WO2008012933A1

WO2008012933A1 - Flat washer-type tag

Info

Publication number: WO2008012933A1
Application number: PCT/JP2006/324452
Authority: WO
Inventors: Nakamaro Hyodo; Shinobu Tomita; Satoru Momoda
Original assignee: Hanex Co., Ltd.
Priority date: 2006-07-24
Filing date: 2006-12-07
Publication date: 2008-01-31
Also published as: JP4648972B2; JPWO2008012933A1

Abstract

A washer incorporating an RFID tag. In the washer-type tag, a circular plate that has a screw insertion through-hole in its center is formed by press working, an annular groove is formed in the plate so as to be coaxial with the through-hole, and the RFID tag is sealed in the groove by a predetermined filling substance. Thus, the washer-type tag incorporating the RFID tag can be easily formed. Also, RFID tags can be easily attached to various devices in the same way as ordinary washers by using the washer-type tag.

Description

Specification

Flat shear type tag

Technical field

[0001] The present invention relates to a product using a so-called RFID tag. In particular, the present invention relates to a washer-type tag in which an RFID tag is attached to a flat washer.

Background art

[0002] In recent years, so-called RFID tags have become widespread and widely used in logistics, product management, and the like.

This RFID tag is generally very small. It is generally easy to attach it to a product. RFID tags are often called wireless tags, IC tags, contactless tags, and the like.

[0003] However, it is necessary to install each product with an optimum method for each product in consideration of a detection method and the like. Such tasks are often very cumbersome.

[0004] Therefore, if an RFID tag is attached to a general-purpose component in advance, it is convenient that the RFID tag can be automatically attached when a product using the general-purpose component is assembled.

[0005] Further, if it is a general-purpose part, it is expected that RFID can be easily attached by exchanging the part of an existing product, and convenience is expected to be greatly improved.

[0006] For example, it would be desirable if an RFID tag attached to a bolt, nut, screw or the like could be realized.

[0007] <Example of prior art>

For example, Patent Document 1 below discloses a technique for preventing forgetting to tighten a screw by providing an IC tag on a screw tool. This is because the IC tag is destroyed by tightening the screw.

[0008] Further, Patent Document 2 below describes that an RFID tag is attached to the surface of a ball screw.

[0009] Further, Patent Document 3 below discloses a fastener incorporating an RFID. For the built-in, `` bar-shaped magnetic core is arranged so that the center of the screw extends from the head to the shaft Then, an arrangement in which the antenna coil and the RFID chip are arranged in the head is disclosed.

Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2006-097813

Patent Document 2: JP 2006-057693 A

Patent Document 3: Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-076966

Disclosure of the invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

[0011] As can be easily understood, mounting RFID tags on the surfaces of bolts and nuts as in Patent Documents 1 and 2 results in restrictions on screw tightening operations and the like, resulting in poor convenience. Is expected. On the other hand, in Patent Document 3, the configuration of the force device incorporating the RFID tag tends to be complicated, and the production process is thought to be complicated.

[0012] The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and an object thereof is to provide a general-purpose component incorporating an RFID tag. In particular, the present invention proposes a mechanism for incorporating a RFID tag in a washer.

Means for solving the problem

[0013] (1) In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a metal surface forming portion provided with a through-hole through which a shaft body penetrates in a central portion, and an outer peripheral edge force of the surface forming portion in the axial direction. A flat washer main body having a housing portion formed by a metal circumferentially extending portion, and a flat RFID tag having an annular RFID tag that is housed and fixed in the housing portion and has a hole through which the shaft body passes. The surface forming portion includes a material and an RF ID tag accommodated in the housing portion through the surface forming portion, and capable of electromagnetic wave communication with an external communication device by electromagnetic induction. The RFID tag housed in the housing portion is externally inserted through the surface forming portion in a state in which an external force shaft body is passed through the through hole and the hole portion of the RFID tag. It is configured to perform electromagnetic wave communication with a communication device by electromagnetic induction action. It is a flat Wassha type tag to.

[0014] (2) Further, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides the flat-shade body according to (1), in which the surface-forming portion and the circumferential-forming portion are formed by processing a disk-shaped metal block And a flat washer-type tag characterized in that the through hole is provided in the center of the surface forming portion. [0015] (3) Further, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides the flat shutter main body according to (1) described above, wherein the flat body has a metal circle provided with a through hole through which a shaft body passes. A plate and a cylindrical metal collar extending in the axial direction from the outer peripheral edge of the disk, the disk forming the surface forming part, and the collar forming the circumference forming part The RFID tag is accommodated in the accommodating portion formed by the surface forming portion and the periphery forming portion, and the open portion of the flat washer body is a lid body made of metal and having a through hole through which the shaft body penetrates. It is a flat washer-type tag that is sealed and the RFID tag is fixed in the accommodating portion by the lid.

[0016] (4) Further, in order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the present invention provides an intermediate so as to sandwich the circular plate and the lid and surround the through-hole in the above-mentioned (3). A flat washer-type tag characterized in that a cylindrical body is arranged.

[0017] (5) Further, in order to solve the above-described problem, the present invention provides the RFID tag according to (3) described above, wherein the RFID tag is caulked by a peripheral edge portion of the collar portion while being accommodated in the accommodating portion. A flat washer-type tag that is fixed in the housing portion.

The invention's effect

[0018] As described above, according to the present invention, a washer-type tag with a built-in RFID tag can be easily configured. If this washer-type tag is used in the same manner as a general washer, RFID tags can be easily attached to various devices.

Brief Description of Drawings

FIG. 1 is a plan view and a side view of a flat washer-type tag of Example 1. FIG.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of an RFID tag.

FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of a flat washer-type tag of Example 2.

FIG. 4 is a side sectional view of a flat washer-type tag of Example 3.

FIG. 5 is a side sectional view of a flat washer-type tag of Example 4.

FIG. 6 is a side sectional view of a flat washer-type tag of Example 5.

FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the communication principle in the data carrier structure according to the present invention. Explanation of symbols

[0020] A ... Data carrier structure , 2 ... 'Tag… Terminal device… Metal layer… Terminal device

0 ····································· 2

2a ... Screw through hole 2b ... Circular groove

'' 'IC chip ··· Antenna ...: FID tag ... Flat washer type tag ... Disc

a… screw through hole b… circular groove

···· Platinum type tag

a… Screw through hole b… Tub collar… Flat flat back cover “'RFID tag… Flat flat tag… Disk

a… Screw through hole b… Sleeve part… Flat washer back lid… Intermediate flat washer “'RFID tag 100 ... flat washer type tag

102 ... disc

102a ... Screw through hole

102b ... Brim

110- RFID tag

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0022] <Example 1: A flat washer type tag using a circular groove>

FIG. 1 shows a plan view and a side view of the flat washer tag 10 of the first embodiment.

[0023] This flat washer type tag 10 has an extremely low magnetic resistance against electromagnetic induction due to the characteristics of the alloy component of a metal that is difficult to crack (for example, SUS: 304 is suitable). The flat washer-type tag 10 can penetrate the metal by electromagnetic induction and perform data communication with the internal 125KHz tag.

As shown in FIG. 1, this flat washer type tag 10 is provided with a screw through hole 12a through which a screw (bolt) passes through a disc 12 having a plate thickness of 2 to 3 mm and a diameter of 30 mm—50 mm. is there. of course

The diameter of the through-hole 12a is a diameter that matches the diameter of the screw (bolt) that is desired to pass through the flat washer type tag 10.

Furthermore, a circular groove 12b is formed in the circular plate 12 forming the flat washer type tag 10 by excavation processing concentrically with the screw through hole 12a. The depth of the circular groove 12b is about -0.5 mm of the thickness of the disk. Therefore, the bottom thickness of the circular groove 12b is 0.5 mm. The circular groove 12b corresponds to a preferred example of the accommodating portion in the claims.

[0026] The disk 12 is preferably made of SUS304 as described above. The same applies to each of Examples 2 to 5 described later.

[0027] The outer diameter of the circular groove 12b is about the diameter of the disc-1. Omm. As a result, the thickness of the side wall of the circular groove 12b is 0.5 mm, similar to the thickness of the bottom. The inner diameter of the circular groove 12b may be larger than the diameter of the screw through hole 12a. However, since the IC chip 14 is inserted into the circular groove 12b as described later, the value of the inner diameter is set so that the value of the outer diameter—the inner diameter is sufficiently large for the IC chip 14 to enter. [0028] It should be noted that the disc 12 having the screw through hole 12a and the circular groove 12b thus provided is particularly referred to as a "flat washer case". This corresponds to the flat washer tag in the claims. The bolt corresponds to a preferred example of a shaft body within the scope of the claims.

[0029] What is characteristic in the first embodiment is that the IC chip 14 is inserted into the circular groove 12b. In this embodiment, the composite unit of the IC chip 14 and the antenna 16 is inserted into the circular groove 12b. This composite unit is called RFID tag 20 in the first embodiment.

The RFID tag 20 is a composite unit of the IC chip 14 and the antenna 16. The antenna 16 is a loop antenna in which a conducting wire is wound in an annular shape. This antenna 16 is a loop antenna having a diameter such that it enters the circular groove 12b. The IC chip 14 and the antenna 16 are electrically connected by bonding.

[0031] The RFID tag 20 in the first embodiment performs communication using electromagnetic induction waves including 125 kHz.

This also applies to the following Examples 2 to 5.

A plan view showing an example of the RFID tag 20 is shown in FIG. As shown in this figure, the IC chip 14 is connected to the outside of the antenna 16 by bonding. In the first embodiment, the case where the IC chip 14 is located outside the antenna 16 is described. The IC chip 14 is located inside the antenna 16!

[0033] The inventors of the present application used two types of the outer diameter Z of the antenna 16, that is, 24mmZl9mm and 46mmZ42mm. Outer diameter Z inner diameter of 24mmZl9mm is for M5, M6, M8 size screws. Also,. The outer diameter Z inner diameter of 46mm and Z42mm was used for M10, M12, M14 and Ml 6 size screws. As the types of adaptive tags, it is preferable to use the following three types according to the application.

[0034] (1) Read-only tag: 10 digit fixed value (unique)

(2) One-time 'tag: User can write data only once (Q5: 256 bits, etc.)

(3) Read / Write: User can freely read and write (TITAN: lk bit, etc.) Of course, it is also preferable to use tags of various existing standards.

[0035] <Weatherproof filler>

Now, after inserting the RFID tag 20 into the circular groove 12b, it is sealed with a weatherproof filler. ing. For example, black pitch or the like is suitable as a weather resistant filler. In addition, it is also preferable to use a silicon filler, an acrylic filler, or the like.

[0036] <Marking>

In addition, the same value as the value written in the tag is printed on the disk constituting the flat washer tag 10 according to the first embodiment. As a result, even if a failure occurs in the RFID tag, the contents can be seen with the naked eye. This marking is particularly effective for the above-mentioned read-only tag.

[0037] <Example 2: (Modified example in which Example 1 is realized by press working)>

In the first embodiment, it is also preferable to form a shape similar to the force that forms the circular groove 12b by excavation with a pressing force. FIG. 3 shows a side cross-sectional view of a flat washer-type tag 40 similar to Example 1 formed by press working. This flat washer-type tag 40 has basically the same structure as the flat washer-type tag 10 shown in FIG.

However, the circular groove 12b is formed in the circular plate 12 in FIG. 1 by excavation processing, whereas the circular groove 42b is formed in the circular plate 42 in FIG. 3 by press processing. The point is very different. The two (Figs. 1 and 2) differ in the formation method of the circular grooves (12b, 42b) in this way, but the other configurations are the same. For example, a screw through hole 12a'42a is provided at the center. In addition, the RFID tag 20 is inserted in the circular grooves 12b and 42b, and is sealed with a filler. This disc 42 is also preferably made of SUS304.

[0039] According to the second embodiment, since the circular groove 42b is formed by the press carriage, the flat washer type tag 40 can be more easily produced.

[0040] <Example 3: Example using flat washer back cover>

In the first and second embodiments, the force using the flat washer case provided with the circular grooves 12b and 42b (the disk 12 provided with the screw through holes 12a and the circular grooves 12b) is used. An example using a circular plate 62 provided with a collar portion 62b (this is called a flat washer cover) will be described.

[0041] Fig. 4 shows a side cross-sectional view of a disc 62 having a collar portion 62b, a flat washer back cover 64 that engages with the collar portion 62b, and a forceful flat washer-type tag 60.

It should be noted that the flat washer back cover 64 corresponds to a preferred example of the lid in the claims. Also The flange portion 62b corresponds to a preferred example of the circumference forming portion in the claims.

As shown in FIG. 4, the flat washer-type tag 60 employs a structure in which the RFID tag 70 is sandwiched between a circular plate 62 having the collar portion 62b and the flat washer back cover 64.

[0044] Other structures are the same as those in Examples 1 to 3. For example, the disk 62 is provided with a screw through hole 62a. The disc 62 and the flat washer back cover 64 are preferably made of SUS304. 62a corresponds to a preferred example of the surface forming portion within the scope of the claims.

[0045] The RFID tag 70 of the third embodiment may be the same as the RFID tag 20 used in the first and second embodiments !, but the disc 62 and the flat washer back cover may be used. In view of the structure sandwiched between 64 and 64, it is preferable to preliminarily form a flat disk shape. For example, if a flat donut-shaped RFID tag 70 is formed by molding with acrylic or silicone resin, the RFID tag 70 can be sandwiched between the disc 62 and the flat washer back cover 64. It becomes very easy. The RFID tag 70 preferably performs communication using electromagnetic induction waves including 125 kHz.

[0046] The RFID tag 70 is obtained by molding the antenna 16 and the IC chip 14 with a synthetic resin. The disc 62 and the flat washer back cover 64 are preferably bonded and fixed with an adhesive.

[0047] According to the third embodiment, the RFID tag 70 can be easily fixed by providing the collar 62b on the disc 62 and fitting the flat washer back cover 64 with the collar 62b. As a result, production efficiency can be improved.

[0048] <Example 4: Example where flat washer back cover is fixed by three-point spot welding>

In Example 3 above, the flat washer back cover 64 was bonded and fixed with an adhesive. However, depending on the usage environment, spot welding may be desirable. In the fourth embodiment, an example in which the flat washer back cover 84 is fixed by spot welding will be described.

[0049] FIG. 5 shows a circular plate 82 having a collar portion 82b, a flat washer back cover 84 fitted into the collar portion 82b, and an intermediate portion inserted between the flat plate washer back cover 84 and the circular plate 82. A side cross-sectional view of a flat washer tag 80 comprising a flat washer 86 is shown. The intermediate flat washer corresponds to an intermediate cylinder within the scope of the request.

[0050] The intermediate flat washer 86 is a flat washer having the same inner diameter as the screw through hole 82a. The intermediate flat washer and the screw through hole 82a are positioned so as to be coaxial. That is, the screw (bolt) that passes through the washer-type tag 80 passes through the screw through hole 82a and the intermediate flat shoulder 86 (“screw through passage”).

[0051] The circular plate 82, the flat washer back cover 84, and the intermediate flat washer 86 are preferably made of SUS304.

In the production of the flat washer-type tag 80 of the fourth embodiment, first, spot welding is performed at three force points in the annular portion where the intermediate flat washer 86 and the circular plate 82 are in contact with each other. Next, the RFID tag 90 is inserted into the gap between the intermediate flat washer 86 and the flange portion 82 b of the disc 82. Then, the flat washer back cover 84 is placed so as to overlap the intermediate flat cover 86 (see Fig. 5), and the three force points in the annular part where the intermediate flat washer 86 and flat cover back cover 84 are in contact are also the same. Spot weld. In this way, the flat washer tag 80 of the fourth embodiment is completed. The RFID tag 90 has the same configuration as the RFID tags 20 and 70 described above, and performs communication using electromagnetic induction waves including 125 kHz.

According to the fourth embodiment, since the intermediate flat washer 86 and the circular plate 82 are spot-welded, the washer-type tag 80 can be manufactured quickly. The intermediate flat washer 86 and the flat washer back cover 84 are similarly fixed by spot welding, so that the production efficiency can be improved.

In the fifth embodiment, an example will be described in which the flat washer back cover 104 is fixed by force squeezing the collar portion 102b of the disc 102. FIG. 6 shows a side cross-sectional view of a disc 102 having a collar portion 102b, an RFID tag 110 fixed by force-squeezing the collar portion 102b inside, and a flat washer-type tag 100 that also has force. Yes. The disk 102 is provided with a screw through hole 102a for allowing a screw (bolt) to pass therethrough as in the embodiments described above.

[0055] The disc 102 is preferably made of SUS304.

As described in the third embodiment, the RFID tag 110 in the fifth embodiment is molded in advance with a resin or the like to form a disk shape. As a result, the RFID tag 120 can be easily fixed by squeezing the collar portion 102b inward (see FIG. 6). The RFI D tag 110 performs communication using electromagnetic induction waves including 125 kHz.

[0057] In the production of the flat washer-type tag 100 of the fifth embodiment, the RFID tag 110 that has been molded in advance with a resin or the like to form a disk shape is fitted so as to be engaged with the flange portion 102b of the disk 102. Attached. That is, press-contact insertion joining is performed. Thereafter, the collar portion 102b is fixed by caulking.

[0058] As described above, according to the fifth embodiment, the RFID tag 120 can be easily fixed by force squeezing, so that it is possible to configure the flat washer tag 100 with higher productivity. (Fig. 6).

[0059] <Description of electromagnetic induction system>

Referring to FIG. 7, the electromagnetic induction method used in the present invention will be described. The data carrier structure A includes an RFID tag 20 and a metal layer 5 that protects the RFID tag 20, and the RFID tag 20 communicates with a terminal device 6 such as a reader / writer (RZW) machine via the metal layer 5. The reader / writer corresponds to a preferred example of the communication device in the claims.

[0060] For example, when the read signal is transmitted as the electromagnetic wave H 1 to the antenna coil force data carrier structure A of the terminal device 6, the skin current I is generated inside the metal layer 5 by the electromagnetic wave HI, and the skin current I Causes the electromagnetic wave H2 to be generated inside the data carrier structure A.

That is, the electromagnetic wave HI transmitted from the terminal device 6 can transmit the electromagnetic wave H2 by the electromagnetic induction action through the metal layer 5. Conversely, response electromagnetic waves from the antenna coils 2 a and 2 b of the RFID tag 20 are also transmitted to the terminal device 6 by electromagnetic induction through the metal layer 5.

[0062] The frequency of the electromagnetic wave used for communication is variously selected in the range of several hundred Hz to several MHz. When such a high-frequency electromagnetic wave is irradiated onto the metal layer 5, the metal layer 5 has a frequency as described above. The skin current I is generated, but the thickness d of the skin current I is (inversely proportional to the 1Z2 power of π ί / ζ, where f is the frequency of the electromagnetic wave and is the dielectric of the metal layer 5. Rate, p is the resistivity of the metal layer 5.

[0063] In order to perform communication by electromagnetic induction through the metal layer 5, the thickness t of the metal layer 5 needs to be t ≤ d. If d is constant, the smaller the value of t is, Improvement in communication sensitivity was a major factor.

[0064] However, the smaller the value of the thickness t of the metal layer 5 (that is, the thinner the value), the lower its strength. When reaching a certain limit, the function of protecting the RFID tag 20 cannot be performed. So practical In order to achieve communication with electromagnetic induction while achieving a sufficient protection strength, it is necessary to select a metal material that can increase the thickness d of the skin current I.

[0065] Therefore, the inventors of the present invention conducted experiments in which various metal materials were used to form the metal layer 5 that protects the RFID tag 20 with various thicknesses and communication was performed by electromagnetic induction. As materials of 5, it was found that austenitic stainless steel, white copper, titanium, etc. are suitable for such purpose. Also, brass or the like can be used.

[0066] On the other hand, iron, aluminum, copper, nickel, etc. have a small value of the thickness d of the skin current I, and it has been found that communication is difficult unless the metal layer 5 is made as thin as the foil.

[0067] Table 1 below shows the non-contact communicable distance for data carrier structure A using austenitic stainless steel plates (SUS301, SUS304, SUS316) and ferritic stainless steel plates (SUS430) as metal layer 5. It is the experimental result measured.

[0068] The experiment was conducted on RFID tags 20 having concentric disk-shaped antenna coils 2a, and tags 1 and 2 (see Table 1), which are two types of data carrier structures A having an outer diameter of 50 mm and 20 mm in diameter. Using a reader / writer (RZW) machine as 4, the reading distance (the distance between each data carrier structure A and the terminal device 6) at which information can be accurately read was measured.

[0069] In Table 1, the value obtained by multiplying the thickness of each metal plate by the number of stacked layers is shown as the total thickness of the metal layer 5, and the dimensions of each metal plate indicate the end force magnetic flux leakage. Not big enough. Further, “X” in the reading distance indicates a case where reading cannot be performed.

[0070] [Table 1]

[0071] In order to change the thickness of the metal layer 5, various experiments were conducted by adopting a method of stacking a plurality of thin metal plates. However, in the case of the same layer thickness, the communication distance was shorter in the lamination than in the single layer. This is presumed to be due to the fact that, in the case of lamination, an air layer is interposed between the metal plates, so that the electromagnetic induction action is multistage and the electromagnetic wave is greatly attenuated.

[0072] Table 2 below shows the results of experiments conducted on steel plates, copper plates, white copper plates, nickel plates, titanium plates, aluminum plates, and brass plates in the same manner as in Table 1.

[0073] [Table 2]

[0074] As shown in Tables 1 and 2, it can be seen that austenitic stainless steel, white copper, titanium and the like are suitable for the data carrier structure A of the present invention as the metal layer 5.

[0075] Summary>

According to each of the embodiments described above, metal machines, tools, dies, and any other metal objects can be made IT by simply attaching this washer-type tag. possibility

[0076] As an application example of the present invention, the present invention can be applied to a product using a so-called RFID tag, and in particular, can be used for a washer-type tag in which an RFID tag is attached to a flat washer.

Claims

The scope of the claims

[1] A metal surface forming portion provided with a through hole in the center for penetrating the shaft body;

An outer peripheral edge force of the surface forming portion; a flat washer main body having a housing portion formed by a metal circumferential forming portion extending in the axial direction;

A flat washer tag including an annular RFID tag that is accommodated and fixed in the accommodating portion and that has a hole portion that allows a shaft to pass through a central portion thereof, wherein the surface forming portion is disposed via the surface forming portion. The RFID tag housed in the unit has a material and thickness that enables electromagnetic wave communication with an external communication device by electromagnetic induction action.

The RFID tag accommodated in the accommodating portion is connected to an external communication device via the surface forming portion while the shaft body is penetrated from the outside into the through hole and the hole portion of the RFID tag. A flat washer-type tag that is configured to perform electromagnetic wave communication by electromagnetic induction.

[2] In Claim 1, the flat washer main body is formed by processing a disk-shaped metal block to form a surface forming portion and a periphery forming portion, and the through hole is provided in a central portion of the surface forming portion. A flat washer type tag characterized by being a thing.

[3] In Claim 1, the flat washer main body includes a metal disk having a through-hole through which a shaft body penetrates in a central portion;

The outer peripheral edge force of the disc has a cylindrical metal collar portion extending in the axial direction, the disc forms the surface forming portion, the collar portion forms the circumference forming portion, An RFID tag is accommodated in an accommodating portion formed by the surface forming portion and the periphery forming portion, and an open portion of the flat washer main body is sealed with a lid body that is made of metal and has a through hole that penetrates the shaft body in the central portion. A flat washer-type tag, wherein the RFID tag is fixed in the housing portion by the lid.

[4] The flat washer-type tag according to claim 3, wherein an intermediate cylinder is disposed so as to be sandwiched between the disc and the lid and surround the through-hole from the periphery. .

[5] The flat washer type according to claim 3, wherein the RFID tag is fixed in the housing portion by caulking by a peripheral edge portion of the collar portion in a state of being housed in the housing portion. tag.