When it comes to 3D printing, the sky is the limit. As 3D printing technology continues to advance, applications can be as far reaching as airplane and automobile parts to medical devices and even anatomically correct, biocompatible models. Although 3D printing technology is developing at a rapid pace, the technology itself is not new. It emerged in the 1980s as a means of creating rapid prototypes. In recent years the applications for 3D printed models have evolved with the available hardware, software, and printable materials. Evolving technology, paired with the creative and innovative minds of scientists, engineers, and physicians, has been the launching pad for developments within 3D printing technology specific to healthcare. One way 3D printing technology is poised to create better patient outcomes is in creating an anatomically and patient-specific models to aid in surgery and medical procedures. With the capability to 3D ...
Picture this: a man peruses a jewelry shop. He's in the market for high-quality, top-brand watch and asks to see the selection. He considers a few options before selecting one. But before he's ready to make the purchase, he asks for proof of authenticity. The jeweler scans a small, plastic tag on the side of the watch face. The man is satisfied and pulls out his wallet.
Elsewhere, a pharmacist considers a new shipment of medicine. She examines the labels carefully before breathing lightly on the package. Briefly, a translucent watermark becomes visible, bearing the name of the manufacturer. She proceeds to unpack the rest of the package and set the bottles on the shelves.
These scenes seem like a vision of the distant, high-tech future, but they are much closer to reality than one might think. New developments in polymers have the ability to provide near-foolproof authenticity markers for medicines, luxury brands, electronics, and much more. Once these polymers pass through an independent testing laboratory, those scenes could become part of everyday life.
"New developments in polymers have the ability to provide near-foolproof authenticity markers."
Polymers help to thwart counterfeiters
Scientists in high-tech facilities are working on ways to create polymer-based tags and labels that verify an item's origin. Counterfeiters would need access to those same laboratories to create the same level of marker. As these techniques are brand new and cutting edge, it seems unlikely that such crooks would be able to match them. Forgers constantly try to find ways to pass off fake items as real, so it's important that science stay one step ahead. These plastic experts are taking that step.
The new fingerprint ID
…is not a fingerprint at all, but rather, a polymer tag that behaves like one. While fingerprints are unique biometric identifiers, it is possible to lift prints from scanners and create phony tags to gain clearance to a restricted area. In fact, a hacker can even develop fake fingerprints by taking a picture of the subject in question with a standard resolution camera, according to BBC.
…is not a fingerprint at all, but rather, a polymer tag that behaves like one. While fingerprints are unique biometric identifiers, it is possible to lift prints from scanners and create phony tags to gain clearance to a restricted area. In fact, a hacker can even develop fake fingerprints by taking a picture of the subject in question with a standard resolution camera, according to BBC.
"Biometrics that rely on static information like face recognition or fingerprints – it's not trivial to forge them but most people have accepted that they are not a great form of security because they can be faked," cybersecurity expert Professor Alan Woodward from Surrey University told BBC.
Other, unreplicable or non-deterministic tags do exist and are more reliable than fingerprints as authenticators, according to Phys.org. But these tags are difficult and costly to produce, making them untenable for application in a wide range of products.
Instead, Wook Park and Sunghoon Kwon of Seoul National University may have developed the best of both worlds – non-deterministic and impossible to duplicate, but relatively simple to produce. The secret is in coating a substrate with silica polymers and allowing the substrate to dry and shrink, which in turn wrinkles the polymer. The wrinkling pattern was impossible to duplicate even under the same conditions and process. Additionally, the wrinkled silica polymers were more unique and complex than human fingerprints.
With that said, Park and Kwon were able to control different variables to create more or less complex – and therefore secure – patterns. These variables include reaction time and the wavelength for the UV light used to create the polymer.
"To our knowledge, the presented fingerprinting approach is the first, among non-deterministic codes, to enable tuning of coding capacity or security level," the team explained in their report.
These markers have the potential to provide reliable, durable and completely unique tags for practically any product or access point.
Plastic acts like invisible ink
This is not the first instance of scientists using polymers to create an authentication device. In August 2014, a team of researchers from Korea and the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor created a thin plastic label that acts as a futuristic watermark – it is completely translucent until a human breath reveals a hidden image or phrase, according to Science News for Students.
This is not the first instance of scientists using polymers to create an authentication device. In August 2014, a team of researchers from Korea and the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor created a thin plastic label that acts as a futuristic watermark – it is completely translucent until a human breath reveals a hidden image or phrase, according to Science News for Students.
The label uses a polymer that repels water. Then, engineers layer another polymer on top of that – one that attracts water – that is printed as the desired image, pattern or lettering. The moisture in breath adheres to the second polymer and not the first, revealing the previously invisible image.
While the label may appear like a smooth sheet to the naked eye, there are actually billions of tiny nanopillars that are molded and layered onto the base polymer. Then, a specialized inkjet printer applies the water-resistant polymer to the nanopillars, which holds the polymer ink in place and helps provide a clear image.
The nanopillars are robust enough to withstand rubbing and can be created relatively inexpensively.
"They will not be destroyed by rubbing," Nicholas Kotov told Science News for Students. And while production does require a high-end laboratory, "it's not expensive high-tech."
For those reasons, the technology is applicable to a number of products that require verifications. Kotov sees immediate possibilities in the field of medicine, so hospitals and pharmacists know they are buying approved drugs.
"The ability to distinguish if it is safe or not needs to be incorporated in the packaging," he told the publication.
These developments have a chance to provide better measures for authentication while preventing counterfeiters from hitting the market. Once these polymers pass through analytical testing labs, they will be on their way to helping provide verification across a variety of industries.
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