TexTrace has partnered with RFID systems integrator Eximia to develop a mobile brand protection solution powered by radio frequency identification technology. The eBrand solution, the two companies report, is designed to help fashion brands securely verify the authenticity of their products throughout the worldwide supply chain, thereby protecting their customers and their reputation from counterfeits and gray markets.

The end-to-end product-authentication solution, the companies indicate, blends TexTrace's expertise in the design and manufacture of woven RFID brand labels with sophisticated algorithms and mobile systems integration know-how from Eximia. eBrand features three key components: an RFID label, an app and an authentication server. The TexTrace Woven RFID Brand Label is a fabric label with a built-in EPC Gen 2 passive ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) RFID chip, a protective pad and a stitched-in antenna consisting of what the company calls electronically sensitive yarn (see Luxury Apparel Maker to Test TexTrace's Fabric RFID Label). The woven RFID label is encoded by the eBrand platform with a proprietary algorithm that combines a tag identifier (TID) code, an Electronic Product Code (EPC) and additional information as requested by the client. Each RFID label's data is stored in the eBrand Authentication Server Database, where it is linked to product such information as origin, location, style and collection.

The eBrand mobile apps for Android and iOS phones are delivered to the specific brand customer, and can read RFID label data through built-in smartphone RFID readers or an interrogator connected to the phone via a Bluetooth connection. The apps communicate with the authentication server in order to run the verification process by sending the RFID label data to the server, which verifies the product's authenticity and credentials, returning a "valid" or "invalid" message to the eBrand app. For products deemed invalid, the companies note, the eBrand app issues an alert to the inspector and stores the inspection data on the server platform.