HOLOGRAPHIC METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR INFORMATION STORAGE AND RETRIEVAL
First Claim
1. A holographic method of storing and retrieving information comprising the steps of creating a holographic image of the information to be stored, recording the image containing the information as a hologram on a photosensitive medium along with a holographic image of a master code on said photosensitive medium, said master code consisting of holographic images which scramble said information so that said information cannot be recreated out of said hologram in the absence of said code, then retrieving said information by aligning said hologram and a second hologram containing said master code along a common optical axis, and translating said hologram and second hologram relative to each other in a reciprocating manner transversely across said optical axis so as to remove the scrambling effect, and displaying said information using a holographic display means.
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Abstract
A holographic method and apparatus for storing and retrieving information only by authorized persons, particularly used for identifying the bearer of a record of such information, comprises storing the information on a record medium as a hologram, scrambling the image of the information on the hologram so that it cannot be recreated except by authorized persons using a master code, and then recreating the scrambled holographic image using apparatus that eliminates the effect of the master code. The information is recreated and displayed using apparatus for displaying holograms which further includes a master code hologram that is reciprocated across the optical axis of the display apparatus so as to eliminate the scrambling effect of the master code on the hologram. The master code may consist of a series of parallel randomly undulating lines.
30 Citations
11 Claims
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1. A holographic method of storing and retrieving information comprising the steps of creating a holographic image of the information to be stored, recording the image containing the information as a hologram on a photosensitive medium along with a holographic image of a master code on said photosensitive medium, said master code consisting of holographic images which scramble said information so that said information cannot be recreated out of said hologram in the absence of said code, then retrieving said information by aligning said hologram and a second hologram containing said master code along a common optical axis, and translating said hologram and second hologram relative to each other in a reciprocating manner transversely across said optical axis so as to remove the scrambling effect, and displaying said information using a holographic display means.
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2. A holographic method in accordance with claim 1 including the step of translating said second hologram transversely of the optical axis and using a series of parallel undulating lines as the master code.
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3. A holographic method in accordance with claim 1 including mounting said hologram in a credit card.
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4. A holographic method in accordance with claim 1 including mounting said hologram in a credit card, and locating said second hologram and holographic display means at a plurality of locations.
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5. A holographic method in accordance with claim 1 including the step of translating said second hologram transversely of the optical axis using an optical grating having a plurality of parallel grating lines.
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6. Apparatus for recreating information from a hologram consisting of an image of the information and an image of a master code for scrambling said information to prevent unauthorized recreation of the information, comprising a source of electromagnetic energy, a master code hologram consisting of a holographic image of the master code, means for retaining the hologram in optical alignment with said source and master code hologram, translation means for translating said master code hologram along an axis extending transversely of said optical axis for eliminating the scrambling effect of said master code image in said hologram, and means to display an image of said information.
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7. Apparatus for recreating information from a hologram in accordance with claim 6 wherein said master code comprises a series of closely spaced, parallel undulating lines, and the axis of said translation being such that the same point on saId master code lines will pass through said optical axis.
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8. Apparatus for recreating information from a hologram in accordance with claim 6 including a plurality of such apparatus located at a plurality of locations.
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9. Apparatus for recreating information from a hologram in accordance with claim 6 wherein said source of electromagnetic energy is a laser.
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10. Apparatus for recreating information from a hologram in accordance with claim 6 wherein said hologram is mounted in a credit car.
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11. A method of holographically identifying a credit card comprising the steps of storing information identifying the rightful bearer of the credit card on a hologram together with a master code consisting of images which scramble said information so that said information cannot be recreated from said hologram in the absence of said code, providing a reconstruction beam for recreating an image of said information, locating said recreating means at a plurality of locations, then retrieving said information from said credit card by aligning on a common optical axis a hologram on said credit card and a second hologram containing said master code, and causing said code hologram to cancel said master code recorded on said credit card hologram by translating said code hologram in a reciprocating manner transversely across the optical axis, and then displaying said information.
Specification