AU2015254565A1

AU2015254565A1 - Security strip and security document incorporating said strip

Info

Publication number: AU2015254565A1
Application number: AU2015254565A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Xavier Borde; Guillaume CHAPEAU; Julien Gillot
Original assignee: Oberthur Fiduciaire SAS
Current assignee: Oberthur Fiduciaire SAS
Priority date: 2014-05-02
Filing date: 2015-04-30
Publication date: 2016-11-17
Anticipated expiration: 2035-04-30
Also published as: CN106470846B; RU2016147292A3; EP3137313B1; CA2947108C; CN106470846A; FR3020595A1; EP3137313A1; KR20170003626A; EP3137313B2; RU2671095C2; BR112016025472A2; PL3137313T3; CA2947108A1; FR3020595B1; KR102318774B1; RU2016147292A; WO2015166026A1; AU2015254565B2; ZA201607495B

Abstract

The invention especially relates to a strip intended to be incorporated into a security document, this strip emerging onto the surface of said document in the form of windows, and comprising a transparent or translucent carrier material (4) covered, on one or the other of its opposite faces, with at least three separate and superposed coating layers (51, 52, 53), characterized in that it especially comprises an intermediate second layer (52) that has an optical rendering different from that of the first and third layers (51, 53); the intermediate second layer (52) being opaque and containing at least two regions (520) that are at least partially devoid of coating, these two regions (520) respectively having different outlines; the first (51) and third (53) coating layers form at least one pattern, one portion of the pattern in the first layer (51) being visible through one of said two regions that are at least partially devoid of coating, whereas at least one portion of the pattern in the third layer (53) is visible through the other of said two regions that are at least partially devoid of coating, said patterns being different from each other.

Description

1

Security strip and security document incorporating said strip

The present invention relates to a security strip intended to be incorporated in part into the structure of a security document at least partially consisting of fibers.

It also relates to a security document which is provided with same.

To guard against the counterfeiting of security documents, such as banknotes, the use of various security means, such as watermarks, fibers, planchettes, etc., has already been proposed.

Other techniques consist in introducing into the paper of the security document an elongated element made of synthetic material forming a security strip or thread which increases the difficulty of fabricating counterfeit products, but also facilitates authentication of the document by central banks when it is provided with means that can be detected automatically (such as electrical conductivity or magnetism) but also by an ordinary user, i.e. the man in the street, for so-called first-level visual features.

This thread or strip is integrated during the manufacture of the paper sheet which will ultimately form the security document.

This integration can be made in “embedded” form, in which case the thread is fully integrated within in the paper mass.

It has also been proposed to incorporate the security thread so that it is visible by reflection, only in the form of a set of windows.

That means that this thread is incorporated into the paper mass, sometimes flush with the surface of one face of the banknote, which explains the use of the term “window”.

Thus, the windows are visible by reflection, whereas the imbedded portions are visible only by transmission. The term “reflection” refers to the phenomenon by which incident light rays are reflected from the surface of the carrier.

In practice, this integration technique makes the security thread visible only from the upper face of the paper, and partially, i.e. with respect to the windows. The object of the present invention is to address this issue. It also has as

8344900_1 (GHMatters) P104457.AU 2 an object to facilitate the authentication of the security document which integrates this strip, particularly by the man in the street.

Another object is also to make the manufacture of this strip particularly complex, so as to limit and to make as complex as possible the manufacture of strips by unauthorized persons, other than fiduciary printers. Thus, the present invention, in a first aspect, relates to a security strip intended to be incorporated in part into the structure of a security document at least partially consisting of fibers, this strip emerging on the surface of said document in the form of a set of windows, and comprising a transparent or translucent carrier material, covered, on one or the other of its opposite faces, with at least three separate and superposed coating layers.

In accordance with the invention, this strip comprises, among these three layers respectively designated first layer, intermediate second layer and third layer, an intermediate second layer that has an optical rendering different from that of the first and third layers. The intermediate second layer is opaque and has at least two regions that are at least partially devoid of coating, these two regions respectively having different outlines, and the first and third coating layers consist of at least one pattern, part of the pattern of the first layer being visible through one of said two regions that are at least partially devoid of coating, whereas at least a portion of the pattern of the third layer is visible through the other of said two regions that are at least partially devoid of coating, said patterns being different from each other.

Thanks to this combination of features, the presence of an opaque intermediate layer allows to be affixed on both sides thereof additional layers which will be respectively visible from the front face and the rear face of the strip. Moreover, insofar as the intermediate layer has partially hollow regions of various outlines the latter constitute additional visible security features and the authentication of the strip by the man in the street is thereby facilitated. And jointly, the counterfeiter’s task will thereby be made more complex.

Moreover, the fact that a portion of the pattern of the first layer is visible through one of these regions and that a portion of the pattern of the third layer is also visible through the other region makes the manufacture of the strip

8344900J (GHMallers) P104457.AU 3 particularly complex, whence a greater difficulty for counterfeiters to create the strip according to the invention. A stencil effect, i.e. a filter effect, is thus obtained. In other words, the surfaces of the patterns are “filtered” by the shape of the regions and provide different information according to whether the strip is observed from its front face or its rear face. This stencil effect thus generates different but intrinsically linked information.

According to other advantageous and non-limiting features of this strip: - said different optical renderings are selected from different colors, sheens, opacity/transparency and/or contrasts; - said regions are completely devoid of coating; - said regions are partially devoid of coating, and have the form of a screen network; - it comprises at least a fourth additional layer; - said fourth layer is opaque and is superposed on a portion of the pattern of the third layer; and - the layer most distant from the carrier is covered with a transparent protective layer, such as a film or a varnish.

Another aspect of the invention relates to a security document such as a banknote. It is remarkable by the fact that it comprises a strip according to one or another of the preceding features, which is incorporated within this document while emerging on the surface of at least one of the visible faces thereof, in the form of a set of windows.

Preferentially, the security document is locally coated with a de-opacifying agent, i.e. an agent that improves the visibility of the strip where it does not emerge on the surface of at least one of the visible faces of the document.

Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon reading the following detailed description of several preferred embodiments of the strip. This description will be made with reference to the appended drawings wherein:

8344900J (GHMatters) P104457.AU 4 - figure 1 is a simplified top view of a security document, in this case a banknote into which a strip is partially integrated, the security patterns that this strip comprises not however being shown here; - figure 2 is a view of the opposite face, i.e. the rear face of the document of figure 1; - figure 3 is a highly schematic cross-sectional view of a strip in accordance with the present invention; - figure 4A is a prospective partial exploded view of the three layers that are integrated into the strip according to the invention; - figures 4B and 4C are respectively views of the face, i.e. the front of the strip, and of the rear face of the same strip, these views being aligned vertically with each other; - figures 5A to 5C, 6A to 6C, 7A to 7C, 8A to 8C, 9A to 9C are views corresponding to figures 4A, 4B and 4C according to other embodiments of the strip.

The security document 1 shown in the appended figures 1 and 2 consists here of a banknote.

According to a variant not shown, it may be another type of security document, such as a passport.

This security document is preferentially based on cotton paper, with or without chemical pulp, on cellulose-based paper or on any other material containing fibers of various types and basis weights, including at least a portion of synthetic fibers. A hybrid carrier associating polymer(s) and paper can also be used.

As is well-known from the prior art, a strip 2 is partially incorporated into the document 1, while emerging on its upper surface corresponding to the front face 10 of the banknote, in the form of a set of windows.

The strip extends along the short transverse dimension of the banknote. The letter P marks the areas of the strip 2 which are integrated into the mass of the banknote and are thus not fully visible, unlike the areas of the windows F, as shown in figure 1.

8344900J (GHMatters) P104457.AU 5

When the rear face of this same banknote 1 (see figure 2) is examined, the presence of the strip 2 is detected, but it is completely covered by the fibers of the document, so that it constitutes a unit N embedded in the mass throughout its longitudinal extent.

Figure 3 shows a cross-sectional view of the structure of a strip in accordance with the present invention.

However, this representation is made on a purely informational basis only. In particular, the various elements of which this strip 2 consists are not to scale. All the layers are not shown and appear symbolically as dots.

As shown in this figure, the strip according to the invention comprises a transparent, or at least translucent, carrier material 4 such as a plastic film.

It is for example a polyester film having on a purely non-limiting basis a thickness of about 10 to 12 pm.

Present on the lower face of this carrier material, i.e. in the direction of the rear face 11, is a thickness 3 of adhesive or of a mixture of adhesives intended to join the whole of the security strip 2 with the fibrous material of the document into which it will be inserted.

Present against the second face of the carrier material 4 is a stack of layers 5, the nature of which will be described more precisely in relation to the following figures. A protective layer 6, for example consisting of a plastic film or a varnish, covers the entire stack. Preferably, it is completely transparent.

In a particular embodiment, the same material as that of the carrier 4 can be used.

This purpose of this coating is to protect all the pieces of information contained in the layers 5, while allowing them to be read.

Lastly, the whole is covered on the side of the front face by another adhesive layer 7, preferably of the same nature as the layer 3 (but not obligatorily).

In figure 4A and with the aim of making it easier to read, only the various layers of the stack 5 are shown. From bottom to top, these three layers 51, 52, 53 are superposed and the first layer 51 is that which is contiguous with the carrier material 4.

8344900_1 (GHMatters) P104457.AU 6

Only a small fraction of the strip 2 is intentionally shown here, but it is obvious that this strip continues on either side of the elements shown here in order to constitute a piece sufficiently long to be incorporated in the transverse dimension of the security document.

Furthermore, concerning figures 4B and 4C, figure 4B represents that which is visible from the front side, i.e. from a direction of observation located above the layer 53. Figure 4C, in turn, symbolizes that which is visible from the rear face of the stack.

According to the invention, this embodiment relates to a stack of three layers 51, 52 and 53. To make the representation clear, these layers have been shown as being delimited by peripheral lines which form a rectangle. This is, however, a theoretical view and it should be remembered that only the elements that will be described as being printed or deposited should be considered.

Thus, the layer 51 is made up of a set of opaque patterns, for example consisting of a covering black ink print.

The patterns consist here, on a purely illustrative basis, in a curvilinear transverse line and with the letters “FCOF” printed in reverse with the letter Ό” filled in.

The second layer 52, which can be described as intermediate, has an optical rendering different from that of the first layer. The term “different optical rendering” means that when these two layers are observed with the naked eye, they can be immediately differentiated from each other, in particular by their different color, sheen, opacity/transparency and/or contrast. A feature of the intermediate layer 52 consists in the fact that it is opaque.

Any material having genuine opacity can be used, and it will be preferable, for example, to form this layer by means of metal deposition such as an ink print containing metal particles with a gold, silver, copper, etc., effect. A variant is to carry out vacuum deposition of a fine layer of metal, for example opaque aluminum or copper, then to remove this metal locally by washing with soda or water to create areas devoid of coating.

This layer 52 partially covers the first layer 51.

8344900J (GHMatters) P104457.AU 7

Moreover, it is provided with a plurality of negative regions 520, which means that they are devoid of coating, these regions having respectively different outlines.

To be specific, the present case relates to a first region 520 which consists of a window forming the number “5”, and another region 520 which consists of the number “2014”, written backwards.

In this embodiment, one will also note the existence of a third region 520 also formed by the number “5”. It will be discussed more precisely below.

On this intermediate layer 52 rests a third layer 53 which also has a pattern 530 consisting here of the stylized representation of the letter Ό” on the one hand, and the presence of four squares on the other.

Advantageously, but without this being an obligation, the materials used for the patterns for the layer 51 are the same as those of the layer 53.

In referring to figure 4B, one notes that, observing from the front, the four squares of the layer 53 completely occult the region of the intermediate layer 52 formed by the number “2014”. On the other hand, one perceives through the region 520 consisting of the first number “5” the existence of the underlying layer 51 which makes this number “5” legible.

Lastly, the additional region 520 is not vertical to any print on the layer 51.

On the other hand, when one makes an observation from the rear face (figure 4C), i.e. from beneath the carrier material 4, one observes through the area 520, consisting of the date “2014”, the presence of the underlying layer 53 and, to be specific, the small squares which make the date “2014” legible, whereas the area 520 consisting of the number “5” is completely occulted by the “filled—in O” of the letters “FCOF” printed in black ink.

From this description, it emerges that the intermediate layer 52 makes it possible to clearly differentiate the layers 51 and 53 from each other, as well as the patterns present thereon.

Flowever, the presence of hollow areas, of various shapes on the intermediate layer, allows to appear, when observed from the front face or from the rear face, pieces of information which are different but intrinsically linked by

8344900 1 (GHMatters) P104457.AU 8 their construction, making it possible to authenticate the security document which is provided with this strip.

Referring to figures 5A to 5C, the nature of the layers 51 and 52 is reversed. The same is true for the layers 52 and 53. Thus, the functionality of this structure is identical to that which appears in figures 4A to 4C, but the visual rendering is different.

Figures 6A to 6C, in turn, relate to five different layers.

Thus, one notes the presence of a first layer 51 comprising the patterns 510. Present on this layer is an opaque intermediate layer 52 having certain areas 520 devoid of coating.

Here again, these areas 520 have different outlines.

On this second layer is affixed a third layer 53 which is preferentially of the same nature as the layer 51. This layer forms patterns referenced as 530.

An additional layer which can be described as a fourth layer 54 is superposed on the stack 5 of the layers 51, 52 and 53. This layer 54 is of the same or of a different nature as that of the second layer 52.

In the present case, they are of the same nature.

This fourth layer 54 also has apertured areas since the only region in which an occulting material is present is confined here to a circle 540.

Lastly, a fifth layer 55 covers the whole. It is preferably of a different nature than that of the first and third layers. In a particularly advantageous manner, this layer 55 consists of an ink having effects selected from the optically variable, iridescent, liquid-crystal type so as to create color change effects according to the angle of observation. This layer may be semitransparent and comprise the patterns 550 which are aligned vertically with the patterns 530 and 510 or 540.

According to figure 6B, when the stack 5 is observed from the front face by reflection, the fifth layer 55 reveals a first piece of information made up by the patterns 550. The opaque coating of the layer 54 has hollow areas overlapping the layer 55 and the layer 53 can consequently reveal, in an advantageous manner, another negative message which, in turn, is not overlapped by the layers 55 and 53.

8344900J (GHMallers) P104457.AU 9

The coating 53 is visible from the front face only through the hollow areas of the layer 54. Conversely, the coating 53 is visible from the rear face (figure 6C) only through the hollow areas of the layer 52. The pieces of information resulting from the stack 51, 52, 53, 54 and 55 aligned vertically with said hollow areas and overlapping the layers 52 and 54 are different with respect to observation by reflection from one of the faces, and conversely from the other face.

In the example of figures 7A to 7C, the nature of the layers 51 and 52 on the one hand, and of 53 and 55 on the other, are reversed in pairs.

The functionality of such a stack is identical to that of the preceding figures, but the visual rendering is different.

The exemplary embodiment of figures 8A, 8B and 8C relates to a first layer 51 consisting of a coating of covering black ink.

Furthermore, it will be noted that this black layer occupies only a portion of the strip surface.

Deposited on this first layer is an intermediate second layer 52, again formed of an opaque coating, for example of the metal type, with areas devoid of coating.

More particularly, it is the areas 520 which together form the number “2014” and which are created in the form of a screen network.

That means that there exists a multiplicity of hollow portions in these areas, these however being separated by the constituent substance of the covering material.

The shape of the screen’s dots and lines, as well as its orientation and its coverage, are parameters well-known to persons skilled in the art. By way of a non-limiting example, a screen of 10 pm circular dots, with 50% coverage and 45°orientation, is proposed.

Lastly, a third layer is affixed on the second layer 52. It is of an optionally identical nature to that of the layer 51 and, in the case in question, they are of the same nature.

8344900J (GHMatters) P104457.AU 10

In reference to figure 8B, when the stack is observed from the front face by reflection, the third layer 53 reveals a first piece of information consisting of the negative patterns 530.

The metal-type opaque coating of the second layer 52 provides 5 partially hollow areas overlapping the first layer 51. The coating of the layer 51 is visible from the front face only through the partially hollow areas of the layer 52, and, conversely, the coating of the layer 53 is visible from the rear face only through the partially hollow areas of the second layer 52. The pieces of information resulting from the stack of the three layers 51 to 53 aligned vertically with the 10 partially hollow areas of the layer 52 are thus different with respect to observation by reflection from one of the faces, and conversely from the other face, and have a visual rendering which is semi-transparent and more nuanced than in the example of figures 4A to 4C.

Lastly, the embodiment of figures 9A to 9C relates to the same 15 structure as in the figures which have just been described. Only the nature of the layers 51 and 52 on the one hand, and 52 and 53 on the other, is reversed. The functionality of the stack thus created is identical, but the visual rendering is different.

In an exemplary embodiment not shown, the security document in 20 accordance with the invention can be locally coated with a de-opacifying agent, i.e. an agent that improves the visibility of the strip 2 where it does not emerge on the surface of at least one of the visible faces of the document, so as to increase the visibility of the pieces of information carried by the first layer 51 of the stack 5.

In still another exemplary embodiment not shown, at least one of the 25 layers 51, 52, 53, 54 or 55 may incorporate agents which are authenticatable during automatic machine reading. They are for example magnetic particles forming a continuous band, blocks or a code in the form of bits. They can also be conductive, fluorescent, phosphorescent particles, revealed by infrared radiation or comprising a specific signal detectable with a dedicated apparatus.

8344900_1 (GHMatters) P104457.AU

Claims

1. Security strip (2) intended to be incorporated in part into the structure of a security document (1) at least partially consisting of fibers, this strip (2) emerging on the surface of said document in the form of a set of windows (F), and comprising a transparent or translucent carrier material (4), covered, on one or the other of its opposite faces, with at least three separate and superposed coating layers (51,52, 53), characterized by the fact that it comprises, among these three layers respectively designated first layer (51), intermediate second layer (52) and third layer (53), an intermediate second layer (52) that has an optical rendering different from that of the first and third layers (51,53); - that the intermediate second layer (52) is opaque and has at least two regions (520) at least partially devoid of coating, these two regions (520) respectively having different outlines; -and that the first and third coating layers (51,53) consist of at least one pattern (510, 530), a portion of the pattern (510) of the first layer (51) being visible through one of said two regions (520) at least partially devoid of coating, whereas at least a portion of the pattern (530) of the third layer (53) is visible through the other of said two regions (520) at least partially devoid of coating, said patterns (510, 530) being different from each other.

2. Strip according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that said different optical renderings are selected from different colors, sheens, opacity/transparency and/or contrasts.

3. Strip according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by the fact that said regions (520) are completely devoid of coating.

4. Strip according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized by the fact that said regions (520) are partially devoid of coating, and have the form of a screen network.

5. Strip according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by the fact that it comprises at least a fourth additional layer (54).

6. Strip according to claim 5, characterized by the fact that said fourth layer (54) is opaque and is superposed on a portion of the pattern (530) of the third layer (53).

7. Strip according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by the fact that the layer most distant from the carrier (4) is covered with a transparent protective layer (6), such as a film or a varnish.

8. Security document at least partially consisting of fibers, such as a banknote (1), characterized by the fact that it integrates a strip (2) according to one of the preceding claims, which is incorporated therein while emerging on the surface of at least one of its visible faces (10, 11), in the form of a set of windows (F).

9. Security document according to claim 8, characterized by the fact that it is locally coated with a de-opacifying agent, i.e. an agent that improves the visibility of said strip (2).