Patent ID: 7387249
Filing Date: 2008-06-17
Classification: G03H,G06K,G06Q

Abstract:
1. A product authentication system for use with products including machine readable product data, the system comprising: a product data storage system; a plurality of reading devices for reading said machine readable product data; communication link means between said reading devices and said product data storage means; wherein the reading devices located remotely from the product data storage system are adapted to read the machine readable product data on a unit of product and communicate said product data to said product data storage system via the communication link means to achieve comparison of the product data on the product with product data in the product data storage system and to enable modification of the data in the product data storage system for any unit of product; and means for accessing the modified data so as to identify the passage of a unit of product via a succession of reading devices, wherein at least one of the portable reading devices is arranged for accessing the machine readable product data remotely from the product data storage system at a point along a product circulation route for the purposes of verification of authenticity of such machine readable product data and hence verification of authenticity of the product, wherein the product comprises an optically-variable diffractive security element open to public verification without a specialized reader.