JP2000048137A - Portable reader for noncontact ic card - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make confirmable data in a noncontact IC card regardless of time and place with excellent portability by providing a means for reading the noncontact IC card, a means for displaying reading data, a reading operation starting means and a battery for operation so as to realize a portable use. SOLUTION: One card slot 2, an LCD panel 1 and a reading starting switch 5 are provided in a housing. The switch 5 is desirably recessed a little from the surface of the housing lest it malfunctions at the time of putting the housing in a bag, etc. In addition, it is possible to place a card 3 on an antenna part without inserting. It is possible to insert the card 3 like a small notebook and to use this reader as a card case in common. It is possible to protect the card 3 from a shock, etc., and to keep the card 3 from unnecessary electromagnetic waves by making the part of a cover 6 metallic, using it in the state of opening and closing it at the time of carrying with. In addition, portability is improved at the time of making the reader a wrist watch type.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a reading device for reading and displaying data of a non-contact IC card, for example, a non-contact IC card used for displaying a balance of an IC card used for a prepaid card or the like. The present invention relates to a portable reader for an IC card.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a card used for identifying an individual, an identification method based on magnetic or optical reading has been used. However, such a card lacks permanence or is easily falsified by a third party. Occasionally, the security of identification was low. For this reason, an IC card having a built-in IC chip has recently attracted attention as an identification card. However, the conventional IC card has a connection terminal for electrical and mechanical connection for information exchange between the IC circuit of the IC card and an external data processing device. However, the presence of these connection terminals includes various problems such as securing airtightness inside the IC circuit, countermeasures against electrostatic breakdown, poor electrical connection of terminal electrodes, and complicated reader / writer mechanism of the IC card. I have. In addition, a human operation of inserting or mounting an IC card into an IC card reader / writer is required, which is inefficient and complicated depending on the field of use, and can be used in a portable state without such labor. There has been a demand for a non-contact IC card capable of exchanging information with a remote data processing device. Therefore, a non-contact IC card using electromagnetic waves or the like has been developed. Some devices communicate with a reader / writer using electromagnetic waves and operate using the energy of electromagnetic waves without having a power supply inside the card.

Unlike a conventional IC card, since the card does not have a contact point with a reader / writer on the card surface, it is resistant to connection failure of the contact point and breakage of the IC due to static electricity. A non-contact IC card includes an antenna and an IC module for utilizing electromagnetic waves in a plastic card base. When reading data in a non-contact IC card, an electromagnetic wave is emitted from the reader, and the card returns data using the energy.

[0004]

A non-contact IC card is excellent in portability and resistant to dirt and static electricity, but when used for a prepaid card, for example, a dedicated reader / writer is required to check internal data. Therefore, the user must move to the place where the reader / writer is installed, which is inconvenient. Displaying data on a card has also been developed, but if a liquid crystal display function or the like is built into the card, the standard for an ISO non-contact IC card (ISO / IEC10536-
1, the thickness does not fit within the thickness of ISO / IEC 14443-1), and it cannot be passed through a reader / writer having a transport unit such as a magnetic card reader. Even if it can be built in, the quality will be remarkably inferior in terms of mechanical strength, heat resistance, moisture resistance and the like.

The present invention has been made in consideration of the above problems, and has excellent portability, and enables a non-contact IC card capable of confirming data in a non-contact IC card regardless of time and place.
An object of the present invention is to provide a C-card portable reader.

[0006]

According to the present invention, there is provided a contactless IC card reading means, read data display means, reading operation starting means, and a battery for operation. A portable non-contact IC card reader characterized by being portable. In the present invention, since the display unit is provided in the reading device, a conventional non-contact IC card can be used as it is, and the internal data can be confirmed.

[0007]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a portable reader 50 for a non-contact IC card according to the present invention. The power supply unit 10 converts power from the battery 11 into a predetermined operating voltage of an internal circuit. Under the control of the system control unit 20, the power supply voltage is supplied only when the reading start switch 5 is pressed, and the standby power is supplied only to the system control unit 20 in other cases, so that the battery life can be extended. . When a switching power supply is used, it is necessary to design so that noise is not superimposed on the power supply voltage. As the battery 11, an alkaline dry battery, a lithium battery, a manganese battery, a secondary battery, a coin shape, a rectangle, a button shape, or the like may be used. The battery 11 may be replaceable, or the secondary battery may be charged from outside. It is also possible to provide a charging terminal or to perform non-contact charging using electromagnetic waves.

By providing the reading start switch 5,
Although the service life of the battery can be extended as described above, the service life of the battery can also be improved by providing a sensor for detecting insertion of a card in the card insertion portion and thereby turning on and off the power. The system control unit 20 can be realized by mounting a microcomputer. Some microcomputers have a built-in RAM, ROM, EEPROM or the like, and by using them, miniaturization is possible. In some cases, an encryption / decryption process is required to access data inside the IC card. In such a case, the encryption processing unit 25 is provided. The cryptographic processing unit 25 requires high-speed operation, but a circuit dedicated to the operation may be provided outside the macro computer or may be built therein. Generally, high-speed arithmetic processing consumes a large amount of power when processing is performed by software. Therefore, providing dedicated hardware can improve the life of the battery.

An LCD panel 1 is usually used for the display section. This is because of low power consumption, thinness, and excellent portability. It is desirable to use a reflection type and inexpensive TN type or STN type. To display the remaining number of points, such as a prepaid card or point card, 7 points are required.
The numerical value itself may be displayed by using an inexpensive segment type, or the whole ratio may be displayed like a bar display. Of course, both may be displayed simultaneously.
If a backlight using EL or the like is mounted, data can be confirmed even in a dark place.

The signal processing unit 30 encodes a transmission signal, decodes a reception signal, and checks an error such as a CRC of the reception signal. Coding methods include Manchester code, Miller code, NR
Z or the like is used. By incorporating the cryptographic processing unit 25 in this part, the system control unit 20 can handle only the unencrypted data. Reader 50 and IC
The signal between the cards 3 can be separated at this portion and can be made into a black box. The modulator 31 and the demodulator 37 are sections for modulating a transmission signal and demodulating a reception signal, respectively.

As a modulation method, ASK (Amplitu) is used.
de Shift Keying), FSK (Freq
uency Shift Keying), PSK (P
Hase Shift Keying) is used. Generally, as a method that can be realized by a relatively simple circuit due to the circuit configuration, the reading device 50 sends the IC card 3 a
SK, especially from the card to the reading device, LD (LoadSw)
Inching method is often used. The amplifying unit 32 amplifies a transmission signal at a high frequency by a transmission amplifier 33 and sends it out to an antenna 34, and receives a reception signal by an antenna 35, amplifies it by a reception amplifier 36 and sends it out to a demodulator 37.

Although the antennas are separated for transmission and reception in FIG. 1, one antenna may be shared, and in general, a loop antenna is often used in common. An antenna in which a coil is formed in a spiral shape by etching a printed circuit board is inexpensive. What wound a conductor may be used. The memory unit 21 is often built in the system control unit 20 when a microcomputer is used.

The ROM 22 stores programs and security information. Generally, the RAM 23 is used as a program work, and the EEPROM 24 stores data. The RAM 23 is a high-speed and easy-to-use SRAM, but the use of a nonvolatile memory such as an FRAM eliminates the need to separately provide the EEPROM 24. Of course, you can write a program in that part. However, since a program often requires a large capacity, it is inexpensive and desirable to use a FLASH memory when electrically rewriting is desired.

[0014]

Next, the structure of a non-contact IC card reader 50 according to the present invention, particularly, a portable structure will be described.

<Embodiment 1> As shown in FIG. 2A, the housing is provided with one card slot 2, an LCD panel 1, and a reading start switch 5. The reading start switch 5 can be replaced by providing a card detection sensor or the like.
The casing can be mass-produced inexpensively by being manufactured by injection molding using ABS resin. Since metal interferes with electromagnetic waves, it cannot be used for antennas and card reading parts. It can be used in other parts, but when it is used in a part close to the antenna, it is necessary to design so as not to affect the inductance of the antenna and to compensate using ferrite or the like.

[0016] The overall size depends on the size of the antenna. Efficiency is good if an antenna of the same order as the antenna in the card 3 is used, but the change in coupling impedance becomes large, so that it is necessary to consider it. Any antenna can be used as long as it can generate a magnetic flux capable of supplying sufficient power to the card, and is determined in consideration of the power for driving the antenna. In practice, communication is possible even with a card that is less than half the size of the card. It is desirable that the reading start switch 5 is slightly recessed from the surface of the housing so as not to malfunction when the housing is put in a bag or the like. Further, a cover may be provided. The card slot 2 may be designed in consideration of whether the card 3 is inserted from the long side direction or the short side direction. If emphasis is placed on the size of the housing, it is preferable to design the card so that the card is inserted about half way from the short side.

<Embodiment 2> As shown in FIG. 2B, the card may be placed on the antenna portion without inserting the card. It may be sandwiched like a notebook or a card case may be used. If the lid 6 is made of metal and is opened and used when used and closed when it is carried, the card can be protected from impact and the like, and can be protected from unnecessary electromagnetic waves.

<Embodiment 3> As shown in FIG. 2C, portability is further improved by using a wristwatch type.

[0019]

According to the present invention, the built-in data can be confirmed without performing any processing on the non-contact IC card. By making the reading device portable, the data contained in the IC card can be confirmed anywhere, and it is not necessary to move to the location of the reading device as in the related art. By using the reader as a card case and closing it when carrying the card, it is possible to protect the card from impact and the like and also protect the card from unnecessary electromagnetic waves.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an internal block diagram of a portable reader for a non-contact IC card according to the present invention.

2A and 2B are explanatory views showing the structure of a portable reader for a non-contact IC card according to the present invention, wherein FIG. 2A shows a first embodiment, FIG. 2B shows a second embodiment, and FIG. .

[Description of Signs] 1 LCD panel 2 Card slot 3 Non-contact IC card 4 Antenna unit 5 Reading start switch 6 Lid 50 Non-contact IC card portable reader

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A portable non-contact IC card comprising a non-contact IC card reading means, read data display means, reading operation starting means, and an operation battery, and being portable. Type reader.