JP2012248106A - Non-contact ic label - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided is a non-contact IC label capable of supporting two types of frequencies and communication methods of UHF band and HF band and capable of communicating even when attached to a metal adherend.
A magnetic sheet, a plurality of first antenna portions having a sheet shape disposed on one surface side of the magnetic sheet, and a first IC chip connected to the plurality of first antenna portions. In the non-contact IC label including the second antenna portion 27, which is disposed on one surface side of the magnetic sheet 10 and has a coil shape surrounding the plurality of first antenna portions 25, and the second antenna portion 27. The second IC chip 29 is provided.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a contactless IC label capable of reading ID information by wireless communication.

  Conventionally, information is transmitted and received by wireless communication between an RFID tag (non-contact IC label) and a reader. However, when the RFID tag is attached to a metal adherend, the communication performance is degraded. In order to solve this problem, various RFID tag configurations have been studied.

  For example, in an electromagnetic induction type RFID tag that uses radio waves in the 13.56 MHz band, a magnetic material (magnetic sheet) having a high magnetic permeability is provided between the antenna and the adherend, and loss is caused between the antenna and the adherend. By securing a route of a small magnetic flux, an RFID tag that can maintain communication performance even when attached to a metal adherend is realized. Although the communication performance is reduced, the thickness of the magnetic material can be reduced to, for example, 100 μm or 100 μm or less, so that a thin metal-compatible RFID tag corresponding to a metal adherend can be produced.

In contrast, in radio frequency RFID tags used in the UHF band and SHF band, a gap between the antenna and the adherend is secured by providing a dielectric or air layer between the antenna and the adherend. A method for suppressing the influence of the adherend is generally used.
However, in this method, when a dielectric having a thickness of 100 μm is used between the antenna and the adherend, or when an air layer having a thickness of 100 μm is provided, the influence of the adherend made of metal is not effective. It is strongly received and communication is impossible. Therefore, at present, it is considered difficult to produce a thin RFID tag (thickness of several hundred μm or less) used in the HF band.

  As another RFID tag of the radio wave system used in the UHF band and the SHF band, for example, as shown in Patent Document 1, a configuration in which a magnetic body is provided between an antenna and an adherend has been proposed. In this RFID tag, a soft magnetic material is disposed between an antenna and a metal adherend. In Patent Document 1, there is a clear description of the soft magnetic material. On the other hand, the antenna used is only described to the extent of a dipole antenna and its modified antenna, and there is no detailed description of the antenna shape in actual verification, and the thickness of the magnetic material is also 1 mm (communication distance is 15 mm). Only examples are described.

JP 2005-309811 A

However, the radio wave type RFID tag used in the UHF band and the SHF band has a problem that, for example, it is too thick to be used as a label and cannot be practically used.
Many common RFID tags have an antenna width of 1 mm or less, and some RFID tags adopt a meander shape by narrowing the antenna width in order to reduce the size and improve the antenna gain. According to experiments conducted by the inventor, when the RFID tag described in Patent Document 1 includes a general antenna as described above, sufficient communication performance cannot be obtained simply by thinning the soft magnetic material. I also understood that.

  On the other hand, there are two main types of RFID tags, RFID tags that operate in a radio wave system in the UHF band and RFID tags that operate in an electromagnetic induction system in the HF band, and an object to be attached (adhered object), Two types of RFID tags are properly used depending on the usage environment.

Under these circumstances, in recent years, a multi-reader capable of reading the above-described two types of frequency and communication type RFID tags has been developed and marketed. However, radio wave output antennas and electromagnetic induction output antennas have completely different antenna structures, which makes it difficult to achieve high output and high cost. .
If the RFID tag itself can cope with the above-mentioned two types of frequencies and communication methods and can be made simply and inexpensively to cope with this problem, the RFID tag can be used for both UHF band and HF band readers. Information can be read, and the convenience in the usage environment is greatly improved.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and is a non-contact IC label that can support two types of frequencies and communication methods of the UHF band and the HF band and can communicate even when attached to a metal adherend. The purpose is to provide.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention employs the following means.
That is, the non-contact IC label according to the present invention is connected to a magnetic sheet, a plurality of first antenna portions having a sheet shape disposed on one surface side of the magnetic sheet, and the plurality of first antenna portions. A non-contact IC label provided with a first IC chip, a second antenna portion disposed on one surface side of the magnetic sheet and having a coil shape surrounding the plurality of first antenna portions, and the second antenna And a second IC chip connected to the unit.

  According to such a non-contact IC label, since the first antenna portion and the second antenna portion are provided, at least 2 can be obtained by making the frequency band and the communication system of the first antenna portion and the second antenna portion different. It is possible to cope with various frequencies and communication methods.

  The non-contact IC label according to the present invention is connected to a magnetic sheet, a plurality of first antenna portions having a sheet shape disposed on one surface side of the magnetic sheet, and the plurality of first antenna portions. A non-contact IC label comprising a first IC chip, and further comprising a second antenna portion disposed on one side of the magnetic sheet and having a coil shape surrounding the plurality of first antenna portions, Two antenna portions are connected to the first IC chip.

  Similarly to the above, such a non-contact IC label can correspond to at least two types of frequencies and communication methods by making the frequency bands and communication methods of the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit different.

  Furthermore, in the non-contact IC label according to the present invention, it is preferable that the first antenna unit operates in a UHF band radio wave system and the second antenna unit operates in an HF band electromagnetic induction system.

  As a result, it is possible to realize a non-contact IC label corresponding to two types of radio wave system of UHF band and electromagnetic induction system of HF band.

  The non-contact IC label according to the present invention is connected to a magnetic sheet, a plurality of first antenna portions having a sheet shape disposed on one surface side of the magnetic sheet, and the plurality of first antenna portions. A non-contact IC label provided with a first IC chip, a second antenna portion disposed on one surface side of the magnetic sheet and having a coil shape surrounding the plurality of first antenna portions, and the second antenna A second IC chip connected to the first IC chip, and the second antenna unit may be connected to the first IC chip in addition to the second IC chip.

  According to such a non-contact IC label, since the second antenna unit can be operated in different systems of two frequency bands, it is possible to realize a maximum of three waves by adding the first antenna unit. Can do.

Furthermore, in the non-contact IC label, the first antenna unit operates in the UHF band radio wave system, and the second antenna unit operates in both the HF band electromagnetic induction system and the UHF band electromagnetic induction system. Is preferred.
As a result, it is possible to reliably realize the three-wave correspondence.

In the non-contact IC label according to the present invention, a pair of the first antenna portions are arranged as a plurality of the first antenna portions so as to extend from the connection portion with the first IC chip. It is preferable that directions in which the first antenna portions extend from the connection portions are opposite to each other.
As a result, a thin configuration can be realized while ensuring communication sensitivity.

  According to the non-contact IC label of the present invention, it corresponds to two kinds of frequencies and communication methods of the UHF band and the HF band, and can be communicated even when attached to a metal adherend.

It is a top view showing typically the non-contact IC label concerning a first embodiment of the present invention. It is a top view which shows typically the non-contact IC label which concerns on 2nd embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows typically the non-contact IC label which concerns on 3rd embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows typically the non-contact IC label which concerns on 4th embodiment of this invention.

  The non-contact IC label 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. This non-contact IC label 1 performs non-contact communication with a data reader (not shown).

  As shown in FIG. 1, the non-contact IC label 1 includes a magnetic sheet 10 and an inner communication unit 20 and an outer communication unit 30 disposed on one surface of the magnetic sheet 10.

  The magnetic sheet 10 is made of a composite material of a magnetic band of magnetic particles or magnetic flakes and a synthetic resin of plastic or rubber, and a known material having high flexibility can be used as a label. The magnetic sheet 10 is formed in a rectangular sheet shape having a predetermined thickness.

  The inner communication unit 20 is disposed at the center of one surface of the magnetic sheet 10. The inner communication unit 20 includes a first IC chip 21, a circuit unit 22 connected to the first IC chip 21, and a pair of circuits that are connected to the circuit unit 22 and sandwiched between the circuit units 22. Connection pads (connection portions) 23 and 24 and a pair of antenna elements (first antenna portions) 25 and 26 connected to the connection pads 23 and 24, respectively.

  The first IC chip 21 has a known configuration, and predetermined information is stored in the first IC chip 21. The first IC chip 21 is stored in the first IC chip 21 by supplying UHF band radio wave energy to the first IC chip 21 by an electric wave method from an electrical contact (not shown) provided in the first IC chip 21. The information is transmitted to the outside of the first IC chip 21 through the electrical contacts. That is, the first IC chip 21 is a chip corresponding to a radio wave system, and in particular, in the present embodiment, is a UHF band radio wave system.

The circuit portion 22 and the connection pads 23 and 24 are integrally formed by printing silver paste ink on a film (not shown) formed of PET or the like.
The circuit unit 22 is formed by wiring meandering into a predetermined shape. The circuit unit 22 is configured so that predetermined equal impedance and resistance values are generated between the IC chip 21 and the connection pads 23 and 24 and between the IC chip and the connection pads 23 and 24, respectively. ing. The circuit unit 22 is electrically connected to electrical contacts (not shown) in the first IC chip 21.
The connection pads 23 and 24 are arranged so as to sandwich the circuit unit 22 from the direction along the short side of the magnetic sheet 10, and are electrically connected to the circuit unit 22.

  The circuit part 22 and the connection pads 23 and 24 integrally formed as described above and the first IC chip 21 constitute a so-called chip strap. Further, the chip strap and the antenna elements 25 and 26 constitute a so-called dipole antenna.

  The pair of antenna elements 25, 26 are electrically connected to the pair of connection pads 23, 24 in a one-to-one relationship, and are disposed so as to extend from the corresponding connection pads 23, 24, respectively. More specifically, the pair of antenna elements 25 and 26 are set so that the directions extending from the connection pads 23 and 24 are opposite to each other. That is, one antenna element 25 (the upper antenna element 25 in FIG. 1) extends from the corresponding connection pad 23 toward one side (left side in FIG. 1) in the long side direction of the magnetic sheet 10, and the other The antenna element 26 (lower antenna element 26 in FIG. 2) extends from the corresponding connection pad 24 toward the other side in the long side direction of the magnetic sheet 10 (right side in FIG. 2).

  The outer communication unit 30 is disposed outside the inner communication unit 20 on one surface of the magnetic sheet 10. The outer communication unit 30 includes a second IC chip 29 and an antenna coil (second antenna unit) 27 connected to the second IC chip 29.

  The second IC chip 29 has a known configuration, and predetermined information is stored in the second IC chip 29. Then, energy stored in the second IC chip 29 is supplied to the second IC chip by an electromagnetic induction method from an electrical contact (not shown) provided on the second IC chip 29, so that the information stored in the second IC chip 29 is converted into the electrical contact. It can be transmitted to the outside of the second IC chip 29 via the. That is, the second IC chip 29 is a chip corresponding to an electromagnetic wave method, and in particular, in the present embodiment, is an HF band electromagnetic wave method.

The antenna coil 27 has a coil shape arranged so as to surround the inner communication unit 20 including the inner antenna from the outer peripheral side. That is, the antenna coil 27 is disposed on one surface of the magnetic sheet 10 so that the wire-shaped conductive wire portions are wound in an overlapping manner. Both ends of the antenna coil 27 are connected to the second IC chip 29, and are configured to perform electromagnetic induction communication in the HF band with an external reader.
Even when the non-contact IC label 1 is attached to, for example, a metal adherend, the antenna coil 27 has a high magnetic permeability between the antenna coil 27 and the adherend. A magnetic flux route with less loss is secured between the adhesive and the adherend, and good communication can be ensured.

  According to the non-contact label of the present embodiment as described above, the inner communication unit 20 corresponds to the UHF band radio wave system, and the outer communication unit 30 corresponds to the HF band electromagnetic induction system. Information communication can be performed using two types of frequencies and communication methods.

  Further, when the communication system is the electromagnetic induction antenna coil 27, the antenna gain (sensitivity) is proportional to the size (diameter) of the antenna coil 27, so that these antennas are placed outside the pair of antenna elements 25 and 26. By forming so as to surround the elements 25 and 26, the diameter of the antenna coil 27 can be maximized.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The non-contact IC label 1 of the second embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that the second IC chip 29 is not provided and both ends of the antenna coil 27 are connected to the first IC chip 21. .
That is, the first IC chip 21 of the second embodiment is a single chip that incorporates the functions of the second IC chip 29 of the first embodiment.
The advantage of this one chip is great. First, the mounting cost of one IC chip can be reduced, and the user memory area in the chip is shared, so that the chip size can be reduced compared to the case of two chips. You can also.

  Although there is a drawback that the communication distance is shortened, the electromagnetic induction method is sometimes used even in the UHF band in order to make it less susceptible to the influence of the surroundings such as mainly liquids and proximity of RFID tags. Therefore, a UHF band reading antenna (coil antenna) specialized for the electromagnetic induction method is also commercially available.

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the non-contact IC label 1 of the third embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that a part 27 a of the antenna coil 27 is connected to the first IC chip 21.
In other words, this non-contact IC label 1 is obtained by using a part 27a of the antenna coil 27 as a UHF band electromagnetic induction antenna, and corresponds to the electromagnetic induction reading antenna coil 26 described above.

Both ends of a portion 27a of the antenna coil 27 are connected to connection portions (bumps) of the first IC chip 21 corresponding to the electromagnetic induction method of the UHF band. Therefore, as the first IC chip 21, it is necessary to use a chip corresponding to two methods of a radio wave method and an electromagnetic induction method.
In this embodiment, in addition to two-wave support (two types of frequencies in the UHF band and HF band, two types of communication methods), the electromagnetic induction method in the UHF band is also supported. That is, in the present embodiment, the first antenna unit operates in the UHF band radio wave system, and the second antenna unit operates in both the HF band electromagnetic induction system and the UHF band electromagnetic induction system. Therefore, according to the non-contact IC label 1 of the present embodiment, it is possible to realize three-wave correspondence.

  Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 4, the same components as those in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted. As shown in FIG. 4, the non-contact IC label 1 of the fourth embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that the magnetic sheet 10 is divided into two areas in plan view.

  That is, in the fourth embodiment, the magnetic sheet 10 is divided into a first region 10a in which the inner communication unit 20 is disposed and a second region 10b in which the outer communication unit 30 is disposed. The second regions 10b have different physical properties.

  By doing so, the following improvements are possible. That is, in the first region 10a of the magnetic sheet 10, the electrical property values (magnetic permeability, magnetic loss, dielectric constant, dielectric loss, etc.) can be made suitable for the UHF band radio wave system. Similarly, the second region 10b of the magnetic sheet 10 should also have electrical properties (permeability, magnetic loss, dielectric constant, dielectric loss, etc.) suitable for the HF band electromagnetic induction method. Can do.

Although not shown, the same applies to the UHF band electromagnetic induction antenna coil 27. Therefore, it becomes possible to further extend the communication distances of the UHF band and the HF band.
Moreover, when setting the 1st area | region 10a and the 2nd area | region 10b of the magnetic sheet 10, each form manufactured and divided | segmented by another process (a shape is included), or the form manufactured and integrated in the same process As described above, any form may be used as long as the electrical property value of the magnetic sheet 10 can be changed.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described in detail, unless it deviates from the technical idea of this invention, it is not limited to these, A some design change etc. are possible.

  For example, in the embodiment, the shape of the antenna elements 25 and 26 in plan view is rectangular. However, the shape of the antenna elements 25 and 26 is not limited to this, and the shape of the antenna elements 25 and 26 in plan view may be a circle, an ellipse, or a polygon. Furthermore, the antenna elements 25 and 26 and the antenna elements 25 and 26 may have different shapes. The same applies to the antenna coil 27, and any shape may be used as long as the antenna elements 25 and 26 are surrounded from the periphery.

In the embodiment, the directions in which the pair of antenna elements 25 and 26 extend are opposite to each other. However, the arrangement is not particularly limited as long as the extending directions are different from each other.
Further, in the embodiment, the inner communication unit 20 and the outer communication unit 30 are arranged on one surface of the magnetic sheet 10, but the one surface of the magnetic sheet 10 and the inner communication unit 20 and the outer communication unit 30 are arranged. A member formed of resin or the like may be disposed between them, or an air layer may be provided therebetween.

  When the non-contact IC label 1 is actually used, although not shown in the figure, a film or paper on which information such as characters and figures for visual or machine reading is described is used to protect the IC chip. In addition, the magnetic sheet 10 may be provided on the opposite side of the inner communication unit 20 and the outer communication unit 30. This information may be written on the film by a printer or the like after the non-contact IC label 1 is provided with a film or the like. Moreover, the other surface of the magnetic sheet 10 may be provided with an adhesive layer for adhering to a metal surface that is an adherend.

A reading experiment using the non-contact IC label 1 of the first embodiment was performed. The contents are shown below.
(Experimental conditions)
The equipment and materials shown below were used for the experiment.
Magnetic sheet 10: NRC010 (100 μm thickness) manufactured by Daido Steel Co., Ltd.
First IC chip 21: UCODE G2iL made by NXP
・ Antenna elements 25 and 26: 12 μm thick aluminum thin film ・ Chip strap (with impedance circuit (circuit part 22)): Other than IC chip 21, pattern printed with silver paste ink on in-house made PET film (thickness 50 μm) (Thickness 8μm)
Second IC chip 29 and antenna coil 27: 75 mm × 46 mm manufactured by OMRON Corporation
IC inlet for 13.56 MHz, UHF band high output handy reader: SAMSUNG VLACG1 Maximum output: 1W
-HF band reader: Central Engineering Co., Ltd. MR04A
-HF band reading antenna: FLAM-T21A manufactured by Central Engineering Co., Ltd.
・ Metal plate: Stainless steel (250mm x 250mm x 0.5mm)

(Experimental procedure)
The magnetic sheet 10 was placed on a stainless steel metal plate. Then, the antenna elements 25 and 26 are arranged on the magnetic sheet 10, and further, the chip strap printed on the PET is further connected to the connection pads 23 and 24 to the antenna elements 25 and 26. Arranged. In addition, the foamed polystyrene was placed on the PET film, and the metal plate to the foamed polystyrene were collected and fixed with a band so that the connection between the antenna elements 25, 26 and the connection pads 23, 24 was ensured.
Subsequently, the handy reader was brought closer from the polystyrene foam side, and the information stored in the first IC chip 21 was read by the radio wave method. And the maximum value (communication distance) of the distance which a handy reader can read information from the inner side communication part 20 in non-contact was calculated | required.
Furthermore, the handy reader was brought closer from the polystyrene foam side, and the information stored in the second IC chip 29 was read by the electromagnetic induction method. And the maximum value (communication distance) of the distance which a handy reader can read information from the 2nd deep part without contact was calculated | required.
It has been found that the polystyrene foam and the PET film hardly affect the measurement result of the communication distance.

(result)
The antenna elements 25 and 26 are one type of 30 mm (length) × 10 mm (width), and the results of experiments when the output of the handy reader R is 0.5 W (27 dBm) are shown below.
・ Communication distance in UHF band: 120mm
・ Communication distance in the HF band: 90 mm
In addition, an experiment was conducted to examine the degree of mutual interference between the antenna elements 25 and 26, which are UHF band antennas, and the antenna coil 27, which is an HF band antenna.
With respect to the communication distance in the UHF band, there was almost no difference in the communication distance between when the antenna coil 27 is provided outside the pair of antenna elements 25 and 26 and when there is no antenna coil 27. Further, in the communication distance in the HF band, there was almost no difference in the communication distance between when the pair of antenna elements 25 and 26 provided inside the antenna coil 27 was present and when they were absent.

  From the above experimental results, it is possible to communicate with the two types of frequencies and communication methods of the UHF band and the HF band, which are the object of the present invention, and can communicate even when attached to a metal adherend, and is a thin non-contact IC I found that label 1 can be made.

1 Non-contact IC label 10 Magnetic sheet 10a First area 10b Second area

20 inner communication part 21 first IC chip 22 circuit part 23 connection pad (connection part)
24 connection pad (connection part)
25 Antenna element (first antenna)
26 Antenna element (first antenna)
30 Outer communication unit 29 Second IC chip 27 Antenna coil (second antenna)
27a part

Claims (6)

A magnetic sheet;
A plurality of first antenna portions having a sheet shape disposed on one surface side of the magnetic sheet;
In a non-contact IC label comprising a first IC chip connected to the plurality of first antenna parts,
A second antenna portion disposed on one surface side of the magnetic sheet and having a coil shape surrounding the plurality of first antenna portions;
A non-contact IC label, further comprising a second IC chip connected to the second antenna unit. A magnetic sheet;
A plurality of first antenna portions having a sheet shape disposed on one surface side of the magnetic sheet;
In a non-contact IC label comprising a first IC chip connected to the plurality of first antenna parts,
A second antenna portion disposed on one surface side of the magnetic sheet and having a coil shape surrounding the plurality of first antenna portions;
The non-contact IC label, wherein the second antenna portion is connected to the first IC chip. The first antenna unit operates in a UHF band radio system,
The non-contact IC label according to claim 1, wherein the second antenna unit operates in an HF band electromagnetic induction method. A magnetic sheet;
A plurality of first antenna portions having a sheet shape disposed on one surface side of the magnetic sheet;
In a non-contact IC label comprising a first IC chip connected to the plurality of first antenna parts,
A second antenna portion disposed on one surface side of the magnetic sheet and having a coil shape surrounding the plurality of first antenna portions;
A second IC chip connected to the second antenna unit;
The non-contact IC label, wherein the second antenna portion is connected to the first IC chip in addition to the second IC chip. The first antenna unit operates in a UHF band radio system,
The non-contact IC label according to claim 4, wherein the second antenna unit operates in both an HF band electromagnetic induction system and a UHF band electromagnetic induction system. As a plurality of the first antenna parts, a pair of the first antenna parts are arranged so as to extend from the connection part with the first IC chip,
The contactless IC label according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein directions in which the pair of first antenna portions extend from the connecting portions are opposite to each other.

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