U.S. patent application number 13/836796 was filed with the patent office on 2013-08-22 for system and method for printing documents containing dynamically generated security features.
This patent application is currently assigned to DOCUMENT SECURITY SYSTEMS, INC.. The applicant listed for this patent is Document Security Systems, Inc.. Invention is credited to Michael Caton, Michael Roy, Timothy Trueblood, Patrick White, David Wicker.
Application Number | 20130215474 13/836796 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 47178356 |
Filed Date | 2013-08-22 |
United States Patent
Application |
20130215474 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Caton; Michael ; et
al. |
August 22, 2013 |
System and Method for Printing Documents Containing Dynamically
Generated Security Features
Abstract
Systems and methods are provided for printing secure documents
incorporating hidden security features. In one system, a printer
firmware module embeds a security feature in printer instructions
to print a secure document. In another system, a software module on
a computing device embeds a security feature in printer
instructions to print a secure document. In another system, a
software module on a computing device provides data to a printer
firmware module to embed a security feature in printer instructions
to print a secure document. In another system, a print server
pre-processor module embeds a security feature in printer
instructions to print a secure document. In another system, a
security appliance security module generates security features in
the form of security instructions that are embedded into a secure
document to be printed.
Inventors: |
Caton; Michael; (Oakfield,
NY) ; Roy; Michael; (Webster, NY) ; Trueblood;
Timothy; (Pittsford, NY) ; White; Patrick;
(Mendon, NY) ; Wicker; David; (Dansville,
NY) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Document Security Systems, Inc.; |
|
|
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
DOCUMENT SECURITY SYSTEMS,
INC.
Rochester
NY
|
Family ID: |
47178356 |
Appl. No.: |
13/836796 |
Filed: |
March 15, 2013 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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PCT/US2012/062918 |
Nov 1, 2012 |
|
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13836796 |
|
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61555843 |
Nov 4, 2011 |
|
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Current U.S.
Class: |
358/3.28 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B42D 25/30 20141001;
G06F 3/1238 20130101; H04N 1/00883 20130101; H04N 1/0087 20130101;
G06T 2201/0051 20130101; G06K 15/1867 20130101; G07D 7/0034
20170501; G06T 2201/0064 20130101; G06T 1/0021 20130101; G06T 1/005
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
358/3.28 |
International
Class: |
G06F 3/12 20060101
G06F003/12 |
Claims
1. A system for dynamically generating at least one security
feature for securing information within a document, the system
comprising: a non-transitory computer-readable medium; and program
instructions stored on the non-transitory computer-readable medium
that are executable by a processor to: receive a printing
instruction including data corresponding to content of an
electronic document; generate a security feature; modify the
printing instruction to add data indicative of the generated
security feature; and initiate a process to print a secure physical
document based on the modified printing instruction.
2. The system of claim 1, wherein the computing system is a
component of or takes the form of a printing device that is
configured to print the secure physical document.
3. The system of claim 1, wherein the computing system is a
component of or takes the form of a computing device that is
configured to send the modified printing instruction to a printing
device to print the secure physical document.
4. The system of claim 1, wherein the computing system is a
component of or takes the form of a combined computing and printing
device that is configured to modify the printing instruction and
print the secure physical document.
5. The system of claim 1, further comprising program instructions
stored on the non-transitory computer-readable medium that are
executable by a processor to generate the security feature based on
the printing instruction.
6. The system of claim 1, further comprising program instructions
stored on the non-transitory computer-readable medium that are
executable by a processor to: create a tagged file format from the
printing instruction; identify, based on the tagged file format,
parameter data corresponding to the security feature to be
generated, and wherein the security feature is generated based at
least in part on the parameter data.
7. The system of claim 6, wherein at least some of the parameter
data is received via a user interface.
8. The system according to claim 6, wherein at least some of the
parameter data is based on one or more tags included in the tagged
file format that specify a color of at least a portion of the
electronic document.
9. The system of claim 1, wherein the process to print a secure
physical document based on the modified printing instruction
comprises a process to generate a raster image based on the
modified printing instruction, wherein the raster image visually
combines the security feature with the content of the electronic
document.
10. The system of claim 8, further comprising a raster-image
module, wherein the raster-image module comprises program
instructions that are executable by a processor to carry out the
printing process to print the secure physical document.
11. The system of claim 1, wherein the security feature includes
data configured to cause the secured physical document to include,
when printed, an image having a foreground a background, at least
one of which includes a line screen pattern, wherein the foreground
and the background of the image are configured such that a scanned
reproduction of an original printed version of the secured physical
document is reproduced in an altered form relative to the original
printed version.
12. The system of claim 11, wherein security feature is further
configured such that the foreground of the image comprises a latent
image that is embedded within a visually integrated setting of the
secured physical document, and wherein the latent image is
substantially indistinguishable from the background with the naked
eye in the original printed version.
13. The system of claim 1, further comprising a network module,
wherein the network module comprises program instructions that are
executable by a processor to receive a print instruction.
14. The system of claim 13, wherein the network module further
comprises program instructions that are executable by a processor
to communicate the modified print instruction to a network
device.
15. A method for printing a document with an embedded security
feature, the method comprising: receiving a printing instruction
including data corresponding to content of an electronic document;
generating a security feature; modifying the printing instruction
to add data indicative of the generated security feature; and
initiating a process to print a secure physical document based on
the modified printing instruction.
16. The method of claim 15, further comprising determining
parameter data for the printing instruction.
17. The method of claim 15, wherein the security feature is
generated based on the parameter data.
18. The method of claim 17, wherein the parameter data is based on
metadata of the electronic document.
19. The method of claim 17, further comprising receiving parameter
data associated with the printing instruction via a user
interface.
20. The method of claim 15, wherein the security feature is not
readily apparent on the secure physical printed document.
21. The method of claim 15, wherein the generating the security
feature is performed by one of a print driver, a server, or a
printing device.
22. The method of claim 15, further comprising generating a raster
image based on the modified printing instruction, wherein the
raster image visually combines the security feature with the
content of the electronic document.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of International
Patent Application No. PCT/US2012/062918, filed Nov. 1, 2012, which
claims the benefit of, and priority to, U.S. Provisional Patent
Application No. 61/555,843, filed Nov. 4, 2011, entitled "SYSTEM
AND METHOD FOR DYNAMIC GENERATION OF EMBEDDED SECURITY FEATURES IN
A DOCUMENT," the entire disclosures of which are hereby
incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] Various inventive embodiments disclosed herein relate
generally to document protection methods and products, and more
particularly, to systems and methods for facilitating printing of
documents containing hidden security features that are dynamically
generated.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Security features are embedded in documents such as official
and/or valuable documents. Security features in the documents are
modified upon reproducing the document to thereby inhibit
unauthorized copies of the documents from being made. Such security
features can include latent features that are largely
indistinguishable within the background of the document on an
original, but which become distinguishable in a reproduction of the
document such as in a scanned reproduction of the document. By
embedding features that distinguish an original document from
reproductions thereof, counterfeit versions and other unauthorized
copies can be more readily detected. Thus, such documents including
embedded security features offer an indicator of authenticity to
ensure that a particular printed version of the document is an
original.
[0004] In applications such as commercial paper documents, security
features are typically incorporated in a background of the document
with latent security features embodied as words that will appear in
reproductions of the commercial paper document. In reproductions of
the document, the latent security features become visible, which
allows unauthorized copies to feature words such as "void" or
"copy" to indicate it is not an original. However, the background
of the commercial paper document is generally static with pertinent
information being printed, typed, or rendered over or adjacent the
static background.
[0005] Conventional methods and products involve preparing an
original document by printing or lithography on high quality print
media to achieve high resolution printing in order to effectively
embed the above-described security features. Prior printing systems
for generating documents with embedded security features employ
offset printing technology to produce prints at approximate
resolutions of at least 2400 dots per inch.
[0006] Previously described systems and printers for printing
secure physical documents have generally required that document
printing instructions, potentially containing sensitive or
confidential information, be sent to servers through a network,
such as the Internet. Generally, the ability to generate and/or
embed security features in printing instructions has been provided
through remotely-located servers to prevent malicious uses of such
document security technology, such as, for example, counterfeiting.
However, requiring the use of a server on a network for printing a
physically secure document introduces a number of potential
drawbacks: for example, server and/or network downtime can prevent
a user from printing the physical secure document. Sending the
document over the Internet can risk compromising the security of
the document. Therefore, a need exists for systems and printers
capable of printing physically secure documents which overcome
drawbacks of existing systems. Additionally, it is desirable to
develop a system capable of adding security features to a printed
document while maintaining the existing interface, e.g. using an
existing print driver instead of requiring a special print
driver.
SUMMARY
[0007] A system for dynamically generating at least one security
feature for securing information within a document includes a
computing device. The computing device has stored therein a
printing instruction. Additionally, the computing device is
communicatively coupled to a printing device. The printing device
is configured to receive the printing instruction from the
computing device. Responsive to receiving the printing instruction,
the printing device generates a security feature and modifies the
printing instruction to include the security feature. The modified
printing instructions cause the printing device to print a document
containing the security features.
[0008] A system for adding security indicia to a document includes
a computing device having at least one print driver. A processing
device is communicatively coupled to the print driver of the
computing device. Additionally, a raster image-processing module is
communicatively coupled to the processing device. The processing
device is configured to receive a printing instruction from the
print driver. The processing device is further configured to
processes parameter data to add at least one security indicia to
the printing instruction. The processing device is also configured
to send the printing instruction with the at least one security
indicia to the raster image-processing module for printing a
document containing a security feature according to the printing
instruction.
[0009] Another aspect includes a method for printing a document
with an embedded security feature. The method includes receiving a
print instruction. Once a print instruction is received, the method
includes generating at least one security feature based on the
print instruction. The method also includes creating a modified
printing instruction by integrating the at least one embedded
security feature with the printing instructions. Finally, the
method includes printing the document with the embedded security
feature according to the modified printing instructions.
[0010] A security system includes a communication module configured
to receive a print instruction and transmit a modified print
instruction. The security system also includes a computing device
communicatively coupled to the communication module. The computing
device is configured to create a modified print instruction based
on the received print instruction and a set of parameter data.
Further, the modified print instruction includes at least one
embedded security feature.
[0011] The foregoing and additional aspects and embodiments of the
present disclosure will be apparent to those or ordinary skill in
the art in view of the detailed description of various embodiments
and/or aspects, which is made with reference to the drawings, a
brief description of which is provided next.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated into this
specification, illustrate one or more exemplary embodiments
disclosed herein and, together with the detailed description, serve
to explain the principles and exemplary implementations of the
present disclosure. One of skill in the art will understand that
the drawings are illustrative only, and that what is depicted
therein may be adapted based on the text of the specification and
the spirit and scope of the teachings herein.
[0013] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a system for printing a secure
physical document incorporating dynamically embedded security
features according to an illustrative embodiment.
[0014] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an alternative embodiment of a
system for printing a secure physical document incorporating
dynamically embedded security features.
[0015] FIG. 3 is a block diagram of another alternative embodiment
of a system for printing a secure physical document incorporating
dynamically embedded security features.
[0016] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a system, including a print
server, for printing a secure physical document incorporating
dynamically embedded security features according to an illustrative
embodiment.
[0017] FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a system, including a security
service provider, for printing a secure physical document
incorporating dynamically embedded security features according to
an illustrative embodiment.
[0018] FIG. 6 is a flowchart describing the steps of a method for
preparing a secure document according to an embodiment of the
present disclosure.
[0019] FIGS. 7A-7C illustrate an exemplary process of applying
hidden security features to an example health care document,
according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0020] While this disclosure is susceptible to various
modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments have been
shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in
detail herein. It should be understood, however, that this
disclosure is not intended to be limited to the particular forms
disclosed. Rather, this disclosure is to cover all modifications,
equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope
of the concepts described herein, as defined by the appended
claims.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0021] It should be understood that this disclosure is not limited
to the particular methodology, protocols, etc., described herein
and as such may vary. The terminology used herein is for the
purpose of describing particular embodiments only, and is not
intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure, which is
defined solely by the claims.
[0022] The following examples illustrate some embodiments and
aspects of the present disclosure. It will be apparent to those
skilled in the relevant art that various modifications, additions,
substitutions, and the like can be performed without altering the
spirit or scope of this disclosure.
[0023] In the present application, a computing device may include a
client application. The computing device can be any number of
devices (e.g., computer, internet kiosk, personal digital
assistant, cell phone, smart phone, gaming device, desktop
computer, laptop computer, tablet computer, remote server, a
television with one or more processors embedded therein or attached
thereto, a set-top box, etc.). According to some embodiments, the
computing device is communicatively coupled to a communication
network. A communication network may be a wireless, optical, wired
and/or other type of network that facilitates the passage of
information. It may include the Internet, one or more local area
networks (LANs), one or more wide area networks (WANs), other types
of networks, or a combination of such networks. According to some
embodiments, the client application (e.g., browser, e-mail client,
word processor) is an application that is executed by the computing
device, which displays or presents information to a user of the
computing device, as well as providing additional functionalities
or capabilities to the user.
[0024] According to some embodiments, a computing device as
described herein may include one or more processing units (CPUs),
one or more network or other communications interfaces, memory, and
one or more communication buses for interconnecting these
components. The computing device may include a user interface, for
instance, a display and a keyboard. The memory may include high
speed random access memory and may also include non-volatile
memory, such as one or more magnetic or optical storage disks. The
memory may include mass storage that is remotely located from
CPU's. The memory may store the following elements, or a subset or
superset of such elements: an operating system that includes
procedures for handling various basic system services and for
performing hardware dependent tasks; a network communication module
(or instructions) that is used for connecting the customer client
system to other computers via the one or more communications
interfaces (wired or wireless), such as the Internet, other wide
area networks, local area networks, metropolitan area networks, and
so on; a client application as described above; a cache of recently
accessed items; and other data related to the systems and
applications described herein.
[0025] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a system 100 for printing a
secure physical document 130 via a printer 120 according to an
illustrative embodiment. In this embodiment, a computing device 102
is communicatively coupled to printer 120. In some embodiments,
printing instructions 110 such as page description language ("PDL")
instructions are used as a communication mechanism between
computing device 102 and printer 120 that enables document 130 to
be printed on printer 120.
[0026] According to some embodiments, printer 120 can be any
suitable printing device employing any suitable printing
technology. For example, a printer may be a peripheral, which
produces text or graphics on a suitable substrate, such as paper.
In some embodiments, an inkjet printer or laser printer is used
with a computing device 102, such as a desktop computer, laptop
computer, or smart phone, in order to prepare secure documents
according to aspects of the present disclosure.
[0027] According to some embodiments, computing device 102 can be a
personal computer, a server, a smart-phone, a tablet, or any other
device that includes a central processing unit, a memory, and a
communication interface. In some embodiments, computing device 102
can include an output device, such as a monitor, for displaying
content (e.g., a source document to be printed) and an input
device, such as a mouse and/or keyboard, for receiving user inputs
(e.g., a request to print a source document). In some embodiments,
computing device 102 includes storage hardware such as a magnetic
hard drive, solid-state drive, or other memory.
[0028] Although FIGS. 1-5 show the computing device 102 as a number
of discrete items, the figures are intended more as a functional
description of the various features which may be present in the
computing device 102 rather than a structural schematic of the
embodiments described herein. In practice, and as recognized by
those of ordinary skill in the art, items shown separately could be
combined and some items could be separated. For example, some items
shown separately in the figure could be implemented on a single
computing device and single items could be implemented by one or
more computing devices.
[0029] In some embodiments, computing device 102 comprises a memory
103, a source document 104, an input/output module 105, a processor
107 and a print driver 106. According to some embodiments, memory
103 is any computer readable memory communicatively coupled with
processor 107. Source document 104 may be electronically stored in
memory 103. Additionally or alternatively, computing device 102 may
include an input/output module 105 which is communicatively coupled
to the processor 107. The input/output module 105 can receive input
from external sources, such as a keyboard or mouse, and provide
output to a monitor or other output device. The processor 107 may
be any microprocessor capable of executing software and/or firmware
instructions, for example, software instructions stored in memory
103.
[0030] In some embodiments, print driver 106 is pre-installed and
can be configured to receive a request for printing instructions
108 representative of source document 104. In some embodiments,
source document 104 can be transmitted to print driver 106 through
standard print functions included in the operating system (not
shown in FIG. 1) executing on the processor 107 of computing device
102, such as the print function from the menu provided by a
document application such as Microsoft Word, Adobe PDF, or other
document viewer/editor.
[0031] In some embodiments, print driver 106 can be a generic
printer driver or a printer-specific driver, for example a driver
supplied by the manufacturer of the computing device 102 and/or
printer 120. Print driver 106 can be configured to generate
printing instructions 110. Printing instructions 110 can be
information adapted to communicate directly with printer 120 in a
printer-specific language, such as XML Paper Specification (XPS)
file type, Encapsulated Postscript (EPS) file type, Printer Control
Language 6 (PCL6), PostScript, Internet Printing Protocol (IPP), or
other language. In some embodiments, printing instructions 110
generated by print driver 106 can be sent directly to printer
120.
[0032] In some embodiments, source document 104 can be, for
example, a file, a document, or other graphical and/or textual
content displayed to a user of computing device 102. Additionally
or alternatively, source document 104 can be a digital document or
a file stored in memory 103 of computing device 102. However,
persons having ordinary skill in the art will recognize that source
document 104 does not need to be stored in memory 103 of computing
device 102; for example, source document 104 can be a digital
document or file stored remotely from the computing device 102, for
example on a removable storage device (e.g. USB flash drive,
portable hard drive, etc.) or on a network-accessible storage
device (e.g. local network storage appliance, server, or
cloud-based storage service).
[0033] In some embodiments, print driver 106 is configured to
receive a request ("query") for printing instructions 108 from the
processor 107. Request for printing instructions 108 can optionally
be initiated in response to a user input via the input/output
module 105 on the computing device 102, such as, for example,
entering one or more key strokes or selecting a selectable region
of a graphical user interface. Additionally or alternatively,
request for printing instructions 108 can optionally be initiated
by a user command to print a source document 104. Additionally or
alternatively, request for printing instructions 108 can optionally
be initiated without any relation to a user action, such as at a
predetermined interval or in response to an external action or
signal that is not associated with computing device 102 or its
user.
[0034] According to some embodiments, computing device 102 can be
communicatively coupled to printer 120 in a variety of manners,
such as parallel, USB, serial, electro-optical, or wireless
connection technologies. In some embodiments, printer 120 is a
consumer-level printer system that is commercially available
through, for example, an office supply store or similar venue for
purchasing electronics for home use such as Office Depot, Staples,
Best Buy, Amazon.com or other store. In some embodiments, printer
120 can be, for example, an ink jet printer or a laser jet printer,
and can print secure physical documents 130 with resolutions of
approximately 600 to 1200 dots per inch ("DPI"), measured in actual
DPI (as opposed to enhanced DPI which is actually a lower DPI
resolution that is filled in using interpolation).
[0035] While present embodiments of this disclosure are described
to include computing device 102 and printer 120 as physically
separate devices, persons having ordinary skill in the art will
recognize that computing device 102 and printer 120 can represent a
single device including the capabilities of both computing device
102 and printer 120. In some embodiments, computing device 102 and
printer 120 can represent individual hardware units physically
resident within a single device housing. For example, computing
device 102 and printer 120 can represent logic and printing
hardware units within a retail kiosk.
[0036] In some embodiments, printer 120 includes a pre-processor
firmware module 122, parameter data 124, a user interface 125, and
a raster image-processing ("RIP") module 128. In some embodiments,
pre-processor firmware module 122 can be configured to access
parameter data 124 from data storage (not separately depicted) on
printer 120 and/or communicatively coupled thereto. In some
embodiments, pre-processor firmware module 122 is communicatively
coupled to RIP module 128 and user interface 125, for example via a
bus protocol or other hardware communication mechanism (e.g. USB,
serial, network card, FireWire, and the like).
[0037] In some embodiments, pre-processor firmware module 122 can
be a hardware-based or firmware-based processing device, e.g., an
Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), Programmable Logic
Device (PLD), field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other
specialized processing hardware. In some embodiments, user
interface 125 can be, for example, a graphical user interface (e.g.
touch-screen based menus or other graphical input options),
physical user interface (e.g. buttons, knobs, and the like),
auditory interface (e.g. voice recognition), and/or other type of
interface for acquiring input from a user of printer 120. In some
embodiments, user interface 125 presents information received from
pre-processor firmware module 122 to the user and enables the user
to select specific security features of interest to be included in
a particular source document 104. In some embodiments,
pre-processor firmware module 122 can be configured to generate a
security feature using parameter data 124 and embed the generated
security feature in the printing instructions 110 to form printing
instructions containing security indicia 126, for example, using
the method 600 described below or similar method. Pre-processor
firmware module 122 can be configured to send printing instructions
containing security indicia 126 directly to RIP module 128, which
utilizes the instructions for printing a secure physical document
130.
[0038] In some embodiments, parameter data 124 can include
pre-configured settings for generating security features. For
example, in some embodiments, parameter data 124 includes data for
identifying specific security features, such as a lookup table
associating particular colors with particular security
features.
[0039] Parameter data 124 can comprise template data 124A, hidden
or encoded image/text data 124B, and/or image/security generation
data 124C. Parameter data 124 can comprise template data 124A,
which provides data for identifying material in a source document
104 based on, for example, pattern templates. For example, template
data 124A may provide data to identify a social security number by
the pattern XXX-XX-XXXX, or identify other pattern based
information, such as a credit card number.
[0040] Parameter data 124 can comprise hidden or encoded image/text
data 124B, which provides data for identifying encoded fields in
the document to be secured according to specific security
parameters. For example, hidden or encoded image/text data 124B may
provide data to identify fields encoded using a pre-defined color
indicative of a security parameter. As an alternative example,
hidden or encoded image/text data 124B may provide data to identify
a region of the document, such as a signature block, to be
secured.
[0041] Also, parameter data 124 can comprise image/security
generation data 124C, which provides information required for the
generation and/or application of specific security features. For
example, in some embodiments, for a security feature requiring a
foreground line screen pattern and a background line screen
pattern, image/security generation data 124C provides information
as to the foreground screen type, line frequency, angle, and
density as well as the background screen type, line frequency,
angle, and density.
[0042] Other examples of parameter data 124 (e.g. "customization
data") for generating security features for embedding in secure
physical documents 130 have been previously described, for example,
in U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/555,843 "System and
Method for Dynamic Generation of Embedded Security Features in a
Document," which is incorporated herein by reference in its
entirety.
[0043] In some embodiments, RIP module 128 can be, for example, a
firmware program executed on a microprocessor, a dedicated piece of
hardware, or an independent software program inside printer 120
that converts printing instructions containing security indicia 126
into a raster image having a native resolution of 600 dpi or above.
Printer 120 prints the raster image as a secure physical document
130.
[0044] By including parameter data 124 in printing instructions
containing security indicia 126, secure physical document 130 can
include one or more embedded security features 132. Examples of
embedded security features 132 have been previously described, for
example, in US Provisional Patent Application No. 61/555,843
"System and Method for Dynamic Generation of Embedded Security
Features in a Document;" U.S. patent application Ser. No.
11/495,900 entitled "Covert Document System;" and U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 11/741,394 entitled "Document with Linked
Viewer File for Correlated Printing;" each of which are
incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
[0045] In some embodiments, the embedded security features 132 can
include data that is configured to cause a secured physical
document to include, when printed, an image having a foreground a
background. One or both of the foreground or background may include
a line screen pattern (e.g., a pattern of regularly spaced lines,
dots, symbols, characters, and/or other print elements having a
characteristic line frequency and/or print density). The foreground
and the background of the image may be configured such that a
scanned reproduction of an original printed version of the secured
physical document is reproduced in an altered form relative to the
original printed version. For example, the foreground of the image
may include a latent image that is embedded within a visually
integrated setting of the secured physical document. The latent
image may be substantially indistinguishable from the background
with the naked eye in the original printed version, but become
visible in a scanned reproduction.
[0046] Some embodiments of the present disclosure utilize
electronic documents referred to as markup files. Markup files
include tags (also referred to as glyphs, hashs, etc.) to specify
the contents, format, and other information relating to particular
portions of a document. Markup files generally allow the contents
of the electronic document (e.g., text strings, images, etc.) and
the formatting associated with the various contents (e.g., page
location within a document, font color, font type, font size, font
weight, background color, paragraph formatting, etc.) to be
retrieved from the file without resorting to optical character
recognition ("OCR") technology to reconstruct text string content
from raster images. In addition, markup files generally require
less storage space and are more readily edited via a word
processing software program or other document viewing/manipulation
software program to, for example, change or specify a color for a
particular string of text within the document.
[0047] According to some embodiments of the present disclosure,
portions of an electronic document that are desired to be modified
with security features are indicated by tagging the desired
portions with particular color(s) that are associated with desired
security feature(s). Utilizing color as a tagging mechanism to
identify regions and/or portions of an electronic document to be
modified according to digital security technologies advantageously
allows aspects of the present disclosure to be applicable to
virtually any editable document format which allows for specifying
font color, background color, and/or highlighting color, etc. so a
particular color can be associated with a selected portion of the
electronic document.
[0048] Some embodiments of system 100 provide improved
functionality or functionality previously unavailable to print
secure physical documents with dynamically generated embedded
security features on printers using standard print drivers. Some
examples of the present embodiment advantageously provide systems
for dynamically generating embedded security features using
printers with specialized hardware and/or firmware. Some examples
of the present embodiment further provide systems for embedding
dynamically generated security features in printer instructions,
such as page description language (PDL) instructions, without the
need to send data representative of potentially sensitive or
confidential documents to external or remotely located print
servers. Some examples of the present embodiment further provide
systems for printing physical secure documents which eliminate the
existing need for additional software applications on the computing
device. As some embodiments may comprise a plurality of computer
devices 102 communicatively coupled to a printer 120 (for example,
in embodiments where the printer 120 is a shared, network printer),
the system described herein provides a single place where security
information is stored, allowing for a single point of security to
protect this information.
[0049] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a system 200 for printing a
secure physical document 130 on printer 120 according to an
illustrative embodiment. According to this embodiment, a computing
device 102 prepares printing instructions containing security
indicia 126, which are sent from the computing device 102 to a
printer 120. The printer 120 then prints the secure physical
document 130 according to the printing instructions containing
security indicia 126.
[0050] In the present embodiment, computing device 102 comprises a
memory 103, a source document 104, an input/output module 105, a
processor 107 and a print driver 106, and parameter data 124. In
some embodiments, parameter data 124 can be stored in local data
storage on computing device 102, such as memory 103, or parameter
data 124 can be stored remotely on a device communicatively coupled
to computing device 102. Additionally or alternatively, parameter
data 124 can be provided via input from a user, for example, via a
keyboard, mouse, graphical user interface, or other input mechanism
associated with computing device 102 via the input/output module
105. In some embodiments, parameter data 124 can be directly
accessed by or provided as a second input to print driver 106.
[0051] According to some embodiments, printer 120 is free of
specialized hardware, firmware, or software (e.g., pre-processor
firmware modules) for embedding security features in documents. To
enable computing device 102 to generate printing instructions
containing security indicia 126 (e.g., PDL instructions with
security features embedded therein), print driver 106 additionally
includes a driver software module 202. Print driver 106 can be
communicatively coupled to driver software module 202, for example,
through a software communication interface, such as via
inter-process communication methods, application programming
interface ("API") calls, message passing, signaling, message
queues, shared memory space, and/or remote procedure calls or other
methods. In some embodiments, driver software module 202 can be,
for example, a software plug-in which provides additional
functionality to print driver 106. Additionally or alternatively,
driver software module 202 can include, for example, custom
printing formats provided as pre-defined security templates in
print driver 106.
[0052] Driver software module 202 provides functionality for
generating an embedded security feature. In some embodiments,
driver software module 202 can be configured to dynamically
generate an embedded security feature using parameter data 124. In
some embodiments, driver software module 202 can dynamically
generate an embedded security feature responsive to user input to
the computing device 102, such as, for example, via an interface
associated with the computing device 102 used to select and/or
define criteria for the dynamically generated security feature.
Driver software module 202 can be configured to embed a dynamically
generated security feature in printing instructions (not separately
depicted) generated by print driver 106 to form printing
instructions containing security indicia 126. Driver software
module 202 can be configured to send printing instructions
containing security indicia 126 to printer 120, which are then
utilized by RIP module 128 to print secure physical document
130.
[0053] Some embodiments of system 200 thus provide improved
functionality or functionality previously unavailable, allowing for
the preparation and printing of secure physical documents with
dynamically generated embedded security features, while using a
printer free from specialized hardware and/or firmware for
embedding security features. Some examples of the present
embodiment further enable existing printers and/or printers not
specifically designed with functionality for generating embedded
security features to print secure physical documents. According to
some embodiments, functionality for effecting printing of a secure
physical document is contained within a native print driver on the
computing device.
[0054] FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a system 300 for printing a
secure physical document 130 on printer 120 according to an
illustrative embodiment. According to some embodiments, a
pre-processor firmware module 122 within printer 120 receives
printing instructions 110 and parameter data 124. The firmware
module 122 uses these inputs to generate printing instructions
containing security indicia 126 for use by the RIP module 128,
ultimately allowing secure document 130 with embedded security
feature 132 to be printed by printer 120.
[0055] In such embodiments, pre-processor firmware module 122 can
be configured to receive printing instructions 110 and parameter
data 124 as separate data streams; that is, the parameter data
indicative of the embedded security feature(s) may not be in a
printer definition language, but instead in a XML data output
stream, database lookup, HTTP query, HTTPS query, data packet,
packet wrapper, object based data stream, or any other data stream
format or secure (e.g., encrypted) data stream format.
[0056] To process parameter data 124, in certain embodiments, print
driver 106 includes a driver software module 302. Print driver 106
is communicatively coupled to driver software module 302 through a
software communication interface, such as via inter-process
communication methods, API calls, message passing, signaling,
message queues, shared memory space, and/or remote procedure calls
or other methods. In some embodiments, driver software module 302
can be, for example, a software plug-in which provides additional
functionality to print driver 106. Additionally or alternatively,
driver software module 302 can include custom printing formats
provided as pre-defined security templates in print driver 106.
[0057] In some embodiments, driver software module 302 can be
configured to dynamically generate a security feature using
parameter data 124. In some embodiments, driver software module 302
can optionally generate a security feature using parameter data 124
responsive to user input to the computing device 102, such as via a
graphical user interface employed by the user of computing device
102 via the input/output module 105, to define criteria for the
dynamically generated security feature. Additionally or
alternatively, driver software module 302 can optionally generate a
security feature using parameter data 124 based on analysis of
source document 104, for example by identifying particular
formatting or tagging embedded in source document 104.
[0058] Some embodiments of system 300 allow the functionality of
generating security features to be logically and/or physically
separated from the integration of those features in the print
stream, thereby affording additional options for enhanced security
and/or control of security feature generation algorithms and
capabilities.
[0059] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a system 400 for printing a
secure physical document 130 on printer 120 using a print server
402 according to an illustrative embodiment. According to such
embodiments, computing device 102 is communicatively coupled to
print server 402, and print server 402 is communicatively coupled
to printer 120. A pre-processor module 408 is contained in print
server 402. The pre-processor module 408 receives printing
instructions 110, and parameter data 124, and uses these inputs to
facilitate the preparation of printing instructions containing
security indicia 126 which facilitate the printing of secure
physical document 130 by printer 120.
[0060] In some embodiments, computing device 102 can be
communicatively coupled to the print server 402, for example, via a
network connection, such as a local area network (LAN) connection,
wide area network (WAN) connection, Internet Protocol (IP) network
connection, virtual private network (VPN) connection, cellular
network (e.g. CDMA, GSM, LTE, etc) wireless network connection
(e.g. Wi-Fi, 802.11x), Bluetooth network connection, or other
network connection. Additionally or alternatively, computing device
102 can be communicatively coupled to print server 402 by a
physical connection, for example parallel, USB, serial,
electro-optical, and/or wireless connection technologies. Print
server 402 can be, for example, a physical or virtual network
server. In some embodiments, print server 402 can reside on a
network, for example a local area network, wide area network,
Internet Protocol ("IP") network, and the like. In some
embodiments, print server 402 can be a software-as-a-service
product provided through a public or private cloud or intranet. In
some embodiments, print server 402 can reside as a physical or
virtual server embedded in printer 120. In some embodiments, print
server 402 can be, for example, configured as a network-based
printer driver operative to provide printing instructions
containing security indicia 126 to printer 120 for printing secure
physical document 130.
[0061] In such embodiments, print server 402 includes a
pre-processor module 408 to generate printing instructions
containing security indicia 126 from printing instructions 110 and
parameter data 124. In some embodiments, parameter data 124 can be,
for example, pre-defined settings or templates stored in local data
storage (not separately depicted) on print server 402.
[0062] Some examples of such embodiments may not require computing
device 102 to include a pre-installed print driver 106. Instead,
print driver 106 can be, for example, installed on computing device
102, for example over a network connection, by a shared print
driver 404 and/or print server 402 responsive to a driver request
406. In some embodiments, request for printing instructions 108 on
computing device 102 can initiate a driver request 406 to print
server 402, for example, if print driver 106 is not already
installed on computing device 102.
[0063] In some embodiments, shared print driver 404 can be a
generic printer driver or a printer-specific driver, for example a
driver supplied by the manufacturer of the computing device 102,
print server 402, and/or printer 120. In some embodiments, shared
print driver 404 can represent, for example, a print queuing
mechanism for handling print requests submitted to print server
402. In some embodiments, shared print driver 404 can be copied
from print sever 402 to computing device 102 responsive to a driver
request 406. Alternatively, shared print driver 404 can be, for
example, executable code capable of installing print driver 106 on
computing device 102.
[0064] In some embodiments, print driver 106 can optionally include
driver software module 302. However, persons having ordinary skill
in the art will recognize that some examples of the present
embodiment do not require driver software module 302 as this
functionality can be encapsulated in pre-processor module 408.
[0065] In some embodiments, pre-processor module 408 can be a
hardware-based or firmware-based processing device, e.g. an ASIC,
PLD, FPGA, or other specialized processing hardware for dynamically
generating a security feature based on parameter data 124.
Additionally or alternatively, pre-processor module 408 can be a
software module for dynamically generating a security feature based
on parameter data 124 and/or tags and other information contained
in printing instructions 110. Additionally or alternatively,
pre-processor module 408 can be configured to embed a generated
security feature in printing instructions 110 to form printing
instructions containing security indicia 126. Additionally or
alternatively, pre-processor module 408 can be configured to send
printing instructions containing security indicia 126 to printer
120.
[0066] In some embodiments (not pictured), pre-processor module 408
can be configured to receive printing instructions 110 and
parameter data 124 from print driver 106 on computing device 102.
Additionally or alternatively, pre-processor module 408 can be
configured to receive printing instructions 110 from print driver
106 on computing device 102, and read parameter data 124 from data
storage (not separately depicted) on print server 402.
[0067] According to some embodiments, print server 402 can be
communicatively coupled to the printer 120 via parallel, USB,
serial, electro-optical, and/or wireless connection technologies.
Additionally or alternatively, print server 402 can be
communicatively coupled to printer 120 via a network connection,
such as for example a LAN connection, WAN connection, IP network
connection, VPN connection, wireless network connection, Bluetooth
network connection, or other network connection.
[0068] Some embodiments of system 400 thus provide improved
functionality or functionality previously unavailable, facilitating
the printing of secure physical documents with dynamically
generated embedded security features, where the functionality of
generating and embedding security features is located on a print
server 402 external to a printer 120 and computing device 102,
thereby enabling network printing of secure documents from any
number of remotely connected computing devices. Because the
security features are embedded at the print server 402, and not at
the printer 120 or computing device 102, this allows for enhanced
security as the specifics of the security feature generation
process are hidden from both the computing device 102 and the
printer 120.
[0069] FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a system 500 for printing a
secure physical document 130 on a printer 120 via a security
service provider 506 (e.g., a security appliance) according to an
illustrative embodiment. According to such embodiments, printer 120
is communicatively coupled to both computing device 102 and
security service provider 506.
[0070] In this embodiment, printer 120 comprises a firmware module
502 that is communicatively coupled to RIP module 128 (e.g. via a
bus protocol or other hardware communication mechanism such as USB,
serial, network card, FireWire, etc.). Additionally, printer 120
can optionally include user interface 125 communicatively coupled
to firmware module 502 such as via a bus protocol or other suitable
hardware communication mechanism.
[0071] Firmware module 502 can be, for example, a firmware based
processing device (e.g. an ASIC, PLD, FPGA, or other specialized
processing hardware) for enabling printer 120 to perform one or
more of the following functions: receiving printing instructions
110 from print driver 106; transmitting security requests 504 to
security service provider 506; receiving security instructions 510
from security service provider 506; generating printing
instructions containing security indicia 126 based on printing
instructions 110 and/or security instructions 510; and transmitting
printing instructions containing security indicia 126 to RIP module
128 for printing.
[0072] In some embodiments, security request 504 can include, for
example, metadata identifying a desired security feature for
incorporation into security instructions 510. Additionally or
alternatively, security request 504 can include metadata describing
the characteristics or capabilities of printer 120. Additionally or
alternatively, security request 504 can include security parameters
received via a user interface 125 of printer 120. Additionally or
alternatively, security request 504 can include metadata describing
printing instructions 110 and/or source document 104.
[0073] According to some embodiments, printer 120 can be
communicatively coupled to security service provider 506, for
example, via a network connection, such as a LAN connection, WAN
connection, IP network connection, VPN connection, wireless network
connection, Bluetooth network connection, and/or other network
connection. Additionally or alternatively, printer 120 can be
communicatively coupled to security service provider 506, for
example via a bus protocol and/or other hardware communication
mechanism (e.g. USB, serial, network card, FireWire, and the like).
In some embodiments, security service provider 506 is a cloud-based
service in communication with printer 120 via the Internet, an
intranet, virtual private network, WAN, LAN, or other network.
[0074] According to such embodiments, security service provider 506
comprises parameter data 124 and security module 508. In some
embodiments, security module 508 can be configured to access
parameter data 124 from data storage (not separately depicted) on
or communicatively coupled to security service provider 506.
Security module 508 can be, for example, a hardware-based or
firmware-based processing device, e.g. an ASIC, PLD, FPGA, or other
specialized processing hardware for dynamically generating security
instructions 510 based on parameter data 124 and/or security
request 504. Additionally or alternatively, security module 508 can
be a software module for dynamically generating security
instructions 510, in response to a security request 504.
[0075] In some embodiments, security instructions 510 can be data
representative of a desired security feature, such as for example
an image of the desired security feature or printing instructions
for forming the desired security feature. Additionally or
alternatively, security instructions 510 can include, for example,
PDL instructions describing the desired security feature.
Additionally or alternatively, security instructions 510 can
include a response code, for example, a response code for conveying
an error status to printer 120. In some embodiments, the response
code received in security instructions 510 is displayed via the
user interface 125 and user input is solicited, such as to address
a specific error.
[0076] Some embodiments of system 500 thus provide improved
functionality or functionality previously unavailable, facilitating
the printing of secure physical documents with dynamically
generated embedded security features, where the functionality of
generating and/or embedding security features resides on a security
appliance externally connected to a printer. Some examples of the
present disclosure further eliminate the need for computing devices
to be directly connected to the security appliance when printing a
secure physical document. Some examples of the present disclosure
provide increased security for manufacturers of printers and for
security feature generation algorithms or processes, as
pre-processor hardware and/or software is not in the physical
possession of the end user of the system and may be remotely
located from the computing device 102 and printer 120.
[0077] Turning to FIG. 6, a flowchart describing an exemplary
method of preparing a document with at least one hidden security
feature is shown. The method 600 shown here is an illustrative
embodiment describing the use of color coding in a source document
104 to select covert security features. The security features,
described herein as hidden or covert, may not be completely
invisible to the naked eye. They may be printed in such a way that
they are not readily visible when looking at a document. Other
methods of selecting material in a source document 104 such as
pattern recognition (for example, identifying fields such as
XXX-XX-XXXX as a social security number to be secured), application
of a template (for example, identifying a certain section of a
document as a signature block to be secured), or other mechanisms
for identifying data in a document to be secured may be used with
the present disclosure. In this embodiment, step 602 defines colors
to be used to identify security features. As further disclosed in
U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/555,843, colors used for
identification of security features may be selected by slightly
altering the value of a commonly used color to create a similar,
but unique, color for tagging fields to be secured in a document.
For example, in a system using an RGB color scheme, the color
Red=255, Green=0, Blue=255, (magenta) can be defined to indicate
the selection of a security feature with a latent image and
associated viewer, as described in U.S. patent application Ser. No.
11/741,394, titled "Document with Linked Viewer File for Correlated
Printing," and/or the PRISM product. In another example, the color
Red=0, Green=255, Blue=255 (cyan) can be defined to indicate the
selection of an anti-copying security feature as described in U.S.
patent application Ser. No. 11/744,840, titled "Security Enhanced
Print Media with Copy Protection," incorporated by reference herein
in its entirety, and/or the PANTOGRAPH product, and/or U.S. Pat.
No. 7,982,917, titled "Document Containing Scanning Survivable
Security Features," incorporated by reference herein in its
entirety. In some embodiments, multiple colors are used in
combination within the same document to select multiple security
features. In some embodiments, colors are supplemented with other
identification methods to select additional security features.
[0078] In step 604, fields or areas of the source document 104 are
highlighted in the color associated with the security feature to be
generated. For example, the highlighting may be performed directly
by a user editing the document, for example a user may select a
menu command, via the input/output module 105, within a document
editing software application, or by an automated software process
running on processor 107. In step 606, a request to print the
source document 104 is received, causing the document to be sent to
a filtering routing, such as a print driver 106, and queued for
processing. Next, in step 608, the source document 104 is converted
into printing instructions 110. In some embodiments, printing
instructions 110 are a tagged file format such as XML Paper
Specification ("XPS").
[0079] In step 610, the tagged file format is searched for tags
specifying an indicator, such as a color, that indicates a
requested security feature. In some embodiments, the search is
performed by searching an XPS document for brush, fill, or stroke
tags. Upon finding a tagged area indicating a requested security
feature, in step 612, the area is analyzed to determine if it is an
image or text. In some embodiments discussed above, this analysis
is performed by a firmware module on the printer 120 such as 122,
408, or 502. In other embodiments discussed above, this analysis is
performed on a driver software module 202 or 302. In embodiments
using XPS format, the analysis will include performing a check to
identify XPS images or glyphs. If the area to be secured is text,
that text is converted into an image in step 616. In some
embodiments this is performed using, for example, XPS glyph
manipulation. Alternatively, if the area to be secured is an image,
step 614 is performed to convert the image to a bitmap image. In
some embodiments this is performed using, for example, XPS image
manipulation.
[0080] In step 618, the resulting image from either step 614 or 616
is used to create an image with a desired security feature. The
security feature is applied to the image using the appropriate
parameter data 124 for the particular feature desired, as disclosed
in prior applications cited herein. For example, in some
embodiments, foreground and background line screens are applied
according to image/security generation parameters 124C, which
provide data for a foreground line screen type, frequency, angle,
and density as well as associated background line screen type,
frequency, angle, and density that is used to prepare the secure
image. In step 620, the security image created in the prior step is
inserted into the tagged document in place of the original tagged
text or image to create printing instructions containing security
indicia 126. At this point, in step 622, the printing instructions
containing security indicia 126 can be sent to a printer 120 for
printing the document 130 with the included security feature 132.
In some embodiments, if certain of the above steps are performed on
a printer 120, such as by a pre-processor firmware module 122, the
printing instructions containing security indicia 126 are sent to a
RIP module 128 for printing a secure physical document 130 with the
requested security feature, now embedded in the document as
embedded security feature 132. Additionally or alternatively, in
some embodiments, the printing instructions containing security
indicia 126 are converted to another format for printing, such as
PCL, Postscript, or other printing format, prior to being sent to
the printer 120 and/or RIP module 128. In some embodiments, instead
of immediately printing, the printing instructions containing
security indicia 126 are converted to an alternative digital format
for storage and/or later printing. For example, the printing
instructions containing security indicia 126 may be converted to
PDF format or .DOCX format.
[0081] Some embodiments of method 600 thus provide improved
functionality or functionality previously unavailable, facilitating
the preparation of secure physical documents with dynamically
generated embedded security features, while allowing for sufficient
flexibility to support a variety of source document types,
computing devices 102 and printers 120. Additionally, some
embodiments provide the benefit of using the existing capabilities
of print driver 106 such that a replacement print driver is not
required.
[0082] Turning to FIG. 7A, a document 700A is shown. Document 700A
is an exemplary source document 104 containing fields with medical
information for a patient. In field 701A, the patient's name is
provided. Field 702A contains a contact number for the patient.
Field 704A contains the patient's social security number. Field
706A contains insurance information. Field 708A identifies the date
of the last medical visit. Field 710A is a listing of current
medications. Field 712A is a barcode allowing for quick scanning of
certain information in the document 700A.
[0083] In this example, it is desired add embedded security
features to fields 704A, 708A, 710A, and 712A. Therefore, as shown
in FIG. 7B, these fields are edited to modify and/or add color tags
or other tags associated with a security feature, by either
modifying content in the document 700A to change the colors
associated with particular document fields or by adding additional
content to document 700A. As discussed above, this modification
process can be manually performed by a user, for example, using a
keyboard, mouse, or touchscreen to provide input, via the
input/output module 105, to an application running on processor
107. Additionally or alternatively, the modification process can be
performed automatically using pattern recognition techniques or
other methods, such as pattern recognition software executing on
processor 107.
[0084] For the purposes of this disclosure, the drawings are
rendered in black and white, and therefore color tagging is not
readily apparent. Accordingly, in order to distinguish the security
colors used in FIG. 7B, the text is underlined, boldfaced, or
italicized to indicate the use of three different security colors
in the document. Specifically, field 704B is shown in underline to
indicate that this field containing social security data has been
modified to apply a first color. Additionally, field 708B is shown
in bold to indicate that this field containing prior visit
information has been modified to apply a second security color.
Field 710B is italicized to indicate that it has been modified to
apply a third security color. Although not visually evident, Field
712B has been modified to apply an electronic, non-visible tag
based on a pattern recognition capability.
[0085] FIG. 7C shows the resulting secure physical document 130
with embedded security features 132. Secure physical document 130
is prepared by applying the capabilities of the present disclosure
to the source document 104, such as adding color coding and other
tags as shown in FIG. 7B to indicate selection of various security
features. In document 700C, security features 132 has been applied
to fields 704C, 708C, 710C, and 712C according to parameter data
124. The security features added to document 700C are not readily
visible to the naked eye, but for illustrative purposes the fields
in FIG. 7C have been enhanced to show the presence of the hidden
security features. In field 704C, the recognition of the first
color in field 704B has resulted in the application of a PANTOGRAPH
background containing a latent image (such as a repeating image of
the word "COPY") in field 704C. The latent image, which is not
visible to the naked eye, allows any reproductions of the document
to be easily identified, as a reproduction will cause the latent
image in 704C to become readily apparent in the reproduced
document. Thus, the security feature 132 allows the content of
field 704C to be verified as original.
[0086] In field 708C, the recognition of the second color in field
708B has caused the system to apply a second security feature,
which in this example is also the PANTOGRAPH feature but with an
alternative latent image using symbols and/or text to identify a
non-original document (such as, for example, a repeating image of
the word "VOID"). The latent image is not readily apparent in field
708C but will become apparent in any reproduction of the
document.
[0087] In field 710C, the recognition of a third color corresponds
with the application of another security feature. In this example,
the security feature applied is PRISM. As described in prior
applications referenced above, the PRISM security feature uses a
decoding lens 714C that reveals a latent image in field 710C.
Without the decoding lens 714C, the contents of field 710C are not
visible to the naked eye. Thus, in the example shown here, the
medication information contained in field 710C can only be viewed
when using the associated decoding lens 714C.
[0088] In field 712C, a non-visible tag in field 712B has caused
the system to apply a barcode security feature, such as the barcode
security feature previously described in U.S. Provisional Patent
Application 61/654,082 incorporated herein by reference in its
entirety. The application of the security feature to the barcode
interrupts or disturbs the barcode to prevent scanning of the
barcode, if an attempt is made to reproduce the barcode, for
example, by making a copy of field 712C.
[0089] Thus, the document 700C contains multiple embedded security
features 132, allowing for verification and/or authentication of
information in a document 130.
ALTERNATIVE EMBODIMENTS
[0090] In addition to the embodiments described above, the present
disclosure includes the following embodiments.
[0091] One example embodiment has a system for dynamically
generating at least one hidden security feature for securing
information within a document. The system includes a computing
device communicatively coupled to a printing device. The printing
device is configured to receive printing instructions from the
computing device. Responsive to receiving printing instructions,
the printing device is configured to generate one or more hidden
security features. Additionally, the printing device is further
configured to modify the printing instructions to include at least
one of the one or more hidden security features. After modifying
the printing instructions, the printing device is configured to
print a document containing the at least one or more hidden
security features.
[0092] Another example embodiment has a system for adding security
indicia to a document. The system includes a computing device
communicatively coupled to at least one print driver. The system
also includes a processing device associated with the print driver.
The processing device is communicatively coupled to a raster
image-processing module. The processing device is configured to
receive printing instructions from the print driver of the
computing device. Responsive to receiving printing instructions,
the processing device is configured to process parameter data to
add at least one security indicia to the printing instructions.
Next, the processing device is configured to send the printing
instructions with the at least one security indicia to the raster
image-processing module for printing a document containing at least
one embedded security feature according to the printing
instructions.
[0093] Yet another embodiment includes a method for printing a
document with an embedded security feature. The method includes
receiving print instructions including directions for printing a
document. Additionally, the method includes receiving parameter
data including customization data for generating at least one
embedded security feature. Once the parameter data is received, the
method includes generating at least one embedded security feature
using the parameter data. Additionally, the method includes
creating modified printing instructions by integrating the at least
one embedded security feature with the printing instructions. Once
the printing instruction is modified, the method includes sending
the modified printing instructions containing the embedded security
feature to a raster image-processing module. From the raster
image-processing module, the method includes printing the document
with the embedded security feature, via the raster image-processing
module, according to the modified printing instructions.
[0094] Embodiments also include a system for inserting security
information into a document. The system incorporates computing
device configured to deliver page description language (PDL)
instructions for printing a document. The system also includes a
processor communicatively coupled to the computing device and a
processor-readable media storing instructions. Additionally, the
system includes a raster image-processing module communicatively
coupled to the processor. The processor is configured to execute
the instructions stored in the processor-readable media. The
instructions include receiving the PDL instructions from the
computing device and receiving parameter data containing a
description of a security feature. After parameter data is
received, the instructions include generating a security feature
according to the parameter data. Additionally, the instructions
include modifying the page description language instructions to
include the security feature. Finally, the instructins include
sending the modified page description language instructions
including the security feature to the raster image-processing
module.
[0095] Another embodiment discloses a system for dynamically
generating at least one hidden security feature for securing
information within a document. The system includes a printing
device having a pre-processor firmware module and a raster
image-processing module. The computing device communicatively
coupled to the printing device. The pre-processor firmware module
is configured to receive a request for printing a document from the
computing device. The pre-processor firmware module is further
configured to both (i) process parameter data relating to the
document and (ii) generate at least one hidden security feature
based on the parameter data. Additionally, the pre-processor
firmware is configured to supply information to the raster
image-processing module sufficient to print the document with the
at least one hidden security feature.
[0096] Further embodiments include a printing device for
dynamically generating at least one hidden security feature to be
printed on a printed document. The printing device includes a
communication port configured to be communicatively coupled to a
computing device. The printing device also includes a processor
communicatively coupled to the communication port. The processor is
configured to receive printing instructions from the computing
device and generate one or more hidden security features. After
generating the hidden security features, the processor is
configured to modify the printing instructions to include at least
one of the one or more hidden security features. Additionally, the
printing device includes a printing module configured to receive
the modified printing instructions and to print indicia. The
printed indicia are based on the modified printing instructions and
contain the at least one or more hidden security features.
[0097] Other embodiments may include a computing device for adding
security indicia to a document image. The computing device includes
at least one print driver communicatively coupled to a processor.
Additionally, the computing device includes a raster
image-processing module communicatively coupled to the processor.
The processor is configured to receive both (i) printing
instructions from the print driver and (ii) parameter data. The
processor is further configured to generate at least one security
feature and add at least one security feature to the printing
instructions. The processor is configured to generate the security
feature is based at least in part on the parameter data.
Additionally, the raster image-processing module is configured to
(i) receive the printing instructions with the at least one
security feature and (ii) generate raster image for printing
including a security indicia. The raster image may be communicated
to a printer for printing. The raster image having the security
indicia incorporated therein.
[0098] Embodiments also include a method for printing a document
with an embedded security feature. The method includes receiving
print instructions including directions for printing a document and
receiving parameter data including customization data for
generating at least one embedded security feature. Based on the
parameter data, the method includes generating at least one
embedded security feature. Additionally, the method includes
creating modified printing instructions by integrating the at least
one embedded security feature with the printing instructions.
Further, once the modified printing instruction is created, sending
the modified printing instructions containing the embedded security
feature to a raster image-processing module. Finally, the method
includes printing a document with the embedded security feature,
via the raster image-processing module, according to the modified
printing instructions.
[0099] Additional embodiment includes a system for dynamically
generating at least one hidden security feature for securing
information printed on a document. The system involves a printing
device comprising a pre-processor firmware module and a raster
image-processing module. The system also includes a computing
device communicatively coupled to the printing device. The
pre-processor firmware module is configured to receive a request
for printing a document from the computing device, process
parameter data relating to the document, and generate at least one
hidden security feature based on the parameter data. Additionally,
the pre-processor firmware module is also configured to supply
information to the raster image-processing module sufficient to
print the document with the at least one hidden security
feature.
[0100] Additional embodiment include a networked device for
dynamically generating at least one hidden security feature for
securing information printed on a document. The networked device
includes a security processing module and a network interface. The
system also includes a computing device communicatively coupled to
the networked device. The security processing module is configured
to receive a request for printing a document via the network
interface, process parameter data relating to the document, and
generate at least one hidden security feature based on the
parameter data. Additionally, the security module is also
configured to supply information to the raster image-processing
module sufficient to print the document with the at least one
hidden security feature. The raster image-processing module may be
collocated with the network device. However, the raster
image-processing module may also be communicatively coupled to the
networked device via the networked device's network interface.
[0101] Many functions described herein may be implemented in
hardware, firmware, or software. Further, software descriptions of
the disclosure can be used to produce hardware and/or firmware
implementing the disclosed embodiments. According to some
embodiments, software and/or firmware may be embodied on any known
non-transitory computer-readable medium having embodied therein a
computer program for storing data. In the context of this
disclosure, computer-readable storage may be any tangible medium
that can contain or store data for use by, or in connection with,
an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. For example,
a non-volatile computer-readable medium may store software and/or
firmware program logic executable by a processor to achieve one or
more of the functions described herein in connection with FIGS.
1-7. Computer-readable storage may be, for example, an electronic,
magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor
system, apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the
foregoing. More specific examples of computer-readable storage
would include but are not limited to the following: a portable
computer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a
read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory
(EPROM or Flash memory), a portable compact disc read-only memory
(CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or
any suitable combination of the foregoing. Further, although
aspects of the present disclosure have been described herein in the
context of a particular implementation in a particular environment
for a particular purpose, those of ordinary skill in the art will
recognize that its usefulness is not limited thereto and that the
present disclosure can be beneficially implemented in any number of
environments for any number of purposes.
[0102] In view of the exemplary systems described above,
methodologies that may be implemented in accordance with the
described subject matter will be better appreciated with reference
to the various figures. For simplicity of explanation, the
methodologies are depicted and described as a series of acts.
However, acts in accordance with this disclosure can occur in
various orders and/or concurrently, and with other acts not
presented and described herein. Furthermore, not all illustrated
acts may be required to implement the methodologies in accordance
with the disclosed subject matter. In addition, those skilled in
the art will understand and appreciate that the methodologies could
alternatively be represented as a series of interrelated states via
a state diagram or events. Additionally, it should be appreciated
that the methodologies described in this disclosure are capable of
being stored on an article of manufacture to facilitate
transporting and transferring such methodologies to computing
devices.
[0103] Although some of various drawings illustrate a number of
logical stages in a particular order, stages which are not order
dependent can be reordered and other stages can be combined or
broken out. Alternative orderings and groupings, whether described
above or not, can be appropriate or obvious to those of ordinary
skill in the art of computer science. Moreover, it should be
recognized that the stages could be implemented in hardware,
firmware, software or any combination thereof.
[0104] The foregoing description, for purpose of explanation, has
been described with reference to specific embodiments. However, the
illustrative discussions above are not intended to be exhaustive or
to be limiting to the precise forms disclosed. Many modifications
and variations are possible in view of the above teachings. The
embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the
principles of the aspects and its practical applications, to
thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the
aspects and various embodiments with various modifications as are
suited to the particular use contemplated.
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