JPH0795341B2 - Information storage card identification method and identification device - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention is set in a reader / writer so as to prevent forgery of an information storage card such as a magnetic card, an IC card, an optical card, etc., for exchanging information with the reader / writer. The present invention relates to a method and structure for identifying a card as a legitimate card.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, a bar code or a magnetic bar code is provided on the surface of a card to prevent the magnetic card from being forged, or a magnetic card which is not reused is used after being used on the magnetic recording surface. Although methods such as punching holes have been carried out, in each of the above methods, the forgery side can relatively easily analyze the structure and can forge the card using a relatively inexpensive device. There was a problem to say. There is also a structure in which a hologram for visually inspecting is provided on the surface of the card, but there is a problem that the authenticity is confused by normal printing imitating this hologram and the reliability of identification is lacking.

Therefore, Japanese Patent Application No. Hei.
No. -209065 describes the diffraction characteristic of the card surface.
The reflection hologram unit having the characteristics provided a means for irradiating illumination light to the writer toward the hologram portion of the card, and light receiving means for receiving at a position corresponding to the reflected light from the hologram portion on its diffraction properties , A means for identifying whether or not the card set in the reader / writer is an authorized card based on the intensity of light received by the light receiving means. Details above
In the identification structure in the book, the card is set in the reader / writer.
Illuminating light toward the hologram part of the card
And the diffracted light is received by the light-receiving surface, and the received light intensity
If is equal to or more than a predetermined value, it is identified as a legitimate card.
Growling.

According to this identification structure, not only is it difficult to analyze the hologram portion for the purpose of counterfeiting the card, but it also requires a great deal of cost to create the hologram portion. It is virtually impossible to forge such a card. Further, the card is identified by a simple structure in which the hologram portion is irradiated with illumination light, the intensity of the light received by the light receiving means is photoelectrically converted, and the output voltage thereof is compared with a predetermined threshold voltage. The equipment provided in the reader / writer does not become large / complex.

[0005]

However, in the above identification structure, even if the card set in the reader / writer is a legitimate card, if the reflection efficiency of the hologram portion is low due to dirt or the like, the light receiving means receives the light. The intensity of the emitted light does not become higher than the predetermined value, and in some cases, it is possible that this card is mistakenly recognized as an unauthorized card. On the contrary, even if the card set in the reader / writer is not a regular card, if the entire surface of the card is a highly reflective color such as white, most of the illumination light is reflected,
In some cases, it is possible to misidentify this card as a legitimate card.

On the other hand, a holog for existing visual inspection
If the ram can be identified by the reader / writer as described above,
Anti-counterfeiting of existing cards is easy and reliable
Therefore, its development was desired.

Therefore, the present inventor illuminates a hologram.
When illuminated with bright light, the illuminating light illuminates the hologram surface.
Diffracts and reflects around the shooting point, but the direction of reflection
Depending on the folding characteristics, the hologram is holographic in the plane orthogonal to the hologram surface.
The angle formed by the ram surface (solid angle) and its hologram surface
It has an angle (planar angle) that is projected inside the
That the received light intensity changes depending on the
It is a hologram made from the same plate even if the emission efficiency decreases.
If so, the intensity distribution of the light in the reflection direction changes according to the diffraction characteristics.
Focused on the lack of points. It should be noted that the irradiation light is almost reflected
In the case of (white) surface, the distribution in each direction will be uniform.
U

In view of the above problems of the prior art, the main object of the present invention is to have a high effect of preventing forgery of a card, and to make it easy for the card set in the reader / writer to be a legitimate card even if it becomes dirty . And it can be surely identified ,
Applicable to cards with a visual inspection hologram
An object of the present invention is to provide an effective information storage card identification method and identification device.

[0009]

According to the present invention, such an object has an inherent diffractive characteristic including a reflection direction characteristic.
Information is stored between the information storage card and the hologram section on the surface.
At the reader / writer that exchanges information,
Information storage card identification for identifying a card
Alternatively, it may be directly above the hologram part.
And illuminate the diffracted light to the hologram section.
An annular region centered on the optical axis of the illumination light in the facing surface
Light is received by a plurality of light-receiving surface parts formed by dividing
Relative relationship of the intensity of the light received on the surface part evaluated in multiple stages
And the illumination light on the hologram part on the regular card
Multi-level evaluation of light received at each light-receiving surface when illuminated
The card by comparing the relative relationship of the strength
Is characterized by identifying that is a legitimate card
Includes information storage card identification method and unique reflection direction characteristics.
Information recording having a hologram portion having diffractive characteristics on the surface
With a reader / writer that exchanges information with a memory card,
To identify that the card is a legitimate card
An identification device for an information storage card, the hologram unit
Means for irradiating the illuminating light from directly above the
In order to receive the diffracted light from the program part,
A ring centered on the optical axis of the illuminating light in a plane facing the beam portion.
Light-receiving surface portions formed by dividing the circular area, and each of the light-receiving surfaces
And the relative relationship of the multi-level intensity of the light received at the section,
Irradiate the hologram part on a regular card with illumination light.
Multi-level evaluation of the light received at each light receiving surface when
By comparing the relative strength of the card,
Having a means to identify that it is a regulation card
This is accomplished by providing a featured information storage card identification device .

[0010]

According to the above construction, regardless of the surface color of the card or the state of dirt, it is expressed by the multi-valued level of each light receiving surface.
By comparing the received light intensity distribution with the received light intensity distribution when the regular card is irradiated with the illumination light, it is possible to identify whether or not the card set in the reader / writer is a regular card. Also, when illuminating the regular card with illumination light in advance,
Store the received light intensity distribution expressed at multiple levels.
For example, existing holograms for visual inspection can be optically identified.
Both can be done easily.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is an embodiment to which the present invention is applied, and is a perspective view schematically showing a main structure in a magnetic card 1 and a card reader / writer.

The card 1 is driven in the direction indicated by an arrow in the card reader / writer, that is, in the substantially left-right direction in FIG. Information is written to and / or read from the magnetic stripe 2.

A hologram portion 4 as a light receiving surface portion is provided on the main surface 1a of the card 1 at a position parallel to the magnetic stripe 2. The hologram unit 4 is a reflection hologram having a diffraction characteristic including a reflection direction characteristic of reflecting illumination light having a predetermined wavelength, which is emitted from a direction directly facing the hologram, in a specific direction.

On the other hand, on the card reader / writer side, when the card 1 is in the position shown by the solid line in FIG. 1, it faces the hologram portion 4 on the main surface 1a thereof, and the hologram portion 4 is present.
A light emitting element 5 is provided as a laser beam irradiator at a position spaced apart by a predetermined distance. Further, as well shown in FIG. 2, a light receiving element as a light receiving surface portion formed of a multi-divided photodiode divided into a large number of dividing lines 6a to 6h along a radial direction so as to surround the light emitting element 5. 6 is provided integrally with the light emitting element 5. The output voltage of each of the portions 6a to 6h formed of the multi-divided photodiode changes according to the intensity of received light. Each part 6a to 6h of the light receiving element 6 is connected to an identification unit 7 for identifying whether or not the card 1 is an authorized card. The identification unit 7 is additionally provided with a storage unit 7a for storing the distribution of the output voltage from the respective portions 6a to 6h of the light receiving element 6 when the illumination light is emitted toward the hologram portion of the regular card.

In order to actually identify the card 1, the card 1 inserted into the card reader / writer is conveyed and illumination light is emitted from the light emitting element 5 toward the hologram section 4. Then, the reflected light is received by the light receiving element 6. The distribution of the output voltage, that is, the received light intensity from each of the portions 6a to 6h of the light receiving element 6 (Table 1) and each portion 6a when the hologram portion of the regular card stored in the storage portion 7a is irradiated with the illumination light.
The distribution of output voltages from ~ 6h is compared, and if the distribution states match, the identification unit 7 identifies that the card 1 is a normal card. Actually, each part 6a-6
The output voltage from h, that is, the analog value, is detected as a seven-step received light intensity with a 3-bit code, for example, and each output voltage when the hologram light of the regular card stored with the 3-bit code is irradiated with illumination light. Compared to the distribution of.

For comparison of the distribution states, for example, each part 6a
.. to 6h are compared with the corresponding voltage values stored in the storage unit 7a to see if they are all within a predetermined range, or the ratio of the voltage values of the portions 6a to 6h or the voltage values. You may compare the logarithmic ratio etc. of.

[0017]

[Table 1]

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a hologram section showing a second embodiment to which the present invention is applied. This embodiment has the same configuration as that of the first embodiment, but five specific reflection positions 14a to 14e are set in the hologram portion 14. On the card reader / writer side, by moving the light emitting element 5 and the light receiving element 6, the specific reflection positions 14a-14
Illumination light is emitted from the light emitting element 5 in order toward e, the reflected light is received by the light receiving element 6, and the reflection positions 14a to 1
4e, the distribution of the output voltage from each of the portions 6a to 6h (Table 2), and the respective portions 6a to 6h when the hologram portion of the regular card stored in the storage portion 7a is irradiated with the illumination light.
The distribution of the output voltage from is compared, and if the distribution states match, the identification unit 7 identifies that the card 1 is a normal card.

In this embodiment, the number of reflection positions is 5, but the number is not limited to this, and any number may be provided. Also,
In this embodiment, a hologram similar to the conventional one was used for the hologram portion, and five reflection positions were set at arbitrary positions. However, in reality, there is an error when the illumination light is applied to the reflection positions, and therefore the identification reliability is high. In order to improve the property, it is preferable that each reflection position has an area considering the above error.

[0020]

[Table 2]

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2 showing a third embodiment to which the present invention is applied. In this embodiment, the light receiving element 26
Is divided into two by dividing lines along the circumferential direction, and each of the outer portions 26a to 26h is divided by a large number of dividing lines along the radial direction.
And a multi-divided photodiode divided into inner portions 26i to 26p. That is, the light is received by more photodiodes than in each of the above-mentioned embodiments, and each of the portions 26a to 26 is
The distribution of the output voltage from p and the distribution of the output voltage from each of the portions 26a to 26p when the hologram portion of the regular card is irradiated with the illumination light are compared. Identification reliability is improved because 1 is identified as a legitimate card. The other configuration is the same as that of the first embodiment. It is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and can be applied in various ways. For example, in each of the above-mentioned embodiments, the reflection surface having the characteristic of the reflection direction is constituted by the reflection type hologram. There is no limitation, and for example, a diffraction grating may be used.

Needless to say, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments and can be applied in various ways. For example, in each of the above-mentioned embodiments , a reflection hologram having a dedicated diffraction characteristic is provided.
Card with a hologram part consisting of
However, the present invention is not limited to this.
In a regular card with rum as the hologram part
When illuminating light in advance on a specific area of the hologram
If you store the received light intensity distribution, the light in that specific area
You can also identify cards by identifying them
Wear.

[0023]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, the unique diffraction provided on the surface of the information storage card.
Illumination light is radiated toward a hologram part having characteristics, and the diffracted light is received by a plurality of light-receiving surface portions provided at predetermined positions, and the intensity of the light received at each light-receiving surface portion is evaluated in multiple stages.
The relative relationship between the degree of light obtained by two respective light receiving surface upon irradiation of illumination light to at hologram unit to the proper card multi
The card set in the reader / writer is a legitimate card only by measuring and comparing the received light intensity distribution of each light receiving surface regardless of the surface color of the card or the state of dirt by comparing the relative relationship of the graded strength. Since it is possible to identify whether or not the card is present, the identification reliability of the card is improved. Also, this
The existing visual inspection hologram will be installed.
Card can be optically identified and
The structure does not become complicated. From the above, the effect of the present invention is great.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a main part of a magnetic card and a card reader / writer showing a preferred embodiment according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing only the light emitting element and the light receiving element of FIG. 1 in an enlarged manner.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged plan view of only a hologram portion showing a second embodiment according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a plan view similar to FIG. 2, showing a third embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Card 1a Main surface 2 Magnetic stripe 3 Magnetic head 4 Hologram part 5 Light emitting element 6 Light receiving element 6a to 6h part 7 Identification unit 14 Hologram part 14a to 14e Reflection position 26 Light receiving element 26a to 26p part

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A diffractive characteristic including a characteristic of a specific reflection direction is provided.
A method for identifying an information storage card for identifying that the card is a legitimate card in a reader / writer for exchanging information with an information storage card having a hologram portion on the surface, the hologram comprising: Illumination light is radiated from directly above to the part, and the diffracted light is emitted in the plane facing the hologram part.
It is formed by dividing an annular region centered on the optical axis of the illumination light.
The relative relationship between the intensities evaluated by the multi-level evaluation of the light received by the plurality of light-receiving surface portions and received by each of the light-receiving surface portions, and the light-receiving surface portions when the illumination light is applied to the hologram portion in the regular card. Relative function of the intensity of the received light
A method for identifying an information storage card, characterized in that the card is identified as a legitimate card by comparing with a person in charge . 2. Reflection directions different from each other depending on the surface position
A method of identifying an information storage card for identifying that the card is a legitimate card by a reader / writer that exchanges information with an information storage card having a hologram portion having a diffraction characteristic including characteristics. , Two or more identifications in the hologram portion of the card
Illumination light is radiated in order from directly above to the position, and the diffracted light is illuminated in the plane facing the hologram section.
A plurality of ring-shaped regions centered on the optical axis of bright light
Received by the light receiving surface, it said in the specific position of each of the multi-step evaluation intensities of the light received by the light receiving surface relative
Relationship and multi-step of the light received on each light receiving surface when the hologram part in a regular card is irradiated with illumination light
An information storage card identification method, characterized in that the card is identified as a legitimate card by comparing with a relative relationship of the evaluated strength . 3. A diffractive characteristic including an intrinsic reflection direction characteristic
An information storage card identification device for identifying that the card is a legitimate card in a reader / writer for exchanging information with an information storage card having a hologram portion on its surface, wherein the hologram Means for irradiating the illuminating light from directly above it to the optical section, and for receiving the diffracted light from the hologram section,
Centering on the optical axis of the illumination light in the plane facing the program part
A plurality of light receiving surface portions formed by dividing the annular region to be , of the multi-level evaluated intensity of the light received by each light receiving surface portion.
And relative relationship, the light received at each light-receiving surface upon irradiation of illumination light in the hologram portion to the proper card multi
An information storage card identification device, comprising means for identifying that the card is a regular card by comparing with a relative relationship of strengths evaluated in stages . 4. Reflection directions different from each other depending on the surface position
A reader / writer that exchanges information with an information storage card having a hologram portion having a diffraction characteristic including characteristics, and is an information storage card identification device for identifying that the card is a legitimate card. Means for sequentially illuminating two or more specific reflection positions in the hologram portion of the card with illumination light, and a means for receiving the diffracted light from the hologram portion.
Centering on the optical axis of the illumination light in the plane facing the program part
And a plurality of light-receiving surface portions formed by dividing the annular area, and the relative relationship between the multi-level evaluated intensities of the light received by the light-receiving surface portions at the specific positions, and the hologram in a regular card. The relative relationship of the multi-step intensities of the light received at each light receiving surface when the area is illuminated with illumination light.
An information storage card identification device, characterized in that it has means for identifying that the card is a legitimate card by comparing with a person in charge .