Product information protecting method and system

• US 7,689,479 B2
• Filed: 11/29/2005
• Issued: 03/30/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/06/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Kawabata, Eiichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Gart; Matthew S
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ullah Masud; Mohammad R
• Application Number:
  US11/289,731
• Publication Number:
  US 20060122901A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,582 Days
• Field of Search: 235/375, 235/383, 235/385, 340/5.92, 340/572.4, 340/573.1, 340/825.49, 340/988, 340/995.27, 340/10.4, 340/572.1, 340/573.3, 340/870.07, 380/259, 705/3, 705/22, 705/26, 705/27, 705/28, 705/35, 705/1
• US Class Current: 705/28
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07327 Passive means, e.g. Faraday cages Faraday-type protection of electric circuits in general H05K9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/0008 General problems related to the reading of electronic memory record carriers, independent of its reading method, e.g. power transfer
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0875 Itemisation or classification of parts, supplies or services, e.g. bill of materials

Abstract

A method and system for protecting product information stored in a wireless tag. The product information relates to a product and includes a unique identifier that is unique to the product. The product information is received from the tag. A local identifier is generated according to a predetermined rule such that the received product information corresponds to the local identifier. The local identifier is not unique to the product. The received product information is sent to a product information recording medium physically separated from the tag in order to store the received product information in the product information recording medium. The local identifier is sent to the tag and replaces the product information stored in the tag.

Claims

1. A method for protecting product information about one or more selected products attached to one of a plurality of tags, comprising the steps of:

receiving the product information for identifying the product stored in one of the plurality of tags attached to one or more selected products;

generating a local identifier in accordance with a predetermined rule according to the reception of the product information;

creating a lock for the product information stored in the one of the plurality of tags;

sending the product information corresponding to the local identifier, in order to store the product information in a product information recording medium isolated from the one of the plurality of tags;

generating a receipt identifier for identifying the product information recording medium;

encrypting the receipt identifier without compression of the receipt identifier, with the encryption of the receipt identifier specific to the product information recording medium;

generating the passcode for the one of the plurality of tags based on the encryption of the receipt identifier;

storing the passcode on the product information recording medium;

sending the local identifier to the one of the plurality of tags, in order to replace the product information with the corresponding local identifier, wherein the local identifier is a sequential number;

assigning each of a plurality of pieces of the product information a separate instance of the sequential number;

generating a replacement lock for the product information stored in the one of the plurality of tags after replacing the product information with the sequential number;

generating a replacement passcode for the one of the plurality of tags based on the receipt identifier;

determining whether there is product information to be restored by comparing a first received passcode to a second passcode stored in the product information recording medium;

restoring the product information to the one of the plurality of tags in place of the sequential number;

applying a write protection lock to the one of the plurality of tags after the product information is restored;

controlling repetition of the sequential number with a repetition controller, wherein the sequential number is unique within the product information but not unique to a product; and

determining whether the number of selected products is greater than the sequential number.

2. The method for protecting product information of claim 1, comprising steps of:

receiving the product information stored in the product information recording medium;

determining whether there is product information to be restored by determining whether product information associated with the sequential number is found; and

replacing the local identifier stored in the tag with the corresponding product information.

3. The method for protecting product information of claim 2, comprising:

producing a medium unique information, which is unique to the product information recording medium;

locking a replacement of the product information stored in the tag;

concurrently, sending the medium unique information to the tag as a code for unlocking; and

recording the medium unique information to the product information recording medium.