System to authenticate 3d printed objects

A method of encoding authentication information as physical structures in a 3D-printed object, comprising:

• storing authentication information describing one or more serial numbers and one or more digital signatures for authenticating 3D-printed objects;
• receiving authentication information for a 3D object to be printed;
• inserting authentication information code describing the authentication information at a predetermined location in a CAD file comprising instructions for printing the 3D object;
• and
• executing the CAD file with the inserted authentication information code thereby generating the 3D object with authentication information embedded therein as one or more physical structures at a predetermined position within the 3D object that is indicated by the inserted authentication information code.

A system that facilitates determining the authenticity of a 3D-printed object, comprising:

• a 3D scanner programmed to scan a 3D-printed object and detect physical structures representative of authentication information encoded into the 3D object;
• an authentication server configured to:
• receive the detected authentication information from the 3D scanner;
• compare the detected authentication information to authentication information values stored in an authentication values database;
• and
• transmit an authenticity determination based on results of the comparison for display to a user.