The invention relates to a recording medium with colored image information, including but not limited to an identification card or credit card, debit card, phone card etc. Recording media of this type are widely used as, among other things, government identification cards, passports, transit passes, bank cards and credit cards. When such recording media are personalized, the personalization process includes the recording of the individual data, which can include but is not limited to personal data that relate specifically to the owner. An essential part of the personalization is the application of colored image information in the form of a photograph of the person to be identified.
There are numerous possible ways to apply colored images to recording media. The methods disclosed in the prior art include transfer processes in which inks are transferred to the medium from ink media by thermal sublimation or thermal diffusion. The prior art also discloses the application of colored image information using ink-jet devices, thermal printing or color laser printing.
To make such colored image information very difficult to counterfeit, the prior art discloses methods to transfer a colored image to the medium so that the colors diffuse into the plastic medium and are thus difficult to remove. DE 4134539 also discloses the division of the image information into at least two information parts. In this case, one part is a color part and the other part is a black and white part.
Identification cards with a colored image portion have also been disclosed in DE 4134539 and DE 4417343.
The prior art also describes the application of information by means of a laser printer. In this regard, reference is made to DE 3151407. Currently, color photographs using the thermal printing or thermal sublimation methods are transferred to media made of PVC or PET or combinations of different plastics. However, such plastics have the disadvantage that they age relatively quickly and can be bent at temperatures above 80° C. A plastic made of polycarbonate would be more suitable for use as a medium. Polycarbonate plastic has significantly greater durability than PVC and is also significantly more resistant to high temperatures. In the prior art, however, it has not been possible to personalize a medium made of polycarbonate by applying colored image information by means of a thermal process.
The object of the invention is to create a recording medium of the type described above that has significantly greater durability than PVC and that can be personalized with colored image information, in particular by means of thermal printing or thermal sublimation.
The invention provides a recording medium of the general type described above but in which the colored image information is applied to a surface of a polycarbonate layer that has been treated to improve its adhesive properties. An important aspect of the invention is that as a result of the treatment of the surface of a polycarbonate layer, colored information can be applied to this layer. Among other things, it has been determined that a treated medium can be printed by means of a thermal process.
One treatment that is particularly well suited for the accomplishment of this objective, as disclosed by one development of the invention, is that a lacquer is applied to the above mentioned polycarbonate surface to improve its adhesive properties. One lacquer that is particularly well suited for this process is a screen printing lacquer, in particular a screen printing lacquer that contains a solvent. A lacquer of this type penetrates into the plastic and modifies the molecules in the areas close to the surface so that dyes applied during the thermal process penetrate into the polycarbonate and adhere to it. In particular, thermal printing films can be used for this process. Thermal printing processes can also be used in which the pins used for the printing penetrate into the plastic, analogous to the methods used to print on PVC.
The invention additionally relates to a method for the production of a recording medium with colored image information, such as but not limited to an identification or credit card, debit card, phone card etc. The method is includes a first process step in which a medium is manufactured from polycarbonate. In a second step, a surface of this medium is treated to improve its adhesive properties. In a third step, the colored image information is applied to the treated surface. The information is preferably applied by means of a thermal process and, in one embodiment, by means of thermal sublimation or thermal transfer. To improve its adhesive properties, the medium is preferably coated with lacquer, preferably by means of a screen printing lacquer.
One advantage of the invention over other known processes is that even with the greater durability of the recording medium, an aesthetically very high-quality color image can still be produced. Because the inks used in the thermal process penetrate into the medium, a high degree of security is also guaranteed. An additional advantage of the invention is that the surface that is treated to improve its adhesive properties also significantly facilitates the application of a protective coating. A protective coating of this type is preferably again a lacquer, in particular a screen printing lacquer.
Additional advantageous features are described in the appended claims, the description presented below and in the accompanying drawings.
One exemplary embodiment of the invention is explained in greater detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
The base medium 2 is treated in at least one area of the upper side 3 to improve its adhesive properties. For this purpose, a lacquer 4 is applied which, as illustrated in
On the treated base medium 2, colored image information 5 is applied, such as in the form of a color image. The method used in this case is a thermal process, such as a conventional thermal sublimation or thermal transfer process of the prior art. In this method, films which are called “thermal transfer films” are used, and as a result of the application of heat, the inks penetrate into the area designated A.
After the application of the colored image information 5, at least the area that contains this image information 5 is covered with a protective coating 6. This protective coating can again be a screen printing lacquer, which adheres particularly well on account of the above-mentioned treatment. A screen printing lacquer that is particularly well suited for use as a protective coating in the practice of the invention is marketed by the firm of Siebdruckbedarf AG in Erlinsbach (Switzerland) under the name PVC 70/70.
As an additional optional step, a black-and-white portion 8 can be introduced into the base medium 2 by means of a conventional laser printer of the prior art. This portion 8 is introduced into a layer 7 so that it is congruent with the colored image information 5. This layer 7 is provided in the manner of the prior art with an additive, such as a carbon black, for example. A black-and-white portion 8 of this type is not mandatory. However, it further improves security. During the manufacture of the portion 8 by means of a laser printer, the colored image information 5 is preserved. The information 5 can be, among other things, a color full-page image.
It will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art that modifications can be made to the invention without departing from the concepts disclosed in the foregoing description. Accordingly, the particular exemplary embodiments described in detail herein are illustrative only and are not limiting to the scope of the invention, which is to be given the full breadth of the appended claims and any and all equivalents thereof.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
98999 | May 1999 | CH | national |
150199 | Aug 1999 | CH | national |
This application is the national phase of PCT/CH00/00138, filed Mar. 9, 2000 and herein incorporated by reference in its entirety.
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
PCTCH00/00138 | 3/9/2000 | WO | 00 | 11/26/2001 |
Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
WO0073088 | 12/7/2000 | WO | A |
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
4579754 | Maurer et al. | Apr 1986 | A |
5350198 | Bernecker | Sep 1994 | A |
5435599 | Bernecker | Jul 1995 | A |
5753589 | Takao et al. | May 1998 | A |
5846900 | Reiter et al. | Dec 1998 | A |
5932053 | Asajima et al. | Aug 1999 | A |
6004900 | O'Brien | Dec 1999 | A |
6066594 | Gunn et al. | May 2000 | A |
Number | Date | Country |
---|---|---|
3151407 | Oct 1983 | DE |
4134539 | Apr 1993 | DE |
4417343 | Dec 1995 | DE |
0 407 615 | Jan 1991 | EP |
0 431 564 | Jun 1991 | EP |
0 442 762 | Aug 1991 | EP |
0430282 | Oct 1995 | EP |
0 743 192 | Nov 1996 | EP |
2250951 | Jun 1992 | GB |
WO 9415319 | Jul 1994 | WO |
9819870 | May 1998 | WO |