61406.co: permanent identification links for physical products
61406.co is a resolver for identification links as defined in IEC 61406-1. Each link names exactly one physical unit, is printed on that unit as a QR code, and never changes. Scanning it leads to the unit's record, kept by the company responsible for it in a buildrecord ledger.
What is an IEC 61406 identification link?
IEC 61406-1 (Identification link, Part 1: General requirements, first published in 2022) standardises how a physical object gets a globally unique, machine-readable identifier in the form of a URL. The idea is simple: instead of a serial number that only the maker can look up, the object carries a web link that anyone with a phone can follow, and that link stays valid for as long as the object exists.
The standard requires that an identification link:
- identifies one object, and is unique worldwide;
- is a valid, resolvable URL, so an ordinary browser can follow it;
- stays the same for the object's entire life, whatever happens to the systems behind it;
- is applied to the object in a machine-readable form, normally a QR code, together with the IL marking (the letters IL inside a triangular frame) that tells a reader this QR code is an identification link and not an advert.
A second part, IEC 61406-2, adds rules for the structure of the link string itself. The standard grew out of DIN SPEC 91406, developed with German industry associations, and is the identification method used by the Asset Administration Shell and by much of the machinery and electrical industry.
Why it matters
The EU's Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation introduces the Digital Product Passport: product categories will have to carry a unique identifier, readable on the product, that links to their passport data. An IEC 61406 identification link is a ready-made way to meet that requirement. Beyond regulation, a permanent link on every unit gives service engineers, auditors, buyers and recyclers a single place to find the unit's build record, its documents and its history, years after the maker's website has been rebuilt.
How a 61406.co link works
Links on this host have the form https://61406.co/<project>/<id>,
for example https://61406.co/alpha/K7M-3PA. The project part names the product
line; the identifier is six characters from an alphabet that avoids look-alike letters, with a
check character so that a mistyped or damaged code is rejected rather than misread. Upper and
lower case and the hyphen do not matter.
61406.co holds no product data. It only knows which buildrecord instance keeps each project's records and forwards the visitor there. That separation is what keeps the printed link permanent: a company can move systems, servers or suppliers and the link on the product still resolves.
Frequently asked questions
Is 61406.co about the LEGO part 61406?
No. 61406 is also the design number of a LEGO element, which is why a search for the bare number finds bricks. This site is about IEC 61406, the international standard for identification links on physical products, and has no connection with LEGO.
What happens when I scan a 61406.co QR code?
Your phone / device opens the link and 61406.co forwards you to the record for that exact unit, kept by the company responsible for it in a buildrecord ledger. That company decides what is public and what needs a sign-in. While a product line's ledger is not yet connected, the page shows the identifier and says so.
Does an identification link expire?
No. IEC 61406-1 requires the link to stay valid for the whole life of the object, and 61406.co is run on that basis: an identifier is never reused, edited or deleted.
What is the IL symbol next to the QR code?
The letters IL inside a triangular frame are the marking defined by IEC 61406-1. They tell anyone looking at the product that this QR code is its identification link, as opposed to a marketing or packaging code.
Is my scan tracked?
61406.co logs each request (time, address, browser type) to operate the service and detect abuse, as any web server does. Following a link needs no account, app or personal details.
Can I get IEC 61406 identification links for my products?
Yes. buildrecord issues identification links on 61406.co for each product line, generates the QR labels with the IL marking, and keeps the versioned record each link points at. Contact AmberLogic through amberlogic.co.uk or buildrecord.net.
Who operates 61406.co
61406.co is operated by AmberLogic, a UK software company, as the resolver for buildrecord, its digital product passport and build-record ledger for companies that make, assemble or supply physical products. Companies that want IEC 61406 identification links on their own products can get in touch through either site.