WO2009025430A1

WO2009025430A1 - Method and apparatus for decoding various codes using epc header

Info

Publication number: WO2009025430A1
Application number: PCT/KR2008/000930
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jun Seob Lee; Sang Keun Yoo; Yong-Woon Kim; Hyoung Jun Kim
Original assignee: Electronics And Telecommunications Research Institute
Priority date: 2007-08-21
Filing date: 2008-02-18
Publication date: 2009-02-26
Also published as: KR20090019471A

Abstract

Disclosed is a multicode decoding apparatus using an Electronic Product Code (EPC) header and a method for performing the apparatus. The multicode decoding apparatus using the EPC header includes a reading unit for reading the EPC header and code information from a storage medium; a transmission unit for transmitting the read EPC header to the code information server; a code conversion unit for receiving, from the code information server, code decoding information corresponding to the EPC header, and converting the code information into either URN information or FQDN information based on the received code decoding information; and a code decoding unit for transmitting either the converted URN information or FQDN information to a Domain Name System (DNS) server, and receiving, from the DNS server, position information of a product corresponding to the code information.

Description

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DECODING VARIOUS CODES USING EPC HEADER

Technical Field

[1] The present invention relates to a multicode decoding apparatus using an Electronic

Product Code (EPC) header and a method for performing the apparatus, and more particularly, to a multicode decoding apparatus using an EPC header and a method for performing the apparatus, which receives, from a code information server, code decoding information with respect to code information read from a storage medium, and receives, from a content server, product information corresponding to the EPC header using either Uniform Resource Name (URN) information or Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN) information converted based on the code decoding information.

[2] This work was supported by the IT R&D program of MIC/IITA. [2007-P10-06,

Mobile RFID Standards Development] Background Art

[3] In current industrial society, encountering the needs of the times such as large-scale production and large-scale consumption, a huge number of products manufactured by various manufacturers are sold to general consumers through complex distribution processes. In this regard, many technologies for effectively managing products in production and distribution processes have been developed.

[4] As an example, a technology has been proposed in which product information stored in a storage medium is read to thereby identify the products in a state where the storage medium in which product information is stored is attached to the products. In particular, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) of a next generation recognition technology used as one of the storage media has been widely used for managing information about items such as animals, products, articles, and the like using an Integrated Circuit (IC) chip and radio communication. In the RFID technology, information about a whole process including producing, selling, and buying which is recorded a miniaturized chip can be traced using a radio frequency. The RFID technology may be referred to as a smart tag, an electric label, and the like.

[5] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a data area stored in a conventional storage medium 100.

[6] As illustrated in FIG. 1, the conventional storage medium 100 may include an

Electronic Product Code (EPC) header 110, and code information 120.

[7] The EPC header 110 shows what kind of code is stored in a storage medium. The code information 120 is a number to identify products, and may include a manufacturer code, a product code, a serial number, and the like.

[8] A conventional standard code (for example, European Article Number (EAN) standard code) has been exclusively used only for identifying the name of articles, whereas the EPC advantageously identifies even an individual article among identical articles. Specifically, the conventional EAN identifies the name of the article such as "250 ml coke can", whereas the EPC may identify even "which one among a number of 250 ml coke cans" by adding a positional number of the serial number. A user inquires detailed product information about the EPC in a separate system after reading the EPC using a reader.

[9] The EPC header is standardized together with code information by a global EPC when the code information is stored in the storage medium.

[10] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a conventional network configuration 200 for querying about product information corresponding to the EPC.

[11] Referring to FIG. 2, a reader 202 reads an EPC header and code information stored in a storage medium 201, converts the read code information into Uniform Resource Name (URN) information or Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN) information, and transmits the converted information to a Domain Name System (DNS) server 203. The recorder 202 receives, from the DNS server 203, position information of a content server 204, and also receives, from the content server 204, product information corresponding to the code information. In this instance, the content server 204 functions to store and manage position information of a product corresponding to the code information, that is, product information.

[12] However, in the conventional network configuration for querying about product information corresponding to the EPC, the product information corresponding to the code information may be disadvantageously received from the content server only in the case where the code information read from the storage medium 201 is converted into the URN or FQDN information. Also, a range of code information used for receiving the product information is significantly restricted. Specifically, the conventional system disadvantageously processes only a code identified by a specific EPC header.

Disclosure of Invention Technical Problem

[13] An aspect of the present invention provides a multicode decoding apparatus using an

Electronic Product Code (EPC) header and a method for enabling the apparatus, which decodes new code information other than conventional standardized code information when code information read from a storage medium cannot be converted into either Uniform Resource Name (URN) information or Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN) information.

[14] An aspect of the present invention provides a multicode decoding apparatus using an

EPC header and a method for enabling the apparatus, which receives, from a layer of subcode information server, code decoding information corresponding to code information. In this instance, the layer of the subcode information server may be determined, from among a plurality of layered subcode information servers connected via a network, according to the EPC header.

[15] An aspect of the present invention provides a multicode decoding apparatus using an

EPC header and a method for enabling the apparatus, which stably receives product information using code information converted into either URN information or FQDN information, even when a content server for storing and managing product information is changed into a new address. Technical Solution

[16] According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for decoding multicode being connected with a code information server via a communication network, which includes a reading unit for reading an Electronic Product Code (EPC) header and code information from a storage medium; a transmission unit for transmitting the read EPC header to the code information server; a code conversion unit for receiving, from the code information server, code decoding information corresponding to the EPC header, and converting the code information into either Uniform Resource Name (URN) information or Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN) information based on the received code decoding information; and a code decoding unit for transmitting either the converted URN information or FQDN information to a Domain Name System (DNS) server, and receiving, from the DNS server, position information of a product corresponding to the code information.

[17] According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a code information server, which includes: a database (DB) for storing a plurality of EPC headers and code decoding information associated with each of the plurality of EPC headers; a code decoding information extracting unit for receiving an EPC header from a multicode decoding apparatus, and extracting, from the DB, code decoding information corresponding to the received EPC header; and a transmission unit for transmitting the extracted code decoding information to the multicode decoding apparatus.

[18] According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a system for decoding multicode, which includes: a multicode decoding apparatus for reading an EPC header and code information from a storage medium, and converting the code in- formation into either URN information or FQDN information; and a code information server for receiving the code information from the multicode decoding apparatus, and transmitting, to the multicode decoding apparatus, code decoding information corresponding to the received code information. In this instance, the multicode decoding apparatus converts the code information based on the received code decoding information.

[19] According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for decoding multicode, which includes: reading an EPC header and code information from a storage medium; transmitting the EPC header to a code information server; receiving, from the code information server, code decoding information corresponding to the EPC header; converting the code information into either URN information or FQDN information based on the received code decoding information; transmitting either the converted URN information or FQDN information to a DNS server; and receiving, from the DNS server, position information of a product corresponding to the code information. Brief Description of the Drawings

[20] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a data area stored in a conventional storage medium;

[21] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a conventional network configuration for querying about product information corresponding to an Electronic Product Code (EPC);

[22] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a network configuration used for decoding multicode according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

[23] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a multicode decoding apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

[24] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a code information server according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

[25] FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a database (DB) of a code information server according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

[26] FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a multicode decoding system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

[27] FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a multicode decoding system connected with a plurality of layered subcode information servers according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; and

[28] FIG. 9 is a multicode decoding method according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Mode for the Invention

[29] Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the like elements throughout. The embodiments are described below in order to explain the present invention by referring to the figures.

[30] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a network configuration used for decoding multicode according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[31] As illustrated in FIG. 3, a network 300 according to the present exemplary embodiment includes a storage medium 301, a multicode decoding apparatus 302, a code information server 303, a Domain Name System (DNS) server 304, and a content server 305.

[32] The recording storage 301 attached to each individual article acts as identification information for identifying products, and includes an Electronic Product Code (EPC) header and code information. As an example for the storage medium, a conventional Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) may be used.

[33] The multicode decoding apparatus 302 reads an Electronic Product Code (EPC) header and code information stored in the storage medium 301. The multicode decoding apparatus 302 may use a camera module, an infrared module, a radio communication module, and the like in order to read the EPC header and code information stored in the storage medium 301.

[34] In the case of a new code incapable of having code information decoded, the multicode decoding apparatus 302 receives, from the code information server 303, code decoding information with respect to the EPC header, converts the code information read from the storage medium 301 into either Uniform Resource Name (URN) information or Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN) information using the received code decoding information, and transmits the converted information to the DNS server 304. Also, the multicode decoding apparatus 302 receives, from the DNS server 304, position information of a product corresponding to the code information. The position information of the product denotes position information of the content server 305 for storing and managing product information corresponding to the code information. The multicode decoding apparatus 302 receives, from the content server 305, the product information corresponding to the code information.

[35] The code information server 303 manages mapping information of the EPC header and the code decoding information, and transmits the code decoding information of the EPC header in response to a request of the multicode decoding apparatus 302.

[36] The DNS server 304 receives, from the multicode decoding apparatus 302, the code information converted into either the URN information or the FQDN information, and transmits, to the multicode decoding apparatus 302, position information of a product corresponding to the code information.

[37] The content server 305 stores or manages product information corresponding to the code information, and transmits the product information corresponding to the code information by responding to a request of the multicode decoding apparatus 302.

[38] According to the present exemplary embodiment, devices connected with a network

306 for the purpose of multicode decoding may be connected with one another in a wireless/wired communication scheme to thereby mutually exchange data.

[39] As an example, the wireless communication scheme may include a base station (BS) for transmitting/receiving radio waves, which acts as a radio station for relaying communication between devices, a gateway used as a functional unit or device for transmitting/receiving data between a plurality of heterogeneous communication networks or homogeneous communication networks, and the like. Also, the wired communication scheme may include at least one of a Local Area Network (LAN), an Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL), an Ethernet Firewall & Virtual Private Network (VPN) and a Loadbalancer & Contents Delivery Network (CDN) as well as an Internet Protocol (IP)-based Internet network, a Fiber- To-The Home (FTTH/O/C), an Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), and a cable television (CATV).

[40] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a multicode decoding apparatus 400 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[41] As illustrated in FIG. 4, the multicode decoding apparatus 400 according to the present exemplary embodiment includes a reading unit 401, a transmission unit 402, a code conversion unit 403, and a code decoding unit 404.

[42] The reading unit 401 reads an EPC header and code information stored in a storage medium. In this instance, the EPC header denotes a standard of product codes giving an inherent electronic serial number for each individual product, and is built into a storage medium such as a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag and the like.

[43] When the read code information from the reading unit 401 is new code information incapable of being converted into either URN or FQDN information, the transmission unit 402 transmits the EPC header to a code information server to thereby request code decoding information about the code information.

[44] The code conversion unit 403 receives, from the code information server, code decoding information about the EPC header. The code decoding information may be provided in an extensible Markup Language (XML) or a text format, and received, from the code information server.

[45] The code conversion unit 403 converts the code information read from the storage medium into either URN or FQDN information using the received code decoding information.

[46] The URN information denotes a product information dedicated- Internet Indentifier

(ID) offering a name for each individual product regardless of a physical position such as a product position, a protocol, a host, and the like. Accordingly, even when the content server for storing and managing product information is changed into another address, the product information may be stably received.

[47] Fully Qualified Domain Names (FQDN) denotes a domain name of an entire address, and includes an entire domain name comprising a host name and a domain name and a physical IP address.

[48] According to the present exemplary embodiment, code decoding information required for converting code information into either URN or FQDN information includes at least one of a length of an entire code, a number of fields within a code, a length of each field, and a character string required for converting into either the URN or FQDN information (or character string associated with the DNS server).

[49] As an example, code information composed of a character string of a binary number (for example, 10010101010100101010000101010) may be converted into the FQDN information as shown in [Table 1] according to the code decoding information.

[50] [Table 1] [51]

[52] In this instance, the code decoding information may include '29' for a length of the entire code, and '4' for a number of fields within the code. Also, the code decoding information may include "ons. Org" of a character string required when code information such as field 1=(7), field 2=(8), field 3=(6), and field 4=(8), that is, a length of each field is converted into the FQDN information.

[53] The code decoding unit 404 transmits the converted URN or FQDN information into the DNS server, and receives, from the DNS server, position information of a product corresponding to the code information. The position information of the product denotes position information of the content server for storing product information corresponding to the code information.

[54] As an example, the code decoding unit 404 may receive, from the DNS server, the position information of the content server connected via a network, in a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) form. The URL may include a host and a position route of the content server. The code decoding unit 404 requests, to the content server, the product information corresponding to the code information using the received position information of the content server.

[55] According to the present exemplary embodiment, the multicode decoding apparatus may further include a product information reception unit 405. The product information reception unit 405 receives, from the content server, the product information corresponding to the code information.

[56] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a code information server 500 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[57] As illustrated in FIG. 5, the code information server 500 includes a database (DB)

501, a code decoding information extracting unit 502, and a transmission unit 503.

[58] The DB 501 stores a plurality of headers and code decoding information associated with each of the plurality of EPC headers. The DB 501 maps the EPC header and the code decoding information with each other to thereby manage the mapped EPC header and code decoding information.

[59] As described above, the code decoding information may include at least one of a length of an entire code, a number of fields within a code, a length for each field, and a character string required for converting into either the URN or FQDN information (or character string associated with the DNS server).

[60] The code decoding information extracting unit 502 receives, from the multicode decoding apparatus, the EPC header, and extracts, from the DB 501, code decoding information corresponding to the EPC header.

[61] The transmission unit 503 transmits the extracted code decoding information to the multicode decoding apparatus.

[62] FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a DB 600 of a code information server according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[63] As illustrated in FIG. 6, the DB 600 stores an EPC header and a code decoding information. The code decoding information may include at least one of a length of an entire code, a number of fields within a code, a length for each field, and a character string required for converting into either URN or FQDN information.

[64] FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a multicode decoding system 700 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[65] As illustrated in FIG. 7, the multicode decoding system 700 includes a multicode decoding apparatus 701, and a code information server 702.

[66] The multicode decoding apparatus 701 reads an EPC header and code information stored in a storage medium. The multicode decoding apparatus 701 may include a recognition device of a RFID tag and an IC chip recognition device performed by using a camera module, an infrared module, a radio communication module, and the like for reading the EPC header and the code information stored in the storage medium.

[67] When the read code information is new code information incapable of being converted into either the URN or FQDN information, the multicode decoding apparatus 701 receives, from the code information server, code decoding information capable of decoding the code information, and converts the code information into either the URN or FQDN information based on the code decoding information.

[68] The code information server 702 manages mapping information of the EPC header and the code decoding information, and transmits the code decoding information cor- responding to the EPC header in response to a request of the multicode decoding apparatus 701.

[69] According to the present exemplary embodiment, the code information server 702 may be composed of a plurality of layered subcode information servers such as the DNS server.

[70] FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a multicode decoding system 800 connected with a plurality of layered subcode information servers according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[71] As illustrated in FIG. 8, a multicode decoding apparatus 801 of the multicode decoding system 800 is connected with a plurality of code information servers 803 via a network 802. Each of the plurality of code information servers 803 is connected with a plurality of subcode information servers 804. When code decoding information is requested from the multicode decoding apparatus 801, the code information server 803 may process the received request in each of the plurality of subcode information servers 804 for storing and managing the code decoding information.

[72] As an example, a code information server 803 for processing a character string of

'org' from '1001010.10101001.010100.00101010.ons.org' may request that a subcode information server 804 processes the code decoding information of the received EPC header. In this case, the code information server 803 for processing 'org' may be one of a code information server #1, a code information server #2, and a code information server #3, and the subcode information server 804 for processing 'ons.org' may be one of the plurality of subcode information servers 804 connected with the code information server 803 for processing 'org'. A process where the code decoding information of the EPC header according to the present exemplary embodiment is processed in the subcode information server 804 may be applicable to a process where the code decoding information of the EPC header is requested to be processed in the code information server 803 connected with an identical level in the same manner as in the above process. As an example, the code information server #1 processing a character string of 'org' may request that the code decoding information of the received EPC header is processed in either the code information server #2 or the code information server #3 which process 'ons.org'.

[73] Thus, the multicode decoding apparatus 801 connected with the plurality of layered subcode information servers according to the present exemplary embodiment may receive, from any one layer of the subcode information server 804, code decoding information corresponding to the EPC header. In this instance, the any one layer of the subcode information server 804 is determined, from among the plurality of subcode information servers 804, according to the received EPC header.

[74] FIG. 9 is a multicode decoding method according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Hereinafter, operations performed for each step will be described in detail.

[75] In operation S901, an EPC header and code information stored in a storage medium are read.

[76] In operation S902, whether the code information can be converted into either URN or

FQDN information is determined according to the reading result. In operation S903, when it is determined that the code information cannot be converted into either the URN or FQDN information, the read EPC header is transmitted to a code information server to thereby request code decoding information for decoding the code information. According to the present exemplary embodiment, the code decoding information required for converting the code information into either the URN or FQDN information may include at least one of a length of an entire code, a number of fields within a code, a length for each field, and a character string required for converting into either the URN or FQDN information (or character string associated with the DNS server).

[77] In operation S904, code decoding information corresponding to the EPC header is received from the code information server. The code decoding information may be provided in a XML or a TXT (text) format, and received, from the code information server.

[78] In operation S905, code information read from the storage medium is converted into either the URN or FQDN information using the received code decoding information.

[79] In operation S906, the converted URN or FQDN information is transmitted to a DNS server, and position information of a product corresponding to the code information is received from the DNS server. The position information of the product may be received from the DNS server in a form of the URL information.

[80] In operation S907, product information corresponding to the code information is requested to the content server using the position information of the content server received from the DNS server.

[81] In operation S908, the product information corresponding to the code information read from the storage medium is received from the content server.

[82] The method for decoding multicode according to the above-described exemplary embodiments of the present invention may be recorded in computer-readable media including program instructions to implement various operations embodied by a computer. The media may also include, alone or in combination with the program instructions, data files, data structures, and the like. The media and program instructions may be those specially designed and constructed for the purposes of the present invention, or they may be of the kind well-known and available to those having skill in the computer software arts. Examples of computer-readable media include magnetic media such as hard disks, floppy disks, and magnetic tape; optical media such as CD ROM disks and DVD; magneto-optical media such as optical disks; and hardware devices that are specially configured to store and perform program instructions, such as read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), flash memory, and the like. Examples of program instructions include both machine code, such as produced by a compiler, and files containing higher level code that may be executed by the computer using an interpreter. The described hardware devices may be configured to act as one or more software modules in order to perform the operations of the above- described exemplary embodiments of the present invention.

[83] As described above, according to the present invention, when code information read from a storage medium cannot be converted into either the URN information or FQDN information, code decoding information required for the conversion is received from the code information server to thereby be converted into either the URN information or FQDN information, thereby decoding various kinds of code information read from the storage medium.

[84] According to the present invention, product information is stably received using the code information converted into either the URN or FQDN information, even when the content server for storing and managing product information is changed into a new address.

[85] According to the present invention, code decoding information corresponding to the

EPC header read from the storage medium is processed in a plurality of subcode information servers connected with the code information server.

[86] Although a few embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, the present invention is not limited to the described embodiments. Instead, it would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined by the claims and their equivalents.

Claims

[1] An apparatus for decoding multicode being connected with a code information server via a communication network, the apparatus comprising: a reading unit for reading an Electronic Product Code (EPC) header and code information from a storage medium; a transmission unit for transmitting the read EPC header to the code information server; a code conversion unit for receiving, from the code information server, code decoding information corresponding to the EPC header, and converting the code information into either Uniform Resource Name (URN) information or Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN) information based on the received code decoding information; and a code decoding unit for transmitting either the converted URN information or FQDN information to a Domain Name System (DNS) server, and receiving, from the DNS server, position information of a product corresponding to the code information.

[2] The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the code decoding information includes at least one of a length of an entire code, a number of fields within a code, a length for each field, and a character string associated with the DNS server.

[3] The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the code decoding information is provided in an extensible Markup Language (XML) format.

[4] The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the storage medium is a Radio Frequency

Identification (RFID) tag.

[5] A code information server, comprising: a database (DB) for storing a plurality of EPC headers and code decoding information associated with each of the plurality of EPC headers; a code decoding information extracting unit for receiving an EPC header from a multicode decoding apparatus, and extracting, from the DB, code decoding information corresponding to the received EPC header; and a transmission unit for transmitting the extracted code decoding information to the multicode decoding apparatus.

[6] A system for decoding multicode, the system comprising: a multicode decoding apparatus for reading an EPC header and code information from a storage medium, and converting the code information into either URN information or FQDN information; and a code information server for receiving the code information from the multicode decoding apparatus, and transmitting, to the multicode decoding apparatus, code decoding information corresponding to the received code information, wherein the multicode decoding apparatus converts the code information based on the received code decoding information.

[7] The system of claim 6, wherein the code information server is composed of a plurality of layered subcode information servers, and a subcode information server determined from among the plurality of layered subcode information servers transmits the code decoding information, a layer of the subcode information server being determined according to the EPC header.

[8] A method for decoding multicode, the method comprising: reading an EPC header and code information from a storage medium; transmitting the EPC header to a code information server; receiving, from the code information server, code decoding information corresponding to the EPC header; converting the code information into either URN information or FQDN information based on the received code decoding information; transmitting either the converted URN information or FQDN information to a DNS server; and receiving, from the DNS server, position information of a product corresponding to the code information.