1. Field of Invention
This invention relates generally to inventory control systems and, more particularly, to using encoded tags, for example, (Radio Frequency Identification) RFID tags, associated with a product for inventory control.
2. Background Art
It is common for retail stores to employ a “Replenishment Associate” whose job is to restock the store shelves with product obtained from a back storage room. These “Replenishment Associates” often carry handheld wireless devices that receive messages instructing the “Replenishment Associate” to restock certain products that are low on the shelves. The restock message can be typically known as a “pick list”.
Inventory control systems for monitoring total inventory on hand whether on a retail display shelf or in a storage area and for monitoring shelf restacking, often times utilize encoded tags encoded with product information associated and/or attached in some manner to the product. Currently, some inventory control systems incorporate non-directional RFID readers, which are, for example, located in a hallway between the back room and the sales floor of a retail store for the purpose of tracking inventory by scanning encoded tags. Currently some systems try to keep track of where a product is located based on the “last seen” read. This is not as accurate as needed because the typical system will not know the direction a product is moving. Thus, it becomes virtually impossible to determine how many items are on the shelf. For example, if a product is removed from the shelf and returned to a back storage room because it is defective, as the Replenishment Associate travels down a passage-way equipped with RFID reader, such as a hallway between the retail floor and the back storage area, the RFID reader will detect the movement of the product, however, the reader can not tell whether the product is being moved to the shelf or to the back storage area. Directional movement is not sensed by current RFID readers. Therefore, it would be impossible to track a product with a typical RFID tag containing general product information, because the RFID tag is not individually serialized for each individual product, therefore, the system will not be able to discern if an individual product had been previously placed on the shelf. There are also various other reasons why a product would be removed from the shelf and temporarily returned to storage, such as for example, rearranging shelving which requires that shelves be emptied. Also, misreads of the RFID tags occur often. A better system is needed for effective tracking of product movement.
The monitoring of different products, by utilizing of encoded “identification tags” secured to or otherwise associated with the various articles/products has been in use for many years. Moreover, various attempts to modify this type of tracking and inventory control have been made so as to adapt a tagging system for use in a variety of different applications. Such known applications include, but are not limited to, warehouses, retail outlets, industrial manufacturing sites, and almost any location where the variety or articles or products being monitored are manufactured, transported, stored, or sold.
The tagging of articles has been associated with the display of pricing information in association with the shelving of various products. Pricing and inventory controls are sometimes maintained through the inclusion of coded data on the tags, such as by means of bar codes or RFID tags, which are determinative of the identity or price of the various products. Such information, when coded on such a tag, can be read by various types of optical or digital scanners or RFID readers. However, often these tags are not encoded, with individual serialization information for each individual product, thus items can only be tracked by category. For example, the tags would not typically contain information to allow a tracking system to distinguish one 16 oz. container of brand “ABC” juice from another 16 oz. container of brand “ABC” juice.
In an effort to expand the versatility and efficiency of tracking and inventory control of a variety of articles, products, etc. and as a result of the problems and disadvantages of the type set forth above, associated industries have focused on various technologies. For example, resulting advancements in this field has yielded the development and utilization of radio frequency (RFID) tags and their attendant systems or readers. In general, RF tags are capable of retaining and transmitting a substantial amount of information, all of which is required for the expansive tracking and inventory control requirements associated with modern day industrial, transport and retail facilities.
More specifically, the RF tag systems are capable of receiving and storing information in a read/write application as well as being capable of sending and/or receiving data relating to product identification, status, location and overall control. Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) systems can commonly be used for identification and/or tracking of equipment, products or inventory control. One category of RFID systems are radio communication systems that communicate between a radio transceiver, called an Interrogator, and a number of inexpensive devices called Tags. In RFID systems, the Interrogator communicates to the Tags using modulated radio signals, and the Tags respond with modulated radio signals.
A message can be transmitted to the Tag, and the Interrogator can then transmit a radio signal to the Tag. The Tag can modulate the signal using for example Modulated Back Scattering (MBS) where the antenna is electrically switched, by the modulating signal, from being an absorber of RF radiation to being a reflector of RF radiation. This modulated backscatter allows communications from the Tag back to the Interrogator. Conventional systems are designed a) to identify an object passing into range of the Interrogator, and b) to store data onto the Tag and then retrieve that data from the Tag at a later time in order to manage inventory or perform another useful application. Also, various other basic RFID tag and RFID reader/detection systems are well known in the art.
Based on the above, there are still significant disadvantages and problems associated with known tagging systems especially when considering the wide variety of industrial applications or inventory control applications where such systems could be effectively implemented. Accordingly, there is a significant and long recognized need for an improved tracking and/or inventory control system. Such an improved system should be capable of real time inventory control as well as detecting the existence, location and direction of movement of an item. An improved system could be further structured to detect movement and/or removal of articles or products being monitored.
An improved system that can be adapted, without significant structural or operative modification to the facility, for usage in a variety of different areas including large scale warehousing, transport, delivery, and retail inventory, without significant manual intervention. In addition, other unique and/or customized features can be associated with the tags, dependent on the customer/user applications and requirements.
Accordingly, an improved system using RFID tags with strategically placed readers allowing such an improved system to overcome the recognized problems and disadvantages associated with RFID tagging monitoring system of the type set forth above.