JP2000172812A - Noncontact information medium - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] The present invention can be used commonly for one or more non-contact IC modules having the features of the chip-on-coil system, and a plurality of the non-contact IC modules. One or more communication aids that can extend the communication distance to a desired distance in a simple manner;
An object of the present invention is to provide a non-contact information medium including a C module and a communication auxiliary device. SOLUTION: Non-contact IC having an IC chip and a coil
The communication distance was extended by communicating with the external terminal via the booster section to the module. Since the performance of a non-contact IC module can be tested by itself, the coil and I
The production efficiency is improved as compared with the conventional non-contact IC card which can be inspected only after mounting and connecting each of the C chips. Further, the non-contact IC module is detachably connected to the booster. Therefore, one booster can be shared by a plurality of non-contact IC modules. Also,
If a plurality of boosters having different communication distances are prepared, the communication distance of one non-contact IC module can be adjusted to a desired distance.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention generally relates to a data record carrier, and more particularly, to a non-contact information medium having a built-in IC chip. The “non-contact information medium incorporating an IC chip” is a medium that includes an IC chip as an information recording medium and communicates with an external device in a non-contact manner. Therefore, as long as it is non-contact, the wavelength of the radio wave does not matter, and the length of the communication distance does not matter. Therefore, a non-contact IC module described later may be sufficient for the non-contact information medium.

[0002] A typical non-contact information medium having a built-in IC chip is, for example, a non-contact IC card which communicates with a reader / writer using microwaves. In the present application, the “IC card” includes a smart card, an intelligent card, a chip-in card, a microcircuit (microcomputer) card, a memory card, a super card, a multi-function card, a combination card, and the like.

The shape of a non-contact information medium incorporating an IC chip is not limited to a card. Therefore, it also includes so-called IC tags. Here, "IC
The "tag" has the same function as the IC card, but includes all information recording media having a stamp size, a size smaller than that of a stamp, and a shape such as a coin.

[0004]

2. Description of the Related Art IC cards can be classified into a contact type and a non-contact type according to a communication method between an IC chip built in the card and a reader / writer. Among them, the non-contact type has no contact with the reader / writer, so there is no contact failure, it can be used at a distance of several centimeters to several tens of centimeters from the reader / writer, and it is resistant to dirt, rain and static electricity, It is anticipated that its demand will increase in the future.

A non-contact IC card obtains operating power by electromagnetic induction from a radio wave received from a reader / writer, and exchanges data with the reader / writer using the radio wave. The non-contact IC card usually has an antenna (for example, an antenna coil) for transmitting and receiving such radio waves formed as a member independent of the IC chip.
Connected to C chip.

[0006]

As described above, since the antenna and the IC chip are separate bodies, the conventional non-contact IC
When mounting the cards, they had to be electrically connected. However, the connection between the terminal of the minute IC chip and the antenna involves technical difficulties, and the connection point is particularly stressed when a flexible card is used, causing disconnection. Further, a substrate for holding an IC chip and an antenna is required, which causes an increase in the cost of the IC card. Furthermore, the inspection of the electrical connection and the operation check of the antenna and the IC chip can be performed only after the IC chip and the antenna are mounted on the card and the two are connected, so that the manufacturing efficiency is poor.

On the other hand, an antenna coil may be built into an IC chip (on-chip coil type) (on-chip coil system) due to a demand for downsizing and multifunctional components. Such an on-coil IC chip has advantages that there are few mounting problems and that it contributes to downsizing of components. However, the communication distance is inevitably shortened due to the small size of the antenna, and it cannot be directly applied to a non-contact IC card which can communicate with a reader / writer at a predetermined distance.

[0008] Even if an on-coil IC chip can be used, it is more preferable that the communication distance can be adjusted to a desired distance as well as simply extending the communication distance. Furthermore, it is economically preferable that the communication distance for a plurality of on-coil IC chips can be extended by one communication auxiliary device.

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, there is provided a new and useful non-contact IC module which solves such a conventional problem, a communication auxiliary device (booster) used therefor, and communication with the non-contact IC module. It is a general object to provide a non-contact information medium comprising an auxiliary device.

[0010] More specifically, the present invention can be used commonly for one or more non-contact IC modules having the features of the chip-on-coil system, and for the plurality of non-contact IC modules. An object of the present invention is to provide one or more communication auxiliary devices capable of extending the communication distance to a desired distance by a simple method, and a non-contact information medium including the non-contact IC module and the communication auxiliary device.

Here, the term "non-contact IC module" generally means a combination of a coil, an antenna or the like, which is a non-contact communication means between an IC chip and an IC chip and an external device, and has a monolithic IC structure. On-coil IC chips and all those having a structure in which an IC chip and a coil are desired to be mounted on an IC surface or the same substrate are included. In the broad sense, the non-contact IC module may be any communication means, but in the present application, it is assumed that communication is performed via electric (magnetic) waves.

In order to achieve the above object, the non-contact IC module of the present invention can be detachably connected to a booster having a first antenna capable of performing wireless communication with an external device using electromagnetic induction. A substrate, a second antenna that can be electromagnetically coupled to the first antenna of the booster in a non-contact manner, and an IC element connected to the second antenna, so that the IC element Can communicate with the external device through the booster in a non-contact manner.

Further, the booster of the present invention comprises a substrate detachably connectable to an IC module, a first antenna capable of performing wireless communication with an external device using electromagnetic induction, A capacitor that forms a resonance circuit that resonates with a carrier frequency of a signal to be generated together with the first antenna.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a non-contact information medium, comprising: a booster having a first antenna capable of performing wireless communication with an external device using electromagnetic induction; A non-contact IC module that has a second antenna that can be electromagnetically coupled to the booster and that can be detachably connected to the booster, so that the non-contact IC module is connected to the booster via the booster. It can communicate with an external device without contact.

According to the non-contact information medium of the present invention, the non-contact IC module can substantially communicate with an external device via the booster. Therefore, as long as the booster can communicate with the external device and the non-contact IC module can communicate with the booster, the non-contact IC module does not need to have a communication distance capable of directly communicating with the external device. Further, the non-contact IC module can be detachably connected to the booster. Therefore, if the boosters having different sizes and communication distances are used, the communication distance of the non-contact IC module can be adjusted to a desired distance. Also,
A booster can be commonly used for non-contact IC modules having the same shape.

Other objects and further features of the present invention will become apparent from the embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0017]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A non-contact information medium according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In each figure,
The members with the same reference numbers represent the same members, and the members with the same reference numerals added with the alphabets represent the corresponding deformed members, and redundant description will be omitted. Further, unless otherwise specified, the reference numbers are assumed to be all the same reference numbers with alphabets.

First, a non-contact information medium 10 according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the relationship between the configuration of the contactless information medium 10 of the present invention and the reader / writer 1.

The non-contact information medium 10 of the present invention communicates with a reader / writer (R / W) 1, which is an external device, using electromagnetic waves. The non-contact information medium 10 may have a built-in battery. However, it is preferable that the non-contact information medium 10 be battery-less in order to avoid troubles caused by deterioration of the built-in battery and to reduce the size of the chip. Therefore, hereinafter, the contactless information medium 10 exchanges data with the reader / writer 1 using radio waves, and obtains operating power by electromagnetic induction from the radio waves received from the reader / writer 1. The non-contact information medium 10 can have any shape (for example, a pendant shape, a coin shape, a key shape, a card shape, a tag shape, etc.) according to the application.

As described above, the non-contact information medium 10 of the present invention
Can communicate wirelessly with an external device without contact, but this does not exclude the function of the present invention to contact and communicate with the external device. For example, the non-contact information medium 10
By incorporating the contact IC chip, it is possible to constitute a combination card having both functions of a contact IC card and a non-contact IC card together with a non-contact IC module 30 described later in detail.

The present invention does not prevent the non-contact information medium 10 from being applied to a card medium having a magnetic stripe. In this case, the non-contact information medium 10 of the present invention has a function as a magnetic card such as a credit card and a cash card. further,
Optionally, the non-contact information medium 10 may be formed with an emboss, a sign panel, a hologram, a stamp, a hot stamp, an image print, a photograph, and the like.

The reader / writer 1 has a control interface unit (CNT IF) 2 and an antenna unit (ANT) 3, and transmits and receives radio waves W having a predetermined carrier frequency fc to and from the non-contact information medium 10. Communicate with the non-contact information medium 10 using wireless communication. The radio wave W can use a carrier frequency fc in an arbitrary frequency band. The reader / writer 1 can be configured as, for example, a reader / writer for a non-contact IC card, and is connected to an external device (processing device, control device, personal computer, display, etc.) via a control interface unit 2. Have been.

The control interface unit 2 is connected to, for example, an antenna unit 3 composed of an antenna coil, and has a built-in modulation circuit and demodulation circuit. The modulation circuit converts the data from the external device into a transmission signal by changing the amplitude of the carrier frequency (ASK modulation method), and transmits the transmission signal to the antenna unit 3. The demodulation circuit converts a signal received from the contactless information medium 10 through the antenna unit 3 into a baseband signal to obtain data, and transmits the data to an external device (not shown). In addition, since the modulation circuit and the demodulation circuit can use a circuit known in the art,
Here, detailed description is omitted.

The non-contact information medium 10 includes a booster 20
And a wirelessly communicable non-contact IC module 30 electromagnetically coupled to the booster 20. Characteristically, in the non-contact information medium 10 of the present invention, the booster 20 and the non-contact IC module 30 are separably connected. The connection is made by mechanical (structural), chemical (eg, adhesive), magnetic means.

The booster 20 receives the radio wave W from the reader / writer 1 and transmits it to the non-contact IC module 30, and receives the radio wave W from the non-contact IC module 30 and transmits it to the reader / writer 1. be able to. Therefore, the booster 20 has a function as a relay unit between the reader / writer 1 and the non-contact IC module 30. As described later, the booster 20 utilizes electromagnetic induction.
As long as such a function is achieved, the booster 20 can adopt any configuration.

Hereinafter, an example of the configuration of the booster 20 will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in the figure, the booster 20 includes at least one antenna coil 22,
It preferably has a capacitor 24.

The radio wave W received by the reader / writer 1 generates an induced current in the coil 22 as a change in magnetic flux. Such an induced current generates an induced current in a coil 34 of a non-contact IC module 30 described later, which is electromagnetically coupled to the coil 22. The coil 22 can generate a radio wave W from an induced current induced by a change in the current flowing through the coil 34 and transmit the generated radio wave W to the reader / writer 1.

As described above, the coil 22 is connected to the booster 20.
Functions as a communication unit capable of communicating with the reader / writer 1 and the non-contact IC module. Coil 22
Has a predetermined communication distance capable of communicating with the reader / writer 1, and its size is adjustable.
Such a predetermined communication distance can also be adjusted as needed. For this reason, if the non-contact information medium 10 of the present invention is applied as a substitute for the conventional non-contact IC card using microwaves, the above-mentioned predetermined communication distance is required to be the communication distance required for the conventional non-contact IC card. Can be set to the same distance as. For example, if the communication distance is to be about 10 mm, the coil 22 is made small, if it is about several cm, it is medium, and if it is 10 cm or more, it is made large.

The coil 22 can be formed by any method known in the art, such as etching using copper, aluminum, or the like, printing by a printed wiring method, or formation using a wire.

The configuration of the antenna used as the communication unit of the booster 20 is not limited to the antenna coil 22 as long as the booster 20 has a predetermined communication distance capable of communicating with the reader / writer 1. is there. For example, an antenna known in the art such as a dipole antenna, a monopole antenna, a loop antenna, a slot antenna, and a microstrip antenna can be used. Thus, the coil 22 can be conceptually understood as broadly including communication means.

The booster 20 can further include a condenser 24. The capacitor 24 cooperates with the coil 22 to form a resonance circuit that resonates at the carrier frequency fc. Capacitor 24 can be formed simultaneously with coil 22. Further, the capacitor 24 may be integrated with the coil 22 on a ceramic substrate (not shown).

Now, the resonance frequency fr of the circuit shown in FIG.
Indicates that the inductance of the coil 22 is L,
Is the capacitance of C, fr = (1 / 2π) (LC)
-1/2. If this value is made to match the carrier frequency fc, the circuit shown in FIG.
A large resonance current can flow through the capacitor 24, and the resonance current can be supplied to the non-contact IC module 30 in a non-contact manner.

Alternatively, instead of the capacitor 24 shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of capacitors may be provided as a matching circuit, and the coil 22 may be provided with a shield for removing noise.

The non-contact IC module 30 includes a memory 32
-1, a power supply circuit 32-3, a transmission / reception circuit 32-4 including a demodulation circuit and a modulation circuit, a clock (not shown), and preferably an IC chip 32 and a coil 34 incorporating a logic control circuit 32-2 Is mounted on the substrate 31. Alternatively, the non-contact IC module 30 may have a display, a keyboard, and the like (not shown) to achieve further multifunctionality. Further, the IC chip 32 is a coil 3
4 and a pair of connection terminals (not shown). Alternatively, the IC chip 32 may be configured integrally with the coil 34. Such an embodiment will be described later.

The non-contact IC module 30 of the present invention does not have a built-in battery as described above.
Numeral 3 obtains the operating power of the radio wave received by the coil 34 by electromagnetic induction. The demodulation circuit of the transmission / reception circuit 32-4 includes:
The baseband signal is restored to detect the received radio wave and obtain data therefrom. Further, the modulation circuit of the transmission / reception circuit 32-4 changes the carrier in accordance with the transmission data and transmits the data to the coil 34 in order to transmit the data. The modulation method is, for example, A that changes the amplitude of a carrier frequency.
SK, PSK for changing the phase, and the like can be used.

The modulation circuit and the demodulation circuit are the logic control circuit 3
It is controlled by 2-2 and operates in synchronization with the clock. The memory 32-1 is a ROM for storing data, RA
M, EEPROM and / or FRAM. Since the configuration and operation of the components of the non-contact IC module 30 are well known in the art, detailed description will be omitted.

The IC chip 32 stores predetermined data in the memory 32-1. The IC chip 32 communicates with the reader / writer 1 based on the data, and the logic control circuit can perform predetermined processing. For example, the memory 32-1 can store ID information, a value such as a predetermined amount of electronic money, a transaction record, and the like, and the logic control circuit can store a predetermined transaction (for example, purchasing a ticket, depositing electronic money, or the like). ) Can increase or decrease the value.

The coil 34 is connected to the IC chip 32 and is electromagnetically coupled to the coil 22 in a non-contact manner. The coil 34 and the coil 22 are arranged close to each other or close to each other by a minute gap. The coil 34 functions as a communication unit in the non-contact IC module 30. Since the coil 34 is arranged close to or close to the coil 22, its communication distance is very small compared to the communication distance (of the coil 22) of the booster 20. The arrangement of both coils depends on the connection method between the booster 20 and the non-contact IC module 30, which will be described later. The coil 34 has a desired size, shape, self-inductance, and mutual inductance according to the arrangement with the coil 22, the mounting area, and other conditions. For example, when viewed from above, the shape of the coil is not limited to a circle, but may be a square, an ellipse, or the like. The coil 34 is the coil 2
Similarly to 2, it can be formed by any method known in the art, such as etching using copper, aluminum, or the like, printing by a printed wiring method, or formation with a wire.

The non-contact IC module 30 has an IC chip 32 and a coil 34 mounted on one substrate 31.
Therefore, the non-contact IC module 30 is functionally
As such, a conventional non-contact IC card or IC tag or a radio frequency ID (RFID: Radio Frequ
It has a function similar to that of “Encryption Identification”. However, it is different from the conventional non-contact IC card in the following points.

In the conventional non-contact IC card, since the portion corresponding to the coil 34 is an antenna coil for communicating with the reader / writer 1, it needs to have substantially the same size and communication distance as the coil 22. Further, since such an antenna coil is much larger than an IC chip, it is manufactured separately without being mounted on the IC chip, and is manufactured by a wire bonding method or TAB (Tape Automata).
ed Bonding) method or IC
A bump was formed on the chip and the chip was connected to the IC chip by a face-down method using an anisotropic conductive film.
As will be understood, the non-contact IC module 30 of the present invention
However, the communication distance was short due to the small size of the coil 34 and could not be used as it was as a conventional non-contact IC card.

According to the present invention, the communication distance of the non-contact IC module 30 is extended by connecting the booster 20 to the non-contact IC module 30 as described later. The non-contact IC module 30 shown in FIG. 1 in which the coil 34 is formed separately from the IC chip 32 and connected to the IC chip 32 and mounted on one substrate 31 has the coil 34 turned on integrally with the IC chip 32. Coil tip 32E
May be replaced by the non-contact IC module 30E shown in FIG. In this case, placing the on-coil IC chip 32E on the substrate 31 is optional. In any case, the coil 34 is mounted on the same substrate 3 as the IC chip 32.
1 or integrated with the IC chip 32. The state of the built-in coil is, for example, as shown in FIG.
This can be understood by reading the chip 32 as an active element region of an IC and reading the substrate 31 as an IC chip substrate. Also, as described above, the coil 22
And the coil 34 can communicate without contact. Accordingly, the performance and connection of the non-contact IC module 30 of the present invention can be characteristically inspected using only the substrate 31 or the IC chip 32E alone.

In a conventional non-contact IC card, an IC chip and an antenna coil are separately manufactured and inspected, mounted on the card, and then connected to each other. Then,
The above-mentioned performance and connection were inspected as a whole, and defective products were replaced. Therefore, the conventional non-contact IC card cannot perform these inspections until the IC chip and the antenna coil are mounted on the card and connected thereto, so that the manufacturing efficiency is low. On the other hand, the non-contact information medium 10 of the present invention can be subjected to a function test as a single unit, and has improved manufacturing efficiency as compared with the conventional non-contact IC card.

The non-contact IC module 30 is basically the same as the conventional non-contact IC card manufacturing method except that the size of the coil 34 is small and mounted on the substrate 31 as described above. However, since the non-contact IC module 30 of the present invention is unitized by itself and is not in contact with the booster, the non-contact memory element 3
It is possible to inspect communication performance, processing performance, storage performance, connection status, and the like by itself before mounting. Therefore, the production efficiency is higher than that of the conventional non-contact IC card manufacturing method in that only the non-contact memory element 30 that has passed the inspection need be mounted.

Next, various connection means used in the non-contact information medium 10 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 4 is an exploded plan view of the non-contact information medium 10A using mechanical connection means. FIG. 5 is a side view illustrating the connection means of the non-contact information medium 10A shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is an exploded plan view of the non-contact information medium 10B using the adhesive connection means. FIG. 7 is an exploded plan view of the non-contact information medium 10C using the magnetic connection means.
In the drawings, the size of each part such as an IC chip is somewhat exaggerated for the sake of convenience and is easily seen. In addition, the components of the booster and the non-contact IC module cannot be generally seen (except for the skeleton structure substrate) because of the inside of each substrate, but are shown in FIGS. 4, 6 and 7 for convenience. .

The non-contact information medium 10A shown in FIG. 4 has a booster 20A and a non-contact IC module 30A. The booster 20A has a coil 22A, a capacitor 24A, a substrate 26A, and a T-shaped hole 27. Hole 2
7 has a horizontal hole 27a and a vertical hole 27b. The non-contact IC module 30A has a substrate 31A including a T-shaped protrusion 33 and a rectangular base connected to the T-shaped protrusion 33, and includes an IC chip 32A and a coil 34A.

At the time of connection, first, the board 31A of the non-contact IC module 30A is inserted into the horizontal hole 27a of the T-shaped hole 27 of the booster 20A. The non-contact IC module 30A is inserted into the hole 27 from the rectangular base, but may be inserted from the upper surface or the rear surface of the substrate 26A of the booster 20. Hereinafter, for convenience, it is assumed that the non-contact IC module 30A is inserted from the upper surface of the substrate 26A of the booster 20. Immediately after insertion, the coil 34A of the non-contact IC module 30A is connected to the booster 2 as shown in FIG.
Non-contact I because the normal direction is orthogonal to the coil 22A of 0A
The C module 30A is tilted so as to contact the booster 20A with the protrusion 33 projecting from the upper surface of the substrate 26A from the hole 27 (see the arrow in FIG. 5). At the same time, the protrusion 3
3 goes along the vertical hole 27b. Eventually,
The horizontal bar of the projection 33 is substantially parallel to the horizontal hole 27a and the vertical hole 27b
More aligned. Thereby, the non-contact IC module 30
A is fixed to the booster 20A.

When the non-contact IC module 30A is to be fixed more to the booster 20A, for example,
Another protrusion is provided on the rectangular base of the non-contact IC module 30A so as to face the protrusion 33, and the hole 2 is formed in the booster 20A.
Another hole may be provided opposite to 7 and both may be fixed by a set of holes and protrusions. Of course, only one hole 27 and one protrusion 33 may be provided, and the user may press with his / her finger to connect the two.

The non-contact information medium 10A shown in FIG. 4 has a non-contact IC module 30 having a projection 33 of a specific shape.
Only A can be connected to the hole 27 of the booster 20A.
Therefore, it is effective when only a user having a specific non-contact IC module is allowed to access the external device. In order to ensure this, for example, the surface of the substrate 26A may be processed to have irregularities or the like, so that the two cannot communicate with each other simply by stacking the non-contact IC module 30A on the booster 20A.

The non-contact information medium 10B shown in FIG. 6 has a booster 20B and a non-contact IC module 30B. The booster 20B has a removable adhesive 28 such as a double-sided tape on the substrate 26B, and is connected to the non-contact IC module 30B having the rectangular substrate 31B by the adhesive 28.

A non-contact information medium 10C shown in FIG. 7 has a booster 20C and a non-contact IC module 30C. A member 29 is provided on a substrate 26C of the booster 20C, and a substrate 31C of the non-contact IC module 30C is provided.
Is provided with a member 35. The members 29 and 35 are both magnets or one is a magnet and the other is a metal. Thereby, the non-contact IC module 30C is fixed to the booster 20C.

In any of FIGS. 4 to 7, the non-contact IC module 30 is connected to the booster 20 in a state of being overlapped. Therefore, if it is sufficient to secure short-time communication, the non-contact IC module 30 may be simply mounted on (or below) the booster 20.

It goes without saying that the connection means of the present invention is not limited to the above method. For example, as a modification of the mechanical connection means, a groove into which the non-contact IC module 30 can be detachably fitted may be formed on the surface of the substrate 26. Alternatively, a lid (not shown) that can be opened and closed may be provided at the center of the substrate 26, and the non-contact IC module 30 may be disposed inside the substrate 26 by opening the lid.

The booster 20 of the present invention can be used in common for a plurality of non-contact IC modules 30. For example, instead of the non-contact IC module 30B, a non-contact IC module 30A can be attached to the booster 20B. Further, if a plurality of boosters 20 having antennas of different sizes (accordingly, different communication distances) are prepared, the communication distance of one non-contact IC module 30 is adjusted to a desired distance by exchanging the boosters 20. You can also.

Hereinafter, the operation of the non-contact information medium 10 of the present invention will be described. Referring to FIG. 1, the non-contact information medium 10 of the present invention is expected to have various multi-purpose uses like a non-contact IC card and an IC tag. These fields include finance (cash card, credit card, electronic money management, farm banking, home banking, etc.) distribution (shopping cards, gift certificates, etc.), medical care (medical consultation tickets, health insurance cards, health handbooks, etc.), transportation (Stored fair (SF) card, coupon, license, commuter pass,
Passports), insurance (such as insurance certificates), securities (such as securities), education (such as student ID cards, transcripts), companies (such as ID cards), administration (such as seal seals, resident certificates, etc.). For example, when the IC chip 32 stores the ID information in its memory (ROM or the like), the non-contact information medium 10 can be used as an input / output management medium of a company, research institute, university, or the like.

In this case, first, the user holds the non-contact information medium 10 over a reader / writer 1 provided near the door at a distance of, for example, 10 to 50 cm. In response to this, the reader / writer 1 transmits the radio wave W at the carrier frequency fc to urge the non-contact information medium 10 to reply with the ID number. The radio wave W is preferably received by the coil 22 of the booster 20 that resonates at the carrier frequency fc, and is simultaneously transmitted to the coil 34 of the non-contact IC module 30 electromagnetically coupled to the coil 22. As a result, an induced current is generated in the coil 34, and the induced current is supplied to the IC chip 32. Since the induced current is an alternating current, the IC chip 32 converts it into a direct current in a power supply circuit (not shown) to obtain a constant voltage for operation of each unit.

On the other hand, a logic control circuit (not shown) reads ID information from a memory (not shown) in response to a signal (induced current) received through the coil 34 and a demodulation circuit (not shown) and sends the ID information from the coil 34. Operate each part. As a result, the ID information is read from the memory and sent out through a modulation circuit and a coil 34 (not shown). This ID information from the coil 34 is transmitted to the coil 22 of the booster and the antenna unit 3 of the reader / writer 1 electromagnetically coupled to the coil 22 by electromagnetic induction. The antenna unit 3 sends the received ID information to the control interface unit 2, and the control interface 2 requests a host computer or the like connected thereto to check the validity.

Optionally, reader / writer 1 may prompt the user to enter a password or supply fingerprint, voiceprint, and iris information. This makes it possible to simultaneously check whether the user is a valid owner of the non-contact information medium 10. In this case, the reader / writer 1 uses a fingerprint reader (not shown) or the like. Thereafter, if it is confirmed that the ID information is correct, the door is unlocked and the user can open the door and enter inside. The same applies when the door is a safe door. If the ID information is incorrect, the door lock is maintained.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications and changes can be made within the scope of the invention.

[0059]

According to the non-contact information medium of the present invention, the non-contact IC module capable of wireless communication having communication means such as minute coils can extend the communication distance to a desired distance by the booster. Therefore, conventionally, it was difficult to apply to a non-contact information medium because of its short communication distance.
Modules have expanded applications with the present invention.

Since the booster and the non-contact IC module are detachably connected, one booster can be commonly used for a plurality of non-contact IC modules. If a plurality of boosters having different communication distances are provided, the communication distance of one non-contact IC module can be adjusted to a desired distance.

The non-contact IC module has at least a communication means such as an IC chip and a coil connected thereto, but does not exclude the incorporation of other components.

In a non-contact IC module using an IC chip and a coil, the coil may be arranged on a substrate on which the IC chip is mounted, or the coil may be integrated with the IC chip to form an on-coil IC chip. .

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the relationship between the configuration of a non-contact information medium of the present invention and a reader / writer.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an on-coil IC chip applicable to the non-contact IC module of the non-contact information medium shown in FIG.

3 shows a top view of a coil that can be used in the non-contact IC module of the non-contact information medium shown in FIG.

FIG. 4 is an exploded plan view for explaining a case where the non-contact information medium shown in FIG. 1 mechanically connects the non-contact IC module and the booster.

FIG. 5 is a side view illustrating connection means of the non-contact information medium shown in FIG.

FIG. 6 is an exploded plan view for explaining a case where the non-contact information medium shown in FIG. 1 adhesively connects the non-contact IC module and the booster.

FIG. 7 is an exploded plan view for explaining a case where the non-contact information medium shown in FIG. 1 magnetically connects the non-contact IC module and the booster.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Non-contact information medium 20 Booster 22 Coil 24 Capacitor 27 Hole 28 Adhesive material 29 Connection member 30 Non-contact IC module 32 IC chip 33 Projection part 34 Coil 35 Connection member

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A board detachably connectable to a booster having a first antenna capable of wirelessly communicating with an external device using electromagnetic induction, and a non-contact with the first antenna of the booster. A second antenna that can be electromagnetically coupled; and an IC element connected to the second antenna, so that the IC element communicates with the external device through the booster without contact. Contactless IC module that can be used. 2. A substrate detachably connectable to an IC module, a first antenna capable of performing wireless communication with an external device using electromagnetic induction, and a carrier frequency of a signal transmitted by the external device. A booster having a capacitor that forms a resonating circuit together with the first antenna. 3. A booster having a first antenna capable of performing wireless communication using electromagnetic induction with an external device, and a booster having a first antenna which can be electromagnetically coupled to the first antenna of the booster in a non-contact manner. A non-contact IC module having two antennas and separably connectable to the booster. As a result, the non-contact IC module communicates with the external device through the booster in a non-contact manner. Contactless information medium that can be. 4. The booster has a first engagement portion,
4. The non-contact information medium according to claim 3, wherein the non-contact IC module has a second engagement portion, and the first and second engagement portions can be mechanically engaged in a separable manner. 5. The non-contact information medium includes the non-contact IC.
4. The non-contact information medium according to claim 3, further comprising an adhesive for detachably attaching a module to the booster. 6. The non-contact information medium includes the non-contact IC.
4. The non-contact information medium according to claim 3, further comprising a magnet for detachably connecting a module to the booster.