IC card

• US 4,962,415 A
• Filed: 02/06/1990
• Issued: 10/09/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/1986
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi Maxell Limited (Maxell, Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Hitachi Maxell Limited (Maxell, Ltd.)
• Inventors: Anada, Akio, Yamamoto, Hiroshi, Arakawa, Ryutaro
• Primary Examiner(s): Hille, Rolf
• Assistant Examiner(s): Clark, S. V.
• Application Number:
  US07/477,197
• Time in Patent Office: 245 Days
• Field of Search: 357/84, 357/85, 357/74, 357/80, 357/72, 235/488, 235/489, 235/490, 235/491, 235/492, 235/493, 235/494
• US Class Current: 257/679
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07728 the record carrier comprising means for protection against impact or bending, e.g. protective shells or stress-absorbing layers around the integrated circuit
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07745 Mounting details of integrated circuit chips
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2224/45144 Gold (Au) as principal constituent
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2224/48091 Arched
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2224/48465 the other connecting portion not on the bonding area being a wedge bond, i.e. ball-to-wedge, regular stitch
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/5388 for flat cards, e.g. credit cards cards per se G06K19/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 24/45 of an individual wire connector
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 24/48 of an individual wire connector
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00 Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00014 the subject-matter covered by the group, the symbol of which is combined with the symbol of this group, being disclosed without further technical details
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00015 the subject-matter covered by the group, the symbol of which is combined with the symbol of this group, being disclosed as prior art
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01078 Platinum [Pt]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01079 Gold [Au]

Abstract

An IC card is provided in which an IC chip is packaged in an opening formed in the IC card. One surface of the IC chip is laid on a film substrate on which external contact terminals are formed, and the other surface is covered with a reinforcing plate, the IC chip. The film substrate and the reinforcing plate are formed integrally in a thin plate-like module which is well-fitted in the above-mentioned opening while the external contact terminals on the film substrate are exposed externally.

Claims

1. An IC card for transmitting and receiving signals to and from an external apparatus, said IC card including a card-type base having therein a window, a module disposed in said window, and resin provided in a space defined between said module and said window in said card-type base, said module further comprising:

a film substrate having an aperture and top and bottom surfaces;

an IC chip located in said aperture, said IC chip having top and bottom surfaces;

a reinforcing plate supporting said film substrate and said IC chip;

a wiring formed on the stop surface of said film substrate;

external contact terminals incorporated integrally with said wiring to permit connection to said external apparatus; and

bonding leads extending from said wiring toward said aperture in said film substrate,

wherein said IC chip is arranged so that the bottom surface of said IC chip is located on said reinforcing plate and adjacent to said bottom surface of said film substrate, wherein said reinforcing plate is bonded to said bottom surface of said film substrate so as to cover said aperture in said film substrate, and wherein said module is embedded in said resin so that said external connecting terminals are exposed at least in part, externally from said card-like base and, further wherein said reinforcing plate is comprised of a sheet material having a thickness of 0.1 to 0.5 mm, wherein said IC chip has a thickness of 200 to 350 μ

m and wherein said film substrate has a thickness of 50 to 250 μ

m.

2. An IC card according to claim 1, wherein said window is an aperture.

3. An IC card according to claim 1, wherein said window is a recess.

4. An IC card according to claim 1, wherein an overlay is provided on the surface of said card-type base having said externally contact terminals, such that said overlay does not cover said externally contact terminals.

5. An IC card according to claim 1, wherein said IC chip is a one-chip microcomputer.

6. An IC card according to claim 1, wherein said IC chip is mounted on said film substrate by tape carrier method.

7. An IC card according to claim 1, wherein said reinforcing plate is made of a sheet of a metal.

8. An IC card according to claim 1, wherein the portion of said reinforcing plate corresponding to said IC chip is recessed so as to receive said IC chip.

9. An IC card according to claim 4, wherein the space defined by said window in said card-type base and said overlay and receiving said film substrate and said reinforcing plate is filled with a resin.

10. An IC card according to claim 4, wherein the surface of said externally contact terminals is positioned at a level 100 μ

m below the surface of said overlay at the lowest and flush with the surface of said overlay at the highest.

11. An IC card according to claim 1, wherein said film substrate is made of a material selected from a group consisting of glass-fiber-reinforced epoxy resin, polyimide resin and polyethylene terephthalate resin.

12. An IC card according to claim 4, wherein said overlay has a thickness which is not smaller than 100 μ

m but not greater than 150 μ

m.

13. An IC card according to claim 1, wherein said externally connecting terminal has an uppermost layer of gold.

14. An IC card according to claim 13, wherein said externally connecting terminal has a copper layer, a nickel layer and a gold layer.

15. An IC card according to claim 1, wherein the top surface of said IC chip carrying elements of said IC chip is covered by an epoxy resin layer.

16. An IC card according to claim 9, wherein said resin filling said space defined by said window in said card-type base and said overlay and receiving said film substrate and said reinforcing plate is a resin selected from a group consisting of a thermocuring epoxy resin and a photocuring resin.

17. An IC card according to claim 1, wherein said resin filled in said window in said card-like base is made of a resin material selected from a group consisting of thermocuring epoxy-resin and photocuring resin.

18. An IC card according to claim 1, wherein said IC card has an overall maximum thickness of 0.76 mm or less.