Authentication process on the blockchain using an engraved QR code to guarantee the origin of the product container / contents.

Abstract

The present invention is characterized by a time-stamping and authenticity process on the blockchain by the production of a non-fungible certificate or token incorporating a QR-Code which will be reproduced and laser-engraved on the container and / or packaging in a permanent manner allowing control by scanning or flashing the QR-Code with a device having an application which automatically refers to the blockchain certificate in order to establish whether it is the original product or a counterfeit.

Description

Title of the invention: Authentication method on the blockchain using an engraved QR code to guarantee the origin of the product containing / contents.

[0001] The present invention is characterized by a time-stamping and authenticity method on the blockchain by the production of a non-fungible certificate or token incorporating a QR-Code which will be reproduced and laser-engraved on the container and / or packaging in a permanent manner allowing control to be carried out by scanning or flashing the QR-Code with a device having an application which automatically refers to the blockchain certificate in order to establish whether it is the original product or a counterfeit.

[0002] This process makes it possible to verify and prove the authenticity of the product (container and contents), for example, during a counterfeit inspection by customs authorities or during a purchase in a store or even online. Thus, verification can be carried out at any time during the product's life cycle.

[0003] The advantage of such a process allows for individual or series personalization and does not require excessive investment for the production of a personalized print of authenticity and guarantee of the container-content by the affixing of means of identification previously time-stamped and recorded on the blockchain, the control of which will allow the manufacturer and customs agents to certify that it is an authentic and not counterfeit product.

[0004] It is true that numerous personalization processes exist today to guarantee the origin of the product, the product itself, and the know-how. However, counterfeiters continue to prey on producers and manufacturers. Producers and manufacturers are redoubling their ingenuity to protect and secure products. For example, they are working to give containers a particular shape, and then increasingly specialized labels with the addition of 3D or holographic printing. They are also affixing security seals. This does not prevent counterfeiters from persisting in unfair and parasitic competition to the detriment of the brand and the consumer.

[0005] Also, to limit this scourge, I have filed a patent application (patent no. FR2407852 filed on 17 / 07 / 2024 and entitled: Process for authenticating a wine cork or other closure on the blockchain). However, the present invention aims to provide an improved process for guaranteeing the product or contents, particularly in the process and techniques for using the time-stamped QR code on the blockchain and its method of applying it to the product in an unalterable way while preserving the technical function of the container and its design.

[0006] The design, development and manufacture according to the present invention of a blockchain authentication method producing a certificate incorporating a QR-Code which will be reproduced on at least part of the container and its advantages will be more apparent in the description below which illustrates the present invention.

[0007] The implementation of the method according to the invention is to generate a certificate of authenticity via an application from a handwritten or typed source file, a screenshot, a photograph, an image, or an illustration from a video sequence. The content is then recorded and time-stamped in the Blockchain to produce a digital fingerprint or certificate of authenticity, also presented as a QR code for verification and traceability. Scanning this QR code instantly redirects the user to the digital certificate of authenticity to verify that the QR code matches the digital fingerprint; otherwise, it is considered a forgery and therefore a counterfeit of the product containing and / or its contents.

[0008] But the difficulty does not stop there, because it is absolutely necessary to affix or print said QR-Code of the digital fingerprint in a non-modifiable and unalterable way either on the container and / or the contents.

[0009] Returning to the production of the digital fingerprint certificate, which includes a QR code providing access to the certificate, it is understandable that the QR code is generated by the manufacturer or author of the product (container-content) by compiling all the evidence from the various stages of manufacturing or a warranty certificate. It will be possible to store any type of file (video, PDF, Word document, sketch, drawing) in the digital certificate, depending on what the producer, manufacturer, or author of the product wishes to communicate.

[0010] The computer application will check the concordance of the two QR codes and will inform the applicant of the status of the verification.

[0011] The method according to the present invention will also include the possibility of establishing a connection and traceability database (date and time of connection) and / or location information to inform the manufacturer of the product's whereabouts. By extension, the database can be supplemented if the applicant informs the manufacturer, via an option in the application, of the end-of-life of a consumed or destroyed product.

[0012] It is noted that blockchain technology, through the application, allows the protection and generation of the certificate of authenticity by means of a hash signature that ensures the encryption of the document and guarantees the confidentiality of the information recorded on the blockchain. The integrity of this digital act is guaranteed by an electronic fingerprint that allows for easy verification of its integrity.

[0013] However, to facilitate consultation and verification of the certificate after each product to be authenticated has been submitted, and to avoid undue interference with the container or its contents, access is possible via a QR code or Flashcode (registered trademark). The existence of the blockchain QR code provides traceability throughout the product's lifecycle, up to its consumption, recycling, or destruction.

[0014] Once the QR code is generated by the certificate of authenticity, it will need to be permanently engraved. It is easy to understand that it will be difficult for a counterfeiter to erase the QR code, short of destroying part of the product, even though this would be pointless since a product lacking a valid QR code from the manufacturer or the party responsible for its creation will be classified as counterfeit.

[0015] In addition, the QR code can be affixed several times in different places on the container or on the container and the contents when possible.

[0016] Thus, the invention, through its method of applying a QR code previously anchored on the blockchain to a container and / or its contents to verify its authenticity, concerns finished products whose container and / or (non-liquid) contents are transparent or relatively opaque, made of materials that can be defined as such. Examples, without this list being exhaustive, include glass, crystal, polycarbonate, or translucent plastic, which are often used in the food industry, particularly in wine and spirits products, cosmetics, and spare parts for finished products. In a preferred embodiment, where feasible, the QR code is laser-engraved under the surface (GLSS) because the internal structure is modified to form the design, but the external surface remains remarkably untouched and flawless, with different shades of gray or colors depending on the appearance of the contents.Otherwise, on the external surface.

[0017] If we perform the process to illustrate the method on a bottle of wine, simply tilting the bottle to move the liquid will provide an even clearer view of the QR code. Since it is engraved beneath the surface, it cannot be altered without risking breakage or chipping of the container. Therefore, selling a bottle, flask, or container without the QR code engraved beneath the surface indicates that it is a counterfeit item. Assuming the container has a QR code as described in the method of the invention, to verify the authenticity of the product (container and contents), it will be sufficient to scan or flash the QR code. The company will then instantly display the time-stamped guarantee certificate on the blockchain (digital fingerprint) produced by the manufacturer.

[0018] The final destination URL of a QR code is identical to the hard-coded URL, that is to say, it is stored in the QR code template, it is therefore a static QR code.

[0019] To perfect the above process, it is possible to add the same QR-Code to other elements of the container such as the closure cap, the packaging, the label, the capsule, the lid, etc. by printing, pad printing, laser, hot or cold foil stamping, but also on the contents.

[0020] Let us take the example of a non-liquid spare part, which will benefit from the application of the QR-Code in the same way as the container.

[0021] It will also be up to the manufacturer to choose whether to engrave the QR-Code in the most strategic location while preserving the design and marketing aspect.

[0022] According to another embodiment of the method of the invention, the authenticity QR code is engraved on an opaque material but is accompanied by a transparent film allowing it to be viewed and scanned.

[0023] The process according to the invention will provide greater security and guarantee. Indeed, only the producer holds the databases and the anchoring certificates on the blockchain. Consequently, it will be significantly more difficult for counterfeiters and imposters to pass themselves off as producers or manufacturers of an original and authentic product.

[0024] According to a variant of the invention, the marking and printing process can be carried out on closure caps or stoppers on the external surface and / or on the internal surface of a technical cap.

[0025] According to a variant of the method according to the invention, the QR code can be replaced by a 2D-Doc, a type of two-dimensional Datamatrix barcode consisting of black modules arranged in a square on a white background. The arrangement of these dots defines the information contained in the code. The overall operating principle is similar to that of a QR code, but unlike the latter, the information contained in the code is secured using a digital signature based on asymmetric cryptography.

[0026] When the container and / or the contents are not transparent, it will be necessary to affix or print the QR-Code or a 2D-Doc code on a part of said container and / or the contents in an inalienable manner depending on the materials encountered by the techniques of milling or laser engraving or by hydrofluoric acid or embossing or hot or cold gilding or injection, molding, 3D or 4D printing and permanent pad printing.

[0027] According to another preferred embodiment, it will be useful in certain situations to affix or print the QR code on a label or back label whose technical characteristic is that it is fragmentable. Thus, it is It is perfectly understandable that it is difficult to remove the label without risking damage to the QR code.

[0028] It is also understood that it is possible to combine, on the same product (container), the application of a QR code on the subsurface and a QR code on the external and / or internal surface. For example, we can consider a perfume bottle. The QR code is printed on the subsurface of the glass bottle and on the top of the cap on its external surface. Another similar example is that of an automotive spare part, namely a windshield. The QR code is printed on the subsurface and the same QR code is applied to the packaging using the other methods described above.

[0029] Another example is to illustrate the possibility of affixing a QR-Code to the packaging and to the contents when it is a material which offers the possibility such as a rigid, semi-rigid or flexible material.

[0030] This written description uses examples to disclose embodiments of the invention and also to enable a person skilled in the art to carry out embodiments of the invention, including the manufacture and use of any device or system and the performance of any incorporated process. The patentable scope of the invention is defined by the claims and may include other examples that are apparent to a person skilled in the art. These other examples are intended to fall within the scope of the claims if they have structural elements that do not differ from the literal language of the claims, or if they include equivalent structural elements with non-substantial differences from the literal language of the claims.

[0031] Of course, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments or fields of activity previously described.

Claims

Demands

1. QR-Code to verify and guarantee the origin of the product container / content is formed from a handwritten or typed source file, a screenshot, a photo, an image, an illustration of a video sequence, the contents of which are recorded and time-stamped in the Blockchain to produce a fingerprint or a digital certificate of authenticity also grouped in the form of a QR-Code, then the QR-Code is reproduced identically on the container and / or the content in an unalterable way by the techniques of mechanical or laser milling engraving or by hydrofluoric acid or embossing or hot or cold gilding or injection, molding, 3D or 4D printing and permanent pad printing which thus allows it to be scanned or flashed and to view instantly via a computer application the time-stamped digital certificate on the blockchain produced by the manufacturer.

2. QR-Code to verify and guarantee the origin of the product containing / contents according to claim 1 characterized in that for finished products whose container is transparent or opaque, the QR-Code is laser engraved under the surface (GLSS) by modifying its internal structure to form the QR-Code but in that the external surface remains remarkably untouched and without defect.

3. QR-Code to verify and guarantee the origin of the product container / contents according to claims 1 and 2 characterized in that the QR-Code is affixed several times in different places on the container or on the container / contents.

4. QR-Code to verify and guarantee the origin of the product containing / contents according to claims 1 and 3 characterized in that the QR-Code is engraved on an opaque material.

5. QR-Code to verify and guarantee the origin of the product containing / contained according to claim 1 characterized in that the QR-code is replaced by a 2D-Doc of the type of two-dimensional barcodes of the type Datamatrix consisting of black modules arranged in a square on a white background and that its arrangement of these points defines the information contained in the code and that the information contained in the code is secured using a digital signature based on asymmetric cryptography.

6. QR-Code to verify and guarantee the origin of the product containing / contents according to any one of the preceding claims characterized in that the printing of the QR-Code is done on a label or a back label whose technical characteristic is to be fragmentable.

7. QR-Code to verify and guarantee the origin of the product containing / contents according to any one of the preceding claims characterized in that on the same product (container) there is affixed a QR-Code on the subsurface and a QR-Code on the external and / or internal surface.

8. QR-Code to verify and guarantee the origin of the product containing / contents according to any of the preceding claims characterized in that the QR-Code allows a traceability connection (date and time of connection) and / or location to inform the manufacturer where the product is located and to inform the manufacturer of the end of life of a product consumed or destroyed.