Optically variable personalized indicia for identification documents

• US 20050161512A1
• Filed: 12/23/2004
• Published: 07/28/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 12/24/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: L-1 Secure Credentialing, LLC (Advent International Corporation)
• Original Assignee: L-1 Secure Credentialing, LLC (Advent International Corporation)
• Inventors: Schneck, Nelson T., Bi, Daoshen, Duggan, Charles F., Jones, Robert L.
• Granted Patent: US 7,694,887 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 235/487
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 3/008 Sequential or multiple printing, e.g. on previously printed background; Mirror printing; Recto-verso printing; using a combination of different printing techniques; Printing of patterns visible in reflection and by transparency; by superposing printed artifacts
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 3/144 using fluorescent, luminescent or iridescent effects
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 2035/06 Picture of the user
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 2035/20 Optical effects
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 2035/24 Colours
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 2035/26 Halftone or interference patterns
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 2035/34 Markings visible under particular conditions or containing coded information
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 2035/44 Miniaturised markings
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 2035/50 Corresponding markings appearing in different shapes or at different places
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 25/00 Information-bearing cards or sheet-like structures characterised by identification or security features; Manufacture thereof printing processes to produce identification or security features B41M3/14
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 25/309 Photographs
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 25/378 Special inks
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 25/382 absorbing or reflecting infrared light
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 25/387 absorbing or reflecting ultraviolet light
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 25/41 using electromagnetic radiation B42D25/435 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/025 the material being flexible or adapted for folding, e.g. paper or paper-like materials used in luggage labels, identification tags, forms or identification documents carrying RFIDs methods for testing the genuineness of valuable papers, e.g. banknotes or passports G07D7/00; constructional features of booklets and the like B42D
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/077 Constructional details, e.g. mounting of circuits in the carrier
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32133 on the same paper sheet, e.g. a facsimile page header
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32144 embedded in the image data, i.e. enclosed or integrated in the image, e.g. watermark, super-imposed logo or stamp
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3233 of authentication information, e.g. digital signature, watermark
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3236 : Details of authentication information generation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/327 : which are undetectable to the naked eye, e.g. embedded codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3271 : Printing or stamping

Abstract

The invention relates to identification documents, and in particular to providing optically variable personalized data to identification documents. In one implementation, we provide an identification document comprising a document layer and a first indicium. The document layer comprises a material capable of being printed by a thermally transferable optically variable ink. The first indicium is printed on the document layer and comprises personalized data and printed to the document layer by a thermally transferred optically variable ink. The first indicium may be printed to the document layer by disposing a thermally transferable optically variable ink in a mass transfer panel of a printer ribbon adapted for use in a dye diffusion thermal transfer printer, and printing the first indicium as part of a mass transfer printing process. The thermally transferred optically variable ink can be selected and printed such that the first indicium has at least one of a luster, shine, sheen, pearlescent appearance, iridescent appearance, and mirror-like appearance. This technology enables the creation of a halftone “mirror image” over a color ghost image to achieve a layered and linked multiple personalization scheme of ID documents.

Claims

1. An identification document comprising:

a document layer comprising a material capable of being printed by a thermally transferable optically variable ink; and

a first indicium printed on the document layer, the first indicium comprising personalized data and printed to the document layer by a thermally transferred optically variable ink.

2. The identification document of claim 1, wherein the first indicium is printed to the document layer by:

disposing a thermally transferable optically variable ink in a mass transfer panel of a printer ribbon adapted for use in a dye diffusion thermal transfer printer; and

printing the first indicium as part of a mass transfer printing process.

3. The identification document of claim 1, wherein the first indicium comprises a digital image, the digital image formed by:

providing an initial digital image that is to be used as a model to generate the optically variable image, the digital image comprising personalized data;

increasing the contrast in the digital image;

detecting edges or boundaries within the digital image, the detected edges or boundaries forming an intermediate image; and

emphasizing the edges or boundaries within the intermediate image.

4. The identification document of claim 1, wherein the identification document further comprises a second indicium

5. The identification document of claim 1, wherein the second indicium is printed using dye diffusion thermal transfer.

6. The identification document of claim 4 wherein the second indicium is substantially identical to the first indicium.

7. The identification document of claim 6, wherein at least a portion of the first indicium overlays at least a portion of the second indicium.

8. The identification document of claim 4, wherein at least a portion of the first indicium overlays at least a portion of the second indicium.

9. The identification document of claim 8, wherein the first indicium is aligned and sized so as to overlay substantially all of the second indicium.

10. The identification document of claim 9, wherein the first and second indicia are selected and printed so as to give the appearance of a single image having an appearance that shifts from a positive image to a negative image depending on the angle of viewing.

11. The identification document of claim 1 wherein the thermally transferred optically variable ink is selected and printed such that the first indicium has at least one of a luster, shine, sheen, pearlescent appearance, iridescent appearance, and mirror-like appearance.

12. The identification document of claim 9, wherein the first indicium and second indicium are based upon the same digital image, wherein:

the first indicium comprises a first portion of pixels of the digital image; and

the second indicium comprises a second portion of pixels of the digital image.

13. The identification document of claim 12, wherein the first portion of pixels differs from the second portion of pixels.

14. The identification document of claim 12, wherein the first portion of pixels is the inverse of the second portion of pixels.

15. The identification document of claim 12, wherein the first portion of pixels is printed using a first optically variable printing medium and the second portion of pixels is printed using a second optically variable printing medium.

16. The identification document of claim 4 wherein the second indicium comprises an image that is substantially identical to the first indicium.

17. The identification document of claim 16 further comprising a third indicium, the third indicium being substantially identical to the first and second indicia.

18. The identification document of claim 17 wherein at least a portion of the third indicium overlays at least one of the first and second indicia.

19. The identification document of claim 17 wherein the first, second, and third indicia are interlaced.

20. The identification document of claim 4 wherein the first and second indicia are interlaced.

21. A method of printing personalized data to an identification document in an optically variable printing medium, comprising:

increasing contrast in at least a portion of a digital image;

dithering the contrast-increased portion of the digital image; and

thermally transferring the dithered image on an identification document using an optically variable printing medium.

22. A method of printing personalized data to an identification document, comprising:

receiving a first digitized image, the image comprising personalized data;

receiving a second digitized image that comprises a substantial inverse of the first image;

selecting a first subset of pixels of the first image as a first printing model;

selecting a second subset of pixels of the second image as a second printing model;

printing the first printing model to a first location on an identification document using a first printing medium; and

printing the second printing model to a second location on an identification document using a second printing medium.

23. The method of claim 22 wherein the first and second locations are substantially the same.

24. The method of claim 22 wherein at least one of the first and second printing media comprises at least one of a visible ink, an optically variable ink, an ultraviolet ink, an infrared ink, and a thermachromic ink.

25. The method of claim 22 wherein the first printing medium differs from the second printing medium

26. The method of claim 22 wherein the second subset of pixels comprises an inverse of the first set of pixels.