AUTHENTICITY

TECHNICAL FIELD

The presently disclosed subject matter relates, in general, to the field of machine-readable images, and, more particularly, to machine -readable visual representation for authenticity purposes. BACKGROUND

Authenticity detection of printed materials or media is mainly solved, nowadays, with special material and special equipment. For example, a special material, e.g., special ink, can be used in the printing process. In the scanning process, the special ink can be detected with special equipment designated for detecting authenticity of the special material.

Authenticity detection of printed materials or media by common consumer electronics, such as smart phones, is a known challenge.

Visual codes are used for authenticity purposes. Visual codes, such as two- dimensional codes, have been developed as machine -readable image representations of information. Many two-dimensional codes represent data in a way of dots distribution or patterns in a certain grid, such as matrix code.

One common matrix code is the QR (Quick Response) Code. A QR Code comprises an array of black cells (square dark dots) and white cells (square light dots). The black cells are arranged in a square pattern on a white background. In some other cases, a negative option where the background is black and the cells are white, is valid as well. In one embodiment of the QR Code, three distinctive squares, known as finder patterns, are located at the corners of the matrix code. Image size, orientation, and angle of viewing can be normalized. Other functional patterns, such as the alignment and timing patterns, enhance this process.

A standard two-dimensional code can be positioned on the packaging of a product, identifying it as a genuine product. A possible implementation of an anti- counterfeit system can enable a customer to scan the QR Code and inform the customer if the product is estimated to be genuine or fake. However, a standard printed two- dimensional code can be easily photocopied and its printed copy can be positioned on a fake product.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

In accordance with one aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter, there is provided a computerized method of generating a printed medium presenting a machine- readable visual representation, the method comprising: obtaining a first visual element associated with first information to form a first layer of the printed medium; obtaining a substrate to form a second layer of the printed medium, the substrate containing a second visual element and capable of presenting different visual appearances of the second visual element when being observed from different viewpoints or under different lighting conditions, at least a part of the second visual element visually representing second information; attaching the first layer and the second layer at a relative position between the first visual element and the second visual element to form the printed medium, wherein the first visual element and the second visual element constitute the machine-readable visual representation; and creating and storing an association between the first information and the second information, whereby the visual representation is capable of being scanned in a scanning process for verifying authenticity of the printed medium based on said association.

In addition to the above features, the computerized method according to this aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter can comprise one or more of features (i) to (xix) listed below, in any desired combination or permutation which is technically possible:

(i) . the first visual element is a visual code, and wherein said obtaining the first visual element comprises obtaining the first information and generating the visual code encoding the first information;

(ii) . said obtaining the first visual element further comprises obtaining a material and printing the first visual element on the material to form the first layer, the material selected from a group comprising: paper, cardboard, fabric, plastic, and metal;

(iii). said attaching includes stamping the at least a part of the second visual element to a designated area of the first layer in relation to a position of the first visual element; (iv). the first layer is a printed form of the first visual element, and wherein said attaching comprises printing the first visual element at a first position on the second layer which determines a second position on the second layer for the at least a part of the second visual element;

(v). a position of the designated area is determined based on the first information;

(vi) . comprising inspecting readability of the first visual element;

(vii) . said creating comprises capturing an image of the at least a part of the second visual element to be the second information, and creating said association including a pairing relationship between the first information and the second information;

(viii) . the substrate is a holographic substrate;

(ix) . the holographic substrate is part of a holographic film;

(x) . the holographic film contains variable visual patterns, and the holographic substrate containing the at least a part of second visual element includes a part of the variable visual patterns;

(xi) . the holographic film contains spatial repetitive visual patterns wherein size of each repetitive pattern is larger than the size of the holographic substrate containing the at least a part of the second visual element;

(xii)- said creating comprises capturing an image of the at least a part of the second visual element, extracting from the captured image information related to the visual patterns included in the at least a part of the second visual element to be the second information, and creating said association including a pairing relationship between the first information and the second information;

(xiii). said information related to the visual patterns includes one or more visual features indicative of structure of the visual patterns;

(xiv) . the visual features are edge related features;

(xv) . the printed medium is in the form of one of the following: a label, a tag, a card, and a sticker;

(xvi). the holographic substrate comprises at least a polymer layer and a metal layer;

(xvii). the substrate is a lenticular substrate; (xvii). the printed medium is associated with a product in one of the following ways: attached to a surface of the product or an accessory thereof, connected to the product or accessory thereof by means of a strip, and packed within a package of the product;

(xviii). the first layer further has information related to the product or a provider of the product printed thereon;

(xix). the first information, when comparable with respective first information associated with a first visual element included in a first printed layer of each of a plurality of printed media different from said printed medium, is variable from said respective first information; and the second visual element, when comparable with a respective second visual element of a second layer of each of the plurality of printed media, is variable from the respective second visual element.

According to another aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter there is provided a computerized method of generating a plurality of printed media each having a machine -readable visual representation printed thereon, the method comprising: for each printed medium to be generated, obtaining a first visual element associated with first information to form a first layer of the printed medium, said first information being variable from first information associated with a first visual element included in a first printed layer of each of said plurality of printed media that is different from said printed medium; obtaining a substrate to form a second layer of the printed medium, the substrate including a second visual element and capable of presenting different visual appearances of the second visual element when being observed from different viewpoints or under different lighting conditions, said second visual element being variable from a second visual element of a second layer of each of said plurality of printed media that is different from said printed medium, at least a part of the second visual element visually representing second information; attaching the first layer and the second layer at a relative position between the first visual element and the second visual element to form the printed medium, wherein the first visual element and the second visual element constitute the machine -readable visual representation; and creating and storing an association between the first information and the second information, whereby the visual representation is capable of being scanned in a scanning process for verifying authenticity of the printed medium based on an association between the first information and the second information. This aspect of the disclosed subject matter can optionally comprise one or more of features (i) to (xix) listed above with respect to the method, mutatis mutandis, in any desired combination or permutation which is technically possible.

According to another aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter there is provided a computerized system of generating a printed medium presenting a machine- readable visual representation, the system comprising a processor operatively coupled with a memory and configured to: obtain a first visual element associated with first information to form a first layer of the printed medium; obtain a substrate to form a second layer of the printed medium, the substrate containing a second visual element and capable of presenting different visual appearances of the second visual element when being observed from different viewpoints or under different lighting conditions, at least a part of the second visual element visually representing second information; attach the first layer and the second layer at a relative position between the first visual element and the second visual element to form the printed medium, wherein the first visual element and the second visual element constitute the machine-readable visual representation; and create and store an association between the first information and the second information, whereby the visual representation is capable of being scanned in a scanning process for verifying authenticity of the printed medium based on said association.

This aspect of the disclosed subject matter can optionally comprise one or more of features (i) to (xix) listed above with respect to the method, mutatis mutandis, in any desired combination or permutation which is technically possible.

According to another aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter there is provided a computerized system of generating a printed medium presenting a machine - readable visual representation, comprising: means for obtaining a first visual element associated with first information to form a first layer of the printed medium; means for obtaining a substrate to form a second layer of the printed medium, the substrate containing a second visual element and capable of presenting different visual appearances of the second visual element when being observed from different viewpoints or under different lighting conditions, at least a part of the second visual element visually representing second information; means for attaching the first layer and the second layer at a relative position between the first visual element and the second visual element to form the printed medium, wherein the first visual element and the second visual element constitute the machine -readable visual representation; and means for creating and storing an association between the first information and the second information, whereby the visual representation is capable of being scanned in a scanning process for verifying authenticity of the printed medium based on said association.

This aspect of the disclosed subject matter can optionally comprise one or more of features (i) to (xix) listed above with respect to the method, mutatis mutandis, in any desired combination or permutation which is technically possible.

In accordance with another aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter, there is provided a computerized method of scanning a machine-readable visual representation printed on a printed medium for verifying authenticity of the printed medium, the method comprising: acquiring an image of the visual representation by a scanning device, the visual representation comprising a first visual element having first information associated therewith and a second visual element, at least a part of the second visual element visually representing second information; detecting the first visual element in the acquired image and extracting the associated first information; and locating the second visual element in the acquired image based on a position of the detected first visual element to obtain the second information therefrom; verifying whether a substrate of the printed medium containing the second visual element is a substrate capable of presenting different visual appearances of the second visual element when being observed from different viewpoints or under different lighting conditions, and determining the authenticity of the printed medium based on association between the first information and the second information, a corresponding association stored during a generation process of the printed medium, and result of the verification.

In addition to the above features, the computerized method of scanning according to this aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter can comprise one or more of features (i) to (xi) listed below, in any desired combination or permutation which is technically possible:

(i). the first visual element is a visual code having the first information encoded therein; (ii) . said second information is an image captured for the at least a part of the second visual element;

(iii) . said second information is information related to a visual pattern extracted from an image captured for the at least part of the second visual element;

(iv). the information related to a visual pattern includes one or more visual features indicative of structure of the visual pattern;

(v) . the visual features are edge related features;

(vi) . said verifying comprises verifying whether the substrate is a holographic substrate;

(vii). said acquiring includes acquiring at least two images of the visual representation by the scanning device each under a different lighting condition, and wherein said verifying includes comparing an area of the second visual element within the at least two images and determining whether the substrate is a holographic substrate based on a result of the comparison;

(viii). the comparing includes computing a difference value based on pixel values of the area of the second visual element within the at least two images, and wherein said determining includes determining whether the substrate is a holographic substrate if the difference value is above a threshold;

(ix) . the method further comprising examining abnormality of a scanning pattern based on one or more scanning rules;

(x) . said scanning rules are determined based on one or more of the following scanning parameters of the visual representation: scanning frequency, number of scanning, time duration for said number of scanning, and scanning locations;

(xi) . said first information is selected from a group comprising: a URL, a pointer to content in a remote server, a pointer to content in a database, an item/product

ID, a product SKU, and a product tracking identifier. According to yet another aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter there is provided a computerized system of scanning a machine -readable visual representation printed on a printed medium for verifying authenticity of the printed medium, the system comprising a processor operatively coupled with a memory and configured to: acquire an image of the visual representation by a scanning device, the visual representation comprising a first visual element having first information associated therewith and a second visual element, at least a part of the second visual element visually representing second information; detect the first visual element in the acquired image and extracting the associated first information; locate the second visual element in the acquired image based on a position of the detected first visual element to obtain the second information therefrom; verify whether a substrate of the printed medium containing the second visual element is a substrate capable of presenting different visual appearances of the second visual element when being observed from different viewpoints or under different lighting conditions, and determine the authenticity of the printed medium based on association between the first information and the second information, a corresponding association stored during a generation process of the printed medium, and result of the verification.

This aspect of the disclosed subject matter can optionally comprise one or more of features (i) to (xi) listed above with respect to the method, mutatis mutandis, in any desired combination or permutation which is technically possible.

According to yet another aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter there is provided a computerized system of scanning a machine -readable visual representation printed on a printed medium for verifying authenticity of the printed medium, the system comprising: means for acquiring an image of the visual representation by a scanning device, the visual representation comprising a first visual element having first information associated therewith and a second visual element, at least a part of the second visual element visually representing second information; means for detecting the first visual element in the acquired image and extracting the associated first information; means for locating the second visual element in the acquired image based on a position of the detected first visual element to obtain the second information therefrom; means for verifying whether a substrate of the printed medium containing the second visual element is a substrate capable of presenting different visual appearances of the second visual element when being observed from different viewpoints or under different lighting conditions, and means for determining the authenticity of the printed medium based on association between the first information and the second information, a corresponding association stored during a generation process of the printed medium, and result of the verification.

This aspect of the disclosed subject matter can optionally comprise one or more of features (i) to (xi) listed above with respect to the method of scanning, mutatis mutandis, in any desired combination or permutation which is technically possible. According to yet another aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter there is provided a printed medium presenting a machine-readable visual representation, the printed medium comprising: a first layer presenting a first visual element, the first visual element being associated with first information; and a second layer composed of a substrate containing a second visual element, said substrate capable of presenting different visual appearances of the second visual element when being observed from different viewpoints or under different lighting conditions, at least a part of the second visual element visually representing second information, the first layer and the second layer being attached together at a relative position between the first visual element and the second visual element; wherein the first visual element and the second visual element constitute the machine -readable visual representation, the visual representation capable of being scanned in a scanning process for verifying authenticity of the printed medium based on an association between the first information and the second information.

In addition to the above features, the printed medium according to this aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter can comprise one or more of features (i) to (xvi) listed below, in any desired combination or permutation which is technically possible:

(i) . the first layer is composed of a material selected from a group comprising: paper, cardboard, fabric, plastic, and metal, and the first visual element is deposited on the first layer;

(ii) . the first layer is a printed form of the first visual element, and the first layer is printed on the second layer;

(iii) . the printed medium is in the form of one of the following: a label, a tag, a card, and a sticker;

(iv). the substrate is a holographic substrate;

(v) . the holographic substrate is part of a holographic film;

(vi) . the holographic film contains variable visual patterns, and the holographic substrate containing the at least a part of the second visual element includes a part of the variable visual patterns;

(vii). the holographic film contains spatial repetitive visual patterns wherein size of each repetitive pattern is larger than size of the holographic substrate containing the at least a part of the second visual element;

(viii). the substrate is a lenticular substrate; (ix) . the first visual element is a visual code having the first information encoded therein;

(x) . the first layer and the second layer are attached by stamping the at least a part of the second visual element to a designated area of the first layer in relation to a position of the first visual element;

(xi) . the first layer is printed on the second layer by printing the first visual element at a first position on the second layer which determines a second position on the second layer for the at least a part of the second visual element;

(xii) . a position of the designated area is determined based on the first information;

(xiii) . the holographic substrate comprises at least a polymer layer and a metal layer;

(xiv) . the printed medium is associated with a product in one of the following ways: attached to a surface of the product or an accessory thereof, connected to the product or accessory thereof by means of a strip, and packed within a package of the product;

(xv) . the first layer further has information related to the product or a provider of the product printed thereon;

(xvi) . the first information, when comparable with respective first information associated with a first visual element included in a first printed layer of each of a plurality of printed media different from said printed medium, is variable from said respective first information; and wherein the second visual element, when comparable with a respective second visual element of a second layer of each of the plurality of printed media, is variable from the respective second visual element.

According to yet another aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter there is provided a plurality of printed media each having a respective machine -readable visual representation printed thereon, each printed medium comprising: a first layer presenting a first visual element, the first visual element being associated with first information, said first information being variable from first information associated with a first visual element included in a first printed layer of each of said plurality of printed media different from said printed medium; and a second layer composed of a substrate containing a second visual element, said substrate capable of presenting different visual appearances of the second visual element when being observed from different viewpoints or under different lighting conditions, said second visual element being variable from a second visual element of a second layer of each of said plurality of printed media different from said printed medium, at least a part of the second visual element visually representing second information, the first layer and the second layer being attached together at a relative position between the first visual element and the second visual element, wherein the first visual element and the second visual element constitute the machine-readable visual representation, the visual representation is capable of being scanned in a scanning process for verifying authenticity of the printed medium based on an association between the first information and the second information.

This aspect of the disclosed subject matter can optionally comprise one or more of features (i) to (xvi) listed above with respect to the printed medium, mutatis mutandis, in any desired combination or permutation which is technically possible.

According to another aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter there is provided a label presenting a machine -readable visual representation, the label characterized by comprising a first layer presenting a first visual element, the first visual element being associated with first information; and a second layer composed of a holographic substrate including a second visual element, at least a part of the second visual element visually representing second information, the first layer and the second layer being attached together at a relative position between the first visual element and the second visual element, wherein the first visual element and the second visual element constitute the machine-readable visual representation.

This aspect of the disclosed subject matter can optionally comprise one or more of features (i) to (xvi) listed above with respect to the printed medium, mutatis mutandis, in any desired combination or permutation which is technically possible. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order to understand the presently disclosed subject matter and to see how it may be carried out in practice, the subject matter will now be described, by way of non- limiting example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figs. 1A-C illustrate exemplified printed media presenting machine-readable visual representations in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter;

Figs. 2A-B illustrate other exemplified printed media presenting machine- readable visual representations in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter;

Fig. 3 schematically illustrates a functional block diagram of a system of generating a printed medium presenting a machine-readable visual representation in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter;

Fig. 4 illustrates a generalized flowchart of generating a printed medium presenting a machine -readable visual representation in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter;

Fig. 5 schematically illustrates a functional block diagram of a system of scanning a machine -readable visual representation printed on a printed medium for verifying authenticity of the printed medium in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter;

Fig. 6 illustrates a generalized flowchart of scanning a machine -readable visual representation printed on a printed medium for verifying authenticity of the printed medium in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter;

Fig. 7 illustrates a generalized flowchart of verifying whether the substrate of the printed medium containing the second visual element is a holographic substrate in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter;

Fig. 8 illustrates a schematic diagram of generating a printed medium presenting a machine -readable visual representation and scanning the visual representation for verifying authenticity of the printed medium in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter; Fig. 9 illustrates an example of edge related feature extraction from a captured image of a visual representation in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter; and

Figs. 10A-D illustrate two-dimensional codes that have input images superimposed thereon in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following detailed description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the disclosed subject matter. However, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present disclosed subject matter can be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known methods, procedures, and components have not been described in detail so as not to obscure the present disclosed subject matter.

In the drawings and descriptions set forth, identical reference numerals indicate those components that are common to different embodiments or configurations.

Unless specifically stated otherwise, as apparent from the following discussions, it is appreciated that throughout the specification discussions utilizing terms such as "obtaining", "extracting", "creating", "storing", "printing", "inspecting", "capturing", "extracting", "scanning", "acquiring", "detecting", "locating", "verifying", "determining", "comparing", or the like, include action and/or processes of a computer that manipulate and/or transform data into other data, said data represented as physical quantities, e.g. such as electronic quantities, and/or said data representing the physical objects. The term "computer" should be expansively construed to cover any kind of hardware based electronic device with data processing capabilities, including, by way of non-limiting example, the computerized system of generating a printed medium presenting a machine -readable visual representation, the computerized system of generating a plurality of printed media each presenting a machine -readable visual representation, and the computerized system of scanning a machine-readable visual representation presented on a printed medium disclosed in the present application.

The operations in accordance with the teachings herein can be performed by a computer specially constructed for the desired purposes or by a general purpose computer specially configured for the desired purpose by a computer program stored in a non-transitory computer readable storage medium.

The terms "non-transitory memory" and "non-transitory storage medium" as used herein should be expansively construed to cover any volatile or non-volatile computer memory suitable to the presently disclosed subject matter.

The operations in accordance with the teachings herein may be performed by a computer specially constructed for the desired purposes or by a general-purpose computer specially configured for the desired purpose by a computer program stored in a non-transitory computer readable storage medium.

Embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter are not described with reference to any particular programming language. It will be appreciated that a variety of programming languages may be used to implement the teachings of the presently disclosed subject matter as described herein.

As used herein, the phrase "for example," "such as", "for instance" and variants thereof describe non-limiting embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter. Reference in the specification to "one case", "some cases", "other cases" or variants thereof means that a particular feature, structure or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment(s) is included in at least one embodiment of the presently disclosed subject matter. Thus the appearance of the phrase "one case", "some cases", "other cases" or variants thereof does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment(s).

It is appreciated that, unless specifically stated otherwise, certain features of the presently disclosed subject matter, which are described in the context of separate embodiments, can also be provided in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features of the presently disclosed subject matter, which are described in the context of a single embodiment, can also be provided separately or in any suitable subcombination.

In embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter one or more stages illustrated in the figures may be executed in a different order and/or one or more groups of stages may be executed simultaneously and vice versa. Bearing this in mind, attention is now drawn to Fig. 1A, illustrating an exemplified printed medium presenting a machine-readable visual representation in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter.

According to certain embodiments, the printed medium 108 which serves as a carrier of the machine -readable visual representation can comprise two layers. A first layer 102 presents a first visual element, the first visual element being associated with first information. A second layer 104 can be composed of a substrate containing a second visual element. The substrate is capable of presenting different visual appearances of the second visual element when being observed from different viewpoints or under different lighting conditions, due to the unique characteristics of the material used and the manufacturing process of the substrate. At least a part of the second visual element can visually represent second information. The first layer and the second layer can be attached together at a relative position between the first visual element and the second visual element.

The first visual element and the second visual element constitute the machine- readable visual representation. In certain embodiments, the visual representation can be capable of being scanned in a scanning process for verifying authenticity of the printed medium based on an association between the first information and the second information.

According to certain embodiments, the printed medium can be in the form of one of the following: a label, a tag, a card, and a sticker. In some cases, the printed medium can be associated with an item, such as, e.g., a product, a coupon, a document, etc., and can be used for verifying authenticity of such items. In cases where there is a batch of items (e.g., a batch of products manufactured in a factory), each item can receive a unique or variable printed medium associated therewith, as will be explained in detail below.

The term "label" as used herein should be expansively construed to cover any kind of object that is attached (e.g., affixed, pasted, impressed, marked, or directly printed, etc) to an article (e.g., a product, or a package or container of the product), and able to present descriptive or identifying information about such article. By way of example, a label may be a small piece of paper, fabric, plastic, polymer, metal, or any other suitable material attached to an article and having information about the article written or printed thereon. In some cases, a label may be in the form of a tag, a sticker, a marker, a ticket, a brand, etc.

The association of the printed medium with the item (e.g., a product) can be implemented in different ways. By way of example, the printed medium can be attached to or connected to or assembled on a product or accessory thereof. For instance, the printed medium can be attached to the surface of a product or accessory thereof. Alternatively, the printed medium can be connected to a product or accessory thereof by different means, such as, e.g., a strip. The printed medium can also be unattached to a product or accessory thereof and can be carried, shipped, delivered or used alone without being attached to any product. For example, it can be packed together with a product, e.g., within a package box of the product.

It is to be noted that the item that the printed medium can be correlated or associated with, should be expansively construed to include any kinds of article or substance that can be consumed or utilized by the consumers or users whose authenticity thus may need to be verified to assure the genuineness of such an item, including but not limited to, e.g., a product. A product referred herein relates to any product produced during a manufacturing process, including but not limited to, e.g., all merchandise and goods that are manufactured and traded on the market. The accessories of such a product can include any subordinate or supplementary parts or items related to a product, including one or more of the following: a packaging box, a product poster, a product advertisement, etc.

In one embodiment, as illustrated in Fig. 1A, the first layer 102 can be composed of or made of a material selected from a group comprising: paper, cardboard, fabric, plastic, and metal, etc. The first visual element 106 can be deposited (e.g., printed) on the first layer 102. In some cases, the first visual element 106 can be machine-readable. By way of example, the first visual element can be a visual code having the first information encoded therein. In cases where there is a batch of items each having a unique printed medium associated therewith, the first visual element within each printed medium is variable from a respective visual element in each of the other printed media. Specifically, the first information, when comparable with a respective first information associated with a first visual element included in a first layer of each of a plurality of printed media different from the printed medium, is variable from the respective first information. For instance, the first information can be an item ID or product ID which is used as an identification number for the specific item or product associated with the printed medium.

The term "visual code" as used herein should be expansively construed to cover any kind of machine -readable optical code that uses encoding methods to encode data and store information. By way of example, a visual code can be a linear barcode, or alternatively it can be a two-dimensional code. The term "two-dimensional code" used herein should be expansively construed to cover any optical machine -readable representation of data, over more than one axis, in the form of a two-dimensional pattern of symbols. One example of a known two-dimensional code structure is a matrix code which represents data in a way of dot distribution in a matrix grid, such as, for example, Quick Response (QR) code and EZcode, etc.

According to certain embodiments, the visual code can be a two-dimensional code having an input image or graphic embedded therein. Turning now to Figs. 10A- 10D, there are shown exemplified illustrations of different kinds of two-dimensional codes each embedding an input image in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter. Fig. 10A and Fig. 10B are two-dimensional codes that have input images superimposed thereon. The superimposing is performed, e.g., by changing the transparency of the dots/cells in the two-dimensional code without changing the distribution of the dots or adjusting the decoded values thereof, such that the two-dimensional code, after being superimposed with the input image, is still machine-readable .

Fig. IOC shows a different kind of two-dimensional code in which the input image is not only simply superimposed thereon as described with respect to Fig. 10A and Fig. 10B. In the two-dimensional code illustrated in Fig. IOC, the decoded values of dots that correspond to the encoded data are in fact determined such that the appearance of the two-dimensional code complies with a visual similarity criterion when compared with the input image. An exemplified illustration of such a two- dimensional code is described in US patent No. 8,978,989, issued on date March 17, 2015, which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.

In some embodiments, such visual code can be referred to as a machine readable two-dimensional code (e.g., matrix code) fusing an input image (e.g., an input image including one or more graphic elements) and a message based on a visual code specification (e.g., a two-dimensional code specification). According to examples of the presently disclosed subject matter, the readable two-dimensional code can include function areas and a code word area, and the code word area can include a free cells area and a derived cells area. The function patterns areas can be readable to comply with a function patterns specification. The code word area can be readable to comply with a code word specification, and the code word area can include the free cells area and the derived cells area, wherein the free cells area and the derived cells area are provided in an extent which is in compliance with the code word specification. According to certain embodiments, the free cells area can represent free cells whose appearance, when compared to respective areas of the input image, complies with a visual perceptual similarity criterion. The derived cells area can form, together with the free cells area, a valid code word.

Furthermore, Fig. 10D shows another kind of two-dimensional code having an input image embedded therein. The dots having decoded values corresponding to the encoded data in the two-dimensional code can be positioned in one or more encoding regions relative to the function patterns and a portion of the input image, rendering the two-dimensional code appears visually more appealing. Optionally, the input image can be associated with an image descriptor which is used to verify the authenticity of the two-dimensional code in the reading process thus rendering the code to be functionally safer and stronger. An exemplified illustration of such two-dimensional code is described in PCT Application No. PCT/IL2015/051029 filed on October 15, 2015, which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.

In some embodiments, such visual code as illustrated in Fig. 10D can be referred to as a machine-readable image having data encoded therein and embedded with a graphic, the machine-readable image adapted to be detected by a reader for decoding the encoded data, the machine -readable image including: the graphic associated with an image descriptor calculated based on a chosen area of the graphic, the image descriptor being used in a reading process of the machine -readable image; a plurality of function patterns; and a plurality of dot modules having decoded values corresponding to at least the encoded data, the dot modules being positioned in one or more encoding regions of the machine-readable image relative to the function patterns and the chosen area of the graphic. In certain embodiments, the relative position of the encoding regions with respect to the function patterns and the chosen area of the graphic can be implemented in many ways. By way of example, the encoding regions can be disjoint from the chosen area. In another example, the relative position can be determined such that the encoding regions will not have a mutual area with the graphic, or the area upon which the graphic was superimposed. In yet another example, the relative position can be determined such that the encoding regions will have a certain mutual area with the graphic or the area upon which the input graphic was superimposed. The mutual area can be chosen based on saliency values computed for the graphic.

It is to be noted that the above described visual codes are illustrated for exemplary purposes only and should not be construed to limit the present disclosure in any way. Different designs or implementations of other suitable visual codes can be used in the machine -readable image in addition to, or in lieu of the above.

It is to be noted that the first visual element is not limited to the form of a visual code and can also be in other visual formats which are not structurally encoded or constructed as compared to the visual code. The term visual element should be expansively construed to cover any type of machine -readable visual element that can be detected and digitally analyzed by a processing unit to provide information associated therewith (including, e.g., numerical data, strings, pointers and/or any other digital data). By way of example, the first visual element can be represented by a serial number or a string of words or characters which upon scanning can be detected and the information extracted therefrom can be used as an index or pointer to an entry in the database or server. It is to be noted that the first visual element can also possibly be in other suitable visual formats or patterns in addition to the above described, as long as it can be scanned and detected, and the information associated therewith can be extracted.

In some cases, the first visual element can further have information related to the item (e.g., the product) or a provider of the item printed thereon. As shown in Fig. 1A, except for the visual code 106, the first layer 102 further has a company logo printed on the right side of the visual code.

According to certain embodiments, the substrate that forms the second layer can include any substrate or material that is capable of presenting different visual appearances of a visual element included therein when being observed from different viewpoints or under different lighting conditions. In some cases, such a substrate can be selected from a group comprising: a holographic substrate, and a lenticular substrate. For purpose of illustration only, certain embodiments of the following description are provided with respect to one type of substrate, such as, e.g., a holographic substrate. Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that the teachings of the presently disclosed subject matter are, likewise, applicable to any other types of substrates that enable similar functionalities as above described.

In some embodiments, the substrate that forms the second layer is selected to be a holographic substrate which is taken as part of a holographic film or foil. By way of example, the holographic film can contain variable visual patterns each of which is different from others, and the area of the holographic substrate that contains at least part of the second visual element visually representing second information includes a part or a section of the variable visual patterns (e.g., a unique visual pattern or part thereof). By way of another example, the holographic film can contain spatial repetitive visual patterns wherein the size of each repetitive pattern is larger than the size of the holographic substrate that contains the at least part of the second visual element. By way of yet another example, the holographic film can contain quasi-random visual patterns which hardly repeat themselves, or else repeat at great frequency. In some cases, an off-the shelf holographic film can be used to generate the substrate. In some other cases, a customized holographic film can be specially designed such that the visual patterns in the holographic substrate do not repeat themselves.

Due to the nature of the holographic film and the way to take a part therefrom to form the holographic substrate, in cases where there is a batch of items each having a unique printed medium associated therewith, the second visual element of a given printed medium, when comparable with a respective second visual element of a second layer of each of the other printed media different from the given printed medium (or at least each of a plurality of printed media out of the batch), is variable from the respective second visual element. In other words, each second visual element of a respective printed medium within a plurality of printed media is variable, one from the other. This can be realized by, e.g., taking a piece of the holographic film of predetermined size and/or at a predetermined distance interval, such that each piece can contain visual pattern variable from each other and form a second layer of a respective printed medium. Turning now to Fig. IB, there are illustrated examples of four printed media each including a second layer with a variable second visual element in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter.

As shown, printed media 120, 122, 124 and 126 are constructed in a similar manner to printed medium 108 as described with reference to Fig. 1A. The difference between them is that the second visual element enclosed in each printed medium (marked respectively as 121, 123, 125 and 127) is different or variable from the others. As described above, such variety can be realized by taking a respective part of a holographic film that is variable one from the other, to form the substrate for each second visual element.

According to certain embodiments, the holographic film, as well as the holographic substrate can comprise at least a polymer layer and a metal layer. By way of example, force can be imposed on a flat polymer layer causing it to distort. Underneath the polymer layer there is a coated metal layer. Light goes through the deformed polymer and is reflected from a metal layer and dispersed while traveling through the polymer (i.e. prism effect), which causes the visual patterns on the film to shine and reflect light in a variable manner when viewed from different angles.

In some cases, the holographic substrate can be attached to the first layer by way of hot stamping. By way of example, hot stamping hologram foil comprises a polyester carrier, a number of lacquer layers and an adhesive sizing. During stamping a heated stamping wheel or engraved stamping die activates the very thin lacquer layers by means of heat and pressure. This causes the lacquer layers to bond permanently with the first layer of plastic, paper or thermal paper. The polyester carrier is then peeled off.

As exemplified in Fig. 1A, the second layer 104 is composed of a holographic substrate (also illustrated as 104) which is taken as part of a holographic film or foil. The holographic substrate 104 contains a second visual element (in this case illustrated as a unique visual pattern including random or variable geometrical shapes and structures) which is variable from other second visual elements included in other printed media each associated with a different item.

According to certain embodiments, the first layer 102 and the second layer 104 can be attached together at a relative position between the first visual element and the second visual element to form the printed medium 108. The attaching of the two layers can be realized by way of stamping, printing, gluing, etc. By way of example, as illustrated in Fig. 1A, in the case where the first layer 102 is composed of a material such as, e.g., paper, and the first visual element 106 is printed on the first layer 102, the first layer 102 and the second layer 104 can be attached by stamping the second visual element to a designated area 110 of the first layer. The position of the designated area can be determined in relation to a position of the first visual element on the first layer. In some cases, such position information of the designated area 110 can be included or indicated in the first information. As exemplified in Fig. 1A, both the second layer and the second visual element thereof are illustrated as 104, and the entire second visual element 104 are stamped to a designated area 110 on the first layer 102. The designated area 110 is positioned in the center in relation to the first visual element 106 (i.e. a visual code in this case). In this case, the at least a part of the second visual element that visually represents the second information can be in fact the entire second visual element.

Referring back to Fig. IB, note that as illustrated in printed media 120 and 124, there is retained a margin 130 and margin 132 surrounding the second visual element placed in the designated area. According to certain embodiments, one of the purposes that this margin is retained is for alignment purposes. For instance, due to errors in the attaching or stamping or pasting process, the second visual element may not be positioned accurately or exactly at a desired position of the designated area. The retained margin means a wider range of a designated area, which may assure that even if the second visual element is not exactly positioned, it can still fall within such wide range and will not overlap with the other part of the first layer. In addition, since the width of the margin may be random due to errors in the physical process of attaching the first and second layers, such randomness can also be utilized in the scanning and verification process for verifying the authenticity of the printed medium. For instance, the width of the margin can also be verified in addition to verifying the visual patterns of the second visual element to increase safety of the verification process.

Turning now to Fig. 2A, there is illustrated another exemplified printed medium presenting a machine -readable visual representation in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter.

As shown, the first layer 202 of the printed medium is in fact the printed form of the first visual element 206 without any material or substrate on which the first visual element 206 is deposited. The printed form of the first visual element refers to a physical visual representation of the first visual element created using a printing technique. Such a printing technique may be, but is not limited to, injecting ink or a shooting laser. Optionally, in some cases, the first layer can also include a printed form of additional information related to the item or product associated with the printed medium, and/or information related to a provider of such item or product. As shown in Fig. 2A, except for the visual code 206, the first layer 202 further includes a company logo on the right side of the visual code.

Similarly, as exemplified, the second layer 204 is composed of a holographic substrate (in this case the holographic substrate is taken as a bigger piece from the holographic film, when compared with 104 in Fig. 1A, and is in the shape and size of a square or any other suitable shape and size such that it can serve as the base of the printed medium, e.g., a label or a sticker). The first layer 202, including the printed first visual element 206 and the printed company logo, can then be printed on the second layer 204 to form the printed medium 208. By way of example, the first layer can be printed on the second layer by printing the first visual element 206 at a first position on the second layer. In some cases, the first position of the first visual element on the second layer can be predetermined, or, alternatively, the first visual element can be placed at a random position on the second layer. In turn the first position can determine a second position on the second layer for the at least a part of the second visual element that visually represents the second information.

By way of example, the first visual element 206 (e.g., the visual code) can be placed at a predetermined first position of (x, y) with respect to the left corner of the second layer. Once the first position is determined, the second position of the part of the second visual element that represents the second information can be determined accordingly, e.g., at a fixed size in the center of the visual code (not illustrated in Fig. 2A). In cases where the first position is chosen as a random position, the second position that will be determined in accordance therewith will also be at an unpredicted position, which in turn increases the randomness of the second information represented thereby and thus increases the safety of the verification of the authenticity of the printed medium.

Referring to Fig. 2B, there are illustrated examples of two printed media each having the first visual element printed at a different position on the second layer in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter. The position of the first visual element 210, when compared to the position of the visual element 212, is slightly more towards the upper and right side of the second layer (note that in this case the second layer is the same in both printed media). Accordingly, the part of the second visual element that visually represents the second information in each printed medium is located differently from the other, since the position of such part can be determined in relation to the position of the first visual element. Thus even when the second layer is the same, it is possible to generate two distinct printed media, each with unique association between the first information and the second information

Note that Figs. 1A-1B as well as Figs. 2A-2B are exemplified with the first visual element being one specific type of visual code which is described above with reference to Fig. 10D. As aforementioned, in the case of Fig. 10D, the dot modules encoding data (i.e., the first information) are positioned in one or more encoding regions relative to function patterns of the visual code and a chosen area of an embedded input graphic. For instance, the encoding regions can be disjoint from the chosen area of the input graphic, rendering the decoding of the visual not being affected by the input graphic. In Figs. 1A-1B, the designated area for placing the second visual element can be located within the area outlined by the function patterns of the visual code (e.g., in the center of the visual code as illustrated), for the reason that the second visual element can serve as part of the input graphic which does not interfere with the readability of the visual code.

Turning now to Fig. 1C, there are illustrated two printed media with a first visual element being another type of visual code in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter.

As shown in printed media 135 and 140, the visual codes 142 and 144 presented thereon belong to the type of visual code which is described above with reference to Fig. IOC. The dot modules or cells of the visual code that encode the first information are distributed over the input image while the visual code still complies with a visual similarity criterion when compared with the input image. In such cases, the designated area to place the second visual elements 146 and 148 can be adapted to be positioned in relation to the visual code 142 and 144 such that the second visual element will not interfere with the readability of the visual code. By way of example, the second visual element should not be overlapped with the visual code. For instance, it can be placed on the side of the visual code (e.g., at the bottom of the visual code, as illustrated in Fig. 1C).

One of the technical problems to be solved herein relates to how to verify, using common consumer electronics such as, e.g., a smart phone, the authenticity of a printed medium which associates with a certain item, such as, e.g., a product, a coupon, a document, etc, and provide such information to consumers or users of such items for authenticity purposes, such as anti-counterfeit purposes.

Visual codes as aforementioned are currently used in product authenticity systems. For example, a standard QR Code is positioned on the packaging of a product, identifying it as a genuine product. A possible implementation of an anti-counterfeit system can enable a customer to scan the QR Code and inform the customer if the product is estimated to be genuine or fake. However, a standard printed two- dimensional code can be easily photocopied and its printed copy can be positioned on the packaging of a fake product.

Holograms are also used for product authenticity purposes. Holograms can be produced in such way that they are harder to copy than a standard printed image. Holograms are often attached to a product packaging, and can be an indication that a product is genuine. However, without the knowledge on how to differentiate a real hologram from a fake one to the naked eye of a customer, a fake hologram, even if not copied exactly, may look similar, or give the feeling of a genuine hologram to the customer. In addition, a specific hologram is very complex and costly to produce, but, once faked, it can be easily duplicated at a low cost and used as many times as needed.

The goal is thus to find a solution of a printed medium for authenticity purposes with at least the following properties:

1) Low printing cost. For instance, in some cases, the printing cost of the printed medium may not exceed a certain cost level which relates to the cost of regular printing, e.g., twice the cost of regular printing;

2) High duplication cost. For instance, the duplication cost should be high enough such that it is not worthwhile for the counterfeit product maker to fake or duplicate such a printed medium; and

3) Seamless user experience integrated with common consumer electronics. There is accordingly provided in the presently disclosed subject matter, for each item (e.g., a product) associated therewith, a printed medium presenting a unique machine-readable visual representation that includes a first visual element and a second visual element, the first visual element and the second visual element being unique and/or variable (in respect of the information associated therewith) from respective first and second visual elements of other printed media associated with other products. The authenticity of the printed medium can be verified by scanning the machine -readable visual representation based on an association between the information associated with the first visual element and the information associated with the second visual element. In addition, the printed medium, or at least the part containing the second visual element, is composed of such dedicated substrate or material which is hard to produce and duplicate, and can also be verified during the scanning as part of the authenticity process.

One technical effect of the technical solutions described in the present disclosure is that the printed medium presenting a unique machine-readable visual representation makes it much more complex for counterfeit products to imitate real products at least for the reason that the machine -readable visual representation presented thereon cannot be simply photocopied and duplicated. Such a printed medium, as well as the generation and scanning process thereof, can provide consumers or users with authenticity information of the printed medium by using a common scanning device, such as, e.g., a smart phone. The authenticity information of the printed medium serves as an indication of authenticity of the item (e.g., the product) associated with the printed medium.

Turning now to Fig. 3, there is schematically illustrated a functional block diagram of a system of generating a printed medium presenting a machine-readable visual representation in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter.

According to certain embodiments, there is provided a system 300 for generating a printed medium presenting a machine -readable visual representation as illustrated in Figs. 1A-2B.

As illustrated, system 300 can comprise a printed medium generator 304, an association creating unit 306 and a storage unit 308. System 300 can be configured to obtain a first visual element associated with first information. The first visual element can be used to form a first layer of the printed medium. The first visual element can be obtained from a storage unit of the system, or alternatively it can be received from an external source, such as, e.g., from a third party provider, an operator, a console, an application interface or any other sources that may be able to generate and/or provide such a visual element.

In some cases, system 300 can optionally comprise a first visual element creator 302 which is configured to generate the first visual element. By way of example, the first visual element can be a visual code, and the first visual element creator 302 can be configured to obtain the first information associated with the visual code and generate the visual code encoding the first information. Different visual code types are associated with different visual code specifications. The first visual element creator 302 can be configured to generate a visual code in accordance with a specific visual code specification and based on the first information to be encoded therein. By way of example, a visual code specification can include some or all of the following: a general layout specification, a basic cell specification, a function pattern (such as finder pattern) specification, a code word area specification and cell specification.

The generation of a visual code, especially the visual codes as illustrated in Figs. IOC and 10D, are exemplified respectively in US patent No. 8,978,989, issued on March 17, 2015, which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference, and in PCT Application No. PCT/IL2015/051029 filed on October 15, 2015, which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference. In one embodiment, the first information associated with the first visual element can be selected from a group comprising: a URL, a pointer to content in a remote server, a pointer to content in a database, an item/product ID, a product SKU, a product tracking identifier, and any suitable combination thereof. In further embodiments, the first information can also include certain additional data that is encoded in a nonstandard proprietary encoding method that can be read by certain proprietary software.

According to certain embodiments, the first visual element is machine -readable.

In cases where the first visual element is a visual code, it is a machine-readable visual code. The term machine-readable visual code can refer to a visual code that is compatible with a respective readable visual code specification that is configured, adapted or adjusted in accordance with the specific characteristics of a given scanner, reader or decoder or any combination thereof, or even to a general characteristic of scanners, readers or decoders. In the latter case, the readability or eligibility of the visual code is determined according to the ability, possibly the de-facto ability, of a certain scanning or decoding device that is generated based on a given visual code specification and the tolerances and/or deviations that are supported or corrected by the scanning or decoding device.

According to certain embodiments, system 300 can optionally comprise a depositing unit (not illustrated in Fig. 3) which can be configured to obtain or receive a material and deposit (e.g., print) the first visual element on the material to form the first layer. By way of example, the material can be selected from a group comprising: paper, cardboard, fabric, plastic, and metal. The term depositing herein should be expansively construed to cover any way of marking the first visual element onto the first layer, including but not limited to printing, stamping, engraving, burning, cutting, vaporizing or otherwise making certain pixels have different visibility from others, such that a reader or scanner may differentiate between the pixels. In some embodiments, the first layer is just a printed form of the first visual element itself, without any material or substrate to deposit the first visual element thereon, as illustrated in Fig. 2A. In such cases the operation of forming a first layer may not need such a depositing unit.

According to certain embodiments, system 300 can be configured to obtain a substrate to form a second layer of the printed medium. The substrate contains a second visual element and is capable of presenting different visual appearances of the second visual element when being observed from different viewpoints or under different lighting conditions. At least a part of the second visual element can visually represent second information. In some cases, the substrate can be a holographic substrate, as aforementioned.

The printed medium generator 304 can be configured to attach the first layer and the second layer at a relative position between the first visual element and the second visual element to form the printed medium. The first visual element and the second visual element constitute the machine-readable visual representation. The attaching of the two layers can be realized in different manners, such as, e.g., by way of stamping, printing, gluing, etc, and accordingly the printed medium generator 304 can be a corresponding device or equipment that enables respective operations of stamping, printing, gluing, etc. In some cases the attaching of the two layers can be realized by the depositing unit as aforementioned.

The association creating unit 306 can be configured to create an association between the first information and the second information. The association can be created as a corresponding relationship or a pairing relationship between the first information and the second information. The visual representation is capable of being scanned in a scanning process for verifying authenticity of the printed medium based on the association. According to certain embodiments, the association can be stored in a storage unit 308 to be used for the verification process. The storage unit 308 can be a data repository unit, such as, e.g., a database, or a remote server. Such storage unit can be shared with other systems or be provided by other systems, including third party equipment. In some cases, the storage unit can be implemented in the cloud. Accordingly, in such case system 300 can be configured to transmit the created association to the remote server or the cloud.

Optionally, the association creating unit 306 can also be configured to inspect the readability of the first visual element, e.g., to check if the first information associated therewith can be correctly extracted therefrom. The association creating unit 306 can then be configured to create the association by associating the first information extracted during the inspection and the second information being either the captured image of the at least a part of the second visual element or extracted information related to the visual patterns included therein.

Those versed in the art will readily appreciate that the teachings of the presently disclosed subject matter are not bound by the system illustrated in Fig. 3 and the above exemplified implementations. The operations as described with respect to each module of Fig. 3 can be either implemented respectively in a stand-alone device or computer that is operatively connected with the others and/or with system 300 (as will be described below with reference to Fig. 8), or, alternatively, the functionality of certain modules of Fig. 3 or at least part thereof, can be integrated and implemented in a single device or computer, which can be included as part of system 300 for performing the generation process. For instance, the first visual element creator 302, and/or the association creating unit 306, and/or the storage unit 308 can be consolidated and implemented in a single computer, such as, e.g., a remote server.

It is to be noted that equivalent and/or modified functionality of the modules in Fig. 3 can be consolidated or divided in another manner and can be implemented in any appropriate combination of software with firmware and/or hardware and executed on a suitable device. The system 300 can be a standalone network entity, or integrated, fully or partly, with other network entities. While not necessarily so, the process of operation of system 300 can correspond to some or all of the stages of the methods described with respect to Fig. 4. Likewise, the method described with respect to Fig. 4 and its possible implementations can be implemented by system 300. It is therefore noted that embodiments discussed in relation to the method described with respect to Fig. 4 can also be implemented, mutatis mutandis as various embodiments of the system 300, and vice versa.

Turning now to Fig. 4, there is illustrated a generalized flowchart of generating a printed medium presenting a machine -readable visual representation in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter.

A first visual element associated with first information can be obtained (410) to form a first layer of the printed medium. According to certain embodiments, the first visual element can be a visual code, and the obtaining of the first visual element can comprise obtaining the first information and generating (e.g., by the first visual element creator 302) the visual code encoding the first information, as described above with reference to block 302 in Fig. 3. In some cases, a material can also be obtained and the first visual element can be deposited (e.g., printed) on the material to form the first layer (as illustrated in the case of Fig. 1A). By way of example, the material can be selected from a group comprising: paper, cardboard, fabric, plastic, and metal. In some other cases, the printed form of the first visual element constitutes the first layer without being printed on a material or substrate (as illustrated in the case of Fig. 2A).

A substrate can be obtained (420) to form a second layer of the printed medium. The substrate contains a second visual element. The substrate is characterized by being capable of presenting different visual appearances of the second visual element when being observed from different viewpoints or under different lighting conditions. At least a part of the second visual element visually represents second information. In some embodiments, the substrate is a holographic substrate. The holographic substrate can be taken as a part of a holographic film. By way of example, the holographic film can contain variable visual patterns, and the area of the holographic substrate that contains at least a part of the second visual element visually representing second information can include a part or a section of the variable visual patterns (e.g., a unique visual pattern or part thereof). By way of another example, the holographic film can contain spatial repetitive visual patterns wherein the size of each repetitive pattern is larger than the size of the holographic substrate containing the at least part of the second visual element.

The first layer and the second layer can be attached (430) (e.g., by the printed medium generator 304) at a relative position between the first visual element and the second visual element to form the printed medium. The first visual element and the second visual element constitute the machine -readable visual representation. The attaching of the first layer and the second layer can be realized in different ways. In cases where the first visual element is printed on a material to form the first layer, the attaching can include stamping the at least a part of the second visual element to a designated area of the first layer in relation to a position of the first visual element. By way of example, the position of the designated area can be determined or indicated based on the first information. In cases where the first layer is a printed form of the first visual element, the attaching can comprise printing the first visual element at a first position on the second layer. The first position in turn can determine a second position on the second layer for the at least a part of the second visual element.

An association between the first information and the second information can be created (440) (e.g., by the association creating unit 306) and stored in a storage unit. The visual representation is capable of being scanned in a scanning process for verifying authenticity of the printed medium based on the association. In some embodiments, the creation of the association can comprise capturing an image of the at least a part of the second visual element to be the second information, and creating the association which is a pairing relationship between the first information and the second information. In some other embodiments, the creation of the association can comprise: capturing an image of the at least a part of the second visual element, extracting from the captured image information related to the visual patterns included in the at least a part of the second visual element to be the second information, and creating the association including a pairing relationship between the first information and the second information. By way of example, the information related to the visual patterns can include one or more visual features indicative of structure of the visual patterns, such as, e.g., edge related features, as will be described in further detail with respect to Fig. 9.

According to certain embodiments, the generation process can further include inspecting (e.g., by the association creating unit 306) the readability of the first visual element. By way of example, the inspection can be performed by checking or verifying if the first information associated therewith can be correctly extracted therefrom. By way of example, the inspection can be performed by checking or verifying if the second information associated therewith can be correctly extracted therefrom. The association can be created by associating the first information extracted during the inspection and the second information being either the captured image of the at least a part of the second visual element or extracted information related to the visual patterns included therein. It would be appreciated that the second information can be other representations of visual information, such as, but not limited to, other representations for the holographic substrate. For example, a representation could be a descriptor holding information about interest points in the holographic substrate.

According to further embodiments, there is also provided a method of generating a plurality of printed media each having a machine-readable visual representation printed thereon. For each printed medium to be generated, the generation process is performed in a similar manner to the above described process with reference to Fig. 4. The generation of the plurality of printed media can result in the first information associated with a visual element included in a first printed layer of each of the plurality of printed media being variable from any other first information associated with a respective first visual element in a different printed medium, and a second visual element of a second layer of each of the plurality of printed media being variable from any other second visual element in a different printed medium.

Turning now to Fig. 5, there is schematically illustrated a functional block diagram of a system of scanning a machine -readable visual representation printed on a printed medium for verifying authenticity of the printed medium in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter.

The system 500 can comprise a processing unit 502 configured to receive instructions and to manage, control and execute operations of the functional modules comprised therein. The processing unit 502 can be operatively coupled with an I/O interface 510, a storage module 512 and a display module 514. In some embodiments, the processing unit 502 can include a detection module 504, a verification module 506, and an authenticity determination module 508.

According to certain embodiments, system 500 can further include an image acquisition module 501 (such as, e.g., a camera of the scanning device) configured to capture or acquire an image of the machine-readable visual representation by a scanning device. The visual representation can comprise a first visual element having first information associated therewith and a second visual element at least a part of which visually represents second information. The acquired image can be provided to the detection module 504 for detecting the first visual element and the second visual element. Specifically, the detection module 506 can be configured to detect the first visual element in the acquired image and extract the associated first information. The detection module 506 can be configured to locate the second visual element in the acquired image based on a position of the detected first visual element to obtain the second information therefrom. It is to be noted that the image acquisition module 501 and the detection module 504 can be implemented as separate components, or alternatively, their functionality can be consolidated and integrated as one functional module, such as the detection module 504.

Alternatively, system 500 may obtain, e.g., through the I/O interface 510, an image of the machine-readable visual representation. By way of example, the acquired image can be obtained from the storage module 512, or alternatively it can be received from an external source, such as, e.g., a third party provider or any other parties that are operatively connected with system 500 through wired or wireless communications.

According to certain embodiments, the verification module 506 can be configured to verify whether a substrate of the printed medium containing the second visual element is a substrate capable of presenting different visual appearances of the second visual element when being observed from different viewpoints or under different lighting conditions. The authenticity determination module 508 can be configured to determine the authenticity of the printed medium based on association between the first information and the second information, a corresponding association stored during a generation process of the printed medium, and result of the verification, as will be described below with respect to Figs. 6-7.

The processing unit 102 can be implemented by a processor, such as, e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), digital signal processor (DSP), a microcontroller, a field programmable gate array (FPGA), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc., and may be configured to execute functionalities of the functional modules 504, 506 and 508, in accordance with computer-readable instructions implemented on a non- transitory computer readable storage medium. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium may be included in the storage module 512. The above mentioned functional modules are referred to herein as comprised in the processor. In some cases, the processing unit 502 can also be implemented by one or more processors operatively connected with each other and executing the functionality of different functional modules in cooperation.

According to certain embodiments, the system 500 can further comprise an I/O interface 510, a storage module 512 and a display module 514 operatively coupled to the other functional components described above. According to certain embodiments, the I/O interface 510 can be configured to obtain certain inputs for the execution of the functional components, such as, e.g., an acquired image of the visual representation. In response to the determination of authenticity of the printed medium, the I/O interface 510 can be configured to provide an output to a user information related to the authenticity of the printed medium. The inputs and/or outputs can be provided to the user through a display unit 514, such as, e.g., a display screen of a scanning device.

The storage module 512 comprises a non-transitory computer readable storage medium. For instance, the storage module can include a buffer that holds relevant inputs, outputs as well as intermediate results as above mentioned to be used for the execution of system 500. According to certain embodiments, the storage module 512 can also comprise computer-readable instructions embodied therein to be executed by the processing unit 502 for implementing the process of scanning a machine -readable visual representation printed on a printed medium as will be described below with reference to Figs. 6-7.

Those versed in the art will readily appreciate that the teachings of the presently disclosed subject matter are not bound by the system illustrated in Fig. 5 and the above exemplified implementations. Equivalent and/or modified functionality can be consolidated or divided in another manner and can be implemented in any appropriate combination of software with firmware and/or hardware and executed on a suitable device. The system 500 can be a standalone network entity, or integrated, fully or partly, with other network entities. Those skilled in the art will also readily appreciate that the data repositories, such as e.g., the storage module 512, can be consolidated or divided in other manner; databases can be shared with other systems or be provided by other systems, including third party equipment.

While not necessarily so, the process of operation of system 500 can correspond to some or all of the stages of the methods described with respect to Figs. 6-7. Likewise, the methods described with respect to Figs. 6-7 and their possible implementations can be implemented by system 500. It is therefore noted that embodiments discussed in relation to the methods described with respect to Figs. 6-7 can also be implemented, mutatis mutandis as various embodiments of the system 500, and vice versa.

Turning now to Fig. 6, there is shown a generalized flowchart of scanning a machine-readable visual representation printed on a printed medium for verifying authenticity of the printed medium in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter.

According to certain embodiments, the scanning process, as will be described below, occurs when a user or a consumer scans a printed medium which may or may not be generated according to the generation process as described above with reference to Fig. 4 (e.g., the printed medium may be genuine or fake).

An image of the machine-readable visual representation can be acquired (610) (e.g., by the image acquisition module 501 of a scanning device). The visual representation comprises a first visual element having first information associated therewith and a second visual element at least a part of which visually represents second information.

The first visual element can be detected (620) (e.g., by the detection module 504) in the acquired image and the associated first information can be extracted. In some embodiments, as aforementioned, the first visual element can be a visual code having the first information encoded therein.

The second visual element can be located (630) (e.g., by the detection module 504) in the acquired image based on a position of the detected first visual element and the second information thereof can be obtained.

According to certain embodiments, the position information of the second visual element in relation to the position of the first visual element can be indicated or included in the first information. In some cases, the second information can be an image captured for the visual representation or at least the part of the second visual element which represents the second information. In some other cases, the second information can be information related to a visual pattern extracted from an image captured for the visual representation or at least the part of the second visual element which represents the second information. In some embodiments, the information related to a visual pattern can include one or more visual features indicative of structure of the visual pattern. By way of example, the visual features can be edge-related features. It should be appreciated that the visual pattern can alternatively, by way of example, be a visual texture, a figure or an image.

Turning now to Fig. 9, there is illustrated an example of edge related feature extraction from a captured image of a visual representation in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter.

In accordance with a certain aspect of the present invention, detection, alignment, cropping and other image processing methods can take part in the process of extracting features for the second visual element. For example, the visual code position maybe be detected based on the detection of the finder patterns, such as finder pattern 904. Then, for example, the position of the holographic substrate can be calculated, given a relative position between the visual code and the substrate. Then, for example, the area in the acquired image capturing the holographic substrate can be aligned, using the homography method, and then be cropped. Then, for example, an edge detection filter can be applied on the cropped image in order to get a representing image of the second information.

Referring back to Fig. 6, upon the second information being obtained, it can be verified (640) (e.g., by the verification module 506) whether a substrate of the printed medium containing the second visual element is a substrate capable of presenting different visual appearances of the second visual element when being observed from different viewpoints or under different lighting conditions.

In cases where the substrate is supposed to be a holographic substrate, it can be verified whether the substrate of the printed medium containing the second visual element is a holographic substrate.

Turning now to Fig. 7, there is shown a generalized flowchart of verifying whether the substrate of the printed medium containing the second visual element is a holographic substrate in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter.

At least two images of the visual representation can be acquired (710) (e.g., by the image acquisition module 501 of the scanning device) each under a different lighting condition or a different angle between the image acquisition module 510 and the printed medium. This operation can occur as part of the image acquisition process as described with reference to block 610. For instance, an image acquisition of the visual representation in block 610 can be captured twice, once with flash on and once without flash.

The second visual element within the at least two images can be located (e.g., as part of the operation described with reference to block 630) and compared (720). By way of example, the comparison can be calculated in accordance with a difference value computed and based on pixel values of the area of the second visual element within the at least two images. Then it can be determined (730) whether the substrate is a holographic substrate based on a result of the comparison. For instance, it can be determined that the substrate is a holographic substrate if the difference value is above a threshold. By a way of example, the comparison method can be based on a-priori information such as the holographic visual pattern or structure, or/and the expected captured visual changes that occur due to exposing the holograph substrate to different lighting conditions. For example, as illustrated in Fig. IB, the holographic substrate can consist of holographic shapes that present different values of luminance in accordance with the strength and angle of the luminance sources present around the holographic substrate. Thus, for example, changing the luminance sources will change the luminance values presented by the holographic shapes but will not change their structure, while the luminance values presented by each shape may change differently. A comparison method, for example, may measure the difference in the luminance values between the two images per holographic shape and consider favorably different changes among different said holographic shapes.

The authenticity of the printed medium can be determined (650) (e.g., by the authenticity determination module 508) based on association between the first information and the second information, a corresponding association stored during a generation process of the printed medium, and result of the verification. For instance, if the association matches the corresponding association stored during the generation process, and the result of the verification validates the substrate as being a characterized substrate as above described, the printed medium can be determined to be authentic. If any of the two conditions are not met, i.e., the association does not match, and/or the result of the verification does not validate the substrate, the printed medium will not be determined as authentic.

Alternatively, the authenticity of the printed medium can also be determined by fetching the stored second information associated with the extracted first information from the storage unit, where the corresponding association is stored during the generation process, and comparing the second information obtained from the scanned printed medium with the fetched second information. The authenticity of the printed medium can be determined if the comparison result shows that the stored second information and fetched second information match.

It is to be noted that in some cases, a scanning device without proper configuration (e.g., without an appropriate SDK) may not be able to extract the second information therefrom. Thus, upon the first information being extracted, the consumer or user can be taken to an interface (e.g., a landing page) and can be shown a stored image from a storage unit corresponding to the first information. For instance, the store image can be an original image of the printed medium or the item captured during the generation process. The consumer will then be provided with certain instructions to manually compare the printed medium (or the item associated therewith) in his or her hand with the stored image, and determine whether or not the printed medium, or the item, is authentic.

According to certain embodiments, the scanning process can further comprise examining abnormality of a scanning pattern based on one or more scanning rules. This can be implemented, e.g., by a rule engine backed with big data and machine learning techniques to further verify the authenticity of the printed medium. In some embodiments, the scanning rules can be determined based on one or more of the following scanning parameters of the visual representation: scanning frequency, number of scanning, time duration for the number of scanning, and scanning locations. By way of example, if a visual representation has been scanned multiple times (e.g., twice or more) in areas farther than a certain distance and/or in a time frame smaller than a certain duration (e.g., 5 minutes), the scanning will fail, and the printed medium will be marked as not authentic. By way of another example, if the scanning frequency is higher than a certain threshold, for instance, if a code is scanned at a frequency of more than a certain number of scans per second (e.g., 5 scans per second), the scanning will fail and the printed medium will be marked as not authentic. Other machine learning algorithms that can observe scanning patterns and "notice" when unusual behavior is being displayed can also be employed in addition to, or in lieu of the above.

Turning now to Fig. 8, there is illustrated a schematic diagram of generating a printed medium presenting a machine -readable visual representation and scanning the visual representation for verifying authenticity of the printed medium in accordance with certain embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter.

According to certain embodiments, in an initial stage of the generation process of the printed medium in accordance with the present invention, the printed medium is designed. For example, if the printed medium is a label that is designated to be attached on a product of a certain brand, then the brand's owner design house 910 can make the design. It should be appreciated that a software as a service that is hosted on the cloud 970 can facilitate the design process by providing design tools designated for designing a printed medium which includes a machine readable visual representation in accordance with the present invention. By a way of example, the printed medium design can be conveyed in digital format, such as a computer file.

According to certain embodiments, the design of the printed medium may be further processed by an operator 920 in order to create a design template from which a digital form of the first layer of a plurality of printed media can be computed.

According to certain embodiments, the operator 920 may obtain a variable list of first information to be included in a plurality of printed media. By a way of example, the operator may obtain the list from a service that is hosted on the cloud and connected to the storage 920. In another example, the operator may obtain the list from an entity related to the brand's owner.

According to certain embodiments, digital form of the first layer of a plurality of printed media can be created using a pro printing server 930. By a way of example, the pro printing server 930 may utilize a design template and a list of variable first information in order to generate a corresponding digital form of variable first layer of a plurality of printed media in accordance with the present invention. It should be appreciated that dedicated software may be utilized to generate a first visual element associated with a first information and being part of a first layer. By a way of example, the dedicated software may be enabled using a dongle connected to the pro printing server 930.

According to certain embodiments, digital form of the first layer of a plurality of printed media can be passed to a printer server and then be printed by a printer 940, thus providing a printed form of the first layer of the plurality of printed media. According to certain embodiments, a printed form of variable first layer and variable second layer of a plurality of printed media can be attached together by a printer 940, thus providing a plurality of printed media 950.

According to certain embodiments, printed media 950 may be photographed by an image acquisition device 960. The captured photos, representative information of the photos, associated second visual element, and/or associated second information of a plurality of the printed media may be uploaded to the cloud 970 and stored in a storage unit 990. The stored information may include also the first information paired with the second information of a plurality of printed media 950 such that each of a plurality of printed media 950 has its associated first information and second information, or a representation of each such information, stored in the storage unit 990. By a way of example, the image acquisition device 960 may be a part of a printing inspection machine. For example, the captured photos can be additionally inspected by the printing inspection machine in order to locate defects in the printed medium. It should be appreciated that dedicated software may be utilized to read the machine-readable visual representations of the printed media. By a way of example, the dedicated software may be enabled using a dongle connected to the image acquisition device 960.

According to certain embodiments, printed media 950 may be attached to a plurality of product packaging. For explanatory purpose, one printed medium from the printed media 950 can be attached on a product package 984.

According to certain embodiments, a user may use a mobile device equipped with an appropriate scanner, wherein the scanner is capable to scan a machine-readable representation in accordance with the present invention, in order to verify the authenticity of a printed medium. By way of example, the verification may include detecting the first visual element and the second visual element of the printed medium, extracting the first information and the second information associated with the printed medium from the first visual element and the second visual element respectively, and verifying that the first information and the second information associated with the printed medium matches to the related information stored in storage unit 990. For explanatory purpose, a user 980 may use a mobile device 988 equipped with a scanner capable of reading and verifying the authenticity of the printed medium attached to the product package 984. Those versed in the art will readily appreciate that the examples illustrated with reference to the figures are by no means inclusive of all possible alternatives but are intended to illustrate non-limiting examples, and accordingly other ways of implementation can be used in addition to or in lieu of the above.

It is to be noted that the teachings of the presently disclosed subject matter are not bound by the flow chart illustrated in Figs. 4, 6 and 7. The order and sequences of executing the processes as described with reference to Figs. 4, 6 and 7 are illustrated for exemplary purposes only and should not be construed to limit the present disclosure in any way. Certain stages illustrated in Figs. 4, 6 and 7 may be executed in a different order and/or one or more groups of stages may be executed simultaneously and vice versa. It is also noted that whilst the flow chart is described with reference to elements or components of systems 300 and 500, this is by no means binding, and the operations can be performed by elements or components other than those described herein.

It is to be understood that the presently disclosed subject matter is not limited in its application to the details set forth in the description contained herein or illustrated in the drawings. The presently disclosed subject matter is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Hence, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception upon which this disclosure is based can readily be utilized as a basis for designing other structures, methods, and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present presently disclosed subject matter.

It will also be understood that the system according to the presently disclosed subject matter can be implemented, at least partly, as a suitably programmed computer. Likewise, the presently disclosed subject matter contemplates a computer program being readable by a computer for executing the disclosed method. The presently disclosed subject matter further contemplates a computer-readable memory or storage medium tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine for executing the disclosed method.

Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that various modifications and changes can be applied to the embodiments of the invention as hereinbefore described without departing from its scope, defined in and by the appended claims. The computer readable storage medium causing a processor to carry out aspects of the present invention can be a tangible device that can retain and store instructions for use by an instruction execution device. The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but is not limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device, an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, a semiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of the computer readable storage medium includes the following: a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), a static random access memory (SRAM), a portable compact disc readonly memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD), a memory stick, a floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such as punch-cards or raised structures in a groove having instructions recorded thereon, and any suitable combination of the foregoing. A computer readable storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construed as being transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or other freely propagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagating through a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g., light pulses passing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical signals transmitted through a wire.