ANTI-COUNTERFEITING BARCODE READER AND ASSOCIATED METHODS

• US 20180330135A1
• Filed: 05/10/2017
• Published: 11/15/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 05/10/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Datalogic IP Tech S.r.l. (Datalogic S.p.A.)
• Original Assignee: Datalogic IP Tech S.r.l. (Datalogic S.p.A.)
• Inventors: Suman, Michele, Berzuini, Giulio, Bianchi, Maurizio
• Granted Patent: US 10,762,314 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/06046 Constructional details
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/14 the marking being sensed by radiation
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/16 the marking being a hologram or diffraction grating
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 2007/10524 Hand-held scanners
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10732 Light sources
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10742 including a diffuser for diffusing the light from the light source to create substantially uniform illumination of the target record carrier
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10881 constructional details of hand-held scanners
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/12 using a selected wavelength, e.g. to sense red marks and ignore blue marks

Abstract

A code reader may include a light source configured to illuminate a machine-readable indicia representative of a standard code associated with an item. An image sensor may be configured to receive an image of the machine readable indicia. An illumination source may be configured to illuminate an anti-counterfeiting key that, when illuminated by the illumination source, reflects the illumination from the illumination source to be incident on the image sensor. A processing unit may be in electrical communication with the image sensor, and may be configured to decode the standard code of the machine-readable indicia and check validity of the reflected illumination from the anti-counterfeiting key.

Claims

1. A code reader, comprising:

a light source configured to illuminate a machine-readable indicia representative of a standard code associated with an item;

an image sensor configured to receive an image of the machine readable indicia;

an illumination source configured to illuminate an anti-counterfeiting key that, when illuminated by said illumination source, reflects the illumination from said illumination source to be incident on said image sensor; and

a processing unit in electrical communication with said image sensor, said processing unit being configured to decode the standard code of the machine-readable indicia and check validity of the reflected illumination from the anti-counterfeiting key.

2. The code reader according to claim 1, further comprising an anti-counterfeiting module including an optical component that directs the reflected illumination to said image sensor.

3. The code reader according to claim 1, wherein said light source and said illumination source are angularly aligned with one another.

4. The code reader according to claim 1, wherein said light source and said illumination source are at different wavelengths.

5. The code reader according to claim 1, wherein said illumination source is a coherent light source.

6. The code reader according to claim 1, further comprising a diffusive sheet configured to diffuse the reflected illumination of said illumination source onto said image sensor.

7. The code reader according to claim 1, wherein said processing is further configured to extract data from the reflected illumination of said illumination source.

8. The code reader according to claim 7, wherein said processing unit is further configured to check size and shape features against expected size a shape features of the anti-counterfeiting key based on the illumination of said illumination source.

9. The code reader according to claim 7, wherein said processing unit is further configured to extract a code represented by the anti-counterfeiting key.

10. The code reader according to claim 9, wherein said processing unit is further configured to mathematically determine whether the code represented by the anti-counterfeiting key is associated with the standard code.

11. The code reader according to claim 1, wherein the anti-counterfeiting key includes a diffractive grating.

12. The code reader according to claim 11, wherein the anti-counterfeiting key includes at least three diffractive gratings, and wherein distinct images from the at least three diffractive gratings are imaged onto said image sensor in vertical alignment with one another.

13. The code reader according to claim 1, further comprising a memory configured to store anti-counterfeiting calibration data, said processing unit configured to compare the illumination from said illumination source from said image sensor with the anti-counterfeiting calibration data and performing a validity check.

14-62. -62. (canceled)