Antenna device, radio identification system and method for emitting a radio signal

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10068169-B2
Application number	US-201715593616-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 12, 2017
Priority date	Nov 14, 2014
Publication date	Sep 4, 2018
Grant date	Sep 4, 2018

Abstract

An antenna device has a radiating unit having a plurality of antennas, configured to emit a radio signal with a radiation pattern. In addition, the antenna device has a calculator configured to generate and to apply to the plurality of antennas a plurality of feed signals based on an identification signal provided in order to generate the radio signal. The calculator is additionally configured to control the feed signals in a time-varying manner so that the radio signal is emitted with a time-varying radiation pattern.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An antenna device comprising:
a radiating unit comprising a plurality of antennas, configured to emit a radio signal with a radiation pattern; and
a calculator configured to generate and apply to the plurality of antennas a plurality of feed signals based on an identification signal provided in order to generate the radio signal;
wherein the calculator is further configured to control the feed signals in a time-varying manner in order to emit the radio signal with a time-varying radiation pattern; and
wherein the calculator comprises a terminal and is configured to acquire the identification signal from an external radio identification reader at the terminal.

2. The antenna device in accordance with claim 1 , wherein the calculator comprises a storage configured to store information relating to a temporal succession of a change in the time-varying radiation pattern.

3. The antenna device in accordance with claim 1 , wherein the calculator is configured to control the feed signals such that the radio signal is transmitted with one of a plurality of radiation patterns, each radiation pattern being associated to a sub-region of a detection region of the antenna device.

4. The antenna device in accordance with claim 1 , wherein the plurality of antennas comprise mutually different radiation patterns, wherein the calculator is configured to derive a feed signal from the identification signal and apply same to the plurality of antennas such that a first radiation pattern of a plurality of possible radiation patterns of the plurality of antennas is acquired, wherein a second radiation pattern of the plurality of possible radiation patterns is not acquired.

5. The antenna device in accordance with claim 1 , wherein the calculator is configured to apply a plurality of feed signals to the plurality of antennas such that these generate a plurality of mutually superimposing radio signals from the plurality of feed signals, superimposing comprising the radiation pattern, wherein the calculator is configured to control the plurality of feed signals such that the superimposing generated comprises a time-varying radiation pattern.

6. The antenna device in accordance with claim 1 , wherein the calculator further comprises:
a controllable distributor configured to receive the identification signal at a signal input and to provide a drive signal which is based on the identification signal at one of a plurality of signal outputs;
a beam shaper comprising a plurality of signal inputs, wherein the plurality of signal inputs are each coupled to a signal output of the distributor and configured to receive a drive signal, wherein the beam-shaper is configured to provide feed signals at signal outputs based on a drive signal received, wherein each feed signal is associated to an antenna of the radiating unit, and wherein a radiation pattern of the radio signal at the radiating unit is associated to each signal input of the beam shaper;
a distributor controller configured to control the controllable distributor in a time-varying manner so that the controllable distributor outputs the drive signal at time-varyingly changing signal outputs or with a time-varying signal characteristic.

7. The antenna device in accordance with claim 6 , wherein the calculator is configured to control the controllable distributor such that it provides at least one drive signal at at least one signal output with a signal characteristic influenced by driving, wherein the signal characteristic relates to a phase, an amplitude or to one of a plurality of signal outputs at which the at least one output signal is provided.

8. The antenna device in accordance with claim 6 , wherein the beam shaper comprises a first number of signal inputs and an equal first number of signal outputs and is implemented as a butler network.

9. The antenna device in accordance with claim 1 , wherein the radiating element is configured to receive a response signal transmitted by a transponder device responsive to the radio signal, and wherein the calculator is configured to determine, based on evaluating the response signal and the radiation pattern with which the radio signal has been transmitted, a presence of the transponder device in a sub-region of a detection region of the radiating unit, wherein the sub-region is associated to the radiation pattern, and wherein the calculator is additionally configured to provide position information indicating the presence of the transponder device in the sub-region, at a signal output.

10. The antenna device in accordance with claim 9 , wherein the calculator is configured to provide movement information indicating a movement of the transponder device from the sub-region to the other sub-region when the presence of the transponder device is determined at first to be in the sub-region and, subsequently, in the other sub-region.

11. The antenna device in accordance with claim 9 , wherein the calculator comprises an internal radio identification reader for evaluating the response signal configured to correlate the presence of the transponder device which has transmitted the response signal responsive to the radio signal, with the sub-region, wherein the calculator is configured to control the radiation pattern of the radio signal such that the radio signal, in a subsequent time interval, is emitted with a radiation pattern associated to another sub-region.

12. The antenna device in accordance with claim 11 , wherein the internal radio identification reader is configured to provide the identification signal.

13. The antenna device in accordance with claim 11 , wherein the calculator is configured to provide the feed signals such that, in a first time interval, the radio signal is transmitted with a first radiation pattern and, in a second time interval which follows the first interval, is transmitted with a second radiation pattern,
wherein the internal radio identification reader is configured to correlate a first response signal with a first sub-region associated to the first radiation pattern and to correlate a second response signal with a second sub-region associated to the second radiation pattern,
wherein the calculator is configured to provide a position signal comprising information on a presence of a transponder device which transmits the response signal, in the first sub-region during the first time interval and, during the second time interval, in the second sub-region.

14. The antenna device in accordance with claim 13 ,
wherein the calculator is configured:
to determine, in the first time interval, a presence of at least one transponder device in a first sub-region of a detection region of the antenna device based on the response signal and to control the radiation pattern such that the radio signal is transmitted with a first radiation pattern associated to the first sub-region at least with a time slice of 50% and such that the radio signal is emitted, at least occasionally, with a radiation pattern associated to a second sub-region of the detection region which is arranged adjacent to the first sub-region in the detection region;
to determine, in a second time interval which follows the first time interval, a presence of the at least one transponder device in the second sub-region and to control the radiation pattern such that the radio signal is transmitted with a second radiation pattern associated to the second sub-region at least with a time slice of 50% and such that the radio signal is emitted, at least occasionally, with the first radiation pattern associated to the first sub-region when the calculator does not determine the pr

Assignees

• Fraunhofer Ges Forschung

Inventors

• Weisgerber Lars
• Strauss Wolfram
• Schuehler Mario
• Popugaev Alexander
• Wansch Rainer
• Bernhard Josef

Classifications

• H01Q1/2216

  used in interrogator/reader equipment · CPC title

• G06K19/07773 Primary

  Antenna details (antennas for wireless devices, e.g. RFID tags, in general H01Q1/22) · CPC title

• H01Q3/2682

  Time delay steered arrays · CPC title

• H04B7/0408

  using two or more beams, i.e. beam diversity · CPC title

• G06K19/0723

  the record carrier comprising an arrangement for non-contact communication, e.g. wireless communication circuits on transponder cards, non-contact smart cards or RFIDs · CPC title