The present invention pertains to the structure of documents with scratch-off coatings, and more particularly to a device and method for preventing fraud or attack on documents with scratch-off coatings.
Various types of documents employ scratch-off coatings. For example, lottery tickets, game cards, coupons, vouchers and other documents employ scratch-off coatings in order to cover indicia that can be revealed according to the particular rules and methods of operation involved. The overall card structure typically includes a substrate such as paper stock of sufficient thickness, indicia printed or imaged on the substrate, a release coating to protect the indicia from being scratched of while providing a proper surface for securing a scratch-off layer, a scratch-off material to conceal the indicia, and a graphic overprint layer to provide desired design effects.
In the context of games and lottery tickets, the indicia on each ticket typically include ticket identification data, game indicia and a validation number, for example. Ticket identification data typically comprises a game number, pack number and ticket number. The game number corresponds to the lottery game involved, the pack number corresponds to the pack of tickets printed as part of the game, and the ticket number corresponds to the particular ticket's number within the given pack. The game indicia comprises variable game numbers, letters, designs or other indicia that indicate whether the player is a winner as a result of playing the ticket. The validation number assists in reducing fraud such as where the ticket has been altered prior to redemption. The validation number uniquely identifies the lottery ticket, and therefore the game indicia on that particular ticket, so that a lottery administrator can verify that the ticket is a winner during the redemption process. In most instances, the validation number is encrypted.
In addition to the above indicia, the ticket can include a barcode representing the ticket identification data and validation number. The barcode is typically provided on the back of the ticket and is typically not covered by scratch-off material.
The indicia on each ticket, including the barcode, is typically generated by one or more computer programs and can be printed/imaged on each ticket as part of the ticket construction process. In some cases, the ticket's value can be directly determined if one knows the ticket identification data or the validation number. In other cases, an additional process must be undertaken, such as entering the data into a computer program, for example, in order to determine the ticket's value. In either case, the ticket is much more susceptible to compromise if the ticket identification data or validation number is known. This is why the validation number is placed under a scratch-off layer. In fact, the validation number is often called the “void-if-removed number” or “VIRN number” because it is intended to remain under the scratch-off layer until the time of ticket redemption, and the ticket is voidable if the validation number has been revealed prior to redemption.
The scratch-off coating hides the ticket identification data, game indicia and the validation number. The scratch-off material can be any of a number of substances, but frequently is an opaque material comprised of an elastomeric compound of a solvent- or water-based acrylic resin. When the resin is applied, the solvent or water evaporates and the opaque resin remains in place above the indicia. Prior ticket structures with scratch-off coatings are disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,215,576; 5,569,512; 5,667,250 and 6,047,964.
Because scratch-off coatings hide material that indicates whether the ticket has any value as described above, unscrupulous individuals have devised ways of discovering the underlying information without noticeably marking the ticket itself. As a result, any winning tickets can be hoarded by such individuals while losing tickets are left to be sold to the unsuspecting public.
There are many common methods of fraud or attack on well constructed lottery tickets. Two, in particular, have been successfully used to compromise scratch-off tickets prior to sale.
The first method is known as tape lift. In this method, clear adhesive tape is applied to the surface of the ticket and pulled up. This may remove sufficient amounts of the scratch-off coating so as to reveal important information about the ticket. This is commonly done by employees of retailers in an effort to pick winners out of the inventory of tickets on hand. After the lift has been made and the necessary data obtained, an attempt is made to validate the ticket. If validation succeeds, the ticket will be put aside for later redemption. If validation fails, the tape will be put back down and usually left in place. A razor knife will be used to make many small cuts in the remaining tape so that if that area is scratched, the pieces will flake off, similar to what happens when the scratch coating is scratched off in undamaged tickets.
In order to defeat the tape lift method, water-based scratch-off coatings have been used. Such coatings are more resistant to the tape lift attack than traditional solvent-based coatings. Nevertheless, water-based coatings tend to be dusty and somewhat harder to scratch than traditional solvent-based coatings, leading to an unsatisfactory play experience.
The second method of attack is known as mechanical lift. Mechanical lift involves a razor blade or other similarly sharpened surface, which is carefully positioned under the scratch layer in order to lift up a small flap. The individual using the blade may choose to reveal either the VIRN number or the captions of the play symbols, which represent a small lift area. After the data has been read, the flaps are glued back down with a water-soluble glue. This method of compromise depends on maintaining the integrity of the flap that is lifted so that it can be re-affixed easily. Water-based scratch-off coatings can be employed to combat mechanical lift, but have the same disadvantages outlined above.
The present invention combines the best of both solvent-based and water-based scratch-off materials to create a more resistant ticket construction that still provides a satisfactory play experience. In one embodiment, two different scratch-off inks on the play area of the ticket are employed, with the majority of the ink being a softer, solvent-based, formulation. The ink covering sensitive areas of the ticket includes a harder, water-based, formulation. If tape is applied to sensitive areas of the ticket in an attempt to compromise the validation number or other valuable pieces of data, the different areas will react so as to indicate the existence of a tampering attempt.
For the purposes of the present disclosure, it will be appreciated that “solvent-based” elastomeric compound means a compound or an ink that is carried in a solvent, whereas “water-based” ink means an ink that is carried in water. Specifics of both printing materials are described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,215,576 to Carrick, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. It will further be appreciated that “printing” can mean traditional printing as well as imaging, for purposes of the present disclosure.
In one embodiment of the present invention, solvent-based and water-based scratch-off materials are provided so as to comprise a single ticket layer, albeit of different materials in discrete sections of the ticket surface. While computer programming is not required for operation of the present invention, suitable computer programming associated with the present invention permits printing in a highly exact manner with tight registration so as to assist in minimizing overlap and blank space between the different materials in the single layer embodiment. In another embodiment of the present invention, solvent-based and water-based scratch-off materials are provided so as to comprise two single ticket layers, one on top of the other, wherein each layer includes a portion that is solvent-based and a portion that is water-based, with no or minimal overlap or blank space therebetween on the surface of the ticket. In the dual layer embodiment of the present invention, it will be appreciated that the solvent-based scratch-off material on the top layer is directly atop the solvent-based scratch-off material on the bottom layer, and the water-based scratch-off material on the top layer is directly atop the water-based scratch-off material on the bottom layer.
As shown in
The variable game data layer 30 (i.e., indicia layer) is applied atop the base layer 25, and can be printed to the ticket using printing technology such as, for example, ink jet printing (water-based or solvent-based), flexographic printing, toner-based imagers or any other suitable printing technology. As described above, the variable game data can comprise indicia such as the game indicia, ticket identification data and validation number, for example.
In one embodiment of the present invention, a benday pattern layer 32 is provided atop the game data layer 30. In another embodiment of the present invention, the benday pattern layer 32 is applied atop the base layer 25, and then the variable game data layer 30 is applied. In still another embodiment of the present invention, different printing heads or different sets of printing heads can be operated at the same time to produce a benday layer 32 at substantially the same time as the variable game data layer 30, both of which are provided atop the base layer 25. Benday patterns are well-known in the ticket printing field as providing patterns that help prevent ticket tampering. If, for example, a benday pattern on a first ticket is different from a benday pattern on a second ticket, then an unscrupulous individual who attempts to “split” the first ticket by removing a portion of that ticket and applying it to the second ticket will fail, because the benday patterns will not align.
As further shown in the embodiment of the ticket of the present invention shown in
As further shown in
The scratch-off material layer 40 resides atop layers 34, 36. Scratch-off layer 40 can include a solvent-based black or opaque scratch-off material layer 42, and a solvent-based white scratch-off material layer 44. It will be appreciated that the white layer can actually comprise an off-white color or other lighter color instead of white, depending upon the application and the intended effect; however, for purposes of the present disclosure, it will be referred to as a white layer herein. As shown in
Within the vacant areas 45 in the solvent-based scratch layers 42, 44, water-based scratch-off material layers 46, 48 are provided. In one embodiment of the present invention, as with the solvent-based layers 42 and 44, the underlying water-based scratch-off layer 46 is opaque and the overlying water-based scratch-off layer 48 is white. These layers 46, 48 are applied to the vacant areas where the solvent-based layers 42, 44 are not applied, coinciding with the areas where authentication information is positioned on the ticket. These layers 46, 48 can be applied in separate printing steps and give the physical and visual appearance of a single continuous layer when combined with the solvent-based scratch-off layers 42, 44. In one embodiment of the present invention, layers 42 and 46 comprise a single layer with a substantially horizontal top planar surface as illustrated in
Layers 42, 44, 46 and 48 can be applied, for example, by a flexographic printing technique in which the coating or ink is applied to a relatively pliable printing head and transferred by the head to the ticket. The ink can also be applied by rotogravure or other printing techniques, such as, for example, by application of silk screen technology.
The sequence of applying layers 42 and 44 as compared to applying layers 46 and 48 is not necessarily important. However, each layer can be applied in separate printing steps. As a result, four printing steps can be used to apply two complete layers of scratch-off material, with each individual layer comprising part solvent-based scratch-off material and part water-based scratch-off material. For example, the four printing steps can be performed such that the lower, opaque, solvent-based scratch-off material is applied first, followed by the lower, opaque, water-based scratch-off material, followed by the upper white solvent-based scratch-off material, and finally by the upper white water-based scratch-off material. Alternatively, the two solvent-based scratch-off materials can be applied first, followed by the two water-based scratch-off materials. As described above, it will be appreciated that the order of printing the different layers and material types is not considered critical to the present invention, and that any preferred ordering of steps can be employed.
In one embodiment of the present invention, suitable software programming stored in the memory of a computer and executed by a processor associated with the computer can direct the printing press to apply the scratch-off materials in a highly exact manner with tight registration such that the solvent-based scratch-off ink and the water-based scratch-off ink substantially abut one another without bleeding into one another. In this way, there is no or very minimal overlap as between the different materials. Overlapping materials are an undesired consequence of applying the different scratch-off materials together in single layers, since it can be visually or physically obvious where the two different materials intersect, thereby tipping off a potentially unscrupulous individual as to where the validation number resides on the ticket. The software programming can also apply the scratch-off materials such that there is no blank space in between the different scratch-off materials. Any blank space can also tip off an unscrupulous individual as to where the materials were intended to intersect, thereby indicating the location of the validation number.
It will be appreciated that, during construction of a ticket in accordance with the present invention, the vacant areas in the solvent-based scratch layers can be moved to different locations on the ticket so as to correspond with the location of the sensitive underlying data such as the validation number, for example. In one embodiment of the present invention, batches of tickets can be run with the VIRN number and/or other authentication information extending horizontally across the top section of the location on the ticket where indicia are applied. Separate batches can be run with the VIRN number and/or other authentication information extending vertically in a different area of the ticket where indicia are applied. In each case, at least one of the vacant areas of the solvent-based scratch-off material would lie directly above the VIRN number and/or other sensitive information on the ticket. This “moving” or “floating” authentication information reduces the predictability of location for this important information, which can help deter and/or thwart unscrupulous individuals who might seek to compromise the integrity of the ticket. As an alternative to hatch printing, the floating VIRN can change location on a ticket-by-ticket basis as programmed or directed by the operator of the printing press.
While the vacant areas are shown in
It will further be appreciated that, in one embodiment of the present invention, the water-based scratch-off material can be applied in more than one area, even if only one location is above the VIRN number and/or other authentication information. In this way, if an effort is made to compromise the ticket based upon finding an area of the ticket that provides a dustier, less desirable scratching experience as is generally associated with water-based scratch-off materials, the unscrupulous individual seeking to compromise the ticket may not necessarily find validation information lying underneath. As such, the present invention facilitates the generation of “false leads” as an added element of security. While additional water-based scratch-off areas may help generate false leads, it will be appreciated that it is desirable to leave any game indicia underneath the solvent-based scratch-off material so as not to compromise the game play experience for the ticket holder.
As shown in
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With reference back to
Similar color layers can also be applied to the background of the ticket in a further printing step or steps. As shown in
In one embodiment of the present invention, a design, shape, word (e.g., “VOID”) or some other security pattern can be formed from the two different scratch-off materials and placed onto the ticket. Thus, if a tampering attempt is made using tape or other means, the differential scratch characteristics of the letters will give evidence of such an attempt. In one embodiment of the present invention, as described above and shown in
The present invention is not limited to water-based and solvent-based materials but may use any scratch materials where there is a difference in hardness, texture, adhesion, and other critical properties. In one embodiment of the present invention, two or more release coats having different release properties are provided as an alternative to different scratch materials. The example materials for the different release coats are described above, and the different release coats can be applied so as to comprise a single layer, in a manner similar to that described above with respect to the scratch-off layer comprised of two different scratch-off materials. For example, a first release coat may have a release characteristic that is smooth and results in a unitary body of material released from the ticket when scratched, while a second release coat can be provided that has a more granular release characteristic. Additionally, the security features of the present invention can require a printing process having more printers than typically required in past ticket printing efforts.
While the present invention can use one or more computers connected to one or more printers, it will be appreciated that the present invention can also be used with older printing presses that lack automation and/or computer driven printers, as long as the registration of the different material types is sufficiently tight. In those embodiments of the present invention that employ a computer, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that any computer system that includes suitable programming means for operating in accordance with the disclosed methods also falls well within the scope of the present invention. Suitable programming means include any means for directing a computer system to execute the steps of the system and method of the invention, including for example, systems comprised of processing units and arithmetic-logic circuits coupled to computer memory, which systems have the capability of storing in computer memory, which computer memory includes electronic circuits configured to store data and program instructions, programmed steps of the method of the invention for execution by a processing unit. The device of the present invention also may be embodied in a computer program product, such as a diskette or other recording medium, for use with any suitable data processing system. The present invention can further run on a variety of operating platforms. The present invention can further be operated using multiple computers and/or computer systems communicating over a network, which may be a local area network, wide area network, private or public network, such as the Internet, for example.
The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The present embodiments are therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the claims of the application rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein.
The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Application No. 61/368,109, entitled “Secure Lottery Ticket Using Hybrid Construction” filed on Jul. 27, 2010.
Number | Date | Country | |
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61368109 | Jul 2010 | US |