Volume 18, No. 6, 2021
Leveraging Block chain technology to Secure Physical Assets
K. Mohamed Sayeed Khan , Dr. S. Shajun Nisha
Abstract
The use of blockchain technology to track physical assets is not new. However, the state of the art concepts are not applicable due to several limitations. One limitation is the scalability of blockchains with regard to the number of transactions that can be processed by the network. The well-established technology in tracking products is based on RFID chips that can be cloned. This paper provides insights into how objects can be protected and monitored by a varnish with a unique crack pattern, as an example of a Physical Unclonable Function. The perceptual hash of the unique pattern is used to encrypt the associated data to ensure privacy. Instead of logging each event on the blockchain individually, which is not possible due to the limited transaction throughput, Origin Stamp is used to preserve data integrity on the blockchain. Origin Stamp aggregates events, combines them through hashing and embeds this hash into a Bitcoin transaction. Once the Bitcoin network mines the transaction into a block and confirms it, the timestamp is considered as immutable proof of existence. With this approach, the integrity of tracking data cannot be contested. In the future, the craquelure-based tracking approach could be extended to supply chain integration to secure the origin of prod- ucts, including prevention of counterfeiting, securing the place of manufacture for trademark law or state surveillance of the agricul-tural economy.
Pages: 4525-4535
Keywords: Manufacturing Supply Chain, Traceability System, Blockchain