A method and apparatus for drug product tracking (or other pharmaceutical, health care or
cosmetics products, and/or the packages or containers they are supplied with) using
diffraction grating-based encoded optical identification elements includes an optical
substrate having at least one diffraction grating disposed therein. The encoded element may
be used to label any desired item, such as drugs or medicines, or other pharmaceutical or
health care products or cosmetics. The label may be used for many different purposes, such …