Method and system for creating and reading multi-color co-planar emissive indicia using printable dyes and pigments

• US 20080252066A1
• Filed: 04/12/2007
• Published: 10/16/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 04/12/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Original Assignee: Honeywell Incorporated (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Inventors: Rapoport, William Ross, Smith, Karl J., Fraenkel, Howard A.
• Granted Patent: US 8,905,313 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 283/94
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/0021 using irradiation
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/00214 using UV radiation
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/00216 using infrared [IR] radiation or microwaves
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 1/14 Multicolour printing
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 3/14 Security printing securities B42D25/29
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 5/00 Duplicating or marking methods; Sheet materials for use therein by using light-sensitive materials G03; electrography, magnetography G03G ; repeatedly usable boards or tablets for writing or drawing B43L1/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/06037 multi-dimensional coding
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/06046 Constructional details
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0614 the marking being selective to wavelength, e.g. color barcode or barcodes only visible under UV or IR methods or arrangements for sensing record carriers using a selected wavelength, see G06K7/12
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 2019/06225 using wavelength selection, e.g. colour code
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/12 using a selected wavelength, e.g. to sense red marks and ignore blue marks

Abstract

A method and system for identifying, tracking, and/or authenticating objects that is simple to apply and to use by an intended user, but is extremely difficult to counterfeit or compromise by an unintended user. Also disclosed is a multi-color, co-planar indicium made of a combination of printed patterns of multiple inks. The printed patterns may be modified by software-generated masks to ensure that the patterns are co-planar. The indicium is undecipherable unless irradiated with specified wavelengths of light radiation, filtered through specified spectral filters, and read and decoded by an electronic image reader. The indicium may be visible or covert. The indicium encodes unique true information about the object and may encode nonsensical or intentionally incorrect information as a further deterrent to unauthorized use. The method permits the indicia to be applied to objects at high processing speeds possible with inkjet printing.

Claims

1. An indicium that is applied to a surface of an object, comprising:

a first printed pattern in a first ink comprising a dye and/or pigment; and

a second printed pattern in a second ink comprising a dye and/or pigment;

wherein the first ink is different from the second ink and the first printed pattern and the second printed pattern are combined to form a co-planar indicium.

2. The indicium according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the first printed pattern and the second printed pattern encodes true information.

3. The indicium according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the first printed pattern and the second printed pattern encodes false information.

4. The indicium according to claim 1, further comprising an at least third printed pattern in an at least third ink comprising a dye and/or pigment, wherein the at least third ink is different from the first ink and the second ink, and the first printed pattern, the second printed pattern, and the at least third printed pattern are combined to form a co-planar indicium.

5. The indicium according to claim 4, wherein at least one of the first printed pattern, the second printed pattern, and the at least third printed pattern encodes true information.

6. The indicium according to claim 5, wherein at least two of the first printed pattern, the second printed pattern, and the at least third printed pattern encodes true information.

7. The indicium according to claim 4, wherein at least one of the first printed pattern, the second printed pattern, and the at least third printed pattern encodes false information.

8. The indicium according to claim 4, wherein complementary masks are used to form the co-planar indicium.

9. The indicium according to claim 8, wherein the number of complementary masks equals the total number of inks comprising the indicium.

10. The indicium according to claim 1, wherein the co-planar indicium is covert.

11. The indicium according to claim 1, wherein the co-planar indicium is decipherable by one or more light sources, one or more spectral filters, and/or a combination thereof.

12. The indicium according to claim 11, wherein the co-planar indicium is undecipherable until the indicium is irradiated with light radiation causing the indicium to emit an emitted signal, wherein the emitted signal is subsequently filtered through one or more spectral filters to produce a filtered signal, and wherein the filtered signal is read and decoded by an electronic image reader.

13. The indicium according to claim 12, wherein the light radiation comprises one or more predetermined wavelengths of light in the ultraviolet, visible, and/or infrared ranges, and combinations thereof.

14. The indicium according to claim 12, wherein the one or more spectral filters are selected from notch filters, color-specific filters, long pass filters, short pass filters, tunable filters, and/or combinations thereof.

15. The indicium according to claim 1, wherein the co-planar indicium has no more than 10% overlap of the first ink and second ink in adjacent pixels.

16. The indicium according to claim 1, wherein complementary masks are used to form the co-planar indicium.

17. The indicium according to claim 16, wherein the number of complementary masks equals the total number of inks comprising the indicium.

18. The indicium according to claim 1, wherein the co-planar indicium is applied to a surface of an object by printing directly on the surface of the object.

19. The indicium according to claim 1, wherein the co-planar indicium is printed onto a substrate that can be adhered to the surface of the object.

20. A set of masks for generating a co-planar indicium, comprising:

a first mask having a first software-generated array of addresses and a second mask having a second software-generated array of addresses, wherein the combination of the first addresses and the second addresses have no more than one logical one (1) for an address, wherein the addresses identify the location of pixels within the co-planar indicium.

21. The set of masks according to claim 20, further comprising a third mask having a third software-generated array of addresses, wherein the combination of the first addresses, the second addresses, and the third addresses have no more than one logical one (1) for an address, wherein the addresses identify the location of a pixel within the co-planar indicium.

22. The set of masks according to claim 21, further comprising a fourth mask having a fourth software-generated array of addresses, wherein the combination of the first addresses, the second addresses, the third addresses, and the fourth addresses have no more than one logical one (1) for an address, wherein the addresses identify the location of a pixel within the co-planar indicium.

23. A method for identifying, tracking, and/or authenticating an object, comprising the steps of:

(a) applying a co-planar indicium to the object;

(b) irradiating the co-planar indicium with light radiation to cause the co-planar indicium to emit a signal;

(c) passing the emitted signals through one or more spectral filters;

(d) processing the filtered signal using an electronic image reader; and

(e) comparing the processed signals with identifying, tracking, and/or authenticating information.

24. The method according to claim 23, wherein the co-planar indicium comprises:

a first printed pattern in a first ink comprising a dye and/or pigment; and

a second printed pattern in a second ink comprising a dye and/or pigment;

wherein the first ink is different from the second ink and the first printed pattern and the second printed pattern are combined to form the co-planar indicium.

25. The method according to claim 24, wherein the co-planar indicium further comprises an at least third printed pattern in an at least third ink comprising a dye and/or pigment, wherein the at least third ink is different from the first ink and the second ink, and the first printed pattern, the second printed pattern, and the at least third printed pattern are combined to form a co-planar indicium.

26. The method according to claim 23, wherein the processing step further comprises an additional layer of encryption that is decoded before the comparing step.

27. The method according to claim 23, wherein the co-planar indicium is covert.

28. The method according to claim 23, wherein the light radiation comprises one or more predetermined wavelengths of light in the ultraviolet, visible, and/or infrared ranges, and combinations thereof.

29. The method according to claim 28, wherein the one or more predetermined wavelengths of light are produced by one or more light sources.

30. The method according to claim 29, wherein each of the one or more light sources is either turned on, or remains off, according to predetermined combinations known to an authorized user.

31. The method according to claim 23, wherein the one or more spectral filters are selected from notch filters, color-specific filters, long pass filters, short pass filters, tunable filters, and/or combinations thereof.

32. The method according to claim 31, wherein the one or more spectral filters comprises at least one spectral filter that passes emitted signals encoding true information, and at least one spectral filter that blocks emitted signals encoding false information.

33. The method according to claim 24, wherein at least one of the first printed pattern and the second printed pattern encodes true information.

34. The method according to claim 24, wherein each of two or more printed patterns encodes a part of the true information.

35. The method according to claim 24, wherein at least one of the printed patterns encodes false information.

36. The method according to claim 24, further comprising the step of using one or more masks to produce the first printed pattern and second printed pattern that form the co-planar indicium, wherein the co-planar indicium has no more than 10% overlap of the first ink and second ink in adjacent pixels.

37. The method according to claim 36, wherein the number of masks equals the total number of inks.

38. The method according to claim 23, wherein the co-planar indicium is applied to the object by a printer selected from the group consisting of inkjet, thermal, piezo, and laser printers.

39. The method according to claim 38, wherein the printer is an inkjet printer having one or more inkjet print heads.

40. The method according to claim 39, wherein the one or more inkjet print heads are placed in series.

41. The method according to claim 38, wherein the co-planar indicium is printed at about 300 dots per inch or greater.

42. The method according to claim 38, wherein the co-planar indicium is printed on objects or packaging at line speeds greater than 20 feet per minute.

43. A method for authenticating objects comprising the steps of:

applying a covert indicium to an object to be authenticated;

irradiating the covert indicium with one or more predetermined wavelengths of light radiation such that the covert indicium emits one or more emitted signals;

filtering the one or more emitted signals through one or more spectral filters to pass one or more filtered signals;

detecting, reading, and decoding the one or more filtered signals passing through the spectral filters using an electronic image reader; and

comparing the information decoded by the electronic image reader with separate information known to an authorized user to correlate with an authentic object,

wherein the covert indicium is multi-color and co-planar.

44. The method according to claim 43, wherein the covert indicium comprises:

a first printed pattern in a first ink comprising a dye and/or pigment; and

a second printed pattern in a second ink comprising a dye and/or pigment;

wherein the first ink is different from the second ink and the first printed pattern and the second printed pattern are combined to form the covert indicium.

45. The method according to claim 44, further comprising an at least third printed pattern in an at least third ink comprising a dye and/or pigment, wherein the at least third ink is different from the first ink and the second ink, and wherein the first printed pattern, the second printed pattern, and the at least third printed pattern are combined to form the covert indicium.

46. The method according to claim 44, wherein the covert indicium has no more than 10% overlap of inks between adjacent pixels.

47. An indicium comprising:

printing a first printed pattern in a first ink comprising a dye and/or pigment; and

printing a second printed pattern in a second ink comprising a dye and/or pigment, wherein the first ink is different from the second ink, and the first printed pattern and the second printed pattern are combined to form a co-planar indicium.

48. The indicium according to claim 47, further comprising printing an at least third printed pattern in an at least third ink comprising a dye and/or pigment, wherein the at least third ink is different from the first ink and the second ink, and the first printed pattern, second printed pattern, and the at least third printed pattern are combined to form a co-planar indicium.

49. A system for authenticating or tracking an object, comprising:

a co-planar indicium having a first printed pattern in a first ink, a second printed pattern in a second ink, wherein the first ink is different than the second ink, and the first printed pattern and second printed pattern are combined to form the co-planar indicium;

at least one light source;

at least one spectral filter; and

an electronic image reader.

50. The system according to claim 49, wherein the co-planar indicium further comprises an at least third printed pattern in an at least third ink, wherein the at least third ink is different from the first ink and the second ink, and the first printed pattern, the second printed pattern, and the at least third printed pattern are combined to form the co-planar indicium.