Radio frequency identification tag based tray and tray receiving method and apparatus
US7411502B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Apr 28, 2006 |
| Grant date | Aug 12, 2008 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Apr 26, 2027 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC A)Human Necessities
- CPC primaryA47J39/006
- WIPO fieldFurniture, games
- WIPO sectorOther fields
Abstract
A tray (201) comprises electrically conductive material and has at least one hand-graspable fixture (203). This hand-graspable fixture comprises an electrical conductor (301) disposed in a location that is likely to be operably interacted with by a human who grasps the hand-graspable fixture. A capacitively-coupled RFID tag is then disposed on the hand-graspable fixture with a first antenna plate (303) being electrically coupled to the tray and a second antenna plate (304) that electrically couples to the electrical conductor. A corresponding tray receiving compartment (400) has a front lip (401) over which the tray must pass and upon which the tray will rest when properly disposed within the tray receiving compartment. One or more capacitively-coupled RFID tag reader antennas (402) are disposed proximal to the front lip. These antennas may be positioned to facilitate reading the capacitively-coupled RFID tag when the tray is properly disposed within the tray receiving compartment.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.