JP3998820B2 - Non-contact IC card - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a non-contact IC card, and more particularly to a non-contact IC card that is used for a telephone card and needs to be discriminated between a use state and an unused state.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, an IC card with a terminal is widely used as a prepaid card for a telephone card particularly in France and the like because it has a higher ability to prevent information stored in the card from being falsified than a magnetic card. Instead of this IC card with a terminal, a non-contact non-contact IC card capable of non-contact communication is being used for a telephone card. Since the IC card with terminals cannot be used if the entire card is packaged with a protective film, it can be used or not used depending on the presence or absence of the package, but a non-contact IC card can be used even if there is a package, so only the appearance In this case, it is not possible to distinguish between used and unused.
In the conventional magnetic recording type 0.25 mm-thick telephone card, the use is started and the approximate remaining frequency is determined by punching holes. However, the thickness of the IC card is generally 0.76 mm, and it is not easy to make a punch hole, and providing a punch mechanism increases the cost of the reader / writer (R / W).
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In view of such circumstances, a non-contact IC card that can be easily and reliably switched between a used state and an unused state by providing a cut piece having a short circuit at one end of the card in order to easily identify a non-contact IC card is filed in this application. It has been proposed by a person (Japanese Patent Application No. 9-256185) [filed on September 5, 1997].
However, in the case of the non-contact IC card, since a short circuit is formed at the time of issuing the card, there is a problem that the transmission / reception circuit does not function and the card issuance process (encoding process) cannot be performed. Therefore, the present invention uses an anisotropic conductive material, and the circuit functions at the time of card issuance processing. However, when the card is sold or sent to an individual after the issuance processing, it is easy to short circuit with the anisotropic conductive material. It is intended to solve such a problem by providing a non-contact IC card capable of short-circuiting the circuit so that the transmission / reception circuit does not function and removing the short-circuited circuit part in actual use and returning the function again. Is.
[0004]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a contactless IC card that receives a signal from an external device via an antenna coil and drives an internal circuit, wherein both terminals of the antenna coil are IC chips. An easy short circuit using an anisotropic conductive material is formed between terminals connected to the non-contact IC card when the easy short circuit is in a conductive state, and the short circuit In the non-contact IC card, the function of the non-contact IC card is restored when the circuit is disconnected. Since it is such a non-contact IC card, it is possible to easily switch from the unusable state to the usable state, and it is possible to perform the card issue encoding process at the time of manufacture.
[0005]
The invention of claim 2 of the present invention for solving the above-mentioned problem is such that the short-circuiting circuit is formed so as to pass through a cut piece provided to extend to the card base body portion. 2. The non-contact IC card according to claim 1, wherein the short-circuited circuit is cut by cutting and the function of the non-contact IC card is restored. Since it is such a non-contact IC card, the excision piece can be excised and easily switched from the unusable state to the usable state, and the card issuing encoding process can be performed at the time of manufacture.
[0006]
The invention of claim 3 for solving the above-mentioned problems is characterized in that, in the non-contact IC card according to claim 1 and claim 2, the anisotropic conductive material is an anisotropic conductive film. The invention of Item 4 is characterized in that the anisotropic conductive material is an anisotropic conductive adhesive. Since it is such a non-contact IC card, an easily short-circuited portion can be easily formed. The invention according to claim 4 is characterized in that the cut piece is provided along the long side of the non-contact IC card. Since it is such a non-contact IC card, it cannot be used unless the excision piece is removed, and the usage method is not mistaken.
[0007]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described below, but the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a non-contact IC card according to the present invention.
The non-contact IC card 10 is formed in a form in which an antenna coil 13 is formed on a main body 111 of a card-type thin base material (center sheet), an IC chip 12 is mounted on the antenna coil 13 and laminated with upper and lower cover sheets. Has been. Therefore, no contact terminal with the external device is provided on the surface of the card base, and reading / writing of data with the external device can be realized in a non-contact manner by a so-called wireless method using an electric field, an electromagnetic field or a magnetic field.
Since the IC chip 12 and the antenna coil 13 are actually provided on the center sheet of the inner layer of the card, they cannot be observed from the surface.
[0008]
The non-contact IC card of the present invention is characterized in that the short-circuiting circuit 14 for connecting both ends of the IC chip 12 to one end of the card body 111 is formed using an anisotropic conductive material. That is, the easy short circuit 14 initially has an easy short circuit portion 15 that has a high insulation resistance but can be easily turned on, and in the initial state, the circuit of the card body is not short-circuited. Communication is possible through the antenna coil, and in this state, encoding processing for issuing a card can be performed.
However, when the easily short-circuited portion 15 is heated and pressurized to make the anisotropic conductive material once conductive, a short-circuited circuit is obtained. That is, as long as the short circuit is connected, no current flows through the antenna coil 13 having a higher resistance and no communication with the outside is performed, so that the function of the non-contact IC card is not exhibited. Only after the short-circuited circuit is cut, communication is possible and the card function is restored.
[0009]
The short circuit can be cut by various methods, but as a preferable mode of circuit cut, a cut piece 112 is provided at one end of the card base so that a part of the short circuit passes through the cut piece. There is a method of cutting the circuit by cutting the cut piece from the folding groove 19. In FIG. 1, a portion indicated by a dotted line on the left side becomes a folding groove 19, and the excision piece 112 can be excised. The other circuit can be cut by exposing a part of the circuit and forcibly cutting it with a blade or the like, or by removing the circuit with a laser.
FIG. 2 shows a state in which the cut piece 112 is separated from the card body. In this state, since the short circuit is cut and does not function, the original function of the non-contact IC card is restored.
[0010]
FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. In the IC card of the present invention, the card base body 111 and the cut piece 112 are temporarily connected by the folding groove 19 as shown in FIG. The easy short circuit is formed so as to pass through the thin layer portion. A perforation may be used instead of the folding groove. The IC chip 12 is connected to the antenna coil 13 using an anisotropic conductive material 17 in the card base body portion.
[0011]
The card base body can have various configurations. In the case of the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the card substrate is composed of a center sheet 11c having printed wiring and cover sheets 11a and 11b covering the upper and lower surfaces thereof. Although not shown, terminals (bumps) are formed on the surface of the IC chip 12 that contacts the center sheet 11c, and the bumps and the contact terminals of the center sheet 11c are joined by an anisotropic conductive material 17. . Both terminals of the IC chip are directly connected to the antenna coil 13, but branch to a circuit connected to the short circuit 14. The folding groove 19 is formed by cutting so that the excision can be easily separated, but it is necessary to form the short circuit 14 so as not to cut it. This groove may be perforated as described above, but it is also necessary not to cut the easy short circuit.
[0012]
FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. FIG. 4A shows a state before the short circuit, and FIG. 4A shows a state after the short circuit. The easy short circuit portion 15 is formed by laminating a highly conductive material 16 such as copper or silver and an anisotropic conductive material 18, and both ends thereof are connected to the easy short circuit 14. In this state, when both ends P1 and P2 of the circuit are heated and pressed from the card surface and the anisotropic conductive material 18 is welded, the portion becomes a conducting portion 18C and a short circuit can be formed. The resistance of the short-circuited circuit 14 is substantially 0 (zero), and normally the resistance value of the antenna circuit, which is 2 to 3Ω to 20 to 30Ω, increases, so that the antenna circuit cannot perform the function of transmission and reception. An anisotropic conductive film (ACF) or an anisotropic conductive adhesive can be used as the anisotropic conductive material 18.
[0013]
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing only the circuit of the contactless IC card of the present invention. The short-circuiting unit 15 functions as a switch. In the state of FIG. 5A, the switch is in an open state, so that a current flows through the antenna coil 13 and communication with the card is possible. . In this state, an encoding process for issuing a card is performed.
Next, in FIG. 5B, the anisotropic conductive material 18 is heated and pressurized to make the easy short circuit 14 conductive. In this state, since the switch is closed and current flows through the short circuit side, almost no current flows through the antenna coil side, and the card cannot communicate. In this state, IC cards are sold or provided to members.
In the state shown in FIG. 5C, the short circuit 14 has been cut together with the cut piece 112, so that the short circuit does not function and the IC card has recovered its original function. When a non-contact IC card is actually used as a telephone card or the like, it is used in this state.
[0014]
FIG. 6 shows a block diagram of an embodiment of a circuit configuration of an IC card including an antenna coil. The antenna system 130 is connected to input portions of a power supply circuit 123, a clock extraction circuit 124, and a demodulator 125, and each output portion is connected to a processing circuit 127. Further, the output portion of the processing circuit is connected to the modulator 126, the output portion of this modulator is connected to the antenna system 130, and the memory 128 is connected to the processing circuit 127.
[0015]
The antenna system 130 is used for both transmission and reception, receives electromagnetic waves and the like from the external reader / writer 132, receives data, receives power supply, and transmits data to the reader / writer. A power supply circuit 123 is connected to the antenna system, and this power supply circuit is connected to a processing circuit 127 in the IC card to supply power. The antenna system is connected to the input of the clock extraction circuit 124 and supplies a clock signal to the processing circuit. The antenna system is connected to the input of the demodulator 125 and outputs a demodulated signal from the reader / writer to the processing circuit. The processing circuit is composed of, for example, a microcomputer, is initialized with a signal from the power supply circuit, uses the clock from the clock extraction circuit 124 as a transmission source, transmission control, reception control, memory access control, various data calculations, etc. Signal processing. Further, the processing circuit performs reception control of received data and writes data to the memory. Further, the data is read from the memory, transmitted to the modulator, and the data is transmitted from the antenna system to the external reader / writer 132.
[0016]
The non-contact IC card used in the present invention is not particularly limited as long as it can perform non-contact transmission / reception with an external reader / writer using an electric field, an electromagnetic field or a magnetic field. For example, in the non-contact IC card, the antenna coil is also used for transmission and reception, but can be provided separately for power supply, data reception, and data transmission. The size of the antenna coil depends on the non-contact IC card system, and may be a shape along the inner periphery of the card base as shown in FIG. There are no particular restrictions on the method for manufacturing the antenna coil, such as a wire wound or a printed board printed with conductive ink. In the above description, power is supplied from the outside in a non-contact manner. However, it is also possible to have a power source in the non-contact IC card itself so as to incorporate a battery or a solar cell. is there.
[0017]
The contactless IC card of the present invention can be used for entrance / exit management, production process management, verification of railway and road pass tickets, etc., or financial settlement, but is particularly suitable for prepaid cards such as telephones. It is something that can be done. A prepaid card is a card having a function of recording a certain value, being mechanically settled each time a product is purchased, borrowed or provided with a service, and the record is updated.
These operations are performed by remote electromagnetic coupling between the electronic device of the IC card and the receiver or the reader.
[0018]
Next, an example of a method for manufacturing such a non-contact IC card will be described.
FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the manufacturing process of the non-contact IC card of the present invention. For easy understanding, a state in which the IC chip portion including the easy short circuit of FIG. 1 is extended along the circuit is illustrated . First, as shown in FIG. 7A, a center sheet on which a necessary antenna coil 13 and an easy short circuit 14 are formed is prepared, an IC chip is mounted thereon, and an easy short circuit portion 15 is provided. The IC chip is heated and pressurized so that the bumps 12a and 12b and the anisotropic conductive material 17 are electrically connected (FIG. 7B). Next, the cover sheets 11a and 11b are laminated and laminated on the upper and lower surfaces of the center sheet 11c to which the IC chip is bonded. In order to facilitate lamination, the adhesive layers 11d and 11e may be provided in advance on the cover sheets 11a and 11b.
[0019]
Lamination is performed by hot pressing the center sheet 11c between the cover sheets 11a and 11b and joining the center sheet and the cover sheet by heat welding. Thereby, the non-contact IC card 10 in which the IC chip 12 is embedded in the card base 11 constituted by the center sheet 11c and the cover sheets 11a and 11b on both sides thereof can be manufactured (FIG. 7C).
In the above process, since the IC chip that is not modularized is a thin layer of about 50 to 200 μm, the thickness of the chip is absorbed by the cover sheet and hardly affects the appearance. Further, in the case where the cover sheet and the center sheet are bonded by providing the adhesive layers 11d and 11e, it is easier to absorb the influence of the thickness of the IC chip with the adhesive layer.
The center sheet 11c on which the printed circuit is formed is manufactured by forming necessary antenna coils and terminals by a photo-etching process on a plastic sheet in which a conductive aluminum layer is formed on one side or both sides by plating. If necessary, a known method for forming conduction through the front and back circuits by forming a through hole can be employed.
[0020]
Next, the fold groove 19 is formed in the laminated card substrate. For this, a method of forming from the upper or lower surface or one surface of the substrate sheet by a method such as pressing, counterbore, half punching with a cutting blade or the like can be employed (FIG. 7D). The thickness of the sheet remaining in the fold groove 19 can be arbitrarily set. However, if it is too thin, the fold groove portion may be unexpectedly broken, and if a considerable thickness is left, it can be easily cut off. There is also a possibility that the end face of the card becomes a saw-toothed jaggedness after cutting. Although depending on the material and thickness of the card substrate, the preferred thickness is empirically in the range of 0.1 to 0.3 mm.
The width Δ1 of the excision piece (FIG. 7D) can also be set arbitrarily, but about 0.5 to 20 mm is considered appropriate in order to provide a room that can be grasped by the finger.
Usually, the press laminating and counterboring processes are performed in a sheet state in which a plurality of cards are formed on multiple sides. Therefore, after the above processes, the product is punched into a required card size.
[0021]
As the resin constituting the center sheet 11c and the cover sheets 11a and 11b according to the present invention, for example, heat-sealable polyvinyl chloride resin, polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, ABS resin, acrylic resin, polyamide resin, polyimide resin, etc. Can be illustrated. Even if it is a polyester resin, a polycarbonate resin or the like having no heat-fusibility, it can be laminated and laminated together with an adhesive or the like to form a card substrate.
Anisotropic conductive material is a material in which conductive particles are uniformly dispersed in an epoxy-based adhesive or film adhesive, and is usually in an insulating state, but the conductive particles are in contact with each other by heating and pressing. Due to this, it becomes conductive. Since the surface of the conductive particles is coated with an insulating resin, good insulation is maintained between non-contact particles. Various types of such materials are commercially available, and have been used for connection to LCD substrates and IC chip mounting.
What is sold as an anisotropic conductive film is in the form of a tape, can be easily positioned at the joint and can be easily automated, and can be connected only by heat and pressure. There is an advantage.
[0022]
FIG. 8 shows another embodiment of the contactless IC card of the present invention. In the case of this embodiment, the cut piece 112 is provided along the long side of the card. If the card width 1 Δ1 to about 5 to 10 mm, can not insert the card information reader unless cut the sampled piece, is not be operated accidentally.
FIG. 9 is a diagram showing the card insertion slot 20 of the card information reading / writing device. If the width L of the card insertion slot 20 is set to a width of about 1 + 1 mm, and the thickness is such that about 2 to 3 cards can be inserted, the card cannot be inserted with the cut pieces attached. In addition, it is convenient if a hole 21 for inserting a finger is provided on the card insertion slot so that the card can be easily pulled out.
[0023]
【Example】
Example 1
Next, an embodiment of the non-contact IC card of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 1, FIG. 4, FIG.
In order to form an antenna coil and an easy short circuit on the surface of the 25 μm thick polyethylene terephthalate film to be the center sheet 11c, an aluminum layer having a thickness of 20 μm was formed in the electroless plating and electrolytic plating processes. Next, the antenna coil 13 and the connection terminal of the IC chip were formed on the aluminum layer on the IC chip 12 mounting surface side by a photoetching method. The antenna coil was formed by etching so that it was wound four times inside the card body with a line width of 160 μm and a line interval. The portion where the antenna coils intersect (C1, C2 portion in FIG. 1) prevented the short circuit by allowing the conducting wire to pass through the back surface of the center sheet through the through hole.
Next, the IC chip (memory 64 bytes) 12 was joined to the antenna coil terminal portion of the center sheet using an anisotropic conductive film.
[0024]
The short-circuiting connecting portion 15 was formed as shown in FIG. That is, a portion that becomes the cut piece 112 is formed on the center sheet 11c so that the space between the portions 14a and 14b where the conductive wires are cut is about 3 mm, and an anisotropic conductive film is covered thereon, and further a width is formed thereon. A copper foil having a thickness of 50 μm × thickness of 10 μm was placed to provide the easy short circuit portion 15. The part was left in a state where no heat pressure was applied.
[0025]
Next, 2 of the cover sheets 11a and 11b formed by applying a polyester adhesive with a layer thickness of 280 μm to the center sheet 11c to which the IC chip is mounted and a polyethylene terephthalate film having a thickness of 100 μm to be the cover sheets 11a and 11b. Prepare a sheet, put it on both sides of the center sheet 11c so that the adhesive layer faces the center sheet, and apply hot pressure (140 ° C, 25kg / cm ² , 15 minutes) with a press to laminate did. After pressing, the total thickness of the card substrate was 760 μm. The number of card impositions on the card substrate was 30 in 5 rows and 6 rows.
[0026]
After laminating, spotting was performed to form the folding grooves 19 from both sides of the card substrate. The counterbore depth was 180 μm from the front surface side and 280 μm from the back surface side, and the wiring of the easy short circuit 14 was sandwiched in the center of the card base so that the base material thickness of 300 μm remained. In addition, the width Δ1 of the cut piece was 10 mm, and the width x of the folding groove was 0.5 mm.
Then, in order to isolate | separate into each card | curd, it punched out to the shape which the cutting piece connected to the non-contact IC card main-body shape.
[0027]
With respect to the completed non-contact IC card, the short-circuiting circuit is in an insulated state, and fixed data and personal data are written, issued, and made usable. Thereafter, the P1 and P2 portions of the easy short circuit portion 15 were heated with a heat pin to be in a conductive state. At this time, the resistance value of the shorted circuit was zero, the resistance value of the antenna coil was 10Ω, and the card did not have a communication function with the outside. Next, when the excision piece was removed and the test was performed, it was confirmed that the original function was exhibited.
[0028]
(Example 2)
In the same manner as in Example 1, however, the short-circuited circuit portion was formed using an anisotropic conductive adhesive.
The short-circuiting connecting portion 15 was formed as shown in FIG. That is, a portion to be the cut piece 112 is formed on the center sheet 11c so that the space between the portions 14a and 14b where the conductive wires are cut is about 3 mm, and an anisotropic conductive adhesive is formed thereon with a width of 1 mm × thickness of 30 μm. An easy short-circuiting portion 15 was provided by placing a copper foil having a width of 50 μm and a thickness of 10 μm on the conductive wire and drying it. The part was left in a state where no heat pressure was applied.
Next, a cover sheet was laminated under the same conditions as in Example 1 to form a non-contact IC card.
A short-circuit test was conducted in the same manner as in Example 1, and it was confirmed that the resistance value of the circuit was several Ω or less and the resistance value of the antenna coil was 10Ω, and the same result was obtained.
[0029]
【The invention's effect】
In the non-contact IC card of the present invention, since the easy short circuit that makes it impossible to communicate with an external device is formed of an anisotropic conductive material, the issuance process is performed in a state before the short circuit. Later, the short-circuited connection can be short-circuited and distributed to individuals or sold. Therefore, as long as the short-circuited circuit is in a conductive state, the IC card antenna circuit does not function and data stored in the IC card is free from malfunctions due to external electromagnetic fields, such as during transportation until the purchaser starts using it. Can be held completely in the same state as at the time of manufacture.
Moreover, the use of the IC card can be easily performed by cutting the short-circuited circuit.
Further, when a cut piece having an easy short circuit is provided on the card body, it is very clear that the card body is an unused non-contact IC card. Also, once the excision piece is excised, it is difficult to restore the original state. Therefore, the purchaser is spared from fraudulent acts such as selling a used IC card as unused, and an unused contactless IC card can be purchased with certainty.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a non-contact IC card according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 shows a state in which a cut piece 112 is separated from a card body.
FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG.
4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG. 1. FIG.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing only a circuit of a contactless IC card of the present invention.
FIG. 6 shows a block diagram of one embodiment of a circuit configuration of an IC card including an antenna coil.
FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a manufacturing process of a non-contact IC card according to the present invention.
FIG. 8 shows another embodiment of the contactless IC card of the present invention.
FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a card insertion slot 20 of the card information reading / writing device.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Non-contact IC card 11 Card base | substrate 11a, 11b Cover sheet | seat 11c Center sheet 11d, 11e Adhesive layer 12 IC chip 13 Antenna coil 14 Easy short circuit 15 Easy short circuit 16 Good conductive material 17, 18 Anisotropic conduction Material 19 Folding groove 20 Card insertion slot 111 Main body part 112 Cut piece 123 Power supply circuit 124 Clock extraction circuit 125 Demodulator 126 Modulator 127 Processing circuit 128 Memory 130 Antenna system 132 External reader / writer

Claims (5)

In a non-contact IC card that receives a signal from an external device via an antenna coil and drives an internal circuit,
An easy short circuit using an anisotropic conductive material is formed between the terminals of the antenna coil connected to the IC chip. When the easy short circuit is in a conductive state, the non-contact IC A non-contact IC card, wherein the non-contact IC card returns to function when the card does not function and the short circuit is disconnected. The short circuit is formed so as to pass through the cut piece provided to extend to the card base body, and the short circuit is cut by cutting the cut piece to function the non-contact IC card. 2. The non-contact IC card according to claim 1, wherein the IC card is returned. 3. The non-contact IC card according to claim 1, wherein the anisotropic conductive material is an anisotropic conductive film. 3. The non-contact IC card according to claim 1, wherein the anisotropic conductive material is an anisotropic conductive adhesive. The non-contact IC card according to claim 2, wherein the cut piece is provided along a long side of the non-contact IC card.

Images