This disclosure is directed to an electronic identification card or electronic card having various features. The electronic card may include an integrated circuit and a contact plate for electrically interfacing with the integrated circuit. The contact plate may include an array of terminal electrodes that are offset with respect to the edges of the contact plate. The electronic card may be coated with a coating layer that extends at least partially over a ferromagnetic element or film. The electronic card may also include a metal substrate having exposed chamfer portions that may provide a visual contrast to the coating layer and also improve the handling and use of the electronic card.

A reading apparatus includes a wireless tag reader including an antenna and an antenna surface facing a first direction and through which the antenna emits a radio wave to read tag information from a wireless tag, and a code reader including an imaging unit and an imaging window facing the first direction and through which the imaging unit acquires an image to read a code. The code reader further includes a grip detachably connected to the wireless tag reader.

This invention is an SOC with an integrated single rail power supply that interfaces with the host controller and dynamically changes the host interface supply to 3.3 volts or 1.8 volts based on the sensed card speed grade. The SOC initially selects 3.3 volts to supply to the memory card. The SOC communicates with memory card vis input/output circuits to determine a memory type. The controller selects a 3.3 volt or 1.8 volt supply for the memory card based upon the determination. The SOC powers the input/output circuits at the same supply voltage as the memory card. This invention employes 1.8 volt transistors in the input/output circuits using a bias voltage to protect these transistor from the full 3.3 volt power when the memory card is powered to 3.3 volts.

A wireless system includes a plurality of objects. The wireless system includes a controller and a radio frequency identification (RFID) read-write device. Each of the objects includes an RFID device and a transceiver. An object and methods of tracking objects are also disclosed.

An IC card reader may comprise a first interface unit that communicates with an IC chip of an IC card by using a first communication mode, a second interface unit that communicates with the IC chip by using a second communication mode, and a control unit that controls the first and second interface units, and reads data from the IC chip through an interface unit, which first receives a response message from the IC chip, between the first and second interface units.

A distance to a target to be read by image capture over a range of working distances is determined by directing an aiming light spot along an aiming axis to the target, and by capturing a first image of the target containing the aiming light spot, and by capturing a second image of the target without the aiming light spot. Each image is captured in a frame over a field of view having an imaging axis offset from the aiming axis. An image pre-processor compares first image data from the first image with second image data from the second image over a common fractional region of both frames to obtain a position of the aiming light spot in the first image, and determines the distance to the target based on the position of the aiming light spot in the first image.

A credit card holder assembly for inserting a credit card or debit card into a card reader includes a pair of arms that is each pivotally coupled together having each of the arms being oriented parallel to each other. Each of the arms is biased apart from each other for having a credit card inserted between the arms. Each of the arms is urgeable to engage each other to compress the credit card between the pair of arms. In this way the credit card can be inserted into and removed from a credit card reader without requiring a user to touch the credit card reader. A key ring is disposed on the pair of arms such that the key ring can be attached to a user's keys for carrying the pair of arms.

A communications system configured to execute data transmission between a transponder having no radio wave generating source thereof and a reader/writer is provided. The communications system includes, a service permission level notifier configured to tell a service permission level for associated with a received signal level for permitting service acceptance from the reader/writer to the transponder, and an access controller configured to determine in the transponder whether the received signal level from the reader/writer is at the notified service permission level to determine accessibility to the transponder from the reader/writer.

A combination magnetic-stripe card reader with integrated contact-less chip card read/write functions, a direct replacement for a standard player tracking magnetic-stripe card reader installed in slot machines. It is a form, fit and function for existing player tracking readers, having the same front panel appearance, the same physical envelope, using the same mounting method, using the same cable connections and operating in the identical manner. The combined functions requires two command sets and a method to distinguish between them, the legacy command set of the existing reader to be replaced which is typically strings of American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII) eight bit characters with a line terminator character and the contact-less chip card requiring the ability to send and receive all possible eight bit values with varying length commands and not having a dedicated character value to indicate the end of a command.

A combination magnetic-stripe card reader with integrated contact-less chip card read/write functions, a direct replacement for a standard player tracking magnetic-stripe card reader installed in slot machines. It is a form, fit and function for existing player tracking readers, having the same front panel appearance, the same physical envelope, using the same mounting method, using the same cable connections and operating in the identical manner. The combined functions requires two command sets and a method to distinguish between them, the legacy command set of the existing reader to be replaced which is typically strings of American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII) eight bit characters with a line terminator character and the contact-less chip card requiring the ability to send and receive all possible eight bit values with varying length commands and not having a dedicated character value to indicate the end of a command.