Authentication of identification documents

• US 7,620,200 B2
• Filed: 10/29/2007
• Issued: 11/17/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 05/08/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Digimarc Corporation
• Original Assignee: Digimarc Corporation
• Inventors: Rhoads, Geoffrey B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Johns; Andrew W
• Application Number:
  US11/927,117
• Publication Number:
  US 20080159587A1
• Time in Patent Office: 750 Days
• Field of Search: 382/100, 382/232, 380/51, 380/54, 380/55, 358/3.28, 713/176, 340/5.86, 356/71, 283/72, 283/73, 283/75, 283/77, 283/78, 283/85, 283/113, 283/901
• US Class Current: 382/100
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/00 Electrotherapy; Circuits therefor A61N2/00 takes precedence; irradiation apparatus A61N5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2209/41 with means for the generation of identity documents
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/22 in combination with an identity check of the pass holder
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 7/0047 using checkcodes, e.g. coded numbers derived from serial number and denomination
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 7/005 Testing security markings invisible to the naked eye, e.g. verifying thickened lines or unobtrusive markings or alterations
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 7/2016 using feature extraction, e.g. segmentation, edge detection or Hough-transformation
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 7/2033 Matching unique patterns, i.e. patterns that are unique to each individual paper

Abstract

The presently claimed invention provides apparatus helpful for authenticating or protecting physical and electronic documents like financial documents and identification documents. One claim recites an apparatus including: an authenticator including or utilizing a processor which uses first information in a first portion of data associated with an object as a basis of first authentication information, the first information also being obtainable from a first portion of the object; and an incorporator including or utilizing a processor which incorporates the first authentication information in a second portion of the data, the first authentication information also being obtainable from a second portion of the object. Of course, other claims and combinations are provided as well.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

an authenticator including or utilizing a processor which uses first information in a first portion of data associated with an object as a basis of first authentication information, the first information also being obtainable from a first portion of the object; and

an incorporator including or utilizing a processor which incorporates the first authentication information in a second portion of the data the first authentication information also being obtainable from a second portion of the object, in which the incorporator incorporates the first authentication information in the second portion of the data through alterations of the data so as to hide the first authentication information in the data, in which the first authentication information is obtainable from visible light image data corresponding to the second portion of the object.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 in which the incorporator is operating to incorporate the first authentication information in the second portion of the data.

3. A method comprising:

utilizing a programmed electronic processor to use first information in a first portion of data associated with an object as a basis of first authentication information, the first information also being obtainable from a first portion of the object; and

utilizing a programmed electronic processor for incorporating the first authentication information in a second portion of the data, the first authentication information also being obtainable from a second portion of the object,

in which the incorporator incorporates the first authentication information in the second portion of the data through alterations of the data so as to hide the first authentication information in the data, and

in which the first authentication information is obtainable from visible light image data corresponding to the second portion of the object.

4. A programmed computing device including instructions stored in memory, said instructions causing the programmed computing device to perform the method of claim 3.

5. A computer readable medium comprising instructions stored therein, said instructions cause an electronic processor to perform the method of claim 3.