Manufacturing process of a hybrid contact-contactless smart card with an antenna support made of fibrous material

• US 6,406,935 B2
• Filed: 11/29/2000
• Issued: 06/18/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 11/29/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Ask S.A. (Paragon Group Limited)
• Original Assignee: Ask S.A. (Paragon Group Limited)
• Inventors: Mathieu, Christophe, Kayanakis, Georges, Delenne, Sébastien
• Primary Examiner(s): Nelms, David
• Assistant Examiner(s): HOANG, QUOC DINH
• Application Number:
  US09/725,079
• Publication Number:
  US 20010012682A1
• Time in Patent Office: 566 Days
• Field of Search: 438/106, 438/118, 257/679
• US Class Current: 438/106
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07749 the record carrier being capable of non-contact communication, e.g. constructional details of the antenna of a non-contact smart card
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0775 arrangements for connecting the integrated circuit to the antenna
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/08 using markings of different kinds or more than one marking of the same kind in the same record carrier, e.g. one marking being sensed by optical and the other by magnetic means

Abstract

The present invention relates to a hybrid-contact contactless smart card manufacturing process and specifically a manufacturing process for hybrid-contact contactless smart card in which the antenna is on a fibrous material such as paper. This process includes a manufacturing step to screen print the antenna onto the support, a step to laminate the card body onto the antenna support by hot press molding, a step to mill a cavity in the card body opposite the side of the support bearing the screen print for housing a module comprised of a chip and a double-sided circuit and a step for inserting the module in the card. Cutouts made in the corners of the antenna support prior to the lamination step enable the card bodies to be bonded together. The card thus obtained allows a posteriori viewing of any mechanical misuse to which it may have been subjected (extreme bending).

Claims

1. A manufacturing process of a hybrid contact-contactless smart card with an antenna support made of fibrous material such as the paper, including the following steps:

a manufacturing process of the antenna consisting in screen printing turns of electrically conductive polymer ink on a support made of fibrous materials and to subject said support to a heat treatment in order to bake said ink,

a step for laminating the card body onto the antenna support consisting in welding on each side of said support at least two sheets of plastic material, forming the card bodies, by hot press molding,

a cavity milling step consisting in piercing, in one of the card bodies, a cavity for housing the module comprised of the chip and the double-sided circuit, said cavity including a smaller internal portion which receives the chip and a larger external portion for receiving the double-sided circuit, said cavity including a smaller internal portion which receives the chip and a larger external portion for receiving the double-sided circuit, said cavity being dug into the card body which is opposite the side of the support featuring the electrically conductive screen printed ink which forms the antenna, and the milling operation enabling the connection pads to be removed from the chip, and

a module insertion step consisting in using a glue enabling said module to be secured and a glue containing silver for connecting said module to said connectors, and to position said module in the cavity provided to this end.

2. The smart card manufacturing process according to claim 1, in which the two sheets each forming card bodies on each side of said antenna support made of fibrous material have different stiffness.

3. A smart card manufacturing process according to claim 1, in which, during the antenna manufacturing process, the corners of the paper antenna support are notched in order to allow the two card bodies to be welded together;

said card obtained thereby offering a preferential delamination zone which will highlight any act of deliberate damage a posteriori.

4. A smart card manufacturing process according to claim 1, in which the antenna manufacturing step is conducted in reverse order and consists in:

Screen printing with a polymer ink, on the support, two antenna contacts for the module and a cross-over,

Screen printing with dielectric ink, on the support, an insulating strip on top of the cross-over,

Screen printing with polymer ink, on the support, at least two turns for the antenna, these turns having there ends in contact with a different connecting pad and the other end in contact with the cross-over, enabling an antenna with two turns in series to be obtained.

5. A smart card manufacturing process according to claim 2, in which the sheet forming the outer layer of the card body is more rigid than the sheet forming the internal layer of the card bodies, said internal layer having a low Vicat softening temperature.

6. A smart card manufacturing process according to one claim 1, in which the two sheets forming the card bodies on each side of said antenna support made of fibrous material are of different thickness.

7. The smart card manufacturing process according to claim 6, in which the sheet forming the external layer is thicker than the sheet forming the internal layer.

8. A process for manufacturing a smart card according to claim 1, in which, during the hot lamination step of the card bodies onto the antenna support, a third sheet of plastic material or varnish layer is added to each card body which acts as a cover.

9. A smart card manufacturing process according to claim 1 the plastic materials forming the card bodies is polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyester (PET, PETG), polycarbonate (PC) or acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS).

10. A smart card manufacturing process according to claim 1 in which the glue used to secure the module is a fluid cyanoacrylate adhesive, which is placed in the cavities prior to the insertion of said module.

11. A smart card manufacturing process according to claim 1, in which the glue used to secure the module is a film-type “

hot melt”

adhesive which is placed under the module prior to its insertion in the card.