The present invention provides for a RFID tag assembly that is suitable for operation with at least one RFID reader assembly. The RFID tag assembly comprises, inter alia, an antenna member for transmitting and/or receiving an RFID signal, and at least one integrated circuit (1C) for processing the RFID signal and which is configured to communicate, alternatingly and sequentially in time, a first signal transmission and at least one second signal transmission, each defined by a plurality of predetermined signal transmission parameters, to the at least one RFI D reader assembly, utilising time-division multiplexing, wherein the at least one first signal transmission differs from the at least one second signal transmission in at least one of said plurality of predetermined signal transmission paameters.

A method for interleaving time slots in a multi-antenna system for communication with RFID tags is described. An exemplary system has a first RFID interrogator and first and second antennas. The first and second antennas direct signals to and receive signals from respective first and second interrogation zones. A first interrogation signal is transmitted to the first antenna. A first acquire window for receiving a signal from a first RFID transponder is opened after the first interrogation signal. A second interrogation signal is transmitted to the second antenna after the first interrogation signal, and a second acquire window for receiving a signal from a second RFID transponder is opened after the second interrogation signal.

The present disclosure relates to a method and apparatus for selective communication between a tag and a reader using a filter. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a communication method between a tag and a reader using a filter performed by a reader includes generating a filter based on tag information of the tag to collect data, transmitting the generated filter to the tag, and receiving data from a tag that selected through a filtering operation of the transmitted filter.

A system includes a plurality of readers and an information processor. The reader includes a first communicator, an antenna, and a first processor. An antenna communicates with radio tags. The first processor measures a time in which radio waves are received with a plurality of channels in a carrier sense time, the carrier sense time being a time in which the radio tags are not communicating and transmits a channel report indicating a time in which radio waves are received with each channel to the information processor through the first communicator. The information processor includes a second communicator and a second processor. The second processor acquires the channel report through the second communicator and generates an aggregate report indicating channel states while the plurality of readers are not communicating with the radio tags based on the plurality of acquired channel reports.

A method for employing cycle counting is presented. The method includes interrogating, by an RFID reader, RFID tags by using a plurality of antenna ports, determining, by an activation sequencer, an activation sequence of the plurality of antenna ports that have been enabled, collecting RFID tag responses from each of the RFID tags, and matching one or more of the RFID tag responses to a particular antenna port of the plurality of antenna ports in an activation cycle.

An RFID system comprises an array of antennas each configured to emit a plurality of beams in different directions. The beams of each pair of adjacent antennas are directed towards one another and overlap. A pair of adjacent antennas transmits simultaneously and the overlapping beams interfere to create an interference pattern. An RFID reader controls the relative phase and/or frequency of the beams to move the interference pattern to read an RFID tag within the moving pattern. As the chance of a RFID tag responding to an emitted beam generally increases with signal strength of the reader beam an area of constructive interference means that RFID tags in that region are more likely to respond to the signal. The system can cover a large proportion of the area below ceiling-mounted antennas, where cover generally means that RFID tags in that area will be successfully read.

According to an embodiment, a wireless tag reader apparatus includes a reader and a processor. The reader acquires the position information of the wireless tag based on the phase difference between the carrier waves and the response waves transmitted and received by the first antenna and the second antenna. The processor determines whether or not the wireless tag is in the predetermined zone based on the position information acquired by the reader.

The present invention provides for a RFID tag assembly that is suitable for operation with at least one RFID reader assembly. The RFID tag assembly comprises, inter alia, an antenna member for transmitting and/or receiving an RFID signal, and at least one integrated circuit (IC) for processing the RFID signal and which is configured to communicate, alternatingly and sequentially in time, a first signal transmission and at least one second signal transmission, each defined by a plurality of predetermined signal transmission parameters, to the at least one RFI D reader assembly, utilising time-division multiplexing, wherein the at least one first signal transmission differs from the at least one second signal transmission in at least one of said plurality of predetermined signal transmission parameters.

One embodiment of the present invention relates to a method for a reader to transmit and receive a signal to and from a tag, the method comprising: a step in which a first reader transmits a first signal to a tag; and a step in which the first reader receives the first signal reflected on the tag. The timing for the first reader to transmit the first signal is determined by using an offset value based on an ID related to the first reader.

A method for employing cycle counting is presented. The method includes interrogating, by an RFID reader, RFID tags by using a plurality of antenna ports, determining, by an activation sequencer, an activation sequence of the plurality of antenna ports that have been enabled, collecting RFID tag responses from each of the RFID tags, and matching one or more of the RFID tag responses to a particular antenna port of the plurality of antenna ports in an activation cycle.