Cholesteric Liquid Crystal Discrimination Medium Anti-Counterfeiting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing techniques for authenticating product labels are costly due to multiple production processes and high material costs, and are becoming unreliable as falsification methods improve, making it difficult to determine the authenticity of products.
Innovation Solution
A discrimination medium using a multilayer film with different refractive indices and a breakable print recording layer, or a cholesteric liquid crystal layer with circular polarization selectivity, which changes color or pattern when viewed from different angles, making it difficult to counterfeit and allowing easy authentication.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If multiple colored layers are used to create complex patterns, then the difficulty of falsification increases, but the number of production processes increases and production cost becomes high
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the optical parameters of a single layer by controlling the depth of breakage caused by a thermal head to reveal different colors and color tones from the same colored layer. This eliminates the need for multiple colored layers while maintaining complex pattern capability and high falsification difficulty.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts and utilizes the color variation property within a single colored layer by controlling the breakage depth, rather than adding multiple layers. This simplifies the structure while maintaining the ability to create complex patterns and resist falsification.
2Reliability
If multiple colored layers are laminated to form complex patterns, then the difficulty of falsification increases, but material costs become high
Solution Approach 1:
The patent utilizes parameter changes (breakage depth) within a single colored layer to reveal different colors and patterns, eliminating the need for multiple expensive colored layers. This reduces material costs while maintaining high difficulty of falsification through the complex pattern formation.
3Adaptability or versatility
If holograms are used to prevent falsification, then designability improves, but falsification techniques have increased in sophistication making them unreliable
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines a colored layer with a breakable print recording layer that responds to thermal stimulation. This composite structure creates complex patterns through controlled breakage depth, providing both design flexibility and high reliability against falsification that holograms alone cannot achieve.
4Reliability
If thermal breakage type and electric discharge breakage type layers are combined, then falsification difficulty increases, but the number of production processes increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the functionality of multiple breakage types into a single thermal breakage system. By controlling the thermal head parameters, the system achieves the same falsification resistance that would require multiple different breakage mechanisms, thereby reducing the number of production processes.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution provides a low-cost, reliable method for authenticating products by creating a unique appearance that is challenging to falsify, preventing misuse and ensuring the authenticity of the discrimination medium.
Implementation Method 1
a multilayer film having plural light transparent films which are laminated and are different from each other in refraction index
Implementation Method 2
plural light transparent films which are laminated and are different from each other in refraction index
Implementation Method 3
a cholesteric liquid crystal layer having a circular polarization light selectivity of reflecting predetermined circularly polarized light
Data Source
AI summary
A discrimination medium on which printing can be freely performed, which cannot be easily falsified, in which the authenticity can be easily discriminated by unique appearance, and which can be produced at low cost, is provided. A cholesteric liquid crystal layer 10, and a breakable print recording layer are laminated in the discrimination medium. The cholesteric liquid crystal layer 10 has plural light transparent films, which are laminated and are different from each other in refraction index. Therefore, the discrimination medium has unique optical characteristics such that a character, a symbol, a pattern, a figure formed by printing by a thermal printer or the like changes in color depending on the viewing angle. A discrimination method using the above optical characteristics of the discrimination medium is provided.