Authentication method and system

• US 7,427,020 B2
• Filed: 01/23/2007
• Issued: 09/23/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 04/30/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ent Services Development Corporation LP (DXC Technology Company)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Marsovszky, Laszio, Haraszti, Attila
• Primary Examiner(s): Labaze; Edwyn
• Application Number:
  US11/656,666
• Publication Number:
  US 20070199991A1
• Time in Patent Office: 609 Days
• Field of Search: 235/380, 235/487, 235/488, 235/375, 235/491, 235/494, 235/454
• US Class Current: 235/380
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 15/0033 Owner certificates, insurance policies, guarantees
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 15/0053 Forms specially designed for commercial use, e.g. bills, receipts, offer or order sheets, coupons
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 2035/34 Markings visible under particular conditions or containing coded information
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 25/00 Information-bearing cards or sheet-like structures characterised by identification or security features; Manufacture thereof printing processes to produce identification or security features B41M3/14
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 25/29 Securities; Bank notes
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 25/305 Associated digital information record carriers for use with machines and with at least a part designed to carry digital markings G06K19/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/06046 Constructional details
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/086 with markings consisting of randomly placed or oriented elements, the randomness of the elements being useable for generating a unique identifying signature of the record carrier, e.g. randomly placed magnetic fibers or magnetic particles in the body of a credit card
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/14 the marking being sensed by radiation
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/18 Constructional details
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/08 by coded identity card or credit card or other personal identification means without personal verification means G07F7/02
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/086 by passive credit-cards adapted therefor, e.g. constructive particularities to avoid counterfeiting, e.g. by inclusion of a physical or chemical security-layer for security documents G07D7/00; for the reading of record-carriers in general G06K7/00; for the design of coded credit-cards G06K19/10
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/125 Offline card verification
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00086 Circuits for prevention of unauthorised reproduction or copying, e.g. piracy indicating unauthorised use of record carriers in general G11B23/28; scrambling for television signal recording H04N5/913; network architectures or network protocols for network security H04L63/00; cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for secret or secure communication H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00123 the record carrier being identified by recognising some of its unique characteristics, e.g. a unique defect pattern serving as a physical signature of the record carrier
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00173 wherein the origin of the content is checked, e.g. determining whether the content has originally been retrieved from a legal disc copy or another trusted source
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00608 wherein the material that the record carrier is made of is altered, e.g. adding reactive dyes that alter the optical properties of a disc after prolonged exposure to light or air
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00876 wherein physical copy protection means are attached to the medium, e.g. holograms, sensors, or additional semiconductor circuitry
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00884 involving a watermark, i.e. a barely perceptible transformation of the original data which can nevertheless be recognised by an algorithm

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method for determining the authenticity of an object, the method comprising the steps of:

• • providing an authentication code,
  • determining the positions of particles being distributed in an object,
  • encoding of the positions to provide a check-code,
  • using the check-code and the authentication-code to determine the authenticity of the object.

Claims

1. A method for determining the authenticity of an object, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving an authentication code,

determining if particles are distributed within the object in a three-dimensional pattern by checking if the object is retroreflective,

determining positions of particles being distributed in the object,

using of the positions to provide a check-code,

using the check-code and the authentication-code to determine the authenticity of the object.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining if the particles are distributed within the object in a three-dimensional pattern, whereby the positions of the particles are determined using a two-dimensional image of the object.

3. The method of claim 1 the determination if the particles are distributed in a three-dimensional pattern being performed by the steps of:

acquiring of a first image of the object with a first angle of illumination,

acquiring a second image of the object with a second angle of illumination,

combining of the first and second images,

determining if a geometrical artifact is present in the combined images.

4. The method of claim 1, whereby it is determined whether the object is retroreflective by acquiring a first image with diffuse illumination of the object and acquiring a second image with direct illumination of the object and comparing a brightness of the object in the first and second images.

5. The method of claim 1, the determination if the particles are distributed in a three-dimensional pattern being performed by the steps of:

illuminating of the object with diffuse, white light,

detecting light reflected from the object and light transmitted through the object, and

determining, if the reflected light and the transmitted light have complementary colors.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

acquiring an image of the object in a read position,

determining a dislocation of the read position with respect to a reference position by detecting of marker positions in the image, and

performing a projective transformation of the image for compensation of the dislocation.

7. The method of claim 1, the check code being provided by:

determining the positions of the particles,

using of the positions to provide the check code.

8. The method of claim 7, whereby the positions of the particles are determined using a two-dimensional image of the object and whereby the check code is provided by encoding of the positions.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising determining a polynomial based on the positions, whereby the encoding of the positions is performed by dividing the polynomial by a generator polynomial.

10. The method of claim 9, whereby the polynomial is determined by sorting of the positions by a sorting criterion and using the sorted positions to obtain the polynomial.

11. The method of claim 10, whereby the sorting criterion is applied to first coordinate values of the positions, and whereby only the second coordinate values of the sorted positions are used to obtain the polynomial.

12. The method of claim 11, whereby the polynomial is determined by shifting of the second coordinate values by a pre-determined number of bit positions and by concatenating most significant bits of the shifted coordinate values in the order as determined by the sorting of the positions.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing position data descriptive of the determined positions, and wherein the check-code is provided by encoding the position data by means of a hashing method.

14. An authentication device comprising:

means for determining the positions of particles being distributed within an object in a three-dimensional pattern,

means for determining if the particles are distributed within the object in three dimensions by checking if the object is retroreflective,

means for encoding of the positions to provide a check-code,

means for entering of an authentication code,

means for determining the authenticity of the object based on the check-code and the authentication code.

15. The authentication device of claim 14, further comprising means for determining if the particles are distributed within the object in three dimensions, and whereby the means for determining the positions of the particles are adapted to determine the positions in two dimensions.

16. The authentication device of claim 14, the means for determining the positions of particles comprising image processing means adapted to perform a projective transformation of an image in order to compensate for a dislocation of the image with respect to a reference position.

17. The authentication device of claim 16, the image processing means being adapted to determine the dislocation by determining of marker positions in the image.

18. A card reader for authenticating a customer card, the customer card having an authentication label carrying a three-dimensional pattern of randomly distributed particles, the card reader comprising:

apparatus for determining if the particles are distributed within the authentication label in three dimensions by checking if the authentication label is retroreflective and for determining the positions of particles,

an encoder for encoding of the determined positions to provide a check-code,

an interface for receiving an authentication code,

a processor for determining the authenticity of the object based on the check-code and the authentication code.

19. An electronic device for reading of a data carrier, the data carrier having a copy protection label, the copy protection label carrying a three-dimensional pattern of distributed particles, the electronic device comprising:

an optical sensor for determining if the particles are distributed within the copy protection label in three dimensions by checking if the copy protection label is retroreflective and for determining the positions of particles,

an encoder for encoding of the determined positions to provide a check-code,

an interface for receiving an authentication code,

a processor for determining the authenticity of the object based on the check-code and the authentication code.

20. An electronic device for authentication of an object comprising:

an apparatus for determining if the object has a three-dimensional pattern of distributed particles by checking if the object is retroreflective,

a measurement component for determining the positions of particles,

an encoding apparatus for encoding the determined positions to provide a check-code,

an interface for receiving an authentication code,

a processor for determining the authenticity of the object based on the check-code and the authentication code.

21. The electronic device of claim 20, the measurement component comprising an image processing component.

22. The electronic device of claim 20, the measurement component operable to determine the positions in two dimensions.

23. The electronic device of claim 22, the apparatus being operable to:

illuminate the object with diffuse, white light,

detect light reflected from the object and light transmitted through the object, and

determine if the reflected light and the transmitted light have complementary colors.

24. The electronic device of claim 22, further comprising:

an image acquisition apparatus for acquiring an image of the object in a read position,

an image processing apparatus for determining a dislocation of the read position with respect to a reference position by detecting marker positions in the image and for performing a projective transformation of the image for compensation of the dislocation.

25. The electronic device of claim 22, wherein the measurement component is adapted to determine the positions of the particles using a two-dimensional image of the object and the encoding apparatus being adapted to provide the check-code by encoding the positions.

26. The electronic device of claim 20, the encoding apparatus operable to determine a polynomial based on the positions, wherein the encoding of the positions is performed by dividing the polynomial by a generator polynomial.