Layered Data Carrier Security Features via Ultrasonic Welding
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing data carriers for security documents, such as identity cards and passports, are prone to forgery due to security features that can be easily copied, removed, or replaced, and current methods like surface embossing are inadequate for preventing such tampering.
Innovation Solution
A method involving ultrasonic welding to create a first deformation inside the data carrier at the interface between layers, forming a security feature that is difficult to remove or modify, combined with a revealing layer to enhance visibility and a stacked structure by lamination, allowing for complex and covert or overt security features.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If surface embossing is used for security features, then the security feature can be formed on the data carrier, but the security feature can be copied, removed and/or replaced
Solution Approach 1:
The security feature is embedded within the layered structure of the data carrier itself, nesting the security element inside the carrier rather than placing it on the surface. This makes the security feature an integral part of the carrier that cannot be easily removed or replaced without destroying the carrier structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The deformation forming the security feature is created during the lamination process itself, before the final data carrier structure is completed. This preliminary formation of the security feature during manufacturing ensures it is integrated into the carrier's core structure rather than added later as a separate element.
2Reliability
If security features are placed on the surface of the data carrier, then they are visible and accessible, but they are prone to forgery and tampering
Solution Approach 1:
The security feature is moved from the two-dimensional surface to the three-dimensional interior of the data carrier. By embedding the deformation within the layered structure, the feature gains depth and spatial complexity, making it difficult to replicate while maintaining detectability through optical or tactile means.
3Reliability
If deformation is formed by ultrasonic welding at the interface between layers, then the security feature becomes difficult to remove or modify, but the process requires precise control of welding parameters
Solution Approach 1:
The ultrasonic welding process utilizes controlled variations in welding parameters (amplitude, pressure, time, frequency) to create the security feature deformation. By precisely adjusting these parameters, the process achieves reliable formation of permanent deformations at layer interfaces while maintaining manufacturability through standardized process control.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The method enhances security by making it difficult for forgers to replicate or alter the security features, while enabling personalization and compatibility with other security elements without interfering with the embossing process, resulting in a highly secure data carrier.
Implementation Method 1
Ultrasonic welding corresponds to a process that uses mechanical vibrations in the ultrasonic range. These vibrations, produced by a sonotrode, as it is generally known, are used to act on at least part of deformed layer, whereby the first deformation is produced.
Data Source
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AI summary
A method of forming a data carrier for a security document, the method comprising: providing a first outer layer and second outer layer, forming a first security feature at the interface between at least two adjacent layers, said first security feature comprising a first deformation of one of the layers, providing at least one revealing layer, forming a stacked structure with said first outer layer, said second outer layer and said revealing layer, said stacked structure being formed by lamination, wherein said first deformation is formed by ultrasonic welding.