GB2214679A - Verification - Google Patents

Description

1 22 14679 Verification Apparatus and Method The invention pertains to

objects whose 9 authenticity can be verified, and to a verification apparatus and method More particularly, the invention pertains to both documents and other types of objects which carry a plurality of spaced apart magnetic regions, and to an apparatus and method for verifying the authenticity of such objects.

Problems associated with the forging or counterfeiting of various types of documents are longstanding and well known For example, a forgery of negotiable instruments, currency or other documents of 1 r' value is a continuing and ongoing problem to issuers of such documents.

Historically, attempts have been made to protect such documents by using special types of paper in combination with various printing techniques.

The verification and authentication problem extends to nondocumentary objects of value as well.

For example the verification and authentication of paintings of substantial value can be a difficult, expensive and time consuming process.

29 r)The widespread use of plastic credit or debit cards has created yet another set of authentication and verification problems It is very common for such cards to include pre-recorded magnetic stripes which include transaction related information.

1 ( However, such cards have been especially susceptible to forgery in view of the fact that the magnetic encoding is almost always based on one or more publicly known standards One such standard ANSI x 4 16 1983 is utilized in connection with many pre-recorded magnetic stripes associated with such cards.

Another class of documents which suffers from similar types of forgery and alteration problems includes transportation tickets.

Various systems are known which can be utilized to create and authenticate verifiable documents or credit cards Some of the known systems are optically based Others are magnetically based.

One known type of optical system is disclosed in United States Patent No 4,423,415 issued to Goldman.

A light dispersing variation of the above described Goldman system is disclosed in United States Patent No 4,476,468.

Alternate optically based systems are illustrated in United States Patent Nos 4,034,211 and 4,094,462 issued to Host et al and Moschner respectively.

United States Patent Nos 4,114,032 and 4,218,674 both issued to Brosow et al disclose systems which use fibers of a magnetic or a magnetizable material.

United States Patent No 4,303,949 issued to Peronnet discloses a magnetically based verification system.

United States Patent No 3,790,754 issued to Black et al discloses a magnetic verification system that utilizes two different types of magnetic material.

While the known systems would appear to be effective with respect to verification of certain types of objects, each has certain limitations The optically based systems require translucent or reflective surfaces Many objects, such as credit cards, are not translucent.

Hence, there continues to be a need for an authentication/verification system of more general S applicability to a variety of objects.

Summary of the Invention

In accordance with the invention, a method usable for verification of the authenticity of an object is provided The object has a plurality, of spaced apart magnetizable magnetic regions positioned thereon The magnetic regions each include a randomly varying magnetic characteristic The plurality of randomly varying magnetic characteristics is unique to the object.

The method includes the steps of detecting the randomly varying characteristic of each of the magnetic regions, processing the plurality of detected characteristics to form a profile, retrieving a prestored representation of that profile and comparing the newly generated profile of the magnetic regions to the prestored profile The result of that comparision can also be provided as one of the steps of the method.

The prestored representation of the processed randomly varying magnetic characteristics can be retrieved from a selected location on the object For example, it could be recorded optically on the object One suitable place on the object is in the spaces between magnetic regions Alternately, the prestored representation could be retrieved from a centralized data base.

An apparatus can be used for verifying the authenticity of an object which carries a plurality of spaced apart magnetizable magnetic regions The apparatus detects a randomly varying magnetic characteristic in a plurality of the regions This composite characteristic is unique to the object.

The apparatus includes a magnetic detector, such as a read coil, which senses the randomly varying characteristic of a plurality of the spaced apart magnetic regions as the object passes by the read coil.

A prestored representation of the processed characteristics can be carried on another part of the object and can be detected by appropriate detection circuitry Alternately, the prestored representation of the characteristics can be retrieved from a centralized data base The apparatus can also include comparison circuitry for comparing the processed profile or representation of the detected randomly varying characteristics to the retrieved, prestored profile or representation of those characteristics.

In accordance with the invention, a method of making a verifiable object includes a step of providing a base portion The base portion can be flexible or rigid In addition, the base portion can assume a variety of shapes and can comprise a variety of types of documents.

A plurality of spaced apart regions of magnetic material can be deposited on the object.

The regions of magnetic material can be formed as a plurality of elongated and spaced apart rectangular members Alternately, the regions of magnetic material could be formed in any preselected shape.

A unique, permanent and randomly varying magnetic characteristic of each of a plurality of the spaced apart regions is then sensed These sensed characteristics are used to form a unique profile or representation which can be readily encoded either on the object or stored in a central data base The representation can be stored on the object in optically visible form which is machine readable.

One such form is bar code format Alternately, the profile or representation can be recorded onto a selected region of magnetic material.

A system for making a verifiable object includes apparatus for applying a plurality of spaced apart, single layer regions of magnetic material on the object The regions of magnetic material can be preformed as rectangularly shaped bars Thirteen to seventeen bars can preferably be used Alternately, the regions can be formed by applying spaced apart coatings in the form of an ink or the like to the object The coating or ink can carry the magnetic material in combination with a liquid medium or vehicle The vehicle can be evaporated or dried to provide a plurality of solid, spaced apart regions of magnetic material affixed to the object.

A unique, permanent and randomly varying magnetic characteristic of each of the magnetic regions can be sensed by means of a read coil A unique encoded profile or representation of the sensed characteristic can be formed This unique profile or representation of the sensed characteristic can be printed onto the object by means of a bar code printer Alternately, the unique representation could be recorded or written onto a section of a recordable magnetic region by a recording head.

Further in accordance with the invention, a verifiable object can be provided The verifiable object includes a base region The base region can be flexible or rigid The base region can be in the form of a document Alternately, the base region could be in the form of a utilitarian object such as a computer disk or a video tape, or even an object such as a tennis racket.

The object also includes a plurality of spaced apart regions of magnetic material The members of the plurality are positioned on the base portion In one form of the invention, the regions of magnetic material can be deposited as a coating or layer of ink which can then be dried and hardened.

The magnetic field can be generated by a permanent magnet or an electrically energized coil.

A magnetic field 5 or 6 times that needed to saturate the magnetic regions will preferably be used.

In yet another form of the invention, a verifiable object can have a base portion that supports the spaced apart regions of magnetic material A profile or representation, perhaps in digital form, of the processed non-uniform magnetic characteristics unique to the object can be carried by the base portion, displaced from that characteristic This representation can by used later in the verification phase by comparison with a new reading of the region.

Further, the magnetic material can be deposited with first and second portions The first portion can be used for the purpose of encoding or recording selected transaction related information.

A second, nontransaction, portion can also be provided The second portion is displaced from the first portion but may be immediately adjacent thereto The second portion extends for a selected distance and includes the plurality of spaced apart magnetic regions In a preferred form of the invention, the magnetic regions will all have the same coercivity.

In yet another form of a verifiable object, the application of the magnetic material coating can be adjusted such that the coating is applied in a single layer but non-uniformly Finally, additional magnetic material can be selectively sprayed against the substrate.

Description of the Drawings

Figure 1 A is a perspective view of a fragment of a verifiable object; Figure 1 B is a planar view of a verifiable document; Figure 2 is an enlarged, planar, fragmentary view of a portion of a magnetic region illustrating schematically a recorded signal thereon; Figure 3 A is a plot of a varying enhancing, digital signal as a function of time; Figure 3 B is a schematic spatial plot of the alignment of magnetic regions in response to recording the enhancing signal of Figure 3 A on a magnetic layer; Figure 3 C is a plot of a randomly varying analog signal sensed off of the recorded magnetic layer of Figure 3 B enhanced by the signal of Figure 3 A; Figure 3 D is a family of plots of waveforms illustrating effects of using different enhancing signals on the detectability of a common randomly varying magnetic characteristic; Figure 3 E is a plot illustrating a randomly varying magnetic characteristic enhanced by a saturation recorded, aperiodic enhancing signal; Figure 4 is a family of six plots of the sensed and processed random magnetic characteristic in the same region of a single object; Figure 5 is a family of six plots of the sensed and processed random magnetic characteristic of six different objects; Figure 6 is a block diagram schematic of a profile sensing and encoding apparatus; Figures 7 A and 7 B are a flow chart of the steps of a method of sensing and encoding a profile; Figure 8 is a flow chart of the steps of a method of forming a representative profile; Figure 9 is a flow chart of the steps of a method of encoding a representative profile for later use; Figure 10 is a block diagram schematic of an object verification apparatus; Figures ll A and li B are a flow chart of the steps of a method of validating an object; Figure 12 is a plot of an alternate, analog enhancing signal and a corresponding output signal illustrating a randomly varying magnetic characteristic of a magnetic product such as a video tape; Figure 13 is a planar view of a verifiable object with a plurality of magnetic regions in accordance with the present invention; Figure 14 is a plot of a randomly varying analog signal sensed off of the plurality of magnetic regions of the object of Figure 13; Figure 15 is a family of plots of the sensed random magnetic characteristics of the same set of spaced apart regions moving past a read head three different times; Figure 16 is a family of plots of the sensed random magnetic characteristics of three different sets of spaced apart regions moving past a read head; Figure 17 is a block diagram schematic of a profile sensing and encoding apparatus usable with spaced apart magnetic regions; Figures 18 A and B are a flow chart of the steps of a method of sensing and encoding a profile based on a plurality of spaced apart regions; Figure 19 is a flow chart of the steps of a method of forming a representative profile; Figure 20 is a flow chart of the steps of a method encoding a profile for later use; and Figures 21 A and B are a flow chart of the steps of a method of validity an object carrying a plurality of spaced apart magnetic regions.

Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiment

Figure 1 A illustrates a verifiable object 10 having an arbitrary shape with a recordable magnetic region 12 thereon The region 12 is formed as a single layer and continuously extends over a selected distance.

Figure l B illustrates an alternate to the object 10 of Figure 1 A Object 14 is a document.

Formed on the documentary object 14 is a single layer, continuously extending recordable magnetic region 16 The region 16 can be used to authenticate or identify the document 14 just as the region 12 can be used to authenticate and identify the object 10.

Figure 2 illustrates a portion 20 of a region of magnetic material such as the region 12 or the region 16 A signal 22 when recorded on the section 24 enhances and fixes the detectability of the randomly variable magnetic characteristic The recorded signal 22 can then be permanently carried by the section 24 Alternately, the signal 22 can be erased and rewritten onto the magnetic region as described subsequently.

Altering the location where the signal 22 is recorded on the section 24 or altering the form of the enhancing signal 22 results in enhancing different parts of the randomly varying magnetic characteristic.

The recorded signal 22 is represented symbolicly on the region 24 by a plurality of spaced apart bar magnets 26 oriented oppositely with respect to one another to reflect the continuously reversing polarity of the signal 22 It will be understood that Figure 2 is schematic and the precise arrangement of the recorded magnetic regions will depend on the location and orientation of the write head.

Using standard magnetic techniques, the section 24 can be moved past a sensor or read head 28 of a standard variety This movement will induce an electrical signal in the read head 28 due to the variations in the magnetic region 24 and the pre-recorded enhancing signal 22.

A sensed electrical signal can be detected on a pair of wires 30 coupled to the read head 28.

The sensed signal on the lines 30 is in part proportional to the orientation of the magnetic material in the section 24 which results from recording the signal 22 thereon and is in part proportioned to the random magnetic characteristic of the non-uniform magnetic stripe.

Figure 3 A is a plot of an exemplary recorded signal, a symmetrical, discontinuous periodic digital signal 22 as a function of time Figure 3 B is a schematic representation of the orientation of the magnetic material on the section 24 due to the signal 22 saturation recorded on the section 24 Figure 3 C illustrates a plot of the sensed signal S on the lines 30 which is generated by the read head 28 as the section 24 moves past that head.

With respect to the plot of the sensed signal S in Figure 3 C, it should be noted that transitions which are generated on the lines 30 occur as each of the oriented magnetic regions moves past the read head Further, it should be noted that the peak values of the sensed signal are not regular.

Rather, they are continuously varying because of the randomly varying characteristics of the magnetic material in the stripe.

Figure 3 D is a graph of a plurality of plots illustrating the use of enhancing signals to detect the inherent randomly varying characteristic of the magnetic material Plot A of Figure 3 D illustrates the absence of a recorded signal on a magnetic medium Plot B illustrates the output from a read head, such as the read head 28, perhaps amplified, as the magnetic medium is moved past the read head.

Plot C illustrates a subsaturation digital signal recorded on the magnetic medium Plot D illustrates a time varying sequence of signals sensed off the read head and subsequently amplified.

Plot F illustrates a digital recording signal with a level great enough to saturate displaced portions of the magnetic region during the recording process Plot G illustrates the sensed variations of the saturation recorded digital signal of plot F.

To further illustrate the versatility of the present method of using various enhancing signals, Figure 3 E illustrates an amplified plot sensed off of a read head such as the read head 28 where the enhancing signal is an aperiodic digital signal, saturation recorded on the medium With reference to Figure 3 E, a 30 bit digital, aperiodic recording signal was saturation recorded onto a selected magnetic medium Using hexadecimal notation, the recorded bit sequence was 0088 F 00 followed by two binary zeros To the right of the 30 bit sequence a plurality of zeros has been saturation recorded.

Further, as can be seen from Figure 3 E the peak values of the signals exhibit a randomly varying pattern of the type discussed previously in plot G of Figure 3 D.

The location of the recorded signal on the magnetic material in part defines the characteristics of the sensed signal S Changing the location of the recorded signal or changing the characteristics of the recorded signal will result in sensing a different randomly varying magnetic characteristic.

Once the sensed signal S on the lines 30 has been detected, it can be digitized and processed.

Signal processing as described subsequently, can be used both for purposes of data compression and for purposes of profile comparison.

Figure 4 is a graph of six processed signals corresponding to sensed signals on the lines 30 The six plots illustrated on Figure 4 represent six passes of the same magnetic region, such as the region 24, past a read head 28 This sensed magnetic region was about 2 6 inches long.

As can be seen, a very high degree of similarity exists between each of the plots of Figure 4 Hence, any one of the representations of Figure 4 could be used as a unique identifier of the corresponding magnetic region.

In contradistinction, Figure 5 is a graph of six plots of processed, sensed signals for six different magnetic regions Each of the plots in Figure 5 was processed in the same way as was each of the plots of Figure 4 As can be noted from Figure 5, each of the processed representations is substantially different from every other representation on Figure 5.

For example, and without limitation, the type of magnetic material used to form the sensed region such as the region 24 was ferric oxide in particle form such as Fe 203 particles.

Figure 6 illustrates an apparatus 40 usable for the purpose of encoding a magnetic region 24 with an enhancing signal corresponding to the digital signal 22, sensing the enhanced randomly varying magnetic characteristic, and recording a representation of that characteristic on the object.

The apparatus 40 includes a magnetic write head 42 driven by a pulse encoder 44 As a magnetic region, such as the region 24 moves pass the write head 42, the pulse encoder 44 is rotated The rotation results in the write head 42 writing the digital signal 22 onto the magnetic region 24 at a rate of either 75 pulses per inch or 210 pulses per inch.

Both 75 and 210 pulses per inch are standard writing densities used with commercially available magnetic materials Non-standard recording densities may also be used.

Immediately subsequent to writing the signal 22 onto the magnetic region 24, a plurality of spaced-apart read heads 46, for example five, reads the enhanced random magnetic characteristic of the region 24 Output from each member of the plurality of rea'd heads 46 is coupled to a member of a plurality of low noise amplifiers 48 for amplification purposes The plurality of low noise amplifiers 48 is coupled to a plurality of zero crossing detectors 50 In addition, the plurality of low noise amplifiers 48 is also coupled to a plurality of peak detecting sample and hold circuits 52.

With reference to the sensed analog signal, such as is illustrated in plot G of Figure 3 D, the members of the plurality of sample and hold circuits 52 sense and hold a peak value read by the corresponding one of the read heads 46 On the immediately following zero crossing, the corresponding member of the plurality of zero crossing dectectors 50 senses the zero crossing and generates -a control signal on one of a plurality of control lines 54 which feeds a logic and control unit 56 The logic and control unit 56 generates an interrupt signal on an interrupt request line 58 of a programmable processor 60.

The processor 60, in turn, causes an analog to digital converter 62 to convert the respective sensed peak value of the respective sample and hold circuit of the sample and hold circuits 52 into a digital representation As the magnetic section 24 moves past the plurality of read heads 46, a corresponding plurality of peak digitized values is collected by the processor 60 for each of the five read heads.

The five sets of peak values, which are proportional to the enhanced randomly varying magnetic characteristic of the region 24 can be correlated and converted to a representative profile for subsequent use.

The representative profile generated from the five sets of peak values can then be recorded on the object in one of several different forms For example, the profile can be encoded on the object 10 or the document 14 by means of a bar code printer 62 The bar code printer 62 can be coupled to the processer 60 by control circuitry 64.

The apparatus 40 also includes a validation read head 70 The purpose of the validation read head 70 is to provide an immediate rereading of the sensed magnetic region 24 as the object moves through the apparatus 40 Output from the read head 70 is coupled, via an amplifier 72 to a zero crossing detector 74 and a peak sample and hold amplifier 76.

On detection of a zero crossing by the detector 74, the logic and control unit 56 generates an interrupt request on the line 58 to the processor 60.

The processor 60, in turn, converts the output of the peak sample and hold circuit 76 to a digital representation so as to recreate the profile of the magnetic region 24 The recreated profile can then be compared to the previously created representative profile for purposes of checking the document.

As a further validation step, the bar code previously printed on the object can be sensed at an optical sensor 80 The sensor 80 is in turn coupled to a bar code scanning unit 82 The scanning unit 82 is in turn coupled to the processor 60 The processor 60 can then compare the sensed and encoded representation of the representative profile to the profile sensed at the validation read head 70.

Assuming that there is a correspondence between the two profiles, the object has been properly encoded for authentication purposes and can be removed from the apparatus 40.

Figures 7 A, 7 B are a flow chart of the steps of the method carried out by the apparatus 40 previously described.

A representative key or profile is formed in a step 84 based on five sets of separately sensed values.

Figure 7 S illustrates a plurality of possible forms of parametric representation.

If desired, the encoded representative profile can then be encrypted for enhanced security.

The encrypted profile can then be recorded on the object either in optically visible or nonoptically visible machine readable form for later verification purposes.

Figure 8 is a flow chart illustrating the details of the integration step 84 of Figure 7 A.

Figure 9 is a flow chart of step 86 using Method 1, the relative amplitude correlation, to encode the, representative profile or key.

Figure 10 is a block diagram of a validator which can be used to determine the authenticity of a given object 10 or 14 with an affixed magnetic stripe such as stripe 12 or stripe 16.

The validator apparatus 100 includes a magnetic read head 102 of a conventional variety.

The read head 102 can be either the 75 or the 210 bit per inch recording density type The read head 102 is coupled to a low noise amplifier 104 The output of the low noise amplifier 104 is in turn coupled to a zero crossing detector 106 and a peak detect and hold circuit 108 Output from the zero crossing detector 106 generates a sequence of interrupts on an interrupt request line 110 which is an input to the programmable processor 112 In preferred embodiment, the processor 112 can be a Motorola type MC 68 H Cll A 8.

Output from the detect and hold circuit 108 is coupled to an analog to digital converter which is integral with processor 112.

As the object moves past the read head 102, a sequence of maxima are detected and digitized by the processor 112 The processor 112 then forms a representation of the profile in digital format which can be compared to a prestored representation of the representative profile.

As the object moves past the magnetic read head 102 the object also passes in front of an optical sensor 120 The sensor 120 both emits a beam of radiant energy and senses reflected radiant energy from an optical pattern affixed to the object The optical pattern which represents the previously formed representative profile can be affixed to the object in bar code format, or OCR format Output from the sensor 120 via automatic level control circuitry 122 and comparative circuitry 124 provides a digital input to the processor 112 which represents the pre-recorded representative profile.

Also coupled to processor 112 via a 16 bit address bus 130 and an 8 bit data bus 132 are read only memory modules 134 and random access memory modules 136 A control program can be loaded into the read only memory modules 134 The random access memory module 136 can be used for temporary data storage during the validation process.

The validation apparatus 100 also includes a manual input 16 key keypad 138 for operator control purposes Two annuciators, a pass annunciator 140 and a fail annunciator 142 are provided which can generate optical and audio indicia indicating whether the validation process has detected an authentic object or a nonauthentic object.

Figures ll A and ll B are a flow diagram of a control program storeable in the read only memory 134 of the validation apparatus 100 and usable for the purpose of controlling the validation process.

As an alternate to the objects 10, 14 which carry a magnetic region, objects which are magnetic products can also be verified For example, magnetic tapes or computer disks both rigid and floppy can be verified A selected electrical signal can be recorded on an unused portion of the magnetic product The resultant enhanced characteristic can then be sensed A representative profile can be formed and encoded The encoded representation can be written onto the object or stored in a central data base for subsequent verification purposes.

Figure 12 is a graph illustrating use of the present verification system in connection with a magnetic product, such as a magnetic tape In this instance, a sinusoidal signal as is illustrated in plot A of Figure 12 could be used for purposes of enhancing the detectable randomly varying magnetic characteristic of the magnetic region.

Plot B of Figure 12 illustrates an output sensed off of the region of the tape on which the enhancing signal of plot A was recorded Regions 2 and 5 of the output signal represent distortions of the corresponding regions 2 and 5 of the input signal.

The distortions in portions 2 and 5 of the output signal can be detectedsince the form of the input, prerecorded, sinusoidal signal is known.

These detected randomly varying characteristics can be stored as discussed previously and used to create a representative profile.

the location of the applied enhancing signal can be specified or determined in a variety of ways.

For example, the tape can be physically marked by punching a hole therein or by disturbing the magnetic medium so as to provide a location defining indicia.

Figure 13 A illustrates a verifiable object The object 150 includes a substrate 152 On the substrate 152 are formed a plurality of spaced apart magnetic regions 154 In the embodiment of Figure 13 A seventeen rectangularly shaped, spaced apart bars or regions of magnetic material are illustrated Each of those regions is formed of material having essentially the same coercivity.

The object 150 can be verified utilizing a sensed plurality of randomly varying magnetic characteristics Each randomly varying magnetic characteristic is associated with a particular magnetic region In accordance with the present invention, each of the members of the plurality of magnetic regions 154 is initially saturated by a saturation strength magnetic field.

Figure 14 illustrates a plurality of randomly varying magnetic characteristics displayed as a time varying electrical signal The plot of Figure 14 illustrates an electrical output signal generated from five spaced apart rectangularly shaped magnetic regions.

As can be seen from Figure 4, the peak values associated with each of the five magnetic regions or bars all vary from one another in a non-uniform fashion.

Figure 15 illustrates the repeatability of the measurement process Each of the graphs of Figure 15 was generated by passing the same five bar carrying document past the read head.

In contradistinction, the plots of Figure 16 illustrate the electrical signals generated as three different five bar carrying documents were moved past a read head.

The document 150 can be verified by comparing a profile generated off of the rectangularly shaped spaced apart magnetic members 154 to a previously generated and encrypted profile carried by the document 150.

In contradistinction to the system and method previously discussed, the documents 150 and 166 with the spaced apart magnetic regions 154 are verifiable as a result of detecting randomly varying characteristics from two or more spaced apart magnetic regions.

Figure 17 illustrates an apparatus 170 usable for the creation of verifiable objects.

The object creation apparatus 140 includes a source 172 of a unidirectional, constant intensity magnetic field The source 172 can be a permanent magnet or can be an energizeable electrical coil.

The magnetic field generated by the source 172 needs to be of great enough intensity so as to reliably saturate the members of the spaced apart magnetic regions as those regions move through the apparatus A field intensity on the order of 5 or 6 times that needed for saturation is preferred The remaining elements of the apparatus 170 function the same way as they function in the apparatus 40.

Figures 18 A and 18 B illustrate a method of creating a verifiable object as carried out by the apparatus 170.

With respect to Figure 18 B, the correlated representative set of peak values, is processed to provide an encoded representation suitable for storage or later comparison.

Figure 19 is a flow chart illustrating the correlation step of Figure 18 A.

Figure 20 is a flow diagram illustrating the method of operation of the apparatus 170 in carrying out encoding Method 1.

The flow charts of Figures 21 A and 21 B illustrate the steps of the verification method carried out by the processor 112.

Figure 22 A illustrates a portion of a documentary verifiable object 200.

The object 200 has a substrate 206 The substrate 206 can be opaque or can be transmissive of radiant electromagnetic energy such as emitted by an incandescent or fluorescent source It will be understood that the nature or type of the substrate is not a limitation of the present invention.

Positioned on a region 210 of the substrate 206 is a plurality of magnetic security elements 212 Each member, such as the member 214 of the plurality 212, best seen in Figure 22 B, is formed with a generally diamond shape The member 214 has first and second spaced apart sides or edges 216 a and 216 b which are generally parallel to one another.

The sides 216 a and 216 b are intersected by two spaced apart sides 218 a and 218 b, also generally parallel to one another.

With respect to a center line 214 a, the edge 216 a is oriented at an angle 220 a on the order of Similarly, the edge 218 b is oriented at an angle 220 b with respect to the center line 214 a, also at an angle on the order of 200.

Each of the members of the plurality 212 corresponds substantially to the shape and size of the diamond shaped element 214 The diamond shaped elements 212 can be deposited by means of an offset or flexographic printing press For this purpose, standard magnetic ink character recognition (MICR) inks can be used.

Magnetic inks of the type used to print the members of the plurality 212 and slurries used to form the region 16 are composed of small magnetic particles These particles vary in dimension, mass and composition The composition of the particles is such that they may be easily magnitized Figure 22 B illustrates a plurality of variously oriented magnetizable particles 214 b within the diamond shaped member 214.

The manufacturing processes used for medium quality magnetic media fail to align more than 75 % of the material.

Uniform alignment is preferred with recordable magnetic regions so as to maximize the electrical signal generated from a recorded region as that region moves adjacent a read head, or coil, having a predetermined orientation.

As is well known, the heads used for reading or sensing a recorded magnetic region contain a gap.

It is preferred to align the gap so as to be parallel to those particles from which the greatest contribution to the signal output from the read coil is desired.

If magnetic regions are constructed in a way which permits readings of the strength of particles aligned in two different axis then it is possible to detect a ratio of randomness therebetween.

In accordance with the invention, this method is implemented by printing the plurality of diamonds 212 utilizing MICR ink as illustrated in Figure 22 A Each such diamond presents the ability to position read heads oriented at an angle with respect to one another so as to sense each of the essentially equal faces or edges of each diamond.

A sensor or read head with two gaps oriented such that one gap is parallel to each leading diamond edge, permits comparison of the particulate orientation Figure 24 illustrates a sensor 250 usable with the magnetic security elements 212.

The sensor 250 has a housing 252 with a surface 254 The surface 254 includes a first slit 256 a with a first orientation and a second slit 256 b with a second orientation The slits 256 a and 256 b are oriented so as to have an angle substantially equal to 200 with respect to a reference line 258 c.

The angles 258 a and 258 b correspond to the angles 220 a and 220 b and are on the order of 20 .

Figures 25 A and 25 B illustrate the relationships between the magnetic security regions 212, as illustrated by the element 214, and the sensor 250.

The sensor 250 could include a pair of magnetic read heads of a conventional variety One read head would be positioned adjacent each of the slots 256 a and 256 b Alternately, sensor 250 could include a single read head extending between the slots 256 a and 256 b.

If the element 214 is moved relative to the sensor 250 in a direction 260, the edge 218 a will cross the slot 256 b, best seen in Figure 25 A A voltage will be induced in the sensor 250 due to a change of flux Because the slot 256 b has the same orientation as does the edge 218 a, the portion of the magnetic particles which are aligned therewith will be substantial contributors to the induced voltage generated by the sensor 250 Magnetic particles in the region 214 which are aligned other than parallel to the edge 218 a, as is well known, will contribute a substantially smaller portion of the signal from the sensor 250.

When the member 214 moves across the slot 256 b relatively small voltages will be induced in the sensor 250 As the edge 218 b passes across the slot 256 b a large voltage will be induced, of the opposite polarity to the previously noted voltage The magnitude of this voltage will also be proportional to the alignment of sensed particles aligned with the slot 256 b.

As the element 214, Figure 25 B, approaches the second slot 256 a a voltage will be induced in the sensor 250 when the edge 216 a crosses the slot 256 a for the reasons set forth above Similarly, when the member 214 moves away from the slot 256 a a voltage of the opposite pluarity will be induced when the edge 216 b crosses over the slot 256 a.

As noted previously, the voltages induced as the edges 216 a and 216 b as well as the edges 218 a and 218 b cross over the respective slots 256 a and 256 b will be proportional to the portion of detected particles aligned with the respective slots.

Figure 26 illustrates first and second voltages 266 and 268 generated by the sensor 250 as the plurality of magnetic diamonds 212 moves passed the first and second slits 256 a and 256 b having first and second orientations with respect to the reference line 258 c As can be seem from Figure 26, there is a substantial variation in peak values of wave forms 266 and 268 These variations appear to be due to differences in the amount of magnetic material deposited at a given diamond shaped member as well as due to differences in the orientation of the magnetic material These differences in orientation are detectable by means of the sensor 250.

The shape of the security regions 212 results in a 40 angle between the slots 256 a and 256 b Other angles could also be used.

It is an important aspect of the present invention that an attempt to modify the magnetic region 214 to alter the electrical signal 266 will simultaneously alter the electrical signal 268.

Hence, the security provided by the plurality 212 is substantial notwithstanding that the elements 212 could readily be detected on the substrate 212.

Figure 27 is a schematic block diagram of an object verifier, illustrated in solid lines, or a verifiable object producer indicated in both solid and dashed lines, in accordance with the present invention The verifier form of the apparatus 280 can be used to verify the authenticity of the object The apparatus 280 includes the previously discussed sensor 250 The sensor 250 is electrically coupled to an interface 282 The interface 282 is in turn electrically coupled to a programmed processor 284.

The programmed processor 284 can be implemented as any one of a variety of micro-computer chips commercially available The processor 284 is in turn coupled to both random access and read only memory 286 The processor 284 can provide output signals to an output indicia unit 288.

The unit 288 could be one or more light emitting diodes or incandescent lights Alternately, the unit 288 could be a printer or a video display.

In addition, the processor 284 receives electrical inputs from an interface 290 The interface 290 is in turn electrically coupled to a bar code scanner 292.

Verification of the object 200 includes passing the plurality of diamond shaped security members 212 adjacent a relatively high energy magnetic field This magnetic field could be generated by a magnet (not shown) positioned adjacent the sensor 250 The purpose of the field is to magnetize all of the particles in the magnetic regions 212 such that the sensor 250 will generate the maximum possible electrical signals for use by the processor 284.

The object 200 is passed adjacent the sensor 250, as illustrated and discussed previously with respect to Figures 25 A and 25 B During that process, electrical signals such as the electrical signals 266 and 268 are generated by the sensor 250 and coupled to the interface 282.

The interface 282, as described previously in connection with earlier system disclosed herein, can sample and digitize the electrical signals 266 and 268 so as to detect a sequence of peak values therefrom The processor 284 can in turn store the detected values in random access memory 286 In addition, the object 200 can be moved adjacent the bar code scanner 292 The bar code scanner 292 can detect a representation 212 a in bar codes format previously applied to the object 200 The representation 212 a is a previously formed representation of the magnetic characteristics of the regions 212.

The processor 284 can then process the digitized sequence of peak values corresponding to the wave forms 266 and 268 as is discussed in more detail subsequently The processed representation can then be compared to the prestored representation 212 a.

Based on a similarity or a dissimilarity between the newly sensed electrical signals 266 and 268 and the previously sensed and recorded bar code 212 a, the processor 284 can make a determination as to whether or not the object 200 is authentic or has been altered The processor 284 can then generate a selected electrical signal or signals so as to drive the output indicia unit 288 which in turn provides an appropriate display of the correct condition.

The process of creating a verifiable object can be carried out using the verifiable object creation form of the apparatus 280 of Figure 27 In this instance, the processor 284 stores a plurality of peak detected electrical signals generated by the sensor 250 as the plurality of diamond shaped security regions 212 moves adjacent thereby As the object 200 continues in its direction of travel 260, the processor 284 processes the sensed electrical signals, corresponding to the electrical signals 266 and 268.

Using an interface 294 coupled thereto, the processor 284 can provide a plurality of signals to a bar code printer 296 The bar code printer 296 imprints the object 200 with bar code, corresponding to the bar code 212 a The bar code 212 a then becomes a permanent representation, carried on the substrate 206, of the magnetic characteristic of the security regions 212 If desired, additional sensors 250 a can be used to carry out additional sensings in parallel.

The peak reading for each region for each electrical signal 266 and 268, as noted above, is retained for processing The relationship between each region, represented by a peak value of pulse 300 a (See Figure 26), and the subsequent region, represented by a peak value of a pulse 300 b is expressed as an increase in magnitude (+), decrease in magnitude (-) or no change ( 0) A plurality of peak relative indicia 301 a can be generated with respect to the electrical signal 266 This process is repeated for each slot orientation 256 a and 256 b.

A second plurality of peak relative indicia 301 b can be generated with respect to the electrical signal 268 This method eliminates the need for calibration of heads or electronics to standards or to each other.

Relative amplitude correlation techniques are used to establish the slope relationships between readings of the same head Each reading is evaluated relative to the previous region not against any predetermined value or standard The results are expressed only in terms of direction not value.

Table I illustrates first and second pluralities of peak relative indicia 301 a, 301 b from the waveforms 266 and 268.

If only one reading were taken of each region, such as the region 214, it would be possible to recreate the security information simply by increasing or decreasing the quantity of magnetic material When two readings are taken accordance with the present invention security is substantially increased.

Three possible conditions exist when the two readings are compared:

1 One or both readings indicate 0 slope 2 Both slopes are the same sign 3 Slopes have opposite signs.

Zero slopes from either reading result in the region being ignored for security purposes This occurs for about 20 % of the regions.

Both slopes having the same sign is a condition of minor value for security and occurs in % of the regions These readings are more the result of gross variations in the printing process rather than particle orientation.

Slopes of opposite signs result when the particle alignment favors one head orientation more than the other This occurs in about 45 % of the regions These regions are of the greatest value for security purposes Attempting to alter one reading by modifying the respective magnetic region will result in the other reading also being altered.

A composite sequence, as illustrated in Table I can then be recorded, using the bar code printer 29 G, in the representation 212 a on the document 200 for later use in verification It will be understood that the composite sequence from Table I could be encoded or encrypted using a variety of known techniques The selected technique is not a limitation of the present invention.

In accordance with the invention a three-bit encoding scheme can be used to represent the composite sequence of Table I As illustrated in Table II, an ambiguous indication can be represented by a code of 00 with an unspecified sign An indication of the same direction of relative movement, same sign, can be represented by a positive or negative sign along with the code 01 The sign indicates the direction of movement for the two signals.

In the event that a different direction of movement between the two signals is detected, a positive or negative sign in conjunction with a code of 10 can be used The positive or negative sign indicates the direction of relative movement with respect to an arbitrary one of the slots.

The bottom line of Table I is an encoded representation of the composite sequence of incremental direction changes of the third line of Table I.

During the object verification process, a grater weight can be given to the encoded elements representing different directions of incremental movement of the signals Since an incremental indication of opposite movement of the two signals indicates a shift in the ratio of orientation of the magnetic particles for a given region assignment of a greater value to those data points emphasizes the importance of such regions.

For example, composite data points indicating different or opposite directions of incremental signals could be assigned a value of four Data points corresponding to movements in the same direction could be assigned a data point value of 1 Ambiguous points could be assigned a point value of zero.

A sum of values associated with the most recently sensed representation of the security regions can be compared with a corresponding sum from the bar code prerecorded on the object If the two sums agree within a predetermined range the object can be accepted as authentic In contradistinction, if the summed weighted data points of the present and prior readings do not agree within the predetermined range the object can be rejected as not authentic.

With respect to Figure 27, an alternate object 310 in accordance with the present invention includes a substrate 312 The substrate 312 carries a generally rectangularly shaped elongated magnetic region 314 Region 314 can be applied to the substrate 312 using a variety of methods as discussed previously herein The exact method of deposit of the region 312 is not a limitation of the present invention The object 310 also includes a coded representation in bar code format 316.

A portion of the continuously extending magnetic region of 312 can be utilized to form a plurality of spaced apart magnetic security regions 320 best shown in Figure 28.

Each of the magnetic security regions 320, such as the regions 322, 324 and 326 is formed on the continuously extending, recordable magnetic region 314 spaced apart from adjacent security regions.

Each of the regions 322, 324, 326 has a generally diamond like shape and is defined on the region 314 by scoring or marking that region selectively during the manufacturing process It will be understood that the remainder of the magnetic region 314 can be used in a standard and known fashion for the purpose of reading and writing digital or analog electrical signals thereon.

While each of the magnetic security regions 322, 324 and 326 has been formed with a generally diamond like shape, it will be understood that the diamond like shape thereof is not a limitation of the present invention In accordance with the invention, the selected security magnetic region, such as the region 322 is sensed with a sensor 330 from two different orientations The sensor 330 corresponds to the sensor 250 previously discussed.

It will be understood that a magnetic security region in accordance with the present invention can be formed in a variety of shapes.

In addition to scoring the magnetic region 314, the security regions, such as 322, 324 and 326 can be defined thereon by scribing the stripe 314 with a laser beam Alternately, the security regions could be located in the continuously extending recordable magnetic region 314 and located at a field delimiter or could be located adjacent an optical strobe signal 332 carried by the substrate 312 The alignment of magnetic particles at a defined security region is to be sensed from two directions.

The object 310 could be used in conjunction with a verification or object creation apparatus 280 of the type discussed previously.

TABLE I

PEAK RELATIVE INDICIA 301 a + 0 + + + + 0 HEAD 1 + 20 (Slot 256 a) 301 b + + + + + HEAD 2 20 ( Slot 256 b) O + 0 COMPOSITE + 10 -01 X 00 + 10 -10 + 10 + 10 -01 + 01 X 00 -10 ENCODED OPPOSITE + BOTH + BOTH - 0 AMBIGUOUS TABLE II x O O + 01 + 10 A 4 BIGUOUS SAME DIFFERENT From the foregoing, it will be observed that numerous variations and modifications may be effected without departing from the spirit and scope of the novel concept of the invention It is to be understood that no limitation with respect to the specific apparatus illustrated herein is intended or should be inferred It is, of course, intended to cover by the appended claims all such modifications as fall within the scope of the claims.

Claims (1)

1. What is Claimed is:

   1 An apparatus for verifying the authenticity of an object which carries a plurality of spaced magnetic security regions thereon, selected of the regions having at least first and second edges selectivity oriented with respect to one another, the apparatus comprising:

   means for detecting first and second electrical signals generated by first and second selectively oriented edges of at least some of the spaced magnetic security regions; means for retrieving a prestored, composite representation of a characteristic associated with the object; means for forming an object identifying characteristic from at least one of said electrical signals; and means for comparing said formed characteristic of the magnetic regions to said retrieved prestored representation and for indicating a result of the comparison.

   2 An apparatus as in claim 1 with said detecting means including:

   means for sensing peak values of electrical signals generated from the detected magnetic security regions.

   3 An apparatus as in claim 1 with said detecting means including means for processing the sensed characteristics and for selecting a plurality of peak values for forming a composite representation thereof.

   4 An apparatus as in claim 1 wherein said retrieving means includes means for sensing said prestored representation at a selected location on the object.

   An apparatus as in claim 1 wherein said retrieving means includes means for sensing said prestored representation at a selected location remote from the object.

   6 An apparatus as in claim 1 including means for processing said detected characteristics and for forming a present composite representation thereof based on peak values of said detected characteristics from at least two different magnetic regions.

   7 An apparatus as in claim 6 with said processing means including means for accumulating a plurality of digital values corresponding to peak values of said characteristics from at least two different regions.

   8 An apparatus as in claim 1 with said comparing means including means for testing for a correspondence between said detected characteristics and said prestored representation.

   9 An apparatus as in claim 8 including means for generating a selected indicium in response to said testing means finding said correspondence between said detected characteristics and said prestored representation.

   10 An apparatus as in claim 1 including means for converting the detected magnetic characteristics to a time varying electrical signal in response to relative motion between the magnetic regions and said detecting means.

   11 An apparatus as in claim 10 including means for collecting a sequence of peak values of said electrical signal from at least two different magnetic regions as well as means for forming an identifying profile for the object.

   12 An apparatus as in claim 10 including means for saturating the magnetic regions and including means for collecting a sequence of saturation peak values from said spaced apart regions as well as means for forming an identifying profile for the object.

   13 An apparatus as in claim 12 including means for comparing said profile to said prestored representation and means for indicating a correspondence therebetween.

   14 an apparatus as in claim 10 including means for selecting a plurality of peak values of said electrical signal from at least two spaced apart regions and for forming a composite representation based on said selected plurality of peak values.

   An apparatus as in claim 14 wherein said means for retrieving includes means for optically sensing a representation carried on the object.

   16 A verifiable object comprising:

   a base portion; and a plurality of spaced apart regions of magnetic material on said base portion, said regions each including a magnetic characteristic detectable from two different orientations with a preformed representation of said characteristics carried on said object.

   17 An object as in claim 16 with said regions spaced equidistant from one another.

   18 An object as in claim 16 with said regions formed of diamond shaped magnetic material.

   19 An object as in claim 18 with said magnetic material deposited as magnetic ink.

   An object as in claim 18 with said preformed representation formed of machine readable optical symbols carried by the object.

   21 An object as in claim 20 with said machine readable symbols interposed, at least in part, between at least some of said magnetic regions.

   22 An object as in claim 16 with said regions of magnetic material all having essentially the same coercivity.

   23 An object as in claim 16 with said regions formed spaced-apart in a continuously extending magnetic region.

   24 An object as in claim 18 with each said orientation corresponding to a respective selected first and second edge of one of said diamond shaped magnetic regions.

   An object as in claim 24 with said first and said second characteristics being interrelated such that an alteration of one of said characteristics affects the other.

   26 A method of verifying the authenticity of an object as in claim 16 carrying a plurality of spaced apart, magnetic security regions comprising:

   passing the magnetic regions through an essentially constant magnetic field; sensing, from two different orientations, a magnetic characteristic of each member of the plurality; selecting a predetermined set of values corresponding to sensed magnetic characteristics from various members of the plurality; forming a representative profile based on the set of values; and storing the representative profile for later use.

   27 A method as in claim 26 including selecting a set of peak values.

   a 28 A method as in claim 26 with the forming step including selecting a plurality of peak sensed values from said first and second orientations.

   29 A method of forming a representative profile of an object as in claim 16 carrying a plurality of spaced apart magnetic security regions each having a magnetic characteristic detectable from first and second orientations, the method comprising:

   providing the magnetic regions; detecting the characteristic of each of the magnetic regions from two different orientations at least once; and collecting at least a first plurality of spaced apart peak values of selected of said detected magnetic characteristics.

   A verifiable object as in claim 16 with each said region having at least first and second deliniating edges with said edges intersecting at an angle selected from a range between 35 degrees and 45 degrees with related first and second electrical signals being generatable therefrom such that modification of said region will affect at least one of said signals.

   31 A verifiable object as in claim 30 with said edges being substantially linear.

   32 A verifiable object as in claim 30 with said regions formed as spaced-apart discrete regions.

   33 A verifiable object as in claim 32 with each said region being diamond shaped.

   34 A verifiable object as in claim 30 with said regions defined in a continuously extending, recordable magnetic region.

   Published 1989 at The Patent Office State House, 66171 High Holborn, London WCIR 4 TP Further copies maybe obtained from The Patent Offtce.

   ez_ ranso St sr I' C',,, e, oaon tiv 5 Pr im D Tintd by Multiplex techr Iques ltd, St Mary Cray Ient, Con 1/87