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EP-4372607-B1 - MULTI-ANTENNA TUNED WEARABLE ARTICLE

EP4372607B1EP 4372607 B1EP4372607 B1EP 4372607B1EP-4372607-B1

Inventors

  • PHEIL, HOLLI

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20160408

Claims (15)

  1. A wearable article, comprising: a structure (102) configured to enclose a body part of a wearer, the body part different than the structure; a first antenna (200) positioned in a first position on or within the structure, the first antenna configured to emit and receive wireless signals and positioned to transmit and receive according to a wireless communication modality through air, the first position configured to allow the first antenna to transmit and receive through air; a second antenna (202) positioned in a second position on or within the structure, the second antenna configured to emit and receive wireless signals and positioned to transmit and receive according to the wireless communication modality through the body part, the first antenna being tuned differently than the second antenna, the second position spaced apart from the first position and configured to allow the second antenna to transmit and receive through the body part; and a transceiver (210), disposed on or within the structure and operatively coupled to the first antenna and the second antenna, the transceiver configured to communicate with an external antenna of an external system by transmitting and receiving data via the at least one of the first and second antennas according to the wireless communication modality, wherein the transceiver is configured to receive information from the external system and transmit information to the external system.
  2. The wearable article of claim 1, wherein the wireless communication modality is an ultra high frequency (UHF) communication modality.
  3. The wearable article of claim 1 or 2, wherein the transceiver comprises: a first transceiver, coupled to the first antenna, configured to transmit and receive according to the wireless communication modality via the first antenna; and a second transceiver, coupled to the second antenna, configured to transmit and receive according to the wireless communication modality via the second antenna.
  4. The wearable article of any preceding claim, wherein the first and second antennas and the transceiver are disposed on a common substrate, the first and second positions are a common position, and the substrate is positioned in the common position.
  5. The wearable article of any preceding claim, wherein the first and second antennas are discrete components with respect to one another and the first and second positions are separate with respect to one another.
  6. The wearable article of any preceding claim, further comprising an electronic data storage operatively coupled to the transceiver and configured to store the information, wherein the information is about at least one of: the wearable article; or a person associated with the wearable article.
  7. The wearable article of any preceding claim, wherein the first and second antennas are further tuned to transmit and receive according to the wireless communication modality through the structure of the article of footwear in addition to through air and the human foot, respectively.
  8. The wearable article of any preceding claim, further comprising an information tag secured to the structure, wherein the first and second antennas are secured, at least in part, to the information tag, wherein the information tag includes visual information related to the article of apparel, wherein the transceiver is configured to transmit wireless information related to the article of apparel, the wireless information including at least some information included in the visual information.
  9. The wearable article of any preceding claim, wherein the structure comprises an upper for an article of footwear and a sole structure, the sole structure comprising an outsole and an insole, wherein the first and second antennas are positioned on or within the sole structure and the transceiver is positioned on or within the sole structure.
  10. The wearable article of any preceding claim, further comprising an output device, coupled to the first and second antennas, configured to provide a first indication if the first antenna receives a wireless signal and a second indication if the second antenna receives a wireless signal.
  11. The wearable article of claim 10, wherein the first and second indications are at least one of a visual indication and an audio indication.
  12. The wearable article of any preceding claim, wherein the first antenna is tuned to communicate according to the wireless communication modality through air, wherein the second antenna is tuned to communicate according to the wireless communication modality through the body part.
  13. A method of making a wearable article, comprising: forming a structure to enclose a body part of a wearer, the body part different than the structure; positioning a first antenna in a first position on or within the structure, the first antenna configured to emit and receive wireless signals and positioned to transmit and receive according to a wireless communication modality through air, the first position configured to allow the first antenna to transmit and receive through air; positioning a second antenna in a second position on or within the structure, the second antenna configured to emit and receive wireless signals and positioned to transmit and receive according to the wireless communication modality through the body part, the first antenna being tuned differently than the second antenna, the second position spaced apart from the first position and configured to allow the second antenna to transmit and receive through the body part; and disposing a transceiver on or within the structure and operatively coupling the transceiver to the first antenna and the second antenna, the transceiver configured to communicate with an external antenna of an external system by transmitting and receiving data via the at least one of the first and second antennas according to the wireless communication modality, wherein the transceiver is configured to receive information from the external system and transmit information to the external system.
  14. The method of claim 13, wherein disposing the transceiver comprises: coupling a first transceiver to the first antenna, the first transceiver configured to transmit and receive data according to the wireless communication modality via the first antenna; and coupling a second transceiver to the second antenna, the second antenna configured to transmit and receive data according to the wireless communication modality via the second antenna.
  15. The method of claim 13 or 14, wherein the first antenna is tuned to communicate according to the wireless communication modality through air, wherein the second antenna is tuned to communicate according to the wireless communication modality through the body part.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The subject matter disclosed herein generally relates to wearable articles configured for active communication while being worn. BACKGROUND Ultra high frequency (UHF) wireless communication may vary in operation frequency between and among certain countries, but in general may be understood to occur over the range of approximately 300 megahertz (MHz) to approximately three (3) gigahertz (GHz). Certain regions throughout the world utilize a variety different of industrial, scientific, and medical (ISM) bands for UHF communications. Certain ISM bands are centered around approximately 900 MHz, with the center frequencies of those bands falling generally within the range of approximately 869 MHz to approximately 915 MHz. US 2014/0253397 A1 describes a wearable antenna operably positioned on a wearer's skin and operably connected to the wearer's tissue. A first antenna matched to the wearer's tissue is operably positioned on the wearer's skin. A second antenna matched to the air is operably positioned on the wearer's skin. Transmission lines connect the first antenna and the second antenna. The invention is defined by the attached independent claims 1 and 13 to which reference should now be made. Further, optional features may be found in the sub-claims appended thereto. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Some embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a cutaway depiction of a wearable article, in an example embodiment.FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an RF communication circuit, in an example embodiment.FIG. 3 is a layout of an RF communication circuit on a substrate, in an example embodiment.FIG. 4 is a depiction of a wearable article including an RF communication circuit, in an example embodiment.FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a system for transmitting wireless signals to a wearable article, in an example embodiment.FIG. 6 is a flowchart for making a wearable article, in an example embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION Example methods and systems are directed to wearable articles configured for active UHF communication while being worn. Examples merely typify possible variations. Unless explicitly stated otherwise, components and functions are optional and may be combined or subdivided, and operations may vary in sequence or be combined or subdivided. In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of example embodiments. It will be evident to one skilled in the art, however, that the present subject matter may be practiced without these specific details. The ISM bands and other regional and international communication bands clustered around approximately 900 MHz (herein after "the 900 MHz bands") may be useful in a variety of circumstances, including but not limited to radio frequency identification (RFID) tags, chips, and the like, as known in the art. However, various substances and materials, including water and other constituent parts of humans, animals, and clothing, among other things, may be impermeable or otherwise inhibiting of wireless signals in the 900 MHz bands that are normally tuned for transmission through air. Thus, while RFID tags, for instance, have been utilized in conjunction with articles of apparel such as clothes, shoes, and the like, such RFID tags or other wireless transmitters in the 900 MHz bands may be of substantially reduced range and effectivity while the wearable article is actually being worn on a person's body. An RFID tag with a UHF antenna that is positioned in a shirt, for instance, may communicate to a suitable range in directions away from the body of the wearer of the shirt but may not communicate in directions that pass through the wearer. An RFID tag in a shoe may be effectively unable to communicate at all while the shoe is being worn if the tag is in the sole or heel of the shoe. Even if the RFID tag is positioned higher in the shoe, such as in the tongue, effective communication may still be limited both by the presence of the foot and the proximity of the tag to the ground. Circumstances in which RFID tags are attached to a shoe intentionally place the RFID at a distinct distance from the foot of the wearer to maintain the ability to communicate at an effective distance. Actions taken to tune a UHF antenna to communicate effectively through a human body may, however, reduce the effectivity of the UHF antenna when the wearable article is not being worn by a person. Additionally, the circumstances of wearing the wearable article may place the UHF antenna away from the body, in the case of an overly-large shirt, for instance. Thus, to tune the antenna to the body of the wearer may result in reduced effectiveness under the circumstances in which the wearable article isn't being worn. Wearable articles have been developed that provide multiple antennas for wireless communication. A first antenna is a U