Smart Card Power Splitter With Printed Coil for RF Power Sharing

The patent implements preliminary action by executing auxiliary functions (such as biometric authentication) before the smart card responds to commands. The system harvests power and performs auxiliary operations in advance during the communication session, rather than delaying them until after the response is sent. This reduces the perceived interaction time while maintaining simplified power management through the power splitter architecture that continuously divides power between communication and auxiliary functions.

The patent applies segmentation by using a power splitter that divides the harvested RF power into separate communication and auxiliary function power supplies. The power splitter continuously divides the incoming RF power, providing dedicated power streams to the communication circuitry and auxiliary functions simultaneously. This eliminates the need to choose between communication power and auxiliary power, as both receive continuous power allocation through the segmented power distribution architecture.

The patent extracts the ground plane requirement from the printed coil inductor design. Instead of requiring a traditional ground plane beneath the inductor, the invention uses the substrate itself as the reference plane and positions the printed coil inductor over a gap in the ground plane layer. This extraction of the ground plane requirement simplifies the manufacturing process while maintaining the Q-factor through the specific geometric configuration of the printed coil and its relationship to the substrate and gap structure.