Method and a system for serialization of items, and recovering data from serialized items
AssigneeSicpa Holding SA
InventorFrédéric Deguillaume
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Abstract
A method for serialization of items, comprising encrypting a serial number of each item using an encryption key k to obtain unique serial numbers and marking the unique serial numbers on the items. The unique serial numbers having a length L are included into a string of symbols having a length L′, with L′ larger than L, and marked on the items. A corresponding method for recovering a unique code and corresponding serial number from a string of symbols marked on an item, as well as corresponding serialization and recovering systems are disclosed.
Claims13
A method for serialization of physical items by means of a system comprising a memory, a processor and a marking device connected to the processor, comprising:
- encrypting, using the memory together with the processor, a unique serial number of each physical item using encryption key k stored in the memory to obtain a corresponding unique code, and
- marking, using the marking device, each physical item with its corresponding unique code received from the processor,
- wherein each unique code has a length L and is included into a string of symbols having a length L′ that is marked on the corresponding physical item, wherein L′ is larger than L, and wherein the string of symbols further includes at least a part of a unique code obtained from encrypting a preceding unique serial number and/or at least a part of a unique code obtained from encrypting a next unique serial number, wherein in the string of symbols the unique code corresponding to the item is concatenated ahead with the end of the unique code obtained from encrypting the preceding unique serial number and/or concatenated after with the beginning of the unique code obtained from encrypting the next unique serial number, wherein encrypting a serial number of an item to obtain a unique code is performed by self-synchronizing feedback-based stream encryption wherein symbols of the serial numbers are encrypted one-by-one, in a stream-cipher construction with format preserving encryption (FPE).
A system for serialization of physical items, comprising:
- a memory and a processor, the memory together with the processor are configured to cause the system to encrypt a serial number of each physical item using an encryption key k stored in the memory to obtain corresponding unique codes, and
- a marking device connected to the processor and adapted to mark the unique codes received from the processor on the physical items,
- wherein the system is configured to include each unique code having a length L into a string of symbols having a length L′, wherein L′ is larger than L, and wherein the string of symbols further includes at least a part of a unique code obtained from encrypting a preceding unique serial number and/or at least a part of a unique code obtained from encrypting a next unique serial number, and mark the string of symbols on a corresponding item, wherein in the string of symbols the unique code corresponding to the item is concatenated ahead with the end of the unique code obtained from encrypting the preceding unique serial number and/or concatenated after with the beginning of the unique code obtained from encrypting the next unique serial number, wherein the memory together with the processor are configured to cause the system to apply Format Preserving Encryption (FPE), wherein ciphers of the serial numbers are encrypted one-by-one, in a stream-cipher construction.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.