Technical Field

The invention relates to product authentication and/or identification. Particularly but not exclusively, the invention relates to a wrapper for a product such as a tobacco industry product, and a method of manufacture thereof, the wrapper having a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag attached thereto, and to an RFID tag arranged to store information for determining the identity and/or authenticity of the product, the RFID tag arranged to be readable only over a distance of less than 20 cm.

Background

RFID tags generally have an integrated circuit (IC) chip connected to an antenna or inductive coil. The IC chip includes non-volatile memory which stores a code. An RFID reader is used to interrogate the tag by transmitting a radio frequency signal which is received at the antenna or inductive coil. The RFID tag then returns a signal to the RFID reader containing the locally stored code.

Summary of the Invention

In accordance with embodiments described herein, there is provided a wrapper for a product, the wrapper comprising a film having an RFID tag attached thereto, the RFID tag storing at least one of information relating to the product, information for determining the identity of the product and information for determining the authenticity of the product. The RFID tag can store information for determining the identity and authenticity of the product.

The film can be at least partially transparent.

The RFID tag can be a passive RFID tag. The RFID tag can be arranged to be readable only within a maximum distance from the RFID tag, wherein the maximum distance is less than about 20cm. The maximum distance can be less than about 10cm, 5cm, 4cm or 3cm.

The RFID tag can be arranged to operate in accordance with the Near Field

Communication standards. The wrapper can have a first surface arranged to face the product and a second surface arranged to face away from the product when used to wrap the product, and wherein the RFID tag is attached to the first surface. At least part of the RFID tag can be adhered to the product.

The film can comprise at least one material selected from polypropylene, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), cellulose acetate film, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene oxide (PEOX), polyethylene, cellophane, Natureflex™ and polylactic acid (PLA).

The wrapper can further comprise a tear strip extending at least partially across the film for opening the wrapper, wherein the RFID tag is attached to the film such that the RFID tag is damaged and thereby rendered inoperative by pulling the tear strip to open the wrapper.

The RFID tag can comprise an integrated circuit chip and an antenna, and at least one of the integrated circuit chip and antenna can be attached to the film such that the chip is damaged and thereby rendered inoperative by pulling the tear strip to open the wrapper.

The RFID tag can comprise an RFID label attached to the film using adhesive.

The film can provide a substrate for the RFID tag, and wherein the RFID tag is attached to the film by applying conductive materials directly to the film.

In accordance with embodiments described herein, there is further provided an RFID tag storing information for determining the identity and/or authenticity of a product, wherein the RFID tag is arranged to be readable only over a maximum distance from the RFID tag, wherein the maximum distance is less than about 20 cm.

The maximum distance can be less than about 10cm, less than about 5cm, less than about 4cm or less than about 3cm.

The RFID tag can be arranged to operate in accordance with the Near Field

Communication standards. In accordance with embodiments described herein, there is further provided a package comprising a product wrapped in a wrapper as defined above or having an RFID tag as defined above. In accordance with embodiments described herein, there is further provided a package containing tobacco industry products and containing a wrapper comprising a film to which an RFID tag is attached, the RFID tag storing at least one of information relating to the product, information for determining the identity of the product and information for determining the authenticity of the product. The RFID tag can store information for determining the identity and authenticity of the product.

In accordance with embodiments described herein, there is further provided a method of determining the identity and/or authenticity of a product as defined above, the method comprising at least one of reading the information stored on the RFID tag using an RFID reader operating according to Near Field Communication standards and reading the information stored on the RFID tag using a mobile telecommunications device.

In accordance with embodiments described herein, there is further provided a system for determining the identity and/ or authenticity of a product as defined above, the system comprising at least one of a first RFID reader operating according to Near Field Communication standards and configured to read the information stored on the RFID tag and a second RFID reader comprising a mobile telecommunications device configured to read the information stored on the RFID tag.

The mobile telecommunications device can comprise NFC functionality.

The system can further comprise a product information database storing product information associated with the product, said product information database being located at the first RFID reader, at the second RFID reader or remote from the first and/ or second RFID reader.

The RFID tag can store a digital signature, and the first and/or second RFID reader can be arranged to verify the authenticity of the product based on the digital signature. In accordance with embodiments described herein, there is further provided a method of manufacturing a wrapper as defined above, comprising applying an RFID tag to a film. Applying an RFID tag to a film can comprise applying conductive material directly to the film.

Applying conductive material directly to the film can comprise printing the conductive material onto the film.

Printing the conductive material onto the film can comprise spray printing.

The method can further comprise providing a tear strip extending at least partially across the film for opening the wrapper once attached to a product, wherein the RFID tag is attached to the film such that the RFID tag is damaged and thereby rendered inoperative by pulling the tear strip to open the wrapper.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Embodiments of the invention are described below, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure lis a schematic illustration of a package comprising a tobacco industry product wrapped in a wrapper having an RFID label attached to an outer surface thereof; Figure 2 is a schematic illustration of a package comprising a tobacco industry product wrapped in a wrapper having an RFID label attached to an inner surface thereof ; Figure 3 is a schematic illustration of a package comprising a tobacco industry product wrapped in a wrapper having an RFID label attached to an inner surface thereof and comprising a tear strip intersecting the IC chip of the RFID label;

Figure 4 is a schematic illustration of a package comprising a tobacco industry product wrapped in a wrapper having an RFID label attached to an inner surface thereof and comprising a tear strip intersecting the antenna of the RFID label;

Figure 5 is a schematic illustration of a package comprising a tobacco industry product wrapped in a wrapper having an RFID tag printed on a surface thereof;

Figure 6 is a schematic illustration of a roll of wrapping material having a plurality of RFID tags applied directly to a surface thereof; Figure 7 is a schematic illustration of a product authentication system including a package as described with reference to Figure 1 having its RFID tag interrogated by a mobile device connected to a product information database; and

Figure 8 is a flow diagram illustrating the steps performed by the mobile device of Figure 7 when authenticating a product.

Detailed Description of the Drawings

As used herein, a 'tobacco industry product' refers to any item made in, or sold by the tobacco industry, typically including a) cigarettes, cigarillos, cigars, tobacco for pipes or for roll-your-own cigarettes, (whether based on tobacco, tobacco derivatives, expanded tobacco, reconstituted tobacco or tobacco substitutes); b) non-smoking products incorporating tobacco, tobacco derivatives, expanded tobacco, reconstituted tobacco or tobacco substitutes such as snuff, snus, hard tobacco, heat-not-burn products; and c) other nicotine-delivery systems such as e-cigarettes, inhalers, lozenges and gum. This list is not intended to be exclusive, but merely illustrates a range of products which are made and sold in the tobacco industry.

As used herein, a 'package containing tobacco industry products' can, for instance, comprise an individual package of cigarettes, such as a pack of 16 or 20 cigarettes, a carton containing a number of packs of cigarettes, for instance 10 packs of cigarettes, a box containing a number of cartons, or a package containing other tobacco industry products as defined above.

Figure 1 is a schematic illustration of a package 1 comprising a tobacco industry product 2 wrapped in a wrapper 3 having an Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) label 4 attached to an outer surface 5 thereof. The tobacco industry product 2 is, in the present example, a container for cigarettes in the form of a rigid hinge-lid cardboard container. The wrapper 3 is formed from a film material, in the present case cellophane™, although other materials can be used. The wrapper 3 is an external wrapper and completely surrounds the product 2 in the present example, preventing the product 2 from being accessed without the wrapper 3 being at least partially removed.

The RFID label 4 is located at the bottom left-hand corner of the back face of the product 2, although can alternatively be positioned in other locations on the wrapper 3. The RFID label 4 includes an RFID tag 6 having an integrated circuit (IC) chip 7 connected to an inductive loop antenna 8. The IC chip 7 of the RFID label 4 is arranged to store information for determining the identity and/or authenticity of the product. Determining 'the identity', or 'the identification of a product can refer to determining the unique identity of the product, or to determining the identity of the product as being within a particular group or classification of products, for instance products to be sold in a particular country.

Attaching the RFID tag 6, in the form of a label 4, to an outer surface 5 of the film wrapper 3 for a product 2, provides a convenient and scalable method for

implementing a track and trace system using RFID tags 6. In the present example, the RFID tag 6 is configured to be readable only over a range of about 50cm or less, or in particular examples about 20cmm or less.

In particular, in the present example, the RFID tag 6 is a passive RFID tag with an inductive loop antenna 8 configured to respond to high frequency (HF) reader interrogation signals and to do so at a maximum range of 20cm or about 20cm, limiting the interrogation distance of the RFID tag 6 when compared alternative RFID tag configurations, for instance those operating at ultra high frequency (UHF) or microwave frequencies. In the present case, the RFID tag 6 is configured to operate at or about 13.56 MHz. Alternatively, the RFID tag 6 can be configured to operate at low frequencies (LF), for instance in the 125KHZ to 134KHZ range, while limiting the overall interrogation range of the tag 6 to less than 20cm.

In the present example, the RFID tag 6 is configured to operate in accordance with the Near Field Communication (NFC) standards proposed for use in electronic payment systems. The operational distance over which RFID tags can be interrogated, according to the NFC specifications, is at a distance of 20cm or less.

By using RFID tags 6 having a limited interrogation range, for instance about 50cm or less, about 20cm or less, or less than about 10cm, 5cm, 4cm, 3cm, 2cm or lcm, enables the RFID tags 6 to be used in a 'track and trace' type system with greater security against unauthorised access to the tags than using tags which can be read over larger distances. Figure 2 is a schematic illustration of a package 10, similar to the package 1 of Figure 1, except that the Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) label 4 is attached to an inner surface 11 of the wrapper 3. Applying the RFID tag 6 to an inner surface 11 of the film wrapper 3 for a product 2, provides security against the RFID tag 6 being removed from the package 11 without the wrapper 3 being opened. In the example illustrated in Figure 2, the RFID tag 6 is also adhered to the outer surface of the tobacco industry product 2. The adhesive used is strong enough such that the RFID tag 6 is damaged and thereby rendered inoperative when removed from the surface of the tobacco industry product 2. Examples of suitable adhesives are contact adhesives or hot melt adhesives. The use of such an adhesive to attach at least one component of the RFID tag 6 to the product 2 prevents the RFID tag 6 from being removed from the tobacco industry product 2, which is authentic, for instance by cutting out a portion of the wrapper 3, and reused on a counterfeit product. In this example, both the integrated circuit (IC) chip 7 and inductive loop antenna 8 are attached to the inner surface 11 of the wrapper 3 and adhered to the outer surface of the tobacco industry product 2. In other examples, either the integrated circuit (IC) chip 7 or inductive loop antenna 8 can be attached or adhered to each of the inner surface 11 of the wrapper 3 and to the outer surface of the product 2. For instance, the integrated circuit (IC) chip 7 can be attached to the inner surface 11 of the wrapper 3 and not attached to the outer surface of the tobacco industry product 2, and the antenna 8 can be adhered to the outer surface of the tobacco industry product 2 and not attached to the inner surface 11 of the wrapper 3.

Figure 3 is a schematic illustration of a package 20 similar to the package 10 of Figure 2, except that the wrapper 3 further comprises a tear strip 21 and the RFID label 4 is located at the top left-hand corner of the back face of the product 2. The RFID label 4 is attached to the wrapper 3 in a manner such that the RFID tag 6 is damaged and thereby rendered inoperative when the tear strip 21 is used to open the wrapper 3. In particular, in the present example, the integrated circuit chip 7 of the RFID tag 6 is intersected by the tear strip 21. The tear strip 21, in the present example, comprises a strip of material extending around the product 2 and located directly beneath the wrapper 3. First and second cuts 22a, 22b are provided in the wrapper 3 at an edge of the wrapper 3 and either side of the tear strip 21, resulting in a portion of the wrapper 3 and tear strip 21 forming a pulling tab 23. The pulling tab 23 can be pulled by a user to tear the wrapper 3 along the path of the tear strip 21, in the present case around the outer periphery of the product 2 in a location roughly a fifth of the way down from the top of the product 2. The tear strip 21 is adhered to the integrated circuit chip 7 such that, as the tear strip 21 is pulled to remove a portion of the wrapper 3 and to open the package 20, the integrated circuit chip 7 is pulled away from the RFID tag 6 together with the tear strip 21, breaking the tag 6 and preventing its further operation. Accordingly, once the package 20 has been opened, the RFID tag 6 is destroyed and can no longer be used, preventing its re-use on a different product.

Figure 4 is a schematic illustration of a package 30 similar to the package 20 described with reference to Figure 3, except that the inductive loop antenna 8 of the RFID tag 6, rather than the integrated circuit chip 7 of the RFID tag 6, is intersected by the tear strip 21. The tear strip 21 is adhered to the inductive loop antenna 8 such that, as the tear strip 21 is pulled to remove a portion of the wrapper 3 and to open the package 20, the inductive loop antenna 8 is pulled away from the RFID tag 6 together with the tear strip 21, breaking the tag 6 and preventing its further operation. Accordingly, once the package 20 has been opened, the RFID tag 6 is destroyed and can no longer be used, preventing its re-use on a different product.

Figure 5 is a schematic illustration of a package 40 similar to the package 30 described with reference to Figure 4, except that rather than including an RFID label 4, a directly applied RFID tag 41 is provided, formed using the wrapper 3 as a substrate for the inductive loop antenna 8 and IC chip 7 of the RFID tag 41. The inductive loop antenna 8 and IC chip 7 are formed using conductive material applied directly to the film 3. In the present case, the RFID tag 41 is applied to the inner surface 11 of the wrapper 3, but can alternatively be applied to an outer surface 5 of the wrapper. In the present case, the RFID tag 41 is also adhered to the outer surface of the tobacco industry product 2, in a similar manner to the adhesion of the RFID tag 6 described above, although in alternative examples the RFID tag 41 may not be adhered to the outer surface of the tobacco industry product 2.

In the present example, as with the wrapper described with reference to Figure 4, the tear strip 21 is adhered to the inductive loop antenna 8 such that, as the tear strip 21 is pulled to remove a portion of the wrapper 3 and to open the package 20, the inductive loop antenna 8 is pulled away from the RFID tag 41 together with the tear strip 21, breaking the tag 41 and preventing its further operation. In particular, in the present example, the tear strip 21 and wrapper 3 each form a portion of the substrate of the RFID tag 41, with the tear strip 21 located on the inner surface 11 of the wrapper 3 and the RFID tag 41 attached to the inner surface of the wrapper 3 and with the antenna 8 located over a portion of the tear strip 21. Alternatively, the IC chip 7 of the RFID tag 41 maybe applied over a portion of the tear strip 21.

Figure 6 is a schematic illustration of a roll 50 of wrapping material 3 having a plurality of directly applied RFID tags 41 attached to a surface thereof. In particular, in the present example, the RFID tags 41 are printed onto the surface of the wrapping material 50 using a conductive ink printing process, for instance printed silicon technology. Alternatively, the RFID tags 41 may be attached in other ways, such as being adhered directly to the wrapper 3.

The wrapping material 3 has an inner surface 11 arranged to face a product and an outer surface 5 arranged to face away from a product when used to wrap a product. A tear strip 21, as previously described, is located on the inner surface 11 of the wrapper 3. The plurality of directly applied RFID tags 41 are applied to the inner surface 11 with their inductive loop antennas 8 located over a portion of the tear strip 21.

Although a plurality of directly applied RFID tags 41 have been described as being applied to the inner surface 11 of the roll 50 of wrapping material 3, with their inductive loop antennas 8 located over a portion of the tear strip 21, other configurations are possible. For instance, alternatively, RFID labels 4 can be applied to the wrapping material 3 in place of the directly applied RFID tags 41. Alternatively or in addition, the IC chip 7 of either a directly applied RFID tag 41 or an RFID label 4 can be located over a portion of the tear strip 21, no part of the RFID tag 41, 6 can be located over the tear strip 21, or the tear strip 21 can be omitted entirely.

The roll 50 of wrapping material can be used in a product packaging process in place of conventional film wrap, being cut along intersections 42 to provide wrapper portions each having an RFID tag 41 and being arranged to be applied to individual products.

The wrapper 3 and tear strip 21 described herein may be made of a variety of materials, including, but not limited to, polypropylene, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), cellulose acetate film, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene oxide (PEOX), polyethylene, cellophane, Natureflex™ or polylactic acid (PLA). Furthermore, combinations of such materials maybe used for the wrapper 3 and tear strip 21. Figure 7 is a schematic illustration of a product authentication system 60 including a package 1 as described with reference to Figure 1 having its RFID tag 6 interrogated by a mobile device 61, for instance a mobile telecommunications device such as a mobile telephone, connected to a product information database 62 via an internet link 63.

The IC chip 7 of the RFID tag 6 includes non-volatile memory storing information for determining the identity and/ or authenticity of the product 2, in the present case a unique RFID code. The RFID tag 6, in the present example, is a read-only device, with the RFID code being written during the tag manufacturing process. The RFID code is read from the tag at the point of attachment of the tag 6 to the product 2 and linked to the particular product 2 to which the tag 6 is attached. However, in alternative configurations, the RFID tag may be configured as a write once tag, having the RFID code written at the point of attachment of the tag 6 to the product 2. The product information database 62 stores the RFID code for each tag, together with information identifying the product, such as a product serial number and/or other relevant product information such as date and location of manufacture, a product description and/or tax or related information. The mobile device 61 is NFC enabled, being capable of operating as an active RFID reader by transmitting an interrogation signal 64 for interrogating NFC RFID tags such as the tag 6 attached to the wrapper 3 of the package 1. The mobile device 61 stores a program, in the present case a mobile app or application, configured to provide product tracking functionality to a user. In particular, the mobile app controls the NFC functions of the device 61 as well as communicating with the remote product information database 62, over the internet link 63.

Figure 8 is a flow diagram illustrating the steps performed by the mobile device 61 in authenticating product 2.

A user initiates the mobile application and instructs the application to initiate the interrogation of an RFID tag, with this command being received by the application (step Si). The application calls the NFC functionality of the mobile device 61 to cause an RFID interrogation signal 64 to be transmitted from the device 61 (step S2). In the present case, the maximum distance 'd' between the RFID interrogation signal transmitter (not shown) of the mobile device 61 and the inductive loop antenna 8 of the RFID tag 6 over which a tag 6 can be interrogated is at or about 20cm, although the system can be configured to operate over other maximum distances. The RFID interrogation signal 64 is an electromagnetic field and the RFID tag 6 operates as a transponder, returning a signal carrying its locally stored RFID code in response to being placed within the field.

The mobile device 61 receives the RFID tag response and the RFID code is passed to the mobile application (step S3). The mobile application then sends a query to the remote product information database 62 including the RFID code (step S4). The RFID code is compared to RFID codes stored in the database 62. If a corresponding code exists, indicating that the product 2 is authentic, product information stored in the database 62 is returned over the internet link 63. Alternatively, if no corresponding code is found in the database 62, this indicates that the product is not authentic and product information is returned indicating that the product is potentially counterfeit. In either case, the product information is received at the mobile application, whereby it is displayed on the mobile device 61 (step S5). Although specific exemplary embodiments have been described herein, the invention is not limited to these specific embodiments and can be implemented in alternative ways. For instance, rather than storing an RFID code, the RFID tag 6, 41 could alternatively or additionally contain other information such as product information, for example the date and location of manufacture and/ or tax or duty relating to the product. A remote product information database 62 may, for instance, not be required in the case in which the RFID tag 6 stores product information itself. Alternatively or in addition, the product information database 62 can be provided at the mobile device 61, meaning that a query does not need to be sent from the mobile device 61 to the product information database 62 over the internet link 63. However, a central database 62 may still be provided, and this can be updated following the receipt of information from RFID tags 6 scanned by the mobile device 61, for instance to indicate that the product 2 is in a particular location. The mobile device 61 can also receive information from a central database 62 concerning any counterfeit RFID codes which may be known to be in use, indicating that the corresponding products associated with those codes are counterfeit.

The RFID tag 6 and mobile device 61 can employ an encryption system for the information stored on the tag and the reading device, such as mobile device 61, can be configured to decrypt the information, for enhanced security.

The RFID tag 6 and reading device, such as mobile device 61, can employ a

public/private key encryption system. In this case, the information stored on the RFID tag 6 includes a digital signature created by 'digitally signing' information using a private key. The information in this case can comprise product information, an RFID code, or other information such as a code or text which can be understood by the mobile device 61 as meaning that the product is authentic. The application running on the mobile device 61 uses a public key to verify the digital signature received from the RFID tag 6 and a successful verification can provide an indication that the product 2 is authentic. If, however, the digital signature is not recognised by the application as being authentic, then this indicates that the product is not authentic. If the RFID 6 stores a digital signature together with product information, with the product information being used to generate the digital signature or being otherwise stored on the tag, the product information can, for instance, be displayed on the mobile device 61 without an external database 62 being required. Alternatively, if the RFID 6 stores a digital signature generated based on an RFID code related to the product 2, this can be used in the manner previously described to obtain product information and/ or authenticity confirmation from a remote or local database. The information used to generate the digital signature may or may not be encrypted information itself, and if encrypted information is used, the mobile application would be operable to decrypt the information, for instance before displaying it or providing it to the internal database or remote database 62.

Although the RFID tag 6 has been described as a passive tag, alternatively an active RFID tag can be used. In this case, the RFID reader, such as mobile device 61, may be configured as either an active reader or as a passive reader. Furthermore, the inductive loop antenna 8 of the RFID tag 6 may be replaced with an alternative form of antenna.

The RFID tag 6 can have a viewable image or message arranged on a surface thereof, for instance an image or message printed directly onto the outwardly facing surface of the RFID tag 6 when attached to a wrapper 3, such that the image or message can be viewed through the wrapper. Alternatively, the RFID tag 6, when printed onto the wrapper 3, can be arranged to be substantially transparent, to enable an image or message printed on an outer surface of the pack 1 to be at least partially viewable through the tag 6.

In order to address various issues and advance the art, the entirety of this disclosure shows by way of illustration various embodiments in which the claimed invention(s) may be practiced and provide for superior product identification, tracking and/or authentication. The advantages and features of the disclosure are of a representative sample of embodiments only, and are not exhaustive and/ or exclusive. They are presented only to assist in understanding and teach the claimed features. It is to be understood that advantages, embodiments, examples, functions, features, structures, and/or other aspects of the disclosure are not to be considered limitations on the disclosure as defined by the claims or limitations on equivalents to the claims, and that other embodiments may be utilised and modifications may be made without departing from the scope and/or spirit of the disclosure. Various embodiments may suitably comprise, consist of, or consist essentially of, various combinations of the disclosed elements, components, features, parts, steps, means, etc. In addition, the disclosure includes other inventions not presently claimed, but which may be claimed in future.