Terminal, method and computer program product for interacting with a signaling tag

Abstract

A terminal for interacting with a signaling tag includes a controller capable of receiving information regarding a signaling tag at least partially over an air interface. The controller is also capable of determining whether the controller is actively operating an application. In this regard, if the terminal is actively operating an application, the controller is capable of performing a predefined action based upon the application and a state of the application.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A method of interacting with a signaling tag, wherein the signaling tag comprises a radio frequency identification (RFID) transponder tag or a radio frequency transceiver, comprising:
 receiving information regarding a signaling tag at a terminal at least partially over an air interface via a short-range radio frequency transceiver or interrogator, the information regarding the signaling tag including at least a tag type of the signaling tag; 
 determining whether the terminal is actively operating an application; and 
 if the terminal is actively operating an application, performing a first predefined action based upon the tag type, the application and a state of the application, wherein the first predefined action comprises: 
 initiating communication between the terminal and a device associated with the signaling tag and transmitting data to the device associated with the signaling tag when the tag type indicates that the signaling tag is a radio frequency transceiver and the active application is in a state of presenting data, wherein said transmitting data to the device comprises transmitting the presented data to the device via infra-red, Bluetooth or wireless local area network (WLAN) communication; and 
 if the terminal is not actively operating an application, performing a second predefined action based upon the tag type, wherein the second predefined action comprises: 
 reading data from the signaling tag and acting upon the received data when the tag type indicates that the signaling tag comprises a RFID transponder tag capable of at least transmitting data to the terminal. 
 
     
     
       2. A method according to  claim 1 , wherein performing a the first predefined action comprises reading data from the signaling tag into an actively operating application when:
 the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the signaling tag is a RFID transponder tag capable of at least transmitting data to the terminal; 
 the terminal is actively operating an application; and 
 the application is in a state of receiving data. 
 
     
     
       3. A method according to  claim 1 , wherein performing a the first predefined action comprises reading data from the signaling tag into the terminal when the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the signaling tag is a RFID transponder tag capable of at least transmitting data to the terminal and one of:
 the terminal is not actively operating an application; and 
 the terminal is actively operating an application in a state other than a state of receiving data. 
 
     
     
       4. A method according to  claim 1 , wherein performing a the first predefined action comprises writing data to the signaling tag when:
 the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the signaling tag is a RFID transponder tag capable of at least receiving data; 
 the terminal is actively operating an application; and 
 the application is in a state of presenting data. 
 
     
     
       5. A method according to  claim 1 , wherein performing a the first predefined action comprises reading data from the signaling tag into the terminal when:
 the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the signaling tag is a RFID transponder tag capable of at least transmitting data and one of: 
 the terminal is not actively operating an application; and 
 the terminal is actively operating an application in a state other than a state of one of receiving data and presenting data. 
 
     
     
       6. A method according to  claim 1 , wherein the signaling tag comprises a radio frequency transceiver, wherein performing a the first predefined action comprises reading data from a device associated with the radio frequency transceiver into an actively operating application when:
 the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the radio frequency transceiver is capable of at least transmitting data; 
 the terminal is actively operating an application; and 
 the application is in a state of receiving data, and 
 wherein reading data from the device comprises reading data from the device in a manner independent of the radio frequency transceiver. 
 
     
     
       7. A method according to  claim 6  further comprising:
 receiving at least one connection parameter from the device via the radio frequency transceiver, wherein reading data from the device comprises reading data from the device based upon the at least one connection parameter and in a manner independent of the radio frequency transceiver. 
 
     
     
       8. A method according to  claim 1 , wherein the signaling tag comprises a radio frequency transceiver, wherein performing a the first predefined action comprises writing data to a device associated with the radio frequency transceiver when:
 the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the radio frequency transceiver is capable of at least receiving data; 
 the terminal is actively operating an application; and 
 the application is in a state of presenting data, and 
 wherein writing data to the device comprises writing data to the device in a manner independent of the radio frequency transceiver. 
 
     
     
       9. A method according to  claim 8  wherein the radio frequency transceiver is one of a short-range radio frequency transceiver or interrogator, the method further comprising:
 receiving at least one connection parameter from the device via the short-range radio frequency transceiver or interrogator, wherein writing data to the device comprises writing data to the device based upon the at least one connection parameter and in a manner independent of the short-range radio frequency transceiver or interrogator. 
 
     
     
       10. A method according to  claim 1 , wherein the signaling tag comprises a radio frequency transceiver, wherein performing a the first predefined action comprises initiating communication between the terminal and a device associated with the radio frequency transceiver when the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the radio frequency transceiver is capable of at least transmitting data and one of:
 the terminal is not actively operating an application; and 
 the terminal is actively operating an application in a state other than a state of one of receiving data and presenting data, and 
 wherein initiating communication comprises initiating communication between the terminal and the device in a manner independent of the radio frequency transceiver. 
 
     
     
       11. A method according to  claim 1  further comprising:
 selecting a signaling tag before receiving information regarding the signaling tag, wherein the signaling tag comprises a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) transponder tag. 
 
     
     
       12. A method according to  claim 11  further comprising:
 sending an interrogation signal to the RFID transponder tag, wherein receiving information regarding a signaling tag comprises receiving a tag type from the RFID transponder tag in response to the interrogation signal. 
 
     
     
       13. A method according to  claim 11  further comprising:
 sending at least one interrogation signal to the RFID transponder tag, wherein each interrogation signal is associated with a different tag type; 
 receiving a response from the RFID transponder tag to one of the at least one interrogation signal that triggers the response; and 
 identifying a tag type based upon the interrogation signal that triggers the response, wherein receiving information regarding a signaling tag comprises receiving the identified tag type. 
 
     
     
       14. A method according to  claim 11 , wherein selecting a signaling tag comprises passing the terminal within a predefined distance of a signaling tag. 
     
     
       15. A terminal for interacting with a signaling tag wherein the signaling tag comprises a radio frequency identification (RFID) transponder tag or a radio frequency transceiver, the terminal comprising:
 a controller capable of actively operating an application, wherein the controller is capable of receiving information regarding a signaling tag at least partially over an air interface via a short-range radio frequency transceiver or interrogator, the information regarding the signaling tag including at least a tag type of the signaling tag, wherein the controller is also capable of determining whether the terminal is actively operating an application, and 
 if the controller is actively operating an application, performing a first predefined action based upon the tag type, the application and a state of the application, wherein the first predefined action comprises: 
 initiating communication between the terminal and a device associated with the signaling tag and transmitting data to the device associated with the signaling tag when the tag type indicates that the signaling tag is a radio frequency transceiver and the active application is in a state of presenting data; 
 wherein said transmitting data to the device comprises transmitting the presented data to the device via infra-red, Bluetooth or wireless local area network (WLAN) communication; and 
 if the terminal is not actively operating an application, performing a second predefined action based upon the tag type, wherein the second predefined action comprises: 
 reading data from the signaling tag and acting upon the received data when the tag type indicates that the signaling tag comprises a RFID transponder tag capable of at least transmitting data to the terminal. 
 
     
     
       16. A terminal according to  claim 15 , wherein the controller is capable of performing a the first predefined action by reading data from the signaling tag into an actively operating application when:
 the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the signaling tag is a RFID transponder tag capable of at least transmitting data to the terminal; 
 the controller is actively operating an application; and 
 the application is in a state of receiving data. 
 
     
     
       17. A terminal according to  claim 15 , wherein the controller is capable of performing a the first predefined action by reading data from the signaling tag into the terminal when the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the signaling tag is a transponder tag capable of at least transmitting data to the terminal and one of:
 the controller is not actively operating an application; and 
 the controller is actively operating an application in a state other than a state of receiving data. 
 
     
     
       18. A terminal according to  claim 15 , wherein the controller is capable of performing a the first predefined action by writing data to the signaling tag when:
 the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the signaling tag is a RFID transponder tag capable of at least receiving data; 
 the controller is actively operating an application; and 
 the application is in a state of presenting data. 
 
     
     
       19. A terminal according to  claim 15 , wherein the controller is capable of performing a the first predefined action by reading data from the signaling tag into the terminal when:
 the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the signaling tag is a RFID transponder tag capable of at least transmitting data and one of: 
 the controller is not actively operating an application; and 
 the controller is actively operating an application in a state other than a state of one of receiving data and presenting data. 
 
     
     
       20. A terminal according to  claim 15 , wherein the signaling tag comprises a radio frequency transceiver, wherein the controller is capable of performing a the first predefined action by reading data from a device associated with the radio frequency transceiver into an actively operating application when:
 the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the radio frequency transceiver is capable of at least transmitting data; 
 the controller is actively operating an application; and 
 the application is in a state of receiving data, and 
 wherein the controller is capable of reading data from the device in a manner independent of the radio frequency transceiver. 
 
     
     
       21. A terminal according to  claim 20 , wherein the radio frequency transceiver is one of a short-range radio frequency transceiver or an interrogator, wherein the controller is capable of receiving at least one connection parameter from the device via the short-range radio frequency transceiver or interrogator, and wherein the controller is capable of reading data from the device based upon the at least one connection parameter and in a manner independent of the short-range radio frequency transceiver or interrogator. 
     
     
       22. A terminal according to  claim 15 , wherein the signaling tag comprises a radio frequency transceiver, wherein the controller is capable of performing a the first predefined action by writing data to a device associated with the radio frequency transceiver when:
 the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the radio frequency transceiver is capable of at least receiving data; 
 the controller is actively operating an application; and 
 the application is in a state of presenting data, and 
 wherein the controller is capable of writing data to the device in a manner independent of the radio frequency transceiver. 
 
     
     
       23. A terminal according to  claim 22 , wherein the radio frequency transceiver is one of a short-range radio frequency transceiver or an interrogator, wherein the controller is capable of receiving at least one connection parameter from the device via the short-range radio frequency transceiver or interrogator, and wherein the controller is capable of writing data to the device based upon the at least one connection parameter and in a manner independent of the short-range radio frequency transceiver or interrogator. 
     
     
       24. A terminal according to  claim 15 , wherein the signaling tag comprises a radio frequency transceiver, wherein the controller is capable of performing a the first predefined action by initiating communication a device associated with the radio frequency transceiver when the information regarding the radio frequency transceiver indicates that the transceiver is capable of at least transmitting data and one of:
 the controller is not actively operating an application; and 
 the controller is actively operating an application in a state other than a state of one of receiving data and presenting data, and 
 wherein the controller is capable of initiating communication with the device in a manner independent of the radio frequency transceiver. 
 
     
     
       25. A terminal according to  claim 15 , wherein the controller is further capable of selecting a signaling tag before receiving information regarding the signaling tag, wherein the signaling tag comprises a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) transponder tag. 
     
     
       26. A terminal according to  claim 25 , wherein the radio frequency transceiver is one of a short-range radio frequency transceiver or an interrogator, wherein the controller is further capable of sending an interrogation signal to the RFID transponder tag via the short-range radio frequency transceiver or interrogator, wherein the controller is capable of receiving information regarding a signaling tag comprising a tag type from the RFID transponder tag in response to the interrogation signal. 
     
     
       27. A terminal according to  claim 25 , wherein the controller is capable of sending at least one interrogation signal to the RFID transponder tag, wherein each interrogation signal is associated with a different tag type, wherein the controller is capable of receiving a response from the RFID transponder tag to one of the at least one interrogation signal that triggers the response, and wherein the controller is also capable of identifying a tag type based upon the interrogation signal that triggers the response, wherein the information regarding a signaling tag comprises the identified tag type. 
     
     
       28. A terminal according to  claim 25  further comprising:
 a transceiver coupled to the controller, wherein the controller is capable of selecting a signaling tag by the transceiver being passed within a predefined distance of a signaling tag. 
 
     
     
       29. A computer program product for interacting with a signaling tag, wherein the signaling tag comprises a radio frequency identification (RFID) transponder tag or a radio frequency transceiver, the computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having computer-readable program code portions stored therein, the computer-readable program code portions comprising: a first executable portion receiving information regarding a signaling tag at a terminal at least partially over an air interface via a short-range radio frequency transceiver or interrogator, the information regarding the signaling tag including at least a tag type of the signaling tag; a second executable portion for determining, whether the terminal is actively operating an application; and if the terminal is actively operating an application, a third executable portion for performing a first predefined action based upon the application and a state of the application, wherein the first predefined action comprises: initiating communication between the terminal and a device associated with the signaling tag and transmitting data to the device associated with the signaling tag when the tag type indicates that the signaling tag is a radio frequency transceiver and the active application is in a state of presenting data; wherein said transmitting data to the device comprises transmitting the presented data to the device via infra-red. Bluetooth or wireless local area network (WLAN) communication; and if the terminal is not actively operating an application, performing a second predefined action based upon the tag type, wherein the second predefined action comprises: reading data from the signaling tag and acting upon the received data when the tag indicates that the signaling tag comprises a RFID transponder tag capable of at least transmitting data to the terminal. 
     
     
       30. A computer program product according to  claim 29 , wherein the third executable portion is adapted to perform a the first predefined action by reading data from the signaling tag into an actively operating application when:
 the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the signaling tag is a RFID transponder tag capable of at least transmitting data to the terminal; 
 the terminal is actively operating an application; and 
 the application is in a state of receiving data. 
 
     
     
       31. A computer program product according to  claim 29 , wherein the third executable portion is adapted to perform a the first predefined action by reading data from the signaling tag into the terminal when the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the signaling tag is a RFID transponder tag capable of at least transmitting data to the terminal and one of:
 the terminal is not actively operating an application; and 
 the terminal is actively operating an application in a state other than a state of receiving data. 
 
     
     
       32. A computer program product according to  claim 29 , wherein the third executable portion is adapted to perform a the first predefined action by writing data to the signaling tag when:
 the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the signaling tag is a RFID transponder tag capable of at least receiving data; 
 the terminal is actively operating an application; and 
 the application is in a state of presenting data. 
 
     
     
       33. A computer program product according to  claim 32 , wherein the third executable portion is adapted to perform a the first predefined action by reading data from the signaling tag into the terminal when:
 the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the signaling tag is a RFID transponder tag capable of at least transmitting data and one of: 
 the terminal is not actively operating an application; and 
 the terminal is actively operating an application in a state other than a state of one of receiving data and presenting data. 
 
     
     
       34. A computer program product according to  claim 29 , wherein the signaling tag comprises a radio frequency transceiver, wherein the third executable portion is adapted to perform a the first predefined action by reading data from a device associated with the radio frequency transceiver into an actively operating application when:
 the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the radio frequency transceiver is capable of at least transmitting data; 
 the terminal is actively operating an application; and 
 the application is in a state of receiving data, and 
 wherein the third executable portion is adapted to read data from the device in a manner independent of the radio frequency transceiver. 
 
     
     
       35. A computer program product according to  claim 34  wherein the radio frequency transceiver is one of a short-range radio frequency transceiver or an interrogator, the computer program product further comprising:
 a fourth executable portion for receiving at least one connection parameter from the device via the short-range radio frequency transceiver or interrogator, wherein the third executable portion is adapted to perform a the first predefined action by reading data from the device based upon the at least one connection parameter and in a manner independent of the short-range radio frequency transceiver or interrogator. 
 
     
     
       36. A computer program product according to  claim 29 , wherein the signaling tag comprises a radio frequency transceiver, wherein the third executable portion is adapted to perform a the first predefined action by writing data to a device associated with the radio frequency transceiver when:
 the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the radio frequency transceiver is capable of at least receiving data; 
 the terminal is actively operating an application; and 
 the application is in a state of presenting data, and 
 wherein the third executable portion is adapted to write data to the device in a manner independent of the radio frequency transceiver. 
 
     
     
       37. A computer program product according to  claim 36  wherein the radio frequency transceiver is one of a short-range radio frequency transceiver or an interrogator, the computer program product further comprising:
 a fourth executable portion for receiving at least one connection parameter from the device via the short-range radio frequency transceiver or interrogator, wherein the third executable portion is adapted to perform a the first predefined action by writing data to the device based upon the at least one connection parameter and in a manner independent of the short-range radio frequency transceiver or interrogator. 
 
     
     
       38. A computer program product according to  claim 29 , wherein the signaling tag comprises a radio frequency transceiver, wherein the third executable portion is adapted to perform a the first predefined action by initiating communication between the terminal and the device associated with the radio frequency transceiver when the information regarding the signaling tag indicates that the radio frequency transceiver is capable of at least transmitting data and one of:
 the terminal is not actively operating an application; and 
 the terminal is actively operating an application in a state other than a state of one of receiving data and presenting data, and 
 wherein the third executable portion is adapted to initiate communication between the terminal and the device in a manner independent of the radio frequency transceiver. 
 
     
     
       39. A computer program product according to  claim 29  further comprising:
 a fourth executable portion for selecting a signaling tag before the first executable portion receives information regarding the signaling tag, wherein the signaling tag comprises a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) transponder tag. 
 
     
     
       40. A computer program product according to  claim 39  further comprising:
 a fifth executable portion for sending an interrogation signal to the RFID transponder tag, wherein the first executable portion is adapted to receive information regarding a signaling tag comprising a tag type from the RFID transponder tag in response to the interrogation signal. 
 
     
     
       41. A computer program product according to  claim 39  further comprising:
 a fifth executable portion for sending at least one interrogation signal to the RFID transponder tag, wherein each interrogation signal is associated with a different tag type; 
 a sixth executable portion for receiving a response from the RFID transponder tag to one of the at least one interrogation signal that triggers the response; and 
 a seventh executable portion for identifying a tag type based upon the interrogation signal that triggers the response, wherein the first executable portion is adapted to receive information regarding a signaling tag comprising the identified tag type.