Abstract: A method for waking a transceiver for communicating directly with commodity Wi-Fi transceivers (TRXs) via backscatter modulation in an integrated tag device includes sensing an incident Wi-Fi-compliant wake-up signal with a wake-up stage. Upon wake-up, a payload packet is sensed with a sync stage, the sync stage having higher bandwidth and power than the wake-up stage, the sync stage enabling a backscatter transmission circuit in sync with the payload. A backscatter transceiver includes a wake-up receiver having an energy-detection based architecture and having circuitry to conduct a counter-based wake up responsive to two pre-specified WiFi compatible packets. A sync receiver is enabled by the wake-up receiver upon reception of the two pre-specified WiFi compatible packets, the sync receiver including circuitry to detect a payload packet and create a backscatter enable signal synced with a payload of the payload packet. A backscatter transmitter is enabled by the backscatter enable signal.

Abstract: A beam-steering backscatter circuit in an integrated tag device. The circuit includes an antenna array and SP4T reflector array configured to receive and transmit through the antenna array. A baseband phase-shifting module modulates an incident signal based upon tag data to create an output signal and re-radiates the output signal with a controllable angle of direction through the SP4T reflector array. A phase locked loop synchronized with a wake-up receiver provides an intermediate frequency (IF) clock to the baseband phase shifting-module.

Abstract: In some example embodiments, there may be provided an apparatus. The apparatus may include a surface including at least one electro-magnetic reflective element programmed to provide a plurality of reflected signals, such that the plurality of reflected signals constructively adds at a location of a receiver of the plurality of reflected signals. Related systems, methods, and articles of manufacture are also described.

Abstract: termination circuits for backscatter communication in an integrated wake-up receiver tag device. A reflective termination circuit includes a first branch having an open load and a shorted load with first branch offset reflection coefficients and with a connection to an antenna. A second branch has a capacitive load and an inductive load with second branch offset reflection coefficients and with a connection to an antenna. A MIMO termination circuit includes plurality of transmission lines each providing a unique delay that is offset compared to other ones of the plurality of transmission lines. Switched connections to a corresponding array of antennas introduce a delay between a received and backscattered signal at each antenna in the array of antennas.

Abstract: In some example embodiments, there may be provided an apparatus. The apparatus may include a surface including at least one electro-magnetic reflective element programmed to provide a plurality of reflected signals, such that the plurality of reflected signals constructively adds at a location of a receiver of the plurality of reflected signals. Related systems, methods, and articles of manufacture are also described.