WO2016070916A1

WO2016070916A1 - Method and system for tracing consumer goods and corresponding tracing card

Info

Publication number: WO2016070916A1
Application number: PCT/EP2014/073830
Authority: WO
Inventors: Claude-Olivier GERTSCH; Frédéric Clauss; François Droz
Original assignee: Nagraid S.A.
Priority date: 2014-11-05
Filing date: 2014-11-05
Publication date: 2016-05-12
Also published as: EP3215995A1

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method of tracing a consumer good (1), in which: a tracing device (20), comprising at least identification data for the tracing service (21), is presented to a reading apparatus (30), the reading apparatus (30) comprising at least identification data for the reading apparatus (31), at least the identification data for the tracing service (21) are transmitted from the tracing device (20) to the reading apparatus (30), the identification data for the operation carried out with the consumer good (32) are transmitted to the reading apparatus (30), at least the identification data for the tracing service (21), the identification data for the reading apparatus (31) and/or the identification data for the operation carried out with the consumer good (32) are sent to a central unit (40) by the reading apparatus (30), and the data sent by the reading apparatus (30) are received by the central unit (40) which, on the basis of the data received from the reading apparatus (30), generates the data making it possible to trace the consumer good (1).

Description

Method and system for tracing consumer goods

and corresponding tracing map

Technical field of the invention

The present invention relates to a method and system for tracing consumer goods, and to a corresponding tracing card. In particular, the present invention relates to a method and system for tracing consumer goods and to a corresponding tracing card that makes it possible to trace consumer goods in an efficient manner using standardized procedures and equipment.

Description of the prior art

One of the major problems facing a large number of industries today is the existence of "black markets" and "gray markets", thus the distribution of counterfeit or pirated products, or the distribution of products through distribution channels. not authorized by the manufacturer of the original products.

The luxury sector, therefore the manufacture and trade of products sold at prices well above the average of other products of the same family, is particularly affected by these problems. The products most exposed to these problems are undoubtedly watches, jewelery, textiles and high end leather goods, etc., but piracy is also starting to become a major problem in the market for medicines, medical devices or multitude of other markets.

A constant need of the manufacturers of the original products is therefore an efficient tracing of its products, that is to say the possibility of monitoring at every moment the movements of the products between the manufacture and the sale to the end customers in order to be able to guarantee their origin. (and justify their high prices). Another trade-related problem is manufacturers' desire to optimize product production and distribution. More specifically, the manufacturer would like to adapt production to demand and optimize the transport of products between the production site and the various sales outlets in order to reduce fixed and variable costs and to increase its margin. These distribution problems are particularly pronounced in the luxury sector where the flow of goods can vary in a very important and unpredictable way depending on different parameters.

Distribution optimization is another reason for requesting efficient product tracing. In particular, it is necessary to know at all times the current location of products and to receive information on sales, returns, complaints, trends, forecasts, etc.

Currently, the proposed solutions for product tracing do not fully satisfy the industry. The transmission of relevant information today typically requires significant manual work which is a potential source of errors and which does not allow manufacturers to obtain the desired information in an efficient and fast manner. Also, the transmission security of the tracing information (which is in most cases confidential) is typically low or depends on the complicated measures which make the proposed solutions even less adapted to the needs of the manufacturers.

Summary of the invention

The object of the present invention is therefore to solve the aforementioned problems by proposing a method and a system for tracing consumer goods and a corresponding tracing card which allow manufacturers to obtain information on their consumer goods in a manner effective and fast. More specifically, the present invention is directed to a method for tracing consumer goods that can be implemented by all merchants at the points of sale of these consumer goods. In particular, the method proposed by the present invention aims to offer traders the possibility of using standard procedures and equipment, thereby limiting the need for investment and also facilitating the use of the process through employment. procedures and equipment already well known by traders.

For this purpose, the object of the present invention is in particular a method of tracing a consumer good according to independent claim 1, as well as a corresponding system for tracing a consumer good according to independent claim 10 and a tracing device according to independent claim 16.

More concretely, the first aspect of the present invention relates to a process for tracing a consumer good, in which:

a tracing device, comprising at least identification data of the tracing service, is presented to a reading apparatus, the reading apparatus comprising at least identification data of the reading apparatus;

at least the identification data of the tracing service are transmitted from the tracing device to the reading device;

the identification data of the operation carried out with the consumer good are transmitted to the reading apparatus;

at least the identification data of the tracing service, the identification data of the reading device and / or the identification data of the operation carried out with the consumer good are sent to a central unit by means of reading device; and - The data sent by the reading device is received by the central unit which, based on the data received from the reading device, generates the data for tracing the consumer good.

Advantageously, the shape and size of the tracing device correspond to the shape and size of a standard payment card. Also, the format of the data included in the plotter advantageously corresponds to the format of the data included in a standard payment card. Thanks to these characteristics, the use of the tracing devices used in the context of the present invention can correspond to the use of payment cards that are well known and widespread at the global level, thus also making it possible to use the equipment provided to provision for payment. Of course, it would also be possible to provide tracing devices having other dimensions and shapes, provided that they can be read by a suitable reading device.

Also, a second aspect of the present invention relates to a consumer goods tracing system, with a reading apparatus, comprising at least identification data of the reading apparatus, and a central unit, in which :

the reading device is able to read at least trace device identification data of a tracking device, able to receive the identification data of the operation performed with the consumer good, and adapted to send at least the identification data of the tracing service, the identification data of the reading device and / or the identification data of the operation carried out with the consumer good to a central unit; and

the central unit is able to receive the data sent by the reading apparatus and, based on the data received from the reading apparatus, to generate the data making it possible to trace the consumer good. A third aspect of the present invention relates to a device for tracing a consumer good using the method according to the invention, comprising means for storing at least identification data of the tracing service. Advantageously, such a tracing device can be made to correspond to a standard payment card with regard to its shape and size. Of course, other possibilities for the tracing device are also conceivable.

The other advantageous aspects of the present invention are described in the dependent claims.

Brief description of the drawings

Other advantages and features of the present invention will emerge more clearly from the following description of a particular embodiment of the invention given by way of non-limiting example and represented in the appended drawings, among which:

- Figure 1 schematically illustrates a tracing system of a consumer good according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

- Figure 2 shows schematically and simplified a tracing device used in the tracing system of a consumer good according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 schematically and simplifiedly illustrates a reading apparatus used in the tracking system of a consumer good according to one embodiment of the present invention; and

- Figure 4 schematically illustrates a tracing system of a consumer good according to a second embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Description of the Different Embodiments

A first embodiment of the method and system according to the present invention will be explained in more detail with reference to Figure 1, without limitation.

As can be readily seen in FIG. 1, the tracing system of a consumer good 1 (shown schematically in FIG. 1 in the form of a bottle) according to this first embodiment of the present invention essentially comprises a reading device 30. and a CPU 40. Of course, it is clear that consumer good 1 can be any product for which tracing is desired, especially luxury goods such as watches, jewelery, etc.

The reading apparatus 30 and the central unit 40 are able to communicate with each other via a communication network 70, such as the Internet. Of course, other global or local communications networks 70 are also conceivable. As such, the reading apparatus 30 is connected to the communication network 70 by means of a communication link 71; in an equivalent manner, the central unit 40 is connected to the communication network 71 by means of a communication link 72. The communication links 71 and 72 can be made using any known communications technology, particularly the wireless technologies such as 2G (GSM), 3G (GPRS), 4G (LTE), WiFi, or any other appropriate technology.

The details of the structure of the reading apparatus 30 and the central unit 40 will be given below.

The tracing system of a consumer good 1 illustrated in FIG. 1 can for example be used to transmit to the manufacturer the information that a consumer good 1 has been sold in a particular store. As such, a tracking device 20 (shown diagrammatically in FIG. 2, in a duplex manner) is used which is presented to the reading apparatus 30. The tracking device 20 comprises at least the data of FIG. identification of the tracing service, ie the data enabling it to be identified as a tracing device 20 and to differentiate it from similar devices. The tracing service identification data contained in the tracing device 20 may for example correspond to a sequence of numbers or letters, brought to the surface of the device 20 legibly or stored on the device 20 electronically.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the tracing device 20 may have the shape and size corresponding to the shape and size of a standard payment card. This embodiment of the present invention has particularly important advantages, as will be described below.

The reading apparatus 30 on its side comprises at least identification data of the reading apparatus.

When the tracing device 20 is presented to the reading device 20, at least the identification data of the tracing service are transmitted to the reading device 30, as well as the identification data of the operation performed with consumer good 1 (ie, the sale). After receiving this data, the reading apparatus 30 transmits at least the identification data of the tracing service, the identification data of the reading apparatus and / or the identification data of the operation performed with the consumer good at the central unit 40 via the communication network 70.

After reception of the data sent by the reading apparatus 30, the central unit 40 generates the data making it possible to trace the consumption good 1 on the basis of the data received from the reading apparatus 30. In our case, the unit Central 40 generates the data to learn that the consumer good 1 has been sold at the point of sale corresponding to the reading device 30 (which can be identified by the identification data of the reading device transmitted).

As already mentioned, the tracing device 20 according to the present invention may advantageously have the shape and size corresponding to the shape and size of a payment card (eg a credit card or a credit card) standard. As such, the international standard ISO / IEC 7810, which contains the definitions of identification card dimensions, including bank cards, can be used.

In addition to the shape and size of the plotter 20, it can also be designed to match a standard payment card also at the appearance, structure and operation level. For example, a tracing device 20 according to the present invention may comprise an electronic chip 25 and / or a magnetic tape 28 for storing the data that can be read by appropriate devices, in a manner equivalent to the electronic chips and magnetic tapes that found on standard payment cards. In this case, it is best to store the data with a data format that matches the format of the data stored in a standard payment card. These formats are defined in particular in the international standards ISO / IEC 781 1, ISO / IEC 7812, ISO / IEC 7813, ISO 8583 or ISO / IEC 4909 and they are well known in the industrial field of the manufacture of payment cards.

Like a standard payment card, the tracing device 20 can also include the inscriptions (such as a user's name or the name of the manufacturer of the consumer good 1) 26 or the identification numbers. 27. Other information is of course also imaginable.

In any case, and as mentioned above, a tracing device 20 differs from a standard payment card in that it comprises at least tracing service identification data. In other words, the tracing device 20 comprises at least data which makes it possible to identify it as a tracing device and to differentiate it unequivocally from a standard payment card.

The advantage of realizing the tracking device 20 in the format of a standard payment card is the possibility of using them in combination with standard payment card readers, present today in the vast majority of outlets at global level. Indeed, and as already mentioned, in the method according to the present invention, a tracing device 20 (with the tracing service identification data) must be presented to a reading apparatus 30 so that at least the data of the tracing service is identification of the tracing service can be transmitted from the tracing device 20 to the reading device 30. When the tracing device 20 is made to correspond to a standard payment card, it can be read by a card reader. standard payment according to standard and well-known procedures. Thus, the tracing device 20 can be used directly practically in all outlets in the world since virtually all outlets today are equipped with more or less sophisticated devices for reading the standard payment cards. A great advantage of this approach is the existence of international standards since such a tracking device 20 can be accepted and read by a large majority of existing devices, without the need to adapt, modify or update these devices. . Similarly, another advantage lies in the fact that such a tracking device 20 can be read by the devices of different producers.

Figure 3 schematically illustrates a reading apparatus 30 which may be used in the context of the present invention. Typically, this reading apparatus 30 comprises an input 35 for the introduction of the tracking device 20 for reading the data stored on the device 20. In FIG. 3, the reading device 30 also comprises an antenna 38 which serves to reading the data of the tracking device 20 without contact. The technologies and protocols for reading data from standard credit card devices (eg, NFC or RFID) are well known. Also, the reading apparatus 30 may include data input means 36 (typically a keyboard with a greater or smaller number of keys) and display means 37 (typically a display). The combined means for the introduction and display of data (eg touch screens) is also possible.

Thus, when a tracking device 20 made as a standard payment card is presented to the card reader 30, it considers that This is a standard payment card, reads the data stored on the plotter 20 according to the standard read procedures and then initiates the transmission of data read from the device 20 to the standard payment card processing center. . Such a standard payment card processing center is schematically illustrated under reference numeral 44 in FIG. 4 which represents a consumer goods tracing system according to a second embodiment of the present invention. Such standard payment card processing centers may be owned by specialized credit card management companies (eg, MasterCard, Visa, etc.), banks, or other standard payment card payment processors. .

When the reading apparatus 30 transmits the read data from the tracking device 20 to the standard payment card processing center 44, this data is analyzed by a control module 45 of the center 44. If these data include the data identification of the tracing service (read from the tracing device 20), the control module 45 understands that it is not a payment, but a request for the tracing of a consumer good and it sends the received data to the central unit 40, dedicated to tracing. Otherwise, the control module 45 concludes that it is a payment and transfers the received data to the other elements of the standard payment card payment processing center 44 (not shown for the sake of simplicity) for the standardized processing . In this way, the other elements of the standard payment card processing center 44 can process the payments in a very usual way.

Although represented as part of the standard payment card payment processing center 44, the control module 45 may also be positioned at another suitable location, e.g. ex. in the central unit 40 which can also be positioned outside the standard payment card payment processing center 44.

Data transmitted to the standard payment card payment processing center 44 by the reading device 30 includes minus the tracing service identification data read from the tracing device 20, the identification data of the reading apparatus and / or the identification data of the operation performed with the consumer good. For this purpose, the reading apparatus 30 typically comprises at least one means for storing the identification data of the reading apparatus, and therefore the data which make it possible to uniquely identify the apparatus 30.

As regards the identification data of the operation performed with the consumer good, they can also be stored on the tracing device 20 or introduced into the reading device 30 by the user. In the first case, it would for example be possible to use different tracking devices 20 for the different operations. For example, it would be conceivable to provide a first tracking device 20 for sale, a second tracking device 20 for the recovery of a product, a third tracking device 20 for after-sales service, etc. In the second case, a single tracking device 20 would be provided for all operations. Thus, the data relating to the identification of the operation could be introduced into the reading apparatus 30 through the data input means 36.

When the tracing device 20 corresponds to a standard payment card, the reading device 30 will in any case require the introduction of information (corresponding to the payment amount) after the reading of the card 20 before transmitting the data. 44. This could be used to enter the data corresponding to the transaction, eg through a predefined code. By way of non-limiting example, the introduction of the code 10 could mean the sale, the introduction of the code 20 the recovery of the product and the introduction of the code 30 the after-sales service.

As already mentioned above, after the reception of the data sent by the reading apparatus 30, the central unit 40 generates the data making it possible to trace the consumption good 1 based on the data received from the reading apparatus 30 (FIG. .ex the data to learn that the consumer good 1 was sold at the point of sale corresponding to the reading device 30). The last element represented in FIG. 4 corresponds to a data display means 50 for tracing the consumer good 1 that has been generated by the central unit 40. It can be a fixed or portable computer, a mobile phone, tablet or any other suitable device. This display device 50 can receive the data from the central unit 40 via the communication network 70 and the corresponding communication link 73. Nevertheless, it would also be conceivable to provide a direct communication link 74 (shown in dashed line) between the display device 50 and the central unit 40. Also, the display device could be integrated in the central unit 40 and / or in the standard payment card processing center 44.

In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, an automatic alert (eg, a message sent on a portable device or the like) could be issued by the CPU 40 when the data for tracing the consumer good 1 is generated. In this way, the manufacturers (or all other users of a consumer goods tracking system according to the present invention) could be notified about the changes in real time.

In the foregoing, the present invention has been described first in general terms and then in the form of an explanation of practical embodiments. Also, the description of elements well known in this technical field has been omitted for the sake of simplicity. Of course, the invention is in no way limited to the description of modes of implementation; it goes without saying that many variations and modifications can be made without the scope of the invention which is defined by the content of the claims, is left.

Claims

claims

1. A method of tracing a consumer good (1), wherein:

a tracing device (20), comprising at least identification data of the tracing service (21), is presented to a reading device (30), the reading device (30) comprising at least data storage identification of the reading apparatus (31);

at least the identification data of the tracing service (21) are transmitted from the tracing device (20) to the reading device (30);

the identification data of the operation carried out with the consumer good (32) are transmitted to the reading apparatus (30);

at least the identification data of the tracing service (21), the identification data of the reading device (31) and / or the identification data of the operation carried out with the consumer good (32). ) are sent to a central unit (40) by the reading apparatus (30); and

the data sent by the reading apparatus (30) is received by the central unit (40) which, based on the data received from the reading apparatus (30), generates the data enabling the consumer good to be traced. (1).

The method of tracing a consumer good (1) according to claim 1, wherein the shape and size of the tracing device (20) correspond to the shape and size of a standard payment card.

3. The method of tracing a consumer good (1) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the format of the data included in the tracing device (20) corresponds to the format of the data included in a standard payment card.

4. The method of tracing a consumer good (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the reading device (30) is a reader capable of reading the standard payment cards.

5. The method of tracing a consumer good (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the data sent to the central unit (40) by the reading apparatus (30) are analyzed by a control module (45) and transmitted to the central unit (40) only if they include the identification data of the tracing service (21).

6. The method of tracing a consumer good (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the central unit (40) is part of a standard payment card processing center. (44).

7. The method of tracing a consumer good (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the control module (45) is part of the standard payment card processing center (44). ).

8. The method of tracing a consumer good (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the data for tracing the consumption good (1) generated by the central unit (40) are viewed using a display means (50).

9. The method of tracing a consumer good (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein an automatic alert is issued by the central unit (40) when the data to trace the property of consumption (1) are generated.

10. System for tracing a consumer good (1) with a reading apparatus (30), comprising at least identification data of the reading apparatus (31), and a central unit (40), in which :

the reading device (30) is able to read at least identification data of the tracing service (21) of a tracing device (20), suitable for receiving the identification data of the operation performed with the consumer good (32), and able to send at least the identification data of the tracing service (21), the identification data of the reading device (31) and / or the identification data of the operation carried out with the consumer good (32) to a central unit (40); and

the central unit (40) is able to receive the data sent by the reading apparatus (30) and, based on the data received from the reading apparatus (30), to generate the data making it possible to trace the good of consumption (1).

1 1. The consumer goods tracing system (1) according to claim 10, wherein the reading apparatus (30) is a reader capable of reading standard payment cards.

12. The tracing system of a consumer good (1) according to claim 10 or 1 1, further comprising a control module (45) able to analyze the data sent to the central unit (40) by the reading apparatus (30) and transmitting this data to the central unit (40) only if it includes the identification data of the tracing service (21).

13. The tracking system of a consumer good (1) according to any one of claims 10 to 12, wherein the central unit (40) is part of a standard payment card processing center. (44).

14. The consumer goods tracing system (1) according to any of claims 10 to 13, wherein the control module (45) is part of the standard payment card processing center (44). ).

15. The tracing system of a consumer good (1) according to any one of claims 10 to 14, further comprising a display means (50) for displaying data for tracing the consumer good ( 1) generated by the central unit (40).

16. Device (20) for tracing a consumer good (1) using the method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, comprising means for storing at least one identification data of the service of tracing (21).

17. The device (20) according to claim 16, further comprises means for storing the identification data of the consumer good.

(22) and / or identification data of the manufacturer of the consumer good

(23).

18. The device (20) according to claim 16 or 17, characterized in that its shape and size correspond to the shape and size of a standard payment card.