Disclosed are methods and systems that include obtaining at least one image of a dendritic structure, analyzing the at least one image to identify one or more features associated with the dendritic structure, and determining a numerical value associated with the dendritic structure based on the one or more features.

A deposit machine having a cassette with improved usability. The deposit machine includes a body and a header housing integrally fixed to one side of the body and having an infrared ray (IR) sensor and a magnetoresistance (MR) sensor mounted thereon. The IR and MR sensors detect whether banknotes are counterfeit banknotes and whether the banknotes are accommodated. A header cover openably and closably fixed to the header housing by a hinge to allow top of the header housing to be open. The cassette mounted inside the body accommodates banknotes supplied from the header housing.

The invention relates to a sensor for verifying value documents, which has a plurality of fibres that are distributed over the value document and have a characteristic optical or magnetic signal. The sensor has an image capture device for spatially resolved detection of optical or magnetic signals of the value document, which device is designed to capture a value document image of the value document. Furthermore, the sensor has an analysis device which, for the purpose of analysing the value document, is designed to locate the fibres in the value document image and determine at least one local fibre characteristic value for one or more different locations of the value document image in each case and classify the value document as suspected counterfeit on the basis of the local fibre characteristic value. If the value documents are processed automatically, the suspected counterfeit value document can then be automatically rejected.

A media handling apparatus includes: an accumulation unit that accumulates plural sheets of media in a bundle; a strapping unit that straps a media bundle which is the plural sheets of media accumulated by the accumulation unit; and a storage compartment that is provided under the strapping unit and to which can be attached a storage bag that stores the media bundle strapped by the strapping unit.

In one exemplary embodiment in accordance with the disclosure, an image processing system is configured to use a distance authentication template to execute a detection procedure that detects at least one non-linear distortion in a subject image. The distance authentication template can be generated by mapping a set of spatial coordinates of three features in a distortion-free image to a set of pixel coordinates of the three features in the distortion-free image. Addressing a non-linear distortion in the subject image can include performing remedial actions to remedy the non-linear distortion, or taking into consideration the non-linear distortion when using the distance authentication template to identify one or more features in the subject image.

Provided is a handheld device for validation authenticity of a banknote including one or more printed elements printed with at least one security ink, the security ink having defined light reflecting properties. Further provided is a method for validating the authenticity of a banknote utilizing the disclosed device.

A method of obtaining a plurality of infrared images of a banknote that involves simultaneously illuminating the banknote with infrared light at a first wavelength and infrared light at a second wavelength, capturing an image of the banknote with an RGB camera, obtaining from both a first output channel signal and a second output channel signal of the RGB camera sensor where the intensity distribution of the infrared light at the first wavelength and the intensity distribution of the infrared light at the second wavelength uses a first calibration coefficient and a second calibration coefficient of the RGB camera sensor, producing separate infrared images of the banknote at the first wavelength and the second wavelength from the respective intensity distributions.

A method and system for authenticating an item includes providing the item including a polymer substrate comprising a polymer material and a doping material, the polymer material and the doping material configured to transmit radiation laterally through the polymer substrate, and the doping material capable of scattering radiation and absorbing radiation of at least one specific wavelength to generate a spectral signature in a spectral band of wavelengths of the transmitted radiation, irradiating the item with incident radiation characterized by a spectral band of wavelengths spanning a band of wavelengths including the at least one specific wavelength absorbed and scattered by the doping material, detecting the spectral signature after the radiation is transmitted laterally through the polymer substrate, and determining a code associated with the spectral signature.

The present invention provides photoluminescent iron-doped barium stannate materials absorbing ultraviolet (UV) light and exhibiting strong near-infrared (NIR) luminescence. Such materials exhibit increased integrated photoluminescence intensity in comparison to known BaSnO.sub.3 and iron-doped barium stannate materials, and therefore they are particularly useful for the production of photoluminescent security ink compositions and transparent covert security features with improved anti-counterfeiting resistance that can be used for protection of documents and articles against counterfeit and illegal reproduction.

An identification apparatus or system includes an estimation unit that estimates an operating distance between the surface of an optical device and an imaging unit as an estimated value. A reference distance refers to the distance between a first face of an identification target and the imaging unit and at which light diffracted by a diffraction grating is capable of being recorded by the imaging unit. A first determination unit is included that determines whether the estimated value matches the reference distance and a second determination unit that determines whether an image captured by the imaging unit matches a reference image. Conditions for identifying the optical device as the identification target include a condition that the first determination unit determines that the estimated value matches the reference distance and a condition that the second determination unit determines that the image captured by the imaging unit matches the reference image.