Information transfer and use, particularly with respect to counterfeit detection

• US 5,283,422 A
• Filed: 08/10/1992
• Issued: 02/01/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 04/18/1986
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: CIAS Incorporated
• Original Assignee: CIAS Incorporated
• Inventors: Storch, Leonard, van Haagen, Ernst
• Primary Examiner(s): Weinhardt, Robert A.
• Application Number:
  US07/927,798
• Time in Patent Office: 540 Days
• Field of Search: 235/383, 235/375, 235/437, 235/381
• US Class Current: 235/375
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/14 Error detection or correction of the data by redundancy in operation G06F11/16 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/04 characterised by the shape
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/06009 with optically detectable marking G06K19/063, G06K19/08 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/14 using light without selection of wavelength, e.g. sensing reflected white light G06K7/10831 - G06K7/1097 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/1452 detecting bar code edges
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/1473 error correction
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 5/00 Testing specially adapted to determine the identity or genuineness of coins, e.g. for segregating coins which are unacceptable or alien to a currency
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 5/10 Testing the rim, e.g. the milling of the rim
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 7/004 using digital security elements, e.g. information coded on a magnetic thread or strip
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 1/06 Coins specially adapted to operate coin-freed mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements

Abstract

Coding systems utilizing machine-readable coding are disclosed. The coding systems are extremely simple to use and preferred embodiments of the machine-readable coding require no external reference or reference code or starting point or orientation for reading or decoding. The number of usable codes for any given number of code elements (bits or digits) is maximized, or, conversely, a minimum number of code elements is required for a given application, thus allowing each code element to be of maximum size for a given coding area. Also, methods and apparatus for encoding objects, and for reading, decoding, processing and using the information obtained from such encoded objects are disclosed. The coding may be applied to objects such as casino chips, currency, automated production line components, consumer products, household items, zip coded objects, etc. The coding system and systems using the coding can be employed for enabling positive real-time detection of counterfeits (rather than mere counterfeit deterrence), cash monitoring, information gathering, object identification, etc., at minimum cost with maximum reliability and real-time speed. Preferred embodiments of systems concern round casino chips and paper money. Signals and data may be encoded independently of physical objects while obviating the need for any reference or synchronization in the coding.

Claims

1. A counterfeit detection system for identifying a counterfeit object from a set of similar authentic objects, each object in said set having unique authorized information associated therewith comprised of machine-readable code elements coded according to a detectable series, the system comprising:

means at a first facility for storing said authorized information;

means at a plurality of facilities other than said first facility for machine-reading code elements from a similar object and providing information related to the machine-read code elements;

means coupled to receive said information related to said code elements machine-read from said object for at least temporarily storing that information; and

means at said first facility for detecting counterfeits coupled to said storing means and to said means for temporarily storing, said detecting means including a computer programmed to detect a counterfeit from information in said storing means at said first facility and from information received by said means for temporarily storing when information related to code elements machine read from a similar object is different from said authorized information.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein there is no specific machine-readable starting point associated with a respective object for interpreting said code elements to obtain said information.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein each of said objects has a plurality of machine-readable starting points associated therewith for interpreting said code elements to obtain said information.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein said code elements associated with a respective object are repeated in whole or in part in one or more locations on each of said objects thereby repeating said given information in while or in part in said one or more locations.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein each of said objects has associated therewith the same number of code elements.

6. The system according to claim 1, wherein said code elements are defined by machine-readable binary levels.

7. The system according to claim 1, including means for storing selected information corresponding to information on at least one object and means for detecting when information read from any object is the same as stored selected information.

8. The system according to claim 1, including means for detecting when information relating to said code elements machine read from a similar object is the same as information previously read from similar object, whereby a counterfeit may be detected.

9. The system of claim 1 wherein a said means for temporarily storing is provided at each of said plurality of facilities.

10. The system of claim 1 wherein said means for temporarily storing is provided at said first facility.

11. A counterfeit detection system for identifying a counterfeit object from a set of similar authentic objects, each object in said set having unique authorized information associated therewith comprised of machine-readable code elements coded according to a detectable series, the system comprising:

means at a plurality of facilities for machine-reading code elements from a similar object and providing information related to the machine-read code elements;

means coupled to receive said information related to said code elements machine-read from said object for at least temporarily storing that information; and

means at a facility other than said plurality of facilities for detecting counterfeits coupled to said means for temporarily storing, said detecting means including a computer programmed to detect a counterfeit from information received by said means for temporarily storing when information related to code elements machine read from a similar object is the same as information previously read from another similar object.

12. A counterfeit detection system for identifying a counterfeit object from a set of similar authentic objects, each objects in said set having unique authorized information associated therewith comprised of machine-readable code elements coded according to a detectable series, the system comprising:

means at a first facility for storing said authorized information;

means at a plurality of facilities other than said firs facility for machine-reading code elements from a similar object and providing information related to the machine-read code elements;

means coupled to receive said information related to said code elements machine-read from said object for at least temporarily storing that information; and

means at said first facility for detecting counterfeits coupled to said storing means and to said means for temporarily storing, said detecting means including a computer programmed to detect a counterfeit from information in said storing means at said first facility and from information received by said means for temporarily storing when information related to code elements machine read from a similar object is the same as authorized information associated with another similar object.

13. A counterfeit detection system for identifying a counterfeit object from a set of similar objects, each object in said set having unique randomly selected authorized information associated therewith comprised of machine-readable code elements, the system comprising:

means at a first facility for storing said randomly-selected authorized information;

means at a plurality of facilities other than said first facility for machine-reading code elements from an object and providing information related to the machine-read code elements;

means coupled to receive said information related to said code elements machine-read from said object for at least temporarily storing that information; and

means at said first facility for detecting counterfeits coupled to said storing means and to said means for temporarily storing, said detecting means including a computer programmed to detect a counterfeit from information in said storing means at said first facility and from information received by said means for temporarily storing when information related to code elements machine read from an object is the same as information previously read from another object.

14. A counterfeit detection system for identifying a counterfeit object from a set of authentic objects, each object in said set having unique randomly selected authorized information associated therewith comprised of machine-readable code elements, the system comprising:

means at a first facility for storing said authorized information;

means at a plurality of facilities other than said first facility for machine-reading code elements from an object and providing information related to the machine-read code elements;

means coupled to receive said information related to said code elements machine-read from said object for at least temporarily storing that information; and

means at said first facility for detecting counterfeits coupled to said storing means and to said means for temporarily storing, said detecting means including a computer programmed to detect a counterfeit from information in said storing means at said first facility and from information received by said means for temporarily storing when information related to code elements machine read from an object is the same as authorized information associated with another object.

15. A method of designating objects as authorized objects comprising:

randomly selecting m sets of unique authorized information from n sets of unique information, said n sets of unique information being a non-random series and m being substantially less than n, such that no given set of said m sets of unique authorized information is deducible from all or part of the remaining of said m sets of authorized information, n and m being integers and n being greater than one;

storing said m sets of authorized information; and

applying said m sets of authorized information to respective authorized objects in a machine readable form.

16. The method according to claim 15 wherein said n sets of unique information are a detectable series.