Paper capacitor

Abstract

An RFID tag system is provided that is convertable from a passive system to an active system. This is accomplished by providing chargeable ink wells on the RFID tag system that can provide power to components in the RFID tag system. The power provides the components with power to communicate messages between the RFID tag system and a base unit. The chargeable ink wells are formed by printing a conductive ink onto the RFID tag system. The conductive ink forms a capacitive well having stored up energy upon charging of the conductive ink. The ink can be charged prior to printing on the RFID tag system or charged after the ink is printed onto the RFID tag system. The printed wells can be formed similar to large capacitive plates. The capacitive wells can also be formed from printed features such as a barcode or such as a group of alphanumeric characters.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.