Serialized holography for brand protection and authentication.

The problems presented by counterfeit products and documentation are discussed. Limitations of existing holograms for anti-counterfeit applications are described. We describe the advantages of full holographic serialization and the requirements in terms of materials and techniques for mass production of true serialized holograms. These requirements having been met, we report for the first time the mass production of fully serialized holograms. The novelty of the approach consists of the direct use of the product manufacturer's information as the object in a holographic recording system along with a self-processing photopolymer and modular optical system to facilitate mass production of truly serialized volume holograms. Various types of serialized holograms for overt and covert authentication are described. We discuss briefly the application of Optrace's manufacturing methods for future generation holographic devices.