The disclosure relates to manufacturing of value documents, like passports and other value documents, and more specifically to a bending system, an engraving system and a value document manufacturing device.
Recently, there are high efforts on tampering value documents, like passports and other value documents. Therefore, there is a growing demand for safer value documents, i.e. value documents which are tamper-proof. However, it is challenging to manufacture such tamper-proof passports and other value documents. It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a bending system, an engraving system and a value document manufacturing device suitable for manufacturing such tamper-proof passports and other value documents.
This object is accomplished by a bending system, an engraving unit and a value document manufacturing device according to the present disclosure.
More specifically, a bending system for separating a page from a cover of a value document is provided. The page is connected to a spine of the cover. The spine separates the cover in a first cover portion and a second cover portion. An angle γ is formed between the first cover portion and the second cover portion. The bending system comprises a bending unit connected to a motor. The motor is configured to operate the bending unit such that the bending unit bends the value document to a first state where γ is larger than 180° and then backwards to a second state where γ is at least 180° to separate the page from the cover of the value document.
The value document may be a passport or any other value document. The page may be a first page, such as a data page, and a second page following the first page and being connected to the spine may be, for example, a visa page. The motor may be an electric motor. The bending unit may have a two-piece design, i.e. the bending unit may comprise a first and a second plate pivotably connected to each other. In example embodiments, in the first state, γ is larger than 180° and smaller than 270°, and in further example embodiments, γ is larger than 220° and smaller than 250°. In example embodiments, in the second state, γ is 180°. The angle α is defined between a front side of the first page and a front side of the second page. The spine of the value document may be formed in the middle of the cover such that the two cover portions have substantially a same size or length. A backside of the first page and/or a backside of the second page may be in contact with an inside of the cover when the value document is in a closed state. The value document may also be referred to as a book or booklet.
The motor may be configured to move the bending unit away from the value document after the value document reaches the second state. The bending unit may be moved vertically upwards to separate from the value document.
The bending system may be configured to move a separating device between the (first) page and the cover after or when the value document reaches the second state, i.e. when the first page and the cover are separated from each other. The separating device may be a wedge or a plate. For moving and/or activation of the movement of the separating device, the bending system may comprise solenoids.
The bending system may comprise a separation sensor. The separation sensor may be configured to determine if the value document is in the second state. The separation sensor may be configured to output a signal to the separating device, more specifically to a controller provided for the separating device, such that moving and/or activation of the movement of the separating device is caused when the value document is in the second state, i.e. when the (first) page and the cover are separated from each other.
The bending system may comprise a lever pivotably connecting the bending unit to the motor. The lever may be provided for transmitting a force from the motor to the bending unit to operate the bending unit. The lever may be fixed to an output shaft of the motor and pivotably connected to the bending unit.
The bending system may comprise at least one position sensor, which in at least one example embodiment includes two position sensors, configured to sense, i.e. determine, a position of the motor and/or the bending unit. The at least one position sensor may be configured to output a signal to the separating device, more specifically to a controller provided for the separating device, such that moving and/or activation of the movement of the separating device is caused when the value document is in the second state, i.e. when the (first) page and the cover are separated from each other, determined based on a position of the motor and/or the bending unit.
The bending unit may comprise at least one ceramic element provided for contacting the (first) page (and/or the second page) during separation thereof from the cover. The ceramic element may be a ball or a wheel wherein at least a surface thereof comprises ceramic or is preferably made from ceramic. The at least one ceramic element may be rotatably supported at the bending unit. The ceramic element may be part of a ceramic ball strip. A ceramic ball strip may comprise a plurality of ceramic elements, e.g. three or four ceramic elements, arranged in a row. The least one ceramic element is provided for avoiding scratches in a surface layer of the pages of the value document during bending of the value document.
The bending system may further comprise a pivoting plate for positioning of the cover during separating the (first) page from the cover. The pivoting plate may be pivotably supported at a frame of the bending system. The bending system may further comprise a guidance plate for clamping the cover (and/or the second page) of the value document at least in the second state. The guidance plate may be activated by a solenoid. The activation of the guidance plate may be based on an output of the at least one position sensor and/or the separation sensor.
Furthermore, an engraving system comprising a support plate and an engraving unit is provided. The engraving unit is configured to engrave both a front side and a backside of at least one page of a value document. The value document may have the same configuration as the value document described above. The engraving unit comprises a page flip mechanism, a carrier and an engraver. The page flip mechanism is provided for turning the at least one page from the front side to the backside thereof and vice versa. The carrier is provided for supporting the value document. The engraver, which in an example embodiment is a laser engraver, is configured to engrave the at least one page of the value document. The page flip mechanism and the carrier are arranged to be moveable with respect to, i.e. relative to, the support plate. That is, both, the carrier and the page flip mechanism, can be moved relative to the support plate. The support plate may comprise rails or tracks for movement of the page flip mechanism and the carrier. The carrier is arranged to be moveable with respect to, i.e. relative to, the page flip mechanism. Therefore, it is possible, that a position of the engraver for engraving both the front side and the backside of the at least one page remains unchanged. Engraving may comprise providing a lenticular screen on the at least one page. A position of the support plate and a position of the engraver may be fixed in space. For movement of the flip mechanism and the carrier relative to each other and relative to the support plate, one or more motors may be provided. The engraving system may further comprise a camera for aligning data to be engraved on the at least one page.
The carrier may further comprise a shaft. The shaft may be a spindle. The carrier may be arranged to be moveable along the shaft with respect to, i.e. relative to, the page flip mechanism.
The engraving unit may comprise at least one separating device, which in at least one example embodiment includes two separating devices, for separating a cover and the at least one page of the value document. That is, the at least one separating device ensures separation of the at least one page of the value document from the rest of the value document during laser engraving thereof.
Furthermore, a value document manufacturing device comprising the above described bending system and the above described engraving system is provided. In the manufacturing device, the bending system may be provided before the engraving system with respect to manufacturing steps of the value document. The value document manufacturing device may further comprise an input stacker. The input stacker may be an automated input stacker. The input stacker may be configured to be openable by an operator such that the operator can open the value document at a predetermined position and place the opened value document in the stacker. The stacker can be configured to hold up to 30 value documents. The system may be equipped with an inkjet printer, e.g. a full colour inkjet engine, configured to print data on a first page. A camera may be provided at the laser engraver for reading a position of pre-printed headers to align the data. After printing, UV light may be provided by a UV-light emission unit for drying ink output by the printer. A value document identification unit may be provided configured to identify the value document by reading a barcode with a camera from an outside of the cover of the value document. Alternatively or additionally, the value document identification unit may be configured to identify the value document by reading information from a chip provided on or at the value document. The value document manufacturing device can be equipped with at least one encoding unit for contactless chip encoding. The encoding unit may use an open interface allowing a value document manufacturer to use his own encoding software. The encoding unit may be configured to check functionality of the chip before programming thereof. Value documents with defective chips may be returned or output unprocessed. The value document manufacturing device may further comprise at least one camera configured to check applied visual data and features and/or a chip reader configured to check electronic data to determine whether the information is applied correctly to the value document. Rejects may be sent to a reject bin.
The drawings illustrate generally, but not by way of limitation, various embodiments discussed in the present disclosure.
In
The passport 1 comprises a cover 11 and two pages 12, 13 connected to a spine 15 of the cover 11. The spine 15 is provided in the middle of the cover 11 and separates the cover 11 in two portions, i.e. a first portion 14 and a second portion 16. In the intermediate state as shown in
In a closed state of the cover 11, the frontside 121 of the first page 12 and the frontside 131 of the second page 13 are in contact with each other, i.e. α, γ and ε are substantially 0°. In the closed state of the cover 11, the backside 122 of the first page 12 and the backside 132 of the second page 13 are in contact with the inside 111 of the cover 11. More specifically, in the closed state, the backside 122 of the first page 12 is in contact with a first portion 113 of the inside 111 of the cover 11 and the backside 132 of the second page 13 is in contact with a second portion 114 of the inside 111 of the cover 11. The first portion 113 of the inside 111 of the cover 11 corresponds to the first portion 14 of the cover 11. The second portion 114 of the inside 111 of the cover 11 corresponds to the second portion 16 of the cover 11. The spine 15 is formed in the middle of the cover 11 such that the resulting two cover portions 14, 16 have substantially a same size and/or length.
In
More specifically, the bending system 2 comprises a motor 21, a bending unit 22, a lever 23, two position sensors 24a, 24b, a separation sensor 25, a frame 26, a pivoting plate 27, the separating device 28, and a guidance plate 29.
The motor 21 is configured to move the bending unit 22 via the lever 23. The lever 23 is pivotably connected to the bending unit 22 and is connected to an output shaft of the motor 21.
The bending unit 22 is configured to bend the passport 1 by being moved from the motor 21 via the lever 23 and comprises two plates 221, 222, wherein each plate 221, 222 comprises a ceramic ball strip 223, 224, respectively. The ceramic ball strips 223, 224 are provided for contacting the pages 12, 13 of the passport 1 during separation of the first page 12 from the cover 11. The ceramic ball strips 223, 224 are provided at one end of the first plate 221 and of the second plate 222, respectively. The ceramic ball strips 223, 244 include at least two ceramic elements, e.g. a ball and/or a wheel comprising at least on its outer surface a ceramic layer, wherein the at least two ceramic elements are preferably arranged in a row.
The position sensors 24a, 24b are configured to sense a position of the motor 21 and/or the bending unit 22. In an example embodiment, the position sensors 24a, 24b are additionally or alternatively configured to sense a position of the lever 23. The position sensors 24a, 24b are configured to output information corresponding to the sensed position(s) to a control unit configured to control operation of the bending system 2 based on the received information from the position sensors 24a, 24b.
The separation sensor 25 is configured to detect if the separation is completed, i.e. if the separating device 28 is inserted between the first portion 113 of the inside 111 of the cover 11 and the first page 12 after separation thereof. The separation sensor 25 is also configured to output information corresponding to the separation to the above described control unit configured to control operation of the bending system 2 based on the received information from the separation sensor 25. In the present embodiment, the separating device 28 is a wedge. The frame 26 comprises solenoids for movement of the separation device 28. The pivoting plate 27 is provided for positioning of the cover 11 of the passport 1.
In the following, separation of the cover 11 and the first page 12 of the passport 1 shown in
As can be gathered from
As can be gathered from
Afterwards, as can be gathered from
Then, in a fourth step, the bending unit 22, e.g. the first and the second ceramic ball strips 223, 224 of the first and the second plates 222, 224, is operated by the motor 21 (see
Afterwards, as shown in
Afterwards, as shown in
The passport 1 is now ready for transport towards a laser engraving unit 4.
The laser engraving unit 4 will now be explained in detail with reference to
The laser engraving unit 4 comprises a page flip mechanism 41, a carrier 42, and two separating devices 43a and 43b, as well as a laser engraver 44 (see
Furthermore, the carrier 42 is supported on the support plate 50 such that it is moveable with respect to, i.e. relative to, the support plate 50. A position of the support plate 50 and of the laser engraver 44 is fixed in space. Thus, during operation of the engraving unit 4, the page flip mechanism 41, the carrier 42, and the two separating devices 43a and 43b are moved together with the passport 1 relative to a position of the laser engraver 44 and the support plate 50 such that the front 121 and the backside 122 of the first page 12 of the passport 1 can be laser engraved without changing the position of the laser engraver 44.
Thus, a position of the laser engraver 44 remains the same wherein the rest 41, 42, 43 of the engraving unit 4 is moved on the support plate 50 during laser engraving of the frontside 121 and the backside 122 of the first page 12 of the passport 1. The first separating device 43a is provided for being inserted between the first page 12 and the cover 11 of the passport 1, and the second separating device 43b is provided for being inserted between the first page 12 and the second page 13 of the passport 1 during operation of the engraving unit 4.
The operation of the laser engraving unit 4 will now be explained in detail, inter alia, with reference to
In a first step, shown in
In a second step, shown in
Then, as shown in
Afterwards, a tilting back operation is carried out as shown throughout
Then, as shown in
Afterwards, as shown in
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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19179439 | Jun 2019 | EP | regional |
The present application is a continuation application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/891,958, titled “Bending System, Engrave System and Value Document Manufacturing Device,” filed Jun. 3, 2020, now U.S. Pat. No. 11,104,176, which claims priority to European Patent Application No. 19179439.5, titled “Bending System, Engrave System and Value Document Manufacturing Device,” filed Jun. 11, 2019, each of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
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“European Application Serial No. 19179439.5, Communication Pursuant to Article 94(3) EPC dated May 20, 2021”, 3 pgs. |
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20210316565 A1 | Oct 2021 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 16891958 | Jun 2020 | US |
Child | 17351401 | US |