System and method for stock picking using RFID tags
AssigneeAvery Dennison Retail Information Services LLC
InventorMark W. Roth
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A system and method for hands-free stock picking using radio frequency identification (“RFID”) includes a fixed RFID reader configured to interrogate RFID tags associated with inventory that is disposed on shelving, and an RFID barrier that is configured to substantially inhibit interrogation of RFID tags associated with active inventory on the shelving. The RFID reader receives responses from the replenishment inventory on the shelving which are tabulated. When an item is picked from the active inventory and moved away from the RFID barrier, the RFID reader receives an increased number of responses for that item compared to the tabulated inventory. The system then associates the picked item with the associated customer order.
Claims20
A radio frequency identification (“RFID”) based inventory system, comprising:
- an RFID reader configured to interrogate RFID devices associated with inventory;
- and
- an RFID barrier configured to inhibit interrogation of RFID devices associated with active inventory until an active inventory item is picked and removed from behind the RFID barrier relative to the RFID reader,
- wherein the RFID based inventory system determines when an item has been picked from active inventory based at least in part on an increase in a number of responses to the interrogation by the RFID reader, wherein each response corresponds to a separate RFID device.
A method comprising:
- interrogating, by an RFID reader, RFID devices associated with inventory;
- and
- inhibiting, by an RFID barrier disposed in the inventory, interrogation of an RFID device associated with an active inventory item by the RFID reader until the active inventory item is picked and removed from behind the RFID barrier relative to the RFID reader,
- wherein the RFID reader is disposed within reading range of the inventory.
A method of hands-free item picking from active inventory, comprising:
- transmitting, by an RFID reader, a first RFID interrogation signal within reading range of inventory comprising replenishment inventory and active inventory;
- inhibiting, by an RFID barrier disposed between the active inventory and the RFID reader, transmission of the first RFID interrogation signal to the active inventory;
- receiving, by the RFID reader and only from the replenishment inventory, a plurality of first responses to the first RFID interrogation signal, wherein each first response corresponds to a separate RFID device;
- determining, from the first plurality of responses, the replenishment inventory;
- transmitting, by an RFID reader, a second RFID interrogation signal;
- receiving, by the RFID reader, a plurality of second responses to the second RFID interrogation signal, wherein each second response corresponds to a separate RFID device;
- determining, by the RFID reader, that an item was picked from active inventory using one or more of:
- the plurality of second responses is greater in number than the plurality of first responses;
- an RSSI associated with a response from the picked item is not below the RSSI of responses from the replenishment inventory indicating that the item was picked and removed away from the RFID barrier;
- and
- the RFID reader received both a response from the picked item and a response from an RFID device associated with a non-inventory asset in response to the second RFID interrogation signal.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.