GB2352708A

GB2352708A - Laminated identity badge and method for production thereof

Info

Publication number: GB2352708A
Application number: GB9918490A
Authority: GB
Inventors: David Pierce Hughes
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1999-08-06
Filing date: 1999-08-06
Publication date: 2001-02-07
Also published as: GB9918490D0

Abstract

An identity badge 10 comprises: a substrate 20 on which indicia 12 and 14 are displayed; and an at least partially transparent overlay 22 on which indicia 16 and optionally a photographic representation 24 can be printed as well as handwriting, which at least partially covers the substrate so that the indicia on the substrate and overlay are visible in juxtaposition. The substrate can be paper, card or plastic, preferably with security features, e.g. a hologram. The overlay is preferably a transparent plastic film with an adhesive surface for bonding to the substrate. A photograph may be disposed between the substrate and overlay. A protective enclosure 28 with means 40 by which it can be carried is adhesively attached to the substrate and overlay. The substrate is preferably prepared in bulk, and the overlay printed when required using a computer and printer. The computer preferably has a database of indicia which can be printed, including photographic representations.

Description

2352708 Personal Identification System The present invention relates to a

personal identification system.

There are a large number of circumstances in which there is a need to provide personnel with a visible means of identification. Typically, these are in the form of an identity badge prominently wom by or carried by a person. This can serve to indicate that a person is suitably qualified, a member of a particular organisation, and so forth. In many cases, the identity of the particular individual will also be shown, both typographically and as a photographic representation. One specific example is the identity and licence plate and card issued by local authorities to a taxi driver. Thus, the information presented in identity badges issued by any organisation. typically has a fixed component that identifies the purpose of the badge, identifies the issuing organisation, and so forth, and a variable Component which identifies the individual.

Preferably, the fixed component of the information presented by an identity badge has a degree of complexity which renders unauthorised copying difficult. This has a side-effect in that it is more difficult for those properly authorised people to produce identity badges. Typically, the fixed component must be reproduced by high-quality printing apparatus which may not be affordable by many organisations, and may be time consuming to produce. Therefore, the production of such badges must be entrusted to a specialist printer resulting in delay and cost. This is especially disadvantageous where the badges are produced on an occasional basis, rather than in large batches.

It is therefore an aim of this invention to provide a system whereby identity badges can be produced as required using equipment likely to be accessible to most businesses, and can be completed and issued on demand in a little time.

Accordingly, from a first aspect, the invention provides an identity badge comprising a substrate having a display surface on which indicia are displayed and an overlay applied to cover at least part of the display surface of the substrate, wherein the overlay is, at least in part, transparent such that the indicia on the display surface are visible through it, and indicia (referred to as "the variable indicia") are presented 2 on the overlay which are visible in juxtaposition with the indicia on the display surface.

The substrate can therefore present the fixed component of the identity information while the overlay can contain the variable portion. This permits an organisation to obtain a stock of substrate components and apply to them overlays containing the variable component of information as and when required.

The variable indicia on the overlay may conveniently be produced by a conventional computer printer, such as a laser printer, or an ink-jet printer. Such devices are commonly available to most businesses and are not costly. The variable indicia displayed on it may be monochrome and the variable information may comprise text, numerical or symbolic information.

Typically, the variable indicia are generated by a suitable computer program. The program may receive manual input from a user. Alternatively or additionally, it may receive data from a database of information whereby the variable indicia can be generated automatically. The database may contain digital photographic representations of individuals to whom badges are to be issued.

In certain circumstances, the variable information may be hand-written. This may be useful in circumstances where a computer or similar equipment is not available, such as during a power failure or in sites which are remote or unsuited to electronic equipment.

The overlay may be a film of suitable transparent plastic material. Most preferably, the overlay has an adhesive surface by which it can be bonded to the substrate. In a preferred embodiment, the overlay is a selfadhesive label. Such a label may be one of several on a common backing sheet, whereby several overlays can be printed in a single operation.

In many embodiments, a photographic representation of an individual will be provided on the identity badge. The photographic representation may be of a conventional type of photograph which may typically disposed between the substrate 3 and the overlay. Alternatively, the photographic representation may be printed as part one of the variable indicia.

The substrate is typically formed of paper, card or thin plastic. Most preferably, it is backed with an adhesive layer. It may be printed by any suitable printing process. It may also include additional features to render copying more difficult. For example, it may include a hologram and/or complex printing such as multiple colour printing. It will be appreciated that an organisation. can obtain stocks of the substrate in bulk, so benefiting from the savings associated with bulk printing. Moreover, it is not necessary to obtain a substrate specially printed for a particular badge. Therefore, provided that a stock of substrate is maintained, a badge for an individual can be printed at any time.

The substrate and the overlay may suitably be encapsulated in a protective enclosure. Such an enclosure is preferably constructed such that the substrate and the overlay cannot be removed from it without causing them to be severely damaged or destroyed. This reduces the possibly of the badge being fraudulently tampered with. The enclosure most preferably include fon-nations by means of which it can readily be carried on a person. Such formations may include a clip or a pin for attachment to an article of clothing, and/or a hole through which a chain can be passed in order that the badge may be wom suspended from a person's neck. Most typically, the protective enclosure has first and second transparent plastic leaves, at least one of which is coated with an adhesive, whereby the combined substrate and the overlay can be retained between the leaves.

From a second aspect, the invention provides a method for production of an identity badge in which a substrate is prepared having visible indicia on a display surface, an overlay is prepared by having variable indicia printed on it, the overlay being at least partly transparent, and the overlay is applied to the substrate such that the indicia on the substrate are visible through the overlay in juxtaposition with the variable indicia.

4 The substrate is preferably prepared as one of a bulk batch. Preparation of the substrate may include a step of printing onto card or plastic sheet.

The overlay is most preferably printed by a computer printer such as a laser printer or an ink-jet printer. The variable indicia may be derived from information input manually into the computer. Alternatively or additionally, the information may be derived from a computer database.

From a third aspect, the invention provides a system for carrying out the method of the second aspect which system includes a computer and a printer, the computer having a program which is operable to cause the printer to print the variable indicia on the overlay.

An embodiment of the invention will now be described in detail, by way of example only, and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows an identity badge being an embodiment of the invention; Figure 2 illustrates a plurality of overlays printed with variable indicia and carried on a common carrier; Figure 3 shows a single substrate being a component of the badge of Figure 1; Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view along line A-A of the badge of Figure 1 prior to a final sealing operation being performed; and Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view of the badge of Figure 1 in completed form.

With reference to the figures, an identity badge 10. The badge 10 might, for example, be used to display confirm the identity of a taxi driver, and to confirm that the driver is properly licensed. The badg e displays a range of information. There is a fixed portion of information which is the same for each badge issued. This fixed portion of the information includes indicia such as text 12, a hologram 14, logos, and a patterned and coloured background (n ot shown). Most typically, the fixed portion of the information will identify the organisation that has issued the badge and to indicate the status and/or the qualification of the individual to whom it relates.

Additionally, there is a variable portion of information which, in this embodiment includes text 16 relating to an individual and a photograph 24 of the individual.

The construction of the badge 10 will now be described in detail.

The badge comprises a substrate 20. In this embodiment, the substrate 20 is formed from paper backed with adhesive. When manufactured, the adhesive is covered by a cover sheet which can be removed to ex. pose the adhesive. Other materials, such as card or plastic, could alternatively be used. All of the fixed portion of the information is printed or otherwise. formed on a display surface of the substrate 20. The fixed portion of the information is designed so as to be distinctive, readily recognisable, and difficult to copy.

The hologram is a conventional security hologram of a type which is well known to those familiar with security products. The hologram 14 is applied to the substrate onto which it is secured by adhesive. The appearance of the hologram constitutes a part of the fixed portion of the information.

The display surface of the substrate 20 is almost entirely covered by an overlay 22. The overlay is formed as a thin, flexible sheet of transparent plastic material. An adhesive layer is provided on one surface (which will be referred to as the rear surface) of the overlay. The adhesive layer serves to bond the overlay 22 onto the display surface of the substrate 20. Bearing in mind that the overlay is transparent, it will be realised that the display surface of the substrate 20 will be visible though it.

The surface of the overlay 22 opposite that on which the adhesive layer is provided will be referred to as the front surface. Upon the front surface indicia are printed. These indicia form part of the variable portion of the information displayed by the badge. With the overlay 22 in place on the substrate 20, the indicia will be seen set against a background of the display surface and the information that appears there.

In most cases, the variable portion of the information will include a visual representation of the rightful user of the badge. In this embodiment, this is achieved by placing a photographic representation 24 on the substrate 20. Application of the 6 overlay 22 then retains the photograph 24 in place. Optionally, the photograph 24 is secured to the substrate 20 by adhesive.

An alternative to the arrangement described in the last-preceding paragraph is to print an image being a photographic representation of the individual onto the front 5 surface of the overlay 22 along with the other indicia.

The assembly comprising the substrate 20, the overlay 22, and the photograph 24 are contained within an enclosure 28. The enclosure 28 comprises front and rear leaves 30,32. Each leaf 30,32 is formed of tough plastic material. At least the front leaf 30 is transparent. The leaves 30,32.are approximately rectangular in shape and substantially the same size. The front and rear leaves 30,32 are bonded together along an edge region 44 such that the can overlie one another. An adhesive layer is provided on the front leaf 30 on the surface which lies adjacent the rear leaf 32. On manufacture, the adhesive layer is covered by a protective sheet (not shown) which can be removed to expose the adhesive.

Several apertures 40 are formed through the edge region 44 through which retention formations can be secured to the badge. The retention formations serve to retain the badge for display or for carrying on a person.

To complete assembly of the badge, the cover sheet is removed from the substrate 20 and the substrate (and the overlay 22) is applied to the rear leaf 32 of the enclosure 28, such that the display surface of the substrate 20 faces towards the front leaf 30. (The front leaf 30 can be folded back (as shown in Figure 4) to gain access to the rear leaf 32.) The protective sheet is then removed from the front leaf 30 to expose the adhesive and the front leaf is then pressed down onto the rear leaf 32. This produces a sealed, laminated assembly with a cross-section as shown in Figure 5.

Advantageously, the adhesive on the front leaf 30 is of a high strength and tack such that any attempt to separate the leaves 30,32 will pull apart the assembly of the substrate 20 and overlay 22 and damage its components. This ensures that the variable information, including the photographic representation of the individual, cannot be replaced without leaving evidence that the badge has been tampered with.

7 For use, an organisation can procure supplies of the substrate 20 from a specialist supplier. This avoids the need for the organisation to poses the specialist printing equipment necessary to produce a substrate of sufficient visual complexity to render unauthorised reproduction difficult. On the other hand, the organisation will normally produce their own overlays in order that a badge can be produced as and when required and at low cost.

As shown in figure 2, the overlays 22 may suitably be formed from self adhesive labels which can be obtained in sheets 42, as shown in Figure 2. Each sheet carries several labels (for example, 6, 8, 10, 12 or 16 labels). Labels are peeled from the sheet 42 (which protects their adhesive surface) for use. Indicia can be printed onto multiple labels in one printing ope ration by a printer controlled by a suitably programmed computer. Any suitable printer may be used provided that it is compatible with the indicia to be printed and with the material from which the overlays.

is For example, in many cases (particularly where a separate photograph is to be included) the indicia. carried on the overlay 20 may be satisfactorily reproduced in monochrome. In such cases, a laser printer may be used. Where a photograph is to be generated on the overlay, a colour laser printer or an ink-jet printer may be more suitable.

In a simple embodiment, the program may receive information entered manually by a user for direct reproduction on one or more overlays. Alternatively, the data may be derived from a database. The database may also contain digitised images from which photographic representations of the individuals can be printed.

This arrangement allows for badges for a number of authorised individuals to be produced automatically in a batch.

Claims

1. An identity badge comprising a substrate having a display surface on which indicia are displayed and an overlay applied to cover at least part of the display surface of the substrate, wherein the overlay is, at least in part, transparent such that the indicia on the display surface are visible through it, and indicia (referred to as "the variable indicia") are presented on the overlay which are visible in juxtaposition with the indicia on the display surface.

2. An identity badge according to claim 1 in which at least some of the variable indicia on the overlay are produced by a conventional computer printer, such as a laser printer, or an ink-jet printer.

3. An identity badge according to claim I or claim 2 in which at least some of the variable indicia on the overlay are hand-written.

4. An identity badge according to any preceding claim in which the variable indicia displayed on the overlay comprises text, numerical or symbolic information.

5. An identity badge according to any preceding claim in which the overlay is a film of transparent plastic material.

6. An identity badge according to any preceding claim in which the overlay has an adhesive surface by which it can be bonded to the substrate.

7. An identity badge according to claim 6 in which the overlay is a selfadhesive label.

8. An identity badge according to claim 7 in which the label is one of several on a common backing sheet.

9. An identity badge according to any preceding claim in which a photographic representation of an individual is provided on the identity badge.

9

10. An identity badge according to any preceding claim in which the photograph is disposed between the substrate and the overlay.

11. An identity badge according to any one of claims 1 to 9 in which the photographic representation is printed on the overlay as part of the variable indicia.

12. An identity badge according to any preceding claim in which the substrate is formed of paper, card or thin plastic.

13. An identity badge according to any preceding claim in which the substrate includes features that act to reduce the ease with which it may be copied.

io

14. An identity badge according to claim 13 in which the said features include a hologram and/or complex printed matter.

15. An identity badge according to any preceding claim in which the substrate and the overlay are encapsulated in a protective enclosure.

16. An identity badge according to claim 15 in which the enclosure is constructed such that the substrate and the overlay cannot be removed from it without causing them to be severely damaged or destroyed..

17. An identity badge according to claim 15 or 16 in which the enclosure includes fonnations by means of which it can readily be carried on a person

18. An identity badge according to any one of claims 15 to 17 in which the protective enclosure has first and second transparent plastic leaves, at least one of which is coated with an adhesive, whereby the combined substrate and the overlay can be retained between the leaves.

19. An identity badge substantially as any embodiment described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings.

20. A method for production of an identity badge in which a substrate is prepared having visible indicia on a display surface, an overlay is prepared by having variable indicia printed on it, the overlay being at least partly transparent, and the overlay is applied to the substrate such that the indicia on the substrate are visible through the overlay in juxtaposition with the variable indicia.

21. A method according to claim 20 in which the substrate is prepared as one of a bulk batch.

22. A method according to claim 20 or claim 21 in which preparation of the substrate includes a step of printing onto paper, card or plastic sheet.

23. A method according to any one of claims 20 to 22 which includes a step in which at least some of the variable indicia are printed.

24. A method according to any one of claims 20 to 23 which includes a step in which at least some of the variable indicia are hand-written.

A system for carrying out the a method according to any one of claims 20 to 24 which system includes a computer and a printer, the computer having a program which is operable to cause the printer to print the variable indicia on the overlay.

26. A system according to claim 25 which further includes a database which includes data from which the variable indicia is derived.

27. A system according to claim 26 in which the database includes photographic representations of individuals to whom the badges will be issued.