On-line authentication of probiotics to ensure source and quality
AssigneeMaster Supplements, Inc.
InventorsRandolph S. Porubcan, Jeff Thurston
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Disclosed is encoding of probiotic formulations, in order to alert both consumer and producer to counterfeiting and to allow purchasers of authentic product to gain access to quality and quantity testing regarding the product. The purchaser would preferably also provide, along with its identifying information, any product complaints, adverse reaction and positive responses, and consumer interest in and reaction to different formulations and products, as well as demographic, general health and education information, and other information about the purchaser (including any information useful for marketing and future product development and selection).
Claims21
A method of verifying the authenticity and quality of a formulation including probiotic bacteria and other components purchased from a producer, comprising:
- encoding the formulation with a code that can be scanned and transmitted to a website controlled by the producer;
- receiving the scanned code at the website for authentication of the code;
- and
- providing information from the website, following authentication, about quality testing on the formulation, including the formulation's bacterial CFU counts, activity and purity;
- or, if authentication fails, alerting the producer to said authentication failure.
A method of verifying the authenticity and quality of a formulation including probiotic bacteria and other components purchased from a producer, comprising:
- encoding the formulation using a scannable code or an RFID tag wherein encoded information can be scanned and transmitted to a server controlled by the producer or a third party;
- and
- authenticating the code or the RFID tag by the server;
- providing information from the website about quality testing on the formulation, including the formulation's bacterial CFU counts, activity and purity;
- unless authentication fails, in which case, the producer or third party is alerted to said authentication failure.
A server for verifying the authenticity and quality of a formulation including probiotic bacteria and other components purchased from a producer, comprising:
- means for encoding the formulation with a code that can be scanned and transmitted to the server;
- means for receiving the scanned code at the server for authentication of the code;
- and
- means for providing the purchaser information from the server, following authentication, about quality testing on the formulation, including the formulation's bacterial CFU counts, activity and purity;
- or, if authentication fails, alerting both purchaser and producer to said authentication failure.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.