Forensic Signature Generation for Print Authentication
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Solution Overview
Problem
It is challenging to authenticate print targets, especially three-dimensional prints, as they can be easily duplicated, making it difficult to distinguish authentic from forged documents and objects, and existing forensic signatures are not robustly locatable or applicable to historic targets without additional marks.
Innovation Solution
A system that generates a unique forensic signature based on scale-dependent features extracted from the target, using a feature extraction engine to determine and select features, and a signature-generation engine to store and authenticate these features, allowing for authentication without requiring additional forensic marks, and applicable to both two-dimensional and three-dimensional targets.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional forensic marks are used to authenticate targets, then authentication capability is improved, but device complexity and ease of operation deteriorate due to requiring additional marks and manual processes
Solution Approach 1:
The system extracts forensic features automatically from the target image itself without requiring any additional marks or manual intervention. The feature extraction engine autonomously identifies scale-dependent features, generates signatures, and performs authentication, making the system self-sufficient and eliminating complex manual procedures
Solution Approach 2:
The system extracts only the essential forensic features directly from the target image, separating the authentication-critical information from the rest of the image data. This extraction process isolates the scale-dependent features that are sufficient for authentication, eliminating the need for additional forensic marks
2Reliability
If additional forensic marks are added to targets for authentication, then authentication reliability is improved, but manufacturing precision and ease of manufacture worsen due to requiring precise mark placement
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of adding forensic marks during manufacturing, the system extracts forensic features directly from the existing target image. This eliminates the need for precise mark placement during the printing or manufacturing process, as the authentication data is derived from the target itself
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs feature extraction and signature generation as preliminary actions on existing target images, including historic targets. This allows authentication capability to be added retrospectively without requiring any modifications to the original manufacturing process or precise mark placement
3Measurement precision
If manual forensic analysis is used, then measurement precision is improved, but productivity and loss of time worsen due to time-consuming manual processes
Solution Approach 1:
The system replaces manual forensic analysis with an automated computational approach. The feature extraction engine uses algorithmic processing to identify scale-dependent features and generate signatures, substituting human manual inspection with machine-based automated analysis that maintains precision while dramatically increasing speed
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs feature extraction and signature generation as preliminary automated actions, preparing authentication data in advance. This allows rapid comparison and authentication decisions to be made subsequently, eliminating time-consuming manual analysis steps
Data Source
AI summary
An example system includes a feature extraction engine. The feature extraction engine is to determine a plurality of scale-dependent features for a portion of a target. The system also includes a signature-generation engine to select a subset of the plurality of scale-dependent features based on a strength of each feature. The signature-generation engine also is to store a numeric representation of the portion of the target and the subset of the plurality of scale-dependent features.