Portable object and information transmission system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9336479-B2
Application number	US-201314389353-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 19, 2013
Priority date	Mar 30, 2012
Publication date	May 10, 2016
Grant date	May 10, 2016

Abstract

A portable object ( 10 ) comprises an integrated circuit ( 11 ), a first pad ( 12 ) that is mechanically and electrically connected to the integrated circuit ( 11 ) and a second pad ( 13 ) that is mechanically and electrically connected to the integrated circuit ( 11 ). The portable object ( 10 ) is designed for data transfer by capacitive coupling of the first pad ( 12 ) to a first conducting line ( 33 ) and of the second pad ( 13 ) to a second conducting line ( 34 ), when the portable object ( 10 ) is brought in vicinity to the first and the second conducting line ( 33, 34 ).

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An information transmission system, comprising:
a portable object comprising a strap that comprises an integrated circuit, a first pad that is mechanically and electrically connected to the integrated circuit and a second pad that is mechanically and electrically connected to the integrated circuit,
wherein the portable object is realized as a container and the strap is arranged at the outside of the container; and
a signal transfer arrangement comprising a first and a second conducting line such that selectively
either the first pad capacitively couples to the first conducting line and the second pad capacitively couples to the second conducting line, when the portable object is in vicinity of the signal transfer arrangement, or
the first and the second pad are decoupled from the first and the second conducting line, when the portable object is at a distance from the signal transfer arrangement,

wherein the signal transfer arrangement is arranged on a holder and the container is inserted into the holder such that the first and the second pad are capacitively coupled to the first and the second conducting line.

2. The information transmission system according to claim 1 , wherein the first and the second conducting line are parallel to each other.

3. The information transmission system according to claim 1 , wherein an extension of the first and the second pad is coordinated with an extension of the first and the second conducting line such that
A=A 1+ A 2+ A 3≧ D,

wherein A1 is an extension of the first pad, A2 is an extension of the integrated circuit, A3 is an extension of the second pad and D is the distance of the first conducting line to the second conducting line.

4. The information transmission system according to claim 1 , wherein the first and the second conducting line have a main direction and the signal transfer arrangement is designed such that the capacitive coupling of the first and the second pad to the first and the second conducting line is continued during a movement of the portable object in the main direction of the first and the second conducting line.

5. The information transmission system according to claim 1 , the first and the second conducting line being arranged on a non-flat surface of the signal transfer arrangement.

6. The information transmission system according to claim 1 , the signal transfer arrangement comprising:
an insulating layer attached to the first conducting line; and
at least a further pad electrically connected to the first conducting line by a via through the insulating layer.

7. The information transmission system according to claim 1 , comprising a carrier body and a conducting layer, wherein the first and the second conducting line are arranged at a first surface of the carrier body and the conducting layer is fabricated on a second surface of the carrier body and forms a ground plane.

8. The information transmission system according to claim 1 , wherein the signal transfer arrangement comprises a third conducting line such that the first conducting line is a signal line and is in the middle between the second and the third conducting line, wherein the second and the third conducting line are ground reference lines.

9. A portable object, comprising:
a strap that comprises an integrated circuit, a first pad that is mechanically and electrically connected to the integrated circuit and a second pad that is mechanically and electrically connected to the integrated circuit such that the portable object is designed for data transfer by capacitive coupling of the first pad to a first conducting line and of the second pad to a second conducting line, when the portable object is brought in vicinity to the first and the second conducting line,
wherein the portable object is realized as a container and the strap is arranged at the outside of the container.

10. The portable object according claim 9 , the portable object being realized as an item of a group consisting of a coffee capsule, a coffee pod and a coffee pad.

11. The portable object according claim 9 , the portable object being realized as a drug cartridge.

12. The portable object according claim 9 , the portable object being realized as a card.

13. The portable object according to claim 9 , wherein an area of the first pad has a larger size than an area of the integrated circuit and an area of the second pad has a larger size than the area of the integrated circuit.

14. The portable object according to claim 9 , the first and the second pad being arranged to opposite edges of the integrated circuit.

15. The portable object according to claim 9 , the portable object comprising a carrier which is attached on the first and the second pad such that the carrier is arranged between the first pad and the first conducting line and between the second pad and the second conducting line.

16. The portable object according to claim 9 , the integrated circuit comprising:
a supply circuit that is coupled to the first and the second pad;
a modulator circuit that is coupled to the first and the second pad; and
a logic circuit that is coupled to a supply output of the supply circuit for power supply and to a control input of the modulator circuit.

17. An information transmission system, comprising:
a portable object comprising an integrated circuit, a first pad that is mechanically and electrically connected to the integrated circuit and a second pad that is mechanically and electrically connected to the integrated circuit; and
a signal transfer arrangement comprising a first and a second conducting line such that selectively
either the first pad capacitively couples to the first conducting line and the second pad capacitively couples to the second conducting line, when the portable object is in vicinity of the signal transfer arrangement, or
the first and the second pad are decoupled from the first and the second conducting line, when the portable object is at a distance from the signal transfer arrangement,

wherein an extension of the first and the second pad is coordinated with an extension of the first and the second conducting line such that
A=A 1+ A 2+ A 3≧ D,

wherein A1 is an extension of the first pad, A2 is an extension of the integrated circuit, A3 is an extension of the second pad and D is the distance of the first conducting line to the second conducting line.

18. A portable object, comprising:
an integrated circuit, a first pad that is mechanically and electrically connected to the integrated circuit, and a second pad that is mechanically and electrically connected to the integrated circuit such that the portable object is designed for data transfer by capacitive coupling of the first pad to a first conducting line and of the second pad to a second conducting line, when the portable object is brought in vicinity to the first and the second conducting line,
wherein the portable object is free of an antenna.

Assignees

• Ams Ag

Inventors

• Manzi Giuliano

Classifications

• H10W90/724

  between a chip and a stacked insulating package substrate, interposer or RDL · CPC title

• G06K7/081

  electrostatic, e.g. by detecting the charge of capacitance between electrodes · CPC title

• H01Q1/2225

  used in active tags, i.e. provided with its own power source or in passive tags, i.e. deriving power from RF signal · CPC title

• H01Q1/44

  using equipment having another main function to serve additionally as an antenna {, e.g. means for giving an antenna an aesthetic aspect}(H01Q1/27 - H01Q1/34 take precedence) · CPC title

• G06K7/0008 Primary

  General problems related to the reading of electronic memory record carriers, independent of its reading method, e.g. power transfer · CPC title