Authentication

• US 20100158377A1
• Filed: 12/18/2009
• Published: 06/24/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/19/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ingenia Holdings Limited
• Original Assignee: Ingenia Holdings Limited
• Inventors: Seem, Peter, Cowburn, Russell Paul
• Granted Patent: US 8,682,076 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/181
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10564 Light sources
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 7/2033 Matching unique patterns, i.e. patterns that are unique to each individual paper

Abstract

The present invention can provide an apparatus operable to determine a signature from an article arranged in a reading volume. The apparatus can comprise a generator operable to generate and sequentially direct a focussed noncoherent beam onto each of a plurality of different regions of the reading volume; a detector arrangement operable to collect a set comprising groups of data points from signals obtained when the beam scatters from the different regions of the reading volume, wherein different ones of the groups of data points relate to scatter from the respective different regions of the reading volume; and a data acquisition and processing module operable to determine a signature of the article from the set of groups of data points.

Claims

1. Apparatus for determining a signature from an article arranged in a reading volume comprising:

a generator operable to generate and sequentially direct a focussed noncoherent beam onto each of a plurality of different regions of the reading volume;

a detector arrangement operable to collect a set comprising groups of data points from signals obtained when the beam scatters from the different regions of the reading volume, wherein different ones of the groups of data points relate to scatter from the respective different regions of the reading volume; and

a data acquisition and processing module operable to determine a signature of the article from the set of groups of data points.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the generator comprises a structured source.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the structured source is an LED array.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the generator comprises an unstructured source.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the unstructured source is a thermal source.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the generator is operable to focus the beam to achieve an elongate focus into the reading volume.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the short dimension of the elongate focus is less than 100 μ

m.

8. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the short dimension of the elongate focus is less than 50 μ

m.

9. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the long dimension of the elongate focus is in the range 3 mm to 50 mm.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the generator comprises an arrangement for collimating the noncoherent beam and subsequently focussing the collimated beam.

11. A method of determining a signature from an article arranged in a reading volume comprising:

sequentially directing a focussed noncoherent beam onto each of a plurality of different regions of the reading volume;

collecting a set comprising groups of data points from signals obtained when the beam scatters from the different regions of the reading volume, wherein different ones of the groups of data points relate to scatter from the respective different regions of the reading volume; and

determining a signature of the article from the set of groups of data points.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the non-coherent beam is from a structured source.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the beam is from an LED array.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the non-coherent beam is from an unstructured source.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein coherent beam is from a thermal source.

16. The method of claim 11, further comprising focussing the beam to achieve an elongate focus into the reading volume.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the short dimension of the elongate focus is less than 100 μ

m.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the short dimension of the elongate focus is less than 50 μ

m.

19. The method of claims 16, wherein the long dimension of the elongate focus is in the range 3 mm to 50 mm.

20. The method of claim 11, further comprising collimating the noncoherent beam and subsequently focussing the collimated beam.