阅读说明：本技术 用于检测接收器的系统 (System for detecting receiver ) 是由 盖奥弗罗伊·莱罗塞 于 2020-02-11 设计创作，主要内容包括：用于检测接收器的系统,其包括：至少一个接收器(30)；容器(20),其具有用于容纳所述接收器的容积；天线(42),其适于在所述容积中发射初波以及适于接收由所述接收器响应于接收到所述初波而在所述容积中发射的次波；以及控制器(41),其适于控制所述初波的发射以及适于经由所接收的次波检测所述接收器。所述系统进一步包括可调节元件(21),其由控制波控制,附接到所述容器,且具有能被修改的阻抗。每一可调节元件包括用于恢复来自所述初波和/或来自所述控制波的能量以便为其自身供能的装置(23),以及用于接收所述控制波的装置(24),其解码调节参数使得所述可调节元件控制其阻抗。(A system for detecting a receiver, comprising: at least one receiver (30); a container (20) having a volume for receiving the receptacle; an antenna (42) adapted to transmit a primary wave in the volume and to receive a secondary wave transmitted by the receiver in the volume in response to receiving the primary wave; and a controller (41) adapted to control the emission of the primary waves and to detect the receiver via the received secondary waves. The system further comprises an adjustable element (21), controlled by the control wave, attached to the container and having an impedance that can be modified. Each adjustable element comprises means (23) for recovering energy from the primary wave and/or from the control wave in order to power itself, and means (24) for receiving the control wave, which decode adjustment parameters such that the adjustable element controls its impedance.)

1. A system for detecting a receiver, comprising:

-at least one receiver (30),

-a container (20) having a volume, the container being adapted to accommodate the receptacle within its volume,

-an antenna (42) adapted to transmit a primary wave in the volume and to receive a secondary wave transmitted by the receiver in the volume in response to receiving the primary wave,

a controller (41) connected to the antenna, the controller being adapted to control the transmission of the primary waves and to detect the receiver via the received secondary waves,

characterized in that the system further comprises adjustable elements (21) whose impedance can be modified in order to vary the way in which the primary wave is reflected and/or transmitted by the adjustable elements, the number N of adjustable elements being greater than or equal to two, and

wherein:

-the adjustable element is controlled by a control wave emitted by the controller,

-the adjustable element is attached to the container at a plurality of different positions,

-some of the adjustable elements comprise energy recovery means (23) for recovering energy from said primary wave and/or from said control wave in order to power itself, and

-each adjustable element comprises a control wave receiving device (24) which decodes an adjustment parameter contained in the control wave, the adjustment parameter being intended for the adjustable element such that the adjustable element controls its impedance.

2. System according to claim 1, characterized in that the number N of adjustable elements (21) is greater than five.

3. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 2, wherein the controller (41) determines a suitable adjustment parameter for each adjustable element and transmits each adjustment parameter to an adjustable element within the control wave.

4. The system of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein each adjustable element comprises an adjustable element memory storing an adjustable element identifier (IDer), the adjustable element identifier being different for all adjustable elements.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein:

-said controller (41) transmitting, along with the adjustment parameters intended for the adjustable elements, identification information specifying the adjustable elements of the system for which the adjustment parameters are intended, and

-said receiving means (24) of said adjustable element decode said identification information and an adjustment parameter contained in said control wave, said adjustable element (21) controlling its impedance according to said adjustment parameter if said identification information is equal to its adjustable element identifier (IDer).

6. System according to any one of claims 4 to 5, characterized in that each adjustable element (21) transmits its adjustable element identifier periodically via a control wave in the presence of the primary wave, so that the controller (41) can build up a list of the existing adjustable elements.

7. A system according to any of claims 1 to 6, wherein each adjustable element further comprises a storage means for energy recovered by the energy recovery device.

8. The system of any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising an non-adjustable element (27) having a defined impedance so as to modify the manner in which the primary wave is reflected and/or absorbed by the non-adjustable element.

9. System according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that said adjustable element (21) is a planar shaped device with circuit portions printed directly on a planar substrate.

10. The system of any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein each receiver (30) comprises a receiver memory storing a receiver identifier (IDr), the receiver identifier being different for all receivers, and each receiver transmitting the receiver identifier via the secondary waves.

11. System according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the receiver is a device of RFID technology and the antenna is a detection antenna suitable for this type of receiver.

12. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the control wave is the primary wave.

13. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 12, characterized in that the controller (41) and the antenna (42) are composed of at least two subsystems:

-a first subsystem comprising a receiver controller(41₁) And a receiver antenna (421) adapted at least to transmit said primary waves and to receive said secondary waves,

-a second subsystem comprising an adjustable element controller (41)₂) And an adjustable element antenna (42)₂) The adjustable element antenna is adapted to transmit and receive control waves.

14. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 13, characterized in that said controller (41) comprises a table of coordinates corresponding to the spatial position of at least a portion of said adjustable element (21) according to a reference system.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the controller (41) determines the location of each receiver based on: the reception of each primary wave, the adjustment parameters of the adjustable element, and the spatial position of the adjustable element stored in said table of coordinates.

16. System according to any one of claims 1 to 15, wherein the container comprises an opening adapted for inserting and/or removing a receptacle into and/or from the volume of the container, the opening being closable by a movable door.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the container is included in a list of containers comprising: furniture, cash register receptacles, bags, motor vehicles, airplanes, trains, locations.

18. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 17, characterized in that each adjustable element (21) comprises:

-a first antenna (22) adapted to receive said primary wave and to supply a signal to said energy recovery means (23) and to said receiving means (24), the impedance of said first antenna being modifiable so as to change the way in which said primary wave is reflected and/or transmitted,

-an electronic circuit (25) powered by the energy recovery device and controlling the impedance of the first antenna (22).

19. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 17, characterized in that each adjustable element (21) comprises:

a first antenna (22) adapted to receive the primary wave and to supply a signal to the energy recovery device (23) and to the receiving device (24),

a second antenna (26) whose impedance can be modified in order to change the way in which the primary wave is reflected and/or transmitted,

-an electronic circuit (25) powered by the energy recovery device and controlling the impedance of the second antenna.

Technical Field

The invention relates to a system for detecting a receiver.

Background

More precisely, the invention relates to a system for detection comprising:

-at least one receiver for receiving the data,

-a container having a volume, the container being adapted to accommodate the receptacle within its volume,

-an antenna adapted to transmit primary waves in the volume and to receive secondary waves transmitted by a receiver in the volume in response to receiving primary waves,

-a controller connected to the antenna, the controller being adapted to control the transmission of the primary waves and to detect the receiver via the received secondary waves.

Examples of such systems are known, such as store checkout systems, where the receiver is a tag of RFID technology placed on the goods. At checkout, the goods are placed in the volume of the container, and the system identifies the goods and creates an invoice.

Disclosure of Invention

It is an object of the invention to improve a system for detection of this type, in particular to improve the detection of receivers in a volume.

To this end, a system for detection of the aforementioned type is characterized in that it further comprises adjustable elements whose impedance can be modified in order to vary the way in which the primary wave is reflected and/or transmitted by the adjustable elements, the number N of adjustable elements being greater than or equal to two, and in that:

the adjustable element is controlled by a control wave emitted by a controller,

the adjustable element is attached to the container at a plurality of different positions,

some of the adjustable elements comprise energy recovery means for recovering energy from the primary wave and/or from the control wave in order to power themselves, and

each adjustable element comprises a control wave receiving device which decodes an adjustment parameter contained in the control wave, the adjustment parameter being intended for the adjustable element such that the adjustable element controls its impedance.

With these arrangements, the system is able to modify the impedance of each adjustable element by means of the secondary waves received by the controller from the receiver. It is thus able to optimize its reception of the secondary waves by modifying these impedances.

Thus, the system is able to more efficiently detect the presence of one or more receivers inside the volume of the container, irrespective of the position of said receivers in this volume of the container.

Furthermore, the system is simple to implement, because the adjustable elements are attached to the tank, because their energy is self-sufficient, and because they do not need to be wired to the controller.

Thus, it is easy to manufacture any container suitable for detecting a receiver within its volume, even a container that can be moved around within an environment.

Finally, the adjustable element is a reduced size element, has a very simple design, and can be mass produced at low cost.

In various embodiments of the system according to the invention, one or more of the following arrangements may optionally be relied upon.

According to one aspect, the number N of adjustable elements is greater than five.

According to one aspect, the controller determines the appropriate adjustment parameter for each adjustable element and transmits each adjustment parameter intended for an adjustable element within the control wave.

According to one aspect, each adjustable element includes an adjustable element memory storing an adjustable element identifier that is different for all adjustable elements.

According to one aspect:

-the controller transmits, along with the adjustment parameters intended for the adjustable elements, identification information specifying the adjustable elements of the system for which the adjustment parameters are intended, and

-the receiving means of the adjustable element decode the identification information and the adjustment parameter contained in the control wave, the adjustable element controlling its impedance according to the adjustment parameter if the identification information is equal to its adjustable element identifier.

According to one aspect, in the presence of a primary wave, each adjustable element periodically transmits its adjustable element identifier via a control wave so that the controller can build a list of the adjustable elements present.

According to one aspect, each adjustable element further comprises a storage means for energy recovered by the energy recovery device.

According to one aspect, the system further comprises an unadjustable element having a defined impedance so as to modify the manner in which primary waves are reflected and/or absorbed by the unadjustable element.

According to one aspect, the adjustable element is a planar shaped device having a circuit portion printed directly on a planar substrate.

According to one aspect, each receiver includes a receiver memory that stores a receiver identifier, the receiver identifier being different for all receivers, and each receiver transmits the receiver identifier via the secondary waves.

According to one aspect, the receiver is a device of RFID technology and the antenna is a detection antenna suitable for this type of receiver.

According to one aspect, the control wave is an initial wave.

According to one aspect, the controller and antenna are comprised of at least two subsystems:

a first subsystem comprising a receiver controller and a receiver antenna, the receiver antenna being adapted for at least transmitting primary waves and receiving secondary waves,

-a second subsystem comprising an adjustable element controller and an adjustable element antenna, the adjustable element antenna being adapted to transmit and receive control waves.

According to one aspect, the controller includes a table of coordinates corresponding to the spatial position of at least a portion of the adjustable element according to a reference frame.

According to one aspect, the controller determines the location of each receiver based on: the reception of each primary wave, the adjustment parameters of the adjustable element, and the spatial position of the adjustable element stored in a table of coordinates.

According to one aspect, the container comprises an opening adapted to insert and/or extract the receptacle into and/or from the volume of said container, said opening being closable by a movable door.

According to one aspect, the container is contained in a list of containers that includes: furniture, cash register receptacles, bags, motor vehicles, airplanes, trains, locations.

According to one aspect, each adjustable element comprises:

a first antenna adapted to receive the primary wave and to supply a signal to the energy recovery means and the receiving means, the impedance of the first antenna being modifiable so as to change the way in which the primary wave is reflected and/or transmitted,

-an electronic circuit powered by the energy recovery device and controlling the impedance of the first antenna.

According to one aspect, each adjustable element comprises:

a first antenna adapted to receive the primary wave and to supply a signal to the energy recovery means and the receiving means,

a second antenna, the impedance of which can be modified in order to change the way in which the primary wave is reflected and/or transmitted,

-an electronic circuit powered by the energy recovery device and controlling the impedance of the second antenna.

Drawings

Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description of one of its embodiments, given as a non-limiting example, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In the figure:

figure 1 is a general diagram of an embodiment of a system for detecting a receiver according to the invention;

FIG. 2 shows a group of adjustable elements available in the system of FIG. 1;

figure 3 is a first variant of the adjustable element of the system of figure 1; and

figure 4 is a second variant of the adjustable element of the system of figure 1.

In the drawings, like reference characters designate the same or similar elements throughout the several views.

Detailed Description

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of one embodiment of a system 10 for detecting a receiver (hereinafter system 10). In this example, the system 10 includes a container 20 having a volume V adapted to receive a receptacle 30 within its volume. These receivers 30 are, for example, mobile devices that the system will attempt to detect and/or identify. The identification or communication itself also corresponds to the detection. The system according to the invention is thus a system for detecting and/or identifying and/or communicating with a receiver. This system 10 is therefore adapted to detect the presence of a receiver 30 within the volume of the container 20, i.e. to identify the receiver 30 within the volume of the container 20, i.e. to communicate with the receiver 30 contained within the container 20.

In the particular case of this figure, the container 20 is parallelepiped, comprising a bottom 20₁And four sides 20₂、20₃、20₄、20₅And with the bottom surface 20₁Opposite open faces 20₆. This container 20 thus forms a container 20: the receiver 30 may pass through the open face 20₆Into and/or out of its volume V. These receivers 30 may also be located around the volume VAnd (4) moving. The figure shows three receivers 30 within the volume V of the container 20.

The system 10 further comprises:

an antenna 42 adapted to emit a primary wave W in the volume V₁And is adapted to receive a primary wave W received by each receiver 30 positioned in the volume V in response to such receiver₁While the transmitted secondary wave W₂And an

A controller 41 connected to the antenna 42, said controller being adapted to control the primary wave W₁And adapted to pass through the secondary wave W received by the antenna 42₂The receiver 30 is identified.

In particular, in order to identify the receiver 30 within the volume of the container, the system 10 according to the invention further comprises an adjustable element 21, the impedance of which can be modified in order to change the primary wave W₁The manner of reflection and/or transmission by each adjustable element 21.

The number N of adjustable elements 21 is greater than or equal to two, and preferably the number N is greater than five. In this way, the primary wave W₁The distribution within the volume of the container 20 can be modified. Optionally, the number N is greater than ten or twenty, in order to further modify the primary wave W₁Distribution within the volume of the container 20.

The controller 41 emits a control wave W_cTo control or drive the adjustable element 21. The operation of the controller 41 and a description of two embodiments will be detailed below. Optionally, the control wave W_cIn fact the primary wave W₁. Thus, the controller 41 wirelessly controls or drives the adjustable elements of the system 10.

Furthermore, each adjustable element 21 comprises a control wave W_cA receiving device 24 which decodes the regulating parameters contained in this control wave, originating from the controller and intended for one or more adjustable elements. The adjustable element 21 then uses the adjustment parameters to control and modify its impedance.

Control wave W_cCan be in the primary wave W₁In the same frequency band or in different frequency bands. Advantageously, the waves are at different frequencies and the emissions are independent.

In addition, the adjustable element 21 is in pluralityAttached to the container 20 at various locations. In this way, the primary wave W₁The distribution within the volume of the container 20 can be further modified. The position of the adjustable element 21 on the container 20 may be optimized for the best possible coverage of the volume V of the container 20 with the minimum number of adjustable elements. This optimization can be achieved experimentally or by simulation of the volume V. A tolerance may be added to the number of adjustable elements 21 to improve the identification robustness of the system.

Furthermore, some of the adjustable elements 21 of the system comprise energy recovery means 23 for recovering energy from the primary wave W₁And/or control wave W_cTo power said adjustable element 21. The adjustable element uses this energy to operate, in particular to operate its receiving device 24, which decodes the adjustment parameters in order to modify its impedance such that the way in which the primary wave is reflected and/or transmitted by the adjustable element 21 is modified.

Thus, the energy of the adjustable element 21 is self-sufficient and also its impedance is tuned autonomously. The adjustable element 21 does not require a wired connection to a general control module, and it does not require a wired connection to the controller 41 of the system 10 for detecting a receiver.

Advantageously, all adjustable elements 21 of the system 10 each have (individually) their own energy recovery means and are therefore independent. Optionally, one or more adjustable elements 21 are wired to a power source, but at least one adjustable element 21 and preferably several (at least two) adjustable elements 21 have energy recovery means.

Optionally, two adjustable elements 21 share a single energy recovery device, or a group of adjustable elements comprising two, three, four or more adjustable elements 21 shares a single energy recovery device.

With these arrangements, adjustable element 21 or group of adjustable elements can be attached anywhere on container 20 without any wiring constraints (inside or outside the container, or on any surface of the container). This allows a greater freedom to place the adjustable element 21 in the best possible way to maximize the possibility of detecting and identifying all the receptacles 30 within the volume V of the container 20. This also makes it possible to equip the container 20 very quickly, since it is sufficient to merely attach the adjustable element 21 on the container 20 and to position the antenna 42 in the vicinity of the container 20.

Adjustable element 21 may be attached to container 20 by any attachment means. For example, adjustable element 21 is attached to container 20 by adhesive or by elastic attachment clips or by screws or by rivets or by interlocking or by press fitting.

Furthermore, adjustable element 21 advantageously has a planar shape. Part of its circuitry is for example printed directly on the substrate. The substrate is for example made of paper or cardboard or plastic or fabric and has for example a face comprising an adhesive. Optionally, the portion of the circuit comprises an antenna. Adjustable member 21 may also be flexible, allowing it to bend with a radius of curvature, thereby enabling it to be attached to non-planar surfaces. Due to these arrangements, the adjustable element 21 may be easily attached to a large number of surfaces (flat or non-flat) of the container, which makes it possible to position the adjustable element at a suitable position for controlling the electromagnetic field inside the container 20.

The system 10 according to the invention may further comprise an non-adjustable element 27 having a predefined and fixed impedance, which is capable of changing the way in which the primary wave W1 is reflected and/or absorbed by said non-adjustable element 27.

The non-adjustable element or elements 27 are fixed to the container 20 at different positions. These non-adjustable elements 27 make it possible to vary in an uncontrolled manner the distribution of the primary wave W1 in the volume V of the container 20. However, these non-adjustable elements 27 may make possible modifications of the adjustable element 21 more effective.

These non-adjustable elements 27 are, for example, elements that resonate in the frequency band of the primary wave.

For example, the non-adjustable element 27 may reflect the primary wave and/or absorb the primary wave. This non-adjustable element may make it possible to confine the primary wave within the volume V of the container 20 in order to optimize the efficiency of the adjustable element 21.

The position of the non-adjustable elements 27 on the container 20 may be optimized such that the primary wave optimally covers the volume V of the container 20 with the minimum number of adjustable elements. This optimization can be achieved experimentally and/or by simulations of the volume V.

As shown in fig. 2 and according to one embodiment, a number of adjustable elements 21 and/or non-adjustable elements 27 are optionally grouped together into an element group 21g on an intermediate support 21s, which is then capable of being attached to the container 20 according to any attachment means and, for example, according to one of the means listed above. For example, the intermediate support 21s of the group of elements 21g can be attached to the container 20 by an adhesive deposited on a face 21f of the intermediate support.

The intermediate support 21s is, for example, a sheet or a strip of small thickness (for example, a thickness of less than 0.2 mm). This intermediate support 21s is for example composed of a flexible polymer material, to which the adjustable element 21 and/or the non-adjustable element 27 are attached, for example by any process such as gluing. The adjustable element 21 itself is a circuit of small thickness, so that the element group 21g is a thin and flexible device that is easily attached to the container 20.

The element group 21g comprises a number M of adjustable elements, for example attached to an intermediate support. The number M of adjustable elements of adjustable element group 21g is equal to, for example, two, three, or four. The number M of adjustable elements 21 of adjustable element group 21g is preferably less than five.

The adjustable elements 21 and/or the non-adjustable elements 27 of the element group 21g may be evenly distributed along the main direction of the intermediate support, or may be distributed in any way on said intermediate support. Preferably, the primary wave W will be utilized₁And in particular its frequency or frequency band, to choose the distance between the two adjustable elements of the support.

For example, the adjustable elements 21 of element group 21g remain independent of each other. They are not interconnected by a wired connection in order to share a single energy recovery device or to share one or more circuits for controlling their impedance. In this way, the adjustable elements 21 and/or the non-adjustable elements 27 included in the group are all identical and easy to implement. This standardization provides greater modularity for the implementation of each adjustable element 21 and for each product of the group of elements 21 g. Sheets or strips of adjustable elements can be mass produced at low cost.

Adjustable element 21 is understood to mean any type of adjustable element suitable for modifying the way waves are reflected and/or transmitted by said adjustable element 21.

According to a first example, US 6,538,621 patent document shows an example of an electromagnetic surface whose impedance is tunable or modifiable. The electromagnetic surface includes a plurality of resonant elements, each resonant element being tunable. The electromagnetic surface of this document comprises plate elements located at a distance from the ground plane, adjacent plate elements being connected to each other by variable capacitors, each of which is controllable by a control potential. The impedance of the electromagnetic surface is thus modified to, for example, focus the reflected wave or provide a spatial direction to the reflected wave 42. Alternatively, the electromagnetic surface is composed of a plurality of cells, each cell comprising two different resonant elements.

According to a second example, patent document WO 2015/039769 states and shows other types of resonant elements that can be used in electromagnetic surfaces with tunable impedance:

-a variable diode can replace the variable capacitor,

the resonant elements may have a single polarization type or two polarization types, optionally distributed in an alternating manner on the surface,

-the resonant elements have one or more resonant frequencies for controlling the predetermined frequency band,

the resonant element is a two-state element having two states defined, for example, by a change in the phase or amplitude of the modified wave.

The two documents listed above differ from the present invention at least in that the adjustable elements are connected to the central controller by wires or cables, and they do not comprise energy recovery means. Furthermore, they are not attached to the container because these systems act as free field communication antennas. In contrast, in the present invention, the adjustable element 21 is controlled by the control wave via a wireless link. They are energy independent and connection independent.

Many variations of resonant elements are known for forming adjustable elements with electromagnetic surfaces having tunable impedances.

Advantageously, the impedance of the resonant element is modifiable by an integrated circuit, which integrated circuit comprises the energy recovery means and which integrated circuit is capable of directly modifying the adjustable impedance of the adjustable element. For example, RFID tags have this type of architecture.

The state of adjustable element 21 of system 10 is defined by the adjustment parameter (i.e., the set of parameters) determined by controller 41.

The controller 41 controls, for example, all adjustable elements 21 (e.g. variable capacitors or diodes), which makes it possible to modify the impedance of each adjustable element. This modification is much more complex than focusing or spatial directionality. Which modifies the primary wave W₁Spatial distribution within the volume V of the container 20.

According to a first embodiment of the controller 41, the controller 41 also monitors the secondary waves W received by the antenna 42₂: for example, it determines reception information about the wave received by its antenna 42, such as reception level and/or reception quality.

The controller 41 may then use the received information to estimate a value to be optimized, which is one of these items of information or a combination of these items of received information.

The controller 41 performs, for example, an optimization algorithm based on (in time) the previous parameter set, the previous estimated value and the current estimated value.

The optimization algorithm may be a maximization or a minimization of the estimated value, depending on the magnitude represented by this value. In one or more successive steps, the optimization algorithm makes it possible to obtain the best set of parameters. At each step or at predetermined intervals, controller 41 applies a new set of parameters to adjustable element 21 and/or determines the received information for performing the next iteration. These iterations can be carried out at a very fast speed, so that the duration of this optimization is very short in view of the number of receivers in the volume to be detected and/or identified.

The optimal parameter set makes it possible, for example, to improve the secondary wave W₂The level of reception at the antenna 42. Due to passage through adjustable member 21This modification by the optimized state (modification of the electromagnetic impedance of the adjustable element 21), the secondary wave W₂The field propagating towards the antenna 42 is improved and the detection and/or identification of each receiver in the volume is improved.

Thus, controller 41 determines a set of parameters for adjusting the plurality of adjustable elements 21, e.g. to optimize the secondary wave W₂By the antenna 42. The optimization involves estimated values, which are, for example, the secondary wave W₂An estimate of the level and/or quality of reception received by the antenna 42.

According to a variant, the controller 41 comprises a memory storing one or more optimal sets of parameters for detecting the receiver. In this way, the optimization algorithm may start its process based on one or more of the saved parameter sets, which saves time for optimization and avoids transient effects.

According to one variant, the optimization algorithm monitors its performance and stops its optimization iteration when a stop criterion is reached. In this way, the secondary wave W₂Insignificant variations or fluctuations in the receiving process of (a) can be avoided.

According to a second embodiment of the controller 41, the controller 41 periodically defines the adjustment parameters for the adjustable element 21 in a random manner in order to scan a set of adjustment parameter combinations, which makes it possible to scan the volume V of the container. The controller 41 then also emits a primary wave W each time the adjustable element is adjusted₁To detect the receiver 30 using this new adjustment. This procedure allows it to detect a new receiver 30 in the volume. After a predefined number of combinations, this procedure makes it possible to know all the receivers 30 in the volume V.

According to a third embodiment of controller 41, controller 41 periodically defines the adjustment parameters for adjustable element 21 according to a previously saved table in order to scan a set of adjustment parameter combinations.

For example by knowing the initial wave W in the volume V₁Is used to define this previously saved table (by simulation or measurement in the medium of volume V). The previously stored table is for example defined to ensure that the entire volume V can be scanned with a predefined spatial accuracy.

The controller then proceeds as above: the controller 41 then also emits a primary wave W each time the adjustable element is adjusted₁To detect the receiver 30 using this new adjustment. This procedure allows it to detect a new receiver 30 in the volume. After a predefined number of combinations, this procedure makes it possible to know all the receivers 30 in the volume V.

According to a variant, the controller 41 performs the calibration of said previously stored table periodically, for example during a predetermined duration (a certain duration and/or a certain day defined during the week and/or during the month) by searching for the optimal adjustment parameters for referencing the adjustable element.

This further optimization may be based on the echo W received by the controller 41_r. Similar to the receiver 30, the controller 41 determines reception information (level of reception and/or quality of reception) relating to reception of the echo by its antenna. Controller 41 then performs an optimization for all adjustment parameters for one or more reference adjustable elements among the set of adjustable elements 21.

After these optimizations for the adjustment parameters of the reference adjustable elements, the controller 41 infers from it the previously stored tables by various techniques, such as parametric models and/or interpolation techniques.

Finally, the previous embodiments of the controller 41 may combine to create a part of the conditioning parameters by optimization on the received secondary waves, a part of the conditioning parameters by random adjustment, and a part of the conditioning parameters by predefined creation within the volume V. This strategy allows more receivers to be identified in the volume V.

Furthermore, to enable adjustable element 21 to receive and decode the adjustment parameter for which it is intended, controller 41 determines such an adjustment parameter for each adjustable element 21 included in system for detecting 10, e.g., according to the optimization procedure described above, and controller 41 controls wave W at it_cTransmits each adjustment parameter to the adjustable element 21.

Specifically, the control wave W supplied to the antenna 42 by the controller 41_cDecoding of any type in the transmitted signal andor any type of modulation to implement the control wave W_cSuch transmission in (1).

Furthermore, the adjustable element 21 advantageously comprises an adjustable element memory storing an adjustable element identifier IDer, which is different for each adjustable element, which allows to distinguish between them.

In this case, the controller 41 may control the wave emission W_cWith identification information IID of the adjustment parameters, which makes it possible to specify the adjustable element 21 of the system for which the adjustment parameters are intended. The controller 41 thus sequentially transmits, for example, an entire set of parameters (all adjustment parameters), each adjustment parameter being associated with identification information such that the adjustable element 21 intended to receive the adjustment parameter is the only adjustable element to which the adjustment parameter in question applies.

The receiving device 24 of the adjustable element 21 then controls the wave W_cThe identification information IID and the adjustment parameter are decoded. Next, if the identification information is equal to its adjustable element identifier IDer, the adjustable element 21 controls its impedance according to the adjustment parameter.

The controller 41 optionally periodically emits an initial wave W in the volume V of the vessel 20₁In order to detect and identify the receiver 30, and which periodically emits a control wave W in the volume V_cIn order to optimize and adjust the adjustable element 21 attached to the container 20. Each adjustable element 21 selects the adjustment parameters for which it is intended.

According to a variant of the adjustable element 21, one or more adjustable elements 21 each comprise an adjustable element memory storing a set of adjustment parameters (previously saved and/or saved by transmission from the controller) and a reading period. This set of tuning parameters and this read period are known to the controller 41. This arrangement may enable controller 41 to avoid systematically sending new adjustment parameters to adjustable element 21; i.e. this reduces the need for emission. Optionally, this set of adjustment parameters and/or this reading period is different for each adjustable element 21.

According to a first variant of the controller 41, the controller 41 comprises in the memory a table of adjustable element identifiers, which is populated with the adjustable element identifiers IDer of the system 10 so as to be able to send the adjustable element identifiers together with the adjustment parameters.

According to a second variation of the controller 41, the controller 41 may dynamically build a table of adjustable element identifiers. To this end, each adjustable element 21 passes through an echo W_rPeriodically transmits its adjustable element identifier IDer. Controller 41 then builds a list of adjustable elements present in system 10 in order to populate the table of adjustable element identifiers. In particular, a new adjustable element 21 will be entered in this table after receiving its adjustable element identifier IDer. Furthermore, if controller 41 does not receive an identifier of an adjustable element within a time period greater than the inactivity time limit for the adjustable element, then adjustable element 21 may be removed from or deactivated (by an active flag) in the table.

With this dynamic operation, the controller 41 will therefore always use the active or functional adjustable element 21. This dynamic operation also facilitates the installation of the system 10 automatically adapted to the presence of the adjustable element 21.

Furthermore, according to a variant, the adjustable element 21 of the previous type will only be present in the presence of the primary wave W coming from the antenna 42 of the controller 41₁And/or control wave W_cPeriodically transmits its adjustable element identifier IDer, in particular:

because this adjustable element 21 uses the energy recovery means 23 to recover energy from this wave for its operation. In the absence of energy, adjustable element 21 will automatically switch off and will not broadcast its identifier;

or because this adjustable element 21 is designed if it has not received an initial wave W within a time period greater than a predefined standby period₁Or control wave W_cIts identifier is not transmitted.

Furthermore, the adjustable element 21 may further comprise energy storage means adapted to store and possibly accumulate energy received by the energy recovery device 23. In this way, the adjustable element 21 will have greater autonomy and be able to operate for a period of time determined by the capacity of the energy storage means. Such as a capacitor or a battery or any other energy storage device.

According to a third variant of the controller 41, the controller 41 comprises in the memory a table of coordinates corresponding to the spatial position of at least a portion of the adjustable element 21 attached to the container 20, said coordinates being stored according to the same reference system.

The controller 41 thus knows the positions of these adjustable elements 21 of the system 10. The controller 41 can then determine the position of the receiver 30 within the volume V of the container 20 based on: each wavelet W from the receiver 30₂The adjustment parameters of the adjustable element 21, and the spatial position of the adjustable element 21 stored in a table of coordinates.

In addition, the receiver 30 of the system 10 includes a receiver memory that stores a receiver identifier IDr. All receivers 30 have different receiver identifiers. The primary wave W received by the receiver 30 from the antenna 42 in response thereto₂At a secondary wave W₂Transmits its receiver identifier IDr.

The receiver 30 is for example a device of radio frequency identification technology or RFID.

The receiver 30 is for example a connection object of the internet of things (IoT) type or of the type with transmission via a WiFi or Bluetooth or LoRA network.

Optionally, receiver 30 includes one or more sensors. One or more of the values measured by the sensors are stored in a receiver memory or other memory. Responsive to primary wave W received by receiver 30₁The receiver 30 can then be at the subwavelength W₂Transmits its receiver identifier IDr and one or more values of the sensor.

The sensor is, for example, a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, a presence detection sensor, a gas detection sensor, a flow sensor, a voltage sensor, a current sensor, or any other type of sensor.

In this case, the receiver 30 may be movable within the volume V or fixed within the volume V, meaning in a fixed position within the volume V. For example, the receiver 30 including the sensor will be attached to a device for which the number measured by the sensor will be monitored, this device itself being movable within the volume V.

For example, the system 10 may detect the presence of and/or identify a product in the volume to which such a receiver is attached, and such a system may monitor the temperature of the product. The present application is particularly suitable in the food field, whereby the container is for example a refrigerator or a freezer.

The system 10 according to the invention incorporating the controllable and autonomously adjustable element 21 is therefore a very efficient receiver detection and/or identification system 30, since it is due to the passage of the secondary waves W from the receiver 30 via it₂Returned information enabling optimization of the primary wave W at the receiver 30₁Allows the controller 41 to determine the control wave W via_cThe adjustment parameters transmitted to the adjustable element 21.

This system 10 is also very simple to implement, since the adjustable element 21 is autonomous: these adjustable elements 21 do not need to be wired to the controller 41 by a wired link, since they are via the received primary wave W₁And/or via a control wave W_cRecover energy and because they pass through the control wave W_cReceives its tuning parameters.

This system 10 has many industrial applications.

By way of example, the container 20 may be:

furniture equipped with adjustable elements 21, for example storage furniture adapted to receive products, for example cabinets, shelving units, each product with a receiver attached thereto, or for example office furniture such as tables, tables; or

The cash register of the shop equipped with an adjustable element 21, into which the product is inserted. The system will be able to identify the products by the receivers attached to them and the cash register will be able to create the invoice; or

A shopping cart of a shop equipped with an adjustable element 21; or

Bags, such as shopping bags, equipped with adjustable elements 21; or

A motor vehicle or an airplane or a train equipped with an adjustable element 21; or

A location equipped with an adjustable element 21, for example an industrial space, such as a retail space in a warehouse or a living room or a shopping center.

These containers 20 include an opening (e.g., the open face 20 of FIG. 1)₆) Adapted to insert the receptacle into the volume V of the container 20 and/or to remove the receptacle from the volume V of the container 20. This opening 20 may be equipped with a movable door for temporarily closing the opening.

Fig. 3 shows a first variant of an adjustable element 21 used in the system for detecting 10 according to the invention.

This adjustable element 21 comprises:

a first antenna 22 adapted to receive the primary wave W₁And/or control wave W_cAnd is adapted to supply signals to the energy recovery means 23 and the receiving means 24,

a second antenna 26 whose impedance can be modified in order to change the primary wave W₁The manner of reflection and/or transmission within the volume V,

an electronic circuit 25, which is powered by the energy recovery means and controls the impedance of the second antenna 26.

In this adjustable element 21, the energy recovery device 23 accumulates energy by any type of means as described above via the signal received by the first antenna 22 and powers the receiving device 24 and the electronic circuit 25.

Control wave W_cThe receiving device 24 decodes the conditioning parameters contained in this wave. The electronic circuit 25 powered by the energy recovery device 23 then uses the adjustment parameters to control and modify the impedance of the second antenna 26.

Fig. 4 shows a second variant of an adjustable element 21 for use in the system for detecting 10 according to the invention. The adjustable element comprises only one common antenna for receiving the control wave W_cAnd for impedance tuning, which changes the primary wave W₁The manner of reflection and/or transmission by the antenna.

Thus, as shown in the figures, this adjustable element 21 comprises:

a first antenna 22 adapted to receive the primary wave W_cAnd adapted to supply signals to the energy recovery means 23 and to the receiving means 24, the impedance of said first antenna 22 being modifiable so as to vary the primary wave W₁By means of reflection and/or transmission, and

an electronic circuit 25, which is powered by the energy recovery device and controls the impedance of the first antenna 22.

Returning to fig. 1, the controller 41 and antenna 42 form an assembly, a first embodiment of a control system 40. This control system 40:

-will the primary wave W₁Transmitted to receiver 30 and receives in return a secondary wave W from the detected receiver 30₂To detect and/or identify the receiver 30; and

-control wave W_cTransmitting to the adjustable elements 21 and receiving an echo W for each adjustable element 21 for which an adjustment parameter has been received in a previous control wave_rThe echo W_rAnd therefore corresponds to the confirmation of the impedance change effected by said adjustable element 21, in order to optimize the detection of the receiver 30 in the volume V.

In this embodiment, the detection of receiver 30 and the tuning of adjustable element 21 are carried out by a single controller 41.

Fig. 5 shows a second embodiment of a control system 40 consisting of at least two subsystems.

This control system 40 therefore comprises:

a first subsystem comprising a receiver controller 41₁And a receiver antenna 42₁The receiver antenna being adapted to transmit at least a primary wave W₁And receiving the secondary wave W₁To detect and/or identify the receiver 30; and

a second subsystem comprising an adjustable element controller 41₂And an adjustable element antenna 42₂The adjustable element antenna is adapted to control the wave W_cTransmitted to the adjustable elements 21 and adapted to receive an echo W for each adjustable element 21 for which an adjustment parameter has been received in a previous control wave_r。

In this embodiment, detection by receiver 30By the receiver controller 41₁Is carried out and the optimization of the adjustable element 21 is performed by the adjustable element controller 41₂And (6) carrying out. However, the receiver controller 41₁Transmitting information to the adjustable element controller 41, optionally via a wired or wireless connection₂In order to determine the adjustment parameters, as described above.

Other distributions of the functionality of the system 10 for detection are contemplated.

Finally, the principle of adjustable elements that are energy-autonomous and controlled independently of each other by wireless transmission for each of them can also be used for wave shaping devices such as described in patent document WO 2015/039769, i.e. wave shaping devices that are independent of the source and of the mobile device and for which it is possible to improve the reception of the primary waves from the source.