Description:
FIELD OF DISCLOSURE
[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to supply chain management. In particular it pertains to systems to enable product traceability in a supply chain.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE
[0002] The background description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
[0003] Counterfeit goods – most prevalent in the consumer goods domain- are goods made or sold under another's brand name without the brand owner’s authorization. The primary objective is to make money since counterfeit goods capitalize on reputation of well-reputed brand names, such reputation acquired with years – and sometimes centuries – of hard work and marketing efforts on which billions of dollars may have been invested by the brand owners while manufacturers of counterfeit goods incur no such expense. Besides, counterfeit goods are usually of much poorer quality than the genuine ones, do not comply to relevant safety standards, use cheap, hazardous and unapproved materials and make various other efforts to cut costs somehow. Counterfeit goods manufacturers even employ child labor in manufacturing plants dedicated to producing such goods. All these may very adversely impact the reputation, and consequently, market share and profit, of the brand owners. Because of these adverse effects, most nations have well developed legal frameworks to prevent counterfeiting and such goods usually infringe on trademarks, patents, copyrights or any combination of those of the brand owners while they try to ‘pass off’ their goods as those of the brand owners. Allied with counterfeiting is knock off which is a colloquial term describing products that copy or imitate the physical appearance of other products, without copying the brand name/logo/trademark. Depending upon laws of a country these may also be considered illegal, if they are intended to confuse consumers. Pirated goods are another form of counterfeiting, wherein copyrighted products such as music, movies and software are copied without permission and sold via unauthorized distribution channels. The customer usually has no means to determine whether a product is counterfeit or not, even if it is in his interest to do so.
[0004] For instance, while buying a bottle of mineral water, its customer is never sure about authenticity of the bottle. He/she has no means to know whether the bottle has come from the company’s factory and contains filtered/mineral water or it has just come out from local filler containing just the tap water. In a similar manner, this problem applies to all packaged goods of reputable brands mass produced such as medicines, medicated drips and saline water, auto parts, FMCG products such as packaged soft drinks, beer, chips, soft drinks, beer, chips etc. Even expensive branded goods such as purses, clothes, pens, jewelry and toys are susceptible to counterfeiting. Counterfeiting exists even in currency notes and other financial documents.
[0005] As can be appreciated, counterfeiting thus is a major problem. So much so that International Chamber of Commerce in a 2008 study estimated that in by 2015 the global value of counterfeit and pirated goods could be $1.77 trillion, almost equal to GDP of Brazil. Counterfeit products make up 5 to 7% of world trade and have cost an estimated 2.5 million jobs worldwide, with hundreds of thousands of jobs lost in the U.S. alone.
[0006] Manufacturers of branded goods have also been making vigorous efforts to protect their brands and reputation. Typically, this involves special packaging and labeling strategies. Anti-pilfer packaging is almost the norm for many items, most importantly in pharmaceutical products such as medications where an inferior quality tablet can cause even death for which laws of a nation may very well hold the manufacturer responsible for not correctly packaging its product.
[0007] As is known, a supply chain with various stages, each represented/controlled managed by an entity connects a customer to a factory producing , for example, a fast moving consumer good (FMCG) like a bottle of shampoo or a packet of chips. For instance, a beverage bottle is produced and bulk-packed at a manufacturer site, then moves to a state distributor, then to a city warehouse, a local warehouse and finally a retail shop (that can itself be quite big like cash and carry stores, super market etc. or as small as a ‘mom and pop’ shop), before it gets into a customer’s hands. As elaborated above, complete manufacturing plants making counterfeit goods exist and counterfeiting can start there itself. Each of consequent stages as well as in between transit systems are potential locations where counterfeiting can occur because of its huge money making potential and, many times, even mischief causing potential.
[0008] There exist some mechanisms for detection of counterfeit goods. For example, holographic stickers are a well-established method used to identify ‘genuine’ goods. Holography enables a light field, which is generally the product of a light source scattered off objects, to be recorded and later reconstructed when the original light field is no longer present, due to the absence of the original objects. It can be understood as similar to sound recording whereby a sound field created by vibrating matter like musical instruments or vocal cords is encoded in such a way that it can be reproduced later, without the presence of the original vibrating matter. Holography has found very wide use, aided also by falling prices of the technology. So much so that even amateur holographers are aplenty now. This has also made the technology easily available to counterfeiters as well and holographic stickers can as well be counterfeited thus leading to drop in their effectiveness as a tool to counter counterfeiting.
[0009] With the advent of computers and related technologies, barcodes/QR codes have been emerging as product traceability/ counterfeiting detection tools in recent times. A barcode is a machine-readable optical label that contains information about the item to which it is attached. It is a one dimensional figure designed for computer recognition using optical scanning. It consists of thick and thin lines to represent alphanumeric data. Data is represented by varying thickness and spacing of the lines and can be further interpreted by appropriate computer programs that take their inputs from optical scanners reading the barcode. A barcode is created by a barcode printer and contains information that can be read by an appropriately configured barcode scanner, such information typically being a product ID (for example, a serial number and a date of manufacture. A QR code (abbreviated from Quick Response Code) is a type of matrix/ two-dimensional barcode first designed for the automotive industry in Japan. It can use four standardized encoding modes (numeric, alphanumeric, byte/binary, and kanji) to efficiently store data. Extensions of such standardized encoding modes are also quite often deployed. A QR code offers fast readability and much greater data storage capacity compared to standard barcodes and thus has been gaining very fast acceptance in supply chain management. Typical applications include product tracking, item identification, time tracking, document management, and general marketing. A QR code consists of black squares arranged in a square grid on a white background, which can be read by an imaging device such as a camera, and processed using Reed–Solomon error correction until the image can be appropriately interpreted. The required data is then extracted from patterns that are present in both horizontal and vertical components of the image.
[00010] Barcodes/QR codes are printed on labels or directly on product packets/bottles using very fast speed variable data printing on the production line itself ( or in a downstream packaging line) to uniquely identify each unit of a product being produced. Such printing is almost a prerequisite in all mass produced goods such as packaged foodstuffs and beverages, personal care products (shampoos and soaps for example) and pharmaceuticals. Data to fully identify each unit such as weight, product code, batch/lot code, production date, expiry date and unique identity (UID)/ serial number is incorporated in a barcode/ QR code, including even more traceability data for each unit, if required. For example, details regarding quality control person who finally passed the unit, workers who produced the unit, complete details of constituents that were used in producing the unit ( such as their suppliers, batch numbers etc.) can be included in a barcode/ QR code, and extracted and used when needed.
[00011] However, barcodes and QR codes are as well increasingly being copied by counterfeiters and can easily dupe the ignorant customer. Further, all such techniques require cumbersome detection systems to be of any help in product traceability / counterfeit products detection. Such systems are not available to the customer - one who is paying the most and likely to be affected/harmed the most – by the counterfeit product. Even if a counterfeit product is detected, such systems do not offer complete traceability making it extremely difficult if not impossible to determine the locations/ points where a counterfeit product has entered its supply chain. As can be readily appreciated, such identification is critical for the genuine product manufacturers to take any effective action against counterfeiters.
[00012] Hence there is a need in the art for a system that ensures complete tracing of a product right from its production to its sale to an end customer. The system should be very easily available to all constituents/ entities of a supply chain including the customer and be very easy to deploy/implement.
[00013] All publications herein are incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual publication or patent application were specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference. Where a definition or use of a term in an incorporated reference is inconsistent or contrary to the definition of that term provided herein, the definition of that term provided herein applies and the definition of that term in the reference does not apply.
[00014] In some embodiments, the numbers expressing quantities or dimensions of items, and so forth, used to describe and claim certain embodiments of the invention are to be understood as being modified in some instances by the term “about.” Accordingly, in some embodiments, the numerical parameters set forth in the written description and attached claims are approximations that can vary depending upon the desired properties sought to be obtained by a particular embodiment. In some embodiments, the numerical parameters should be construed in light of the number of reported significant digits and by applying ordinary rounding techniques. Notwithstanding that the numerical ranges and parameters setting forth the broad scope of some embodiments of the invention are approximations, the numerical values set forth in the specific examples are reported as precisely as practicable. The numerical values presented in some embodiments of the invention may contain certain errors necessarily resulting from the standard deviation found in their respective testing measurements.
[00015] As used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “a,” “an,” and “the” includes plural reference unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Also, as used in the description herein, the meaning of “in” includes “in” and “on” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.
[00016] The recitation of ranges of values herein is merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range. Unless otherwise indicated herein, each individual value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g. “such as”) provided with respect to certain embodiments herein is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element essential to the practice of the invention.
[00017] Groupings of alternative elements or embodiments of the invention disclosed herein are not to be construed as limitations. Each group member can be referred to and claimed individually or in any combination with other members of the group or other elements found herein. One or more members of a group can be included in, or deleted from, a group for reasons of convenience and/or patentability. When any such inclusion or deletion occurs, the specification is herein deemed to contain the group as modified thus fulfilling the written description of all groups used in the appended claims.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
[00018] Some of the objects of the present disclosure, which at least one embodiment herein satisfies are as listed herein below.
[00019] It is an object of the present disclosure to provide for a system that ensures complete tracing of a product right from its production to its sale to an end customer, and can readily identify counterfeit products.
[00020] It is another object of the present disclosure to provide for a system as above that is very easily and continuously available to all its users such as various constituents/entities of supply chain of a product and its end customers, and is very easy to deploy and implement.
[00021] It is another object of the present disclosure to provide for a system as above that informs a manufacturer when a counterfeit product is detected as well as possible locations where counterfeiting may have taken place.
[00022] It is yet another object of the present disclosure to provide for a system as above that encourages customers to use it and tells them reason why product he/she is buying may be a counterfeit one.

SUMMARY
[00023] This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form to be further described below in the Detailed Description. This summary is not intended to identity key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter.
[00024] The present disclosure mainly relates to systems to enable product traceability in a supply chain. In particular it relates to a system and a device to enable product traceability in a supply chain using server/cloud based verification.
[00025] In an aspect, present disclosure proposes a system for product traceability in a supply chain, the system including: a non-transitory storage device having embodied therein one or more routines operable to enable product traceability in the supply chain; and one or more processors coupled to the non-transitory storage device and operable to execute the one or more routines, wherein the one or more routines can include: a product identifier and intended product distribution path storage module, which when executed by the one or more processors, can store one or more attributes for an original product, the one or more attributes including at least a unique product identifier and intended distribution path for the original product; a product identifier receive module, which when executed by the one or more processors, can receive a set of scanned product attributes from a computing device that is configured to scan a potential counterfeit product at an entity, the set of scanned product attributes comprising at least a second product identifier and location of the entity; and a product validation module, which when executed by the one or more processors, can evaluate whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product based on comparison of the second product identifier with the unique product identifier, and further based on assessment of location of the entity with respect to the intended distribution path.
[00026] In another aspect, the intended distribution path can include one or more entities selected from any or a combination of a distributor, a dealer, a retailer, a master distributor, a supply-chain entity, a warehouse, and a customer.
[00027] In yet another aspect, the one or more attributes can further include manufacturing date of the original product, expiry date of the original product, batch number of the original product, date of manufacturing of the original product, manufacturing-related attribute of the original product, threshold of number of times the set of scanned product attributes should be received, location tolerance for the original product, manufacturer details of the original product, details of entities that form part of the intended distribution path, and identifiers of the entities that form part of the intended distribution path.
[00028] In an aspect, the evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product can be further based on number of times the set of scanned product attributes has been received, wherein if the number of times the set of scanned product attributes has been received is greater than the threshold, the potential counterfeit product can be declared as being counterfeit.
[00029] In another aspect, the evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product can be based on the one or more attributes.
[00030] In yet another aspect, the one or more attributes can be dynamically added or removed and allotted weights, wherein the weights allotted to the one or more attributes can be pre-determined or automatically allotted based upon prior historical data of the original product regarding traceability.
[00031] In an aspect, the potential counterfeit product can be declared as being counterfeit when the location of the entity is outside the location tolerance for the original product.
[00032] In another aspect, the set of scanned product attributes can include an identifier of the entity, and the potential counterfeit product can be declared as counterfeit when the identifier of the entity does not match with identifiers of entities that form part of the intended distribution path.
[00033] In an aspect, present disclosure proposes a device including: a non-transitory storage device having embodied therein one or more routines operable to enable product traceability in a supply chain; and one or more processors coupled to the non-transitory storage device and operable to execute the one or more routines, wherein the one or more routines can include: a potential counterfeit product scanning module, which when executed by the one or more processors, can scan a potential counterfeit product to obtain set of scanned product attributes, the set of scanned product attributes including at least an identifier of the potential counterfeit product, and location of entity associated with the device; a scanned product attributes transmission module, which when executed by the one or more processors, can transmit the set of scanned product attributes to a central computing device, wherein the central computing device can store one or more attributes of an original product, the one or more attributes including at least a unique product identifier and an intended distribution path for the original product, and wherein the central computing device, upon receipt of the set of scanned product attributes, can evaluate whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product based on comparison of the identifier of the potential counterfeit product with the unique product identifier, and further based on assessment of location of the entity with respect to the intended distribution path; and a product validity confirmation module, which when executed by the one or more processors, can receive outcome of evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product.
[00034] In an aspect of the device, the central computing device can be any or a combination of a server or a cloud.
[00035] In another aspect of the device, the intended distribution path can include one or more entities selected from any or a combination of a distributor, a dealer, a retailer, a master distributor, a supply-chain entity, a warehouse, and a customer.
[00036] In yet another aspect of the device, the one or more attributes can further include manufacturing date, expiry date, batch number, date of manufacturing, a manufacturing attribute, threshold of number of times the set of scanned product attributes has been received, location tolerance for the original product, manufacturer details, details of entities that form part of the intended distribution path, and identifiers of the entities that form part of the intended distribution path.
[00037] In another aspect of the device, the evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product can be further based on number of times the set of scanned product attributes has been received, wherein if the number of times the set of scanned product attributes has been received is greater than the threshold, the potential counterfeit product can be declared as being counterfeit.
[00038] In yet another aspect of the device, the evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product can be based on the one or more attributes.
[00039] In an aspect of the device , the one or more attributes can be dynamically added or removed and allotted weights, wherein the weights allotted to the one or more attributes can be pre-determined or automatically allotted based upon prior historical data of the original product regarding traceability.
[00040] In another aspect of the device, the potential counterfeit product can be declared as being counterfeit when the location of the entity is outside the location tolerance for the original product.
[00041] In yet another aspect of the device, the set of scanned product attributes can include an identifier of the entity, and wherein the potential counterfeit product can be declared as counterfeit when the identifier of the entity does not match with identifiers of entities that form part of the intended distribution path.
[00042] In an aspect of the device, the entity can be incentivized to scan the potential counterfeit product.
[00043] In another aspect of the device, the manufacturer of the original product can be notified when the potential counterfeit product is evaluated to be counterfeit.
[00044] In yet another aspect of the device, the central computing device can store one or more parameters pertaining to the evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product.
[00045] In an aspect, present disclosure elaborates upon a method for product traceability in a supply chain, wherein the method can include steps of storing, at a computing device one or more attributes for an original product, the one or more attributes including at least a unique product identifier and intended distribution path for the original product; receiving, at the computing device, a set of scanned product attributes from another computing device that is configured to scan a potential counterfeit product at an entity, the set of scanned product attributes comprising at least a second product identifier and location of the entity; and evaluating, at the computing device whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product based on comparison of the second product identifier with the unique product identifier, and further based on assessment of location of the entity with respect to the intended distribution path.
[00046] Various objects, features, aspects and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments, along with the accompanying drawing figures in which like numerals represent like features.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[00047] The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the present disclosure, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the present disclosure. The diagrams are for illustration only, which thus is not a limitation of the present disclosure, and wherein:
[00048] FIG. 1A illustrates a product distribution architecture as usually exists presently (Prior Art), while FIG. 1B illustrates a distribution architecture that is enabled by the proposed system in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.
[00049] FIG. 2 illustrates functional modules of system proposed in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.
[00050] FIG. 3 illustrates functional modules of a device that enables functioning of the proposed system, in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.
[00051] FIGs. 4A to 4F illustrate working of the proposed system from a user’s/customers perspective in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.
[00052] FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary computer system 500 in which or with which embodiments of the present invention may be utilized in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[00053] The following is a detailed description of embodiments of the disclosure depicted in the accompanying drawings. The embodiments are in such detail as to clearly communicate the disclosure. However, the amount of detail offered is not intended to limit the anticipated variations of embodiments; on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims.
[00054] In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the present invention. It will be apparent to one skilled in the art that embodiments of the present invention may be practiced without some of these specific details.
[00055] Embodiments of the present invention include various steps, which will be described below. The steps may be performed by hardware components or may be embodied in machine-executable instructions, which may be used to cause a general-purpose or special-purpose processor programmed with the instructions to perform the steps. Alternatively, steps may be performed by a combination of hardware, software, and firmware and/or by human operators.
[00056] Embodiments of the present invention may be provided as a computer program product, which may include a machine-readable storage medium tangibly embodying thereon instructions, which may be used to program a computer (or other electronic devices) to perform a process. The machine-readable medium may include, but is not limited to, fixed (hard) drives, magnetic tape, floppy diskettes, optical disks, compact disc read-only memories (CD-ROMs), and magneto-optical disks, semiconductor memories, such as ROMs, PROMs, random access memories (RAMs), programmable read-only memories (PROMs), erasable PROMs (EPROMs), electrically erasable PROMs (EEPROMs), flash memory, magnetic or optical cards, or other type of media/machine-readable medium suitable for storing electronic instructions (e.g., computer programming code, such as software or firmware).
[00057] Various methods described herein may be practiced by combining one or more machine-readable storage media containing the code according to the present invention with appropriate standard computer hardware to execute the code contained therein. An apparatus for practicing various embodiments of the present invention may involve one or more computers (or one or more processors within a single computer) and storage systems containing or having network access to computer program(s) coded in accordance with various methods described herein, and the method steps of the invention could be accomplished by modules, routines, subroutines, or subparts of a computer program product.
[00058] If the specification states a component or feature “may”, “can”, “could”, or “might” be included or have a characteristic, that particular component or feature is not required to be included or have the characteristic.
[00059] As used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “a,” “an,” and “the” includes plural reference unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Also, as used in the description herein, the meaning of “in” includes “in” and “on” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.
[00060] Exemplary embodiments will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which exemplary embodiments are shown. These exemplary embodiments are provided only for illustrative purposes and so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those of ordinary skill in the art. The invention disclosed may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Various modifications will be readily apparent to persons skilled in the art. The general principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments and applications without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Moreover, all statements herein reciting embodiments of the invention, as well as specific examples thereof, are intended to encompass both structural and functional equivalents thereof. Additionally, it is intended that such equivalents include both currently known equivalents as well as equivalents developed in the future (i.e., any elements developed that perform the same function, regardless of structure). Also, the terminology and phraseology used is for the purpose of describing exemplary embodiments and should not be considered limiting. Thus, the present invention is to be accorded the widest scope encompassing numerous alternatives, modifications and equivalents consistent with the principles and features disclosed. For purpose of clarity, details relating to technical material that is known in the technical fields related to the invention have not been described in detail so as not to unnecessarily obscure the present invention.
[00061] Thus, for example, it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that the diagrams, schematics, illustrations, and the like represent conceptual views or processes illustrating systems and methods embodying this invention. The functions of the various elements shown in the figures may be provided through the use of dedicated hardware as well as hardware capable of executing associated software. Similarly, any switches shown in the figures are conceptual only. Their function may be carried out through the operation of program logic, through dedicated logic, through the interaction of program control and dedicated logic, or even manually, the particular technique being selectable by the entity implementing this invention. Those of ordinary skill in the art further understand that the exemplary hardware, software, processes, methods, and/or operating systems described herein are for illustrative purposes and, thus, are not intended to be limited to any particular named element.
[00062] The ensuing description provides exemplary embodiments only, and is not intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of the disclosure. Rather, the ensuing description of the exemplary embodiments will provide those skilled in the art with an enabling description for implementing an exemplary embodiment. It should be understood that various changes may be made in the function and arrangement of elements without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure as set forth in the appended claims.
[00063] Specific details are given in the following description to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments. However, it will be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that the embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. For example, circuits, systems, networks, processes, and other components may be shown as components in block diagram form in order not to obscure the embodiments in unnecessary detail. In other instances, well-known circuits, processes, algorithms, structures, and techniques may be shown without unnecessary detail in order to avoid obscuring the embodiments.
[00064] The term “machine-readable storage medium” or “computer-readable storage medium” includes, but is not limited to, portable or non-portable storage devices, optical storage devices, and various other mediums capable of storing, containing, or carrying instruction(s) and/or data. A machine-readable medium may include a non-transitory medium in which data can be stored and that does not include carrier waves and/or transitory electronic signals propagating wirelessly or over wired connections. Examples of a non-transitory medium may include, but are not limited to, a magnetic disk or tape, optical storage media such as compact disk (CD) or digital versatile disk (DVD), flash memory, memory or memory devices. A computer-program product may include code and/or machine-executable instructions that may represent a procedure, a function, a subprogram, a program, a routine, a subroutine, a module, a software package, a class, or any combination of instructions, data structures, or program statements. A code segment may be coupled to another code segment or a hardware circuit by passing and/or receiving information, data, arguments, parameters, or memory contents. Information, arguments, parameters, data, etc. may be passed, forwarded, or transmitted via any suitable means including memory sharing, message passing, token passing, network transmission, etc.
[00065] Furthermore, embodiments may be implemented by hardware, software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description languages, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, firmware, middleware or microcode, the program code or code segments to perform the necessary tasks (e.g., a computer-program product) may be stored in a machine-readable medium. A processor(s) may perform the necessary tasks.
[00066] Systems depicted in some of the figures may be provided in various configurations. In some embodiments, the systems may be configured as a distributed system where one or more components of the system are distributed across one or more networks in a cloud computing system.
[00067] In an implementation, the computing devices described herein may be any of a variety of types of computing device, including without limitation, a desktop computer system, a data entry terminal, a laptop computer, a notebook computer, a tablet computer, a handheld personal data assistant, a smartphone, a body-worn computing device incorporated into clothing, a computing device integrated into a vehicle (e.g., a car, a bicycle, etc.), a server, a cluster of servers, a server farm, etc.
[00068] In various embodiments, one or more of the computing devices may link to the proposed system for transfer/exchange of data using wireless or wired link. The link may be based on any of a variety (or combination) of communications technologies by which signals may be exchanged, including without limitation, wired technologies employing electrically and/or optically conductive cabling, and wireless technologies employing infrared, radio frequency or other forms of wireless transmission. It is envisioned that one or more of these links may be implemented as channels of communication (e.g., virtual private network (VPN) channels or other forms of virtual channels) formed between computing devices through portions of the Internet.
[00069] Generally, and in various embodiments, the link will use signaling and/or protocols conforming to any of a variety of industry standards, including without limitation, RS-232C, RS-422, USB, Ethernet (IEEE-802.3) or IEEE-1394. Alternatively or additionally, where one or more portions of the link employ wireless signal transmission, one or more of the interfaces may employ signaling and/or protocols conforming to any of a variety of industry standards, including without limitation, IEEE 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.16, 802.20 (commonly referred to as “Mobile Broadband Wireless Access”); Bluetooth; ZigBee; or a cellular radiotelephone service such as GSM with General Packet Radio Service (GSM/GPRS), CDMA/1xRTT, Enhanced Data Rates for Global Evolution (EDGE), Evolution Data Only/Optimized (EV-DO), Evolution For Data and Voice (EV-DV), High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA), High Speed Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA), 4G LTE, etc.
[00070] The computing devices may store instructions to be executed by processor in storage, such as control routine. The storage may include various types of computer-readable storage media in the form of one or more higher speed memory units, such as read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory (RAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), Double-Data-Rate DRAM (DDRAM), synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), static RAM (SRAM), programmable ROM (PROM), erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), flash memory, polymer memory such as ferroelectric polymer memory, ovonic memory, phase change or ferroelectric memory, silicon-oxide-nitride-oxide-silicon (SONOS) memory, magnetic or optical cards, an array of devices such as Redundant Array of Independent Disks (RAID) drives, solid state memory devices (e.g., USB memory, solid state drives (SSD) and any other type of storage media suitable for storing information. As such, and in various embodiments, storage may provide volatile and/or nonvolatile storage of data, data structures, computer-executable instructions, and so forth. For example, a number of program modules can be stored in memory units, including an operating system, and control routine.
[00071] The computing devices may execute processing operations or logic using a processing circuit in communication with control routine(s). The processing circuit may comprise various hardware elements, software elements, or a combination of both. Examples of hardware elements may include devices, logic devices, components, processors, microprocessors, circuits, processor circuits, circuit elements (e.g., transistors, resistors, capacitors, inductors, and so forth), integrated circuits, application specific integrated circuits (ASIC), programmable logic devices (PLD), digital signal processors (DSP), field programmable gate array (FPGA), memory units, logic gates, registers, semiconductor device, chips, microchips, chip sets, and so forth. Examples of software elements may include software components, programs, applications, computer programs, application programs, system programs, software development programs, machine programs, operating system software, middleware, firmware, software modules, routines, subroutines, functions, methods, procedures, software interfaces, application program interfaces (API), instruction sets, computing code, computer code, code segments, computer code segments, words, values, symbols, or any combination thereof. Determining whether an embodiment is implemented using hardware elements and/or software elements may vary in accordance with any number of factors, such as desired computational rate, power levels, heat tolerances, processing cycle budget, input data rates, output data rates, memory resources, data bus speeds and other design or performance constraints, as desired for a given implementation.
[00072] In various embodiments, one or more of the control routines used in the proposed system may comprise a combination of an operating system, device drivers and/or application-level routines (e.g., so-called “software suites” provided on disc media, “applets” obtained from a remote server, etc.). Where an operating system is included, the operating system may be any of a variety of available operating systems appropriate for whatever corresponding ones of the processor circuits and, including without limitation, Windows™, OS X™, Linux®, or Android OS™. Where one or more device drivers are included, those device drivers may provide support for any of a variety of other components, whether hardware or software components, that comprise one or more of the computing devices.
[00073] As used herein, and unless the context dictates otherwise, the term “communication network” or “network” is intended to include internet, LAN, WAN, intranet or cloud networks or any communication medium possible for interaction among the various devices elaborated herein.
[00074] In an aspect, the proposed system (interchangeably termed as system herein) can be operatively configured as a website accessible by any Internet enabled computing device, and can as well be configured to be accessed using a mobile application that can be downloaded on a mobile device that can connect to Internet. In such manner, the proposed system can be available 24*7 to its users. Any other manner of implementation of the proposed system or a part thereof is well within the scope of the present disclosure/invention. The computing device can be a PC, a tablet, a smart phone and other like devices.
[00075] Each of the appended claims defines a separate invention, which for infringement purposes is recognized as including equivalents to the various elements or limitations specified in the claims. Depending on the context, all references below to the "invention" may in some cases refer to certain specific embodiments only. In other cases it will be recognized that references to the "invention" will refer to subject matter recited in one or more, but not necessarily all, of the claims.
[00076] Various terms as used herein are shown below. To the extent a term used in a claim is not defined below, it should be given the broadest definition persons in the pertinent art have given that term as reflected in printed publications and issued patents at the time of filing.
[00077] The present disclosure mainly relates to systems to enable product traceability in a supply chain. In particular it relates to a system and a device to enable product traceability in a supply chain using server/cloud based verification, and thereby aid in counterfeit products detection as well.
[00078] In an aspect, present disclosure proposes a system for product traceability in a supply chain, the system including: a non-transitory storage device having embodied therein one or more routines operable to enable product traceability in the supply chain; and one or more processors coupled to the non-transitory storage device and operable to execute the one or more routines, wherein the one or more routines can include: a product identifier and intended product distribution path storage module, which when executed by the one or more processors, can store one or more attributes for an original product, the one or more attributes including at least a unique product identifier and intended distribution path for the original product; a product identifier receive module, which when executed by the one or more processors, can receive a set of scanned product attributes from a computing device that is configured to scan a potential counterfeit product at an entity, the set of scanned product attributes comprising at least a second product identifier and location of the entity; and a product validation module, which when executed by the one or more processors, can evaluate whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product based on comparison of the second product identifier with the unique product identifier, and further based on assessment of location of the entity with respect to the intended distribution path.
[00079] In another aspect, the intended distribution path can include one or more entities selected from any or a combination of a distributor, a dealer, a retailer, a master distributor, a supply-chain entity, a warehouse, and a customer.
[00080] In yet another aspect, the one or more attributes can further include manufacturing date of the original product, expiry date of the original product, batch number of the original product, date of manufacturing of the original product, manufacturing-related attribute of the original product, threshold of number of times the set of scanned product attributes should be received, location tolerance for the original product, manufacturer details of the original product, details of entities that form part of the intended distribution path, and identifiers of the entities that form part of the intended distribution path.
[00081] In an aspect, the evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product can be further based on number of times the set of scanned product attributes has been received, wherein if the number of times the set of scanned product attributes has been received is greater than the threshold, the potential counterfeit product can be declared as being counterfeit.
[00082] In another aspect, the evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product can be based on the one or more attributes.
[00083] In yet another aspect, the one or more attributes can be dynamically added or removed and allotted weights, wherein the weights allotted to the one or more attributes can be pre-determined or automatically allotted based upon prior historical data of the original product regarding traceability.
[00084] In an aspect, the potential counterfeit product can be declared as being counterfeit when the location of the entity is outside the location tolerance for the original product.
[00085] In another aspect, the set of scanned product attributes can include an identifier of the entity, and the potential counterfeit product can be declared as counterfeit when the identifier of the entity does not match with identifiers of entities that form part of the intended distribution path.
[00086] In an aspect, present disclosure proposes a device including: a non-transitory storage device having embodied therein one or more routines operable to enable product traceability in a supply chain; and one or more processors coupled to the non-transitory storage device and operable to execute the one or more routines, wherein the one or more routines can include: a potential counterfeit product scanning module, which when executed by the one or more processors, can scan a potential counterfeit product to obtain set of scanned product attributes, the set of scanned product attributes including at least an identifier of the potential counterfeit product, and location of entity associated with the device; a scanned product attributes transmission module, which when executed by the one or more processors, can transmit the set of scanned product attributes to a central computing device, wherein the central computing device can store one or more attributes of an original product, the one or more attributes including at least a unique product identifier and an intended distribution path for the original product, and wherein the central computing device, upon receipt of the set of scanned product attributes, can evaluate whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product based on comparison of the identifier of the potential counterfeit product with the unique product identifier, and further based on assessment of location of the entity with respect to the intended distribution path; and a product validity confirmation module, which when executed by the one or more processors, can receive outcome of evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product.
[00087] In an aspect of the device, the central computing device can be any or a combination of a server or a cloud.
[00088] In another aspect of the device, the intended distribution path can include one or more entities selected from any or a combination of a distributor, a dealer, a retailer, a master distributor, a supply-chain entity, a warehouse, and a customer.
[00089] In yet another aspect of the device, the one or more attributes can further include manufacturing date, expiry date, batch number, date of manufacturing, a manufacturing attribute, threshold of number of times the set of scanned product attributes has been received, location tolerance for the original product, manufacturer details, details of entities that form part of the intended distribution path, and identifiers of the entities that form part of the intended distribution path.
[00090] In another aspect of the device, the evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product can be further based on number of times the set of scanned product attributes has been received, wherein if the number of times the set of scanned product attributes has been received is greater than the threshold, the potential counterfeit product can be declared as being counterfeit.
[00091] In yet another aspect of the device, the evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product can be based on the one or more attributes.
[00092] In an aspect of the device, the one or more attributes can be dynamically added or removed and allotted weights, wherein the weights allotted to the one or more attributes can be pre-determined or automatically allotted based upon prior historical data of the original product regarding traceability.
[00093] In another aspect of the device, the potential counterfeit product can be declared as being counterfeit when the location of the entity is outside the location tolerance for the original product.
[00094] In yet another aspect of the device, the set of scanned product attributes can include an identifier of the entity, and wherein the potential counterfeit product can be declared as counterfeit when the identifier of the entity does not match with identifiers of entities that form part of the intended distribution path.
[00095] In an aspect of the device, the entity can be incentivized to scan the potential counterfeit product.
[00096] In another aspect of the device, the manufacturer of the original product can be notified when the potential counterfeit product is evaluated to be counterfeit.
[00097] In yet another aspect of the device, the central computing device can store one or more parameters pertaining to the evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product.
[00098] In an aspect, present disclosure elaborates upon a method for product traceability in a supply chain, wherein the method can include steps of storing, at a computing device one or more attributes for an original product, the one or more attributes including at least a unique product identifier and intended distribution path for the original product; receiving, at the computing device, a set of scanned product attributes from another computing device that is configured to scan a potential counterfeit product at an entity, the set of scanned product attributes comprising at least a second product identifier and location of the entity; and evaluating, at the computing device whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product based on comparison of the second product identifier with the unique product identifier, and further based on assessment of location of the entity with respect to the intended distribution path.
[00099] Various objects, features, aspects and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments, along with the accompanying drawing figures in which like numerals represent like features.
[000100] FIG. 1A illustrates a product distribution architecture as usually exists presently (Prior Art), while FIG. 1B illustrates a distribution architecture that is enabled by the proposed system in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.
[000101] As illustrated in FIG. 1A, supply chain of a product to its customer may have different intermediaries (interchangeably termed as entities herein) while the customer can also be termed as an entity. As illustrated, in an exemplary embodiment, a product 118 produced at a factory 102 may first be stored at a dispatch station 104 that may be within the factory premises itself. Thereafter, it can proceed to a state warehouse 106, a city warehouse 108, a local warehouse 110 and finally to a retail shop 112 from where customer 114 can purchase it. As can be appreciated, at all such points (as well as between them, while the product 118 is on transit trucks, for example), product 118 can be pilfered and replaced with a counterfeit one to avoid detection of the pilferage. While it may have barcode/QR code labels, those can easily be copied and stuck on the counterfeit product and so it is very difficult to detect that a counterfeit product has been introduced in the supply chain or the point/stage/entity where such counterfeiting has taken place. This is all the more at customer 114’s end since the customer 114 typically has no ready means to read barcode/QR code information and to determine the product’s genuineness.
[000102] In a similar manner, even when a product 120 is delivered directly from dispatch station 104 to customer 114 using an online order system 116 there is a possibility that it can be replaced with a counterfeit one since such attempts maybe made at the dispatch station 114 itself, as well in the supply chain system of the online order system 116 itself.
[000103] The pilfered product (118 or 120) can be diverted to another supply chain with different entities. It may be adulterated and so, thus may pose a danger to a customer although it is seemingly genuine. The manufacturer is interested in identifying such alternate distribution channels as well and the customer should also be warned appropriately. Such a diverted product can, hence, as well be considered as a counterfeit product since it is not following its intended/authorized distribution path.
[000104] FIG. 1B illustrates a distribution architecture that is enabled by the proposed system that can provide for complete product traceability in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.
[000105] As illustrate, proposed product traceability system 134 can use a label generation system 122 that can generate product label data 126 with unique product identifier and attributes (as elaborated hereunder) wherein the product attributes can be provided by manufacturer /factory 102. The product label data 126 can be used to generate a label that can be put on the product so as to create a labeled product 128 (or another labeled product 136). Each product during a production process can thus be uniquely labeled using a unique product identifier associated with various product attributes. As can be appreciated, some product attributes (for example, batch code, date of production, date of expiry etc.) may remain same for many products (i.e. different units of same product category, for example toothpaste units and the like ) while other product attributes such as intended distribution path may vary. The labels carrying such information can be generated in form of QR codes/barcodes while corresponding product attributes information of each product associated with its unique product identifier can be stored in the cloud in a database table that can be operatively connected to system 134. In an exemplary embodiment, the database table can be configured in system 134 itself, as illustrated by database 138.
[000106] In an exemplary embodiment, QR codes/barcodes based on different product label data 126 need not be printed on labels but instead can be printed directly on the products. Variable data printing can be deployed for printing such labels or for printing such QR codes/barcodes directly on to the products. As can be understood, each barcode/QR code will be different from another as at least its unique product identifier will differ. In this manner, a product unit differs from another one.
[000107] In an exemplary embodiment, proposed system can use QR codes/barcodes that can be printed on various products being manufactured, or stuck on them as labels and further used as elaborated hereunder. The codes can carry product attributes to enable identification of genuine products as well as detection of counterfeit products.
[000108] In an aspect, proposed system can use a unique product identifier for each product being manufactured (such product termed as ‘original product’ herein and connoting as well each item/unit of various products. For example, two toothpaste tubes of exactly same attributes are considered as two different products, each with a unique product identifier). The unique product identifier can be generated for original products across different production lines, manufacturing sites etc. so that no original product carries the same unique product identifier.
[000109] In another aspect, the unique product identifier can be associated with corresponding original product attributes such as manufacturing date of the original product, expiry date of the original product, batch number of the original product, date of manufacturing of the original product, manufacturing-related attribute of the original product, threshold of number of times a set of scanned product attributes pertaining to the original product should be received (as elaborated further ), location tolerance for the original product, manufacturer details of the original product, details of entities that form part of the intended distribution path, and identifiers of the entities that form part of the intended distribution path of the original product.
[000110] In yet another aspect, all above data can be stored in a database table (illustrated as database table 138 in FIG. 1B) for each original product being manufactured in such a manner that, using the proposed system 134 and the unique product identifier, all other original product attributes as elaborated above can be retrieved by suitably configured computing devices (mobile devices, for example) that can have access to the database table at any time.
[000111] In an aspect, all above data can further be configured as a QR code/barcode using appropriate QR code /bar code printers. Such QR codes/barcode can be printed on the original products themselves, or printed on labels (using label generation system 122 as elaborated hereunder) that can in turn be affixed on to the original products.
[000112] In an exemplary embodiment, while starting a batch manufacturing process, label generation system 122 can get unique product identifiers in bulk ( their quantity depending upon number of expected original products to be produced) and associate with /assign to each a batch code and a product code. The product code can be a composite code including a 1D code, body code and a cap code and can be automatically generated by the system using one or more starting ‘seeds’ that can be automatically generated or can be provided by a system operator. In a similar manner, a batch code to be affixed on all original products of a batch can be generated. The label generation system 122 can accordingly commit unique product identifiers along with associated original product attributes information in the database table 138 so that such unique product identifiers cannot be allocated to any other production process/labels and then print the labels, each carrying a unique product identifier and its associated original product attributes as elaborated. The labels can be in form of QR Codes /barcodes and can be affixed on each original product as it is being manufactured/bottled/packed at such locations thereupon that they can readily be scanned by appropriately configured scanners. Scanning of labels/QR codes/barcodes affixed on products can be interchangeably termed as scanning of products themselves and attributes extracted by such scanning can be termed as scanned product attributes. Such scanners can be, for example, configured in dispatch systems, point of sale systems and a mobile application, all of which can be operatively connected to the proposed system.
[000113] In another aspect, any unique product identifiers along with original product attributes information left unused ( for example, if some original products are produced defective and fail quality checks, or the batch process leads to lesser production than anticipated) can be released from the database table so that they can be used for future original products if required.
[000114] In this manner, as can be appreciated, each label can carry a unique product identifier along with corresponding original product attributes. The unique product identifier along with corresponding original product attributes can also be stored in database table 138 and such information can be retrievable anytime by suitably configured computing devices.
[000115] As illustrated in FIG.1B, a labeled product 128 (termed only as product 128 herein) carrying a label as elaborated above (or carrying barcode/QR code directly on the product itself) can be scanned at any point in the supply chain of the product 128 such as state warehouse 106 and retail shop 112 and even by customer 1114 using suitably configured computing devices 130-1, 130-2 etc., collectively termed as computing device 130. Computing device 130 can be a mobile device upon which a mobile application can be downloaded to enable the mobile device operate the proposed system.
[000116] As already elaborated, at any point in the supply chain product 128 can be exchanged with a potential counterfeit product. As the product is scanned, product attributes information therein containing at least the unique product identifier and other attributes as elaborated herein can be sent to the system 134 by a computing device 130 located at or being operated by an associated entity ( such as a retail shop owner or a customer) the computing device 130 to the proposed product traceability system 134 and compared with the corresponding information therein, based upon the unique product identifier, as illustrated by cloud based verification 132. In case of a counterfeit product, information on its label may not be matched/found in the database table 138 thereby leading to easy detection of the counterfeit product. Alarms can accordingly be raised and the manufacturer/ customer suitably informed. One product attribute can be its intended distribution path in a supply chain and a deviation therein above a certain tolerance level may also trigger the alarm. In this manner, a product not following its intended distribution path may also be considered as a counterfeit product and lead to triggering of alarms/ notifications as appropriate. Proposed system 134 and the database table 138 can be configured in a central computing device that can be in the cloud. Determination of counterfeit products can proceed on basis of a plurality of other factors that can also be weighted, as elaborated further.
[000117] In a similar manner, even if a product is being provided to a customer via an online order system (for example product 136 as illustrated in FIG. 1B) it can be fully traced in corresponding supply chain and any pilfering /counterfeiting detected.
[000118] In this manner, proposed system can enable a cloud based verification process for product traceability in a supply chain wherein a product can be traced at all points/entities of the supply chain, including the customer.
[000119] FIG. 2 illustrates functional modules of system proposed in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.
[000120] In an aspect, the proposed system (interchangeably termed as system herein) can be operatively configured as a website, or be operatively connected to a website that is accessible by any Internet enabled computing device such as a mobile device. In such manner, the proposed system can be available 24*7 to its users. In an exemplary embodiment, the system can be configured in a central computing device that can be any or a combination of a server or a cloud. The Internet enabled central computing device can be a PC, a tablet, a smart phone and other like devices. Any other manner of implementation of the proposed system or a part thereof is completely within the scope of the present disclosure/invention.
[000121] In an exemplary embodiment, proposed system to detect counterfeit products can include a product identifier and intended product distribution path storage module 202, a product identifier receive module 204 and a product validation module 206.
Product Identifier and Intended Product Distribution Path Storage Module 202
[000122] In an aspect, module 202 can store one or more attributes for an original product, the one or more attributes including at least a unique product identifier and intended distribution path for the original product. Further, module 202 can provide the one or more attributes for the original product (the one or more attributes including at least the unique product identifier and the intended distribution path) to module 206.
[000123] In another aspect, the intended distribution path can include one or more entities selected from any or a combination of a distributor, a dealer, a retailer, a master distributor, a supply-chain entity, a warehouse, and a customer.
[000124] In yet another aspect, the one or more attributes can include manufacturing date of the original product, expiry date of the original product, batch number of the original product, date of manufacturing of the original product, manufacturing-related attribute of the original product, threshold of number of times a set of scanned product attributes pertaining to the original product ( as elaborated further) should be received, location tolerance for the original product, manufacturer details of the original product, details of entities that form part of the intended distribution path, and identifiers of the entities that form part of the intended distribution path.
Product Identifier Receive Module 204
[000125] In an aspect, module 204 can receive a set of scanned product attributes from a computing device that is configured to scan a potential counterfeit product at an entity, wherein the set of scanned product attributes can include at least a second product identifier and location of the entity.
[000126] In an exemplary embodiment, a mobile device can scan a product label on the potential counterfeit product (such process interchangeably termed as scanning a product) and send scanned product attributes comprising at least a second product identifier and location of the entity to module 204 that can in turn transfer the data to module 206 for further processing therein as elaborated hereunder.
Product Validation Module 206
[000127] In an aspect, module 206 can evaluate whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product based on comparison of the second product identifier with the unique product identifier, and further based on assessment of location of the entity with respect to the intended distribution path. For the purpose, module 206 can receive from module 202 the one or more attributes for the original product (the one or more attributes including at least the unique product identifier and the intended distribution path), and from module 204 the set of scanned product attributes of the potential counterfeit product scanned at the entity, wherein the set of scanned product attributes can include at least a second product identifier and location of the entity.
[000128] In an aspect, module 206 can consider the number of times the potential counterfeit product has been scanned and the set of scanned product attributes received by the proposed system (for example, by using point of sales systems, or goods entry/dispatch systems configured with appropriate scanning systems that can provide a signal to the proposed system and thereby operate in a counter therein) to determine whether the potential counterfeit product is indeed a counterfeit or not.
[000129] For instance, supply chain design (intended distribution path) of an item/product may mandate a total of five scans and no more. At each dispatch point, for example a production unit’s dispatch station, a state warehouse, a city warehouse, a local warehouse and at an actual point of sale (POS), the product may be scanned thereby incrementing a counter in the proposed system as elaborated above. Since the fifth scan terminates the supply chain (as it is designed that the product be sold to an end consumer at the fifth point), no further scanning of the product is anticipated. However, if the proposed system detects a sixth scan, it can be a strong indication that the product has been put in a distribution path not intended and so, either has been pilfered/diverted without authorization or is not a genuine product (for instance label of a genuine product may have been duplicated, or torn from an original product and stuck on a counterfeit product). In both circumstances, as the potential counterfeit product can cause damage to the genuine product’s manufacturer and/or the customer, it can be termed as a counterfeit product for purposes of this disclosure herein.
[000130] In an exemplary embodiment, proposed system can raise one or more alerts upon determination of a counterfeit product as elaborated above. The alert and/or the location of the entity can be sent to the system administrators/manufacturers of the product thereby enabling them to take immediate corrective actions. An alert can also be sent to the computing device / mobile device/POS system that sent the scanned product attributes to module 204 thereby alerting an entity/customer associated with the computing device / mobile device/POS system about the counterfeit product.
[000131] In an aspect, the potential counterfeit product can be declared as being counterfeit when the location of the entity is outside the location tolerance for the product. In an exemplary embodiment, location of the entity can be received by module 204 as elaborated above. For example, intended distribution path of a product (say a packet of chips) may indicate the last entity at a certain location (for example, at a local shop). However, the local shop may have sold/ given the packet of chips to a sales person who may be selling such packets while moving in buses close to the local shop. To avoid false alarms in such contexts, a location tolerance may be built in the location of the entity. For instance, a tolerance of 5 kilometers radius may be given to the entity of the local shop and, as long as the packet of chips is within such radius from the local shop, the packet of chips may not be declared as counterfeit by the proposed system.
[000132] In another aspect, the set of scanned product attributes can include an identifier of the entity, and the potential counterfeit product can be declared as counterfeit when the identifier of the entity does not match with identifiers of entities that form part of the intended distribution path.
[000133] In an exemplary embodiment, the identifiers of entities that form part of the intended distribution path can be their location coordinates. Using GPS system ( or any other means of location determination such as triangulation using cell-towers, using location of wi-fi access points, using iBeacons etc.) a mobile device that is scanning the product/product label at the entity, proposed system can receive the location coordinates of the entity where the product is at the moment. Module 206 can determine if the location coordinates received match any of location coordinates of the entities in the intended distribution path. In case there is no match, it can readily be understood that the product is a counterfeit (that is, has been diverted from its intended distribution path and/or a label put on a non-genuine product, as elaborated above). Accordingly, module 206 can enable proposed system to take appropriate actions such as raising alerts etc., as elaborated herein.
[000134] In another aspect, module 206 can evaluate whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product based on the scanned product attributes received and their deviation, if any, from the attributes expected if the product was genuine. In alternate exemplary embodiments, these attributes as well as weightage given to them can be varied so as to arrive at an overall “counterfeit index” and, if such index is above a pre-determined threshold value the potential counterfeit product can be determined to be an actual genuine product.
[000135] In an exemplary embodiment, for an original product such as a packet of chips that can be sold even in trains etc., the intended distribution path and /or identifiers of the entities that form part of the intended distribution path may carry little/no weightage as there can be a large variance in that while product expiry date may carry a higher weightage since it should not be sold beyond that. However, for electronic goods with a well-defined distribution channel, the intended distribution path and /or identifiers of the entities that form part of the intended distribution path may carry a higher weightage while product expiry date may carry less weightage.
[000136] In an exemplary embodiment, proposed system can be configured to use original product attributes as under. At each location where counterfeit product is to be determined, these product attributes/parameters can be compared against those of potential counterfeit product attributes. The original product attributes can include, for example, product code (that can include composite information such as body code, cap code etc.), expiry date, batch number, location and location tolerance (herein the tolerance may be enforced only in specific areas such as for example, a town/city or in an area of 50 kms diameter), number of times the potential counterfeit product can be scanned, and distribution path taken by the product. Each of these attributes can be given a weightage and a total weightage above a threshold can identify the potential counterfeit product as a genuine product. As an example, a weightage of 9 out of 12 can indicate that the potential counterfeit product being scanned is genuine and not counterfeit.
[000137] In an exemplary embodiment, the product code can be given a weightage of 3, the expiry date 2, the batch number 2, the location and location tolerance 1, the number of times the potential counterfeit product can be scanned 2, and the distribution path taken by the product 2.
[000138] In an aspect, these attributes/parameters and their weights can be dynamically added or removed based on the context. The weights allotted to the attributes can be pre-determined or be automatically allotted by the proposed system based upon prior historical data of the original product regarding traceability. For example, for products being sold in a moving train or bus, the location tolerance may not make sense and hence may not have to be used. In a similar manner, prior historical data may indicate a high counterfeiting at a particular location. An intended delivery path including that location may give a low weightage to that location so that a location mismatch enables a lower counterfeit index below pre-determined threshold value, thereby indicating that the potential counterfeit product being scanned is counterfeit.
[000139] In this manner, proposed system can allow for various original product attributes /parameters to be used to determine with increased confidence genuine versus counterfeit goods, wherein the original product attributes /parameters can be dynamically added/removed depending upon the context, product etc. so as to fine tune the confidence level of trust in the genuineness of the product.
[000140] In an aspect, the product validation module 206 can, upon determination of a counterfeit product, be configured to provide to a user data to facilitate quick remedial action. Such data can be sent as a trigger/alarm/notification that can be displayed on the device that scanned the potential counterfeit product and sent its product attributes to the proposed system (for instance, a mobile device as elaborated in FIG. 2).
[000141] In another aspect, Module 206 can grant role based access of one/more original product attributes to different users for this purpose. For instance, a customer can be allowed access to product code data of an original product. The customer can compare/verify the original product code data with data of same category printed on the possible counterfeit product (that may have been done by the counterfeiter in order to dupe the user) to determine if the product is indeed counterfeit. In a similar manner a dealer can be provided with batch code of an original product that the dealer can verify against that printed on a possible counterfeit product.
[000142] In an aspect, the proposed system can store one or more parameters pertaining to the evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product. In an exemplary embodiment, if the potential counterfeit product is found to be actually so, parameters on which there was non-conformance between the scanned product attributes and corresponding original product attributes. Analysis of such non-conformance can be done for example, by a suitably configured analytics module that can keep track of failed validations (wherein the potential counterfeit product was found to be indeed a counterfeit) along with all scanned product data and the original product attributes data. Useful analytic reports can be created can indicate for example, locations where counterfeiting / diversion is predominant, products that are heavily prone to counterfeiting, awareness level of different customers regarding counterfeit products in different locations, and the like.
[000143] In an aspect, the analytics module can provide appropriate templates to users of the system to analyze and generate appropriate reports. Various Authentication, Authorization and Accounting (AAA) controls can be enabled to grant role based access and privileges thereon to different users. For example, while a system administrator can generate reports on product traceability and counterfeiting thereupon for complete product range of a manufacturer so as to estimate total losses the manufacturer may be suffering, a dealer can generate a report on total counterfeiting that may have occurred in products received by him, wherein the products may be from a plurality of different manufacturers (each using the proposed system).
[000144] FIG. 3 illustrates functional modules of a device that enables functioning of the proposed system, in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.
[000145] In an aspect, various modules as described hereunder can be configured as a mobile application that can be downloaded on to an Internet enabled mobile device. The mobile device can accordingly connect to the proposed system that can be operatively configured as a website, or be operatively connected to a website. In such manner, the proposed system can be available 24*7 to its users using a mobile application configured on an Internet enabled mobile device.
[000146] In an aspect, the proposed device can include a potential counterfeit product scanning module 302, a scanned product attributes transmission module 306, and a product validity confirmation module 308.
Potential Counterfeit Product Scanning Module 302
[000147] In an aspect, module 302 configured in the device can scan a potential counterfeit product to obtain set of scanned product attributes, wherein the set of scanned product attributes can include at least an identifier of the potential counterfeit product, and location of entity associated with the device.
[000148] In an exemplary embodiment, module 302 can generate a date and time stamp of the scan upon scanning of a potential counterfeit product that can be sent to the proposed system using module 304 and can be stored at product validation module 206. The process can be repeated each time the potential counterfeit product is scanned. A counter configured in module 206 can keep track of the number of scans. In an aspect, module 206 can evaluate whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product based on number of scans, wherein if the number of scans exceeds a threshold, the potential counterfeit product can be declared as being counterfeit.
Scanned Product Attributes Transmission Module 304
[000149] In an aspect, module 304 can transmit the set of scanned product attributes to a central computing device, wherein the central computing device can store one or more attributes of an original product, the one or more attributes including at least a unique product identifier and an intended distribution path for the original product, and wherein the central computing device, upon receipt of the set of scanned product attributes, can evaluate whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product based on comparison of the identifier of the potential counterfeit product with the unique product identifier, and further based on assessment of location of the entity with respect to the intended distribution path.
Product Validity Confirmation Module 306
[000150] In an aspect, module 306 can receive outcome of evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product as generated by module 206 (FIG. 2).
[000151] In an exemplary embodiment, a customer can, using a mobile device configured with module 302, scan a potential counterfeit product to receive its attributes. Module 304 can send the scanned product attributes to a central computing device (that can be configured in the Cloud/ Central Server and can have the proposed system configured within, as described via FIG. 2). Module 204 of the proposed system can receive the scanned product attributes. Product validation module 206 can receive from module 202 the one or more attributes for the original product (the one or more attributes including at least the unique product identifier and the intended distribution path).and from module 204 the set of scanned product attributes of the potential counterfeit product scanned at the entity, wherein the set of scanned product attributes can include at least a second product identifier and location of the entity. Thereby, module 206 can evaluate whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product based on comparison of the second product identifier with the unique product identifier, and further based on assessment of location of the entity with respect to the intended distribution path.
[000152] In another exemplary embodiment, the outcome of evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product as generated by module 206 can be sent as a message on to the mobile device of the customer, the mobile device being configured with module 306 being described herein. The message can carry encouragement/an incentive for the customer for making the efforts to scan the product. The encouragement / incentive can include, for example, a discount code for a future online purchase by the customer, putting unique ID (for example mobile number) of the mobile device used by the customer in a draw of prizes, and the like. Module 306 can inform the user reason why alarm was generated (for example counterfeit product or diversion) as well as provide him/her additional inputs (such as picture of genuine item at production stage) to further encourage and inform him, after receiving corresponding inputs from module 206..
[000153] In another aspect, the intended distribution path can include one or more entities selected from any or a combination of a distributor, a dealer, a retailer, a master distributor, a supply-chain entity, a warehouse, and a customer. As can be appreciated, number of the entities can be varied depending upon links in supply chain of the product and number as well as names provided herein are purely exemplary.
[000154] In yet another aspect, the one or more attributes (of the original product) can include manufacturing date, expiry date, batch number, date of manufacturing, a manufacturing attribute, threshold of number of times the set of scanned product attributes has been received, and location tolerance for the product, manufacturer details, details of entities that form part of the intended distribution path and identifiers of the entities that form part of the intended distribution path.
[000155] In an exemplary embodiment, module 302 can generate a date and time stamp of the scan upon scanning of a potential counterfeit product that can be sent to the proposed system using module 304 and can be stored at product validation module 206. The process can be repeated each time the potential counterfeit product is scanned. A counter configured in module 206 can keep track of the number of scans. In an aspect, module 206 can evaluate whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product based on number of scans, wherein if the number of scans exceeds a threshold, the potential counterfeit product can be declared as being counterfeit.
[000156] FIGs.4A to 4F illustrate working of the proposed system from a user’s/customer’s perspective in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.
[000157] As illustrated in FIG. 4A, a mobile application configured on a customer’s mobile device can enable the customer to scan a product/label thereupon as illustrated at 402. A square 404 can be provided on the customer’s mobile device’s display wherein the customer can scan the product using the mobile application. Thereafter the customer can press button 406 labeled as ‘submit’. Scanned product attributes can be sent to the proposed system as elaborated above.
[000158] As already elaborated, proposed system can determine whether the scanned product is counterfeit or genuine. If counterfeit, a message can be sent to the customer’s mobile device as illustrated at 408 in FIG.4B. The message can explain why the product has been determined to be a counterfeit. At the same time, manufacture of the product may also be suitably alerted. Further, as illustrated at 410, the customer may be thanked for using the system and encouraged by providing an incentive such as a discount code for a future purchase ( that can be, for example, from an online ordering system being administered by the manufacturer)
[000159] In a similar manner, the customer can scan another product as illustrated at FIG.4C. In case the scanned product is determined to be genuine, a message can be sent to the customer’s mobile device as illustrated at 412 in FIG. 4D and the customer may be thanked for using the system and encouraged by providing an incentive such as a discount code for a future purchase, as before.
[000160] In an aspect, the information to be conveyed to a user can vary based upon role of the user. In an exemplary embodiment, as indicated at FIG.4E, in case a retail shop owner scans a potential counterfeit product using his mobile device, and the product is genuine, message conveyed on his mobile device can be, for example, as illustrated at 414 in FIG.4E stating “The product scanned is genuine. It has been dispatched to you from XYZ Ltd., which is the authorized Local Warehouse for your location. Thank you for selling genuine products”. In an alternate exemplary embodiment, if a local warehouse owner scans a potential counterfeit product using his mobile device, and the product is indeed counterfeit, message conveyed on his mobile device can be, for example, as illustrated at 416 in FIG.4F stating “The product scanned is counterfeit. Your location is not in intended distribution path of the product. A message has been sent to the product’s manufacturer. Please do not stock or distribute counterfeit products. Thank you.” As can readily be understood, proposed system can serve as a powerful tool to discourage counterfeiting at any point the supply chain, and likewise encourage stocking and purchase of genuine products. It can also be appreciated that any other suitable product attribute – its expiry date, for example- can likewise be used as appropriate to achieve same purpose.
[000161] FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary computer system 500 in which or with which embodiments of the present invention may be utilized.
[000162] Embodiments of the present disclosure include various steps, which have been described above. A variety of these steps may be performed by hardware components or may be tangibly embodied on a computer-readable storage medium in the form of machine-executable instructions, which may be used to cause a general-purpose or special-purpose processor programmed with instructions to perform these steps. Alternatively, the steps may be performed by a combination of hardware, software, and/or firmware. As shown in the figure, computer system 500 includes an external storage device 510, a bus 520, a main memory 530, a read only memory 540, a mass storage device 550, communication port 560, and a processor 570. A person skilled in the art will appreciate that computer system 500 may include more than one processor and communication ports. Examples of processor 570 include, but are not limited to, an Intel® Itanium® or Itanium 2 processor(s), or AMD® Opteron® or Athlon MP® processor(s), Motorola® lines of processors, FortiSOC™ system on a chip processors or other future processors. Processor 570 may include various modules associated with embodiments of the present invention. Communication port 560 can be any of an RS-232 port for use with a modem based dialup connection, a 10/100 Ethernet port, a Gigabit or 10 Gigabit port using copper or fiber, a serial port, a parallel port, or other existing or future ports. Communication port 560 may be chosen depending on a network, such a Local Area Network (LAN), Wide Area Network (WAN), or any network to which computer system 500 connects. Memory 530 can be Random Access Memory (RAM), or any other dynamic storage device commonly known in the art. Read only memory 540 can be any static storage device(s) e.g., but not limited to, a Programmable Read Only Memory (PROM) chips for storing static information e.g., start-up or BIOS instructions for processor 570. Mass storage 550 may be any current or future mass storage solution, which can be used to store information and/or instructions. Exemplary mass storage solutions include, but are not limited to, Parallel Advanced Technology Attachment (PATA) or Serial Advanced Technology Attachment (SATA) hard disk drives or solid-state drives (internal or external, e.g., having Universal Serial Bus (USB) and/or Firewire interfaces), e.g. those available from Seagate (e.g., the Seagate Barracuda 7200 family) or Hitachi (e.g., the Hitachi Deskstar 7K1000), one or more optical discs, Redundant Array of Independent Disks (RAID) storage, e.g. an array of disks (e.g., SATA arrays), available from various vendors including Dot Hill Systems Corp., LaCie, Nexsan Technologies, Inc. and Enhance Technology, Inc. Bus 520 communicatively couples processor(s) 570 with the other memory, storage and communication blocks. Bus 520 can be, e.g. a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) / PCI Extended (PCI-X) bus, Small Computer System Interface (SCSI), USB or the like, for connecting expansion cards, drives and other subsystems as well as other buses, such a front side bus (FSB), which connects processor 570 to software system. Optionally, operator and administrative interfaces, e.g. a display, keyboard, and a cursor control device, may also be coupled to bus 520 to support direct operator interaction with computer system 500. Other operator and administrative interfaces can be provided through network connections connected through communication port 560. External storage device 510 can be any kind of external hard-drives, floppy drives, IOMEGA® Zip Drives, Compact Disc - Read Only Memory (CD-ROM), Compact Disc - Re-Writable (CD-RW), Digital Video Disk - Read Only Memory (DVD-ROM). Components described above are meant only to exemplify various possibilities. In no way should the aforementioned exemplary computer system limit the scope of the present disclosure.
[000163] Although the proposed system has been elaborated as above to include all the main modules, it is completely possible that actual implementations may include only a part of the proposed modules or a combination of those or a division of those into sub-modules in various combinations across multiple devices that can be operatively coupled with each other, including in the cloud. Further the modules can be configured in any sequence to achieve objectives elaborated. Also, it can be appreciated that proposed system can be configured in a computing device or across a plurality of computing devices operatively connected with each other, wherein the computing devices can be any of a computer, a laptop, a smart phone, an Internet enabled mobile device and the like. All such modifications and embodiments are completely within the scope of the present disclosure.
[000164] As used herein, and unless the context dictates otherwise, the term “coupled to” is intended to include both direct coupling (in which two elements that are coupled to each other or in contact each other) and indirect coupling (in which at least one additional element is located between the two elements). Therefore, the terms “coupled to” and “coupled with” are used synonymously. Within the context of this document terms “coupled to” and “coupled with” are also used euphemistically to mean “communicatively coupled with” over a network, where two or more devices are able to exchange data with each other over the network, possibly via one or more intermediary device.
[000165] Moreover, in interpreting both the specification and the claims, all terms should be interpreted in the broadest possible manner consistent with the context. In particular, the terms “comprises” and “comprising” should be interpreted as referring to elements, components, or steps in a non-exclusive manner, indicating that the referenced elements, components, or steps may be present, or utilized, or combined with other elements, components, or steps that are not expressly referenced. Where the specification claims refers to at least one of something selected from the group consisting of A, B, C ….and N, the text should be interpreted as requiring only one element from the group, not A plus N, or B plus N, etc.
[000166] While the system has been elaborated in an exemplary embodiment as above for traceability of physical goods in order to ensure that they are not subject to counterfeiting, it can readily be understood that the method and techniques can easily be extended to virtual goods such as software. For instance, a software producer may incorporate in a ‘genuine’ copy of a software product a unique product identifier as well as an intended distribution path wherein the distribution path may have various distribution nodes that are authorized/allowed to distribute the product. At each node a check can be made about the previous/present node and an alarm triggered to inform the software producer if the previous/present node is not in the intended distribution path. Likewise, an authorized node may pass on the genuine copy only to another authorized node as indicated in the intended distribution path. A prospective buyer may be enabled before paying for the software product and downloading it from a node to check whether the apparently ‘genuine’ copy is indeed so.
[000167] While some embodiments of the present disclosure have been illustrated and described, those are completely exemplary in nature. The disclosure is not limited to the embodiments as elaborated herein only and it would be apparent to those skilled in the art that numerous modifications besides those already described are possible without departing from the inventive concepts herein. All such modifications, changes, variations, substitutions, and equivalents are completely within the scope of the present disclosure. The inventive subject matter, therefore, is not to be restricted except in the spirit of the appended claims.

ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION
[000168] The present disclosure provides for a system that ensures complete tracing of a product right from its production to its sale to an end customer, and readily identifies counterfeit products.
[000169] The present disclosure provides for a system as above that is very easily and continuously available to all its users such as various constituents of supply chain of a product and its end customers, and is very easy to deploy and implement.
[000170] The present disclosure provides for a system as above that informs a manufacturer when a counterfeit product is detected as well as possible locations where counterfeiting may have taken place.
[000171] The present disclosure provides for a system as above that encourages customers to use it and tells them reason why product he/she is buying may be a fake one.

Claims:
1. A system for product traceability in a supply chain, said system comprising:
a non-transitory storage device having embodied therein one or more routines operable to enable product traceability in the supply chain; and
one or more processors coupled to the non-transitory storage device and operable to execute the one or more routines, wherein the one or more routines include:
a product identifier and intended product distribution path storage module, which when executed by the one or more processors, stores one or more attributes for an original product, said one or more attributes comprising at least a unique product identifier and intended distribution path for the original product;
a product identifier receive module, which when executed by the one or more processors, receives a set of scanned product attributes from a computing device that is configured to scan a potential counterfeit product at an entity, said set of scanned product attributes comprising at least a second product identifier and location of the entity; and
a product validation module, which when executed by the one or more processors, evaluates whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product based on comparison of the second product identifier with the unique product identifier, and further based on assessment of location of the entity with respect to the intended distribution path.
2. The system of claim 1, wherein the intended distribution path comprises one or more entities selected from any or a combination of a distributor, a dealer, a retailer, a master distributor, a supply-chain entity, a warehouse, and a customer.
3. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more attributes further comprise manufacturing date of the original product, expiry date of the original product, batch number of the original product, date of manufacturing of the original product, manufacturing-related attribute of the original product, threshold of number of times said set of scanned product attributes should be received, location tolerance for the original product, manufacturer details of the original product, details of entities that form part of the intended distribution path, and identifiers of the entities that form part of the intended distribution path.
4. The system of claim 3, wherein the evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product is further based on number of times said set of scanned product attributes has been received, wherein if the number of times said set of scanned product attributes has been received is greater than the threshold, said potential counterfeit product is declared as being counterfeit.
5. The system of claim 3, wherein the evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product is based on said one or more attributes.
6. The system of claim 3, wherein said one or more attributes are dynamically added or removed and allotted weights, wherein the weights allotted to said one or more attributes are pre-determined or automatically allotted based upon prior historical data of the original product regarding traceability.
7. The system of claim 3, wherein the potential counterfeit product is declared as being counterfeit when the location of the entity is outside the location tolerance for the original product.
8. The system of claim 1, wherein the set of scanned product attributes comprises an identifier of the entity, and wherein the potential counterfeit product is declared as counterfeit when the identifier of the entity does not match with identifiers of entities that form part of the intended distribution path.
9. A device comprising:
a non-transitory storage device having embodied therein one or more routines operable to enable product traceability in a supply chain; and
one or more processors coupled to the non-transitory storage device and operable to execute the one or more routines, wherein the one or more routines include:
a potential counterfeit product scanning module, which when executed by the one or more processors, scans a potential counterfeit product to obtain set of scanned product attributes, said set of scanned product attributes comprising at least an identifier of the potential counterfeit product, and location of entity associated with the device;
a scanned product attributes transmission module, which when executed by the one or more processors, transmits the set of scanned product attributes to a central computing device, wherein the central computing device stores one or more attributes of an original product, said one or more attributes comprising at least a unique product identifier and an intended distribution path for the original product, and wherein said central computing device, upon receipt of the set of scanned product attributes, evaluates whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product based on comparison of the identifier of the potential counterfeit product with the unique product identifier, and further based on assessment of location of the entity with respect to the intended distribution path; and
a product validity confirmation module, which when executed by the one or more processors, receives outcome of evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product.
10. The device of claim 9, wherein the central computing device is any or a combination of a server or a cloud.
11. The device of claim 9, wherein the intended distribution path comprises one or more entities selected from any or a combination of a distributor, a dealer, a retailer, a master distributor, a supply-chain entity, a warehouse, and a customer.
12. The device of claim 9, wherein the one or more attributes further comprise manufacturing date, expiry date, batch number, date of manufacturing, a manufacturing attribute, threshold of number of times said set of scanned product attributes has been received, location tolerance for the original product, manufacturer details, details of entities that form part of the intended distribution path, and identifiers of the entities that form part of the intended distribution path.
13. The device of claim 12, wherein the evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product is further based on number of times said set of scanned product attributes has been received, wherein if the number of times said set of scanned product attributes has been received is greater than the threshold, said potential counterfeit product is declared as being counterfeit.
14. The device of claim 12, wherein the evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product is based on said one or more attributes.
15. The device of claim12, wherein said one or more attributes are dynamically added or removed and allotted weights, wherein the weights allotted to said one or more attributes are pre-determined or automatically allotted based upon prior historical data of the original product regarding traceability.
16. The device of claim 12, wherein the potential counterfeit product is declared as being counterfeit when the location of the entity is outside the location tolerance for the original product.
17. The device of claim 9, wherein the set of scanned product attributes comprises an identifier of the entity, and wherein the potential counterfeit product is declared as counterfeit when the identifier of the entity does not match with identifiers of entities that form part of the intended distribution path.
18. The device of claim 9, wherein the entity is incentivized to scan the potential counterfeit product.
19. The device of claim 9, wherein manufacturer of the original product is notified when said potential counterfeit product is evaluated to be counterfeit.
20. The device of claim 9, wherein the central computing device stores one or more parameters pertaining to the evaluation of whether the potential counterfeit product is the original product.