Photocopy resistant document and method of making same

• US 5,510,199 A
• Filed: 06/06/1994
• Issued: 04/23/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 06/06/1994
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Clarke American Checks, Inc. (MX Holdings One LLC)
• Original Assignee: Clarke American Checks, Inc. (MX Holdings One LLC)
• Inventors: Martin, J. Philip
• Primary Examiner(s): Ryan, Patrick J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): LAM, CATHY FONG FONG
• Application Number:
  US08/254,352
• Time in Patent Office: 687 Days
• Field of Search: 328/72, 328/92, 428/915, 428/916, 428/690, 283/72, 283/92
• US Class Current: 428/690
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 3/14 Security printing securities B42D25/29
• CPC Class Codes: G03C 5/08 Photoprinting G03C5/18 takes precedence; Processes and means for preventing photoprinting
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 428/913 Material designed to be responsive to temperature, light, moisture
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 428/915 Fraud or tamper detecting
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 428/916 Fraud or tamper detecting

Abstract

A photocopy-resistant document which has a background pattern or logo which is printed with solvent-sensitive, dye based ink and a method of making such a document. The presence of this photocopy-resistant background pattern or logo makes it impossible for a would-be forger of a face-value note such as a bank check to duplicate the original document as a color photocopy. It also makes it impossible for a printing plate to be made based on a photocopy of the document. Besides being photocopy-resistant, the indicia printed with the solvent-sensitive ink are washed away when acetone or bleach solvent is applied to the surface of the document. A fluorescence material can also be added to the solvent-sensitive ink to make the indicia printed with the ink fluorescent under black light.

Claims

1. A document consisting essentially of:

a substrate having a matte surface;

photocopy-resistant, non-fluorescent, background indicia printed on the matte surface of the substrate;

the photocopy-resistant, background indicia consisting essentially of resin-based carrier and solvent-eradicable dye;

the photocopy-resistant, background indicia being of a color selected from the group consisting of gray specifically identified by trademark "Pantone Matching System" number 428, gray specifically identified by trademark "Pantone Matching System" number 426 and bluish gray specifically identified by trademark "Pantone Matching System" number 282; and

non-photocopy-resistant, non-fluorescent textual indicia printed on the matte surface of the substrate over the photocopy-resistant, background indicia;

the non-photocopy-resistant, textual indicia consisting essentially of resin-based carrier and non-solvent-eradicable, pigment particles.

2. The document of claim 1, wherein the solvent-eradicable dye is eradicated with a solvent selected from the group consisting of acetone and chlorine bleach.

3. The document of claim 1 wherein the printed indicia is printed at a screen density of from 2 to 10% with a software-based print format, said format deriving a printed image from an algorithm stored on a software program.

4. The document of claim 1 wherein the printed indicia is printed with a continuous tone font with an image of from 300 to 1200 dots per inch at a screen density of from 15 to 23%.

5. The document of claim 1 wherein the resin-based carrier comprises a soya-based resin.

6. The document of claim 1 wherein the photocopier is a color photocopier.