阅读说明：本技术 安全页和安全小册子 (Security sheet and security booklet ) 是由 大卫·伊恩·坦皮斯特 于 2019-07-29 设计创作，主要内容包括：本发明涉及安全页和包括安全页的安全小册子。本发明还涉及制造安全页和安全小册子以及认证安全小册子的方法。安全页包括具有第一外表面和第二外表面的塑料基板,至少部分地包围至少一个窗的至少一个不透明区域、以及在第一外表面与第二外表面之间延伸的穿孔。穿孔形成部分地位于至少一个窗中且部分地位于至少一个不透明区域中的第一数据元素。(The present invention relates to a security sheet and a security booklet including the security sheet. The invention also relates to a method of manufacturing security pages and booklets and authenticating the booklets. The security page includes a plastic substrate having a first outer surface and a second outer surface, at least one opaque region at least partially surrounding at least one window, and a perforation extending between the first outer surface and the second outer surface. The perforations form first data elements located partially in the at least one window and partially in the at least one opaque region.)

1. A security page comprising a plastic substrate comprising first and second outer surfaces, at least one opaque region at least partially surrounding at least one window, and a perforation extending between the first and second outer surfaces, wherein the perforation forms a first data element partially in the at least one window and partially in the at least one opaque region.

2. The security page according to claim 1, wherein the perforations form at least one second data element in the at least one opaque area.

3. The security page according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the perforations form a plurality of first data elements, each of which is located partly in the at least one window and partly in the at least one opaque area.

4. The security page of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the perforations form a plurality of first and/or second data elements that are formed together and/or need to be present to form a complete data entry.

5. The security page of claim 4, wherein the complete data entry comprises variable data.

6. The security page according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the perforations are laser perforations.

7. The security page of any preceding claim, wherein at least one third data element is located entirely in the at least one window or partially overlapping the at least one window and at least one opaque region, the at least one third data element containing variable data.

8. The security page of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the perforations form at least one third data element located entirely in the at least one window.

9. The security page of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the first data element and, if present, the second and/or third data element comprises a grapheme, an alphanumeric character, a letter, a number, a character, a logogram, a symbol, a logo, a mark or a portrait.

10. The security page according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the opaque areas are located within the thickness of the plastic substrate and are separated from the first and/or second outer surfaces by first and/or second transparent areas or are formed by at least one opaque layer applied to the first and/or second outer surfaces.

11. A booklet comprising the security page of any one of the preceding claims and at least one page turn comprising a perforation aligned with the perforation of the security page such that the at least one page turn perforation also forms the first data element.

12. A booklet according to claim 11, further comprising a cover surrounding the security page and at least one of the turned pages, wherein the cover includes perforations aligned with the perforations of the security page and at least one of the turned pages such that the perforations of the cover also form the first data element.

13. A booklet according to claim 11 or 12, wherein each of the aligned perforations of the security page, at least one of the turned pages and the cover if present form the same complete data entry.

14. A method of forming a security page comprising:

forming a plastic substrate comprising first and second outer surfaces and at least one opaque region at least partially surrounding at least one window;

forming a perforation extending between the first and second outer surfaces and through the at least one window and at least one opaque region, wherein the perforation forms a first data element located partially in the at least one window and partially in the at least one opaque region.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the perforations are formed by laser perforation.

16. The method of claim 14 or 15, wherein forming the plastic substrate comprises: the method includes the steps of forming a plurality of plastic layers, inserting at least one insert into at least one gap in the plurality of plastic layers, and laminating the plurality of plastic layers and insert together.

17. A method of forming a booklet according to the method of any one of claims 14 to 16, attaching the plastic substrate to at least one leaf and/or cover about a fold line and forming perforations through the plastic substrate, at least one leaf and/or cover simultaneously.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a security sheet and a security booklet including the security sheet. The invention also relates to a method of manufacturing security pages and booklets and authenticating the booklets.

Background

A secure booklet, such as a passport, passbook, identification document, certificate, license, checkbook, etc., typically includes one or more secure pages on which information is provided. In the case of a passport, a secure booklet typically includes a cover, a plurality of internal visa pages, and at least one security page that displays personal data of the bearer. Typically, visa pages are made of paper and are sewn together along a seam that coincides with a fold line of the document. The security page typically includes immutable data and personal data. Immutable data is the same across a series of secure booklets and includes, for example, the name of the issuing country, the name of the document (e.g., "passport"), and a field identifier (e.g., "name" or "date of birth"). Personal data, also known as variable data, is unique to each booklet and is related to the holder of the booklet. Examples of personal data include serial number, name, date of birth, nationality, portrait, and the like.

Known methods of applying personal data to booklets include laser perforation of security pages. US-A-2001045455 discloses A passport production system and method comprising A laser personalization module for punching A passport page. Typically, in the case of a passport, the serial number is laser punched through the security page, visa page and back cover. Thus, the perforations in each page are aligned with each other, and the document inspector can identify any misalignment. It is difficult for a counterfeiter to replace a real page with a forged or modified page, as the counterfeiter will need to ensure that the perforations are aligned with those other pages. However, further improvements are needed to further increase the difficulty for counterfeiters to modify security pages with perforations.

Disclosure of Invention

Accordingly, the object of the present invention includes providing improved security pages and booklets which are more difficult for counterfeiters to modify. Further objects include improving the ease of detection of modified security pages and booklets.

Accordingly, the present invention provides a security page comprising a plastic substrate comprising a first outer surface and a second outer surface, at least one opaque region at least partially surrounding at least one window, and a perforation extending between the first outer surface and the second outer surface, wherein the perforation forms a first data element located partially in the at least one window and partially in the at least one opaque region.

The invention also provides a method of forming a security page, the method comprising: forming a plastic substrate comprising a first outer surface and a second outer surface and at least one opaque region at least partially surrounding at least one window; forming a perforation extending between the first outer surface and the second outer surface and through the at least one window and the at least one opaque region, wherein the perforation forms a first data element located partially in the at least one window and partially in the at least one opaque region.

The security page is more difficult to fraudulently modify because the at least one perforation of the first data element is located in the at least one window. In particular, if someone attempts to replace or modify at least one window, they will need to ensure that the replaced window or windows include at least one perforation that is properly positioned relative to at least one perforation in the opaque region so that the first data element is still formed. Further, at least one perforation in the replaced one or more windows will need to be properly aligned with a corresponding perforation of at least one of the leafs and/or the cover. Any misalignment will be easily seen through the replacement window or windows. Thus, the threat of modification is reduced, particularly in embodiments where at least one window is formed by at least one insert laminated using multiple layers to form a plastic substrate.

Drawings

Embodiments of security pages, booklets and methods according to the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

fig. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a security booklet, in particular a passport, according to the present invention in an open configuration between security pages and adjacent turned pages.

Fig. 2 is a schematic plan view of the booklet of fig. 1 in an open configuration between a security page and an adjacent turned page.

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional side elevation view of the security page of fig. 2 taken through the height a-a.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged view of a portion of the security page of fig. 2 and 3.

FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view of the booklet of FIG. 1 in an open configuration between the security pages and the cover; and

fig. 6 is a perspective view of the booklet of fig. 1 in an open configuration between the front cover and the end page turn.

Detailed Description

Figures 1 to 6 show a booklet 10 including security pages 11 according to the invention. The secure booklet 10 may be of any suitable type but preferably includes a passport, passbook, identification document, certificate, license, checkbook, etc. as shown. The booklet 10 comprises a security page 11, in this case a data page, which is foldable about a fold line 12 and is preferably attached to at least one leaf 13 along the fold line 12, the booklet 10 preferably comprising a fibrous substrate, comprising for example paper and/or cotton, and may form a visa page. The booklet 10 also includes a cover 14 which may also be foldable about the fold line 12 and attached to the fold line 12 and/or may be adhered to an outer page (not shown) on the outside of the pages 13 and 11. Attachment is preferably by means of stitching through the security sheet 11, the leafs 13 and/or the front cover 14 at the fold line 12, although other attachment means such as adhesion may be used.

The security page 11 comprises a plastic substrate 15 and displays data 16. The plastic substrate 15 extends across the thickness between the first and second substantially planar outer surfaces 17, 18. Preferably, the security page 11 and the plastic substrate 15 are substantially rigid or at least semi-rigid. The plastic substrate 15 may comprise at least one of a thermoplastic polymer, polycarbonate, polybutylene terephthalate, polyester, polyethylene, polypropylene, polyvinyl chloride, copolymers comprised of any of the previous thermoplastic polymers, and the like. The thickness of the plastic substrate 15 is preferably at least about 150 μm and may be between about 300 μm and about 1000 μm thick.

The plastic substrate 15 includes at least one window 20 and at least one substantially opaque region 21, the region 21 defining the at least one window 20 by at least partially surrounding the at least one window 20. As shown in fig. 3, the at least one opaque region 21 is located within the thickness of the plastic substrate 15 and may be separated from the first and second outer surfaces 17, 18 by first and second substantially transparent regions 22, 23. The at least one opaque region 21 substantially prevents transmission of light therethrough. For example, the plastic substrate 15 may include a plurality of opaque regions 21 if the opaque regions 21 are completely separated by one or more of the at least one window 20. At least one window 20 is a substantially transparent region extending between first exterior surface 17 and second exterior surface 18, and may be clear or colored. Accordingly, when the security sheet 11 covers the front cover 14 or the turned sheet 13 adjacent to the security sheet 11, the inspector may view the front cover 14 or the turned sheet 13 through the at least one window 20, respectively. In the embodiment shown, the security page 11 comprises a single oval window 20 completely surrounded by an opaque region 21. However, in other embodiments, the security page 11 includes a plurality of windows 20, at least one window 20 has another shape, such as a pattern, indicia, symbol, logo, etc., and/or at least one window 20 may be at an edge of the plastic substrate 15 such that it is bounded in part by the opaque region 21 and in part by the edge.

The plastic substrate 15 is generally manufactured by: forming at least one insert, forming a plurality of plastic layers, including the at least one insert in the plurality of plastic layers, and laminating the plurality of plastic layers together in a lamination press to form the plastic substrate 15. The plurality of plastic layers includes an opaque inner core layer for forming an opaque region 21 and an outer transparent layer for forming a first transparent region 22 and a second transparent region 23. Each of the at least one insert is substantially transparent and is located in a gap in the plurality of plastic layers, thereby forming at least one window 20 after lamination. Suitable manufacturing methods are also disclosed in WO-A-2017/060683 and WO-A-2017/060688.

The data 16 comprises at least one data entry 25, 26 and each of the at least one data entry 25 comprises at least one data element 27. Each of the at least one data entry 25, 26 forms a piece of recognizable or understandable information, such as a word or a multi-digit number, while each of the at least one data element 27 is an integral part of the at least one data entry 25, 26. In particular, the data entries 25, 26 may only be complete and/or understandable if all data elements 27 of the data entries 25, 26 are present, i.e. the set of data elements 27 together form and/or need to be present to form a complete data entry 25, 26. Each of the at least one data entries 25, 26 may be a personal or variable data entry 25 such as a holder portrait 30, text 31 (e.g. at least one of holder name, holder birth date, holder nationality, holder address, holder residence, booklet 10 issue date and/or booklet 10 expiration date), machine readable area 32, serial number 33, and a fixed or non-variable data entry 26 such as field identifier 34. A seventh edition (2015) of the 9303 document ("machine-readable travel document") issued by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) describes such variable and immutable data entries 25, 26. Each of the at least one data element 27 comprises, for example, a grapheme which is the smallest unit of the writing system, such as an alphanumeric character, a letter, a number, a character or a logogram (logogram), or a symbol, a logo, a mark, a portrait, etc. For example, in the case of text 31, serial number 33, and field identifier 34, data element 27 includes graphemes in alphabetical or numeric form. At least a portion of the data 16 may be applied by laser marking and/or ink printing.

The security page 11 further comprises a perforation 40, the perforation 40 extending between the first outer surface 17 and the second outer surface 18 of the plastic substrate 15 and forming at least a part of the at least one data item 25, 26. In particular, the perforations 40 form first data elements 41 located partly in the at least one window 20 and partly in the at least one opaque area 21. Thus, the first data element 41 is formed in part by or comprises at least one perforation 40, the perforation 40 extending in and through the at least one window 20, and the first data element 41 is formed in part by or comprises at least one perforation 40, the perforation 40 extending in and through the at least one opaque area 21, the perforation 40 being in and through the at least one opaque area 21. The security page 11 shown comprises a plurality of first data elements 41, each of the first data elements 41 being located partly in at least one window 20 by forming at least one perforation 40 in the at least one window 20 and partly in at least one opaque area 21 by forming at least one perforation 40 in the at least one opaque area 21.

The shown security page 11 further comprises a perforation 40, the perforation 40 forming at least one second data element 42 completely located in the at least one opaque area 21. In the case of a number, the first data element 41 and the second data element 42 form a complete data entry 43, in this case a serial number 33, which serial number 33 may be unique to a booklet 10 in a series of such booklets 10. Alternatively, however, only one first data element 41 or second data element 42 may form a complete data entry 43, or a plurality of first data elements 41 may form a complete data entry 43. The complete data entry 43 is preferably a mutable data entry 25, although it could alternatively be an immutable data entry 26. The first data element 41 and the second data element 42 are formed by positioning the perforations 40 relative to each other such that they outline or define the shape of the first data element 41 and the second data element 42. The perforations 40 of each of the first data elements 41 and the second data elements 42 are separated from each other such that the lines of the first data elements 41 and the second data elements 42 are broken.

In the embodiment shown, the data entry 43 formed by the perforation 40 and the first data element 41 and/or the second data element 42 in the security page 11 are also present in at least one of the pages 13 and/or the front cover 14. At least the pages 13 adjacent the security page 11, and preferably all the pages 13 of the booklet 10 as shown, include perforations 50 that are aligned with the perforations 40 of the security page 11. As best shown in fig. 5 and 6, cover 14 may also include perforations 60 that align with or register with perforations 40, 50 of at least one of the pages 13 and/or security sheets 11. Cover 14 may include perforations 60 only in its first side 61 and not in its second side 62, second side 62 being on the opposite side of fold line 12 from first side 61. In particular, when the security sheet 11, the at least one leaf 13 and/or the cover 14 are folded about the folding line 12, the perforations 40, 50, 60 of the security sheet 11, the at least one leaf 13 and/or the cover 14 overlie one another and have boundaries that are aligned such that they overlap one another. Each set of aligned perforations 40, 50, 60 in the security sheet 11, at least one of the pages 13 and/or the cover 14 has the same shape and the same position with respect to the edge of the booklet 10.

As shown in fig. 4, the boundaries of each perforation 40, 50, 60 may define an identifiable shape, such as a circle, triangle, or square. In other embodiments, the boundaries of each perforation 40, 50, 60 define a grapheme (e.g., alphanumeric characters), a symbol, a logo, a marking, or the like. Furthermore, although not shown, the diameter of the perforations 40, 50, 60 may vary between the security page 11, the at least one page 13 and/or the cover 14, for example by making the diameter of the perforations 40, 50, 60 larger in the security page 11 than in the at least one page 13 and/or the cover 14.

The perforations 40, 50, 60 are preferably laser perforations 40, 50, 60 formed by laser perforation of the security sheet 11, at least one of the turned sheets 13 and/or the front cover 14. To ensure very accurate alignment of the perforations 40, 50, laser perforation is performed after the security page 11 has been formed and attached to at least one of the turned pages 13 and/or the front cover 14 to form the booklet 10. In particular, as shown in fig. 5, the booklet 10 can be opened between the security page 11 and the second side 62 of the cover 14. The laser is then directed onto the second outer surface 18 of the security sheet 11 and the security sheet 11, at least one of the pages 13 and/or the cover 14 is perforated to form perforations 40, 50, 60 aligned therethrough. The laser or other lasers form the remaining perforations 40, 50, 60 of the first data element 41 and the second data element 42 in a similar manner. However, any other suitable method of forming the perforations 40, 50, 60 may be used, such as stamping.

The security page 11 may also include at least one third data element 45 located entirely within the at least one window 20, partially overlapping the at least one window 20 and the at least one opaque region 21, or entirely within the at least one opaque region 21. The at least one third data element 45 preferably comprises a variable data entry 25, in which case the holder portrait 30 is located in the at least one window 20. Preferably, at least one third data element 45 is applied to the puncture 40 in a different way. In particular, the at least one third data element 45 may be applied to the security page 11 by ink printing or laser marking, and is preferably applied after the formation of the plastic substrate 15 by lamination. Alternatively, although not shown, the at least one third data element 45 may be formed by the perforation 40 and located entirely within the at least one window 20. In any of the preceding embodiments, the at least one third data element 45 may form a complete data entry 43 with the at least one first data element 41 and/or second data element 42.

The booklet 10 can therefore only be authenticated if at least the correct perforation 40, which partially forms the first data element 41, is correctly present on the window 20. The booklet 10 may be authenticated by ensuring that the first data element 41 and/or the second data element 42 form a complete data entry 43. Thus, incomplete or incorrect first data elements 41 resulting from replacing at least one window 20 may be identified. The booklet 10 may also be authenticated by viewing the booklet 10 through the perforations 40, 50, 60 to ensure that the perforations 40, 50, 60 of the security page 11, at least one of the pages 13 and/or the front cover 14 are aligned. Any misalignment of perforations 40 in at least one window 20 may also be identified by viewing perforations 40 adjacent to perforations 50, 60 of adjacent leaf 13 and/or cover 14.

Since the first data element 41 is located partially in the at least one window 20, the threat of fraudulent modification by removing or adjusting the at least one window 20 is reduced. The incorporation of the at least one third data element 45 as a variable data item 25 in the same at least one window 20 as the first data element 41 would also mean that a person attempting to modify the booklet 10, for example by changing the identity of the bearer, would necessarily have to remove or modify the at least one window 20. Furthermore, by forming the first data element 41 and/or the second data element 42 of the complete data entry 43, the modifier will need to replace the opaque area 21 and the at least one window 20 if the modifier wants to change the data entry 43.

Various alternatives to the embodiments discussed above are within the scope of the invention. The security page 11 may be a separate security document, for example in the form of a card, rather than forming part of the booklet 10. At least one of the leaves 13, in particular at least one of the leaves 13 adjacent to the security sheet 11, may comprise A polymeric substrate as disclosed in WO-A-2017/163062.

Instead of being in the form of a substantially rigid plastic substrate 15, the security page 11 may instead comprise a substantially flexible plastic substrate 15 and at least one opaque layer on at least one surface of the flexible plastic substrate 15. Such flexible plastic substrates 15 are commonly used to form "polymer" banknotes, may contain a variety of security features and may include, for example, biaxially oriented pp (bopp). The at least one opaque layer forms at least one opaque region 21 and is omitted in a localised region on the opposite side of the flexible plastic substrate 15, the flexible plastic substrate 15 being substantially transparent so as to form at least one window 20. WO-A-2017/163062 discloses A suitable construction of such A flexible plastic substrate 15.