US 2014/0235162 A1Published application

Wireless data communications

AssigneeNXP B.V.

InventorsFrancesco Gallo, Paul Bakker

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Abstract

Near-field communication (NFC) is effected in a manner that ensures that messages are read. In accordance with one or more embodiments, an apparatus includes a NFC antenna, a NFC tag and a host connected to the NFC tag via both a data communication circuit and a field detection circuit. The NFC tag stores and transmits an NFC data exchange format (NDEF) message via the NFC antenna. The NFC tag includes first and second registers respectively having data indicative of a read status of the NDEF message and data indicative of a last portion/byte of the NDEF message data. When the NDEF message is accessed (e.g., transmitted), the NFC tag sets the data in the first register to indicate that the NDEF message has been read (e.g., sets a bit value). The trigger circuit generates a trigger signal in response to the status, indicating that the NDEF message has been read.

Claims20

Dependent claims

An apparatus comprising:

a near-field communication (NFC) protocol tag circuit including an antenna circuit, a first register circuit having configuration data configured and arranged to facilitate remote-field communications via a second protocol that is different than the NFC protocol, and a second register circuit having data indicative of a last accessed byte of the configuration data, the NFC tag circuit being configured and arranged to, using radio frequency energy received from a remote reader circuit,
in response to a NFC protocol radio frequency communication received from the remote reader circuit via the antenna circuit, access the configuration data from the first register and transmit the accessed configuration data via the antenna circuit using the NFC protocol, and
based on the data indicative of the last accessed byte of the configuration data, generate a trigger signal in response to a last byte of the configuration data being accessed;
and
a host circuit connected to the NFC tag circuit and configured and arranged to
operate in a sleep mode in which the host circuit does not wirelessly communicate via the second protocol,
transition from the sleep mode to a wake mode in response to receiving the trigger signal from the NFC tag circuit, and
while operating in the wake mode, communicate with the reader circuit via radio frequency communications of the second communication protocol.

5 more elements

An apparatus comprising:

a near-field communication (NFC) antenna;
a NFC tag circuit that stores NFC data exchange format (NDEF) message data and that is configured and arranged to transmit the NDEF message data using a NFC protocol via the NFC antenna;
a host circuit having a processor;
a data communication circuit connected to the NFC tag circuit and the host circuit and configured and arranged to pass data from the host circuit to the NFC tag circuit and from the NFC tag circuit to the host circuit;
a field detection circuit connected between the NFC tag circuit and the host circuit;
in the NFC tag circuit,
a first register circuit configured and arranged with stored data indicative of a read status of the NDEF message data;
a second register circuit configured and arranged with stored data indicative of a last byte of the NDEF message data, the NFC tag circuit being configured and arranged to set the data in the first register circuit to indicate that the NDEF message data has been read, responsive to the transmission of the NDEF message data and based upon the data indicative of the last byte of the NDEF message data;
and
a trigger circuit configured and arranged to generate a trigger signal in response to the data indicative of the read status of the NDEF message data indicating that the last byte of the NDEF message data has been read, and to present the trigger signal via the field detection circuit.

7 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 13/771,516Filed 20 Feb 2013
Published: 21 Aug 2014
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification7 codes

H04B 5/77
Specially adapted for specific purposes: for interrogation
H04B 5/20
Near-field transmission systems, e.g. inductive or capacitive transmission systems: characterised by the transmission technique; characterised by…
H04W 52/0229
Using monitoring of external events, e.g. the presence of a signal: where the received signal is a wanted signal
Y02D 30/70
Reducing energy consumption in communication networks: in wireless communication networks