CHECK ID: Smart solution with RFID labels makes cartridges such as ink, toner or 3D material secure and transparent – original recognition in every machine, prevention of incorrect refill or counterfeit production, as well as complete documentation from use to inventory.
CHECK ID Smart solution for consumables and machines
![[Translate to Englisch:]](/fileadmin/_processed_/9/e/csm_drucker_toner_adobestock_1353511264_8ad821524f.jpeg "[Translate to Englisch:]")
High-quality equipment and machines and suitable consumables are part of the DNA of the mechanical engineering industry.
High-quality equipment and machines and suitable consumables are part of the DNA of the mechanical engineering industry. The continuous development of equipment and the high-quality composition of consumables guarantee good sales in the industry. The interaction of consumables and their dosage in applications has become increasingly sustainable and resource-efficient. In recent years, more and more low-cost manufacturers from the Far East or replica suppliers have entered the market, causing massive losses in sales of consumables and spare parts. In addition, documentation requirements, environmental regulations and process safety requirements for EU manufacturers are becoming increasingly stringent. As a result, many are looking for new ways to protect against plagiarism, ensure process safety and achieve automated, seamless documentation.
The starting point
Mechanical engineering in the field of ink, toner, paste and fluid use is increasingly seeking solutions for active and secure communication between cartridges and machines in cartridge processing. Cartridge solutions are also used in the chemical and medical technology sectors, where they naturally face the same requirements. Counterfeit products, unwanted refills, incorrect use in processes and high technical and documentation requirements are a constant challenge for manufacturers.
The task for the inotec group was to make consumables so intelligent that communication with the processing system is possible both centrally and decentrally and that authenticity can be checked immediately in every machine. In addition, incorrect or unwanted use should be reliably prevented. For users in the field, this means that incorrect or once-removed materials, or materials that have exceeded their useful life, cannot be used at all or cannot be used a second time. Neither in the machine currently in use nor in any other machines of the same type. Another important challenge for the solution was the security of being able to add every new material or spare part from the manufacturer to the same system (platform). The security level had to be very high, and the cost per cartridge as low as possible.
The inotec group has developed a complete solution for renowned manufacturers in the printing industry in which the materials and spare parts communicate with an RFID reader in the respective device via an RFID label with individual encryption on the cartridge, thereby activating themselves as originals when inserted. To this end, the RFID labels are modified so that they fit the cartridge optimally and securely and enable exactly the reading range (performance) required by the RFID reader with the adapted RFID antenna in the device. This ensures that no cartridges are detected that have not been inserted directly into the device. Thanks to the encryption option in the RFID chip, the RFID labels can be programmed quickly and securely during production in accordance with the customer's security level specifications. Encryption is possible up to DNA-capable levels. The free spaces in the RFID chip allow the machine to write the usage status back to each label on the cartridges. This also prevents decentralised secondary use of the cartridge. In the case of reusable cartridges, these blocks in the chip can be reset and reassigned by an administrator when the cartridges are refilled.
In addition to product-level safety, this intelligent material solution offers other major advantages in the process. Seamless recording of the materials used enables seamless material management to be integrated when the machine communicates via the web. When minimum stock levels are reached, reorders are automatically triggered with the manufacturer. When using the wrong material for a work order, users can be corrected by the machine because the device passes on the information about which version of the cartridges is the right one for the required work cycle. The RFID labels on the cartridges also offer logistical advantages. This means that the status can be seamlessly documented from the empty cartridges to filling and packaging and stored in the system as a digital twin. This ‘real-time’ data can be continuously supplemented the more frequently the machine and material consumption combination is recorded. This enables optimal inventory management for each filling location, and the manufacturer can call up inventories and current throughput stations for a cartridge type down to the individual product ID worldwide in real time
