Product verification and authentication system and method
AssigneeOptaglio Limited
InventorsPhilip Hudson, John Drinkwater
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The present invention provides for a system and method for product verification for use with products intended to be introduced into circulation and including machine readable product data, and comprising a product data storage means, at least one portable reading device for said machine readable product data, wherein the machine readable product data is applied to products and is arranged for inspection by the at least one portable reading device remotely from the product data storage means and at at least one point in the product circulation route, and wherein the at least one portable reading device is arranged to verify the authenticity of the machine readable product data and thereby verify the authenticity of the product itself.
Claims94
A product verification system for use with products intended to be introduced into circulation and including machine readable product data, and comprising product data storage means for storing data corresponding to the machine readable product data applied to the products, and at least one portable reading device arranged for accessing the machine readable product data remotely from the product data storage at a point along the product circulation route for the purposes of verification of authenticity of such machine readable product data and hence verification of authenticity of the product itself.
A product verification system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the machine readable product data is applied using any one, or any combination of, thermal transfer, inkjetting, digital printing processes, mechanical engraving, laser engraving and traditional printing techniques.
A product verification system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the product is arranged to be provided with a visual security element.
A product verification system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the machine readable product data is in the format of a bar-code.
A product verification system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the machine readable product data is encrypted.
A product verification system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims and comprising a product identification reference.
A system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein an intelligent portable reading device is used, such device being pre-programmed to be able to verify the authenticity of the machine readable product data without communicating to the product data storage means.
A product verification system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the comparison between the machine readable product data and the product data stored in the product data storage means is performed automatically.
A product verification system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the machine readable data is compared with the product itself.
A product verification system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein access to product data stored in the product data storage means is secure.
A product verification system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims and arranged to be integrated into a warehousing system.
A forensicmachine readable data representation comprising an array of point diffractive structures of individual scale size below the normal resolution of the eye and arranged to comprise a representation of a bar code.
A forensic machine readable data representation comprising an array of matt scattering area structures of individual scale size below the normal resolution of the eye and arranged to comprise a representation of a bar code.
A machine readable data representation comprising a graphical indicia adapted to include a digital watermark.
A method of verifying products with machine readable product data intended to be introduced into circulation and comprising the steps of inputting the product data into a product data storage system;
- applying the machine readable product data to each product unit;
- reading the machine readable product data with a portable reading device at at least one point in the product distribution route and verifying the authenticity of such received product data and thereby verifying the authenticity of the product itself.
A product data storage system arranged to store data corresponding to machine readable data elements associated with products, and arranged to be accessed by at least one reading device for the retrieval of product data stored in the storage system and to allow for modification of the product data by the at least one reading device.
A product verification system substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawing.
A method of product verification substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawing.
A product data storage system substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawing.
A product authentication system for use with products including machine readable product data, and comprising a product data storage means, a plurality of reading devices for reading said machine readable product data, communication link means between said reading devices and said product data storage means, wherein the reading devices located remotely from the product data storage system are adapted to read the machine readable product data on a unit of product and communicate said product data to said product data storage system via the communication link means to achieve comparison of the product data on the product with product data in the product data storage system and to enable modification of the data in the product data storage system for any unit of product, and including means for accessing the modified data so as to identify the passage of a unit of product via a succession of reading devices.
A system according to any one of the preceding claims and including an interface to the product data storage system for the accessing means.
A system according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the machine readable product data is in the format of a bar-code.
A system according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the machine readable product data is encrypted.
A system according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the means for accessing the modified data is arranged to operate via an Internet connection.
A method of product authentication for products with machine readable product data comprising the steps of inputting the product data into a product data storage system;
- reading the product data of the product with a reading device present in at least one inspection point within the product distribution chain;
- communicating the product data read by the reading device to the product data storage system via a communication link;
- comparing the received product data from the reading device with the product data stored in the product data storage system for authentication purposes and modifying the product data in the product data storage system, and allowing for access to the modified data so as to confirm the manner in which the data was modified at the said at least one inspection point and so as to identify the passage of a product via the at least one inspection point.
A product data storage system arranged to store data corresponding to machine readable data elements associated with products, and arranged to allow for serial modification of the said data by means of interaction with a respective series of reading devices, and arranged to allow for access to the modified data so as to confirm the manner in which the original data was modified by interaction with each of the said reading devices and so as to identify the passage of a product via a succession of reading devices.
A product authentication system substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawing.
A method of product authentication substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawing.
A product data storage system substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.