Technology Transfer Group was
formed in 1995 and is in the business of licensing technology
in security printing fields. We represent 5 manufacturers
of OVD's and other security technologies. I am pleased
to return to this podium after several years away; I
presented a speech to this group in Seville Spain on
the subject of NovaVision, a high speed hologram application
system.
The technology I am describing today comes from Boston
University's Photonics Laboratories, Boston MA.
This laboratory has been active in the photonics field,
the interaction of optical, electronic, and digital
sciences, for many years. One special area of study
has been research in fluorescence. Fluorescence is the
emission of light energy of longer wavelength when an
object is illuminated with light energy of shorter wavelengths.
This study has created a new range of fluorescent dye
materials that can be "designed" and later measured
in several "signature" characteristics to achieve truly
secure printed objects.
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The title of my speech is: Multiple
Signatures from Fluorescent Dyes for Security
Printing. The work is primarily that of Doctor
Guilford Jones chemical engineer at the photonics
laboratory of Boston University. The work is being
commercialized by a newly formed company called
PhotoSecure Inc. also of Boston. (operating from
the new photonics laboratory business incubator).
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The study of fluorescence
over the past 15 years has led to the development
of new ways to create and apply fluorescent dyes
with controlled "signatures": The dyes are customized
and printed as patches on a variety of surfaces.
They each have signature elements that undeniably
identify the patch as authentic.
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Stroboscopic activation
then measures features such as image, color and
time has brought about a whole range of customized
dyes that can be printed as security devices to
verify a printed document or package. The patch
is irradiated with short wave length energy (such
as ultraviolet energy) with a stroboscope and
the specific signature characteristics of the
resulting fluorescence are carefully monitored.
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Unique characteristics
of the emitted light are studied; image, color,
and time are precisely measured by special optical
reading devices.
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After the excitation flash,
the PhotoSecure dye is monitored for several changing
characteristics of image, color, and time.
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A Unique Signature can be
achieved as different dye formulas change
their fluorescence characteristics in different
repeatable ways.monitored and recorded at time
of manufacture.
The dye is created and modified during manufacture
in unique ways such that only that one particular
image will produce the anticipated signature characteristics.
These dyes have been developed to the stage that
they can be printed with a conventional inkjet
printer. This allows one to digitally encode uniquely
identifiable covert or overt marks. It can be
changed periodically making counterfeiting a very
short term value or an entirely fruitless task
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A small change in the dye
formula changes the fluorescence characteristics
in noticeable, measurable ways. The characteristics
or signature can be monitored in effectively three
dimensions by the special reading devices.
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The inventions combined in
this project include; SmartDYE ™ suitable
for films, plastics, fabrics, labels, many kinds
of printing elements; Systems Engineering: creating
detectors, scanners, and printers. The result
is; Diverse signatures or characteristics of printed
marks incorporating image, color, and time dependent
variables.
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The System Operation includes
three steps: Detect and Capture, Process and
Validate, and, Analyze and Report.
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Step One: Detect and Capture:
A strobe flash of known wavelength returns fluoresced
light from a coded mark. The sensor receives the
signal and then it is Filtered and Detected. The
final part of step one is that a signal is sent
forward with either "mark present" Yes, or, "mark
absent", No mode determination.
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Step Two: Process and Validate:
The Yes condition moves forward to Image Processing
Algorithms and in parallel, Signal Processing
Algorithms. In the first case, Data Reduction
determines 2/d 3/d bar code recognition. In the
second, the fluorescence signature analysis is
made. Now we have the possibility to verify both
bar code validity and signature validity.
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Step Three: Analyze and Report:
The two possible modes from step two, "valid",
or invalid" are followed by Display of failure
data or Display of authenticity data. This information
is sent to Data Storage and analysis for inventory
control and for the management information technology
department to use throughout the item's manufacturing,
transport, and sale.
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PhotoSecure Inc. is a photonics
enabled information company. It provides invisible
Ink and Hand Held Readers, as well as consultation
on systems for specific applications. The Chairman
is John Marenghi, the President and CEO is David
Phillips who is here today, the Chief Technology
Officer is Guilford Jones, Sr. Chemist is Ding
Yan, and Technical Services Manager is Kevin Mills
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How it all works: PhotoSecure
will supply proprietary luminescent inks; work
with printing partners; work with customer's own
printing vendors, provide custom-made hand held
and fixed position detectors.
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The competitive advantages:
Proprietary luminescent dyes: there are a very
large number of these possible with unique spectral
signatures. Detector systems that: authenticate,
trace and track the signature of the printed marks.
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PhotoSecure's first customer,
a manufacturer of sporting goods, will use
two detector systems with a the value of $10,000.
Invisible bar codes will be placed on 25 million
boxes per year. They are paying about two cents
per box or one-half million dollars per year.
Four marks will be printed on each box.
The result will be that the manufacturer
can verify that the manufactured goods are indeed
the original goods tracked all the way through
their information technology system. They will
be able to follow goods diverted from approved
channels, and the data will link to a specific
box from a specific factory and specific day of
manufacture.
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The application or printing
of dyes: Standard inkjet printers work well
with the new dyes.Digital printing enables a clean,
inexpensive, database driven printing opportunity.
Digital printing allows one-to-one personalization,
bar coding, numbering, personal name or logo.
New tests will be made with dry digital foil imprinting.
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Ink Jet printer and hand held
verifier held by David Walsh.
There have been no modifications required to the
printer itself.
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A Yes / No Authenticator determines the existence and the signature elements of the mark. A photo of one of the reading devices used to identify the existence of the mark and the unique dye used.
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A Variable Data Scanner determines numerical or bar code information. This device determines the unique number or bar code data imbedded in the printed mark.
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Digital Foil Imprinter:
Here is a dry digital printer that may be useful
in this project in the future. It is a thermal
transfer printer placing 300 dpi foil dots in
onto pens or any cylindrical object. This same
print engine is being tested for several security
print applications.
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Digitally transferred hologram
tickets: A sample of digital foil printing
showing how a foil, even an embossed hologram
foil, can be printed, by thermal transfer methods
with numerical or bar code dropouts.
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Variable Shape Algorithm
dropout or positive hologram foil shapes can be
printed by the digital imprinter. A dropout number
created as the image is printed provides a unique
patch by patch identity.
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Telephone card: A sample
of a hologram "stamped" telephone card.
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Shaped Hologram and Unique
Number: This photo shows a plastic card with
a shaped wallpaper hologram unique to this card
alone. It is amazing that the fine lines of the
previously embossed hologram survive the bit-by-bit
transfer process.
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This new fluorescent dye technology provides a low-cost, easy
to apply security printing opportunity. It combines all of
the appropriate features; an absolutely unique signature,
easy to print, overt or covert with unique machine readable
data.