AU740297B2 - Portable data carrier - Google Patents

Description

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 Linvena Pty Ltd

ORIGINAL

COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT Invention Title: Portable data carrier The following statement is a full description of this invention including the best method of performing it known to us:- The present invention relates to a portable data carrier. In particular, the invention relates to a portable data carrier such as, for example, a smartcard, that can also function as an optical storage medium.

Portable data carriers store electronic data and/or programs. An example of a portable data carrier is to so-called "smartcard". Information stored on a smartcard may be read only, added only, updated only and/or not accessible without authority. Smartcards are used, and have potential for use, in a wide variety of applications. For instance, smartcards have application in banking and payment credit cards, ATM cards) government identification electronic passport/border control), health and social services, phonecard services, mass transit and tollways, security systems, public utilities and metering, gaming, information technology, pay television and wireless communication.

Smartcards usually have the same dimensions as a conventional credit card and have an integrated circuit chip (electronic microchip) embedded in the card, as opposed to the magnetic strip used in conventional credit cards.

One form of smartcard is the "contact" smartcard in which the integrated circuit chip interfaces with the reader via a small gold plate on the front of the card. When this type of card is inserted into a smartcard reader, the gold plate makes contact with electric connectors in the reader to allow transfer of data to and/or from the microchip.

Another form of smartcard is as a non-contact device, such as "contactless" smartcards, radio tags and proximity cards, wherein data transferred to and from the device is achieved by passing it near the antenna 25 of a reader. This type of device may be of any shape that suits the particular application. In one embodiment, the contactless smartcard resembles a conventional credit card except that the smartcard has a microchip and an antenna embedded inside the card. This form of smartcard is activated by, and sends a signal in response to, a radio signal generated by the smartcard reader. The reader, which acts a transceiver, can read and/or write information to the chip without the need for the card to come into physical contact with the reader. Contactless devices are ideal in situations where there is a requirement for transactions to be processed very quickly, for example, in toll collection and public transport.

Unlike magnetic strip cards, smartcards may be protected by advanced security features. Therefore, smartcards are expected to become as ubiquitous as the conventional magnetic strip carrying card is today. Indeed, smartcards are expected to replace magnetic strip cards because of the need for greater security and data protection.

The smartcard, while being very useful, is essentially a monofunctional device in that is designed for a single purpose, that being electronic data transactions. Moreover the chip of the card has a limited data storage capacity, which limits its ability to store information other than that required for data transactions.

The present inventor has realised that portable data carriers such as smartcards can be adapted to provide a further function, that being the storage of, and providing access to, information that is not necessarily directly associated with the smartcard's primary function as an electronic S. transaction device.

*..Accordingly, in a first aspect, the present invention provides a portable 15 card comprising a first layer, a second layer and an optical recording region located between the first and second layers, wherein: the first layer is substantially rectangular and accommodates an integrated circuit chip; 20 the second layer is substantially transparent or translucent to electromagnetic radiation such that the optical recording region is optically readable through said second layer; and the optical recording region extends below at least part of the integrated circuit chip and is of the DVD-type.

25 The portable card (portable data carrier) may be a contact device or a "non-contact device. The data carrier may be a hybrid device capable of both contact and non-contact operation, for example, the hybrid chip card described in US Patent No. 5,598,032, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. In the case of a contact device the integrated circuit chip may be incorporated into an electronic module that has contact means such as contact pads or the like which are connected to the integrated chip for contact-using operation of the data carrier. For contactless operation, the electronic module may include an antenna or the like connected to the integrated circuit chip.

The substrate comprising the first and second layers of the portable data carrier may be formed from any suitable material. The substrate may be rigid, semi-rigid or flexible. In the case of a contact device, the substrate should have sufficient stiffness for it to be used with a data carrier reader.

The substrate may be formed from any material used in conventional transaction cards and smartcards. The substrate may be formed from a plastic having physical characteristics defined by international standard ISO 7816.

The substrate may be a single layer of material. Alternatively, the substrate may be made of a multiplicity of layers, each of which may be formed from the same or a different material from that of adjacent layer(s).

Although the substrate may have any shape, provided that it is portable, a particularly preferred substrate is one having the dimension of a conventional credit card or smartcard. The dimensions of the substrate may conform to international standard ISO 7810. An identification card, as identified by the International Standards Organisation (ISO) in ISO 7810, is a "card identifying its bearer and issuer which may carry data required as input 15 for the intended use of the card and for transactions based thereon".

According to this standard, identification cards can have one of three nominal sizes 85.60 mm width, 53.98 mm height, 0.76 mm thickness; (2) 105 mm width, 74 mm height, 0.76 mm thickness and 125 mm width, 88 mm height and 0.76 mm thickness. Most smartcard readers can accommodate cards having thicknesses up to approximately 1.2 mm, the thickness of a standard CD. Accordingly, although ISO 7810 recommends a thickness of 0.76, a smartcard having a thickness up to approximately 1.2 mm will still operate with most smartcard readers. As mentioned above, the dimensions of a contactless smartcard are not so critical in that there is no need for the card to come into physical contact with the card reader.

The ICC may have data storage and/or data processing capabilities. The ICC may be a smartcard microchip. In the case of a contact smartcard, the ICC may be held in a cavity formed in the substrate, the cavity opening out on a face of the substrate, exposing electrical contacts associated with the ICC. The ICC may be inserted by any of the known techniques, for example, by milling the cavity, laminating, hot mill insertion, stamping or punching etc. The positioning of the electrical contacts and the method by which the ICC communicates with the reader may be in accordance with international standard ISO 7816. In the case of the contactless smartcard, the location and positioning of the ICC in the substrate is not so critical as there is no need in these devices for the card to actually come into contact with the card reader.

Therefore the ICC of a contactless smartcard may be embedded within the body of the smartcard with no external contact surfaces.

The optical storage means may be read-only, write once/read many, or rewritable. Preferably, the optical storage means of the present invention is capable of being read by an electromagnetic beam, for example, a laser beam.

The optical storage means may be in the form of one or more optical disks or subdisks, that is, in the form of one or more spiral tracks of pits and lands (spaces without pits) embedded in a reflective or partially reflective material.

The reflective material may be a metal, for example, aluminium.

In a particularly preferred form, the optical storage means of the portable data carrier is capable of being read by placing the data carrier in a conventional CD and/or DVD player. In this form, the portable data carrier has a centrally located bore allowing the data carrier to be loaded onto the hub of a CD or DVD player. Preferably, a concentrically located stacker ring 15 is formed on the face of the reading side of the data carrier to accommodate S. the hub of a CD/DVD player.

A limitation on the CD format is that the relatively limited storage S"capacity of the CD is further reduced by the embedded ICC. Because of its size and location, the embedded ICC reduces the available surface area for S 20 forming the CD recording layer on a face of the data carrier.

The present inventor has found that limitation on the storage capacity on the CD version of the portable data carrier can be avoided by having the optical recording layer located within the body of the substrate, rather than on a face of the data access carrier.

S: 25 Preferably, the optical storage means is an optical disk.

Preferably, the portable data carrier of the second aspect of the invention is a smartcard.

An advantage of the invention is that because the optical storage surface is located in the body of the substrate, as opposed to at a face, it can be located below the ICC so that it does not restrict the diameter of the optical recording surface as in the case of a conventional CD recording surface. Thus, in this form, the only restriction on the diameter of the optical storage surface is the dimensions of the data carrier itself.

The optical storage means may be one or more optical disks. The optical disk(s) may function as a DVD. A DVD has a greater storage capacity than a CD. This is because the substrate of a DVD is thinner than that of a CD 6 and is read with a short-wavelength light source, which permits the pits to be smaller in the DVD than in a CD. This results in a larger number of pits per square centimetre, thereby increasing the data storage capacity of a DVD over that of a CD.

The optical storage means may be a single layer or multilayer DVD.

The optical storage means may be a single side single layer DVD or a single side dual layer DVD. A DVD's capacity is further increased when more than one layer is placed on each side. The inner layer reflects light from the laser back to a detector through a focusing lens and a beam-splitter. An optional outer layer can be partially reflective and partially transmissive, passing some light on the inner layer and reflecting some light back. The DVD player incorporates a dual focus lens to support two-layer operation.

The substrate may have at least two layers, one layer for accommodating the ICC, and at least one of the two layers acting as optical 15 storage means such that the optical storage means is located within the body o of the substrate formed by the layers. Preferably the optical storage means is o an optical disk. Most preferably the optical storage means is a DVD as described above. The optical storage means may a single side single layer DVD or a single side dual layer. In the latter case, one DVD layer may be formed on inner surface of the ICC carrying substrate layer and the other DVD layer on the inner surface of the other substrate layer.

The two layers may be bonded together by any suitable means, eg, by *9e* using a hot melt adhesive or UV curable bonding material. The hot melt procedure involves rolling a thin coating of melted adhesive onto each 25 substrate then pressing them together with an hydraulic ram. The UV method uses a photo-hardenable lacquer which is spread across the bonding surface by spinning the disk. The lacquer is then hardened by exposure to ultraviolet light. Preferably the layers are UV bonded as this produces a bond layer that is substantially transparent to laser light.

The non-ICC layer is formed from a material that is transparent or translucent to electromagnetic radiation such as a laser beam or the like to allow the optical disk to be read. For example, the non-ICC layer may be formed from a clear plastic such as polycarbonate, polyolefin or similar material stamped from molten material by using a mould.

The ICC-containing layer is of sufficient thickness to accommodate the ICC wholly therein so that the ICC does not intrude into the reading area of the optical disk. Preferably the ICC-containing layer has a thickness of no greater than about 0.6 mm. Preferably the thickness of the non-ICC layer is such that the thickness of the combined layers of the substrate do not exceed about 1.2mm, more preferably no more than 1.0mm, so that the data carrier can be used with smartcard readers such as ATM machines and phonecard readers. The non-ICC layer preferably has a thickness of no more than about 0.6mm.

The portable data carrier of the second aspect of the invention is preferably adapted to be read by a conventional CD and/or DVD player. To this end, the portable data carrier of the second aspect may have a centrally located bore as described in reference to the invention in its first aspect.

The portable data carrier may have indicia and/or graphics on any *surface of the substrate that does not interfere with reading of the optical storage means of the device. The indicia may indicate the purpose of the 15 portable data carrier, for example, the words "credit card" or "debit card" and indication of the issuer of the card.

Although the present invention has been described with particular reference to smartcards, it will be seen that the present invention is not restricted to this particular application. For example, the portable data S 20 carrying device may be in the form of a business card or a novelty device. In the latter application, the substrate may have any shape. The portable data carrier may be a security device adapted to be worn or carried by the user. In the case of contactless portable data carriers, the shape of the device is not so critical and so its shape may be adapted to the particular use. Preferably the I' 25 shape of the device is such that the optical reading means can be read on a conventional CD and/or DVD player.

In a further aspect, the present invention provides a portable data carrier blank including a substrate, an optical storage means and a cavity in the substrate for receiving the portable data carrier blank to accommodate an

ICC.

The integrated circuit chip may contain data and/or programming or it may be ready to receive data and/or programming. Similarly, the optical storage means may contain information or it may be ready to receive information.

The optical reading means may be used to store a wide variety of information including audio and/or video information, particularly when the optical recording means of the present invention is a high storage device such as a DVD. For example, in the case of a smartcard credit card, the optical storage means of the smartcard may include information about credit card use. The information may be in the form of an audio or audiovisual presentation on the services of the card issuer. Because of the storage capacity of a DVD, the smartcard could be used provide computer software for use by the user of the credit card. For example, programs providing internet access to a bank's direct dial or internet banking service could be stored on the optical storage means for use by the card user. These are but a few of the myriad possible uses of the dual purpose portable data carrier of the present invention.

The optical recording means may be used to store additional security information over and above that provided in the ICC. This security information may be used to confirm the identity of the authorised user of the 15 card, for example, high quality photo images of the user or the user's fingerprint(s) or other biometric information. It may be envisaged that in o medical applications of the card, diagnostic images such as x-rays images, ultrasound images and catscans could be stored on the DVD for access by a medical practitioner when necessary.

S 20 It will be seen that the portable data carrier of the present invention provides a device, for example, a smartcard, which has a functionality other than electronic transaction. This further functionality allows the provider of the smartcard to use the card to impart other information to the customer using the card or to other authorised persons. Given the likely widespread o 25 use of smartcards, this second functionality of the smartcard significantly increases its utility in providing a means by which information be imparted to a very wide audience.

In order that the present invention may be more readily understood we provide the following non-limiting examples.

In the drawings: Fig. 1 is a schematic exploded diagram of a conventional contact smartcard; Fig. 2 is a schematic exploded diagram of a conventional contactless smartcard; Fig. 3 is a drawing of an example of device in the form of a smartcard S having a CD storage capability; 9 Fig. 4 is a schematic drawing of a further embodiment of a portable data carrier device of the invention in the form of a smartcard having a DVD storage capability.

Figures 1 and 2 respectively are schematic drawings of a conventional contact smartcard and a conventional contactless smartcard.

Referring to Figure 1, contactless smartcard 1, has a card body 10 and a microchip 12 embedded in a cavity in the card body. A contact module in the form a gold plate covers the chip 12 and provides electrical communication between the chip and the contacts on a smartcard reader (not shown).

Referring to Figure 2, contactless smartcard 20 has a front card body 22, and a back card body 24. An integrated circuit chip 26 connected to an antenna 28 is sandwiched between the front card body 22 and the back card body 24. The circuitry of the integrated circuit chip includes means that responds to a radio signal transmitted by a contactless smartcard reader. For 15 example the smartcard chip may be associated with a sensitivity coil, which responds to the radio signal.

Figure 3 is a schematic drawing of one embodiment of a smartcard in accordance with the present invention. The smartcard 30 has a card body 32 formed from a clear plastic material. The dimensions of the card body are 54 "20 mm x 91 mm x 1 mm. A smartcard chip 32 is embedded in the card body and covered by a contact module (not shown). The card has a 15mm central bore S.. 36, and a recess portion extending to a diameter of 35mm so the device can fit over the spindle and hub of a conventional CD and/or DVD player. An optical storage surface 38 is formed on the same face of the card body 32 in 25 which a 11mm x 9mm smart chip 34 is located 18.5 mm from the top edge and 9mm from the side edge of the card.. The recording surface 38 is in the form of a CD disk which may be produced in the conventional manner. The formation of the reflective metal surface may be achieved by sputtering a metal such as aluminium over the surfaces of the CD recording layer. The surface of the card body 32 may be coated with a further layer which covers the entire face of the smartcard except for the contact module of the smartcard chip 34. Information can then be printed on the thus coated surface.

An alternative embodiment of the invention is shown in Figures 4 to 6.

In this embodiment the smartcard has two layers 72 and 73 with a combined thickness of 1mm. A centrally located 15 mm bore 77 passes through both layers of the card as shown (see Fig, 4) The upper layer 72 (85 x 54 x 0.4mm) has an embedded smartcard chip 79 with a gold contact module exposed at the surface of the face of layer 72. Layer 72 may be made from any suitable material and may be clear or opaque. The dimensions of the layer 72 are similar to those of a conventional smartcard, apart from the thickness of layer 72 which in this particular embodiment is about 0.4 mm.

Layer 73 is in the form of a DVD which is best shown in Figure 6. Layer 73 has a thickness of 0.6 mm so that the combined thickness layers 72 and 73 is 1 mm. The length and width of the DVD layer 73 need not be the same as that of the chip containing layer 72. DVD layer 73 is formed from a transparent or translucent material, for example, a plastic material conventionally used in the manufacture of CDs or DVDs. The recording surface 80 of DVD layer 73 is directly or indirectly bonded to that face of the smartcard layer 72 containing the smartcard chip.

In this particular embodiment, the optical disk is capable of storing between 120 megabytes to 140 megabytes of information although clearly, using DVD technology, for example dual layer DVD, the storage capacity of 25 the DVD layer 73 can be greatly increased.

:.It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that numerous variations and/or modifications may be made to the invention as shown in the specific embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as broadly described. The present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive.

Throughout this specification the word "comprise", or variations such as "comprises" or "comprising", will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated element, integer or step, or group of elements, integers or steps, but not the exclusion of any other element, integer or step, or group of elements, integers or steps.

It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that numerous variations and/or modifications may be made to the invention as shown in the specific embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as broadly described. The present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive.

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Claims (17)

1. A portable card comprising a first layer, a second layer and an optical recording region located between the first and second layers, wherein: the first layer is substantially rectangular and accommodates an integrated circuit chip; the second layer is substantially transparent or translucent to electromagnetic radiation such that the optical recording region is optically 10 readable through said second layer; and the optical recording region extends below at least part of the **ee integrated circuit chip and is of the DVD-type. S•

2. A portable card according to claim 1, wherein the optical recording 0e@0 15 region is in the form of a DVD disk or sub disk.

3. A portable card according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the portable card has a centrally located bore for loading onto a reader device. 20

4. A portable card according to claim 3, wherein the reader device is a CD or DVD reader. 0000

5. A portable card according to any one of the preceding claims, which is in the form of a credit card. S

6. A portable card according to any one of the preceding claims, which is in the form of a smart card.

7. A portable card according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the DVD-type optical recording region is a single layer or a dual layer DVD.

8. A portable card according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the recording surface of the optical recording region of the DVD-type is formed on a surface of at least one of said first and second layers.

9. A portable card according to claim 8, wherein the recording surface is formed on the inner surface of the second layer.

A portable card according to any one of the preceding claims including a bonding layer between the first layer and the second layer.

11. A portable card according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the portable card is capable of contact and/or a non-contact operation with a reader therefor.

12. A portable card according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the second layer has two opposed parallel sides and two opposed sides each in the form of an arc lying along an imaginary circle. 3 .0 15

13. A portable card according to any one of the preceding claims wherein r the second layer has a thickness of 0.6 mm.

14. A portable card according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the thickness of the card is no greater than about 1.2 mm.

15. A portable card according to any one of the wherein the dimensions of the substrate conform to International Design Standard ISO 7810. 0000

16. A portable card according to any one of the preceding claims wherein S 25 the integrated circuit chip contains or is ready to receive data and/or Soprogramming.

17. A portable card substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 3 to 6 of the accompanying drawings. Dated this 13th day of September 2001 Linvena Pty Ltd Patent Attorneys for the Applicant: SF B RICE CO