Vikram Verma
Savi Technology, Inc., Palo Alto, CA 94308
A multi-layered communications system that uses radio and acoustic communications is described. This system is built around small communications cells that can communicate with thousands of radio tags within a cell. This system performs automatic collision avoidance, automatic location reporting, and automatic store and forward message routing between the tags and the central computer. The result is a system that can complete a complete facility-wide physical inventory (including read/write status monitoring at each tag) in minutes, with virtually no human intervention.