Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

Walmart Apollo, LLC

Jarrod Lee Bourlon

Nicholaus Adam Jones

Thomas Edward Stiefel

Alvin Scott Taulbee

Bruce Walter Wilkinson

These teachings generally comprise interrogating RFID tags and receiving corresponding responses from various ones of these RFID tags while also receiving, from a remote source, surrogate response corresponding to at least some of the plurality of RFID tags that are not responding to the current interrogation. A corresponding plurality of end user-perceivable indications as correspond to both the responses from various ones of the plurality of RFID tags and the aforementioned surrogate responses are then provided to thereby ultimately inform an end user of the RFID tag reader with respect to a corresponding reading state as regards the plurality of RFID tags.

Method and apparatus pertaining to facilitating the reading of RFID tags

A portable multi-capability apparatus has a non-RFID capability and an RFID-tag reading capability. Upon determining that the apparatus is employing the non-RFID capability, the apparatus uses information regarding the non-RFID to determine a location of the apparatus. The apparatus then uses the RFID-tag reading capability in a ping mode of operation as a background task while also continuing to simultaneously use the non-RFID capability. When an RFID tag response to an RFID-tag reading ping, the apparatus correlates the RFID-tag response to the location of the apparatus is previously determined.

Multi-capability apparatus supporting background RFID tag-reading and corresponding methods

According to an embodiment, a computer-implemented method of managing inventory performed by a processor includes receiving in a digital or analog format, from a first computing device, a first request for first radio frequency identification (RFID) tag data associated with a first plurality of RFID tags and receiving in a digital or analog format, from a second computing device, a second request for second RFID tag data associated with a second plurality of RFID tags. In response to the first request and the second request, the method further includes automatically selecting a selected one of a first interrogation mode and a second interrogation mode based on the first request and the second request, and automatically transmitting configuration information to an RFID reader to operate in the selected interrogation mode.

Automatic self-learning RFID reader configurator

According to an embodiment, a computer-implemented method of managing inventory includes receiving, at an antenna operatively coupled to a radio-frequency identification (RFID) reader, product identification information encoded in an RF signal transmitted by a plurality of RFID tags. Each of the RFID tags is associated with a respective one of a plurality of products. The method further includes processing, by a processor and using the product identification information, information contained in a portion of the encoded RF signal to compare apparent location information associated with the RFID reader with prior location information associated with at least one of the products, and updating, by the processor, the apparent location information to match the prior location information where the apparent location information is different than the prior location information.

Discrepancy analysis of RFID reads to determine locations

A computer-implemented method of managing inventory includes receiving, at an antenna operatively coupled to a radio-frequency identification (RFID) reader, product identification information encoded in an RF signal transmitted by a plurality of RFID tags. Each of the RFID tags is associated with a respective one of a plurality of products. The method further includes processing, by a processor, the product identification information contained in a portion of the encoded RF signal to identify a characteristic associated with each of the products, and identifying, by the processor using the product identification information, one of the products having a characteristic different from another one of the products. The method may include identifying a majority of the products having a characteristic in common based on the product identification information, and identifying at least one of the products having a characteristic different from the majority.

Growing community of inventors

Centerton, AR, United States of America

Jarrod Lee Bourlon