Patent Application
20080041932
The invention relates to a casino management system for efficient automated deposit and auditing of articles of value used within the casino environment. In particular, the present invention relates to apparatus and methods to achieve this system.
A “casino” is any gaming establishment.
A “gaming table” is a location or table used for gambling within the casino. It may be equipped with a gameboard and slots for chips and cash deposits. Common games include blackjack, roulette, poker and craps. If a table is “live” it signifies that it is in operation and open for players.
A “pit” is an area of the casino in which a group of gaming tables are arranged. The tables are usually arranged elliptically around a centre area that is usually restricted to dealers and other casino staff.
An “electronic gaming terminal” provides a remote terminal at which bets can be placed on a live game. For example, a terminal may display a roulette wheel viewed by a digital camera. The customer can place a bet, and win tickets that can be redeemed for cash, at the terminal based on the results of a spin of the roulette wheel.
The “gaming day” is a time period within which a gaming table is open to take cash deposits.
A “croupier” or “dealer” is a member of casino staff who operates the gaming table. They are usually responsible for overseeing monetary transactions in exchange for gaming chips.
An “inspector” is a member of casino staff who oversees a small number of gaming tables and croupiers. In particular they are responsible for spotting possible fraudulent transactions by either staff or customer.
A “pit boss” is a member of casino staff who is responsible for overseeing a pit. They oversee the inspectors, providing the next level of management in the casino hierarchy.
A “chip” is an article of value, usually a small plastic token, used within the casino. Normally they are provided in a number of denominations and are used to place bets at gaming tables. Items of monetary value can be exchanged for chips at the gaming table under the supervision of a croupier.
A “cash drop” is the name given to the deposit of items of monetary value at a gaming table or machine terminal.
A “cash-desk payout” is a situation in which a winning ticket printed by an electronic gaming terminal is exchanged for a cash sum at a cashier office.
A “meter-in reading” is taken from a meter attached to an electronic gaming terminal which records the amount of cash deposited into the terminal.
A “meter-out reading” is taken from another meter attached to an electronic gaming terminal, which records the equivalent amount of cash payed out in tickets for winning bets.
A “clicker” is a pen-like apparatus used by the croupier that records the number of times a particular button on the apparatus has been pressed or “clicked”. Each “click” is used to estimate a unit amount of money deposited in a cash transaction.
A typical casino environment will now be described. Within the casino a standard cashflow cycle will operate as follows: First, a customer or casino member will enter the casino with a certain amount of cash upon their person or, alternatively, retrieve cash from cashier stations or automatic teller machines (ATMs) within the casino. If the customer wishes to use large cash amounts, as is often the case with high stakes gaming, the customer can be offered the choice of using plastic plaques, which represent monetary quantities of high denominations, instead of impractical bundles of banknotes. In the UK, these plaques can have monetary values of up to £5000 and in several countries the casino is legally required to supply these articles instead of large cash withdrawals. This is in order to reduce the risk of money laundering and other fraud.
The customer can withdrawal or purchase a combination of cash and plaques at a cashier station using known means, for example cash, credit cards, cheques, debit cards etc. The customer will then proceed to one of the gaming tables. At the table, he is able to place bets on the game present. If he so requires, the customer will exchange a certain amount of cash, or perhaps cheques, plaques or other items of monetary value, with the croupier for a number of chips. These chips can then be used to place the bets.
The croupier normally mediates the cash exchange. He briefly, if at all, checks validity of the cash exchanged, usually by eye, and then deposits it in a slot in the table. He counts the amount deposited on the “clicker”, each “click” representing a given unit amount money, for example ten pounds. Therefore, whether the customer used five ten pound notes or one fifty pound note would be indiscernible to later investigation, as the croupier would click the device five times in both cases. At regular intervals an inspector or pit boss will visit the croupier and record the value recorded on the “clicker”. This then provides a very rough estimate of the cash deposited at a table. The cash is placed and resides in a drop box, which may or may not be secure, under or near the gaming table. This process continues for multiple customers throughout the gaming day. If a customer is using plaques of high value the croupier will briefly check the validity of the plaque before depositing it in the drop box. As these plaques are of high denomination it is impractical to use the “clicker” to record their value. Thus, the croupier commonly notes these transactions separately, which becomes difficult with a constant flow of custom.
In regard to electronic gaming terminals, an inspector or pit boss will regularly monitor each set of terminals at specific intervals to record the meter-in and meter-out readings. The difference between a running total of each reading for each terminal can then be used to estimate the takings of each terminal and also estimate whether the terminal needs to be emptied. On these rounds, the inspector or pit boss may also record the “clicker” estimates of each croupier, giving a crude estimate of table deposits.
When the gaming day comes to an end and the casino closes its doors to customers, a pit boss will supervise the collection of the drop boxes from the gaming tables. These boxes will then be taken to a central count room within the casino, where the total cash taken at each table will be counted. Currently, four or five people are required in the count room in order to insure this count is carried out securely, and each of these members of staff must be personally vetted to prevent fraudulent practice. Each person will be responsible for counting and denominating the contents of a number of drop boxes, or alternatively responsible for recording the totals in a ledger book or similar paper-based system. These accounts can then to taken to central management, where the final accounts for the day can be tallied. This can be performed manually or through the use of standard computer spreadsheets.
In most casinos there are too many electronic gaming terminals to empty each terminal as regularly as the drop boxes. Therefore, terminals are often emptied on a rota system, for example emptying a fixed number of terminals a day, or certain sets of terminals on specific days.
There are several problems with the known casino management systems. Firstly, it is difficult to provide accurate variance estimates for the casino cash flow due to the inefficiency of the estimation methods previously described. Furthermore, in cases where such estimates can be provided, the counts of cash deposited at each table can produce variances of up to 40% of the total deposited. This may be due to a number of factors including: poor estimates of cash deposited using the “clicker” system, transaction errors due to the stressful environment, ledger errors, mistakes in counting and the loss or misplacement of cash in the count room. This variance then provides an opportunity for fraud, as management can never be sure whether accounting variances are innocent or malicious.
The opportunity for fraud is open to a number of parties: the croupier, the customer, management, the count room staff, or any combination of all four. At the gaming table, the croupier has little time to check the validity of cash deposits or accurately denominate the amount deposited because the turnover of the games has to be kept as fast as possible to provide efficient business and customer satisfaction throughout the gaming day. For this reason many casinos use a variety of surveillance systems, where the pit boss will have access to CCTV footage of the gaming tables and the customers in order to spot fraudulent transactions by eye. However, the pit boss must oversee multiple gaming tables, at which many transactions may be taking place at any one time.
These opportunities for fraud have in the past led to casinos being infiltrated by organised crime. To combat this infiltration there are current regulations in the UK stipulating that all variance in casino takings over 5% will require management investigation. Similar regulations also exist in other countries. As a typical variance in deposits is 10% casinos are often left with potentially serious compliance issues. Furthermore, as a count is only performed at the end of the day, or possibly the next day, the casino may not realise that cash has been taken or a problem has occurred until much later.
A further difficulty with the current system is that a casino often has difficulty in predicting their cash flow for a certain evening. If a certain customer wins a large cash prize they often have to order more money from the banks to pay this. These transactions impose a large expense on the casinos. Also, as the high value plaques commonly have a simple construction and are made from moulded plastic, they provide opportunity for forgery.
In order to try to reduce these problems a number of methods have been, proposed. These include: dispensing with cash and using a customer swipe card, requesting that all transactions happen at a supervised cash desk and advanced customer tracking through CCTV monitoring. Whilst providing a small amount of reassurance these methods often introduce additional problems, such as additional costs, complexity, and required management or technical expertise.
In accordance with the present invention, we provide a method of operating a document deposit apparatus comprising the steps of supplying at least one document to a document inlet area; processing the at least one document; selectively illuminating a manually operable input means so as to inform a user of the success or otherwise of the processing step; setting the function of the input means dependent on the result of the processing step; and selectively activating the input means to implement the function.
This method allows a croupier to quickly and efficiently deposit cash at a gaming table. By selectively illuminating a manually operable input means, which could be provided by a single button, a switch or a single location on a touch screen, the croupier can immediately see the result of the document processing. By further setting the function of the input means the croupier can be guided in his actions concerning the deposit of cash thus saving time and decreasing the risk of fraudulent transactions. These functions may be, but are not limited to, depositing cash, sending an alert to a remote server, selecting the correct deposit apparatus, and deactivating the input means.
The selective illumination could take the form of flashing the input means upon different processing results or alternatively illuminating the input means if the process is successful and not illuminating the input means if the process is unsuccessful. Preferably, the method also further provides the steps of selectively illuminating the input means a first colour, for example, green, if the process step was successful or alternatively selectively illuminating the input means a second colour, for example red, if the process step was unsuccessful. These colours can be easily seen by the croupier. Furthermore, if the process is successful, the function of the input means can be set to allow the at least one document to be deposited into a deposit store upon activation of the input means. This then saves the croupier time in the successful case and confirms all cash placed onto the deposit apparatus is deposited into a secure cassette. Alternatively, the input means can be disabled if said process step was unsuccessful, thus preventing the croupier from accidentally or maliciously depositing suspect cash.
The processing can take the form of determining one or more characteristics of the at least one document, for example its validity or denomination. Therefore, an unsuccessful process could arise if a document could not be authenticated or denominated, or if a mechanical error, such as a document jam, occurred. An additional temporary store can be provided, in which processed documents can be deposited. Thus, if the processing is unsuccessful, the croupier or management staff can inspect the rejected documents. Gaining access to this temporary store, for example through a lockable escrow door, can also reset the illumination condition and function of the input means to an initial state.
The current invention also provides a method where a user can be designated by first activating one input means from a plurality of input means. The activated input means is then associated with the user, and is selectively illuminated after document processing. Thus two croupiers can operate a deposit apparatus shared between two gaming tables. As an example, each side of the apparatus could have a button corresponding to a respective table, and each croupier would press the button associated with his side of the table to deposit cash.
In accordance with another aspect of the current invention we provide a method for operating an article of value deposit and audit system within a casino environment comprising depositing a plurality of articles of value onto at least one deposit apparatus located at a gaming table; processing said plurality of articles of value at the gaming table using said deposit apparatus; storing the plurality of articles of value in a secure container within the deposit apparatus; transmitting a first set of information relating to the article of value processing step over a communication means to a central location; and storing said first set of information at the central location.
This method thus provides steps to efficiently keep track of cash deposits at gaming tables, which in known casinos has been difficult. This, in turn, can reduce casino profit-loss and facilitate compliance with local legislation. Cash received at gaming tables in various transactions can be validated and denominated within the processing step, and securely deposited in a container. The first information obtained within each processing step, such as the denominations and validity of deposited notes, can be sent to and stored at a pit boss station, enabling the pit boss full access to accounting information. He can then use this information to accurately trace cash flow within the casino or to stop errors or fraudulent activity.
The method also provides steps of controlling the table deposit apparatus from a central location by the pit boss, thus enabling the apparatus to be locked-down or disabled at the end of a gaming day or on receipt of an error, or opened for deposit at the beginning of a gaming day. Information about the status of each deposit apparatus can also be interrogated, and in certain embodiments error data can be paged to management staff on the casino floor. This then greatly increases the efficiency of the management team.
Preferably, the secure container from the deposit apparatus is collected, possibly at the end of the gaming day, and the cash contents of such a container processed in order to provide a second set of contents information. This second set of information can be reconciled with the first set of information to provide accurate variance estimates for accounting purposes and highlight any disparities between the two sets of information. The output of the reconciliation allows a master count sheet to be produced in a tabular or spread-sheet format. This saves much time when compared to the known manual methods.
In accordance with a third aspect of the current invention, we provide a method for providing payment in a casino environment comprising the step of purchasing a casino currency by exchanging the casino currency for gaming chips at a gaming table or cashier, wherein the casino currency includes at least one anti-counterfeit security feature. This casino currency may not be legal tender. This casino currency can also be distributed to winning customers instead of cash, plaques or tickets. Thus it can provide greater security for both customer and casino over plaques and tickets, and provide greater convenience for both customer and casino when compared to large cash payouts.
This casino currency can be used in the methods previously specified to provide greater security within the casino. It is designed to supersede articles of value such as plaques, which can be easily counterfeited. It also enables a more customer-friendly currency, similar to legal tender, for high stakes gaming. Preferably, the security features comprise one or more of infra red or UV patterns, mould-made watermarked paper with a windowed cleartext thread, all over lithographic print on face and reverse of the currency, anti-copy print features, infrared denomination encoding with type matched inks, infrared blind lithographic print background, a unique sequential serial number, intaglio printing, holographic patches or stripes, bar codes, or radio frequency identification tags on threads.
Referring to
The operation of the TDU 100 will now to explained with reference to
Once the amount of gaming chips has been confirmed, the customer hands over the appropriate number of banknotes 301 to the croupier. The croupier receives the notes 301 and places them on the article inlet 103 of the TDU 100, as demonstrated in step S302. The TDU 100 is able to feed a total of a hundred notes 301 of up to twenty denominations or sizes per deposited bundle. The document size range is optimally 120 mm×62 mm to 160 mm×82 mm and optimal document thickness is between 0.075 mm to 0.15 mm. If there is only a single TDU 100 for the current table the notes 301 will automatically feed through into the unit. The TDU can be configured so that the notes 301 will not be fed into the TDU unless the escrow door 105 is shut. Within the unit 100 there resides the document counter 1506 for processing the deposited notes. This processing is represented in step S303 of
If the processing is not successful the quick key 101 is illuminated red, S306. Again, this can be implemented by the controller 1500 supplying power to a red LED 1503 on receipt of a signal from the document counter 1506. The croupier can then quickly see that an error has occurred. The TDU controller 1500 within the TDU 100 will also disable the quick key 101, S308, so, even if the croupier tries to activate it, the notes 301 will not be deposited into the secure cassette.
In other embodiments of the current invention, the function of the quick key 101 can be selected from a series of functions based on the result of the processing step. For example, if the processing is unsuccessful due to a note or paper jam the quick key 101 can simply be disabled as before. This allows the croupier to remove the notes 301 and re-submit them to the inlet 103. On the other hand, if the processing is unsuccessful due to invalid notes 103, the TDU controller 1500 can send a signal to the remote data processing server 207 on activation of the quick key 101. The information can be sent over a wireless communications channel 201, 1509 via a communication device 1508 connected to the TDU controller 1500. The server 207 is typically monitored by a member of management staff, who can then decide to either physically or remotely, via CCTV, inspect the TDU 100 or gaming table. Likewise, on successful processing, the function of the quick key 101 can be set to reflect the type or denomination of note processed; for example, £50 notes could be deposited in a separate secure cassette within the TDU 100. As known casinos in the UK often fall short of supplies of this note, due to £50 being the highest available denomination, the separate cassettes could be removed from the TDUs at times of high demand to restock the casino.
In certain situations, the escrow door 105 will be locked, and thus when an error occurs and the quick key 101 flashes or continually glows red, the croupier can signal to a higher level of management, possibly using the previous method, to come and unlock the escrow door 105. Management staff can then either physically unlock the door 105 at the gaming table or, upon receipt of an error signal sent from the TDU, remotely send a signal to the TDU controller 1500, over the communication channel 201, 1509, to actuate an unlocking mechanism 1504.
The croupier and/or management staff can then inspect the notes 301 to see whether they are valid S413. In certain implementations, once the escrow door 105 is opened, the quick key 101 and quick key function are reset. This then switches the system to its initial state, ready for new deposits. Thus, if the notes do seem to be valid, they can be re-supplied to the document inlet 103 and re-processed. This may be the case if the processing was unsuccessful due to a blocked note or a mistaken reading. If the notes do not appear to be valid then further management may be called S414 and the appropriate action taken.
In other implementations where there exists a high level of trust between management and croupier, the escrow door 105 can be left unlocked. However, to retain security the system can be designed so that, when the escrow door 105 is opened, the door actuates a sensor which sends a signal to the TDU controller 1500. The TDU controller 1500 then forwards an alert to the remote data processing server 207 to inform the management staff monitoring the system that the escrow door 105 is open. The management staff, for example the pit boss, is then able to remotely supervise the inspection of invalid notes 301 by the croupier over the casino CCTV system.
Preferably, the escrow door 105 is clear and the temporary store is provided with an internal light so that the croupier is able to inspect the notes in the temporary store without unlocking or opening the escrow door 105. In this way, the croupier may be able to infer why the processing of the note produced an error, for example if he spots an overly crumbled note, the note being the result of a note jam, he is better placed to quickly inform any management that are subsequently called on the current status of the TDU 100.
Alternatively, within the scope of the current invention, the quick key 101 could be an illuminated switch or an area on a touch screen. The illumination could take the form of different colours, different flashing frequencies, different images or a lack of illumination. For example, if the processing was unsuccessful the quick key 101 could remain unlit, transmitting the information that an error has occurred.
If a TDU 100 is placed so that two tables can use the unit to deposit cash then a further set of operational steps are required. Bank notes 401 are supplied to the inlet 103 as before, S402, but now the user has a choice of which quick key to press, S403, either the original quick key 101 if the table is to the right of the TDU 100 or a second quick key 102 if the table is to the left of the TDU 100. The controller 1500 within the TDU 100 then records which buttons have been pressed e.g. in the current example either button 1 or button 2. This is recorded as the index N as shown in step S404. Once the croupier has pressed the key the notes will proceed to be fed into the TDU as before.
If a processing step, S405, has been successful then the quick key which the croupier originally pressed will be illuminated green, S407. For example, if the croupier pressed the second quick key 102 then this quick key will now be illuminated. As before this particular quick key will also be enabled, S408, and the croupier can press the key to deposit the notes into the secure cassette within the TDU, S409. If the processing is not successful then the respective quick key will be illuminated red, S410, and as before the quick key will also be disabled, S411. A similar process of inspection S413 is then carried out. As stated previously, a variety of illumination methods and functions can be linked to the particular quick key selected.
The processing of the notes or documents as referred to in steps S303 and S405 will now be described in more detail with reference to
If a note is valid then the denomination of the note is obtained and recorded, S505. This may be achieved using a detector which optically determines the value of each note by measurement of the long and short edges of the note. Alternatively, pattern recognition or infrared or magnetic thread coding could be used. The use of any particular method depends on the currency in-use within the casino and the country of residence. Once the denomination of the current note has been determined then the total for the particular denomination processed is incremented, S506. The next note then is selected and the process continues, S507. Once all the notes deposited in the inlet 103 have been processed, a complete transaction record is saved in the TDU memory 1507, S508. Alternatively, a system within the scope of the current invention could be designed so that a transaction record was saved in TDU memory 1507 for each individual note.
In alternate embodiments of the TDU 100 a remote display can be connected. This display can either be table mounted and thus connected to the TDU 100 via standard communication means or mounted upon the TDU 100 through the use of a height adjustable pole. This remote display preferably utilises light emitting devices that can be read by cameras and people from a distance of at least four metres. This then allows a pit boss to visually confirm deposits or spot errors from a variety of positions within the casino or via CCTV. The value of a transaction is preferably displayed on the remote display if a transaction is successful. This allows the customer to confirm or dispute the articles of value exchanged in a transaction. If an error occurs a code such as “00000000” is preferably displayed on the remote display. This allows a roving inspector or pit boss to easily spot the error. A similar code can also be displayed when the escrow door 105 is opened.
After the processing of the notes the remote display can also be adapted to flash the value of the transaction on the display. The customer then confirms this flashing total and the croupier presses the relevant quick key. Once the quick key is pressed, in the case of a successful transaction, the display will no longer flash and the amount statically shown on the remote displayed will be the amount deposited into the cassette.
To set up the data processing system to obtain transaction data requires the method shown in
Once the required TDUs have been “opened”, the casino itself opens to customers and the gaming day begins. Each TDU 100 can now accept deposits as specified previously. The recorded transaction history of each TDU now needs to be collated by the remote data processing server 207. This is performed by a process similar to that in
Step S808 is described in more detail in
There is also the option for the data processing server 207 to generate an hourly report 811. Returning to
If it is not time to produce an hourly report 811 the system will wait a set amount of time, S809, usually 30 to 60 seconds depending on the number of TDUs and the system specification. Once this time has elapsed it will begin the polling process again as represented by step S810.
This process of depositing and polling continues throughout the gaming day until it is time for the casino to close. At this time, the method illustrated in
If an error occurs with a TDU 100 during the gaming day a recovery procedure can be put into place. This is illustrated in
When gaming at the table ends, for example at the end of the gaming day, a recovery period is entered, S1005. This lasts a short period of time after all the TDUs have been closed, for example a half or a quarter of an hour, and provides time to deposit cash into TDUs from the drop boxes without interfering with standard gaming table deposits. This recovery procedure begins by first selecting a free TDU 100, for example one that has previously had its original secure cassette removed. A new empty cassette is loaded into this selected TDU 100, S1006, and the TDU 100 is “opened” for deposit by the pit boss using the data processing server 207, S1007. The contents of the stand-in drop box are now deposited into the TDU 100 in the standard manner, see S1008 and
To provide security for deposits, which often was not present with drop boxes, the secure cassette is fitted with a lid that locks when it is withdrawn from the TDU 100. This feature, together with tamper indicating features, allow casino management to confirm that a cassette has not been tampered with between removal from the TDU 100 and transport to a secure central count room. Once all operational secure cassettes have been taken to the central count room the process of reconciliation can begin. This process is demonstrated in the
The procedure begins by select a gaming day, S1101. Usually this is either the same day or the previous day, if a count is done the next morning. The counting personnel present enter their details into the system so that, if a discrepancy is found, later checks can be made. The count team then set to work on counting the contents of each TDU secure cassette. A first TDU secured cassette is selected, S1103, and it is checked to see whether the corresponding table has been “opened”, S1104; if a table has not been “opened”, “no game” is recorded in the accounts computer system and another cassette is selected; if the table has been “opened”, the counting personnel removes the notes from secure cassette and performs a count, S1106. The count follows a similar procedure to that performed in the TDUs, i.e. the number of each denomination of notes within the cassette is recorded and the validity of these notes is also checked. The notes can be either counted manually, S1107, or using the automatic bank note counters 211, 212. If the latter is used, automatic counts can be directly entered into the data processing server 210, bypassing step S1107. This latter method only requires one trained staff member to be present in the count room, thus reducing costs compared to prior art methods, where up to five people needed to be present.
This counting of notes is continued until the secure cassette from the selected TDU is emptied. The records are then checked to see whether the TDU and/or gaming table has closed, during gaming, due to an error, S1108. If it has, then a recovery TDU may have been used and a secure cassette may exist as a recovery cassette for the selected table. If a recovery cassette does exist, this cassette is located and the count process repeated, S1109. After the current cassette count, including any possible recovery cassettes, has been completed then the count staff selects the next secure cassette and the process begins again, S1110.
After all the secure cassettes have been counted and the details entered or transferred into data processing software, the data is processed to compare the data entered during the reconciliation count with the original data recorded by each TDU during the gaming day, S1111. This information is then displayed within a master count sheet 1112, which can either be displayed on screen or printed on printer 213. An example of this master account sheet is provided in
The procedures described above can also be extended to electronic gaming terminals within casinos. In these embodiments, meters mounted within an electronic gaming terminal operate in a similar manner to a TDU 100 at a gaming table. In this situation, a meter-in reading, taken from a meter attached to the electronic gaming terminal, is analogous to a transaction recorded by a TDU 100. If the in and out meters are networked into the casino data processing system in a similar manner to the TDUs, then at each TDU polling cycle the meter readings can be read from each terminal and stored in the central database 209 with the TDU data. This process is demonstrated in
To reconcile electronic gaming terminal cassettes, wherein any cash deposited into the terminal resides, a similar operation to
To facilitate the use of the described system with articles of high monetary value, such as the plaques discussed in the introduction, the current invention further proposes a casino currency. A customer will purchase a certain amount of casino currency at a cashier station in exchange for payment by standard means, and then use this currency to purchase chips at a gaming table. Alternatively, the casino currency can also be distributed to winning customers instead of cash, plaques or tickets.
This casino currency eliminates the problems associated with articles of high monetary by providing a series of authentication and validation features which are usually found on standard legal tender bank notes, but the casino currency having no value outside of the casino since not being legal tender. These features include but are not limited to a mould-made watermarked paper with windowed cleartext thread, all over lithographic print on face and reverse of the currency, a single document size, a rainbow print area, anti-copy print features, infrared denomination encoding with type matched inks, infrared blind lithographic print background, and a unique sequential serial number. Further options for such currencies include the use of intaglio printing, holographic patches or stripes, bar codes, or radio frequency identification tags on threads. The same features can be used in the validation of banknotes within the deposit method.
The currency can also contain covert machine readable infrared features that allow a TDU 100 to simultaneously authenticate and denomination the casino currency. Therefore, the size of any document will only be used as a prompt to the detector to check the infrared pattern. Any documents not matching the infrared requirements will be rejected as suspect counterfeit. Therefore, the casino provides a currency system which provides enhanced security, sometimes exceeding that provided by legal tender, and allows greater authentication certainty. The processing means within each TDU 100 is thus adapted to recognise these features of the currency.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0501196.0 | Jan 2005 | GB | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/GB06/00202 | 1/20/2006 | WO | 8/20/2007 |
