JPH0312353B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] This invention is a microcomputer ( Related to cash cards, credit cards, ID cards, memory cards, etc. that are equipped with microcomputers (microcomputers) and memory.

There are almost no conventional devices of this kind, and the magnetic card method is the most widely used for cash cards, etc., but with this method, the magnetic tape that is the memory part is exposed, so it can be easily scratched. Disadvantages include the fact that the memory content is easily erased or deteriorated by getting dirty or getting close to ferromagnetic materials such as speakers, and the memory content is small (about 1K bits), making it difficult to input data and memory contents. Another drawback was that the magnetic card itself had no processing capacity at all.

Furthermore, because of its simple structure, it was easy to read out the stored contents, difficult to keep secret, and easy to copy, increasing the risk of misuse.

Note that there are devices somewhat similar to the device of the present invention, such as so-called "IC cards,""data memory cards," and "computer built-in cards," which are currently undergoing practical tests in Europe and the United States. All of these have a built-in microcomputer and memory, and exchange data with external input/output devices via metal contact pieces.The card itself has the data processing ability, and the storage capacity can be increased by the number of magnetic cards. This is an epoch-making card that aims to expand from 10 times to several 10 times.

However, since this method transfers data to and from external input/output devices and supplies power by contacting multiple exposed metal pieces, there is a risk of poor contact due to abrasion, corrosion, dirt, etc. of the metal pieces. There is a risk of electrostatic damage to the internal elements due to contact with the human body, such as hands or fingers, and at the same time, there is a possibility that the contents of the memory can be directly accessed from this metal piece, so there are concerns about maintaining the confidentiality of the stored contents. Therefore, there was a risk that the data would be falsified and used illegally, resulting in severe damage to the cash payer. In addition, some devices are equipped with paper batteries to operate them.
In this case, it is cumbersome and uneconomical, as it is necessary to always pay attention to its handling and battery consumption.

To overcome these drawbacks, there are also known non-contact types that are equipped with an IC that generates an identification signal and transmit the identification signal on a high-frequency electromagnetic field. Since the oscillation circuit is built into the card device, it becomes expensive and requires space.

The purpose of this invention is to improve these drawbacks by providing a field of vibrational energy due to high-frequency electromagnetic fields or ultrasonic waves in space, and absorbing and rectifying the energy in the field to create a DC power source. This eliminates the need for a battery or a contact piece for power supply, and also eliminates the need for a clock signal oscillation element by generating the clock signal using the frequency of the alternating current component of the vibrational energy field.

In addition, for exchanging data and commands with external devices, for example, by using a coupler such as an antenna or a coil, it is possible to create a structure where the coupler does not necessarily need to be exposed to the outside, so it is not necessary to expose the coupler to the outside. Problems such as poor contact, electrostatic damage caused by the human body, and unauthorized use can be largely avoided.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the card device of the present invention. Card device 2 of this embodiment
is a receiver 3 such as an antenna, a coil, or a sound receiver that receives energy from a vibration energy field 1 such as a high-frequency electromagnetic field or an ultrasonic wave and outputs alternating current power, and a receiver 3 such as an antenna, a coil, or a sound receiver. a rectifier circuit 4 that rectifies the AC power of , an input coupler 7 that receives the energy of the vibrational energy field 1, extracts signals such as commands and data contained therein, and supplies them as input signals to the signal processing circuit 6; The output coupler 8 includes an output coupler 8 that transmits an output signal by adding it to vibration energy.

Next, the operation of the above embodiment will be described. Data and commands output by an external input/output device (not shown) are transmitted on vibration energy such as radio waves or ultrasonic waves generated from a vibration energy generator connected to the device. On the other hand, when the above-mentioned card device 2 is located within the vibration energy field 1 formed in space by the vibration energy generator, the wave receiver 3 absorbs the vibration energy and converts it into AC power, and this power is After being converted into DC power by the rectifier circuit 4, it is given to the frequency conversion circuit 5, the signal processing circuit 6, or other circuits as driving power. Further, the alternating current component of the vibrational energy is sent directly to the signal processing circuit 6 as a clock signal, either directly at its frequency (as shown by the dotted line) or after being frequency-divided or multiplied by the frequency conversion circuit 5. The input coupler 7 extracts data and commands contained in the vibration energy and supplies them to the signal processing circuit 6. For example, the signal processing circuit 6 has a program written therein in advance, writes the data in response to a write command and subsequent data input, and externally inputs/outputs a write end signal as a high frequency signal via the output coupler 8. Output to a device for This signal processing circuit 6 is not limited to writing data, but also performs processing such as changing or adding data that has already been written, or reading data based on a read command, and outputs stored data, commands, etc. .

Writing, reading, changing, and adding data in the signal processing circuit 6 are performed using a frequency signal obtained by dividing or multiplying the AC component of vibration energy in the frequency conversion circuit 5 as a clock signal. Therefore, for example, if the present invention is applied to an ID card, when a person with an ID card in their pocket comes to a predetermined area, the signal processing circuit receives a read command, and the corresponding identification code is read out and output. The external device can make a predetermined determination based on the identification code.

Next, specific examples of the circuits of each part of the device according to the present invention will be explained.

The receiver 3 uses an antenna, a coil, etc. when absorbing the energy of a high-frequency electromagnetic field, and a sound receiver such as a microphone when absorbing the energy of an ultrasonic field. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the output is voltage doubled and rectified to DC by a rectifier circuit 4 consisting of diodes 9, 10 and capacitors 11, 12, and if necessary, a resistor 1
3. The voltage is stabilized by a constant voltage circuit 16 including a constant voltage diode 14 and a capacitor 15, a three-terminal regulator, etc., and then supplied to other circuits.

For example, if a frequency divider is used in the frequency conversion circuit 5, the input frequency can be very easily downgraded to generate a clock signal, and the clock signal can be applied to the signal processing circuit 6 such as a microcomputer. Of course, depending on the situation, it is not always necessary to perform frequency conversion such as multiplication or down-conversion.

The signal processing circuit 6 is generally composed of a ROM or RAM and a microcomputer section that controls these memories, but in the device according to the present invention, the number of input and output couplers 7 and 8 is determined depending on the purpose of use. The smaller the number, the more compact it can be, so the input/output data is often a 1-bit serial signal.In this case, as shown in Fig. If configured to exchange data with external input/output equipment via a serial/parallel interface circuit 17 on the output side and a parallel/serial interface circuit 18 on the output side, the microcontroller itself can handle 4-bit or 8-bit data. Since bit parallel data can be input and output, programs can be simplified and data processing speed can be improved.

In addition, as a means to reduce the number of input or output couplers 7 and 8, there is a method of using one coupler for input and output in a time-sharing manner by electronic switching. The number can be halved, 1
For transmission and reception of bit serial signals, only one coupler is required.

As shown in FIG. 4, it is relatively simple to use a coil 70 for the input or output couplers 7 and 8 to send and receive data by electromagnetic coupling. Since differentiated pulses such as input data appear as shown in FIG. 5, the differentiated pulses are subjected to processing such as amplification and waveform shaping by the input circuit 19, and are then output as shown in FIG. 6. The input pulse waveform is restored and applied to the signal processing circuit 6. In this case, the coil 70 and the input circuit 9 constitute the input coupler 7. When transmitting data or the like from the signal processing circuit 6 to the output coupler 8, if the driving ability of the signal processing circuit 6 is low, a driving circuit 20 may be provided as shown in FIG. Note that the vibration energy for obtaining DC power, the vibration energy including the input signal of the signal processing circuit, and the vibration energy for obtaining the clock signal may be the same or may be different.

The shape of the device according to the present invention does not have to be in the shape of a card such as a business card, but can be circular, cylindrical, triangular, etc.
It can have any shape, such as a cubic shape, depending on the purpose of use.

The present invention receives field energy of vibrational energy, obtains direct current power from it, and uses it as a driving source for a circuit in a card device, and also obtains a clock signal based on the vibrational energy, and generates a signal through the vibrational energy. The system receives the following waves, which has the following effects.

(1) Since there is no need for a battery to drive the circuit, there is no need to always be aware of when to replace the battery, there is no need to perform replacement work, and there is no need to pay for battery replacement.

(2) Since it is possible to write, add, and change data on the card from an external device via vibration energy, these processes can be easily performed without the need for such operations by incorporating the card into a data writing device. can be done. Moreover, since input and output of data and the like can be performed via a coupler such as a coil, there is no risk of poor contact or damage to internal elements due to static electricity, and reliability is greatly improved both mechanically and electrically.

(3) By using a coupler such as a coil, there is no need to expose contact pieces etc. to the outside of the case or housing of the device according to the present invention, and the position and arrangement of the coupler is unknown from the outside. It is almost impossible to read or tamper with the contents of the memory, and the confidentiality of the contents of the memory is extremely high.

(4) Since no contact pieces are used for power supply or data exchange, the entire device is constructed to be enclosed within a case, making it possible to operate in special gases, underwater, or in high-humidity environments. Extremely useful.

Additionally, since this type of device is often carried around in a pocket, moisture such as human body sweat can enter the device and cause internal circuitry to malfunction. Such defects can also be avoided.

(5) Since the clock signal of the signal processing circuit 6 is generated based on the frequency of field 1, if the frequency of field 1 is made by a crystal oscillator or the like and has extremely stable and highly accurate characteristics, the clock signal Not only does it have the same high quality, but it also eliminates the need to install an expensive, large-volume, vibration-resistant crystal oscillator as a clock signal generation element in all card devices, which is both economical and machine-friendly. This also improves physical reliability and allows the device to be made smaller and lighter. In addition, since the external input/output device can directly obtain the frequency that is the source of this clock signal from the field 1 generator,
When transmitting and receiving data, it is easy to synchronize with the card device side, that is, the timing between sending commands and receiving data can be easily determined, allowing stable data reading on the external input/output device side. .

In the above, in the present invention, a cash card or
Not only ID cards, but also passports, health insurance cards,
It can be applied to many fields such as hospital medical records, automatic telephone bill payment cards, product identification cards, and memory cards for FA, OA, etc.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a card device according to the present invention, Fig. 2 is a circuit diagram showing a specific example of a rectifier circuit, and Fig. 3 is a circuit diagram showing a specific example of a rectifying circuit. FIG. 4 is a block diagram of still another embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 5 is an output waveform diagram in the coil 70, and FIG. 6 is an output waveform diagram in the data input circuit 19. . DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Vibration energy field, 2... Card device, 3... Wave receiver, 4... Rectifier circuit, 5... Frequency conversion circuit, 6... Signal processing circuit, 7... Input coupler, 8 ...Output coupler.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A receiver that receives the energy of a vibrational energy field formed in space and generates alternating current power, and a rectifier circuit that converts the alternating current power from the receiver into direct current power. and an input coupler that receives the field energy of the vibrational energy and extracts the data contained therein; and the DC power obtained by the rectifier circuit is used as driving power, and the data from the input coupler is It is equipped with a signal processing circuit to be written, and an output coupler that transmits the data read out from the signal processing circuit on vibrational energy, and converts the vibrational energy received by the receiver into an alternating current. A card device characterized in that a frequency signal obtained based on the component is used as a clock signal to write and read data in a signal processing circuit.