Instrument and Document Authentication System

Abstract

A method of creating a document whose authenticity can be confirmed comprises printing a character on the document using a combination of a printing medium having a first appearance and a contaminant having a second appearance distinct from the first appearance, and wherein a first portion of the character has the first appearance but not the second appearance, and a second portion of the character has the second appearance; capturing an image containing the character; and storing the image and information relating to the document in a database. A method of authenticating a document comprises capturing an image of the document; identifying a pattern in the document, comparing the pattern to information in a database relating to an original pattern present on an originally printed document, to determine whether the pattern and the original pattern are within a specified level of similarity.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.