JPH068077B2 - Card and card authenticity determination method - Google Patents

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a card and a card authenticity determination method.

[Prior Art] The card of the present invention is an identification card such as an ID card (Identification Card) and a CD card (Cash Dispenser Card), etc., as well as a ticket, betting ticket, lottery ticket, ticket, boarding ticket, gift certificate,
Various types of tickets and cards such as certificates and certifications that do not like forgery or imitation.

In recent years, ID cards and CD cards have been widely distributed, and cash vouchers and certificates (cards) have also become popular. Therefore, there is always the problem of counterfeiting, imitation, or diversion of another person's card. Therefore, a systematic method such as PIN verification is adopted for the cardholder's recognition check.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, there is no absolute means for determining the authenticity of the card itself, and the present situation is that it is merely trying to improve the preventive effect by making difficult decorations such as counterfeiting. there were.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a card and a card authenticity determining method which can surely and easily perform authenticity determination and which makes counterfeiting impossible.

[Means for Solving the Problems] The card of the present invention has a writable and readable information recording medium and an optically countable pattern.

The information recording medium is a magnetic recording medium (magnetic material such as magnetic tape or MICR), optical recording medium (optical recording material such as thin film for laser recording, bar code), semiconductor recording medium (semiconductor material such as semiconductor memory). , Optical memory, etc.) and other functional information writable and readable information.

The countable pattern is composed of many straight lines, curves, points, etc., and can be easily detected and counted by an optical detection device in any region of visible light region, infrared light region, and ultraviolet light region. A pattern (hereinafter, simply referred to as "pattern"), which can be easily formed on the card substrate surface by printing, photography, copying, drawing marking, or other means. This pattern includes a regular array pattern and an irregular array pattern, both of which can be used depending on the situation, but the irregular array is preferable from the viewpoint of forgery.

As described above, the card of the present invention must always have the information recording body and the pattern in the same card.

[Operation] The principle of authenticity determination of the card of the present invention is based on the following outline.

When counting the patterns existing in the card, if the counting is started from the edge of the card or from the defined counting start position, even if the patterns exist at equal pitches, the count values will differ if the counting distance is changed. In this case, if you set the count distance arbitrarily, the count value of individual cards will be different,
Setting an arbitrary distance within a limited card size is practically limited when considering a large number of cards.
If the pattern pitch is coarse, the probability of showing the same count value among a large number of cards becomes high even if an arbitrary distance is set.
On the other hand, if the pitch is made fine, the probability will naturally decrease. However, no matter how fine the pitch of the pattern is, if the counting start position is the same and only the counting distance is changed, there is a limit in reducing the probability of showing the same counting value. That is, it is difficult to make an individual card among a large number of cards self-recognize only by one variable (counting distance) and to be sure that it is not the same as the other cards.

On the other hand, if the counting start position is arbitrarily recognized for each individual card, and if this information is also used for self-recognition, there will be two variables in the card, and the probability of showing the identity will drop significantly (almost exponentially). Affect). Here, even if the same count is shown, if the count start position information is different, it is a different card.

From the above, it is easy to increase the number of variables. This is to use a random pitch pattern rather than an equal pitch pattern, and this irregularity also becomes a unique feature of individual cards, extending the range of card individuality. In this case, each individual card has a unique counting start position,
Since there are three types of counting end position and random pitch pattern, the counting value depends on three variables. That is, one card can use the counting start position, the counting end position, and the count value prerecorded in the information recording body as the data for the authenticity determination to judge the validity.

Generally, these three variables are randomly sent according to a random number table and are set at the time of manufacturing the card, so that it is practically impossible to intentionally copy them. This meaning means that it has the function of making counterfeiting and imitation impossible.

Based on the above principle, the card of the present invention records three kinds of unique variables in the information recording body of the card, reads the information and counts the individual cards, and the count value and the count value recorded in advance. By comparing and, we recognize the legitimacy of this card and, together, make it impossible to forge.

EXAMPLES The present invention will be described in more detail below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a card 1 of the present invention, which is constructed by forming an information recording body 3 and a pattern 4 on a card substrate 2 made of vinyl chloride resin, polyester resin, other synthetic resin, paper or the like. ing. A magnetic material is most often used as the information recording body 3. In this information recording body 3, such as personal name, store name, company name, affiliation name, place name, product property name, various classification codes, characters, numbers, etc., which are coded and recorded in the magnetic recording portion of an ordinary magnetic card. Other patterns 4
The counting start position x ₁ , the counting end position y ₁ , and the count value are recorded. This pattern 4 is assumed to be a bar having a random pitch in this embodiment. This bar is generally formed by a printing method, but it may be formed at the time of card issuance by an impact or non-impact recording method.
It is 0.005 mm to 0.5 mm. Further, the pitch of the pattern follows a random number (hereinafter referred to as “Z ₁ ”).

A known photoelectric counting device is used to count the bars, and the counting start position x ₁ bar recorded in the information recording body 3 is counted. Counting is performed up to the count end position y ₁ and x ₁ −
The number of bars between y ₁ or the count value is the unique number of this card.

As described above, the values of x ₁ and y ₁ are recorded in advance on the information recording medium, and the reading is performed to control the number of bars between x _{1 and} y ₁ . This count is x ₁ when the card is issued,
This card is recorded in the same manner as y _1, and this card is checked with a terminal card checker, and the value counted by the device is compared with the count value previously recorded in the information recording body 3 and if the same, it is a valid card. It is determined that

The indices corresponding to x ₁ , y ₁ and the random number Z ₁ in other cards are x _i , y _i and Z _i (i is an arbitrary value) and different from the values of x ₁ , y ₁ , Z _1. is there.

If the values of x ₁ and y _{1 and} the values of x ₂ and y ₂ of _two cards are very close to each other, it is almost impossible if the pitches of the bars recorded in the cards are at equal intervals. Exactly the same count value is shown. The same applies when the same patterns are printed even at random pitches. However, many kinds of random pitch patterns can be plate-formed on a large-area printing plate during mass production, and different kinds of patterns can be prepared for different plates, so that the production quantity of the same pattern can be limited. On the other hand, even when printed from the same plate, when cutting out into small pieces as a card (defeat), a slightly different deviating position results in a completely different pattern. The smaller the pattern, the more precise the accuracy of the machine.
Rather, it becomes more difficult to cut out the same pattern.

When patterns are formed at the time of card issuance by the impact or non-impact recording method, individual cards are processed in a completely random number, so that the same pattern is unlikely to occur.

In the case of a random pitch pattern recorded in a random manner as described above, the independence of the card can be maintained because the count values are generally different even in x ₁ , y ₁ x ₂ , and y ₂ .

If the x ₁ , y ₁ card and the x ₂ , y ₂ card happen to show the same count value (this case is relatively possible),
Since x ₁ ≠ y ₁ and x ₂ ≠ y _2, they are distinguished by this information difference.

As described above, the numerical values determined for each card are three kinds of the count value of the random pattern defined by the counting start position x _i , the counting end position y _i, and Z _i . The probability that two cards will have the same three variables at the same time is extremely low, very close to zero. Therefore, if x _i , y _i , and bar count values are recorded in advance in the card, there will be no other card having the same numerical value. The identification is completely possible.

On the other hand, when this card is counterfeited or imitated, it is very difficult to accurately form a countable irregular pitch pattern on the counterfeit card even if the magnetic recording signal can be decoded and recorded on the information recording body of the counterfeit card. Difficult to do.

That is, for example, even if the shape and pitch of a pattern are accurately reproduced, the relative position between the pattern and the card, that is, the counting end position and the counting end position of the end face of the card and the pattern are accurately matched with the real card. Is extremely difficult.

If the pattern position, the counting start position, and the counting end position of the counterfeit card are left as little as possible, it becomes essentially meaningless to decode x _i and y _i recorded on the true card. Therefore, it is virtually impossible to forge or imitate this card.

Note that FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of the pattern and is not limited to these. FIG. 2A shows a pattern having a curvilinear structure, and the number of times the optical detection device cuts the pattern is counted.
FIG. 2 (B) shows a pattern of point configuration, and it is also possible to count points at predetermined positions with a predetermined width a. Similarly, FIG. 2C is a pattern composed of intersecting diagonal lines having an arbitrary pitch, and the intersections of the intersecting diagonal lines may be counted with a predetermined width as in FIG. 2B.

[Effect] Since the card of the present invention has an optically countable irregular pitch pattern formed on the same surface of the card substrate, it is very difficult to forge and imitate, and the authenticity of the card of the present invention is determined. Record the count start position, count end position, and count value of the irregular pitch pattern in the information recording body of the card in advance, count the pattern according to the count position information, and record the count value and information obtained as a result. Since the count values recorded on the body are compared, the authenticity of the card can be surely and easily determined without obtaining information from other than the card.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a card showing an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
(A), (b), and (c) are enlarged schematic diagrams of the pattern. 1 ・ ・ ・ Card 2 ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ Card base material 3 ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ Information recording medium 4 ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・·····pattern

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. An optically countable pattern arranged at an irregular pitch, and an information recording body in which a count start position, a count end position of the pattern and a pattern count value between both positions are recorded. card. 2. An irregular pitch pattern is arranged on a card, and a count start position, a count end position of the irregular pitch pattern and a pattern count value between both positions are recorded, and the recorded irregular pitch pattern is recorded. Counting start position,
A method of judging authenticity of a card, characterized in that the authenticity of the card is judged by counting the pattern according to the information of the counting end position and comparing the counted value with the recorded counted value.