WO2020183493A1

WO2020183493A1 - A security device, system of generating a security device and method thereof

Info

Publication number: WO2020183493A1
Application number: PCT/IN2020/050222
Authority: WO
Inventors: D Subhalingam
Original assignee: Vglens Solutions Private Limited
Priority date: 2019-03-11
Filing date: 2020-03-10
Publication date: 2020-09-17

Abstract

A security device (11) to be applied or affixed onto a product or article (10), whose authenticity can later be determined is disclosed. The security device (11) comprises: an optically variable device (13) of any size and geometrical shape; a random code (14) that is printed onto the optically variable device (13) to create a first security element (15); a second security element (12) that is generated through a first application (34) installable on a computing device, said second security element (12) comprising: a unique 2D barcode, a unique secondary serial code, a sequence code, and at least one geometrical shape; and a substrate (16), onto which the first security element (15) and the second security element (12) are applied or affixed or printed, said security device (11) being authenticated through a second application (62) installable on a computing device (61).

Description

TITLE OF THE INVENTION: A SECURITY DEVICE, SYSTEM OF GENERATING A SECURITY DEVICE AND METHOD THEREOF

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates to the field of authentication of products and articles. Particularly, the present disclosure relates to a security device and a system of generating a security device, which is to be applied or affixed to product or article, whose authenticity can later be determined. Further, the present disclosure relates to a method of generating a security device. Also, the present disclosure relates to a method of determining the authenticity of the security device, and, the product or article with the security device, without comparing with any reference data

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Counterfeiting is a global menace to consumers and manufacturers of products and brand owners. Industry research reports warn that counterfeiting is a significant economic threat that undermines innovation and hampers economic growth. Counterfeit products exist in virtually every industry sector, including food, beverages, apparel, accessories, footwear, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, electronics, auto parts, and toys. Consumers are many times deceived with counterfeit products, which are lookalike of genuine products, resulting in monetary loss and/or health issues.

Counterfeiting is difficult to detect, investigate, and quantify. Consequently, it is difficult to know the full extent of the problem. However, industry estimates show a significant percent of all world trade is in counterfeit products.

Many systems and methods have been developed and deployed for preventing counterfeiting. For example, some of the methods aimed at preventing counterfeiting include, marking products, holograms, colour shifting inks, tamper-proof labels, and invisible inks. However, all these approaches are not foolproof and often ineffective because they are easily copied by counterfeiters and/or are very difficult for consumers to recognize. Other techniques like RFID tags and NFC chips carrying encrypted codes tagged or applied on to the product are not economical and require significant additional investment and changes in the existing information technology systems of the manufacturers, brand owners, and various parties involved in the supply chain side. Moreover, these techniques and methods are again not foolproof and do not guarantee the elimination of false-negatives and false-positives to give consumers, manufacturers and/or brand owners a total confidence.

There is, therefore, a need in the art for a copy-resistant security device and a system of generating a copy -resistant security device, which is to be applied or affixed to product or article, which overcomes the aforementioned drawbacks and shortcomings.

Further, there exists a need for a method of determining the authenticity of the security device, which overcomes the aforementioned drawbacks and shortcomings.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A security device to be applied or affixed onto a product or article, whose authenticity can later be determined is disclosed. The security device comprises: an optically variable device of any size and geometrical shape, said optically variable device comprising artistic design, including, but not limited to: geometrical shapes, patterns, numbers, and text; a random code that is printed by a first device onto the optically variable device to create a first security element; a second security element that is generated through a first application installable on a computing device, said second security element comprising: a unique 2D barcode, a unique secondary serial code, a sequence code, and at least one geometrical shape, with a part of said second security element being stored on a computer system; and a substrate, onto which the first security element and the second security element are applied or affixed or printed, through a second device and a third device, respectively, said security device being authenticated through a second application installable on a computing device, without comparing with any reference data.

The first security element and the second security element, and their disposition and orientation on the substrate make the disclosed security device copy-resistant. Reproduction or cloning of similar security devices outside the disclosed system cannot pass through the authenticity validation process.

The disclosed security device has applications in virtually every industry sector, including food, beverages, apparel, accessories, footwear, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, electronics, auto parts, and toys.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Figure 1 illustrates an embodiment of a schematic view of a security device, in accordance with the present disclosure;

Figure 2 illustrates an embodiment of a schematic diagram of a system for generating a security device;

Figure 3 illustrates an embodiment of a system for generating a second security element, in accordance with the present disclosure;

Figure 4 illustrates a flowchart of a method of generating an embodiment of a second security element, in accordance with the present disclosure;

Figure 5 illustrates a flowchart of a method of generating an embodiment of a security device, in accordance with the present disclosure;

Figure 6 illustrates an embodiment of a system for authentication, in accordance with the present disclosure;

Figure 7 illustrates a flowchart of an embodiment of an authentication method, in accordance with the present disclosure; and

Figure 8 illustrates the functioning of an embodiment of a security device in the real- world, in accordance with the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Throughout this specification, the use of the word "comprise" and“include” and variations such as "comprises "comprising",“includes”, and“including” implies the inclusion of an element or elements not specifically recited. A system of generating a security device to be applied or affixed to a product or an article whose authenticity can later be determined is disclosed. As illustrated in Figure 1 and Figure 2, an embodiment of the system comprises: an optically variable device (13) of any size and geometrical shape, said optically variable device (13) comprising artistic design, including, but not limited to: geometrical shapes, patterns, numbers, and text; a first device (31) that prints a random code (14) onto the optically variable device (13) to create a first security element (15); a second device (32) that applies or affixes the first security element (15) onto a substrate (16) to form a partial security device (17); a first application (34) comprising reciprocal cryptography techniques that is installable on a computing device, said first application (34) generating a second security element (12) with: a unique 2D barcode, a unique secondary serial code, a sequence code, and at least one geometrical shape, and storing a part of the second security element on the computing device and/or a computer system (35); a third device (33) that prints the second security element (12) onto the partial security device (17) to create a security device (11) to be applied or affixed onto a product or an article

(10). The first application (34) is communicatively associated with the computer system (35).

Alternatively, the third device (33) prints the random code (14) onto the optically variable device (13).

Another embodiment of the present disclosure provides for the security device (11) to be applied or affixed onto the product or article (10), comprising: the substrate (16); the optically variable device (13) of any size and geometrical shape, said optically variable device (13) comprising artistic design, including, but not limited to: geometrical shapes, patterns, numbers, and text; the random code (14); and the second security element (12) that comprises: the unique 2D barcode, the unique secondary serial code, the sequence code, and at least one geometrical shape. The security device

(11) can be applied or affixed onto products or articles (10) whose authenticity can later be verified by capturing and verifying the details of the security device (11) through suitable techniques, such as reciprocal cryptography and computer vision techniques, without comparing with any reference data. In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the optically variable device (13) is a hologram.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the optically variable device (13) is formed by a colour shifting ink. In yet another embodiment of the present disclosure, the first device (31) and the third device (33) are printers, and the second device (32) is a mechanical applicator.

In yet another embodiment of the present disclosure, the substrate (16) is a self- adhesive label of type including, but not limited to, paper, polyester, and synthetic material. In yet another embodiment of the present disclosure, the computer system (35) is hosted on a independent server or the cloud server.

In yet another embodiment of the present disclosure, the computer system (35) and the computing device include, but are not limited to, desktop computers, laptop computers, mobile phones, smart phones, tablets, phablets, and smart watches. As illustrated in Figure 3, an embodiment of a system for generating the second security element (12) comprises: a unique serial code (21), said unique serial code (21) being converted into a cipher code (22) through reciprocal cryptography techniques, following which the second security element (12) is derived though said reciprocal cryptography techniques, said second security element (12) comprising: the unique 2D barcode; the unique secondary serial code; the sequence code, and at least one geometrical shape.

Accordingly, a method of generating an embodiment of the second security element (12) is illustrated in Figure 4. The method comprises: generating (101) the unique serial code (21); converting (102) the unique serial code (21) to the cipher code (22) through reciprocal cryptography techniques; and deriving (103) the second security element (12) through the reciprocal cryptography techniques, said second security element (12) comprising: the unique 2D barcode; the unique secondary serial code; the sequence code, and at least one geometrical shape.

In yet another embodiment of the present disclosure, the second security element (12) may be printed in any order and orientation, and a portion of the second security element (12) may also be printed onto the first security element.

The serial code may be of any length and a combination of: a numeric serial code, alphanumeric serial code, date of any event occurring/occurred, time of any event occurring/occured, or the like.

As illustrated in Figure 5, yet another embodiment of the present disclosure provides for a method of generating the security device (11), comprising the steps of: generating (201) the optically variable device (13) of any size and geometrical shape, said optically variable device (13) comprising artistic design, including, but not limited to: geometrical shapes, patterns, numbers, and text; printing (202) the random code (14) onto the optically variable device (13) to form the first security element (15); applying or affixing (203) the first security element (15) onto the substrate (16) to form the partial security device (17); generating (204) the second security element (12) through reciprocal cryptography techniques, said second security element (12) comprising: the unique 2D barcode; the unique secondary serial code; the sequence code, and at least one geometrical shape, and storing a part of the second security element (12) details on the computer system (35); printing (205) the second security element (12) onto the partial security device (17) to form the security device (11); providing (206) the security device (11) to be applied or affixed onto the article or product (10). Alternatively, the third device (33) prints the random code (14) onto the optically variable device (13).

For example, the part of the second security element (12) details stored on the computer system (35) may be the unique 2D barcode, the unique secondary serial code, or the sequence code.

In yet another embodiment of the present disclosure, the unique 2D barcode includes, but is not limited to, optically readable codes and machine readable codes, and may contain intricate features.

In yet another embodiment of the present disclosure, the unique secondary serial code includes, but is not limited to plain numbers, optically readable codes, and machine readable codes, and may contain intricate features.

In yet another embodiment of the present disclosure, the sequence code is derived from the unique serial code, and may contain intricate features.

In yet another embodiment of the present disclosure, the geometrical shapes are of any size and shape, and may contain intricate features.

As illustrated in Figure 6, yet another embodiment of the present disclosure provides for a system for authenticating the security device (11) and, thereby, the product or article (10), by validating the acquired data through a second application (62) installable on a computing device (61), through reciprocal cryptography and computer vision techniques, without comparing with any reference data. The second application (62) is communicatively associated with the computer system (35).

The computing device (61) includes, but is not limited to, desktop computers, laptop computers, mobile phones, smart phones, tablets, phablets, and smart watches.

The first security element (15) and the second security element (12) can be applied or affixed or printed directly onto the product or article (10), whose authenticity can later be determined. As illustrated in Figure 7, yet another embodiment of the present disclosure provides for a method of authenticating the security device (11) and, thereby, the product or article (10), comprising: opening (301) the second application (62) through the computing device (61), said second application (62) being communicatively associated with the computer system (35); detecting (302) the security device (11) through said application (62); acquiring (303) machine readable and optically readable data from said the security device (11); validating (304) the acquired data through reciprocal cryptography and computer vision techniques, without comparing with any reference data; determining (305) the authenticity of the security device (11); and displaying (306 or 307) the authentication result (63) through an interface of the computing device (61). The features and details of the security device (11) including, but not limited to, edge, resolution, shape, intensity, and color present in the security device (11), are analysed individually, collectively, and with reference to each other, using reciprocal cryptography and computer vision techniques, comprising well-known techniques, including, but not limited to, feature extraction, color extraction, color detection, feature detection, object detection, edge detection, color and HSV histogram comparison, etc. The said reciprocal cryptography techniques derive the cipher code (22) from the second security element (12) present in the security device (11), convert the derived cipher code (22) to the serial code (21), and determine the validity of the converted serial code (21). The disclosed security device (11) shall now be illustrated with the following example, as shown in Figure 8: The security devices (11) in required quantities are supplied for applying or affixing onto products or articles (10). A first user or robotic machine (71) applies or affixes the security devices (11) onto the product or article (10), whose authenticity can later be determined.

A second user (72), with the intent to buy one or more of said product or article (10), opens the second application (62) through his/her mobile phone (61), to validate the authenticity of the product (10). The second user (72) scans the security device (11) affixed onto the product or article (10) through the second application (62).

The second application (62) detects the security device (11), acquires machine readable and optically readable data, and validates the acquired data through reciprocal cryptography and computer vision techniques, without comparing with any reference data, to determine the authenticity of the security device (11) and, thereby, the product (10) carrying the security device (11). The said reciprocal cryptography techniques derive the cipher code (22) from the second security element (12) present in the security device (11), convert the derived cipher code (22) to the serial code (21), and determine the validity of the converted serial code (21).

The second application (62) displays the authentication result (63) through the mobile phone (61), which the second user (72) reads and decides whether to buy said product or article (10) or not. The second application (62) is communicatively associated with the computer system (35).

The first security element and the second security element (12), and their disposition and orientation make the disclosed security device (11) copy-resistant, and reproduction or cloning of similar security devices outside the disclosed system cannot pass through the authenticity validation process.

The disclosed security device (11) has applications in virtually every industry sector, including food, beverages, apparel, accessories, footwear, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, electronics, auto parts, and toys.

It will be apparent to a person skilled in the art that the above description is for illustrative purposes only and should not be considered as limiting. Various modifications, additions, alterations and improvements without deviating from the spirit and the scope of the disclosure may be made by a person skilled in the art. Such modifications, additions, alterations and improvements should be construed as being within the scope of this disclosure.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMERALS

10 - Product or Article

11 - Security Device

12 - Second Security Element

13 - Optically Variable Device

14 - Random Code

15 - First Security Element

16 - Substrate

17 - Partial Security Device

21 - Unique Serial Code

22 - Cipher Code

31 - First Device

32 - Second Device

33 - Third Device

34 - First Application Installable on a Computing Device

35 - Computer System

61 - Computing Device/Mobile Phone

62 - Second Application

63 - Authentication Result

71 - First User or Robotic Machine

72 - Second User

101 - Generating a Unique Serial Code

102 - Converting the Unique Serial Code to a Cipher Code

103 - Deriving the Second Security Element

201 - Generating the Optically Variable Device 202 - Printing the Random Code Onto the Optically Variable Device

203 - Applying or Affixing the First Security Element Onto the Substrate

204 - Generating the Second Security Element

205 - Printing the Second Security Element Onto a Partial Security Device 206 - Providing the Security Device to the Article or Product

301 - Opening the Second Application Through the Computing Device

302 - Detecting the Security Device Through the Second Application

303 - Acquiring Machine Readable and Optically Readable Data from the Security Device

304 - Validating the Acquired Data

305 - Determining the Authenticity of the Security Device

306 - Displaying the Authentication Result

Claims

CLAIMS We Claim:

1. A security device (11) to be applied or affixed onto a product or article (10), whose authenticity can later be determined, comprising: an optically variable device (13) that comprises artistic design; a random code (14) that is printed by a first device (31) onto the optically variable device (13) to create a first security element (15); a second security element (12) that is generated through a first application (34) installable on a computing device, said first application (34) being communicatively associated with a computer system (35), with a part of said second security element (12) being stored on the computer system (35); and a substrate (16), onto which the first security element (15) and the second security element (12) are applied or affixed or printed, through a second device (32) and a third device (33), respectively, said security device (11) being authenticated through a second application (62) installable on a computing device (61) by acquiring and validating machine readable and optically readable data from the security device (11), without comparing with any reference data.

2. The security device (11) to be applied or affixed onto a product or article (10), whose authenticity can later be determined as claimed in claim 1, wherein the optically variable device (13) is a hologram.

3. The security device (11) to be applied or affixed onto a product or article (10), whose authenticity can later be determined as claimed in claim 1, wherein the optically variable device (13) is formed by a colour shifting ink.

4. The security device (11) to be applied or affixed onto a product or article (10), whose authenticity can later be determined as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first device (31) and the third device (33) are printers.

5. The security device (11) to be applied or affixed onto a product or article (10), whose authenticity can later be determined as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second device (32) is a mechanical applicator.

6. The security device (11) to be applied or affixed onto a product or article (10), whose authenticity can later be determined as claimed in claim 1, wherein the substrate (16) includes paper, polyester, and synthetic material.

7. The security device (11) to be applied or affixed onto a product or article (10), whose authenticity can later be determined as claimed in claim 1, wherein the computer system (35) is hosted on an independent server.

8. The security device (11) to be applied or affixed onto a product or article (10), whose authenticity can later be determined as claimed in claim 1, wherein the computer system (35) is hosted on a cloud server.

9. The security device (11) to be applied or affixed onto a product or article (10), whose authenticity can later be determined as claimed in claim 1, wherein the computer system (35) and the computing device include desktop computers, laptop computers, mobile phones, smart phones, tablets, phablets, and smart watches.

10. The security device (11) to be applied or affixed onto a product or article (10) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second security element (12) comprises: a unique 2D barcode, a unique secondary serial code, a sequence code, and at least one geometrical shape.

11. The security device (11) to be applied or affixed onto a product or article (10) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said second application (62): is communicatively associated with the computer system (35), derives a cipher code (22) from the second security element (12) present in the security device (11), converts the derived cipher code (22) to a serial code (21), and determines the validity of the converted serial code (21).

12. A method of generating a security device (11) to be applied or affixed onto a product or article (10), whose authenticity can later be determined, comprising the steps of: generating (201) a optically variable device (13), said optically variable device comprising artistic design; printing (202) a random code (14) that is printed by a first device (31) onto the optically variable device (13) to form a first security element (15); applying or affixing or printing (203) the first security element (15) onto a substrate (16) to form a partial security device (17); generating (204) a second security element (12) through a first application (34) installable on a computing device, said first application (34) being communicatively associated with a computer system (35), said second security element (12) comprising: a unique 2D barcode, a unique secondary serial code, a sequence code, and at least one geometrical shape, with a part of the second security element (12) details being stored on the computer system (35); printing (205) the second security element (12) onto the partial security device (17) to form the security device (11); providing (206) the security device (11) to the article or product (10), said security device (11) being authenticated through a second application (62) installable on a computing device (61) by acquiring and validating machine readable and optically readable data from the security device (11), without comparing with any reference data, said second application (62): being communicatively associated with the computer system (35), deriving the cipher code (22) from the second security element (12) present in the security device (11), converting the derived cipher code (22) to the serial code (21), and determining the validity of the converted serial code (21).