JPH1134558A - Ic card and ic module for the card - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To protect an IC chip so as not to largely damage the chip built in an IC card when a deflection deformation occurs in the card. SOLUTION: In the IC card comprising an IC module A for mounting an IC chip 2 on a board 1, a card body 7 having a recess-like or through hole-like containing part 72 for containing the module A, at least one or more cover sheets 70, 71 mounted in contact with the body 7 to block an opening of the part 72, the chip 2 of the module A is sealed by a sealing member 4 having a smaller elastic modulus than that of the body 7.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an IC card having a structure in which an IC chip is incorporated and used as a so-called ID card and the like, and an IC card module as an IC card component.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As is well known, some cards have an information storage function. Among them, there is an IC card provided with an IC memory in addition to a magnetic stripe for storing information. At present, non-contact type IC cards having a coupon function for ski lifts and the like are in practical use. This IC card has a structure in which an IC chip is incorporated inside a card body made of synthetic resin. More specifically, the IC card is provided with an IC card inside a synthetic resin card body formed in a rectangular shape having a certain thickness.
This is a structure incorporating an IC module configured by combining an electronic circuit including a memory and an antenna coil.
Further, there is a type in which a small battery is incorporated as a power source, or power supplied from an antenna coil in a non-contact manner is stored in a capacitor.

In the IC card, when a predetermined radio wave transmitted from a predetermined transmitting / receiving means is received by the antenna coil, an induced electromotive force is generated by an electromagnetic induction effect, and the power is stored in the IC memory using the power. A signal indicating the remaining number of times of use is wirelessly transmitted from the antenna coil to the transmitting / receiving means. From the above transmitting and receiving means,
When a signal for reducing the value of the remaining number of times of use is transmitted wirelessly, the data in the IC memory is rewritten correspondingly.

[0004] As described above, the IC card has an advantage suitable for being constituted as a so-called non-contact type information storage card. Further, the information storage capacity can be easily increased as compared with the magnetic stripe type information storage card. In addition, there is an advantage that the card forgery prevention effect is high. For this reason, in the future, memory chips and CPUs with further increased information storage capacity will be incorporated in the card to provide more advanced information processing and communication functions as information carrying tools related to telephone cards and electronic money. It is anticipated that an IC card with the following will appear.

[0005]

The above-mentioned IC card is required to be further thinner in the future.
Then, when the user handles the IC card, for example, the thin card must be expected to undergo some bending deformation. The problem in this case is
This is the effect on the built-in IC chip when the IC card is bent. As described above, since the IC chip is incorporated in the IC card, when the IC card is bent, stress tends to concentrate on the built-in position of the IC chip.
When such a situation occurs, there is a possibility that the IC chip is peeled off from the predetermined wiring pattern or the IC chip itself is damaged. In particular, when the IC chip itself is damaged, data stored in the IC chip is lost, and it becomes difficult to recover the data. Therefore, as the IC card becomes thinner, the IC built in the IC card becomes
The need to protect the chip is even higher.

The present invention has been conceived in view of the above circumstances, and when an IC card is bent or deformed, a large damage is caused to an IC chip incorporated therein. It is an object of the present invention to protect an IC chip so that there is no problem.

[0007]

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above problems, the present invention employs the following technical means.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an IC card. The IC card includes an IC module having an IC chip mounted on a substrate, a card body having a recessed or through-hole-shaped accommodation portion for accommodating the IC module therein, and an IC module having an opening for opening the accommodation portion. An IC card comprising at least one or more cover sheets adhered to a card body, wherein the IC chip of the IC module is sealed by a sealing member having a smaller elastic modulus than the card body. Characterized.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an IC module for an IC card. The IC module for an IC card is an IC module for an IC card that is used by being housed in a recessed or through-hole-shaped housing portion provided in a card body of the IC card.
An IC chip mounted on the substrate, and wherein the IC chip is sealed by a sealing member having a smaller elastic modulus than the card body.

[0010] In the present invention, since the IC chip mounted on the substrate of the IC module is sealed by a predetermined sealing member, the IC chip is pressed against the IC card from the outside of the IC card by a pressing force or an impact force. Even if a force acts, this force can be received by the sealing member, and it is possible to avoid that the force acts directly on the IC chip. In particular, since the sealing member has a smaller elastic modulus than the card body of the IC card, it is possible to effectively exhibit a buffer function of absorbing and reducing the impact force acting on the IC card by the elastic deformation of the sealing member. it can. In addition, when bending deformation occurs in the card body of the IC card, the sealing member follows the bending deformation and generates bending deformation, and this sealing member causes distortion at a boundary portion with the IC chip. The value of the stress acting on the IC chip from the sealing member can be reduced by the smaller the elastic modulus of the sealing member. Therefore, it is possible to appropriately prevent or suppress concentration of a large stress on the IC chip when a bending force is applied to the IC card, and to appropriately protect the IC chip built in the IC card. be able to.

Also, as an important effect, in the present invention,
Even if the thickness of the IC module is formed to be slightly thicker than the depth dimension of the housing portion of the card body, the sealing member of the IC module can be compressed and deformed to reduce the overall thickness. The IC module can be appropriately accommodated in the accommodation section. Therefore, it is not necessary to increase the dimensional accuracy of the thickness of the IC module so much, and the dimensional management becomes easy. Furthermore,
By making the thickness of the IC module slightly larger than that of the accommodation section, the cover sheet adhered to the card body and the side surface of the IC module can be brought into close contact with no gap. As a result, the IC module is prevented from being unduly displaced in the thickness direction of the card body.
The IC module can be appropriately incorporated inside the IC card.

In addition, in the present invention, since the IC module has a structure in which the respective components are integrated, the work of accommodating these components in the accommodating portion of the card body of the IC card is also facilitated, and the Manufacturing work can be facilitated.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the substrate may be a flexible substrate having a flexible synthetic resin film as a base material.

According to such a configuration, when the flexible substrate of the IC module undergoes a bending deformation following the bending deformation of the card body of the IC card or the sealing member of the IC module, the flexible substrate and the IC chip are connected to each other. A large peeling force can be prevented from being generated at the bonding portion of the substrate. That is, unlike the above-described configuration, when a hard substrate that is relatively unlikely to be bent is used, when the substrate undergoes a bending deformation, distortion occurs in various parts of the substrate, and the substrate and the IC chip are connected to each other. A peeling force will be generated at the bonded portion of. On the other hand, according to the above-described configuration using the flexible substrate, the flexible substrate can be largely bent and deformed in other portions so as not to cause a large distortion at the bonding portion between the flexible substrate and the IC chip. Thus, it is possible to prevent a large peeling force from being generated at the bonding portion between the flexible substrate and the IC chip. Therefore, the protection function of the IC chip when the IC card is bent can be further enhanced. Further, if the substrate of the IC module is a thin-walled substrate made of a synthetic resin film as a base material, it is preferable in reducing the thickness of the entire IC module and thus the thickness of the entire IC card.

In another preferred embodiment of the present invention,
The IC module may have a structure in which a reinforcing member harder than the card body is provided around the IC chip, and the reinforcing member is embedded inside the sealing member.

According to such a configuration, since the periphery of the IC chip of the IC module is reinforced by the reinforcing member, when a bending force is applied to the IC card, the above-mentioned I-type is used.
The peripheral portion of the C chip can be hardly bent. Therefore, more appropriate protection of the IC chip can be achieved. In addition, since the reinforcing member is embedded in a predetermined sealing member, there is no problem that the reinforcing member is misaligned. The structure is easy to handle.

In another preferred embodiment of the present invention,
The IC module includes an antenna coil that forms a winding bundle with a metal wire electrically connected to the IC chip, and the winding bundle of the antenna coil surrounds the periphery of the IC chip. It can be configured as a member.

According to such a configuration, the IC chip can be protected by the winding bundle of the antenna coil. On the other hand, since the antenna coil is a component used when the IC card is configured as a non-contact type IC card, as a means for protecting the IC chip,
The necessity of separately using a dedicated reinforcing member can be eliminated, and an excellent advantage that the IC chip can be protected without increasing the number of components of the IC module can be obtained.

[0019]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows an IC card IC according to the present invention.
It is sectional drawing which shows an example of C module. FIG. 2 shows FIG.
FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an antenna coil and a substrate constituting the IC module shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of a main part showing a mounting structure of an IC chip on a substrate.

Referring to FIG. 1, an IC module A according to this embodiment includes a flexible substrate 1, an IC chip 2, an antenna coil 3, and a packaging resin 4. The packaging resin 4 corresponds to an example of the sealing member according to the present invention.

The flexible substrate 1 is made of a thin flexible synthetic resin film such as a polyimide film as a base material. The flexible substrate 1 has a thickness of, for example, about 0.1 mm, and has an overall plan shape of, for example, a circle.

The antenna coil 3 is provided on the surface of the flexible substrate 1. The antenna coil 3 is formed by etching a conductive layer such as copper foil attached to the surface of the flexible substrate 1 to form a predetermined pattern, and as shown in FIG. It has a spiral part 35 substantially concentric with the shape, and an extending part 36 extending inward from the spiral part 35. The extending portion 36 passes between the two lands 10 arranged at the center of the flexible substrate 1 so that the wires of the antenna coil 3 are not short-circuited to each other.
The extending portion 36 has both ends of the wiring of the antenna coil 3, and both ends are connected to the lands 10, 10. The antenna coil 3 functions as a device that transmits and receives radio waves (electromagnetic waves) to and from a predetermined transceiver. That is, when the antenna coil 3 receives a predetermined radio wave, the antenna coil 3 generates an induced electromotive force by an electromagnetic induction effect to supply the power to the IC chip 2, while receiving a predetermined signal output from the IC chip 2. Sometimes a radio wave corresponding to this signal is generated.

The IC chip 2 is mainly used as a memory having an information storage function, and is driven based on an induced electromotive force generated by the antenna coil 3. This IC
As shown in FIG. 3, the chip 2 has electrodes 20, 20 provided on the main surface thereof and the lands 10, 1.
0 is bonded via an anisotropic conductive film 11. The anisotropic conductive film 11 is provided with the electrodes 20, 20.
It plays a role of conducting only between the and the lands 10, 10.

The packaging resin 4 is resin-molded using a mold so as to cover the IC chip 2 on one side of the flexible substrate 1, and has a shape similar to that of the flexible substrate 1, for example. It is in the shape of a thin plate having a circular shape in a view. The packaging resin 4 is a synthetic resin having a smaller elastic modulus than the card body 70 of the IC card B, which will be described later. Resin is applied. IC having a structure packaged by the above-mentioned packaging resin 4
Module A has an overall thickness of, for example, 0.45 m.
m. In the present embodiment, the packaging resin 4 has a structure in which only one side (front surface) of the flexible substrate 1 is covered. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The structure may also be such that it goes around the other side (back side) of the flexible substrate 1 as well.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing an example of an IC card according to the present invention. FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional view of a VV main part of FIG. FIG. 6 is an exploded sectional view of the IC card shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 4, this IC card B
The external shape in plan view is a long rectangular shape, and the overall thickness is, for example, about 0.76 mm. As is clearly shown in FIG. 6, this IC card B is
It comprises the cover sheets 70 and 71 and the IC module A.

The card body 7 is made of, for example, a synthetic resin such as polyethylene terephthalate (hereinafter abbreviated as PET) or polyvinyl chloride (hereinafter abbreviated as PVC). However, the synthetic resin constituting the card body 7 is different from the above-described packaging resin 4 in that a filler as a reinforcing material is mixed. Thus, the elastic modulus of the card body 7 is, for example, 9.8 GPa or more. On the other hand, the elastic modulus of the packaging resin 4 is, for example, 9.0 GPa or less, and the elastic modulus of the packaging resin 4 is smaller than that of the card body 7. The thickness of the card body 7 is, for example, about 0.45 mm similar to that of the IC module A. The card body 7 is provided with a through-hole-shaped accommodation section 72. The accommodating section 72 accommodates the IC module A.

The two cover sheets 70 and 71 are formed in a plan view shape conforming to the card body 7, and have a thickness of, for example, about 0.1 mm. These cover sheets 70 and 71 are also made of synthetic resin such as PET or PVC, for example, like the card body 7. These two cover sheets 70, 71 are bonded to the front and back surfaces of the cover bodies 7, 7a after the IC module A is housed in the housing section 72.
Therefore, the upper and lower openings of the housing section 72 are closed by the cover sheets 70 and 71, and the IC module A is sealed in the housing section 72.

In the IC card B having the above configuration, even when the overall thickness t1 of the IC module A is slightly larger than the depth of the accommodating portion 72, that is, the thickness t2 of the card body 7, The module A can be appropriately accommodated in the accommodation section 72 (see FIG. 6). That is, when the IC module A having a thickness larger than the depth dimension of the housing portion 72 is fitted into the housing portion 72, a part of the IC module A protrudes outside the housing portion 72. However, if the IC module A is sandwiched in the thickness direction between the cover sheets 70 and 71 adhered to the card body 7, the packaging resin 4 having a small elastic modulus of the IC module A can be easily compressed and deformed. . Therefore, the entire thickness of the IC module A can be set to the same size as the depth dimension of the housing section 72, and the IC module A can be appropriately sealed in the housing section 72. By enclosing the IC module A in the accommodating portion 72 in this manner, both surfaces of the IC module A can be brought into close contact with the cover sheets 70 and 71 without any gap, and the IC module A It is possible to prevent an improper displacement or the like from occurring in the inside. In addition, since it is not necessary to always match the thickness dimension of the IC module A with the depth dimension of the accommodating portion 72 with high accuracy, the production of the IC module A becomes easy, and further, the production of the card body 7 becomes easy. .

As means for incorporating the IC module A into the card body of the IC card, for example, means shown in FIG. 7 can be adopted. The means shown in FIG.
This is a means for forming a bottomed concave receiving portion 72a in the card main body 7a and receiving and arranging the IC module A in the receiving portion 72a. According to such a means, in order to enclose the IC module A in the accommodation section 72a,
Only one carber sheet 70 needs to be adhered to the card body 7a, and the number of components of the IC card can be reduced.

Next, the operation of the IC card B incorporating the IC module A will be described.

First, in the IC card B, an IC
The chip 2 is sealed and protected by the packaging resin 4. Therefore, even if a pressing force or an impact force acts on the surface portion of the IC card B, the damage to the IC chip 2 due to this is prevented. Next, at the time of handling the IC cards B, the whole or a part thereof is bent so that FIG.
As shown in (1), a bending force M may act on the IC module A and its peripheral part. In this case, IC module A
Since the packaging resin 4 has a lower elastic modulus than the card body 7, it follows the bending deformation of the card body 7 and bends into a shape similar to that of the card body 7. When such a bending deformation of the packaging resin 4 occurs, the packaging resin 4 also generates a strain at a boundary portion with the surface of the IC chip 2.
Since the elastic modulus of the packaging resin 4 is small, the value of the stress caused by the distortion of the packaging resin 4 can be reduced. Therefore, even if a bending force is applied to the IC card B, it is possible to immediately prevent the IC chip 2 from being significantly damaged.

FIGS. 8 and 9 are sectional views showing other examples of the IC module according to the present invention.

The IC module Aa shown in FIG. 8 has a structure in which a ring-shaped reinforcing member 8 is embedded in a packaging resin 4 and the periphery of the IC chip 2 is surrounded by the reinforcing member 8. The reinforcing member 8 is made of, for example, metal or ceramics, and is harder than the card body of the IC card. The reinforcing member 8 is embedded in the packaging resin 4 by insert molding.

In the IC module Aa, the IC
Since the periphery of the chip 2 is reinforced by the reinforcing member 8, the amount of bending deformation of the packaging resin 4 in the peripheral portion of the IC chip 2 when a bending force is applied to the IC card can be reduced. Therefore, the value of the stress acting on the IC chip 2 from the packaging resin 4 can be reduced by that much, and the IC chip 2
Can be more appropriately protected. Further, since the reinforcing member 8 is embedded in the packaging resin 4, there is no problem that the total thickness of the IC module Aa becomes large due to the additional provision of the reinforcing member 8, and the IC module The overall thickness of Aa can be reduced.

The IC module Ab shown in FIG. 9 has an antenna coil 3 composed of one continuous metal wire.
A is provided. The antenna coil 3A is
The winding bundle 30 is formed by spirally winding a metal wire. The winding bundle 30 has a constant height in the thickness direction of the IC module Ab, and is located at a substantially central portion of the IC module Ab.
It is configured to effectively surround the periphery of the C chip 2.
Of course, both ends of the metal wire of the antenna coil 3A are
It is conductively connected to the IC chip 2. The antenna coil 3A, the substrate 1A, and the IC chip 2 are resin-packaged with a packaging resin 4A having a smaller elastic modulus than the card body of the IC card.

In the IC module Ab, in addition to the protection of the IC chip 2 by the packaging resin 4A, the winding bundle 30 of the antenna coil 3A surrounds the IC chip 2, and the function of protecting the IC chip 2 is provided. Demonstrate. Further, the winding bundle 30 is made of the packaging resin 4.
The strength of the peripheral portion of the IC chip A is increased. Therefore, the winding bundle 30 plays a role similar to that of the reinforcing member 8 of the IC module Aa described with reference to FIG. 8, and more appropriate protection of the IC chip 2 can be achieved. Further, in the IC module Ab, the peripheral portion of the IC chip 2 is reinforced by effectively using the antenna coil 3A, and it is not necessary to use a dedicated reinforcing member. Therefore, the number of components of the IC module can be reduced.

The specific configuration of each part of the IC card and the IC module for the IC card according to the present invention is not necessarily limited to the above-described embodiment, and various design changes can be made. For example, in the present invention, as a sealing member for sealing the IC chip, it is not always necessary to use epoxy resin, and other members such as synthetic resin and synthetic rubber may be used. The point is that the IC chip may be sealed with a member having a lower elastic modulus than the card body of the IC card. Further, as the substrate, a rigid substrate having no flexibility may be used instead of the flexible substrate. Further, the type of the IC chip is not particularly limited. Of course, when the IC card is not configured as a non-contact type IC card, there is no need to provide an antenna coil.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing an example of an IC module for an IC card according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing an antenna coil and a substrate constituting the IC module shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of a main part showing a mounting structure of an IC chip on a substrate.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing an example of an IC card according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional view of a VV main part of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is an exploded sectional view of the IC card shown in FIG.

FIG. 7 is an exploded sectional view showing another example of an IC card.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view showing another example of the IC module according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a sectional view showing another example of the IC module according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Flexible board (board) 1A board 2 IC chip 3, 3A antenna coil 4, 4A Packaging resin (sealing member) 7, 7a Card body 8 Reinforcement member 30 Winding bundle part 70 Cover sheet 71 Cover sheet 72, 72a Housing part A, Aa, Ab IC module B IC card

Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Tomoharu Horio 21 Ryozaki-cho, Saiin, Ukyo-ku, Kyoto

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. An IC module having an IC chip mounted on a substrate, a card body having a concave or through-hole-shaped accommodating portion accommodating the IC module therein, and the card body having an opening of the accommodating portion. An IC card comprising at least one or more cover sheets adhered to a card body, wherein the IC chip of the IC module is sealed with a sealing member having a lower elastic modulus than the card body. Characterized by an IC card. 2. The IC card according to claim 1, wherein the substrate is a flexible substrate made of a synthetic resin film having flexibility. 3. The IC module has a structure in which a reinforcing member harder than the card body is disposed around the IC chip, and the reinforcing member is embedded inside the sealing member. The IC card according to claim 1. 4. The IC module has an antenna coil forming a winding bundle by a metal wire electrically connected to the IC chip, and the winding bundle of the antenna coil is mounted on the IC chip. The IC card according to claim 3, wherein the IC card is the reinforcing member surrounding the periphery. 5. An IC used by being accommodated in a concave or through-hole-shaped accommodation portion provided in a card body of an IC card.
An IC module for a C card, comprising: a substrate; and an IC chip mounted on the substrate.
An IC module for an IC card, wherein the IC chip is sealed with a sealing member having a smaller elastic modulus than the card body.