Laser recording and storage medium

• US 4,680,458 A
• Filed: 09/10/1985
• Issued: 07/14/1987
• Est. Priority Date: 02/27/1981
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: LaserCard Corp. (Assa Abloy AB)
• Original Assignee: Drexler Technology Corporation (Assa Abloy AB)
• Inventors: Drexler, Jerome
• Primary Examiner(s): Trafton, David L.
• Application Number:
  US06/774,563
• Time in Patent Office: 672 Days
• Field of Search: 235/440, 235/454, 235/456, 235/468, 235/470, 235/487, 235/493, 350/361, 346/76 L, 430/10, 430/13, 365/106, 428/209, 427/7, 427/145
• US Class Current: 235/487
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/06046 Constructional details
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/083 Constructional details
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/14 the marking being sensed by radiation
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/25 using biometric data, e.g. fingerprints, iris scans or voice recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 17/34 Guiding record carriers during transducing operation, e.g. for track following G11B17/32 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 7/0033 with cards or other card-like flat carriers, e.g. flat sheets of optical film
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 7/24 Record carriers characterised by shape, structure or physical properties, or by the selection of the material characterised by the arrangement of information on the carrier G11B7/007
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 7/26 Apparatus or processes specially adapted for the manufacture of record carriers
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/24917 including metal layer

Abstract

An optical data recording and information storage medium which uses an exposed and developed photosensitive medium with a transparent substrate to store prerecorded data spots. A reflective laser recording metal layer is vapor deposited on the processed photosensitive medium so as to create laser recordable areas adjacent to the prerecorded data. The entire assembly is mounted on a base which may be transparent. A laser is used to write data spots on the thin metal layer. Both the prerecorded data spots and the laser written data spots are read by observing optical contrast with respect to the surrounding field.

Claims

1. An optical data recording and information storage medium comprising,

a transparent substrate and an overlying exposed and developed, high resolution emulsion layer, said emulsion layer containing prerecorded optically readable data spots, and

a vapor deposited, optically reflective, laser recording layer disposed over said emulsion layer, said layer capable of recording laser written spots having a dimension in the range between 2 and 50 microns written at speeds of at least 1000 bits per second.

2. The medium of claim 1 disposed on a wallet-size plastic card base, said recording layer disposed proximate to said plastic card base.

3. The medium of claim 2 wherein said card base is transparent.

4. The medium of claim 1 where said prerecorded optically readable data spots are black filamentary silver.

5. The medium of claim 1 wherein said prerecorded data spots and said laser written data spots are approximately the same size.

6. The medium of claim 1 wherein said prerecorded data spots are the only data spots on said medium.

7. The medium of claim 1 wherein said prerecorded data spots are combined with laser recorded data spots on said medium.

8. A method of making an optical information storage and recording medium comprising,

photolithographically prerecording and processing data spots on a high resolution, photosensitive medium of the type having a transparent substrate, and

vapor depositing a reflective metal layer onto said photosensitive medium distal to the substrate.

9. The method of claim 8 further defined by recording laser written data spots onto said reflective metal layer, thereby producing prerecorded and laser written data spots in a common medium.

10. The method of claim 8 further defined by disposing said medium onto a wallet-size card base.

11. The method of claim 10 further defined by bonding a thin, dust and scratch protective transparent laminating material over the transparent substrate of said medium.