Patent Application
20240242041
The present disclosure relates to enclosures, and more particularly to smart enclosures with electromagnetic signal shielding.
In large datacenters, supplies for the equipment in the datacenter may be stored in one or more storage boxes. For example, 3 foot fiber optic cables may be stored in one storage box and 25 foot fiber optic cables may be stored in another storage box, etc. As another example, various size fiber optic cables may be stored in the same storage box. However, no one may actually know how many fiber optic cables are in particular storage boxes and what type and/or length of fiber optic cables are in such storage boxes.
The present disclosure provides embodiments of smart enclosures with an RFID reader to read RFID tags on the equipment stored in the enclosure. To limit the RFID reader from receiving electromagnetic signals from RFID tags in storage enclosures within range of the RFID reader, the enclosures according to the present disclosure are shielded to prevent the electromagnetic signals from RFID tags outside the enclosure from being read by the reader inside the enclosure and vice versa.
The present disclosure provides embodiments or smart enclosures configured and/or adapted to maintain an inventory of objects stored in the enclosure and to shield an open interior or the enclosure so that electromagnetic signals, e.g., RFID or NFC signals, electromagnetic interference (EMI) or radio-frequency interference (RFI), do not enter the enclosure, and so that electromagnetic signals, e.g., RFID or NFC signals, within the enclosure do not exit the enclosure. According to an exemplary embodiment, the smart enclosure according to the present disclosure includes an enclosure body having an open interior and at least one blocking member (e.g., a door, cover or lid) movably secured to the enclosure body. For example, if the enclosure is shaped as a cube or rectangular prism and the at least one blocking member is a cover, the enclosure body may be formed by one or more side walls and a bottom wall, and the blocking member may be a cover on the top of the enclosure body. If the enclosure is shaped as a cylinder, the enclosure body may be formed by one side wall and a bottom wall, and the blocking member may be a cover on the top of the enclosure body. As another example, if the enclosure is shaped as a cube or rectangular prism and the at least one blocking member is a door, the enclosure body may be formed by one or more side walls, a top wall and a bottom wall, and the blocking member may be a door in one the side walls of the enclosure body. The enclosure body and at least one blocking member are constructed to shield electromagnetic signals from entering the open interior of the enclosure body and to shield electromagnetic signals from exiting the open interior of the enclosure body. The electromagnetic signal shielding of the enclosure may be in the form of a Faraday cage.
The enclosure body has an open interior capable of storing one or more objects that have an RFID or NFC tag attached directly to each object or attached to the packaging holding one or more objects. For enclosures to be placed in datacenters, the objects contemplated by the present disclosure include any equipment or tools that may be stored in the datacenter. Non-limiting examples of the objects that may be stored in the datacenter include fiber optic cables, fiber optic connectors, fiber optic adapters, tie wraps, power cords, modems, routers, etc.
The at least one blocking member is movable relative to the enclosure body between an open position where the open interior of the enclosure body is accessible, and a closed position where access to the open interior of the enclosure body is blocked. In the closed position, the at least one blocking member may or may not sufficiently engage or contact the enclosure body in order for the objects stored therein to be shielded from external electromagnetic signals, e.g., RFID or NFC signals, electromagnetic interference (EMI) or radio frequency interference (RFI), and to limit electromagnetic signals, e.g., RFID or NFC signals, from exiting the open interior of the enclosure body. To improve the shielding at the junction between the enclosure body and the at least one blocking member is shielded, one or more shielding gaskets or shielding members may be attached to the at least one blocking member or the enclosure body at a point where the at least one blocking member meets the enclosure body when the at least one blocking member is in the closed position. In another embodiment, the one or more shielding gaskets or shielding members may be attached to the at least one blocking member and the enclosure body at a point where the at least one blocking member meets the enclosure body when the at least one blocking member is in the closed position. The one or more shielding gaskets or members are provided to ensure that any gap between the enclosure body and the at least one blocking member when the at least one blocking member is in the closed position does not reduce the shielding effectiveness of the enclosure.
It is noted that the present disclosure contemplates embodiments where the enclosure may also be made of non-conductive materials, but an outer surface of the enclosure body and the at least one blocking member are coating with an electrically conductive material, e.g., electrically conductive paints, electrically conductive epoxies, and electrically conductive silicones, in order to provide the desired electromagnetic shielding.
The enclosure body or the at least one blocking member may include a controller. In an exemplary embodiment, the controller includes a processor, a tag reader, e.g., an RFID or near field communication (NFC) reader, and communication circuitry. The enclosure body or at least one blocking member may also include a display, e.g., an LCD screen, which is controlled by the controller. The display can be used as an electronic label for the enclosure displaying identifying information and other information about the enclosure itself. The display may also display the inventory of objects stored within the enclosure.
In another exemplary embodiment, the smart enclosure may include an enclosure body having an open interior and a cover. The cover is secured to the enclosure body so that the cover is movable between an open position and a closed position. When the cover is in the closed position, the body and cover form a shield that limits electromagnetic signals, such as RFID or NFC signals, outside the enclosure from entering the enclosure, and limits electromagnetic signals, such as RFID or NFC signals, inside the enclosure from exiting the enclosure. The cover includes a controller having a processor, memory, a tag reader, e.g., an RFID or NFC reader, and network connectivity circuitry configured to communicate with one or more external network appliances. The controller also includes wireless communication circuitry so that the controller can communicate with, for example, mobile devices, e.g., a smartphone.
In another exemplary embodiment, the smart enclosure may include a body having an open interior and a blocking member, such as a door, cover or lid. The blocking member is secured to the body and movable between an open position and a closed position. When the blocking member is in the closed position, the blocking member blocks access to an open interior of the body. The blocking member or the body includes a controller adapted to read tags, e.g., RFID or NFC tags, store tag information read from the tags, e.g., the RFID or NFC tags, and to transmit the stored tag information to one or more devices external to the enclosure. In an exemplary embodiment, the controller includes a processor, memory, a tag reader, e.g., an RFID or NFC reader, and communication circuitry. It is noted that the blocking member or the body include a display in communication with the controller that is visible from an exterior of the enclosure. When the blocking member is in the closed position, the body and blocking member form a shield that limits electromagnetic signals outside the enclosure from entering the enclosure and that limits electromagnetic signals inside the enclosure from exiting the enclosure. In this configuration, electromagnetic signals, e.g., RFID or NFC signals, outside the enclosure do not enter the enclosure, and electromagnetic signals, e.g., RFID or NFC signals, inside the enclosure do not exit the enclosure. At least one shielding member may be positioned on the body, the blocking member or both the body and the blocking member so that when the blocking member is in the closed position the at least one shielding member is positioned at or within any gaps between the body and the blocking member. Providing the at least one shielding member limits electromagnetic signals, e.g., RFID or NFC signals, outside the enclosure from entering the enclosure through any gaps between the body and the at least one blocking member. Similarly, providing the at least one shielding member limits electromagnetic signals, e.g., RFID or NFC signals, inside the enclosure from exiting the enclosure through any gaps between the body and the at least one blocking member. The at least one shielding member may be a shielding gasket.
A more complete appreciation of the present disclosure and many of the attendant advantages thereof will be readily obtained as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:
Referring to
The enclosure 10 may include a controller 22 used to take an inventory of the objects within the enclosure 10 and to be able to communicate that inventory to remote computing devices, such as mobile phones, networked computing devices or a network based cloud computing environment. When communicating with a networked computing device or network based cloud computing environment that is managed by an orchestration system the inventory of the enclosures 10 can be provided to such orchestration system. A non-limiting example of an orchestration system if the AllPath® Director technology developed by Fiber Mountain, Inc. (Green Lambda Corporation), Norman, Oklahoma, which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference. The controller 22 may be included within the enclosure body 12 or with the blocking member 20. In the exemplary embodiments shown in
In an exemplary embodiment, the controller 22 includes a processor and associated memory, e.g., static and dynamic memory, a tag reader, e.g., an RFID or NFC tag reader, and communication circuitry. The processor may be a Raspberry Pi computer. For ease of description, the tag reader may also be referred to herein as the RFID reader. The RFID reader is provided to read the RFID tags attached to each package holding one or more objects and/or attached directly to each object within the enclosure 10 and store such information read from the RFID tags in the memory of the controller 22. The communication circuitry may include wireless or wired communications. Preferably, the communication circuitry includes wireless communication circuitry using for example, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, WiMAX, ZigBee, cellular or other wireless communication technologies. To communicate outside with mobile devices, e.g., a mobile phone, or fixed devices, e.g., networked devices or cloud based computing environments, the enclosure 10 may have one or more antennas (not shown) positioned on the exterior of the enclosure 10. Power to the controller 22 may be derived from an AC source, Power over Ethernet (POE), or battery power.
The enclosure 10 may include a display 24 that is operatively connected to the controller 22 so that the display 24 is controlled by and interacts with the controller 22. Preferably, the display 24 is visible from an exterior of the enclosure 10. The display 24 may be an LCD display, however other known displays may be utilized. In the exemplary embodiment shown, the display 24 is positioned on the blocking member 20 so that the display 24 is visible from an exterior of the blocking member 20. The display 24 can be used as an electronic label for the enclosure identifying the particular enclosure 10, its location and other information about the enclosure 10 itself. The display 24 may also display information about the objects, e.g., the equipment, stored within the enclosure 10.
Continuing to refer to
The enclosure 10 may also be a non-shielding enclosure, where the enclosure body 12 and blocking member 20 are formed of a non-conductive material and an electrically conductive coating is applied to the interior, exterior or both the interior and exterior of the one or more walls forming the enclosure body 12 and to the interior, exterior or both the interior and exterior of the one or more walls forming the blocking member 20. The electrically conductive coating provide the electromagnetic shielding for the enclosure 10. Non-limiting examples of the electrically conductive coating include electrically conductive paints and electrically conductive epoxies, and electrically conductive silicones, in order to provide the desired electromagnetic shielding.
Each object that is stored in the enclosure 10 has an RFID tag attached thereto or attached to the packaging holding one or more objects. When the blocking member 20 is in the closed position, the RFID reader within the enclosure 10 and associated with the controller 22 reads the RFID tags within the enclosure 10, and stores information read from the RFID tags in the controller's memory. The controller 22 can then send the inventory information to a mobile device, such as a smartphone, or other computing device external to the enclosure 10. When the blocking member 20 is in the open position, the RFID reader of the controller 22 does not read the RFID tags on the objects within the enclosure. By having the enclosure shielded as described above, RFID readers that are outside the one or more enclosures at a location cannot determine what objects are stored in the one or more enclosures. Similarly, the RFID of the controller 22 cannot read RFID tags that are outside the enclosure 10.
Potential use cases and applications for the enclosure 10 according to the present disclosure include:
While illustrative embodiments of the present disclosure have been described and illustrated above, it should be understood that these are exemplary of the disclosure and are not to be considered as limiting. Additions, deletions, substitutions, and other modifications can be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the present disclosure. Accordingly, the present disclosure is not to be considered as limited by the foregoing description.
This application claims priority to co-pending U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/438,781, filed on Jan. 12, 2023 and entitled “Smart Enclosure with EMI/RFI Shielding” which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63438781 | Jan 2023 | US |
