WO1997007983A1

WO1997007983A1 - Forgery-proof document and device for the verification thereof

Info

Publication number: WO1997007983A1
Application number: PCT/EP1996/003619
Authority: WO
Inventors: Hans-Michael Hummel; Dieter Grauer
Original assignee: Hummel Gmbh & Co.
Priority date: 1995-08-22
Filing date: 1996-08-16
Publication date: 1997-03-06
Also published as: DE19680723D2; AU6925196A

Abstract

The invention relates to a combination of a forgery-proof document (20), such as a ticket, and a stamping device (10) for checking such forgery-proof documents (20). The ticket has a first area (31) provided with a colorant having a pigment which reflects in the infrared region and which does not change the appearance of the shade, and a second area (32) provided with a colorant without a reflecting pigment. The shade of the colorant used for the second region (32) corresponds to the shade of the colorant used for the first region (31). The stamping device (10) has a unit (16, 116, 116') which emits a radiation in the infrared region, a detection and evaluation unit (17, 18, 117, 117', 118) for a radiation reflecting in the infrared region, and a display unit (19, 119).

Description

Title: Counterfeit-proof document and device for checking it

description

The present invention relates to a tamper-proof document, such as a ticket, ticket, admission ticket, goods label, customs form, share deposit and the like, with at least one colored area, and to a device for checking tamper-proof documents and to a combination of such a device and a document to be checked.

Since ever better quality color copiers are coming onto the market and it is therefore easy to forge documents with color areas by means of a color copier, various measures have been taken to prevent falsifying documents in this way. For example, tickets use an area with an orange color that turns brown when copied and therefore cannot be copied. However, due to the fact that it is only visually recognizable and lacking comparability with an original, this is too little when inspected. In railway tickets, it is also known to produce fluorescent fibers in the paper to be mixed in, which are then recognized in the ticket inspection with the help of the punch or punch pliers customary for the European railways. The disadvantage of this is the relatively high price of paper, because it is roughly three times the price of a comparable paper.

In the stamping or punching pliers used in railway administrations, it is known to control tickets whose paper is provided with fluorescent fibers with a view to counterfeiting by bringing visible light onto the ticket and detecting the fluorescent brightening of the fibers provided in the paper.

The object of the present invention is therefore on the one hand to create a tamper-proof document of the type mentioned, which is cheaper and easier to manufacture, and on the other hand to create a device of the type mentioned, with which the forgery-proofness of tamper-proof documents executed in a simpler manner are detected can. Another object of the present invention is to provide a combination of such a device and a forgery-proof document to be checked therewith.

To achieve this object, the features specified in claim 1 and 7 are provided in a forgery-proof document or a device of the type mentioned. A combination of such a device and a forgery-proof document to be checked with it results from the features of claim 18.

The measures according to the invention ensure that the tamper-proof document can be produced from normal paper, so to speak, which only has to be printed with the pigment provided with the pigment. This results in a much cheaper cost price, once because of the use of less expensive paper and secondly because of the simple possibility of applying the pigmented pigment to any area. This protects the document against copying, since an appropriate control device can be used at any time to determine whether the dye contains the pigmentation reflecting in the infrared range, which is not the case with a copy. E.g. it is possible with the device to recognize a document provided with dyes of the same color but different preparation in the control as a forgery, since one of the visually identical dyes is provided with a pigmentation reflecting in the infrared range and the other is not. The same applies if only a security area provided with a pigmentation reflecting in the infrared range is provided.

According to a preferred exemplary embodiment of the present invention, as is realized by the features according to claim 2, the same dye is applied to a different area of the forgery-proof document without reflective pigmentation. As a result, a direct comparison is made with a control device, so that not only documents which are falsified by copying but also documents which are falsified in another way can be detected. For example, these first and second areas can be provided in any zones of the document that are neither recognizable nor comprehensible to outsiders, the two areas having visually identical colors. It goes without saying that several first or second areas can also be provided on a forgery-proof document in predetermined zones. It can be expedient in accordance with the features of claim 4 to implement the two areas by means of parallel bars, so that nothing is reminiscent of possible control areas in terms of presentation. In a further embodiment, it is also possible to provide the security area according to the features of claim 5.

With the features according to claim 6 it is advantageously achieved that the copy protection surface area which is present in some cases is used for the security according to the invention. This leads to a further simplification of the tamper-proof document.

The device for checking forgery-proof documents can be designed in a variety of ways.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, as is realized by the features of claim 8, the device is part of a stationary or stationary passage control device, as is the case at stations of subways, cable cars or the like. Is used. It is expedient to provide the features according to claim 9.

According to a further exemplary embodiment of the present invention, as is realized by the features according to claim 10, it is part of a hand-held device. Such a hand-held device can either be part of a label reading device or part of a stamp or punch pliers device for the validation of tickets, as is customary in the railway administrations, in accordance with the features of claim 11 or 12.

Further advantageous configurations result from the further subclaims.

Further details of the invention can be found in the following description, in which the invention is described and explained in more detail with reference to the embodiment shown in the drawing. Show it:

ERSÄΓZBLAΠ (RULE 26) FIG. 1 shows a forgery-proof document in the form of a train ticket according to a preferred exemplary embodiment of the present invention,

FIG. 2 shows a perspective, schematic representation of a hand-held device for checking a forgery-proof document shown in FIG. 1 in the form of a punch pliers device used for the cancellation of tickets, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention,

FIG. 3 is a schematic, partially broken side view of a pliers device according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention,

FIG. 4 shows, in a schematic perspective illustration, an access device arranged on subways, for example, for checking tickets according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention,

5 shows a schematic perspective illustration of an underground train ticket according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention,

FIG. 6 shows a schematic perspective illustration of a device for reading goods labels according to a further exemplary embodiment of the present invention and

FIG. 7 shows a schematic side view of an example of the use of a goods label according to a further embodiment of the present invention.

A forgery-proof document, for example in the form of a ticket 20 in an elongated rectangular shape made of thick paper or thin cardboard, has upper and lower strips 31 and 32 of a certain width. Both strips 31 and 32 of the same width are printed with a dye of the same color.

The upper (security) strip 31 is printed with a dye which, prior to printing, is provided with a pigment which is reflective in the infrared region and which does not change the visual impression of the color tone of the dye used. In contrast, the lower strip 32 is printed with the dye of the same color, which does not contain this pigmentation reflecting in the infrared range. Since both dyes have the same hue, the two stripes 31 and 32 are visually identical, i.e. that there is no difference to the eye.

This results in a possibility of checking or checking the ticket 20 with the aid of a control device, such as, for example, stamping or punch pliers, such as are used in the railway administrations, in such a way that this control device emits a signal in the infrared wavelength range Strips 31 and 32 can differ from one another, as will be described below with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3.

The color of the dye used can be chosen almost arbitrarily. It is understood that the areas 31 and 32 on the ticket 20 can be placed in any zones of the ticket, so that they are not limited to the strip-like design. In addition, two or more areas can be created with one reflective pigment containing dye and / or with a dye not containing the reflective pigmentation. In addition, these areas can have different sizes.

Such a forgery-proof document, shown here as a ticket 20, can also take the form of a ticket, an admission ticket, a customs form, a securities account and the like.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, not shown, the ticket 20 is provided with a single security strip, the dye of which is provided with pigmentation reflecting in the infrared range, on its front or rear side. According to a further exemplary embodiment, not shown, the ticket 20 is provided on its front or back with a relatively short security bar which is printed with a dye which is provided with a pigmentation reflecting in the infrared range before printing. The dye is chosen so that it also serves as copy protection. In other words, the dye is in the orange range, which color appears brown when copied.

The control device shown in FIG. 2 as pliers device 10 serves both to validate travel documents, for example by means of perforation, and to check or check documents which are secure against forgery. To validate a ticket, the pliers device 10 has a male part 12 in the form of a pin on one of its pliers arms 11 and a female part 14 receiving the male part 12 on its other arm 13. It is understood that the validation is also carried out with a stamp on the male part and / or die can be made. The tongs device 10 has an infrared radiation-emitting unit 16, which is arranged in one tongs arm 11 and emits the infrared radiation to the other tongs arm 13. A detection unit 17 is associated with this infrared radiation-emitting unit 16 in the forceps arm 11 and detects the infrared radiation reflected by a document, for example a driving license 20. The detection unit 17 is connected to an evaluation unit 18 arranged in a holding arm 21, which in turn is connected to a release unit in the form of a display unit 19 arranged in a pincer arm 11 on its outside 22. The display unit 19 has two display lamps 23, 24 which display different colors, for example red and green. A battery unit 27 is arranged in the other holding arm 26 and is connected in a manner not shown, on the one hand to the unit 16 emitting infrared radiation and on the other hand to the evaluation unit 18.

The document 20, which is shown here as a ticket made of thick paper or thin cardboard in an elongated rectangular shape, is, as mentioned in FIG. 1, provided with two colored longitudinal strips 31, 32, both of which are printed with a dye of identical color. The dye used for the security longitudinal strip 31 is provided with pigment reflecting infrared radiation, while this is not the dye provided for the longitudinal strip 32. Visually, the two dyes have the same hue. If the ticket 20 is now brought between the two tong arms 11 and 13 and the validation is carried out by squeezing the holding arms 21 and 26, the infrared radiation-emitting unit 16 is activated via a switch contact (not shown), so that infrared radiation on the longitudinal strips 31 or 32 accordingly the positioning of the ticket 20 in the pincer 10 is sent out. Depending on whether it is the longitudinal strip 31 or 32, the Infrared radiation is reflected or not and therefore detected by the detection unit 17 or not and, after a corresponding evaluation in the evaluation unit 18, is then displayed in the display unit 19 by the red or green light 23, 24 lighting up. In this way, a forged document 20 can be detected, since the pigmentation contained in the dye of the one longitudinal strip 31 cannot be passed on via a color copier.

According to a variant, the pliers device 10 is also used to check a document 20 which does not have the second longitudinal strip 32 but only the security longitudinal strip 31.

The pliers device 110 shown in FIG. 3, as is usually used in railroad administrations, is also used both for validating tickets and for checking such counterfeit-proof tickets or other documents. The pliers device 110 has a front head part 138, which is provided with a slot 137 accessible from its end face 136, and a rear handle part 139. The head part 138 and the handle part 139 have a common, one-piece housing. On the underside of the handle part 139, a pincer arm 142 which can be pivoted about an axis 141 is mounted in such a way that it can be moved by hand in the direction of arrow A and can be returned to its starting position by a spring arrangement (not shown) when the pressure is released.

The validation of tickets or other documents is initiated by the actuation of the pliers arm 142 in such a way that either a stamping or a perforation of the same in the slot 137 takes place in the insertion slot 137 for the relevant ticket, not shown here, in a manner not shown . This initiation can take place mechanically or electrically. Furthermore, the tongs device 110 has a first infrared radiation-emitting unit 116 for checking the authenticity of the tickets (for example 20 according to FIGS. 1 and 2) or other documents and, in the exemplary embodiment shown here, furthermore has a second infrared radiation-emitting unit, which is in different, however Both infrared radiation-emitting units 116 and 116 'are arranged in the head part 138 above and directed towards the slot 137. Each unit 116 and lie' is adjacent to a detection unit 117 and 117 'which corresponds to that of the document The detection unit 117 or 117 'is connected to an evaluation unit 118 for the differential measurement which is arranged in the handle part 139 and which is possibly accessible and which in turn is connected to a release unit in the form of a display unit 119 which, in a manner not shown, also has two indicator lamps of different colors or can be designed in a different way.

A battery unit 127 is also arranged in the head part 138, which is accessible from the front 136 of the head part 138 and which is electrically connected to the unit 116, Lie- ¹ emitting infrared radiation on the one hand and to the evaluation unit 118 on the other hand. The energy supply can also be provided by an external energy source via a connection socket 143 for a plug-in power supply instead of the battery unit 127, which connection socket 143 is arranged at the rear end of the handle part 139 and is provided with electrical connecting lines 144. If the document validation device is operated electrically, it is also connected to the internal or external power supply. Not only the initiation of the cancellation, but also the checking of the authenticity of the document, for example the ticket, takes place in the illustrated embodiment by actuating a microswitch 145 with the aid of the pliers arm 142.

The authenticity of the ticket or another document is checked, apart from the double measurement and its difference formation, in the manner described in relation to FIG.

It goes without saying that the document 20 shown in FIG. 1 and also to be used in the pliers device according to FIG. 3 can also be provided with a different print image of the color coverings to be checked. In other words, the color coverings to be tested can be represented or arranged in a way other than by two longitudinal strips. It is essential that the colored areas for checking the document are available in sufficient size and size for the unit or units 16 or 116, 116 'which are emitted by the infrared radiation or infrared radiation.

It goes without saying that the pliers 10 or 110 can also be designed exclusively for checking counterfeit-proof documents, i.e. has neither the perforated elements nor a stamp to validate the document. Forgery-proof documents 20 to be checked include not only public transport tickets, including tickets, but also admission tickets, forms such as customs forms, securities accounts and the like. Furthermore, such forgery-proof documents can also be made from a plastic or other materials.

FIG. 4 shows a stationary device 210 of the type used, for example, at underground train stations for tickets 220 (FIG. 5) Access control is used. Stationary devices 210 of this type are also used, for example, at the stations of suspension or funicular railways. In such a stationary device 210, a turnstile (not shown here) is usually used as the release unit. The control device 210 has an input slot 252 on the top of its housing 251 on the front and an output slot 253 on the rear attached security bar 231 sends. A detection unit 217 can detect the reflected radiation and pass it on to an evaluation unit 218, which releases the release unit, for example a turnstile, for the passage. The release unit can also consist in that a corresponding light display unit is actuated and / or the ticket 220 is returned to the input slot 252.

As FIG. 5 shows, the ticket 220 has the security bar or bars 231 on one area of its front and / or rear side, the dye of which is provided with pigmentation reflecting infrared radiation.

FIG. 6 schematically shows a hand-held reader 310 which is customary for reading goods labels 320 (FIG. 7). According to the present invention, such a goods label 320 is provided in one area with a security surface 331, the dye of which is provided with pigmentation reflecting infrared radiation. For example, the goods label 320 is attached to a manufacturer's original rim 356 in order to be able to check that it is actually an original spare part and not an imitation. It goes without saying that such product labels can also be provided on other original products. The review takes place in the to the other embodiments. In order to avoid repetitions, the corresponding units (infrared radiation-imitating unit, detection unit, evaluation unit, release unit, etc.) for the handheld device 310 are neither described here nor indicated in FIG. 6.

If the foregoing refers to a dye which is provided with pigment reflecting infrared radiation, it goes without saying that such a "dye" can also be a dye which appears to be transparent and has a pigment reflecting the infrared radiation in its transparent form Hue is not changed.

Claims

claims

1. Counterfeit-proof document (20), such as a ticket, flight ticket, admission ticket, goods label, customs form, securities account and the like, with at least one colored area, characterized by an area provided with a dye (31), the dye having a visual impression pigmentation that does not change the color and is reflective in the infrared range.

2. Forgery-proof document according to claim 1, characterized by a second area (32) provided with a dye without reflective pigmentation, the color tone of the dye used for the second area (32) corresponding to the color tone of the dye used for the first area (31) .

3. Counterfeit-proof document according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the two areas (31, 32) are printed with the respective dye.

4. Counterfeit-proof document according to at least one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the two areas are formed by parallel bars or strips (31, 32).

5. Counterfeit-proof document (20) according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the first region (31) is formed by a short strip on the front or back of the document.

6. falsification & enes document (20) according to claim 5, characterized in that for the first area (31) used dye has a suitable shade as copy protection.

7. Device (10, 110) for checking counterfeit-proof documents (20) according to one of the preceding claims, with a radiation-emitting unit (16, 116, 116 '), with a detection unit (17, 117) for a counterfeit-proof feature of the document , with an evaluation unit (18, 118) connected to the detection unit (17, 117, ll? ') and with a release unit (19, 119), characterized by a unit (16, 116, 116') emitting radiation in the infrared range and by a detection and evaluation unit (17, 18, 117, ll? ', 118) for radiation reflecting in the infrared range.

8. The device according to claim 7, characterized in that it is part of a fixed passage control device at underground, cable car stations or the like.

9. The device according to claim 8, characterized in that the release unit is formed by a turnstile.

10. The device according to claim 7, characterized in that it is part of a hand-held device.

11. The device according to claim 7 or 10, characterized in that it is part of a label reader.

12. The device according to claim 7 or 10, characterized in that it is part of a punch or punch pliers device (10, 110) for the validation of tickets.

13. The apparatus according to claim 12, characterized in that the evaluation unit (18, 118) in a handle (21, 26, 139) of the pliers device (10, 110) is provided.

14. The device according to at least one of claims 7, 8 or 10 to 13, characterized in that the release unit (19, 119) is a display unit preferably designed as a red / green light arrangement (23, 24).

15. The device according to at least one of claims 10 to 14, characterized in that a battery unit (27, 127) is provided.

16. The device according to at least one of claims 5 to 9, characterized in that two infrared radiation emitting units (116, lie ') are provided in adjacent wavelength ranges.

17. The apparatus according to claim 16, characterized in that each radiation emitting unit (116, 116 ') is assigned a detection unit (117, 117') and that the two detection units (117, 117 ') with an evaluation unit (118) are connected.

18. Combination of a device (10, 110) according to at least one of claims 7 to 17 and a forgery-proof document (20) to be checked therewith according to at least one of claims 1 to 6.