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US 8,950,662 B2Granted
Unique identification information from marked features
AssigneeSys-Tech Solutions, Inc.
InventorMichael L. Soborski
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Utilizing natural variations in marked features on an item as a way of establishing an identifier specific to that item, storing the identifier separately from the item, and subsequently accessing the identifier to validate the identity of the item.
Claims12
A method of verifying an identity of an item, the method comprising:
- using a scanner, examining the item for artifacts specific to the item, wherein at least some of the artifacts were not controllably producible in producing the item;
- using a processor to:
- extract information associated with the artifacts;
- rank the information associated with the not controllably producible artifacts into an order according to a characteristic of the not controllably producible artifacts;
- store data representing the ranked information in a non-transitory computer readable storage device separate from the item;
- calculate an autocorrelation series of the ranked information, and
- approximate the autocorrelation series to a polynomial, wherein the stored data comprises data representing the autocorrelation series and wherein the data representing the autocorrelation series comprises coefficients of the polynomial to a selected order.
4 more elements
A method of verifying an identity of an unverified item, comprising:
- using a scanner to examine the unverified item for unverified artifacts specific to the unverified item, wherein at least some of the artifacts were not controllably producible in producing the unverified item;
- using a processor to:
- extract information associated with the unverified artifacts;
- retrieve stored data containing ranked information associated with original artifacts of an original item from a storage device;
- compare the information associated with the unverified artifacts with the ranked information associated with the original artifacts;
- and
- when the information associated with the unverified artifacts matches the ranked information associated with the original artifacts, verify the unverified item as a verified original item,
- wherein:
- at least some of the artifacts are artifacts of a symbol that encodes data and supports error detection,
- the processor extracts information representing the unverified artifacts by determining an error state of a symbol having the unverified artifacts, and
- where the error state indicates that part of the symbol is damaged, the processor carries out the comparison by discounting artifacts in the damaged part of the symbol.
8 more elements
A method of verifying an identity of an unverified item, comprising:
- using a verifying scanner, examining the unverified item for unverified artifacts specific to the unverified item, wherein at least some of the unverified artifacts were not controllably producible in producing the unverified item;
- using a processor to:
- extract information associated with the unverified artifacts;
- retrieve stored data containing ranked information associated with original artifacts of an original item from a storage device, wherein both the unverified artifacts and the original artifacts are of distinct categories;
- compare the information associated with the unverified artifacts with the ranked information associated with the original artifacts;
- correct for properties of at least one of:
- an apparatus that created the original artifacts, an apparatus used in examining the original item for the information representing the original artifacts, and an apparatus used in examining the unverified item;
- when the information associated with the unverified artifacts matches the ranked information associated with the original artifacts, verify the unverified item as a verified original item;
- and
- determine whether the unverified artifacts' information matches the original artifacts' information by comparing the unverified and original artifacts in each category and combining the results of the comparison;
- wherein the processor carries out the correction by weighting the combination of the results according to a known tendency of the apparatus that created the original artifacts to produce artifacts in different categories with different frequencies or different values of a characteristic.
8 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.