustrated components may also be incorporated into other apparatuses in a communication system. For example, oilier apparatuses in a system may include components similar to those described to provide similar functionality. Also, a given apparatus may contain one or more of the components. For example, an apparatus may include multiple transceiver components that enable the apparatus to operate on multiple carriers and / or communicate via different technologies.QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO9 / 43

[0040] The UE 302 and the base station 304 each include one or more wireless wide area network (WWAN) transceivers 310 and 350, respectively, providing means for communicating (e.g., means for transmitting, means for receiving, means for measuring, means for tuning, means for refraining from transmitting, etc.) via one or more wireless communication networks (not shown), such as an NR network, an LTE network, a GSM network, and / or the like. Tire WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 may each be connected to one or more antennas 316 and 356, respectively, for communicating with other network nodes, such as other UEs, access points, base stations (e.g,, eNBs, gNBs), etc., via at least one designated RAT (e.g., NR, LTE, GSM, etc.) over a wireless communication medium of interest (e.g., some set of time / frequency resources in a particular frequency spectrum). The WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 may be variously configured for transmitting and encoding signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, and so on), respectively, and, conversely, for receiving and decoding signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, and so on), respectively, in accordance with the designated RAT, Specifically, the WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 include one or more transmitters 314 and 354, respectively, for transmitting and encoding signals 318 and 358, respectively, and one or more receivers 312 and 352, respectively, for receiving and decoding signals 318 and 358, respectively.

[0041] Tire UE 302 and the base station 304 each also include, at least in some cases, one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360, respectively. The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 may be connected to one or more antennas 326 and 366, respectively, and provide means for communicating (e.g., means for transmitting, means for receiving, means for measuring, means fortuning, means for refraining from transmitting, etc.) with other network nodes, such as other UEs, access points, base stations, etc., via at least one designated RAT (e.g., Wi-Fi®, LTE Direct, BLUETOOTH®, ZIGBEE®, Z-WAVE®, PC5, dedicated short-range communications (DSRC), wireless access for vehicular environments (WAVE), near-field communication (NFC), ultra-wideband (UWB), etc.) over a wireless communication medium of interest. The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 may be variously configured for transmitting and encoding signals 328 and 368 (e.g,, messages, indications, information, and so on), respectively, and, conversely, for receiving and decoding signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, and so on), respectively, in accordanceQC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO10 / 43with the designated RAT. Specifically, the short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 include one or more transmitters 324 and 364, respectively, for transmitting and encoding signals 328 and 368, respectively, and one or more receivers 322 and 362, respectively, for receiving and decoding signals 328 and 368, respectively. As specific examples, the short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 may be Wi-Fi® transceivers, BLUETOOTH® transceivers, ZIGBEE® and / or Z-WAVE® transceivers, NFC transceivers, UWB transceivers, or vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and / or vehicle-to- everything (V2X) transceivers.

[0042] The UE 302 and the base station 304 also include, at least in some cases, satellite signal interfaces 330 and 370, which each include one or more satellite signal receivers 332 and 372, respectively, and may optionally include one or more satellite signal transmitters 334 and 374, respectively. In some cases, the base station 304 may be a terrestrial base station that may communicate with space vehicles (e.g., space vehicles 112) via the satellite signal interface 370. In oilier cases, the base station 304 may be a space vehicle (or other non-terrestrial entity) that uses the satellite signal interface 370 to communicate with terrestrial networks and / or other space vehicles.

[0043] The satellite signal receivers 332 and 372 may be connected to one or more antennas 336 and 376, respectively, and may provide means for receiving and / or measuring satellite positioning / commumcation signals 338 and 378, respectively. Where the satellite signal receiver(s) 332 and 372 are satellite positioning system receivers, the satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378 may be global positioning system (GPS) signals, global navigation satellite system (GLONASS) signals, Galileo signals, Beidou signals, Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (NAVIC), Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS) signals, etc. Where the satellite signal receiver(s) 332 and 372 are nonterrestrial network (NTN) receivers, the satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378 may be communication signals (e.g., carrying control and / or user data) originating from a 5G network. The satellite signal receiver(s) 332 and 372 may comprise any suitable hardware and / or software for receiving and processing satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378, respectively, lire satellite signal receiver(s) 332 and 372 may request information and operations as appropriate from the other systems, and, at least in some cases, perform calculations to determine locations ofQC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO11 / 43the UE 302 and the base station 304, respectively, using measurements obtained by any suitable satellite positioning system algorithm.[0044J The optional satellite signal transmitter(s) 334 and 374, when present, may be connected to the one or more antennas 336 and 376, respectively, and may provide means for transmitting satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378, respectively. Where the satellite signal transmitters) 374 are satellite positioning system transmitters, the satellite positioning / communication signals 378 may be GPS signals, GLONASS® signals, Galileo signals, Beidou signals, NAVIC, QZSS signals, etc. Where the satellite signal transmitter(s) 334 and 374 are NTN transmitters, the satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378 may be communication signals (e.g., carrying control and / or user data) originating from a 5G network. The satellite signal transmitter(s) 334 and 374 may comprise any suitable hardware and / or software for transmiting satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378, respectively. The satellite signal transmiter(s) 334 and 374 may request information and operations as appropriate from the other systems.

[0045] The base station 304 and the network entity 306 each include one or more network transceivers 380 and 390, respectively, providing means for communicating (e.g., means for transmitting, means for receiving, etc.) with other network entities (e.g., other base stations 304, other network entities 306). For example, the base station 304 may employ the one or more network transceivers 380 to communicate with other base stations 304 or network entities 306 over one or more wired or wireless backhaul links. As another example, the network entity 306 may employ the one or more network transceivers 390 to communicate with one or more base station 304 over one or more wired or wireless backhaul links, or with other network entities 306 over one or more wired or wireless core network interfaces.

[0046] A transceiver may be configured to communicate over a wired or wireless link. A transceiver (whether a wired transceiver or a wireless transceiver) includes transmitter circuitry (e.g., transmitters 314, 324, 354, 364) and receiver circuitry (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352, 362). A transceiver may be an integrated device (e.g., embodying transmitter circuitry’ and receiver circuitry in a single device) in some implementations, may' comprise separate transmitter circuitry and separate receiver circuitry in some implementations, or may be embodied in other ways in other implementations. The transmitter circuitry andQC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO12 / 43receiver circuitry’ of a wired transceiver (e.g., network transceivers 380 and 390 in some implementations) may be coupled to one or more wired network interface ports. Wireless transmitter circuitry (e.g., transmitters 314, 324, 354, 364) may include or be coupled to a plurality of antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as an antenna array, that permits the respective apparatus (e.g,, UE 302, base station 304) to perform transmit “beamforming,” as described herein. Similarly, wireless receiver circuitry (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352, 362) may include or be coupled to a plurality of antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as an antenna array, that permits the respective apparatus (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform receive beamforming, as described herein. In an aspect, the transmitter circuitry and receiver circuitry may share the same plurality of antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such that the respective apparatus can only receive or transmit at a given time, not both at the same time. A wireless transceiver (e.g,, WWAN transceivers 310 and 350, short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360) may also include a network listen module (NLM) or the like for performing various measurements.

[0047] As used herein, the various wireless transceivers (e.g., transceivers 310, 320, 350, and 360, and network transceivers 380 and 390 in some implementations) and wired transceivers (e.g., network transceivers 380 and 390 in some implementations) may generally be characterized as “a transceiver,” “at least one transceiver,” or “one or more transceivers.” As such, whether a particular transceiver is a wired or wireless transceiver may be inferred from the type of communication performed. For example, backhaul communication between network devices or servers will generally relate to signaling via a wired transceiver, whereas wireless communication between a UE (e.g., UE 302) and a base station (e.g., base station 304) will generally relate to signaling via a wireless transceiver.

[0048] Tire UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 also include other components that may be used in conjunction with the operations as disclosed herein. The UE 302, the base station 304, and the netw ork entity 306 include one or more processors 342, 384, and 394, respectively, for providing functionality relating to, for example, wireless communication, and for providing other processing functionality. The processors 342, 384, and 394 may therefore provide means for processing, such as means for determining, means for calculating, means for receiving, means for transmitting,QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO13 / 43means for indicating, etc. In an aspect, the processors 342, 384, and 394 may include, for example, one or more general purpose processors, multi-core processors, central processing units (CPUs), ASICs, digital signal processors (DSPs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), other programmable logic devices or processing circuitry, or various combinations thereof.

[0049] Tire UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 include memory circuitry implementing memories 340, 386, and 396 (e.g., each including a memory device), respectively, for maintaining information (e.g., information indicative of reserved resources, thresholds, parameters, and so on). The memories 340, 386, and 396 may therefore provide means for storing, means for retrieving, means for maintaining, etc. In some cases, the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 may include positioning components 348, 388, and 398, respectively. The positioning components 348, 388, and 398 may be hardware circuits that are part of or coupled to tire processors 342, 384, and 394, respectively, and are configured to cause the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 to perform the functionality described herein. In other aspects, the positioning components 348, 388, and 398 may be external to the processors 342, 384, and 394 (e.g., part of a modem processing system, integrated with another processing system, etc.). Alternatively, the positioning component 348, 388, and 398 may be memory modules stored in the memories 340, 386, and 396, respectively, that, when executed by the processors 342, 384, and 394 (or a modem processing system, another processing system, etc.), cause the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 to perform the functionality described herein. FIG. 3A illustrates possible locations of the positioning component 348, which may be, for example, part of the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the memory' 340, the one or more processors 342, or any combination thereof, or may be a standalone component. FIG. 3B illustrates possible locations of the positioning component 388, which may be, for example, part of the one or more WWAN transceivers 350, the memory' 386, the one or more processors 384, or any combination thereof, or may be a standalone component. FIG. 3C illustrates possible locations of the positioning component 398, which may be, for example, part of the one or more network transceivers 390, the memory 396, the one or more processors 394, or any combination thereof, or may be a standalone component.QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO14 / 43

[0050] The UE 302 may include one or more sensors 344 coupled to the one or more processors 342 to provide means for sensing or detecting movement and / or orientation information that is independent of motion data derived from signals received by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320, and / or the satellite signal interface 330. By way of example, the sensor(s) 344 may include an accelerometer (e.g., a micro-electrical mechanical systems (MEMS) device), a gyroscope, a geomagnetic sensor (e.g., a compass), an altimeter (e.g., a barometric pressure altimeter), and / or any other type of movement detection sensor. Moreover, the sensor(s) 344 may include a plurality of different types of devices and combine their outputs in order to provide motion information. For example, the sensor(s) 344 may use a combination of a multi-axis accelerometer and orientation sensors to provide the ability to compute positions in two-dimensional (2D) and / or three-dimensional (3D) coordinate systems.

[0051] in addition, the UE 302 includes a user interface 346 providing means for providing indications (e.g., audible and / or visual indications) to a user and / or for receiving user input (e.g., upon user actuation of a sensing device such a keypad, a touch screen, a microphone, and so on). Although not shown, the base station 304 and the network entity 306 may also include user interfaces.

[0052] Referring to the one or more processors 384 in more detail, in the downlink, IP packets from the network entity 306 may be provided to the processor 384. The one or more processors 384 may implement functionality for an RRC layer, a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, and a medium access control (MAC) layer. The one or more processors 384 may provide RRC layer functionality associated with broadcasting of system information (e.g., master information block (MIB), system information blocks (SIBs)), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), inter-RAT mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression, security (ciphering, deciphering, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; RLC layer functionality associated with the transfer of upper layer protocol date units (PDUs), error correction through automatic repeat request (ARQ), concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly ofQC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO15 / 43RLC service data units (SDUs), re -segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, scheduling information reporting, error correction, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0053] Tire transmitter 354 and the receiver 352 may implement Layer-1 (LI) functionality associated with various signal processing functions. Layer-1, which includes a physical (PHY) layer, may include error detection on the transport channels, forward error correction (FEC) coding / decoding of the transport channels, interleaving, rate matching, mapping onto physical channels, modulation / demodulation of physical channels, and MIMO antenna processing. The transmitter 354 handles mapping to signal constellations based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase-shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase-shift keying (QPSK), M-phase-shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The coded and modulated symbols may then be split into parallel streams. Each stream may then be mapped to an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) subcarrier, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., pilot) in the time and / or frequency domain, and then combined together using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to produce a physical channel carrying a time domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM symbol stream is spatially precoded to produce multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from a channel estimator may be used to determine the coding and modulation scheme, as well as for spatial processing. Tire channel estimate may be derived from a reference signal and / or channel condition feedback transmitted by the UE 302. Each spatial stream may then be provided to one or more different antennas 356. The transmitter 354 may modulate an RF earner with a respective spatial stream for transmission.

[0054] At the UE 302, the receiver 312 receives a signal through its respective antenna(s) 316.Tire receiver 312 recovers information modulated onto an RF carrier and provides the information to the one or more processors 342. The transmitter 314 and the receiver 312 implement Layer- 1 functionality associated with various signal processing functions. The receiver 312 may perform spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial streams destined for the UE 302. If multiple spatial streams are destined for the UE 302, they may be combined by the receiver 312 into a single OFDM symbol stream. The receiver 312 then converts the OFDM symbol stream from the time-domain to theQC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO16 / 43frequency domain using a fast Fourier transform (FFT), The frequency domain signal comprises a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols on each subcarrier, and the reference signal, are recovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signal constellation points transmitted by the base station 304. These soft decisions may be based on channel estimates computed by a channel estimator. Tire soft decisions are then decoded and de-interleaved to recover the data and control signals that were originally transmitted by the base station 304 on the physical channel. The data and control signals are then provided to the one or more processors 342, which implements Layer-3 (L3) and Layer-2 (L2) functionality.

[0055] In the downlink, the one or more processors 342 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, deciphering, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the core network. Tire one or more processors 342 are also responsible for error detection.

[0056] Similar to the functionality described in connection with the downlink transmission by the base station 304, the one or more processors 342 provides RRC layer functionality associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIBs) acquisition, RRC connections, and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression, and security (ciphering, deciphering, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functionality associated wdth the transfer of upper layer PDUs, error correction through ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC SDUs, re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality’ associated with mapping betw een logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto transport blocks (TBs), demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ), priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0057] Channel estimates derived by the channel estimator from a reference signal or feedback transmitted by the base station 304 may be used by the transmitter 314 to select the appropriate coding and modulation schemes, and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by the transmitter 314 may be provided to different antenna(s) 316. Tire transmitter 314 may modulate an RF earner with a respective spatial stream for transmission.QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO17 / 43

[0058] The uplink transmission is processed at the base station 304 in a manner similar to that described in connection with the receiver function at the UE 302. The receiver 352 receives a signal through its respective antenna(s) 356. The receiver 352 recovers information modulated onto an RF carrier and provides tire information to the one or more processors 384.

[0059] In the uplink, the one or more processors 384 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, deciphering, header decompression, control signal processing to recover IP packets from the UE 302, IP packets from the one or more processors 384 may be provided to the core network. Tire one or more processors 384 are also responsible for error detection.

[0060] For convenience, the UE 302, tire base station 304, and / or the network entity 306 are shown in FIGS. 3 A, 3B, and 3C as including various components that may be configured according to the various examples described herein. It will be appreciated, however, that the illustrated components may have different functionality in different designs. In particular, various components in FIGS. 3A to 3C are optional in alternative configurations and the various aspects include configurations that may vary' due to design choice, costs, use of the device, or other considerations. For example, in case of FIG. 3A, a particular implementation of UE 302 may omit the WAN transceiver(s) 310 (e.g., a wearable device or tablet computer or personal computer (PC) or laptop may have WiFi® and / or BLUETOOTH® capability without cellular capability), or may omit the short- range wireless transceiver(s) 320 (e.g., cellular-only, etc.), or may omit the satellite signal interface 330, or may omit the sensor(s) 344, and so on. In another example, in case of FIG. 3B, a particular implementation of the base station 304 may omit the WWAN transceiver(s) 350 (e.g., a Wi-Fi® “hotspot” access point without cellular capability), or may omit the short-range wireless transceiver(s) 360 (e.g., cellular-only, etc.), or may omit the satellite signal interface 370, and so on. For brevity, illustration of the various alternative configurations is not provided herein, but would be readily understandable to one skilled in the art.

[0061] The various components of the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 may be communicatively coupled to each other over data buses 308, 382, and 392, respectively. In an aspect, the data buses 308, 382, and 392 may form, or be part of, a communication interface of the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306,QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO18 / 43respectively. For example, where different logical entities are embodied in the same device (e.g., gNB and location server functionality incorporated into the same base station 304), the data buses 308, 382, and 392 may provide communication between them.

[0062] The components of FIGS. 3 A, 3B, and 3C may be implemented in various ways. In some implementations, the components of FIGS, 3A, 3B, and 3C may be implemented in one or more circuits such as, for example, one or more processors and / or one or more ASICs (which may include one or more processors). Here, each circuit may use and / or incorporate at least one memory component for storing information or executable code used by the circuit to provide this functionality. For example, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 310 to 346 may be implemented by processor and memory component(s) of the UE 302 (e.g., by execution of appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of processor components). Similarly, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 350 to 388 may be implemented by processor and memory component(s) of the base station 304 (e.g., by execution of appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of processor components). Also, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 390 to 398 may be implemented by processor and memory component(s) of the network entity 306 (e.g., by execution of appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of processor components). For simplicity, various operations, acts, and / or functions are described herein as being performed “by a UE,” “by a base station,” “by a network entity,” etc. However, as will be appreciated, such operations, acts, and / or functions may actually be performed by specific components or combinations of components of the UE 302, base station 304, network entity 306, etc., such as the processors 342, 384, 394, the transceivers 310, 320, 350, and 360, the memories 340, 386, and 396, the positioning component 348, 388, and 398, etc.

[0063] In some designs, the network entity 306 may be implemented as a core network component. In other designs, the network entity 306 may be distinct from a network operator or operation of the cellular network infrastructure. For example, the network entity 306 may be a component of a private network that may be configured to communicate w ith the UE 302 via the base station 304 or independently from the base station 304 (e.g., over a non-cellular communication link, such as Wi-Fi®).

[0064] FIG. 4 is a diagram 400 illustrating an example ESL deployment scenario, according to aspects of the disclosure. Specifically, FIG. 4 illustrates a top view of a scenario whereQC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO19 / 43ESLs (e.g., ESLs 140) are deployed on both sides of two aisles of shelves in a retail establishment, warehouse, or the like. In the example of FIG. 4, groups of three ESLs are connected to a rail controller (e.g., a rail controller 130 utilizing, for example, a BEE radio) and the rail controllers are spaced Im to 2m apart. However, as will be appreciated, this is merely an example configuration and there may be more or fewer ESLs per rail controller spaced closer or further apart.

[0065] in some cases, the ESLs may not be equipped with short-range wireless communications radios (e.g., BLE radios), and instead, the rail controller may include the short-range wireless communications radio for the three ESLs connected to it. In either case, the radio associated with an ESL (whether a component of the ESL or the rail controller to which the ESL is connected) may be referred to as an “ESL radio.” Note that, as an ESL may include a radio (see, e.g., FIG. 2), the term “ESL” may also refer to the ESL radio. Where the radio is explicitly not included in the ESL, the ESL may be referred to as an “ESL display.” Further note, however, that ESLs and ESL radios are merely examples, and the disclosure is applicable to other types of wireless radios associated with other types of electronic label devices. Such radios may be referred to as “wireless electronic label device radios,” “electronic label device radios,” ‘wireless electronic label radios,” “electronic label radios,” and / or the like.

[0066] Indoor positioning based on BLE beaconing from ESLs is being developed for retail and warehouse applications. In general, the location of a target device (e.g., an energy harvesting tag (eTag)) is determined based on signal strength measurements (e.g., received signal strength indicator (RSSI)) of beacon signals transmitted by multiple ESLs. Trilateration using RSSI has been observed to be highly unreliable, as the RSSI is very susceptible to attenuation, which in turn leads to poor range estimation accuracy. Instead, the weighted centroid algorithm is considered to be much more robust to attenuation and non-line-of-sight (NLOS) effects,

[0067] FIG. 5 is a diagram 500 illustrating an example positioning scenario using a weighted centroid algorithm, according to aspects of the disclosure. In the example of FIG. 5, measurements of tire beacon signals transmitted by three ESL radios (labeled “ESL1,” “ESL2,” and “ESL3”) are used to determine a location of atarget device (labeled “eTag”). For a given target device beacon transmission, let ty > r2> rMdenote the RSSI values of the beacon as measured by M ESI. radios (in descending order). The targetQC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO20 / 43device position estimate is then given by the weighted average of the ESL radio positions, where the weights are a function of the RSSI values:6 — ^=1.wk •2X1 w

[0068] In the above equations, N < M is the maximum number of ESL radios that are used in the computation, and wkis an exponential function (based on a value A) of the RSSI values. N and A are empirical terms that may be preset to some desired value. The weights may be proportional to the RSSIs. That is, the weight assigned to the kthESL radio is proportional to the signal strength measured by that ESL radio, meaning an ESL radio associated with a higher RSSI may be assigned a larger weight. In the example of FIG. 5, w3> wt> w2.

[0069] Low-cost battery-less energy harvesting “tags” (referred to as “eTags’1or ambient Intemet-of-Things (A-IoT) tags or simply electronic tags) are being developed that can be affixed to various types of assets for various purposes, such as positioning, tracking, verification / validation, product information storage, etc. FIG. 6 illustrates an example eTag 600, according to aspects of the disclosure. The example eTag 600 is a flexible printed circuit (FPC) having a size of, for example, 43mm by 45mm by 0,2mm, In some cases, the eTag 600 may be encapsulated in a paper or plastic label with an adhesive backing that can be attached to an asset.

[0070] eTags do not include batteries, but rather, are energized by (harvest energy from) received wireless signals, similar to a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag. As such, the eTag 600 includes an energy harvesting antenna 610, which may operate in the 900 MHz range. An eTag, such as eTag 600, may be able to harvest energy from a transmitter as far away as 20m (in contrast, an RFID tag needs to be within a few meters of the transmitter to be able to perform energy harvesting).

[0071] The energy captured by the energy harvesting antenna 610 is stored in an external capacitor 620, which in turn powers a test chip 630 and a transmit antenna 640. When powered by the external capacitor 620, the test chip 630 provides information for transmission to the transmit antenna 640. The transmit antenna 640 may operate in the 2.4 GHz range according to one or more communication protocols (e.g., BLE, Wi-Fi®, NR). For example, the test chip 630 and transmit antenna 640 may act as a BLE beacon and support BLE advertisement transmission. Note that in some cases, the transmitQC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO21 / 43antenna 640 may also act as an energy harvesting antenna. In some cases, where the energy harvesting antenna 610 and the transmit antenna 640 are the same antenna, the combination of the energy harvesting antenna 610 and the transmit antenna 640 may be referred to as a transceiver.

[0072] In some cases, the eTag 600 may include one or more sensors 650, Such sensors may include temperature sensors, pressure sensors, and / or other low' energy sensors.

[0073] in some cases, to position an eTag 600 using the positioning method illustrated by FIG.5, the eTag 600 may be energized to transmit one or more BLE beacon transmissions to nearby ESL radios (e.g., ESL1, ESL2, and ESL3). The ESL radios may report their RSSI measurements to the central management entity 110, which may calculate the position of the eTag 600 or forward the measurements to another entity for processing.

[0074] In some cases, eTags may be utilized in an ESE deployment scenario, such as illustrated in FIG. 4. For example, eTags may be attached to the boxes, pallets, or other containers holding individual products, or may be attached to the individual products themselves. In such a scenario, an eTag subsystem coexists with the ESL subsystem (e.g., the central management entity 110, the wireless communication access point 120, the rail controllers 130, and the ESLs 140). The eTag subsystem includes the eTags, multiple energizer devices deployed within the environment to power the eTags, and a gateway or edge server connected to the energizer devices.

[0075] Tire gateway or edge server may be shared with the ESL subsystem (e.g., it may be a central management entity 110) and may perform j oint management of the ESL and eTag subsystems. For example, the gateway or edge server may pair energizer devices to access points (e.g., wireless communication access points 120) for timing synchronization across the subsystems.

[0076] Hie energizer devices may operate in, for example, the 900 MHz and / or 2.4 GHz range(s), depending on the energy harvesting and beacon transmission configuration of the eTags. In some cases, therefore, tire energizer devices may be dual mode, meaning they can operate as RFID readers to energize tire eTags and BLE devices to receive / measure the BLE beacons transmitted by the eTags. (Note, however, that as described above, the energizer devices may be located further from the eTags than they would need to be from any RFID tags.) The energizer devices may also coordinate timing synchronization between tire ESL radios and the eTags. Note that in a joint ESL and eTag deployment,QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO22 / 43the ESL radios do not energize the eTags; they only receive / measure the beacon transmissions from the eTags.

[0077] Standalone (battery-powered) ESLs can be placed on / attached to boxes, crates, pallets, or other types of containers to provide up-to-date information on their contents, destination, handling instructions, and / or the like, eTags attached to items within such a container can transmit beacon signals (after being energized) and thereby indicate the presence, or absence, of those items, as well as other information about the items (e.g., metadata, sensor data (e.g., temperature, vibration), etc,). Based on this information, the display of the ESL may be periodically updated to display information about the contents of the container.

[0078] Using ESLs and eTags as described above can be useful in a number of scenarios, including inventory management, medical supply monitoring, and kitchen storage. For example, for inventory management in warehouses and / or retail stores, a small screen (the ESL) on storage containers can help workers quickly see the quantity and type of items without opening the container, thereby improving efficiency and accuracy. In medical supply monitoring scenarios in hospitals or clinics, having a screen (the ESL) on medical supply boxes can help staff quickly check the stock levels of essential items such as syringes, gloves, or medications, ensuring timely restocking. For kitchen storage in commercial kitchens, a screen (the ESL) on ingredient containers can show the quantity’ of items, such as spices, grains, or other bulk ingredients, helping chefs manage their inventory and plan meals more efficiently.

[0079] The present disclosure provides techniques for updating the electronic label / display (e.g., ESL) attached to, or otherwise associated with, a container of items, where the items within the container are affixed with eTags. FIG. 7 is a diagram 700 illustrating an example scenario in which an electronic label (labeled “ESL"’) is attached to a container containing a set of eTags affixed to items within the container, according to aspects of the disclosure. As shown in FIG. 7, in addition to the set of eTags affixed to the items within the container, an eTag may also be embedded within, or otherwise communicatively coupled to, tire electronic label (ESL). Note that while FIG. 7 illustrates four eTags within the container, there may be more or fewer than four. In addition, there may be one eTag affixed to each item in the container, or one eTag per some set of items.QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO23 / 43

[0080] To update the electronic label with current information about the items within the container, a user may cause a smartphone, an industrial handheld device, or some other energizing device to transmit an energizing signal towards the container. Alternatively, a dedicated / fixed energizing device may be deployed in the vicinity of the container and may be activated periodically or by a user on command,

[0081] Tire eTag embedded in the electronic display may receive / harvest the energizing signal, and in turn, trigger the radio (e.g., a BLE radio, as shown in FIG. 2) of the electronic label to switch to a receive mode (e.g,, transition out of sleep mode) to receive eTag beacon signals. Allowing the radio of the electronic label to remain in a sleep mode until triggered by the eTag helps to conserve power and extend battery life, since the battery- powered radio would only wake up when a beacon from one or more of the eTags in the container is impending (due to the energizing transmission).

[0082] In some cases, the electronic label radio may still wake up at less regular intervals (e.g., to meet a target duty cycle of operation), but it may choose to wake up only after an energizing signal is detected. In some cases, the electronic label radio may wake up only when a specific power-level and / or type of energizing signal is detected (such as a known sequence of bits in the control information associated with the energizing devices being used by store / warehouse / staff members). This prevents the radio of the electronic device from waking up in the presence of unwanted energizing signals (e.g., background waveforms from cellular and / or other technologies).

[0083] In some cases, the triggering parameters (controlling how / when the electronic label- attached eTag wakes up the electronic label’s radio) may be configured or reconfigured by the electronic label. For example, based on what (i.e., which eTags) the electronic label radio detects inside the container, the electronic label may determine that more (or less) energizing power is needed to power the eTags inside the container. In that case, the electronic label may change the power setting(s) (e.g., the threshold power level) for the eTag to trigger the radio to wake up.

[0084] Once triggered to switch to receive mode, the radio of the electronic label may then continue to stay awake (in receive mode) for a short period of time in anticipation of reception of the eTag beacons.

[0085] In addition to energizing the eTag within the electronic label, the energizing signal may energize eTags within the container. Once energized, those eTags transmit beacon signalsQC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO24 / 43containing metadata and a payload (e.g., containing sensor information). The radio of the electronic label decodes the beacon signals and updates its display based on the beacons metadata and payload(s).

[0086] For example, the electronic label may display a list of eTag identifiers that were received, a total count of the eTags in the container, a total count of the items in the container, a total count of eTags of a certain type (e.g., medicines, electronics, condiments, etc.), the expiration date of perishable items, and / or the like. In some cases, the electronic label may trigger a notification of an impending expiration of an item. Similar alerts may also be raised, such as a notification that there is limited remaining stock of a certain item within the container.

[0087] Since these updates drain the battery of the electronic label for display refresh (i.e., waking-up and displaying updated information), in some cases, the update trigger(s) may also be a function of the battery level. For example, the electronic label may display only critical features / updates if the battery level is below a threshold. Such critical information may pertain to high-priority eTags, or eTags associated with items that are about to expire). In some cases, the electronic label may also display a “low battery'” warning.

[0088] FIG. 8 illustrates an example method 800 of wireless communication, according to aspects of the disclosure. In an aspect, method 800 may be performed by an electronic label (e.g., any of the ESLs described herein).

[0089] At operation 810, the electronic label may receive, from an eTag coupled to tire electronic label, a trigger to switch a radio of the electronic label to a receive mode for receiving eTag beacon signals. In an aspect, operation 810 may be performed by the infrared (IR) sensor, low noise amplifier (LNA), radio, microcontroller unit (MCU), and / or the like illustrated in FIG. 2, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation.

[0090] At operation 820, the electronic label may receive, via the radio, one or more beacon signals from one or more eTags, where the one or more eTags are affixed to one or more items within a container with which the electronic label is associated (e.g., attached), in an aspect, operation 810 may be performed by the IR sensor, LN A, radio, MCU, and / or the like illustrated in FIG. 2, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation.QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO25 / 43

[0091] At operation 830, the electronic label may update a display of the electronic label based on information conveyed in the one or more beacon signals. In an aspect, operation 810 may be performed by the IR sensor, LNA, radio, MCU, PMU, display, and / or the like illustrated in FIG. 2, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation,

[0092] As will be appreciated, a technical advantage of the method 800 is providing the low- power display of information for inventory management.

[0093] The present disclosure further provides an alternative technique to the technique described above with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8. In this case, an electronic label (e.g., an ESL) may be configured with an initial information state for the product information (e.g., a list of eTag identifiers, a total number of eTags, a total number of items, etc.) for all the eTags in a container. This state information may be provided at the time of boxing or initial packaging of the items.

[0094] The removal of an item from the container can may be detected / determined in various ways. A first method is an explicit indication from the user. In this method, the user provides an indication of the item removal to the reader / energizing device, which energizes the eTag coupled with the electronic label and sends the indication to the eTag. While energized, the eTag provides the indication to the electronic label. The indication may include an identifier of the eTag associated with the item that was removed.

[0095] As a second method, the reader / energizing device may detect an eTag attached to an item being in close proximity to the reader / energizing device for some period of time. For example, the close proximity may be determined based on the beacon signal(s) having a minimum signal strength (e.g., RSSI value) that is observed for a minimum threshold period of time. Based on the detection, the reader / energizing device may energize the eTag coupled with the electronic label and send the removal indication to the eTag. While energized, the eTag provides the indication to the electronic label. As above, the indication may include an identifier of the eTag associated with the item that was removed.

[0096] Upon receiving the indication from the eTag, the electronic label may decrement, or otherwise update, a counter value for the total number of items and / or eTags within the container. Tire electronic label may also, or alternatively, update other state information pertaining to the type / class / group associated with the item that was removed.QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO26 / 43

[0097] FIG. 9 illustrates an example method 900 of wireless communication, according to aspects of the disclosure. In an aspect, method 900 may be performed by an electronic label (e.g., any of the ESLs described herein).

[0098] At operation 910, the electronic label may receive initial state information for a set of eTags affixed to one or more items within a container with which the electronic label is associated (e.g., attached). In an aspect, operation 910 may be performed by the IR sensor, LNA, radio, MCU, and / or the like illustrated in FIG. 2, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation.

[0099] At operation 920, the electronic label may detect removal from the container of one or more eTags of the set of eTags. In an aspect, operation 920 may be performed by the IR sensor, LNA, radio, MCU, and / or the like illustrated in FIG. 2, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation,

[0100] At operation 930, tire electronic label may update the initial state information for the set of eTags based on the removal from the container of the one or more eTags. In an aspect, operation 930 may be performed by the IR sensor, LNA, radio, MCU, PMU, display, and / or the like illustrated in FIG. 2, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation.

[0101] Note that while the foregoing has generally referred to ESLs, the techniques of the present disclosure are applicable to any type of electronic label display.

[0102] As will be appreciated, a technical advantage of the method 900 is providing the low- power display of information for inventory management.

[0103] In the detailed description above it can be seen that different features are grouped together in examples, This manner of disclosure should not be understood as an intention that the example clauses have more features than are explicitly mentioned in each clause. Rather, the various aspects of the disclosure may include fewer than all features of an individual example clause disclosed. Therefore, the following clauses should hereby be deemed to be incorporated in the description, wherein each clause by itself can stand as a separate example. Although each dependent clause can refer in the clauses to a specific combination with one of the other clauses, the aspect(s) of that dependent clause are not limited to the specific combination. It will be appreciated that other example clauses can also include a combination of the dependent clause aspect(s) with the subject matter of any other dependent clause or independent clause or a combination of any feature withQC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO27 / 43other dependent and independent clauses. The various aspects disclosed herein expressly include these combinations, unless it is explicitly expressed or can be readily inferred that a specific combination is not intended (e.g., contradictory aspects, such as defining an element as both an electrical insulator and an electrical conductor). Furthermore, it is also intended that aspects of a clause can be included in any other independent clause, even if the clause is not directly dependent on the independent clause.

[0104] Implementation examples are described in the following numbered clauses:

[0105] Clause 1: A method of wireless communication performed by an electronic label, comprising: receiving, from an energy harvesting tag (eTag) coupled to the electronic label, a trigger to switch a radio of the electronic label to a receive mode for receiving eTag beacon signals; receiving, via the radio, one or more beacon signals from one or more eTags; and updating a display of the electronic label based on information conveyed in the one or more beacon signals.

[0106] Clause 2: The method of clause 1, wherein the one or more eTags are affixed to one or more items within a container with which the electronic label is associated,

[0107] Clause 3: The method of any of clauses 1 to 2, wherein the eTag and the one or more eTags are energized by an energizing signal transmitted by an energizing device.

[0108] Clause 4: The method of any of clauses 1 to 3, wherein the trigger is received based on the energizing signal being a specified type of energizing signal, having a power level satisfying a threshold, or both.

[0109] Clause 5: The method of any of clauses 1 to 4, wherein the specified type of energizing signal is indicated by a sequence of bits in the energizing signal.

[0110] Clause 6: The method of any of clauses 1 to 5, wherein parameters for reception of the trigger are configured by the electronic label based on one or more criteria.

[0111] Clause 7: The method of any of clauses 1 to 6, wherein tire one or more criteria include:a number of the one or more eTags; identifiers or the one or more eTags; priorities of the one or more eTags; types of one or more items with which the one or more eTags are associated; or a combination thereof.

[0112] Clause 8: lire method of any of clauses 1 to 7, wherein the parameters include a power level threshold an energizing signal for energizing the eTag and the one or more eTags is to satisfy.QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO28 / 43

[0113] Clause 9: The method of any of clauses 1 to 8, wherein updating the display comprises:displaying a list of identifiers of the one or more eTags; displaying a number of the one or more eTags; displaying a number of one or more items with which the one or more eTags are associated having a specified type; displaying notifications associated with the one or more eTags; or any combination thereof

[0114] Clause 10: The method of any of clauses 1 to 9, wherein the display is updated based on a battery level of the electronic label.

[0115] Clause 11: The method of any of clauses 1 to 10, wfierein, based on the batter}' level of the electronic label being below7a threshold: only high priority information is displayed on the display of the electronic label; a low' battery warning is displayed on the display of the electronic label; or a combination thereof.

[0116] Clause 12: A method of wireless communication performed by an electronic label, comprising: receiving initial state information for a set of energy harvesting tags (eTags) affixed to one or more items within a container with which the electronic label is associated; detecting removal from the container of one or more eTags of the set of eTags; and updating the initial state information for the set of eTags based on the removal from the container of the one or more eTags.

[0117] Clause 13: lire method of clause 12, wherein the initial state information includes: a list of identifiers of the set of eTags; a number of the set of eTags; a number of the one or more items; or any combination thereof.

[0118] Clause 14: The method of any of clauses 12 to 13, wherein detecting the removal comprises: receiving a notification from an eTag coupled to the electronic label, wherein the notification includes identifiers of the one or more eTags.

[0119] Clause 15: The method of any of clauses 12 to 14, wherein the notification is received based on the eTag coupled to the electronic label being energized by an energizing device to provide the notification to the electronic label.

[0120] Clause 16: The method of any of clauses 12 to 15, wherein the eTag is energized to provide the notification to the electronic label based on user input to the energizing device indicating the one or more eTags.

[0121] Clause 17: The method of any of clauses 12 to 16, wherein the eTag is energized to provide the notification to the electronic label based on detection by the energizing deviceQC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO29 / 43that a signal strength of one or more beacon signals from the one or more eTags satisfy a signal strength threshold for at least a threshold period of time.

[0122] Clause 18: The method of any of clauses 12 to 17, wherein updating the initial state information for the set of eTags comprises: updating a list of identifiers of the set of eTags; updating a number of the set of eTags; updating a number of the one or more items; or any combination thereof.

[0123] Clause 19: The method of any of clauses 12 to 18, further comprising: updating a display of the electronic label based on the initial state information being updated.

[0124] Clause 20: An electronic label, comprising: one or more memories; one or more radios;and one or more processors communicatively coupled to the one or more memories and the one or more radios, the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to: receive, from an energy harvesting tag (eTag) coupled to the electronic label, a trigger to switch a radio of the one or more radios to a receive mode for receiving eTag beacon signals; receive, via the radio, one or more beacon signals from one or more eTags; and update a display of the electronic label based on information conveyed in the one or more beacon signals.

[0125] Clause 21: The electronic label of clause 20, wherein the one or more eTags are affixed to one or more items within a container with which the electronic label is associated.

[0126] Clause 22: The electronic label of any of clauses 20 to 21, wherein the eTag and the one or more eTags are energized by an energizing signal transmitted by an energizing device.

[0127] Clause 23: The electronic label of any of clauses 20 to 22, w herein the trigger is received based on the energizing signal being a specified type of energizing signal, having a power level satisfying a threshold, or both.

[0128] Clause 24: The electronic label of any of clauses 20 to 23, wherein the specified type of energizing signal is indicated by a sequence of bits in the energizing signal.

[0129] Clause 25: The electronic label of any of clauses 20 to 24, wherein parameters for reception of the trigger are configured by the electronic label based on one or more criteria.

[0130] Clause 26: The electronic label of any of clauses 20 to 25, wherein the one or more criteria include: a number of the one or more eTags; identifiers or the one or more eTags; priorities of the one or more eTags; types of one or more items with which the one or more eTags are associated; or a combination thereof.QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO30 / 43

[0131] Clause 27: The electronic label of any of clauses 20 to 26, wherein the parameters include a power level threshold an energizing signal for energizing the eTag and the one or more eTags is to satisfy.

[0132] Clause 28: The electronic label of any of clauses 20 to 27, wherein the one or more processors, when updating the display, are configured to: display a list of identifiers of the one or more eTags; display a number of the one or more eTags; display a number of one or more items with which the one or more eTags are associated having a specified type; display notifications associated with the one or more eTags; or any combination thereof.

[0133] Clause 29: Tlie electronic label of any of clauses 20 to 28, wherein the display is updated based on a battery level of the electronic label.

[0134] Clause 30: The electronic label of any of clauses 20 to 29, wherein, based on the battery7level of the electronic label being below a threshold: only high priority information is display ed on the display of the electronic label; a low battery warning is displayed on the display of the electronic label; or a combination thereof,

[0135] Clause 31: An electronic label, comprising: one or more memories; and one or more processors communicatively coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to: receive initial state information for a set of energy harvesting tags (eTags) affixed to one or more items within a container with which the electronic label is associated; detect removal from the con tainer of one or more eTags of the set of eTags; and update the initial state information for the set of eTags based on the removal from the container of the one or more eTags.

[0136] Clause 32: The electronic label of clause 31, wherein the initial state information includes:a list of identifiers of the set of eTags; a number of the set of eTags; a number of the one or more items; or any combination thereof.

[0137] Clause 33: The electronic label of any of clauses 31 to 32, wherein the one or more processors being configured to detect the removal comprises the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to: receive a notification from an eTag coupled to the electronic label, wherein the notification includes identifiers of the one or more eTags.QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO31 / 43

[0138] Clause 34: The electronic label of any of clauses 31 to 33, wherein the notification is received based on the eTag coupled to the electronic label being energized by an energizing device to provide the notification to the electronic label.

[0139] Clause 35: The electronic label of any of clauses 31 to 34, wherein the eTag is energized to provide the notification to the electronic label based on user input to the energizing device indicating the one or more eTags.

[0140] Clause 36: The electronic label of any of clauses 31 to 35, wherein the eTag is energized to provide the notification to the electronic label based on detection by the energizing device that a signal strength of one or more beacon signals from the one or more eTags satisfy a signal strength threshold for at least a threshold period of time.

[0141] Clause 37: The electronic label of any of clauses 31 to 36, wherein the one or more processors being configured to update the initial state information for the set of eTags comprises the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to: update a list of identifiers of the set of eTags; update a number of the set of eTags; update a number of the one or more items; or any combination thereof.

[0142] Clause 38: The electronic label of any of clauses 31 to 37, wherein the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, are further configured to: update a display of the electronic label based on the initial state information being updated.

[0143] Clause 39: An electronic label, comprising: means for receiving, from an energy harvesting tag (eTag) coupled to the electronic label, a trigger to switch a radio of the electronic label to a receive mode for receiving eTag beacon signals; means for receiving, via the radio, one or more beacon signals from one or more eTags; and means for updating a display of the electronic label based on information conveyed in the one or more beacon signals.

[0144] Clause 40: The electronic label of clause 39, wherein the one or more eTags are affixed to one or more items within a container with which the electronic label is associated.

[0145] Clause 41: The electronic label of any of clauses 39 to 40, wherein the eTag and the one or more eTags are energized by an energizing signal transmitted by an energizing device.

[0146] Clause 42: The electronic label of any of clauses 39 to 41, wherein the trigger is received based on the energizing signal being a specified type of energizing signal, having a power level satisfying a threshold, or both.QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO32 / 43

[0147] Clause 43: The electronic label of any of clauses 39 to 42, wherein the specified type of energizing signal is indicated by a sequence of bits in the energizing signal.

[0148] Clause 44: The electronic label of any of clauses 39 to 43, wherein parameters for reception of the trigger are configured by the electronic label based on one or more criteria.

[0149] Clause 45: The electronic label of any of clauses 39 to 44, wherein the one or more criteria include: a number of the one or more eTags; identifiers or the one or more eTags; priorities of the one or more e' Tags; types of one or more items with which the one or more eTags are associated; or a combination thereof.

[0150] Clause 46: The electronic label of any of clauses 39 to 45, wherein the parameters include a power level threshold an energizing signal for energizing the eTag and the one or more eTags is to satisfy.

[0151] Clause 47: The electronic label of any of clauses 39 to 46, wherein the means for updating the display comprises: means for displaying a list of identifiers of the one or more eTags; means for displaying a number of the one or more eTags; means for displaying a number of one or more items with which the one or more eTags are associated having a specified type; means for displaying notifications associated with the one or more eTags; or any combination thereof.

[0152] Clause 48: The electronic label of any of clauses 39 to 47, wherein the display is updated based on a battery level of the electronic label.

[0153] Clause 49: The electronic label of any of clauses 39 to 48, wherein, based on the battery level of the electronic label being below a threshold: only high priority information is displayed on the display of the electronic label; a low battery warning is displayed on the display of the electronic label; or a combination thereof.

[0154] Clause 50: An electronic label, comprising: means for receiving initial state information for a set of energy harvesting tags (eTags) affixed to one or more items within a container with which the electronic label is associated; means for detecting removal from the container of one or more eTags of the set of eTags; and means for updating the initial state information for the set of eTags based on the removal from the container of the one or more eTags.QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO33 / 43

[0155] Clause 51: The electronic label of clause 50, wherein the initial state information includes:a list of identifiers of the set of eTags; a number of the set of eTags; a number of the one or more items; or any combination thereof.

[0156] Clause 52: The electronic label of any of clauses 50 to 51, wherein the means for detecting the removal comprises: means for receiving a notification from an eTag coupled to the electronic label, wherein the notification includes identifiers of the one or more eTags.

[0157] Clause 53: The electronic label of any of clauses 50 to 52, wherein the notification is received based on the eTag coupled to the electronic label being energized by an energizing device to provide the notification to the electronic label.

[0158] Clause 54: The electronic label of any of clauses 50 to 53, wherein the eTag is energized to provide the notification to the electronic label based on user input to the energizing device indicating the one or more eTags.

[0159] Clause 55: The electronic label of any of clauses 50 to 54, wherein the eTag is energized to provide the notification to the electronic label based on detection by the energizing device that a signal strength of one or more beacon signals from the one or more eTags satisfy a signal strength threshold for at least a threshold period of time.

[0160] Clause 56: The electronic label of any of clauses 50 to 55, wherein the means for updating the initial state information for the set of eTags comprises: means for updating a list of identifiers of the set of eTags; means for updating a number of the set of eTags; means for updating a number of the one or more items; or any combination thereof.

[0161] Clause 57: The electronic label of any of clauses 50 to 56, further comprising: means for updating a display of the electronic label based on the initial state information being updated.

[0162] Clause 58: A non -transitory' computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by an electronic label, cause the electronic label to: receive, from an energy harvesting tag (eTag) coupled to the electronic label, a trigger to switch a radio of the electronic label to a receive mode for receiving eTag beacon signals; receive, via the radio, one or more beacon signals from one or more eTags; and update a display of the electronic label based on information conveyed in the one or more beacon signals.QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO34 / 43

[0163] Clause 59: The non-transitory computer-readable medium of clause 58, wherein the one or more eTags are affixed to one or more items within a container with which the electronic label is associated.

[0164] Clause 60: The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 58 to 59, wherein the eTag and the one or more eTags are energized by an energizing signal transmitted by an energizing device.

[0165] Clause 61: The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 58 to 60, wherein the trigger is received based on the energizing signal being a specified type of energizing signal, having a power level satisfying a threshold, or both.

[0166] Clause 62: The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 58 to 61, wherein the specified type of energizing signal is indicated by a sequence of bits in the energizing signal.

[0167] Clause 63: The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 58 to 62, wherein parameters for reception of the trigger are configured by the electronic label based on one or more criteria.

[0168] Clause 64: The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 58 to 63, wherein the one or more criteria include: a number of the one or more eTags; identifiers or the one or more eTags; priorities of the one or more eTags; types of one or more items with which the one or more eTags are associated; or a combination thereof,

[0169] Clause 65: The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 58 to 64, wherein the parameters include a power level threshold an energizing signal for energizing the eTag and the one or more eTags is to satisfy’.

[0170] Clause 66: The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 58 to 65, wherein the computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the electronic label, cause the electronic label to update the display comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the electronic label, cause the electronic label to: display a list of identifiers of the one or more eTags; display a number of the one or more eTags; display a number of one or more items with which the one or more eTags are associated having a specified type; display notifications associated with the one or more eTags; or any combination thereof.

[0171] Clause 67: The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 58 to 66, wherein the display is updated based on a battery level of the electronic label.QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO35 / 43

[0172] Clause 68: The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 58 to 67, wherein, based on the battery level of the electronic label being below a threshold: only high priority information is displayed on the display of the electronic label; a low battery warning is displayed on the display of the electronic label; or a combination thereof.

[0173] Clause 69: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by an electronic label, cause the electronic label to: receive initial state information for a set of energy harvesting tags (eTags) affixed to one or more items within a container with which the electronic label is associated; detect removal from the container of one or more eTags of the set of eTags; and update the initial state information for the set of eTags based on the removal from the container of the one or more eTags.

[0174] Clause 70: The non-transitory computer-readable medium of clause 69, wherein the initial state information includes: a list of identifiers of the set of eTags; a number of the set of eTags; a number of the one or more items; or any combination thereof.

[0175] Clause 71: The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 69 to 70, wherein the computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the electronic label, cause the electronic label to detect the removal comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the electronic label, cause the electronic label to: receive a notification from an eTag coupled to the electronic label, wherein the notification includes identifiers of the one or more eTags.

[0176] Clause 72: The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 69 to 71, wherein the notification is received based on the eTag coupled to the electronic label being energized by an energizing device to provide the notification to the electronic label,

[0177] Clause 73: The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 69 to 72, wherein the eTag is energized to provide the notification to the electronic label based on user input to the energizing device indicating the one or more eTags.

[0178] Clause 74: The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 69 to 73, wherein the eTag is energized to provide the notification to the electronic label based on detection by the energizing device that a signal strength of one or more beacon signals from the one or more eTags satisfy a signal strength threshold for at least a threshold period of time.QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO36 / 43

[0179] Clause 75: The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 69 to 74, wherein the computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the electronic label, cause the electronic label to update the initial state information for the set of eTags comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the electronic label, cause the electronic label to: update a list of identifiers of the set of eTags; update a number of the set of eTags; update a number of the one or more items; or any combination thereof.

[0180] Clause 76: The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 69 to 75, further comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the electronic label, cause the electronic label to: update a display of the electronic label based on the initial state information being updated.

[0181] Those of skill in the art will appreciate that information and signals may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referenced throughout the above description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

[0182] Further, those of skill in the art will appreciate that the various illustrative logical blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm steps described in connection with the aspects 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 disclosure.

[0183] The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be implemented or performed with a general purpose processor, a DSP, an ASIC, an FPGA, or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designedQC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO37 / 43to 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 computing 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.

[0184] The methods, sequences and / or algorithms described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. A software module may reside in random access memory (RAM), flash memory, read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), registers, hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An example storage medium is coupled to the processor such that the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. In the alternative, the storage medium may be integral to the processor. Tire processor and the storage medium may reside in an ASIC. Tire ASIC may reside in a user terminal (e.g., UE). In the alternative, the processor and the storage medium may reside as discrete components in a user terminal.

[0185] In one or more example aspects, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions may be stored on or transmitted over as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media includes both computer storage media and communication media including any medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. A storage media may be any available media that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readable media can comprise RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer. Also, any connection is properly termed a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared,QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO38 / 43radio, and microwave, then the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of medium. 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 should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0186] While the foregoing disclosure shows illustrative aspects of the disclosure, it should be noted that various changes and modifications could be made herein without departing from the scope of the disclosure as defined by the appended claims. For example, the functions, steps and / or actions of the method claims in accordance with the aspects of the disclosure described herein need not be performed in any particular order. Further, no component, function, action, or instruction described or claimed herein should be construed as critical or essential unless explicitly described as such. Furthermore, as used herein, the terms “set,” “group,” and the like are intended to include one or more of the stated elements. Also, as used herein, the terms “has,” “have,” “having,” “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes,” “including,” and the like does not preclude the presence of one or more additional elements (e.g., an element “having” A may also have B). Further, the phrase “based on” is intended to mean “based, at least in part, on” unless explicitly stated otherwise. Also, as used herein, the term “or” is intended to be inclusive when used in a series and may be used interchangeably with “and / or,” unless explicitly stated otherwise (e.g., if used in combination with “either” or “only one of”) or the alternatives are mutually exclusive (e.g., “one or more” should not be interpreted as “one and more”). Furthermore, although components, functions, actions, and instructions may be described or claimed in the singular, the plural is contemplated unless limitation to the singular is explicitly stated. Accordingly, as used herein, the articles “a,” “an,” “the,” and “said” are intended to include one or more of the stated elements. Additionally, as used herein, the terms “at least one” and “one or more” encompass “one” component, function, action, or instruction performing or capable of performing a described or claimed functionality and also “two or more” components, functions, actions, or instructions performing or capable of performing a described or claimed functionality in combination.QC2503660WO

Claims

Qualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO39 / 43CLAIMSWhat is claimed is:

1. An electronic label, comprising:one or more memories;one or more radios; andone or more processors communicatively coupled to the one or more memories and the one or more radios, the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to:receive, from an energy harvesting tag (eTag) coupled to the electronic label, a trigger to switch a radio of the one or more radios to a receive mode for receiving eTag beacon signals;receive, via the radio, one or more beacon signals from one or more eTags; andupdate a display of the electronic label based on information conveyed in the one or more beacon signals,2. The electronic label of claim 1, wherein the one or more eTags are affixed to one or more items within a container with which the electronic label is associated.

3. The electronic label of claim 1, wherein the eTag and the one or more eTags are energized by an energizing signal transmitted by an energizing device.

4. The electronic label of claim 3, wherein the trigger is received based on the energizing signal being a specified type of energizing signal, having a power level satisfying a threshold, or both.

5. The electronic label of claim 4, wherein the specified type of energizing signal is indicated by a sequence of bits in the energizing signal.

6. The electronic label of claim 1, wherein parameters for reception of the trigger are configured by the electronic label based on one or more criteria.QC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO40 / 437. The electronic label of claim 6, wherein the one or more criteria include:a number of the one or more eTags;identifiers or the one or more eTags;priorities of the one or more eTags;types of one or more items with which the one or more eTags are associated; or a combination thereof.

8. The electronic label of claim 6, wherein the parameters include a power level threshold an energizing signal for energizing the eTag and the one or more eTags is to satisfy.

9. Tire electronic label of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors, when updating the display, are configured to:display a list of identifiers of the one or more eTags;display a number of the one or more eTags;display a number of one or more items with which the one or more eTags are associated having a specified type;display notifications associated with the one or more eTags; orany combination thereof.

10. The electronic label of claim 1, wherein the display is updated based on a battery level of the electronic label.

11. The electronic label of claim 10, wherein, based on the battery level of the electronic label being below a threshold:only high priority information is displayed on the display of the electronic label; a low battery warning is displayed on the display of the electronic label; or a combination thereof.

12. An electronic label, comprising:one or more memories; andQC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO41 / 43one or more processors communicatively coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to:receive initial state information for a set of energy harvesting tags (eTags) affixed to one or more items within a container with which the electronic label is associated;detect removal from the container of one or more eTags of the set of eTags; andupdate the initi al state information for the set of eTags based on the removal from the container of the one or more eTags.

13. The electronic label of claim 12, wherein tire initial state information includes:a list of identifiers of the set of eTags;a number of the set of eTags;a number of tire one or more items; orany combination thereof.

14. The electronic label of claim 12, wherein tire one or more processors being configured to detect the removal comprises the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to:receive a notification from an eTag coupled to the electronic label, wherein the notification includes identifiers of the one or more eTags.

15. The electronic label of claim 14, wherein the notification is received based on the eTag coupled to the electronic label being energized by an energizing device to provide the notification to the electronic label.

16. Tire electronic label of claim 15, wherein the eTag is energized to provide the notification to the electronic label based on user input to the energizing device indicating the one or more eTags.

17. The electronic label of claim 15, wherein the eTag is energized to provide the notification to the electronic label based on detection by the energizing device that aQC2503660WOQualcomm Ref. No. 2503660WO42 / 43signal strength of one or more beacon signals from the one or more eTags satisfy a signal strength threshold for at least a threshold period of time.

18. The electronic label of claim 12, wherein the one or more processors being configured to update the initial state information for the set of eTags comprises the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to:update a list of identifiers of the set of eTags;update a number of the set of eTags;update a number of the one or more items; orany combination thereof.

19. The electronic label of claim 12, wherein the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, are further configured to:update a display of the electronic label based on the initial state information being updated.

20. A method of wireless communication performed by an electronic label, comprising:receiving, from an energy harvesting tag (eTag) coupled to the electronic label, a trigger to switch a radio of the electronic label to a receive mode for receiving eTag beacon signals;receiving, via the radio, one or more beacon signals from one or more eTags; andupdating a display of the electronic label based on information conveyed in the one or more beacon signals.QC2503660WO

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