Abstract: The present invention relates to a method of marking a petroleum hydrocarbon by adding to and uniformly mixing with said petroleum hydrocarbon a chemical marker of general formula (I) wherein two of the residues R1-R10 are independently of each other selected from C1-C4-alkoxy, and eight of the residues R1-R10 are independently of each other selected from the group consisting of hydrogen and C1-C4-alkyl, as well as to a composition of a petroleum hydrocarbon comprising a petroleum hydrocarbon and at least one chemical marker of general formula (I). The presence and concentration of the chemical marker of general formula (I) in the composition of the petroleum hydrocarbon can be advantageously determined by laser ionization coupled with mass spectrometry or by laser ionization coupled with ion mobility spectrometry.

Abstract: The invention relates to the field of the protection of security documents such as for example banknotes and identity documents against counterfeit and illegal reproduction. In particular, the present invention provides processes for optical effect layers (OEL) exhibiting one or more indicia using a magnetic assembly comprising i) a soft magnetic plate (x31) comprising a) one or more voids (V) and b) one or more dipole magnets (x32-a), wherein the one or more dipole magnets (x32-a) are disposed within the one or more voids (V) and/or are facing said one or more voids (V), and/or one or more pairs of two dipole magnets (x32-b), wherein the dipole magnets (x32-b) of the one or more pairs are disposed below the soft magnetic plate (x31) and are spaced apart from the one or more voids (V).

Abstract: The invention relates to an anti-copy optical element comprising a caustic layer and a mask layer configured to simultaneously display a visible image reproducing a reference image and form a projected image containing a visible caustic pattern reproducing a reference pattern, upon illumination of the optical element with a light source, the projected image being distinct from the reference image. The invention also relates to a method for designing a relief pattern of a light-redirecting surface of said caustic layer consistently with the transmission properties of the mask layer.

Abstract: An optical security element made of a refractive transparent or partially transparent optical material and comprising an optical assembly of a caustic layer having a light-redirecting surface with a relief pattern of given depth and a focal length fC and an adjacent lens element of focal length fL configured to redirect incident light received from a point-like light source through it and to form a projected image containing a caustic pattern directly on a retina of an observer. A marked object, as well as a method of visually authenticating an object, and use of optical security elements for authenticating or securing against counterfeiting are also disclosed.

Abstract: The present invention relates to the field of security inks suitable for printing machine readable security features on substrate, security documents or articles as well as machine readable security feature made from said security inks, and security documents comprising a machine readable security feature made from said security inks. In particular, the invention provides security inks comprising one or more IR absorbing materials selected from the group consisting of crystal water-free iron(II) orthophosphates of the general formula Fe3(PO4)2 and having a graftonite crystal structure, crystal water-free iron(II) metal orthophosphates, crystal water-free iron(II) metal phosphonates, crystal water-free iron(II) metal pyrophosphates, crystal water-free iron(II) metal metaphosphates of the general formula FeaMetb(POc)d, wherein said security ink is an oxidative drying security ink, a UV-Vis curable security ink, a UV-Vis curable security ink or a combination thereof.

Abstract: The invention relates to securing of an article against forgery and falsifying of its associated data, and particularly of data relating to its belonging to a specific batch of articles, while allowing offline or online checking of the authenticity of a secured article and conformity of its associated data with respect to that of a genuine article.

Abstract: The invention relates to securing of an article against forgery and falsifying of its associated data, and particularly of data relating to its belonging to a specific batch of articles, while allowing offline or online checking of the authenticity of a secured article and conformity of its associated data with respect to that of a genuine article.

Abstract: The invention allows using a commodity hardware (e.g. a smartphone, a tablet, a computer . . . ) to automatically establish a high level of assurance authentication and identification of any government-issued identity document of a user (e.g. identity card, driving license, passport . . . ) and link that to digital identity counterpart. Moreover, the invention allows personalizing a material-based security feature provided of said government-issued identity document to create a link between the identity document and its data content that can be read by such a commodity hardware and serves as reliable credential for accessing a service once the material-based security feature has been authenticated via the commodity hardware and a signature of the identity data of the user has been authenticated by a server of an authority.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method and device for detecting and decoding a two-dimensional encoded pattern, e.g. of the Robust Encoding Pattern type (REP), even in case the pattern is applied on a non-uniform colored background of a surface of a substrate. The operations for decoding such an encoded pattern involve detecting the states of its symbols through a test pattern, checking that local differences between parameter values of the elements of the symbols are consistent with an allowed representation of the test pattern to assign via a one-to-one mapping the states of the symbols of the test pattern to the corresponding symbols of the encoded pattern, and decoding the encoded pattern based on the assigned representation of its symbols.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method of authenticating a magnetically induced mark applied on a substrate including magnetically oriented partially reflective platelet-shaped magnetic or magnetizable pigment particles, with a portable device equipped with a light source operable to deliver visible light, an imager, a processor and a memory, the method comprising calculating, with the processor, a corresponding average intensity I of the light reflected by the partially reflective platelet-shaped magnetic or magnetizable pigment particles and collected by the imager at corresponding viewing angle ?, storing the calculated average intensities of the reflected light and corresponding viewing angles to obtain a reflected light intensity curve I(?), comparing the stored reflected light intensity curve I(?) with a stored reference reflected light intensity curve Iref(?) for said magnetically induced mark, and determining whether the magnetically induced mark is genuine based on a result of the comparison.

Abstract: The present invention relates to the field of and processes and printing apparatuses for producing optical effect layers (OEL) comprising magnetically oriented platelet-shaped magnetic or magnetizable pigment particles on a substrate. In particular, the present invention relates to processes using printing apparatuses comprising a first magnetic-field-generating device mounted on a transferring device (TD) and a static second magnetic-field-generating device for producing said OELs as anti-counterfeit means on security documents or security articles or for decorative purposes.

Abstract: A method and system are provided for registering, in a database, a transaction between two parties, and for allowing a third party to cause an action to be performed in relation to the transaction. The method comprise a step of creating (s2) a transaction record, steps of electronically signing (s4, s12) the transaction record, steps of registering (s6, s14) the transaction record in the database, steps of issuing a notification (s8, s16) that the transaction record has been registered in the database, steps of verifying (s10) the transaction record by the third party, and a step of causing (s18), by the third party, an action to be performed based on transaction content information.

Abstract: Disclosed is a composite particle for use in a marking that is suitable for identification/authentication purposes. The particle comprises at least one superparamagnetic portion and at least one thermoluminescent portion and optionally also a thermoconductive portion between the superparamagnetic and thermoluminscent portions.

Abstract: The present invention relates to the technical field of security documents comprising a security feature, such as a windowed security thread, a security foil, a security patch, a hologram or an ink printed security feature, and a protective coating, and methods of manufacturing of said security documents. The security feature has a security feature thickness tf of at least about 5 ?m (micrometers) and a security feature surface facing away from the substrate consisting of a first region adjacent to the edges of the security feature and a second region non-adjacent to the edges of the security feature. The protective coating covers the security feature surface facing away from the substrate, a first substrate surface adjacent to the edges of the security feature, and a second substrate surface, which is different from the substrate surface covered by the security feature and the first substrate surface.

Abstract: The invention relates to the field of the protection of security documents such as for example banknotes and identity documents against counterfeit and illegal reproduction. In particular, the present invention provides processes for magnetically transferring one or more indicia into a not yet hardened coating layer made of a coating composition including platelet-shaped magnetic or magnetizable pigment particles so as to produce optical effect layers (OELs) as anti-counterfeit means on security documents or security articles or for decorative purposes.

Abstract: The present invention generally relates to a system and method creating secure data in a gas and oil supply chain. The system creates secure data related to oil and gas assets while traversing an oil and gas supply chain. At least one repository system(s), which collects secure data generated by capturing information using a secure observer device, sends the secure data to a gateway which is a part of a global management system or an integrity management system to create clustered events. The disclosure also relates to a system and method for managing and controlling data between entities in an oil and gas asset supply chain, and in particular to an excise tax management system and method to identify and reconcile tax filings, production volumes and operational reports.

Abstract: The present invention relates to the field of and processes and printing apparatuses for producing optical effect layers (OEL) comprising magnetically oriented platelet-shaped magnetic or magnetizable pigment particles on a substrate. In particular, the present invention relates to processes using printing apparatuses comprising a first magnetic-field-generating device mounted on a transferring device (TD) and a static second magnetic-field-generating device for producing said OELs as anti-counterfeit means on security documents or security articles or for decorative purposes.

Abstract: The present invention relates to the field of optical effect layers (OEL) including magnetically oriented non-spherical oblate magnetic or magnetizable pigment particles on a substrate, spinneable magnetic assemblies and processes for producing optical effect layers (OEL). In particular, the present invention relates to spinneable magnetic assemblies and processes for producing OELs as anti-counterfeit means on security documents or security articles or for decorative purposes.

Abstract: Disclosed is a composite particle for use in a marking that is suitable for identification/authentication purposes. The particle comprises at least one superparamagnetic portion and at least one thermoluminescent portion coated with an thermoisolating portion. Optionally also a thermoconductive portion between the superparamagnetic and thermoluminscent portions.

Abstract: The present invention relates to the field of protecting value documents and value commercial goods against counterfeit and illegal reproduction. In particular, the present invention provides processes for producing optical effect layers (OELs) comprising non-spherical magnetic or magnetizable particles and comprising a motif made of at least two areas made of a single applied and cured layer, said motif being obtained by using a selective curing performed by irradiation with an actinic radiation LED source (x41) comprising an array of individually addressable actinic radiation emitters.