Prescription Authentication
First Claim
1. A system for verifying the authenticity of prescriptions used to control the dispensing of medicaments, comprising:
- a network for providing one or more communications channels between devices operably coupled thereto;
a token provider terminal provided at a first location and operably coupled to the network, the token provider terminal being operable to generate a first signature from a medicament entitlement token prescribed at the first location based upon a speckle pattern generated by sequentially illuminating a plurality of regions of the medicament entitlement token with coherent radiation;
a system server operably coupled to the network, the system server being operable to store a plurality of signatures transmitted over the network from one or more token provider terminals, the system server being further operable to compare a signature transmitted over the network with stored signatures and transmit a response message indicating whether or not the transmitted signature is considered to match any stored signature; and
a verification terminal operably coupled to the network and provided at a second location remote from the first location, the verification terminal being operable to verify the authenticity of a medicament entitlement token presented at the second location by generating a second signature from the presented medicament entitlement token based upon a speckle pattern generated by sequentially illuminating a plurality of regions of the presented medicament entitlement token with coherent radiation, transmitting the second signature to the system server via the network, receiving a response message over the network and identifying as authentic the presented medicament entitlement token where the response message indicates there is a match between the second signature and a stored signature.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The invention relates to a system 100 for verifying the authenticity of medicament entitlement tokens, such as prescriptions 102, used to control the dispensing of medicaments. The system comprises a network 104 connecting at least one token provider terminal 106, a system server 120 and a verification terminal 130. The token provider terminal 106 is operable to provide a signature from a speckle pattern derived from a medicament entitlement token that can be stored by the server system 120. The verification terminal 130 can then be operated remotely to recreate the signature in order to verify the authenticity of the medicament entitlement token by comparing it to stored signatures. The system 100 relies upon the intrinsic physical properties of the medicament entitlement token to generate a unique signature for each token that is produced. This makes the medicament entitlement tokens themselves very difficult to forge. Moreover, the signatures transmitted over the network do not need to contain any details relating to the content of the medicament entitlement tokens, such as patient data, hence signature data stored by the system can be made privacy neutral so that even if it were to be intercepted or copied this would not compromise confidentiality.
108 Citations
40 Claims
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1. A system for verifying the authenticity of prescriptions used to control the dispensing of medicaments, comprising:
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a network for providing one or more communications channels between devices operably coupled thereto;
a token provider terminal provided at a first location and operably coupled to the network, the token provider terminal being operable to generate a first signature from a medicament entitlement token prescribed at the first location based upon a speckle pattern generated by sequentially illuminating a plurality of regions of the medicament entitlement token with coherent radiation;
a system server operably coupled to the network, the system server being operable to store a plurality of signatures transmitted over the network from one or more token provider terminals, the system server being further operable to compare a signature transmitted over the network with stored signatures and transmit a response message indicating whether or not the transmitted signature is considered to match any stored signature; and
a verification terminal operably coupled to the network and provided at a second location remote from the first location, the verification terminal being operable to verify the authenticity of a medicament entitlement token presented at the second location by generating a second signature from the presented medicament entitlement token based upon a speckle pattern generated by sequentially illuminating a plurality of regions of the presented medicament entitlement token with coherent radiation, transmitting the second signature to the system server via the network, receiving a response message over the network and identifying as authentic the presented medicament entitlement token where the response message indicates there is a match between the second signature and a stored signature. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A method for verifying the authenticity of prescriptions used to control the dispensing of medicaments, the method comprising:
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prescribing a medicament entitlement token at a first location;
generating a first signature at the first location based upon a speckle pattern generated by sequentially illuminating a plurality of regions of the medicament entitlement token with coherent radiation;
transmitting the first signature to a system server;
storing the signature at the system server;
generating a second signature from a presented medicament entitlement token at a second location remote from the first location, wherein the second signature is based upon a speckle pattern generated by sequentially illuminating a plurality of regions of the presented medicament entitlement token with coherent radiation;
transmitting the second signature to the system server;
identifying whether the second signature matches any signatures stored by the server system;
generating a response message identifying whether or not the second signature matches a stored signature;
transmitting the response message to the second location; and
verifying that the presented token is authentic at the second location where the response message indicates there is a match between the second signature and a stored signature. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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31. A system for verifying the authenticity of prescriptions in order to control access to prescription drugs, comprising:
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a prescription issuer terminal provided at a first location and operably coupled to a network, the prescription issuer terminal being operable at the first location to generate a first signature from a prescription prescribed at the first location based upon a speckle pattern generated by sequentially illuminating a plurality of regions of the prescription with coherent radiation;
an authentication server operably coupled to the network, the authentication server being operable to store a plurality of prescription signatures transmitted over the network from one or more prescription issuer terminals, the authentication server being further operable to compare a signature transmitted over the network with stored signatures and transmit a response message indicating whether or not the transmitted signature is considered to match any stored signature; and
a dispensary terminal operably coupled to the network and provided at a second location remote from the first location, the dispensary terminal being operable to verify the authenticity of a prescription presented at the second location by generating a second signature from the presented prescription, transmitting the second signature to the authentication server via the network, receiving a response message over the network, and identifying as authentic the presented prescription when a signature matching the second signature is present at the authentication server.
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32. A method for verifying the authenticity of prescriptions in order to control access to prescription drugs, the method comprising:
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prescribing a prescription at a first location;
generating a first signature at the first location based upon a speckle pattern generated by sequentially illuminating a plurality of regions of the prescription with coherent radiation;
transmitting the signature to an authentication server;
storing the signature at the authentication server;
generating a second signature from a presented prescription at a second location remote from the first location, wherein the second signature is based upon a speckle pattern generated by sequentially illuminating a plurality of regions of the presented prescription with coherent radiation;
transmitting the second signature to the authentication server;
identifying whether the second signature matches any signatures stored by the authentication server; and
verifying that the presented prescription is authentic when there is a matching signature at the authentication server.
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33. A token provider terminal operable to:
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generate a signature from a drug prescription based upon a speckle pattern generated by sequentially illuminating a plurality of regions of the drug prescription with coherent radiation; and
transmit the signature to a remote server for storing for use in later identifying the drug prescription when it is presented to obtain prescription drugs. - View Dependent Claims (34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40)
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Specification