Method for authentication of the closure assembly of a container

Abstract

A method for authenticating a closure assembly of a container including a closure and an overpack covering at least the closure. The overpack, including a first radio frequency identification tag having a first unique identifier, the method includes reading the first unique identifier, the closure including a second radio frequency identification tag including a second unique identifier and a storage unit including at least data relating to an overpack/closure pair including the unique identifiers of a closure and an overpack associated with the closure, reading the first unique identifier and comparing the identifiers of the overpack and of the closure thus read to verify that the pair being authenticated does coincide with the pair defined in the data assembly, emitting a communication signal corresponding to the result of the verification, the closure assembly including means for destroying at least one of the identification tags when the container is opened.

Claims

1. A method for automatically authenticating a closure assembly of a container, said assembly comprising a closure closing an opening of said container for the passage of a fluid or of at least one object contained in said container, and an overpack covering at least said closure, wherein said overpack comprises a first radio frequency identification tag having a unique identifier of said overpack, and said closure comprises a second radio frequency identification tag having a unique identifier of said closure and a processor having a storage unit, said storage unit comprising a data set comprising at least data establishing a unique relationship between an overpack/closure pair which comprises the unique identifiers of a closure and an overpack associated with this closure defining the unique relationship between the pair, and wherein the following steps are carried out: reading the unique identifier of said overpack and reading the unique identifier of said closure with a mobile terminal comprising a NFC/RFID reader; comparing, with said processor, the so read identifiers of said overpack and said closure together with the data set stored in the storage unit of the processor establishing the unique relationship of said overpack/closure pair in order to verify that the overpack/closure pair being authenticated coincides with the overpack/closure pair defined in said data set; and emitting a communication signal, with said processor, corresponding to the result of this verification, wherein said closure assembly comprises means for destroying at least one of the two identification tags upon the first opening of said container.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein, before and after closing said container with said closure assembly, the following steps are carried out: reading the unique identifier of said overpack with the mobile terminal comprising said NFC/RFID reader, storing said unique identifier of said overpack in said storage unit of the processor placed in said closure by associating said unique identifier of said overpack with the unique identifier of said closure to form a specified overpack/closure pair.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein, after having encrypted at least the data relating to the overpack/closure pair by means of a coding key, said data is decrypted during the step of comparison.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the write access to said storage unit of the processor is protected by a key and an authentication algorithm to prevent any modification of the data relating to the overpack/closure.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the data stored in said storage unit also comprising at least data relating to said fluid or to said at least one object contained in said container, by which at least one command suggestion is displayed on a display of the mobile terminal, said suggestion or at least one of said suggestions corresponding to the display of said data relating to said fluid or to said at least one object contained in said container.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein said second radio frequency identification tag and said processor having the storage unit are placed in an internal housing of said closure.

7. The closure assembly for carrying out the method of authentication according to claim 1, said container comprising an opening for the passage of a fluid or at least one object contained in said container, characterized in that it comprises: the closure for closing said opening, the overpack for covering at least said closure, said overpack comprising the first radio frequency identification tag having a unique identifier of said overpack, said closure having a housing receiving the second radio frequency identification tag storing a unique identifier of said closure, and a processor having a storage unit for storing data establishing a unique relationship between an overpack/closure pair which comprises the unique identifiers of said closure and said overpack defining the unique relationship between the pair, said processor being configured to generate and receive communication signals, and means for destroying at least one of the two identification tags upon the first opening of said container.

8. The assembly according to claim 7, wherein said closure comprising a head and a body, said housing is placed in said head of the closure.

9. The assembly according to claim 7, wherein said processor is connected to said second tag to transmit and receive said communication signals.

10. The assembly according to claim 7, wherein said short range wireless communication signals are based on a Near Field Communication (NFC) protocol.

11. The assembly according to claim 7, wherein said housing is formed by a sealed housing.

12. The assembly according to claim 7, wherein said second radio frequency identification tag and said processor are encapsulated in a hardened matrix to protect these elements.

13. The container having a container neck comprising an opening therein for the passage of a fluid contained in said container, said container being equipped with the closure assembly according to claim 7.

14. The use of said assembly according to claim 7 for protecting wine, alcohol or spirits, medicament or pasty or viscous foodstuff, for medical or cosmetic use, contained in a bottle, a pot, a tube, a flask, a vial or a carafe.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) Other specific advantages, purposes and characteristics of the presently disclosed embodiment will emerge from the description which follows, given for an explanatory and non-limiting purpose, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

(2) FIG. 1 schematically shows an exploded perspective view of a closure assembly of a bottle comprising a neck according to a first aspect of the presently disclosed embodiment; and

(3) FIG. 2 is another exploded view of the closure assembly of FIG. 1;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(4) First of all, it should be noted that the figures are not to scale.

(5) FIGS. 1 and 2 schematically show an exploded view of a closure assembly for a container, in this case a bottle, according to a particular aspect of the presently disclosed embodiment.

(6) This container comprises a container neck 10 having an inside opening 11 for the passage of a liquid contained in this container. This liquid is, for example, a vine or a spirit.

(7) This opening 11 is closed by a stopper comprising a stopper-head 12 and a stopper body 13 integral with this head 12. The stopper-head 12 comprises a hollow base 14 and an ornamental element 15 forming a lid for closing and concealing a housing 16 housed in this hollow base 14 of the stopper head 12. This housing 16 has dimensions enabling it to conform to the internal wall of this base 14 so as to be held in position once inserted therein.

(8) This housing 16 is here a metal insert while the stopper body 13 is made of a flexible material. The latter may be made of cork, agglomerated cork or an elastomer-type plastic such as a thermoplastic elastomer (TPE).

(9) A cap 17, made here in a transparent plastic material, is intended to cover the stopper 12, 13 and a portion of the neck 10 of the container in order to fasten this stopper 12, 13 to this container.

(10) This cap 17 comprises a first radiofrequency identification tag 18, this first tag 18 being arranged on the inside face of this cap 17 so as to be turned towards the stopper 12, 13. It is thus rendered inaccessible.

(11) Moreover, this cap 17 is configured so as to cause the destruction of this first identification tag 18 as soon as the container is first opened.

(12) For this purpose, this first tag 18 is placed directly on a tear strip IS of the cap 17, for example a strip called Tircell or, more simply, an opening strip bounded by two lines of weakness.

(13) Thus, the removal of the cap 17 to access the stopper 12, 13 in order to open the container by manipulating the strip 19 automatically leads to the destruction of the first tag 18. An infringer cannot therefore reuse this first label 18 having a unique identifier.

(14) The housing 16 placed in the thickness of the stopper head receives a hardened matrix 20 encapsulating and protecting an assembly having a second radiofrequency identification tag and a processor.

(15) This second identification tag stores a unique identifier of the stopper 12, 13. The processor includes a storage unit for storing data and is configured to generate and receive communication signals.

(16) In one aspect of the authentication method, a mobile management unit (not shown), capable of addressing and receiving communication signals based on the NFC/RFID protocol and comprising embedded software for processing these signals, is used.

(17) This mobile management unit may be a mobile terminal, for example a mobile phone such as a smartphone or a touchpad laptop.

(18) The mobile management unit software reads the unique identifier of the first radiofrequency identification tag 18 from the cap and then establishes an encrypted communication with the processor placed in the stopper head 12 and connected to the second radiofrequency Identification tag.

(19) Through this communication, the software of the smartphone transmits the unique identifier of the first identification tag 18 of the cap to the software of the processor which verifies that this identifier is indeed that corresponding to the unique identifier associated with the identifier of the stopper at the outlet of the bottling line to form the pair of stopper/cap identifiers stored in the storage unit of the processor.

(20) The processor transmits the result of the verification as a short-range communication signal to the unit. The processor of the mobile management unit displays the result of the verification on a display means of this mobile management unit.

(21) In addition, if the mobile management unit is in a communication coverage area (telephone data, internet, etc.) with the activated data exchange, the processor of this mobile management unit may, at the user's request, connect to a spirits vendor's database to verify that the data of the cap/stopper pair is indeed registered in his database.