US 11,710,091 B2
Method and apparatus for identifying, authenticating, tracking and tracing manufactured items
Patrick Chanez, Cheyres (CH); Alain Sager, Bossonnens (CH); Philippe Chatelain, Chavornay (CH); and Erwan Fradet, Nyon (CH)
Assigned to PHILIP MORRIS USA INC., Richmond, VA (US)
Filed by Philip Morris USA Inc., Richmond, VA (US)
Filed on Sep. 9, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/470,127.
Application 17/470,127 is a continuation of application No. 15/617,858, filed on Jun. 8, 2017, granted, now 11,144,863.
Application 15/617,858 is a continuation of application No. 12/405,791, filed on Mar. 17, 2009, granted, now 11,120,387, issued on Sep. 14, 2021.
Claims priority of application No. 08250926 (EP), filed on Mar. 17, 2008.
Prior Publication US 2021/0406809 A1, Dec. 30, 2021
This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.
Int. Cl. G06Q 10/08 (2023.01)
CPC G06Q 10/08 (2013.01) 24 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method for facilitating authentication of manufactured items allocated to containers for shipping, each of the containers for shipping being assigned a container identifier from among a plurality of container identifiers, and each container identifier being a first code, the method comprising:
generating, by at least one processor, a plurality of unit identifiers, each of the plurality of unit identifiers being a second code that (i) corresponds to a respective manufactured item among a plurality of manufactured items produced on a respective production line during a respective time period, and (ii) is an encrypted version of first production details associated with the respective manufactured item, the first production details including a production information code and a counter value, the counter value indicative of a production run of the respective production line, wherein the second code corresponding to the respective manufactured item is generated by
combining the production information code and the counter value to obtain an item identifier for the respective manufactured item,
combining the item identifier with a noise code to obtain a resulting code, the noise code being based on a dynamic secret code and a static code matrix, and
obfuscating the resulting code to obtain the second code corresponding to the respective manufactured item;
marking each of the plurality of manufactured items with a corresponding one of the plurality of unit identifiers;
storing shipping information in a memory device, the shipping information being linked with a production range of manufactured items stored in a container, and the shipping information including (i) the first code for the container, (ii) first production details common to manufactured items within the production range of manufactured items, and (iii) unique production details from among the first production details associated with first and second manufactured items within the production range of manufactured items, wherein
the shipping information is linked with the production range of manufactured items using only the unique production details from among the first production details associated with the first and second manufactured items,
the production range of manufactured items includes manufactured items having non-sequential first production details, and
a memory requirement for storing the shipping information is smaller than a memory requirement based on storing the first code for the container and the second code for each manufactured item stored in the container.