Symbol Technologies, LLC

Charles Lauria

Russell Calvarese

Richard J Lavery

Rehan K Jaffri

Thomas E Wulff

Sean A Connolly

Timothy B Austin

Jimmy Chabra

Andrew Schiano

Ian L Fade

Eric McCafferty

A sensing system generates location signals indicative of where an electrically-powered, mobile device is in a venue. A control system determines that the mobile device is at rest when the location signals are substantially the same for a predetermined period of time, processes the location signals to determine an accurate, current location of the mobile device in the venue when the mobile device is determined to be at rest, and controls the mobile device when determined to be at rest to operate in a low power mode in which the average electrical power consumption of the mobile device is reduced.

Arrangement for, and method of, accurately locating, and reducing electrical power consumption of, mobile devices at rest in a venue

The present disclosure generally relates to the field of asset tracking via RFID. In an embodiment, the present disclosure describes a system that selectively deactivates at least some of the plurality of fixed RFID readers that are disposed within a venue based on a location determination of an active mobile RFID reader.

Operations of mobile RFID readers in a venue having fixed RFID readers

A user moves about a venue, and operates a mobile reader to read a product tag in a read zone of the mobile reader. An identifier, such as a user identity badge, is associated with the user to identify the user. A sensing system is deployed in the venue for sensing the location of the identifier. A host server associates the mobile reader with the identifier of the user operating the mobile reader, and determines a location of the product tag in the venue based on the read zone and the location of the identifier.

Arrangement for, and method of, locating product tags by locating users who are operating mobile readers for reading the product tags

A method and apparatus for locating a moving target in a venue and for capturing a sequenced timeline of target directed images is described. Target sensing stations having a wide-angle video camera, such as a 180&#xb0; video camera, are positioned within the venue. Each sensing station includes a sensing unit, such as radio frequency identification (RFID) transceiver unit, that determines a location and/or direction of travel of the target. The sensing station correlates the RFID transceiver information with the wide-angle video camera to specifically filter and process a video stream from the camera, producing target directed image snapshots from the stream that are assembled at a centralized controller into the sequenced timeline images that may be used in monitoring target movement and to establish location chain for prevention of unauthorized movement.

RFID directed video snapshots capturing targets of interest

A method and apparatus for identifying a qualified target for an association with a misplaced item within a venue includes detecting, using a detection and locationing system, a communication device and/or person within the venue. The method and apparatus detect a physical item that has been misplaced within the venue, where that misplaced item at has one or more attributes. The method and apparatus perform a digital association of the misplaced item with the communication device or with the person, using a determined proximity and a profile attribute. With the digital association made, a digital notification is communicated to the associated communication device or person to retrieve and return the misplaced item along a determined path.

Detection of misplaced objects and association with qualified target in venue for object return

Radio frequency identification (RFID) tags that pass through a portal in a venue are read by a portal RFID reader, and identified as being tags having a higher priority as compared to other RFID tags in the venue that have a lower priority. The identities of the high-priority tags are transmitted to an overhead RFID reader, which preferentially reads the high-priority tags over the low-priority tags in the venue. Only the high-priority RFID tags are located and tracked in the venue.

System for and method of enhanced reading and tracking of radio frequency identification tags

A method and apparatus for detecting a bulk quantity of RFID tags in a presentation area such as a point-of-sale device. Bulk quantity of RFID tags may be detected according to input to the point-of-sale device including through input from a symbolic barcode scanner, a conveyor belt, a weight scale, and/or via an RF antenna driven at a first power level. After the bulk quantity of RFID tags is detected, the RF antenna is driven at a second, higher power level temporarily to increase bulk RFID tag detection accuracy. 'Fringe' tags may be detected by the RF antenna when it is driven at the higher power level that are in the environment but not presented at the point-of-sale device. Fringe tags may be filtered based on RF characterization of the presentation area including driving the RF antenna outside of presentation sessions and/or filtering RFID tags detected across multiple presentation sessions.

Bulk radio frequency identification tag reading

Multiple sensing network units are deployed overhead in a venue. Each unit supports a motion detecting system for detecting a level of motion in a zone of the venue, and an RFID locationing system for reading RFID tags in the venue, in response to the motion level detected by the motion detecting system. The performance of the RFID locationing system is adjusted and optimized in response to the detected motion level.

Motion-controlled arrangement for, and method of, locating targets with improved performance in a venue

An array of light sensors arranged along mutually orthogonal sensor rows and sensor columns is exposed to return light from a target over successive frames. The array is subdivided into mutually orthogonal zones, each having a sub-plurality of sensor rows and sensor columns. Each row of zones is scanned multiple times to produce output light intensity values, which are averaged to obtain an average zonal value for each zone for each frame. The average zonal value over the successive frames is simultaneously averaged with slow and fast response characteristics to obtain respective slow and fast response values for each zone, which are then compared to obtain a difference value for each zone. Motion of the target in any region of a venue is indicated when the difference value between the fast and slow response values in a corresponding zone exceeds a threshold value.

Arrangement for, and method of, detecting motion of a target in a venue having multiple regions

A mobile device can be found and recovered by executing a recovery action indicative of at least one location of the mobile device. An interface displays the location of the mobile device.

Arrangement for, and method of, finding and recovering lost mobile devices in a venue

Multiple sensing network units are deployed overhead in a venue, in which RFID tags of interest and RFID product tags are also deployed. Each unit supports an RFID locationing system for reading the product tags in a reading mode of operation with a set of reading parameters, for reading the RFID tags of interest in the venue, for changing at least one of the reading parameters in response to reading an RFID tag of interest that is proximal to a zone of interest, and for reading with emphasis the product tags that are in the zone of interest with the changed reading parameter.

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Miller Place, NY, United States of America

Charles Lauria