Method and system for laser writing on smart/optical cards data pixels usable in e-commerce transactions

• US 6,318,633 B1
• Filed: 09/30/1999
• Issued: 11/20/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 09/03/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Assa Abloy AB
• Original Assignee: Drexler Technology Corporation (Assa Abloy AB)
• Inventors: Drexler, Jerome
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Michael G.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Taylor, Larry D
• Application Number:
  US09/410,496
• Time in Patent Office: 782 Days
• Field of Search: 235/375, 235/454, 235/462.01, 235/462.09, 235/462.1, 235/472.01, 235/487, 235/492, 235/494
• US Class Current: 235/454
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 1/126 by photographic or thermographic registration recording apparatus for measuring instruments G01D15/00
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 13/04 using optical elements ; using other beam accessed elements, e.g. electron or ion beam
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2223/54473 for use after dicing

Abstract

A method and system for recording and storing digital data on optical memory stripes of smart/optical cards using laser recording of optical storage media to create updatable, high resolution, two-dimensional bar codes, storing about 15 to more than 500 times as much digital data as the widely-adopted PDF-417, two-dimensional bar code. The optical storage media is of the DRAW (direct-read-after-write) type which requires no post processing. The optical storage media is pre-formatted with tracks to precisely locate the recorded microscopic data spots. Groups of these microscopic data spots form data bars which in turn form data pixels whose dimensions are at least four times greater linearly and 16 times greater in area than the microscopic data spots. The data pixels on the optical memory stripe can be read with photodetector arrays such as CCD arrays.

Claims

1. A method of creating digital data pixels readable with photodetector arrays from laser-written, microscopic data spots on the optical memory stripe of a smart/optical card comprising,

generating an optical beam capable of recording microscopic data spots on an optical data storage medium affixed to a smart/optical card containing an embedded microchip microprocessor, the spots having a characteristic width,

providing a DRAW (direct-read-after-write) optical data storage medium capable of being laser-recorded with said microscopic data spots,

pre-formatting said medium with tracks for recording said data spots where the track has a characteristic width sufficient to accommodate two to six of said data spots if they were arranged in close proximity to one another in a column across said track width,

optically recording a row of said data spots along and within a first track in a manner so as to form a first laser-recorded data bar which has the width of said data spots and a length of approximately one to two times the track width,

laser recording one to five more data bars parallel and adjacent to said first data bar within the width of the same track and having a length similar to that of the first data bar, and

identifying each data pixel among many data pixels as a region whose smallest dimension is at least seven microns on said optical storage medium and which encompasses two to six of said data bars and that portion of said track that contains said data bars, and

utilizing information represented by said data pixels and read by a photodetector array for transmission to one or more parties involved in transactions or data transfers that utilize said microchip microprocessor.

2. The method of claim 1 where said information is a database.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein said photodetector array is a CCD array.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein said information is a software file.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein said information is utilized for a purpose and said purpose is authentication, validation, authorization or identification.

6. A method of creating digital data pixels readable with photodetector arrays from laser-written, microscopic data spots on a optical memory stripe of a smart/optical card comprising,

providing a laser capable of recording microscopic data spots on a DRAW (direct-read-after-write) optical data storage medium affixed to smart/optical card containing an embedded microchip microprocessor,

pre-formatting said medium with tracks for recording said data spots where the track is wide enough to accommodate two to six said data spots if they were arranged in close proximity to one another in a column across said track width,

laser recording a row of said data spots along and within a first track such that said spots form a first laser-recorded data bar which has the width of said data spots and a length of approximately two to four times the track width,

laser recording one to five more data bars parallel and adjacent to said first data bar within the width of the same first track and having a length similar to that of the first data bar,

laser recording in a second track adjacent to the first track two to six data bars of similar widths and lengths to those in the first track, and

identifying each data pixel among many data pixels as a region whose smallest dimension is at least seven microns on said optical storage medium and which encompasses four to twelve of said data bars in the first and second tracks and that portion of the two tracks containing said data bars, and

utilizing information represented by said data pixels and read by a photodetector array for transmission to one or more parties involved in transactions or data transfers that utilize said microchip microprocessor.

7. The method of claim 6 where said information is a database.

8. The method of claim 6 wherein said photodetector array is a CCD array.

9. The method of claim 6 wherein said information is a software file.

10. The method of claim 6 wherein said information is utilized for a purpose and said purpose is authentication, validation, authorization or identification.

11. A method of creating digital data pixels readable with photodetector arrays from laser-written, microscopic data spots on a optical memory stripe of a smart/optical card comprising,

providing a laser capable of recording microscopic data spots on a DRAW (direct-read-after-write) optical data storage medium affixed to a smart/optical card containing an embedded microchip microprocessor,

pre-formatting said medium with tracks for recording said data spots where the track is wide enough to accommodate two to six said data spots if they were arranged in close proximity to one another in a column across said track width,

laser recording a row of said data spots along and within a first track such that said spots form a first laser-recorded data bar which has the width of said data spots and a length of approximately three to six times the track width,

laser recording one to five more data bars parallel and adjacent to said first data bar within the width of the same first track and having a length similar to that of the first data bar,

laser recording two to six data bars of similar widths and lengths in a second track adjacent to the first track and two to six data bars in a third track which is adjacent to either the first or second track, and

identifying each data pixel among many data pixels as a region whose smallest dimension is at least seven microns on said optical storage medium and which encompasses six to eighteen of said data bars in the three tracks and that portion of the three tracks containing said data bars, and

utilizing information represented by said data pixels and read by a photodetector array for transmission to one or more parties involved in transactions or data transfers that utilize said microchip microprocessor.

12. The method of claim 11 where said information is a database.

13. The method of claim 11 wherein said photodetector array is a CCD array.

14. The method of claim 11 wherein said information is a software file.

15. The method of claim 11 wherein said information is utilized for a purpose and said purpose is authentication, validation, authorization or identification.

16. A method of creating digital data pixels readable with photodetector arrays from laser-written, microscopic data spots on the optical memory stripe of a smart/optical card comprising,

providing a laser capable of recording microscopic data spots on a DRAW (direct-read-after-write) optical data storage medium affixed to a smart/optical card containing an embedded microchip microprocessor,

pre-formatting said medium with tracks for recording said data spots where the track is wide enough to accommodate two to six said data spots if they were arranged in close proximity to one another in a column across said track width,

laser recording a row of said data spots along and within a first track such that said spots form a first laser-recorded data bar which has the width of said data spots and a length of approximately four to eight times the track width,

laser recording one to five more data bars parallel and adjacent to said first data bar within the width of the same first track and having a length similar to that of the first data bar,

laser recording two to six data bars of similar widths and lengths in each of a second track, third track, and fourth track, which form a group of four adjacent tracks, and

identifying each data pixel among many data pixels as a region whose smallest dimension is at least seven microns on said optical storage medium and which encompasses eight to twenty-four of said data bars in the four tracks and that portion of the four tracks containing said data bars, and

utilizing information represented by said data pixels and read by a photodetector array for transmission to one or more parties involved in transactions or data transfers that utilize said microchip microprocessor.

17. The method of claim 16 where said information is a database.

18. The method of claim 16 wherein said photodetector array is a CCD array.

19. The method of claim 16 wherein said information is a software file.

20. The method of claim 16 wherein said information is utilized for a purpose and said purpose is authentication, validation, authorization or identification.

21. A method of creating digital data pixels readable with photodetector arrays from laser-written, microscopic data spots on the optical memory stripe of a smart/optical card comprising,

providing a laser capable of recording microscopic data spots on a DRAW (direct-read-after-write) optical data storage medium affixed to a smart/optical card containing an embedded microchip microprocessor,

pre-formatting said medium with tracks for recording said data spots where the track is wide enough to accommodate two to six said data spots if they were arranged in close proximity to one another in a column across said track width,

laser recording a row of said data spots along and within a first track such that said spots are either in close proximity, contiguous, or overlapping one another so as to form a first laser-recorded data bar which has the width of said data spots and a length of approximately five to ten times the track width,

laser recording of at least one more data bar adjacent to said first data bar within the width of the same track and having a length similar to that of the first data bar,

laser recording two to six data bars of similar widths and lengths in each of a second track, third track, fourth track, and fifth track, which form a group of five adjacent tracks, and

identifying each data pixel among many data pixels as a region whose smallest dimension is at least seven microns on said optical storage medium and which encompasses ten to thirty of said data bars in five tracks and that portion of the five tracks containing said data bars, and

utilizing information represented by said data pixels and read by a photodetector array for transmission to one or more parties involved in transactions or data transfers that utilize said microchip microprocessor.

22. The method of claim 21 where said information is a database.

23. The method of claim 21 wherein said photodetector array is a CCD array.

24. The method of claim 21 wherein said information is a software file.

25. The method of claim 21 wherein said information is utilized for a purpose and said purpose is authentication, validation, authorization or identification.

26. An optical memory stripe or patch on a smart/optical card readable with a photodetector array comprising a wallet-size smart/optical card having an embedded microchip microprocessor and a strip of optical contrast pre-formatted DRAW laser recording material disposed thereon, a plurality of laser-written microscopic data spots create a plurality of data bars recorded on said strip with at least two said data bars on each track having a track width at least three times greater than the width of the data bars and the combination of at least two adjacent tracks having said data bars recorded thereon, forming a data pixel among many data pixels as a region whose smallest dimension is at least seven microns and which encompasses at least 2n data bars which are approximately n to 2n track widths long and that portion of the n tracks encompassed containing at least 2n said data bars, and where information represented by said data pixels is read with a photodetector array for transmission to one or more parties involved in transactions or data transfers that utilize said microchip microprocessor.

27. The optical memory stripe or patch on the smart/optical card of claim 26 where the number of tracks n can range from one to ten.

28. The optical memory stripe or patch on the smart/optical card of claim 26 where the data pixel linear size dimension ranges from approximately one track width to ten times the track width.

29. The optical memory stripe or patch on the smart/optical card of claim 26 where said card is updatable both in writing and reading numerous series of microscopic data spots and in writing and reading numerous series of data pixels on the same card or different cards.

30. The optical memory stripe or patch on the smart/optical card of claim 26 where some of the data recorded in microscopic data spots on said card is also recorded redundantly on the same card using data pixels which are at least twice as large as said microscopic data spots.

31. The optical memory stripe or patch on the smart/optical card of claim 26 where said information is a database.

32. The method of claim 26 wherein said photodetector array is a CCD array.

33. The method of claim 26 wherein said information is a software file.

34. The method of claim 26 wherein said information is utilized for a purpose and said purpose is authentication, validation, authorization or identification.