RFID Transceiver Array for Directionality and Location Tracking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Deploying an array of overhead RFID tag readers to determine the location and directionality of RFID tags in commercial environments, such as warehouses and distribution centers, can be costly and provide little valuable information about asset movement at ingress or egress points, where directionality and tracking are more critical than precise location.
Innovation Solution
A system utilizing a linear array of transceivers, with each transceiver monitoring multiple zones and sharing information to determine the location and directionality of RFID tags, allowing for accurate tracking and reduced costs by using a single transceiver to monitor two portals with overlap in coverage, forming a localized cluster.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If an array of overhead RFID tag readers is deployed to determine the location and directionality of RFID tags, then the precision of location and bearing determination is improved, but the cost of deployment and operation increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
A single overhead transceiver is configured to perform multiple functions: monitoring RFID tags at multiple portal locations, determining directionality, and providing coverage for both ingress and egress points. This multi-functional approach eliminates the need for separate transceivers at each portal, significantly reducing deployment cost while maintaining measurement precision through sophisticated signal processing and bearing determination algorithms
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple monitoring functions that would traditionally require separate transceivers are merged into a single transceiver system. The transceiver monitors multiple zones and portals simultaneously, combining coverage areas and processing capabilities into one integrated unit, thereby reducing overall system complexity and deployment costs
2Loss of information
If multiple transceivers are deployed to monitor multiple portals, then the coverage and directionality information are improved, but the quantity of equipment and associated costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The single transceiver is designed to monitor multiple portals and determine directionality for tags at different locations simultaneously. By processing signals from multiple zones through a single device with advanced signal processing capabilities, the system maintains accurate directionality information without requiring multiple physical transceivers
Solution Approach 2:
The single transceiver acts as an intermediary that consolidates monitoring functions for multiple portals. Instead of having separate transceivers at each portal, one transceiver mediates the monitoring of all portals, reducing equipment quantity while preserving information accuracy through centralized signal processing
Data Source
AI summary
The disclosure is a system comprising a transceiver array, containing at least a first pair of transceivers and a second pair of transceivers, the first pair of transceivers containing a transceiver that is included in the second pair of transceivers. Each transceiver in a pair is configured to monitor a plurality of zones for RFID tags, transmit information related to the monitoring of a portion the plurality of zones for RFID tags to the other transceiver in the pair, and determine a location of a monitored RFID tag based on the information acquired through the monitoring of the plurality of zones and the information received from the other transceiver in the first or second pair.