WO1999065578A1

WO1999065578A1 - Game card with printed game information covered by a removable coating

Info

Publication number: WO1999065578A1
Application number: PCT/GB1999/000821
Authority: WO
Inventors: William Charles Christie
Original assignee: Scientific Games International Ltd.
Priority date: 1998-06-17
Filing date: 1999-03-17
Publication date: 1999-12-23
Also published as: AU2945299A; GB9812966D0

Abstract

A game card, for example a lottery card of the instant type, which has game information (21) printed thereon which is covered by a removable coating (26, 28), is characterised in that there is an ink (30) applied over the removable coating (26, 28) which covers the coating (26, 28) but only to the extent as to leave at least a portion of the coating (26, 28) visible, and the ticket carries an indication to the effect that the user should start removing the coating (26, 28) at said portion.

Description

GAME CARD WITH PRINTED GAME INFORMATION COVERED BY A REMOVABLE COATING

This invention relates to game cards, for example lottery cards of the instant type, which have game information printed thereon which is covered by a removable coating. The coating is removed by the user, to reveal the game information, by abrading the coating using a coin or other means. As soon as the coating is removed, the user knows immediately or "instantly" whether or not the user has won a prize.

The game information is printed on a first area known as a secure area, and the ticket also has a second area on which other, non secure information, such as the rules and description of the ticket, is printed.

These game cards are in extensive use, and winnings for some tickets can be quite high. In consequence and unfortunately, unscrupulous individuals try to and often succeed in compromising the tickets. This involves endeavouring to find out the game information by techniques which either involve not involve removing the scratch off material, or do involve removing and replacing the scratch off material. Some of these techniques and a solution therefore are set out in International Patent Application No. WO 96/29209.

The solution proposed in said International Application is to use an ink which covers the scratch off material and the second area of the card so that the boundary of the scratch off material is concealed form view.

This arrangement has a disadvantage in that the user can be confused as to where to abrade the ticket to reveal the game information. This can lead to irritation of the user, and more particularly can lead to the ticket being wrongly used, or the user failing to scratch off the coating at all, or scratching off the wrong portion.

The present invention is concerned with this problem, and in accordance with the present invention, there is an ink applied over the removable coating which covers the coating but only to the extent as to leave at least a portion of the coating visible, and the ticket carries an indication to the effect that the user should start removing the coating at said portion.

The ink may extend across the coating into the second area of the ticket and be of a special formulation so that it will adhere to both the coating and the second area of the ticket. The ink may be continuous or it may be in a broken pattern.

The ink may be as set out in said International Application, and may be applied by any suitable means.

The portion of the removable coating which is visible may carry the instruction "begin scratching here".

The ticket according to the invention has all the advantages of the ticket described in said International Application, without the disadvantage that the user cannot see the scratch off material and therefore does not know where to commence scratching.

Although the visible portion of the coating preferably does not cover any concealed game information, it could cover a part of such information, on the basis that even if an unscrupulous user could ascertain the part concealed by the said portion, it would be insufficient to ascertain the whole of the information. An embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein;

Fig. 1 shows a ticket according to the invention in plan view; and

Fig. 2 shows the layers of the ticket of Fig. 1 in exploded perspective view.

As set forth in said International Application, the ticket may comprise a number of layers, of similar materials as set forth in said International Application.

For example, referring to Fig. 2, the card comprises a base sheet 10, which may be of cardboard, with or without a metallic foil layer on the upper surface. Plastic can also be used for sheet 10.

As seen in Fig. 1 , the ticket has a secure or first area 12 (indicated in dotted lines) in which the game information, in the form of symbols or the like, is applied. This area can be described in this example as made up of a rectangle 14 with a circle 16 at one corner thereof. Any shape can be used for the secure area 12.

Various layers are applied to the secure area 12 as shown in Fig. 2. These are applied in conventional fashion, and the materials themselves are conventional. In the example illustrated, the layers comprise, in the following order,

a) a base coating 18, which increases the resistance of the ticket to compromise by shining a powerful light therethrough;

b) a coating 20 which contrasts with the game information to be printed on the coating 20 to improve the contrast between the game information and the background; c) a coating 22 which is transparent and is applied over the coating 20 after the game information symbols 21 have been applied to coating 20. It is to be noted that the game information is in bits and all the bits may be in the rectangular area 14, but one or more, but not all may be in the circular area 16. The seal coating 22 serves to seal the symbols 21 from the later applied coatings, and also serves to resist removal of the game information during scratching of the ticket in the use of same

d) a coating 24 which functions as a release coating to enhance the removal of the scratch off material during the use of the ticket. This coating may be applied in several passes

e) two layers 26 and 28 of scratch off material, typically in the form of conventionally used synthetic rubber latex material. The lower layer 26 may be black in colour, whilst the top layer 28 may be of a silver colour, containing metallic particles to give it a silver finish

All of these coatings specifically may be of the form and for the function as set forth in said International Application.

Also as in the International Application, there is overprinting 30, which may be made up as in the said International Application, and the details are not repeated here, but the over printing has in effect a gap therein, which in the example given, is in the form of a circle 32 which registers with the area 16. Therefore, when the overprinting is applied, the scratch off material 26, 28 remains visible to the user in the circular area 16. The overprinting 30 provides the ticket with all the advantages of the overprinting as set forth in the International Application, but the ticket according to the invention has the additional advantage that part of the scratch off material remains visible, enabling the user to know where to start the scratching procedure. Indeed, the overprinting 30 preferably includes the legend "start scratching here " as shown in the Figs, which is applied in the circular area 16, but without obscuring the scratch off material in that area.

The content of the overprinting 30 can be any suitable, and as many colours can be adopted as are required.

Claims

CLAIMS.

1. A game card, for example a lottery card of the instant type, which has game information (21) printed thereon which is covered by a removable coating (26,28) , characterised in that there is an ink (30) applied over the removable coating (26,28) which covers the coating (26.28) but only to the extent as to leave at least a portion of the coating (26,28) visible, and the ticket carries an indication to the effect that the user should start removing the coating (26,28) at said portion.

2. A game card according to claim 1 , characterised in that the ink (30) extends across the coating (26,28) so as to extend into a second area of the ticket to which the coating (26,28) does not extend.

3. A game card according to claim 2, characterised in that the ink (30) is of a special formulation so that it will adhere to both the coating (30) and the second area of the ticket.

4. A game card according to any preceding claim, characterised in that the portion of the removable coating (26,28) which is visible carries the instruction "begin scratching here".