Patent Application
20140377517
The invention generally pertains to monetary negotiable instruments, and more particularly to a structure and method for manufacturing and using a value-bearing instrument that is in the form of a composite laminated structure which includes a precious metal located between a substrate and a protective layer.
The visual attractiveness and chemical resistance of gold and other precious metals allow them to be used in creating objects of beauty and durability. Gold has been used in the creation of collectibles and memorabilia in many forms.
Gold and other precious metals have been used as collectibles for centuries. Their value is primarily set by the free market, and as such it is largely independent of any nation's fiscal and monetary policies. Gold and other metals have the advantage that their value is relatively independent of political influences and therefore not as subject to government caused inflation.
Precious metals can be used as a medium of exchange, a collectible object of art, an accounting unit, and a store of value. Coins are examples of artistic forms of precious metals currently in use. Irregular and unpredictable amounts of gold leaf have also been used in artistic objects.
Gold does however have the disadvantage of being inconvenient both for commerce and for art. It is so valuable that it is not commonly found in daily commerce or artwork, except in relatively large amounts of a gram or more in jewelry. More often it is used as an inflation resistant store of wealth, but seldom used to buy goods or services. Smaller amounts of gold are needed for use in artwork for commerce. However, smaller amounts of gold, such as “chip” gold, are hard to see and are easier to counterfeit.
Furthermore, by spreading out gold into a thin layer, it is easier to observe and measure the unique physical properties of gold. Thus the inventive thin film gold is resistant to adulteration and counterfeiting. Thin films of metal behave very differently in terms of spectra, corrosion and other physical properties. We can probe or interrogate thin film metals with the full range of the electromagnetic spectrum. Thus thin film is a superior form of gold for authentication.
The inventive layered precious metal structure provides precious metals in a new form that overcomes this problem. This inventive thin film form of gold is more liquid, portable, verifiable, and convenient than forms of gold that have previously existed. This flat, thin, durable form of gold may allow gold to be used for collectible artwork more efficiently.
A search of the prior art did not disclose any literature or patents that read directly on the claims of the instant invention however, the following U.S. patents are considered related:
In its basic design the structure utilized for producing a precious metal thin film laminate (PMTL), is comprised of:
a) a substrate having an upper surface, a lower surface, and a peripheral edge,
b) a selectable quantity of a precious metal that is deposited onto the upper surface or the lower surface of the substrate, and
c) a protective layer that is applied over the precious metal.
Generally, the basic method steps required to produce the PMTL are as follows:
A. Provide a substrate made of flexible plastic and having an upper surface, a lower surface and a peripheral edge,
B. Deposit by a deposition means that includes a sputtering or an evaporation process, a layer of a precious metal over the upper surface of the substrate, wherein the precious metal has a thickness that is no greater than five microns,
C. Laminate a plastic film over the precious metal to form a composite structure, and
D. Cut the composite structure with a cutting means that includes a knife, a die or a laser to allow at least one edge of the precious metal to be exposed along at least one edge of the composite structure.
To further enhance the utility of the invention, the PMTL includes indicia that is applied to the precious metal or over the substrate, and an authentication device that makes it difficult to counterfeit or adulterate the PMTL. The resulting product may be utilized as material for collectible art, traded, and purchased or sold by individuals and commercial enterprises.
The thin-film layer of precious metal used to produce the PMTL is selected from the group consisting of gold, platinum, palladium, and/or silver. It is possible that this invention may also be applied to ruthenium, rhodium, osmium and/or iridium. Hard precious metals such as rhodium or palladium would not need a protective film cover, but the other softer metals and softer alloys may need a protective film cover in certain embodiments. However, for brevity the invention disclosed is limited to a PMTL that utilizes a thin-film layer of soft precious metal such a gold that requires the use of a protective film.
In the past, gold has been used as a precious metal collectible in the form of bullion, coins and chip gold. The intrinsic problems of utilizing coins and chips as collectible gold art objects are overcome or at least minimized by the PMTL, which utilizes thin-film gold that:
The above combination of effects, including those made non-destructively testable through the exposed precious metal at the edges, cause the thin-film gold to possess unique and easily observable characteristics, thus making it difficult to either counterfeit or adulterate.
The PMTL uses a thin-film deposition of gold at a selected thickness which allows smaller amounts of metal to be used relative to chip gold. This allows the PMTL to be more versatile in situations of high inflation. For example, under some economic conditions where the price of gold rises, gold collectibles in quantities of 1 gram may become too expensive to be used for the purchase of artwork.
Currently, investors concerned with the possibility of inflation have been advised to buy gold and silver. However, currently there are spot shortages of small denomination coinage. Under hyper inflation conditions, such coinage would become very expensive and thus unavailable for everyday commerce. The PMTL allows day-to-day exchange in collectible gold artwork to be possible and reliable.
A current US dollar bill is 6.5 cm by 15.5 cm, which covers an area close to 100 square cm. In another embodiment, PMTL further includes indicia that can be applied to the precious metal, the substrate, or the protective layer.
If gold is deposited with a thickness of 260 nm onto a 100 square cm area, the area would encompass 1/20 gram of gold. Twenty of the PMTL thin-film gold laminates the size of a US dollar bill would produce a stack measuring approximately 2.5 mm. Thus, a 2.5 mm stack would consist of approximately 1 gram of gold.
The PMTL can be cut with scissors or other easily available means to provide needed value amounts for a given purpose. Thus, it can be used with more flexibility than chip or gold coins. Thin film gold, for example, could be deposited onto a substrate with holograms or other marks which would indicate the thickness of the thin-film gold and would include marks to guide the cutting of the film at set locations for a certain value of gold. The gold in the PMTL can also be easily and environmentally cleanly recovered by roasting (application of heat and oxygen). Thus this inventive form of thin film gold is very versatile.
These and other objects and advantages of the PMTL will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description of the preferred embodiment and the appended claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
The best mode for carrying out the invention is presented in terms of a preferred embodiment for producing a precious metal thin-film laminate (PMTL) 10. The PMTL 10 can be utilized as material for collective art, traded and purchased or sold by individuals and commercial enterprises. The preferred embodiment of the PMTL 10 is disclosed in terms of a basic PMTL 10 structure and is shown in
The basic PMTL 10 structure, as shown in
To augment the basic PMTL 10 structure, the PMTL can further be comprised of indicia 24 and an authentication device 26. The indicia 24, as shown in
The substrate 12 comprises a composition, including plastic film, metal foil and/or polymer. Non-limiting examples of the polymer include polystyrene, polyester (PET), acrylic (PMMA), polypropylene, polyethylene, poly-vinylidene dichloride (PVDC) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC).
In
The precious metal 18, in certain embodiments, has a weight ranging from 0.001 g to 16 g. In another embodiment, the precious metal 18 has a weight ranging from 0.03 g to 12 g. In yet another embodiment, metal layer 14 has a weight ranging from 0.1 g to 8. g. Precious metal 18, in certain embodiments has a fractional troy ounce weight, i.e., a weight of less than one troy ounce.
The precious metal layer 18 generally has a thickness ranging from 10 to 1000 nm in certain embodiments. In other embodiments, the metal layer 18 can have a thickness ranging from 15 mil to 750 nm. In yet other embodiments, precious metal 18 has a thickness that is less than 500 nm. In yet another embodiment, precious metal 18 has a thickness ranging from a single metal-atom thickness to 500 nm.
The substrate 12, in at least one embodiment has a rectangular shape, as shown in
In certain embodiments, the substrate 12 is dimensioned to be no less than 0.5 inches (1.27 cm) and no greater than 10 inches (25.4 cm). In another embodiment, the substrate 12 and/or the protective layer 22 are dimensioned to range from 3 to 8 inches (7.62 to 20.32 cm). In yet another embodiments, the substrate 12 can be transparent or translucent. In a further embodiment, the substrate 12 and/or the protective cover 22 include a dye or pigment in a quantity effective to provide color. Further, the color may be combined with the transparent or translucent substrate 12 to provide a colored, transparent or translucent substrate 12 through which precious metal 18 including designs proximate to precious metal 18 are visible to the unaided eye.
The precious metal 18 is comprised of a relatively high economic value composition comprising thin-film gold 20, silver, platinum, palladium, rhodium, osmium, iridium and ruthenium. Economic value may be indicated, in certain embodiments, by metals that are traded on commodity market exchanges. It should be understood that other relatively high economic value metals, in certain embodiments, include some non-limiting examples such as rhenium, copper, nickel, or strategic industrial metals, such as cobalt, titanium, or lanthanides. It is further understood that the precious metal 18 may include alloys of metals such as nickel and gold as used in 14-carat gold. It should be further understood, that the precious metal 18 can include other additives or contaminants such as oxides of meals, materials, a radio frequency identification device (RFID), and other components, particles, such as nanoparticles having relatively unique spectral properties, and other structures and materials without exceeding the scope and spirit of contemplated embodiments.
In another embodiment, as shown in
The protective layer 22 is comprised of a composition material including plastic film metal foil and polymer. Non-limiting example of the polymer includes polystyrene, polyester (PET), acrylic (PMMS), polypropylene, polyethylene, poly-vinylidene dichloride (PVDC) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC). The protective layer 22 is optional and is intended to provide protection to the precious metal 18 from adverse environmental conditions that may alter the amount of metal contained in the precious metal 18 or damage the precious metal 18. Non-limiting examples of such environmental conditions include abrasion or the intentional removal of a portion of the metal.
The indicia 24, as shown in
In yet another embodiment, the indicia 24 includes at least one random indicia. Non-limiting examples of random indicia include a random set of apertures, a set of blind holes, an unpatterned thickness variation of the precious metal, a convoluted optical density configuration, a microdamage element, such as a contaminant distribution arrangement and/or depressions or bas-relief surfaces. The random indicia 24 may be suitable for characterizing either the precious metal 18 and/or a value-bearing instrument. It is further understood that random indicia, in certain embodiments, include unpatterned configurations, unreproducible configurations, unrepeatable configurations, and statistically pseudo-random configurations in addition to statistically random configurations without exceeding the scope or spirit of the embodiments contemplated herein. In yet another embodiment, the indicia 24 includes, in combination, a predetermined indicia and a random indicia so as to be effective as an anti-counterfeiting element.
Referring to
Referring to
The PMTL 10 authentication device 26 in at least one embodiment includes a destructive testing device. Non-limiting examples of destructive testing devices which involve breaching the substrate 12 or the protective cover 22, a spark spectrophotometer; or an electrical resistance meter.
In another embodiment, the authentication device 26 is comprised of a nondestructive testing device. In certain embodiments, the non-destructive testing device 26 is capable of non-destructively assaying an assayable precious metal. Non-limiting examples of the nondestructive testing device 26 are a transmission or reflection spectrophotometer; a microwave spectrophotometer; a millimeter wave spectrophotometer; an eddy current meter; an electrical resistance meter; an infrared reflectometer; an x-ray fluorescence spectrometer; an ultraviolet light emitting diode capable of detecting UV-fluorescing yellow dyes, a narrow band filters capable of inducing metamerism in dyes; a colorimeter; a graphic copying device, such as a digital camera; an image recording device, and/or a scanning device, such as a copying scanner.
To assist in the verification of authenticity of a value-bearing instrument 10, the indicia 24 and/or combinations of indicia may be recorded, such as by an optical scanner or a spectrometer, at an initial time period associated with manufacture or distribution for comparison at a later time period. The steps of the method recording of the value-bearing instrument 10, as shown in
A. Preparing the value-bearing instrument 10 with a recordable indicia 24:
B. Recording the indicia as an electronic record;
C. Storing the electronic record;
D. Making the stored electronic record available for comparison to an alleged value-bearing instrument:
E. Comparing the alleged value-bearing instrument to the electronic record in step B; and
F. Authenticating that the alleged value-bearing instrument as genuine and unaltered or as a counterfeit or an altered value-bearing instrument.
In at least one embodiment, as illustrated in
A. Providing a plastic substrate;
B. Applying a precious metal layer 18 having a thickness less than 1000 nm proximate to the plastic substrate and having a metal content ranging from 0.1 to 16 grams, wherein the precious metal layer forms an indicia; and
C. Recording the indicia to form a verifiable value-bearing instrument.
It is understood that the electronic record and/or the recorded indicia may be recorded publicly, held privately, or made available using a system of encryption with public and private keys. Making the electronic record and/or recorded indicia available, in certain embodiments, may include broadcasting or narrowcast using media such as the internet and other electronic networks.
Exemplary processes for producing the PMTL 10 are presented in terms of twenty-one exemplary processes that are shown in
The first process embodiment for laminating gold 20 as an example of the PMTL, as shown in
The second process embodiment, as shown in
The third process embodiment for manufacturing the PMTL having, in combination, three indicia: information on the precious metal 18, and the hologram and the strip of feathering situated on the substrate 12, as shown in
The fourth process embodiment for manufacturing the PMTL having, in combination, three indicia: information on the hologram, and the strip of feathering situated on the substrate 12, as shown in
The fifth process embodiment, as shown in
The sixth process embodiment, as shown in
The seventh process embodiment, as shown in
The eighth process embodiment, as shown in
The ninth process embodiment, as shown in
The tenth process embodiment, as shown in
The eleventh process embodiment, as shown in
The twelfth process embodiment, as shown in
The thirteenth process embodiment, as shown in
The fourteenth process embodiment, as shown in
The fifteenth process embodiment, as shown in
The sixteenth process embodiment, as shown in
The seventeenth process embodiment, as shown in
The eighteenth process embodiment, as shown in
The nineteenth process embodiment, as shown in
The twentieth process embodiment, as shown in
The twenty-first process embodiment, as shown in
The value-bearing instrument 10 can also be comprised of a plastic substrate 12 having peripheral edges, a first axis therebetween, and a first precious metal layer 18 proximate to the substrate 12. The metal layer 18 has a metal content ranging from 0.001 grams to 16 grams, a predetermined indicia and a randomly disposed indicia. The indicia is selected from the group consisting of a spectral combination, a three-dimensioned indicia, and an aperture pattern. The precious metal layer 18 is a physical-vapor-deposition-applied precious metal layer.
The metal content is a variable metal content that is disposed between the first axis and at least one peripheral edge. The variable metal content is a minimum metal content that is proximate to the peripheral edge and can also consist of a non-destructively assayable metal content. The precious metal layer 20 has a thickness ranging from 10 nm to 1000 nm.
The value-bearing instrument can be further comprised of a second precious metal layer 18 that is proximate to the first precious metal layer and can include a substrate 12 having peripheral edges; and a metal layer proximate to the substrate 12. The metal layer has a metal content of less than a troy ounce and a thickness that is less than 1000 nm. The metal layer is selected from the group consisting of a vapor-deposited precious metal layer, an atomically-layered precious metal layer, a foil precious metal layer and a magnetron-sputtered precious metal layer. The metal layer can also be selected from gold, platinum, palladium, rhodium or silver.
An additional method for making a value-bearing instrument 10 comprises the steps of providing a plastic substrate 12, applying a precious metal layer 18 having a thickness less than 1000 nm and that is proximate to the plastic substrate 12. The metal layer 18 can have a metal content ranging from 0.001 to 16 grams, and can include indicia that is recorded to form a validation of a value-bearing instrument 10. The indicia can be comprised of a plurality of thicknesses forming a convoluted optical density configuration, and can be recorded publicly.
While the invention has been described in detail and pictorially shown in the accompanying drawings it is not to be limited to such details, since many changes and modifications may be made to the PMTL 10 without departing from the spirit and the scope thereof. Hence, it is described to cover any and all modifications and forms which may come within the language and scope of the claims.
This application claims benefit to Provisional Patent Applications 61/210,792 filed Mar. 23, 2009, Provisional Patent application 61/234,334 filed Apr. 22, 2009 and Utility patent application Ser. No. 12/798,124 filed Mar. 30, 2010.
