METHOD OF PACKAGING FINANCIAL TRANSACTION INSTRUMENTS, PARTICULARLY STORED VALUE CARDS

• US 20090084839A1
• Filed: 09/28/2007
• Published: 04/02/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IDEMIA France (Advent International Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Oberthur Card Systems, S.A. (Advent International Corporation)
• Inventors: PAYNE, Anthony L.
• Granted Patent: US 8,613,389 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 235/375
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes

Abstract

A method of packaging financial transaction instruments includes preparing a batch of cards, where each card is provided with a first piece of machine readable information, and where the cards in the batch are in an order. A batch of packaging blanks is prepared, where each packaging blank is provided with a second piece of machine readable information. Each packaging blank is provided with a third piece of machine readable information, which is recorded onto a magnetic stripe carried by the packaging blank. A card is picked from a first ordinal position in the batch of prepared cards. A packaging blank is picked from a position, corresponding to the first ordinal position, in the batch of prepared packaging blanks. The picked card in the picked packaging blank is enclosed if and only if a matching condition is verified between the first and second pieces of information is verified.

Claims

1. A method of packaging financial transaction instruments comprising the following steps:

1.a). a step of preparing a batch of cards, where each card is provided with a first piece of machine readable information, and where the cards in the batch are in an order,

1.b). a step of preparing a batch of packaging blanks, where each packaging blank is provided with a second piece of machine readable information,

1.c). a step where each packaging blank is provided with a third piece of machine readable information, which is recorded onto a magnetic stripe carried by said packaging blank, and where the third piece of information is at least part of an activation code of a corresponding card, and where the packaging blanks are ordered, such that the packaging blank at a given ordinal position is the packaging blank associated with the card at a corresponding ordinal position in the card order,

1.d). a step of picking a card from a first ordinal position in the batch of prepared cards,

1.e). a step of picking a packaging blank from a position, corresponding to said first ordinal position, in the batch of prepared packaging blanks,

1.f). a step of reading the first piece of information from the card, and the second piece of information from the packaging blank,

1.g). a step of verifying a matching condition between the first piece of information and the second piece of information,

1.h). a step of enclosing the picked card in the picked packaging blank if and only if said matching condition is verified.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first piece of information is an identification number, unique at least within the batch of cards.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the package blank is folded before step c, and opened before step h.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the prepared packaging blank is opened after step c.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the second piece of information is in the form of a bar code, which identifies the card for which the packaging blank is prepared.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein step c is carried out after step h.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the second piece of information is in the form of a bar code, which identifies the card for which the packaging blank is intended.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein, during step h, the card is fully enclosed in the folded and sealed packaging blank.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the service-access information carried on the card is unviewable after the packaging blank has been folded and sealed.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein all the information carried on the card is unviewable after the packaging blank has been folded and sealed.

11. The method of claim 5, wherein the third piece of information is not viewable after the packaging blank has been folded and sealed.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the third piece of information is destroyed by opening the sealed package.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein an edge of the packaging able to align the packaging with the recording apparatus during step c) is able to align the packaging with a reader of the third piece of information.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein said corresponding ordinal position is identical to said given ordinal position.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the second piece of information is the third piece of information.

16. The method of claim 7, wherein, during step h, the card is fully enclosed in the folded and sealed packaging blank.