Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02326079 2000-11-16
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention pertains to the field of wireless communication systems
BACKGROUND
Identification devices, such as wristbands or the like, are widely used in
hospitals or in crowd
control situations, such as concerts, amusement parks, or the like, to
identify patients or
individuals and provide information regarding patients or individuals. In
addition, such
identification devices may be utilised in penal and similar institutions for
the purpose of inmate
control.
Initially, such wristbands were limited to providing the bare minimum of the
patient's name and,
possibly, the patient's illness, with this information being printed on said
bands. In crowd control
situations, the wristband is utilised to indicate the admissibility of an
individual wearing the band
and frequently the possible duration of the attendance period of the person
wearing the band,
which could be accomplished by colour coding. This identification method leads
to the
possibility of human error due to poor light conditions or concealing of the
information by
foreign material. Furthermore, contact with the individual to be identified
may be necessary to
correctly view the wristband.
Identification wristbands have also been provided with encoded information in
the form of bar
codes or the like whereby considerable additional information about the
individual wearing the
wristband can be ascertained, including, in the case of a hospital patient,
relevant data such as
medication, the patient's condition, or the like. In crowd control situations,
the wristbands can be
utilised to provide such data as the amount of money or payments unexpended by
the individual
wearing the wristband. Thus, in amusement parks or the like, the wristband, by
the use of
encoded information, can control the admission of the individual wearing the
band to specific
attractions. The main problem with this method is that direct visualisation of
the of the code is
required for accurate scanning. As with the imprinted bands foreign material
could obscure the
view of the bar code and contact with the individual to be scanning may be
required.
A solution which would overcome the aforementioned limitations of
identification wristbands
which are bar-coded or provided with similar encoded imprinted material would
be to provide a
radio frequency (RF) circuit in the wristband which would incorporate a semi-
conductor circuit
with logic, memory, and an RF circuit connected to an antenna capable of
storing and dispensing
information so that a staff member carrying a transponder could query the RF
circuit of the
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wristband to elicit a wide spectrum of information not presently available in
conventional
wristbands.
A possible configuration of a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag in the
form of a wrist
band is given in U.S. Patent No.5,973,600 and illustrated in Figures 1 and 2.
The RFID circuit
is attached to a intermediate laminae 20, which is then sandwiched between the
top and
bottom laminae, 30 and 40 respectively, to secure the RFID circuit in
position. This band can be
attached to an individual using a range of methods, for example inserting a
clip into holes pre-
formed within the band resulting in a closed loop.
It is well known to those skilled in the art that radio frequency
identification (RFID) circuitry of
this type can exist in a variety of configurations; for example, read only,
read/write, passive, and
active. The read only configuration provides previously installed information
from the RFID
circuit through a compatible reader. The read/write circuit permits the reader
to install or alter
information stored in the circuit. The passive circuit is one which depends
upon the signal
emitted by the reader for activation and operating power while the active
circuit includes a
battery or other internal power source which may be activated by the signal
from the reader.
U.S. Patent No. 5,973,600 describes a method of the assemblage of a RFID
circuit. Figure 3
illustrates the construction of a bi-laminae wristband wherein an upper lamina
130 of sheet
plastic material is drawn from a dispensing roll 110 between circuit-
imprinting means 150 and a
back-up roll 140. The circuit-imprinting means 150 may be composed of a
plurality of different
imprinting devices, which result in the formation of a complete circuit. The
RFID circuit (not
shown) is printed on the underside 120 of the upper lamina 130 and the upper
lamina 130 is fed
to a laminating station 180 where it is adhesively or otherwise fastened to
the lower lamina 190
drawn from a dispensing roll 160. A back-up roll 190 supports the assemblage
during the final
fabrication of the wristband 100. This process could also be altered slightly
to produce a tri-
laminae wristband, with the circuitry being imprinted on the middle laminae.
When using an active RFID tag, accurate determination of the individual being
scanned is
difficult due to the long-range transmission of said tag. If for example, one
individual is being
scanned, the information from another individual located nearby may be
received instead. This
could result in a serious error, for example, adding one individual's personal
data to another or
even more problematic, overwriting one individual's personal information with
another's.
Furthermore, since these devices are active, they require battery power to
function and this power
source could fail or be depleted if frequently used. By using a passive RFID
tag these problems
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are eliminated. These passive tags are powered by an electromagnetic field
that is generated by
the scanning device.
Smart cards, which are the size of a credit card and are passive devices, have
also been used for
individual identification. These devices need to be powered by direct contact
in order for the
information contained on the card to be transmitted. Thus these smart cards
could be
contaminated by foreign material, which could get into the contacts of the
reading device and
cause them to malfunction and furthermore contact with the patient is also
required.
Each of the above examples illustrates a method of identification of an
individual, however only
the information imprinted on and/or contained within the circuitry, of the
identification tags is
available to the person seeking the information.
Within a hospital setting, correct and safe identification of a patient along
with the quick retrieval
of relevant patient information results in the efficient and effective use of
hospital staff.
By using a passive radio frequency identification (RFID) tag for the correct
and non-contact
identification of an individual, with an efficient and secure method of
transferring the correct
information pertaining to the identified individual, it should be possible to
improve work
efficiency.
This background information is provided for the purpose of making known
information believed
by the applicant to be of possible relevance to the present invention. No
admission is necessarily
intended, nor should be construed, that any of the preceding information
constitutes prior art
against the present invention.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide a system for non-contact
identification and
retrieval of an individual's personal information . In accordance with an
aspect of the present
invention, there is provided a system for identifying and retrieving
information about an
individual comprising: a plurality of RFID tags, wherein each tag corresponds
to one individual,
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a scanning device, and an information database wherein said identification of
an individual is
possible by non-contact means.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
Figure 1 shows a plan view of a possible configuration of a RFID tag.
Figure 2 shows a elevation view of a possible configuration of a RFID tag.
Figure 3 shows a possible manufacturing procedure for a RFID tag.
Figure 4 shows a plan view of a possible RFID tag.
Figure 5 is a side view of a scanning device and a RFID tag attached to a
person.
Figure 6 illustrates the logic diagram for the retrieval of an individual's
personal information
from a secure database.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Definitions
Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have
the same meaning as
commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this
invention belongs.
The present invention provides a system comprising a plurality of radio
frequency identification
(RFID) tags, a scanning device and an information database for the
identification and subsequent
retrieval of personal records of an individual. The RFID tag incorporates
identification circuitry
designed in a passive configuration and is incorporated into a system adapted
for the
identification of individuals and the retrieval of personal information within
various
environments. A security protocol exists between the RFID tag, the scanning
device, and the
CA 02326079 2000-11-16
information database in which a security barrier is created in order to
protect confidential
information.
This system of non-contact identification and data retrieval comprises three
main components,
however the system is not limited to just these elements. The main components
of this system
are: 1) a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag; 2) a scanning device and;
3) an information
database.
Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) Tag
The design of a passive read only or read/write RFID tag is well known to
someone skilled in the
art and the construction of such a device in the form of a band is presented
in the background of
the invention and illustrated in Figure 2.
A possible configuration of passive RFID tag in the form of a wristband is
shown in Figure 4.
There is a clip 200 that is inserted into holes 210 that will provide
attachment of the band 220 to
an individual. The coil 230 and the chip 240 are placed within the band 220
and protected from
contamination by a protective material layer. The outer surface of the band
250 could also be
composed of a printable material or allow for the placement of a label, to
provide a method of
visual identification of said individual also.
A coil 230 contained within a RFID tag will generate a current in the presence
of a magnetic
field generated by an external source, and said current provides power to a
chip 240, which
contains circuitry such that information can be stored thereon. This
information consists of a
unique identification number and possibly additional information. This
additional information
can be, for example, the individual's name, date of birth and age. The
presence of additional
information is dependent on the design of the circuitry the chip, for example,
read only or
read/write.
It would be readily apparent to a worker skilled in the art that the unique
identification number
can be generated using a variety of methods. In one embodiment of the present
invention, the
unique identification number, which is contained within the chip, can take the
form of 156 bit
number. The generation of this unique identification number can be compared
with, for
example, a Universal Unique Identification (UUID) which is a unique identifier
based on the
location and time of its generation as described in the IEEE 1451.2 Standard.
This identification
number is associated with an individual's personal information, which can be
contained on an
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information database, thus allowing for the retrieval of said individual's
personal information. In
one embodiment of the present invention, the retrieval of an individual's
personal information
follows a security protocol that ensures privacy and confidentiality.
The transmission distance of a RFID tag can be between 3 and 6 inches, however
this distance
can vary depending on, for example, the size of the coils, current and the
charge of the inductor.
Scanning Device
The system of the present invention further comprises a scanning device that
produces a
magnetic field (for example, by passing an oscillating current through a coil)
which can activate
a passive RFID circuit contained within the aforementioned tag. This coil, or
another coil
contained within the scanning device will act as an antenna capable of
receiving the information
transmitted by the RFID tag, which is being scanned.
This scanning device has the capability of connection to a network, which
contains an
information database that contains a complete set of all of personal
information of all the
individuals within a particular environment. This connection method could be
via a cabled
network, but a preferred embodiment enables wireless connection to said
network, which would
allow for more mobility of a scanning device from individual to individual and
from location to
location.
Furthermore, this scanning device will have the capability of displaying
information received
from a RFID tag, upon scanning said tag and/or information transmitted from
the information
database to said scanning device. This display can take the form of a CRT
screen or a LCD
display screen, for example.
Furthermore, a form of authorisation is required for the use of a scanning
device, thus restricting
use of this device to registered personnel. The authorisation of use of a
scanning device can be
performed by, for example, the input of a password or a fingerprint scan etc.
Information Database
This information database performs a plurality of tasks, including for
example, preventing
unauthorised use of the information database, correlating a unique
identification number from a
RFID tag with the correct individual information, and storage of all said
individual information.
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Access to the information database can be authorised only if the unique
identification number is
recognised. The uniqueness of this identification number and the authorisation
of the user of the
scanning device, provide a level of security for all information contained
within this information
database.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the correlation of the unique
identification number
with the personal information of the individual being scanned can be performed
using an index
lookup table. This index lookup table would allow the identification of an
individual's
permanent identification code, with the temporary unique identification number
contained within
the RFID tag. This interconnection between the unique identification number
and a permanent
identification code of a individual allows for the reassignment of the RFID
tag to another
individual and/or the assignment of a new RFID tag to the same individual.
Once correlation
between the unique identification number and an individual's personal
information is completed,
this information can be located within the information database and
transmitted over a network to
the scanning device requesting the information.
Integration of these Components to from a System
The integration of these components creates a system capable of non-contact
identification of an
individual and the retrieval of said individual's personal information, which
can be implemented
in the following manner.
An individual within a particular environment is supplied with a passive RFID
tag for
identification purposes. This tag can be in the form of a wristband or other
configuration, such
that the tag remains on the individual; for example, it is not connected to
anything that can be
removed from the person. The outer surface of the tag can be composed of
printable material (or
a material that allows for the sticking of an adhesive label) so that visual
identification data can
also be included on the tag. The circuitry of this RFID tag can be of a read
only format and thus
would contain a unique identification number, or of a read/write format
allowing for information
about the individual to be included in the RFID tag along with the unique
identification number.
This additional information can be, for example the date of birth of the
individual or other
frequently used personal information about said individual. The unique
identification number,
which can take the form of a 156 bit number for example, would allow for the
identification of
an individual in a plurality of environments.
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The non-contact identification of an individual wearing a RFID tag is
illustrated in Figure 5. The
scanning device 330 generates a magnetic field 340 (by an oscillating current
through a coil 320
contained within the scanning device). This magnetic field is received by a
coil within the RFID
tag 350, resulting in a weak current being generated. The distance between the
scanning device's
coil 320 and the RFID tag's coil 350 is variable (depending on coil size,
current, and the Q of the
inductor). This generated current powers the RFID tag chip 370, which sends,
for example, a 156
bit unique identification number to the scanning device 330 and this
information is presented on
the display screen of the scanning device 310. This unique identification
number is not limited
to this form but can be generated from a plurality of combinations and
permutations. Additional
information can also be transmitted, if the RFID tag 380 is of a read/write
format, which would
allow for information, directly related to the individual, to be programmed
onto the RFID tag
380. This transmission of information is accomplished by the generation of a
weak magnetic
field within the RFID tag 380, by passing the data through a coil within said
tag 350. The
scanning device's coil 320 is used as an antenna to pick up the information
sent by the RFID tag
380. This information includes a unique identification code and could also
include additional
information, depending on the design of the circuitry RFID tag 380.
The procedure of retrieving the complete history of the individual is
illustrated in Figure 6. Once
the scanning device has received the unique identification number from the
RFID tag 420, the
scanning device transmits this unique identification number to an information
database 430,
which contains a complete list of all of the individuals within the
environment. This
transmission of the unique identification number could occur over a cabled
network but a
preferable embodiment provides transmission over a wireless system allowing
for more mobility
of the scanning device. Authorisation for access to the information database
will only be granted
if the unique identification number is recognised 440.
Once the unique identification number is verified, the scanning device will
gain access to the
information database, which contains an index lookup table 450. All unique
identification
numbers assigned to RFID tags are located within this index lookup table. Once
the unique
identification number has been identified within the index lookup table, the
associated
information with this number is then transmitted to the scanning device 460.
Once, the requested
information has been received by the scanning device, it could be presented on
a display that is
connected to said scanning device 470.
This system allows for the non-contact identification of an individual and
retrieval of all
information with respect to said individual. The individual's information is
retrieved by and
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displayed directly on a scanning device, thus the person requesting the
detailed information is not
required to leave the individual to be identified in order to locate the
personal information,
thereby increasing work efficiency.
EXAMPLES
EXAMPLE 1: THE USE OF THIS METHOD AND SYSTEMINA HOSPITAL SETTING
Once a patient is admitted into a hospital they are assigned a RFID tag with a
unique
identification number, which is correlated with said patient's medical
information contained
within a clinical database.
A member of the hospital staff needs to determine the identity a patient that
is, for example,
sleeping or in a quarantined area, this system allows for the non-contact
identification of said
patient. In a hospital setting the transmission of viruses and fluids and the
like, that could be on
the surface of the identification tag, can be reduced with this type of non-
contact identification
procedure.
Upon scanning of the RFID tag, the magnetic field generated by the scanning
device activates the
passive RFID tag, resulting in the transmission of the unique identification
number and possibly
additional information to the scanning device, depending on the circuitry of
the RFID tag. Once
the scanning device has received the unique identification number, it can
transmit said number to
the clinical database contained within the hospital. Access to the clinical
database could be
through a wired hospital network (serving the patient/clinical database
system) that is physically
connected to the scanning device. However, a preferred alternative involves
the use of a wireless
connection between the scanning device and the hospital clinical database
system, which would
allow easy mobility of a scanning device from patient to patient. If this
unique identification
number, which was transmitted by the scanning device, is not recognised by the
clinical
database, then access to the information on said database is denied. If the
unique identification
number transmitted by the scanner is valid, it is then correlated with the
particular patient's
medical records using an index lookup table. This index lookup table would
include a complete
list of all unique identification numbers that have been issued and correlate
this number with the
patient's individual hospital identification number. This individual hospital
record number
would be the permanent identification number used for said patient, since the
RFID tag number
would be different on a subsequent hospital visit of the same patient. All
information on a
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patient is stored in the clinical data system and permits the scanning device
to obtain such
information (including, but not exclusively, the patient's name, hospital
record number, date of
birth, sex, medicare/health care insurance number, address, religion, lab
results, radiological
results, etc.). This information is then retrieved from the clinical database
and subsequently
transmitted to the scanning device that sent the original request. This
information would then be
displayed on the scanning device for the hospital staff to view. This method
and system allows
for the retrieval of patient information rapidly and without the need for the
hospital staff to leave
the location of the patient in question, thus increasing the efficiency and
quality of the care of
said patient.
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