GB2299969A - Security envelope - Google Patents

Abstract

A security envelope (10) is formed of flexible material, such as PVC, and includes a separable receipt portion (18). The envelope (10) further defines an enclosure having an opening (17) provided with a tamper evident security seal (20). Embodiments of the invention may be utilised in "quick deposit" banking operations in which a customer places cash or other papers in the envelope and then closes the envelope using the security seal (20). A note of the enclosed papers is made on the receipt portion (18). The envelope (10) is deposited in a bank where the teller marks the receipt portion (18), which is then detached from the envelope (10) and retained by the depositor. The envelope (10) may then be transferred to a processing centre which serves a number of bank branch offices.

Description

SECURITY ENVELOPE This invention relates to a security envelope.

Embodiments of the invention have application in banking and other situations in which valuable papers or documents are to be transferred between sites.

According to the present invention there is provided a flexible security envelope including a separable receipt portion and defining an enclosure having an opening provided with a tamper evident security seal.

The invention will be described with reference to applications in banking, but it will be clear to those of skill in the art that the invention has application in many other areas.

The invention may be utilised for "quick-deposit" banking operations in which a customer places cash or other papers in the envelope and then closes the envelope using the security seal. A note of the enclosed papers is made on the receipt portion. The envelope is deposited in a bank where the teller marks the receipt portion, which is then detached from the envelope and retained by the depositor. The envelope may then be transferred to a processing centre which serves a number of bank branch offices. This operation minimises the time the depositor spends in the bank, and the time the teller spends dealing with the depositor. The staffing requirements of the bank branch are also reduced as the document handling activities of the branch are reduced, these being dealt with more efficiently by the larger processing centre.

Any attempt to gain access to the envelope is clearly evident from an examination of the seal, which may be checked by the teller when the envelope is deposited at the bank, and on receipt of the envelope at the processing centre.

Preferably, the envelope is formed of a plastics material. Most preferably, the envelope is formed of a "living" material, such as PVC, which will smooth itself after being creased or crumpled. It has been found that 150 micron PVC provides a lightweight but strong envelope with good cold-crack properties.

Preferably also, the envelope is formed of a thermoplastic material. Conveniently, the envelope is formed from two sheets of material which are heat bonded together, and conveniently the sheets are high frequency (HF) welded.

Preferably also, the tamper evident seal comprises two opposing wall portions which adhere to one another. Most preferably, the wall portions define an edge of the envelope, which increases the difficulty in separating the portions. The separable receipt portion is preferably attached to the edge of one of the wall portions. In a preferred embodiment one wall portion includes an adhesive surface. The surface may be protected by a removable cover strip. The wall portion preferably includes a layer of ink or the like below the adhesive and which breaks-up if an attempt is made to separate the sealed wall portions, the ink being covered by and initially adhered to a transparent film or tape. Thus, even if the separated wall portions are rejoined, the separated areas of ink will be clearly evident.Most preferably, the ink breaks up to form a void pattern, which may comprise the word "void" and trade marks of the bank and the envelope manufacturer or supplier.

Preferably also, the strength of the adhesive bond is greater than the tear strength of the transparent film, such that the film is likely to tear if an attempt is made to separate the sealed wall portions. The wall portion may be an integral part of the envelope wall but is preferably a separate portion of tape adhered to the edge of the respective wall.

Preferably also, the outer surface of the envelope bears a tamper evident pattern, which may take the form of a repeating bank trade mark. The pattern may be printed onto the envelope and in the preferred PVC envelope the pattern may be litho-printed. Certain materials may also be difficult to write upon and may therefore be printed with areas of ball-point receptive material, such a W- curable acrylic ink.

In one embodiment, the envelope may comprise two separable secure enclosure portions, such that papers handled by different departments, such as cash and cheques, may be delivered to the bank as a single package, and then separated in the bank for separate processing.

Alternatively, or in addition, a second non-secure enclosure portion may be provided on the envelope. This may be used to contain credit slips or "non-negotiables", such as cheques.

This and other aspects of the present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figures 1 and 2 are front and rear views of a security envelope in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention; and Figures 3 and 4 are front and rear views of a security envelope in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention.

Reference is first made to Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings which illustrate a security envelope 10 in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention. The envelope 10 is formed of two 150 micron thick sheets of PVC 12, 13 which have been HF welded to one another along three edges 14, 15, 16, leaving an opening at 17. The rear sheet 13 is somewhat longer than the front sheet 12 and incorporates a separable receipt portion 18, the purpose of which will be described in due course.

Attached to the edge of the rear sheet 13 at the opening 17 is a length of tamper evident tape 20 comprising a transparent polystyrene backing, a layer of ink, and a layer of adhesive. The lower portion of the tape is adhered to the edge of the sheet 13, while the upper part is initially provided with a removable cover sheet, to prevent accidental sealing of the envelope.

A resealable pocket 22 is formed on the front sheet 12 by a sheet of transparent PVC which is HF welded to the sheet 12 along the lower edge 16 and the lower ends of the side edges 14, 15. The upper edge of the transparent sheet 24 is formed as a flap 26 carrying a pressure sensitive adhesive such that the pocket 22 may be sealed, opened, and resealed as required.

The outer surface of the envelope 10 is litho-printed with a tamper evident pattern which, in this example, is in the form of a repeating pattern of a bank logo. The envelope 10 is also printed with instructions relating to the use of the envelope 10.

As PVC is not easily written upon with conventional pens, areas 28 of the envelope are printed with ball-point ink receptive material, in this case W-curable acrylic ink.

This particular envelope 10 is intended for use by businesses for "quick-deposit" transactions, where cash, cheques and the like are deposited at a bank branch, but are forwarded to a central office or depot for processing.

Thus, the depositor first completes separate credit slips for cash and cheques. The cash credit record 30 provided on the front of the window would then be completed in ballpoint pen, as would the information spaces 32 provided on the receipt portion 18. The credit slips and any cheques would then be placed in the pocket 22, which would be sealed. All the cash would then be placed in the envelope 10 and the tape 20 used to seal the opening 17. The envelope 10 would then be taken to the bank and handed to the cashier, who would stamp the receipt portion 18 which would then be torn from the envelope 10 and retained by the depositor. The sealed envelope 10 would then be taken for processing.

With this particular envelope 10, the credit slips and cheques may be removed from the pocket 22 while the envelope 10 remains within the bank branch. This allows the cheques and cash to be credited to the depositor's account without delay. Once this has been carried out, the slips may be replaced in the pocket 22, and the envelope 10 forwarded to a processing centre. On reaching the centre, the envelope 10 is opened simply by cutting off the lower edge 16.

The envelope 10 should be examined by the cashier on receipt of the envelope, and also prior to opening at the processing centre. This will reveal if any attempts have been made to gain entry into the envelope 10, and the tape 20 is arranged to provide an indication if any attempt has been made to open the seal, as described below. Firstly, the adhesive provided on the tape 20 is selected such that the adhesive bond between the tape 20 and the rear of the front sheet 12 is of greater strength than the transparent cover layer of the tape. Accordingly, any attempt to lift the tape 20 will result in the transparent outer layer tearing or being damaged, thus making it very difficult to conceal an attempt to remove the tape 20.Further, the ink is arranged such that, if the transparent cover layer is separated from the adhesive, selected portions of the ink will remain affixed to the adhesive while other portions of the ink will remain fixed to the cover layer. In this example the ink which remains affixed to the adhesive will show the word "void", the trade name of the envelope 10 manufacturer or supplier, and a trade mark of the bank.

Even if an attempt is made to re-adhere the cover layer the separation of the ink from the cover layer is readily visible from an examination of the tape 20.

It will also be noted that, once the receipt portion 18 has been removed, the tape 20 extends to the edge of the sheet 12, making it more difficult to separate the tape 20 from the sheet 12.

Reference is now made to Figures 3 and 4 of the drawings which illustrate an envelope 40 in accordance with a second preferred embodiment of the present invention.

The envelope 40 is similar in many respects to the envelope described above, however this envelope comprises two secure enclosure portions 42, 43. Use of this envelope 40 is substantially similar to the envelope 10, however in this example cash is placed in the larger enclosure 42, while the smaller enclosure 43 is used for cheques and the like.

It will be clear from the above-described embodiments that the present invention may provide a tamper evident enclosure which is simple and convenient to use. It will further be apparent to those of skill in the art that the above-described embodiments are merely exemplary of the present invention, and that various modifications and improvements may be made thereto without departing from the scope of the present invention.

Claims (17)

CLTMss:

1. A flexible security envelope including a separable receipt portion and defining an enclosure having an opening provided with a tamper evident security seal.

2. The envelope of claim 1, wherein the envelope is formed of a plastics material.

3. The envelope of claim 2, wherein the envelope is formed of PVC.

4. The envelope of claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the envelope is formed of sheets of thermoplastic material which are heat-bonded together.

5. The envelope of any of the preceding claims, wherein the tamper evident seal comprises two opposing wall portions which adhere to one another.

6. The envelope of claim 5, wherein the wall portions define an edge of the envelope.

7. The envelope of claim 5 or 6, wherein the separable receipt portion is attached to the edge of one of the wall portions.

8. The envelope of claim 5, 6 or 7, wherein one wall portion includes an adhesive surface.

9. The envelope of claim 8, wherein said one wall portion includes a layer of ink or the like below the adhesive and which breaks-up if an attempt is made to separate the sealed wall portions, the ink being covered by and initially adhered to a transparent cover layer.

10. The envelope of claim 9, wherein the ink breaks up to form a tamper evident pattern.

11. The envelope of claim 8, 9 or 10, wherein the strength of the adhesive bond is greater than the tear strength of the transparent film, such that the film is likely to tear if an attempt is made to separate the sealed wall portions.

12. The envelope of claim 8, 9, 10 or 11, wherein the adhesive-carrying wall portion is preferably a separate portion of tape adhered to the edge of the respective wall.

13. The envelope of claim 12, wherein the outer surface of the envelope bears a tamper evident pattern.

14. The envelope of any of the preceding claims, wherein the outer surface of the envelope includes areas of ballpoint ink receptive material.

15. The envelope of any of the preceding claims, wherein the envelope comprises two separable secure enclosure portions.

16. The envelope of any of the preceding claims wherein a further non-secure enclosure portion is provided on the envelope.

17. The envelope substantially as described herein and as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, or Figures 3 and 4, of the accompanying drawings.