Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B42—BOOKBINDING; ALBUMS; FILES; SPECIAL PRINTED MATTER
  • B42D—BOOKS; BOOK COVERS; LOOSE LEAVES; PRINTED MATTER CHARACTERISED BY IDENTIFICATION OR SECURITY FEATURES; PRINTED MATTER OF SPECIAL FORMAT OR STYLE NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; DEVICES FOR USE THEREWITH AND NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; MOVABLE-STRIP WRITING OR READING APPARATUS
  • B42D25/00—Information-bearing cards or sheet-like structures characterised by identification or security features; Manufacture thereof
  • B42D25/30—Identification or security features, e.g. for preventing forgery
  • B42D25/36—Identification or security features, e.g. for preventing forgery comprising special materials
  • B42D25/369—Magnetised or magnetisable materials
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B42—BOOKBINDING; ALBUMS; FILES; SPECIAL PRINTED MATTER
  • B42D—BOOKS; BOOK COVERS; LOOSE LEAVES; PRINTED MATTER CHARACTERISED BY IDENTIFICATION OR SECURITY FEATURES; PRINTED MATTER OF SPECIAL FORMAT OR STYLE NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; DEVICES FOR USE THEREWITH AND NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; MOVABLE-STRIP WRITING OR READING APPARATUS
  • B42D25/00—Information-bearing cards or sheet-like structures characterised by identification or security features; Manufacture thereof
  • B42D25/30—Identification or security features, e.g. for preventing forgery
  • B42D25/328—Diffraction gratings; Holograms
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B42—BOOKBINDING; ALBUMS; FILES; SPECIAL PRINTED MATTER
  • B42D—BOOKS; BOOK COVERS; LOOSE LEAVES; PRINTED MATTER CHARACTERISED BY IDENTIFICATION OR SECURITY FEATURES; PRINTED MATTER OF SPECIAL FORMAT OR STYLE NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; DEVICES FOR USE THEREWITH AND NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; MOVABLE-STRIP WRITING OR READING APPARATUS
  • B42D25/00—Information-bearing cards or sheet-like structures characterised by identification or security features; Manufacture thereof
  • B42D25/30—Identification or security features, e.g. for preventing forgery
  • B42D25/355—Security threads

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a security element for currency papers (for example banknotes), documents, in particular security documents (for example passports), and the like.
• currency papers for example banknotes
• security documents for example passports
• the security element according to the present invention is a magnetic element that contains a magnetic encoding or is in any case magnetically encodeable and is adapted, particularly but not exclusively, to be inserted in paper money, and in particular in the security threads that are inserted into the paper of banknotes, in order to certify the authenticity of the banknotes themselves, or into passports, or into any other document in order to certify its authenticity.
• the basic principle of this encoding consists of providing magnetic areas with different thicknesses, interleaved with empty spaces.
• the recognition occurs by classifying all the bits and all the spaces as if it were waveform recognition.
• One simple method of recognition can be carried out by classifying the bits in sequence, by measuring the length of the bits with high thickness, of the bits with low thickness, and of the empty spaces.
• IMT Magnetic code as described by EP0407550, the basic principle of which consists of making magnetic areas and corresponding spaces of fixed length and then creating binary codes by filling this fixed measurement with magnetic ink (binary value "1") or not filling the fixed measurement (binary value "0").
• EPl 618006 which again uses magnetic inks of different coercivity and is characterized in that the inks are superimposed on each other, has the peculiarity that the high-coercivity magnetic ink, when magnetized, in turn magnetizes the ink composed of low-coercivity oxides.
• TMC Magnetic encoding system
• a magnetic code as described in EP2229286 and EP2414176.
• the basic principle consists of making magnetic areas with different magnetic characteristics printed superimposed so that, suitably oriented, they generate at least three different codes which are read on two different channels.
• the length of the bits and of the spaces is free and therefore the verification is carried out using waveform recognition.
• the aim is achieved by using a high-power permanent magnet (e.g. 10,000 Oe) to orient the magnetic inks (e.g. 4,000 Oe and 250 Oe) uniquely and in such a way that, for example, the peaks generated by the bits have the same intensity (bits magnetized to saturation); a second magnet is positioned so as to modify the magnetic orientation of the low-coercivity ink used for the superimposed printing, so leaving the magnetic characteristics of the high-coercivity inks unaltered.
• a high-power permanent magnet e.g. 10,000 Oe
• a second magnet is positioned so as to modify the magnetic orientation of the low-coercivity ink used for the superimposed printing, so leaving the magnetic characteristics of the high-coercivity inks unaltered.
• the reading taken from the second channel will show the differences in intensity of the bits, which were made with two different magnetic inks.
• a further magnetic encoding system sold under the name MAG3 is made with a magnetic code as described in EP 2588996.
• the substantial difference from the TMC thread is that it has an area, one of the superimposed printed areas, with a lower surface on at least two sides.
• a typical conventional magnetic security element A is shown in Figures la and lb, and has a series of individual magnetic elements B deposited on a plastic medium C interleaved with spaces D. Each magnetic element is magnetized uniformly throughout its volume.
• the aim of the present invention consists in improving the background art described above by providing a security element for currency papers or documents or the like that is capable of ensuring a higher level of security.
• an object of the present invention is to provide a security element for currency papers or documents or the like that makes it possible to obtain encodings that are more complex or which are in any case harder to counterfeit.
• Another object of the invention is to devise a security element for currency papers or documents or the like that is easy to implement and economically competitive when compared to the known art.
• Another object of the invention is to provide an alternative to the background art.
• Figures la, lb and 1c are respectively a perspective view, a cross- sectional view and a magnetic signal, of a security element according to the prior art
• Figure 2a is a plan view of a possible embodiment of a security element according to the present invention.
• Figure 2b is a plan view of a first possible embodiment of a single magnetic element of a security element according to the present invention
• Figure 2c is a plan view of a second possible embodiment of a single magnetic element of a security element according to the present invention.
• Figure 2d is a cross-sectional view taken along the plane B-B’ of the magnetic element of Figure 2c;
• Figure 2e is a cross-sectional view taken along the plane A-A’ of the magnetic element of Figure 2c;
• Figure 3a is a plan view of the magnetic element of Figure 2c;
• Figure 3b is a cross-sectional view taken along the plane B-B’ of the magnetic element of Figure 3a in which a possible encoding of the different areas is indicated;
• Figure 3c is a cross-sectional view taken along the plane A-A’ of the magnetic element of Figure 3a in which a possible encoding of the different areas is indicated;
• Figure 3d shows the magnetic signal generated by the magnetic element of Figure 3a when this is brought to complete magnetic saturation and when read along a longitudinal direction;
• Figure 3e shows the magnetic signal that is obtained from the magnetic element of Figure 3a by converging the signals generated by the two rows of areas and when read along a longitudinal direction;
• Figure 4a is a plan view of a third possible embodiment of a single magnetic element of a security element according to the present invention.
• Figure 4b is a cross-sectional view taken along the plane B-B’ of the magnetic element of Figure 4a in which a possible encoding of the different areas is indicated;
• Figure 4c is a cross-sectional view taken along the plane A-A’ of the magnetic element of Figure 4a in which a possible encoding of the different areas is indicated;
• Figure 4d shows the magnetic signal generated by the magnetic element of Figure 4a when this is brought to complete magnetic saturation and when read along a longitudinal direction;
• Figure 4e shows the magnetic signal that is obtained from the magnetic element of Figure 3a by converging the signals generated by the two rows of areas and when read along a longitudinal direction;
• Figure 5a shows a plan view of the magnetic element of Figure 2c
• Figure 5b shows the magnetic signal generated by the magnetic element of Figure 5a when this is brought to complete magnetic saturation and when read along a transverse direction;
• Figure 5c shows the magnetic signal that is obtained from the magnetic element of Figure 5a by converging the signals generated by the two rows of areas when only some areas are magnetized and when it is read along a transverse direction;
• Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of a currency paper that comprises a security element according to the present invention.
• the security element for currency papers 90 or documents or the like comprises at least one magnetic element 2, 2’, 2” which can be at least partially magnetized.
• the security element 1 is therefore adapted to be inserted into a currency paper 90 (for example a banknote) or into a security document (for example a passport or other identity document) or into any other document or medium that requires a security check in order to verify its authenticity.
• a currency paper 90 for example a banknote
• a security document for example a passport or other identity document
• the at least one magnetic element 2, 2’, 2” is magnetic in the sense that can be magnetized so as to attribute an encoding thereto; in other words it is configured to be magnetically encoded, so that the encoding can be read by passing a magnetic detection element along a reading axis.
• the security element 1 consists of only the magnetic element 2, 2’, 2” optionally fixed on a medium; or the security element 1 comprises a single magnetic element 2, 2’, 2” optionally associated with other, conventional elements.
• the security element comprises a plurality of magnetic elements 2, 2’, 2”, each one of which can be provided according to any of the possible variants that will be described below, optionally fixed on a medium (for example a plastic substrate).
• the security element 1 is a security thread (of any type that can be used for the purpose, for example holographic, varying in color, or with movement effects) or a holographic sheet in the form of strips or patches.
• the security element 1 in addition to the one or more magnetic elements 2, 2’, 2” provided according to the invention, in the security element 1 there can be one or more conventional magnetic elements or other conventional encoded or identification elements.
• non-magnetic spaces or zones 8 can be used, for example, to introduce negative micro-tests as an additional anti-counterfeiting measure.
• the magnetic element 2, 2’, 2” comprises a plurality of adjacent areas 4, 5 which are in mutual contact and are arranged side by side along at least one first longitudinal axis Y so as to form at least one row 6, 6a, 6b which is arranged along such longitudinal axis Y which corresponds to a preferred reading axis.
• These areas 4, 5 comprise low-coercivity areas 5 and high-coercivity areas 4, and more precisely:
• At least one low-coercivity area 5 which has a first magnetic coercivity (preferably comprised between 150 Oe and 1500 Oe),
• At least one high-coercivity area 4 which has a second magnetic coercivity (preferably comprised between 1501 Oe and 5000 Oe) which is higher than the first magnetic coercivity.
• coercivity is the capacity of a magnetic material to maintain its magnetization when it is exposed to a magnetic field of the opposite polarity, and more precisely the coercivity of a material is the intensity of the reverse magnetic field that it is necessary to apply to that material in order to demagnetize it after it has reached its saturation value. Therefore, for convenience, in the present description and in the accompanying claims the coercivity values of the materials are expressed in terms of intensity of the magnetic field (and therefore in Oested (Oe)) necessary to demagnetize the material after it has reached its saturation value.
• the high-coercivity areas 4 and low-coercivity areas 5 are portions of the magnetic element 2, 2’, 2” that are made of different materials (the high-coercivity zones 4 from a higher-coercivity material and the low-coercivity zones 5 from a lower-coercivity material).
• the high-coercivity areas 4 and the low- coercivity areas 5 are formed by a magnetic ink and preferably:
• the low-coercivity areas 5 are formed by a magnetic ink that comprises pigments that have a coercivity equal to the above mentioned first magnetic coercivity, and
• the high-coercivity areas 4 are formed by a magnetic ink that comprises pigments that have a coercivity value equal to the above mentioned second magnetic coercivity.
• the magnetic element 2 comprises, and preferably consists of, a single row 6 of high- coercivity areas 4 and low-coercivity areas 5 that can be alternated in any sequence, according to the encoding that it is desired to obtain.
• the sole reading axis coincides with the longitudinal axis along which the areas 4, 5 are aligned.
• the magnetic element 2’, 2 comprises, and preferably consists of, two rows 6a, 6b of high-coercivity areas 4 and low-coercivity areas 5.
• the magnetic element comprises three or more rows 6a, 6b of areas 4, 5 arranged side by side.
• the areas 4, 5 are arranged side by side along at least two rows 6a, 6b: a first row 6a along a first longitudinal axis Y and a second row 6b along a second longitudinal axis X which is parallel to the first longitudinal axis Y.
• these two rows 6a, 6b are adjacent and are in mutual contact, so as to form a two-dimensional array of low-coercivity areas 5 and high-coercivity areas 4 that comprises rows 6a, 6b and columns (the latter formed by pairs of areas 4, 5 arranged side by side) which are arranged on a plane or in any case along a two-dimensional surface.
• each magnetic element 2’, 2 is formed by an array of dimensions 8x2 (two rows of eight areas 4, 5 each) of high-coercivity areas 4 and low-coercivity areas 5 that can be alternated in any sequence, according to the encoding that it is desired to obtain.
• each area 4, 5 is adjacent to, and in contact with, at least two other areas 4, 5, along two different non-opposing sides.
• each magnetic element 2, 2’, 2 can be formed by an array LxC where L is the number of areas 4, 5 in each row and C is the number of rows arranged side by side; in the preferred embodiments each magnetic element 2, 2’, 2” is formed by an array Lx2 or LX1 with L having any value.
• At least one of the low-coercivity areas 5 comprised in the first row 6a is arranged side by side, along a transverse axis Z which is perpendicular to the first longitudinal axis Y and to the second longitudinal axis X, with another low- coercivity area 5 which is comprised in the second row 6b so as to form a column (in this case a pair) of low-coercivity areas 5.
• At least one of the high-coercivity areas 4 comprised in the first row 6a is arranged side by side, along a transverse axis Z’ which is perpendicular to the first longitudinal axis Y and to the second longitudinal axis X, with another high-coercivity area 4 which is comprised in the second row 6b so as to form a column (in this case a pair) of high-coercivity area 4.
• At least one of the low-coercivity areas 5 comprised in the first row 6a to be arranged side by side, along a transverse axis J which is perpendicular to the first longitudinal axis Y and to the second longitudinal axis X, with a high- coercivity area 4 which is comprised in the second row 6b so as to form a mixed column (in this case a pair) of high-coercivity areas 4 and low- coercivity areas 5.
• high-coercivity areas 4 and low-coercivity areas 5 are never superimposed, as they are arranged side by side along a two-dimensional surface.
• each magnetic element 2, 2’, 2” is magnetized so that the high-coercivity areas 4 have a first magnetization value and the low- coercivity areas 5 have a magnetization value which is preferably nil or in any case lower than the first magnetization value.
• the magnetization of the magnetic element 2’, 2” can be read on two levels simultaneously (i.e. at each one of the two rows 6a, 6b, respectively along the first longitudinal axis X and the second longitudinal axis Y) and the readings on the two levels can be combined in order to produce a compound signal ml, m2 m3, m4 that depends on the magnetization of both the lines, thus obtaining an encoding that is more complex and therefore more secure.
• encodings can be obtained on two different positions such as, for example, at the crosssection A- A’ along the first longitudinal axis X ( Figure 3 c) and at the crosssection B-B’ along the second longitudinal axis Y ( Figure 3b), or, by converging the two signals, a third encoding can be obtained that produces the signal m2 of Figure 3e. Furthermore, with the magnetic element 2’ brought to complete magnetic saturation, a fourth signal ml ( Figure 3d) can further be generated.
• Figures 4a-4e show another variation of a magnetic element 2” that has high-coercivity areas 4 and low-coercivity areas 5 from which two different encodings can be obtained: one on the cross-section A- A’ along the first longitudinal axis X ( Figure 4c) and one on the cross-section B-B’ along the second longitudinal axis Y ( Figure 4b). Furthermore, with the complete saturation of the magnetic element 2” a signal m3 is obtained as indicated in Figure 4d. By converging the two signals deriving from the reading along the cross-sections A-A’ and B-B’ (i.e. along the two longitudinal axes X and Y) a signal m4 ( Figure 4e) is obtained along with a corresponding multilevel encoding, thus increasing the security over a binary system.
• the magnetic element 2’, 2 comprises at least two rows 6a, 6b, it is possible to carry out a reading along a reading axis that is transverse (therefore perpendicular to the longitudinal axes X, Y).
• Figures 5a-5c show a magnetic element 2’ ( Figure 5a) and the corresponding magnetic signals m6, m7 that result from a transverse reading of that magnetic element 2’, if the high-coercivity areas 4 and low- coercivity areas 5 ( Figure 5b) are completely saturated, or if only the high- coercivity areas 4 ( Figure 5c) are magnetized so as to obtain a signal m7 that derives only from these.
• Embodiments are also possible (not shown) in which the magnetic element 2’, 2” comprises two rows 6a, 6b and one of these is made up only of high-coercivity areas 4 or only of low-coercivity areas 5, in practice therefore one of the rows 6a, 6b being constituted by a single area of uniform coercivity.
• the magnetic element 2, 2’, 2 it is necessary to subject the magnetic element 2, 2’, 2” itself to different magnetization fields so as to be able to carry out readings under different magnetization conditions.
• Comparison of the signals collected makes it possible, with an adapted recognition algorithm, to verify the authenticity of the document or currency paper 90 into which the security element 1 is inserted.
• the method for providing a security element 1 comprises a step of construction of at least one magnetic element 2, 2', 2" which can be at least partially magnetized and a step of encoding which is obtained by magnetizing at least partially this magnetic element 2, 2', 2”.
• the step of construction of the magnetic element 2, 2', 2" entails forming a plurality of adjacent areas 4, 5 which are in contact with each other and are arranged side by side along at least one first longitudinal axis Y so as to form at least one row 6, 6a, 6b.
• these areas 4, 5 comprise:
• the step of encoding comprises the steps of: a) subjecting the magnetic element 2, 2', 2" to a magnetic field which has an intensity which is higher than the second magnetic coercivity, so as to magnetize to saturation both the low-coercivity areas 5 and the high- coercivity areas 4, and then b) subjecting the magnetic element 2, 2', 2" to a magnetic field that has an (opposing) intensity comprised between the first magnetic coercivity and the second magnetic coercivity, so as to cancel out the magnetization only of the low-coercivity areas 5.
• Such signal ml-m7 can be compared with a series of acceptance parameters in order to judge the authenticity of the document.
• the method according to the present invention can comprise direct printing of the security element on the document, with rotogravure, intaglio and screen printing techniques, or by way of transfer from a backing.
• the security element 1 can advantageously be provided directly on the security document (or currency paper) by means of a printing method, preferably intaglio, screen or offset printing, or by transfer.
• the present invention also relates to any document or currency paper 90 that comprises one or more security elements 1 of the type just described.
• the security element for currency papers or documents or the like achieves the intended aim and objects in that it is capable of guaranteeing a greater level of security, since the encoding that can be obtained represents a daunting barrier against the counterfeiting of this security element.
• Another advantage of the security element, according to the invention consists in that it enables encodings that are more complex or in any case harder to counterfeit.
• Another advantage of the security element, according to the invention consists in that it is easy to implement and economically competitive when compared to the known art.

Landscapes

• Inspection Of Paper Currency And Valuable Securities (AREA)
• Burglar Alarm Systems (AREA)
• Credit Cards Or The Like (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

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• 2021
  • 2021-10-13 EP EP21791337.5A patent/EP4232299A1/de active Pending
  • 2021-10-13 WO PCT/EP2021/078333 patent/WO2022096241A1/en unknown

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