Signature and Authentication of Materials (S.A.M): incorporating signatures into materials

In what way is S.A.M innovative?

Samuel Kenzari: What makes our technology innovative is that it has the capacity to incorporate authentication and marking into the physical structure of a token produced using 3D printing.

Sylvain Lefebvre: This token, which can be used as an anti-counterfeiting device, a security key or as a certificate of authenticity, looks like a plastic square with a maze embossed on one side. All you need to do is put it on the reader we have designed and this will give you the information it contains and the material’s own signature. This internal data protects the data stored in the maze on the outside. Because the decryption key is stored in the token in an entirely passive way, it doesn't emit any signal, meaning it is resistant to cyberattacks. Not only that, but with more than 200 encoding bits available, the solution we have devised, drawing on our research, has an astronomical number of possible mazes, with the risk of collision practically nil.

Samuel Kenzari: This is a breakthrough for additive manufacturing, but it also represents a paradigm shift when it comes to data storage and protection as it means that data will no longer be stored on a magnetic tape or microchip, but rather inside the material itself, utilising its properties.

How did your project come about?

Samuel Kenzari: As it becomes easier to replicate objects using 3D printing, questions linked to authentication and certification are becoming increasingly pressing. In 2015, while working with the MPA project team, I started thinking about a manufacturing process that would eliminate any risk of reverse engineering. We spent four years formulating a range of different materials, with the technology transfer acceleration company Sayens helping us to file a number of patents, until eventually we arrived at the material used to make the S.A.M token. Capable of being authenticated using X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, what sets it apart is that it contains a unique crystallographic signature that cannot be broken down. That’s where Sylvain came in.

Sylvain Lefebvre: Following my PhD, I spent a lot of time working on methods for hiding information in images, like steganography. This overlaps with some of the research carried out by the project team MFX, which focuses on the 3D modelling of parts for additive manufacturing. When Samuel and I got talking about the physical storage of information, I pushed the concept and it snowballed from there. We filed a number of encoding patents with Inria. All that was left for us to do was to write an algorithm for controlling the 3D printer in order to optimise the shape of our token.

How did you go from the laboratory to launching a startup?

Samuel Kenzari: We are both researchers who manage research teams. The step up from doing experiments in the lab to industrial production is a big one, bringing with it specific problems relating to manufacturing, logistics and commercial development. This required skills we don’t possess and which we have neither the desire nor the wherewithal to develop. During development of the material, Sayens handled risk mitigation with support from maturation engineer Frédéric Bauche, who has since gone on to join S.A.M as an R&D engineer. Sayens took care of intellectual property (patenting, etc.) and also conducted market research in order to confirm the product’s commercial potential. Then, once we’d decided to launch a startup, they gave me a list of candidates to fill the role of CEO. Following in-depth discussions and aptitude testing, Cédric Prins, who has years of experience in international business, emerged as the best option. Sylvain, who I've known since 2013 and with whom I'd already worked on more academic projects, then came on board and the three of us co-founded the startup S.A.M with support from the Lorraine-based business incubator Incubateur Lorrain. They helped us to devise and fine-tune our business model, develop an appropriate legal strategy and put us in touch with key figures from the wider ecosystem and the business world. Once we were up and running, Incubateur Lorrain then gave us financial assistance by helping us seek out non-dilutive funding, while also helping us to develop our pitch deck for fundraising purposes.

Sylvain Lefebvre: We do contribute to some decisions, but our primary role is as scientific advisers. Just as additive manufacturing centres around the triumvirate of machine/material/algorithm, our startup is centred around three levels of expertise: material, digital and commercial. Its success will depend on our capacity to strike a balance between individual expectations and contributions. It’s not the most natural approach, as everyone occupies their own community, with their own languages, methodologies and time frames. You need to find a way to communicate. But it’s highly rewarding and when it works it’s really satisfying.

What's next on the horizon?

Samuel Kenzari: In 2024 Sayens invested in the startup, which now has five full-time employees: three engineers recruited to finalise a ready-to-manufacture version of the token and the decoding box, a technical sales representative responsible for building up a client base and arranging production resources, and the CEO, who oversees everything. We are in discussions with potential clients who are keen for production to start this summer. Our aim is to be operational before the end of 2025. Long-term, the goal is to produce our tokens and decoders ourselves in order to give us full control over both the manufacturing process and our digital assets.

Sylvain Lefebvre: One of the advantages of this technology is how easy it is to use. All you need is a 3D printer, a spool of material and a reader. This means it can be adapted to different types of clients, from those looking to incorporate it into their manufacturing and service process to those seeking to be fully autonomous regarding the production of tokens. We’re working towards that level of flexibility at the moment. This is the sort of adaptation that all new startups are faced with.

Samuel Kenzari: Our product has proved its worth. We just have to secure the scaling up of production, which is the least we can do given that it is security that we are selling.