The present disclosure provides a graphical watermark, a method and an apparatus for generating a graphical watermark, and a method and an apparatus for authenticating a graphical watermark. The graphical watermark includes: a plurality of graphical markers carrying position and pose information, and identity information of the graphical watermark; and a watermark pattern provided between a pair of graphical markers.

Security devices having chaosmetric artifacts from fractal patterns are disclosed. In one aspect, embodiments of the present disclosure include a security device, having a physical surface having formed thereon a composite pattern. The composite pattern can created from created from joining of an imprint of a first base pattern and an imprint of a second base pattern. The first base pattern can be created from a first basic building block. In one embodiment, the first base pattern is a fractal pattern based on the first basic building block which forms chaosmetric artifacts in the physical surface upon printing.

A computer program product includes a non-volatile computer readable medium and non-transitory program instructions embodied therein, the program instructions being configured to be executable by a processor to cause the processor to perform various operations. The operations may include obtaining first encoded data that encodes information of a first party, obtaining second encoded data that encodes information of a second party, performing a forward mashup algorithm on the first encoded data and second encoded data to form a third data set, and providing the third data set to the first party as a mashup two-dimensional barcode.

There is provided a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium tangibly embodying machine-readable visual representation of data encoded therein, the data being retrievable by reading and decoding the visual representation by a visual code reader, the visual representation including: multiple function patterns; a first visual code comprising a first encoded message embedded therein, and a first subset of the function patterns, such that reading the first encoded message requires reading the first function patterns subset; and a second visual code comprising a second encoded message embedded therein, and a second subset of the function patterns, such that reading the second encoded message requires reading the second function patterns set, wherein the first function patterns subset and the second function patterns subset have at least one common function pattern, and wherein at least a part of the second visual code event occurs.

Provided is a Device a System, applications and an associated Ecosystem for the consistent and reliable production, creation, generation, management and utilization of two-dimensional (‘2D’) barcodes (‘Codes’) featuring embedded Images, designating the alignment position and alignment size of the embedding Images in 2D Codes and enabling the corresponding outputted Code files by the Device System to be downloaded and or showcased digitally within all forms of digital advertising, media, television, mobile telephony and the world wide web as well as integrated with the production processes for consumer products and packaged goods, printed products, merchandise and other items featuring such 2D Codes creating a public telecommunications platform and or private intranet services featuring a searchable database, directory and or registry of the 2D Codes with embedded Images that have been created by, produced by and outputted by the Device or System.

A barcoded indicator operative to provide a machine-readable indication of exceedance of at least one threshold by at least one product quality affecting parameter, the barcoded indicator including at least a first barcode and at least a second barcode, the at least a second barcode being in a second barcode unreadable state prior to exceedance of the at least one threshold and upon exceedance of the at least one threshold the at least a first barcode becoming unreadable and generally simultaneously the at least a second barcode becoming readable.

The present invention provides self-disabling tamper evident gift cards, and methods for making and using the gift cards. The gift cards comprise a hidden lower level activation code, and an upper level activation code that is visible. The gift cards incorporate one or more features that render either the lower level or upper level, or both, activation codes unreadable once the lower level activation code is revealed. This prevents card activation at a later time after a first instance when the activation code is accessed.

A new reading method is recorded in a code region generated by arranging a plurality of kinds of cells according to a conventional reading method. Furthermore, the code region generated in such a manner that the reading method information is recoded according to the conventional reading method according to which reading is possible by a reading device is displayed together with a code region generated according to the new reading method.

An information code that records information read by a first reader and a second reader, includes: a plurality of bar areas; and a plurality of space areas disposed between the plurality of bar areas. The plurality of the bar areas and the plurality of space areas provide a barcode for recording a first information recognized by the first reader. At least one of the plurality of bar areas and the plurality of space areas provide a second information recognized by the second reader in a format including a hash value with an arrangement of a plurality of colors defined so as not to change a discrimination between the bar areas and the space areas by the first reader.

A method for securely marking an object, comprising: a step of determining a maximum cell size (302) of a two-dimensional barcode (301), the cell size being defined by an area containing a number of dots (304, 305), a step of estimating a minimum number of dots of a predetermined colour referred to as the “main colour” in a cell such that the cell is detected as being said colour by a predetermined reader, a step of encoding a message in cells of a two-dimensional barcode by defining the main colour of each cell, said message representing at least one instance of access to a remote resource, for at least one cell, a step of defining an image (306) to be represented in the cell, the number of dots in the colour image defining the cell being greater than the estimated minimum number and a step of marking the object with the secure two-dimensional barcode.