JPH04166396A - Ic card module - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain an IC card module having excellent bending resistance and impact resistance by sealing thermoplastic rubber in an IC card module and protecting said module by a protective plate having high rigidity. CONSTITUTION:A through-hole 4 electrically connects a connection electrode 2 and a circuit pattern 3 and a potting frame 5 damming up the flow of the potting material sealing an IC chip is bonded to a module substrate 1 by an epoxy resin. The IC chip 7 is fixed to the module substrate 1 by an adhesive 6 and a conductor 9 electrically connects the electrode 8 on the IC chip 7 and the circuit pattern 3 by wire bonding. As a sealing material 11 composed of thermoplastic rubber, one having a proper m.p., a proper glass transition point and proper impact resilience is selected. A protective plate 12 having thigh rigidity is bonded to either one of the potting frame 5 and the sealing material 11. Since the periphery of the IC chip is sealed by rubber having elasticity, the impact from the outside is hard to transmit to the IC chip and, by providing the protective plate of high rigidity, sufficient resistance is obtained even against bending stress.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to an IC card, and more particularly to an improvement of the IC card module.

[Conventional technology]

Currently, various cards are used, from cash cards and credit cards to hospital tickets.

Currently, most of these cards are magnetic stripe cards. However, it is said that there are limits to functional expansion due to insufficient storage capacity, and there are also limitations in terms of security and authenticity, as it is easy to forge or alter.

As a card that overcomes these problems, has an extremely large storage capacity, and has advanced security features, the I
There are IC cards that have a module with a built-in C-chip embedded in them, and some have already implemented this technology in cash cards and ID cards that also have a bank passbook function.

FIG. 2 shows an example of a conventional IC card module. I
In the C card module, an IC chip is fixed with adhesive to a module substrate 1 on which a connection terminal pattern 2 and a circuit pattern 3 are formed on one side, and an electrode 8 and a circuit pattern 3 are connected with a conductor 9. Material 1
It is a structure sealed with 0. Here, 4 is a through hole for electrically connecting the connection terminal pattern 2 and the circuit pattern 3, and 5 is a potting frame for preventing the flow of the potting material 10.

In an IC card module having such a structure, the module substrate 1 is made of a material that is relatively resistant to bending stress, such as glass epoxy, and the potting material 10 is made of a material that is relatively resistant to bending stress, such as epoxy resin. Since a weak material is used, it is susceptible to bending stress from a specific direction due to the difference in mechanical strength between the two, and there is a risk that the internal IC chip may be damaged when the IC card is bent significantly. Further, since the epoxy resin used for the botting material 10 has poor impact resistance, the IC chip may be damaged by the impact of dropping the IC card or the impact of a load on the IC card. As described above, the structure of conventional IC cards is weak against bending and impact, and has poor reliability.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

The object of the present invention is to solve the drawbacks of the conventional products, such as poor bending resistance and impact resistance, and thereby provide an IC card module with excellent reliability.

[Means to solve the problem]

In an IC card module built into or attached to an IC card, thermoplastic rubber is sealed in the IC card module to seal the IC chip, and a protective plate made of a highly rigid metal or resin is provided on the card side of the thermoplastic rubber. The structure is such that it is glued together.

[Effect]

By doing this, when the IC card is bent, the strength of the protection plate and the module board are made almost equal and sufficient, and when an impact is applied, the strength of the IC card encapsulated in the IC card module is handled. Thermoplastic rubber protects IC chips from impact.

〔Example〕

First embodiment of the IC card module of the present invention
This will be explained using figures. Here, ■ is a module board made of, for example, glass epoxy, and each side has a connection electrode 2 with the outside made by etching copper foil and then plating with nickel and gold. A wire bonding circuit pattern 3 produced in the same manner is formed. Reference numeral 4 represents a through hole for electrically connecting the connection electrode 2 and the circuit pattern 3.

Reference numeral 5 denotes a potting frame made of, for example, glass epoxy, which blocks the flow of the potting material for sealing the IC chip, and is bonded to the module substrate 1 with epoxy resin.

The IC chip 7 is fixed to the module substrate 1 with an adhesive side 6 made of, for example, epoxy resin. A conductor 9 is made of, for example, a gold wire, and electrically connects the electrode 8 on the IC chip 7 and the circuit pattern 3 by wire bonding.

11 is a sealing material made of thermoplastic rubber such as urethane rubber, polyester thermoplastic rubber, or styrene-diene block polymer. For this sealing material 11, it is preferable to select an appropriate material with melting point, Tg (glass transition point), coefficient of restitution of rubber, etc., taking into consideration the temperature during operation, viscosity, and mechanical properties when rubberized. . A protective plate 12 is made of a highly rigid material such as a stainless steel plate or glass epoxy, and is adhered to at least one of the potting frame 5 and the sealing material 11.

In this structure, since the IC chip is sealed around the IC chip with elastic rubber, it is difficult for external shocks to be transmitted to the IC chip. Furthermore, since the rubber is thermoplastic, the workability of pouring in the sealing process can be ensured. Further, by providing a highly rigid protection plate, sufficient resistance against bending stress can be obtained.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, according to the present invention, the IC card module has excellent bending resistance and impact resistance by enclosing thermoplastic rubber inside the IC card module and protecting it with a highly rigid protection plate. is obtained.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a sectional view illustrating an embodiment of an IC card module of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a sectional view illustrating an example of a conventional IC card module. 7... IC chip, 11... Sealing material, 12... Protective plate. Figure 1 ゝ(,) ん) / Figure 2 ＼ ノ )7・′((＼ !

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) An IC card module built into or attached to an IC card, characterized in that an IC chip is sealed within the IC card module with a thermoplastic rubber sealing material. (2) The IC card module according to claim 1, characterized in that a protective plate made of a highly rigid metal or resin is adhered to the card side of the thermoplastic rubber.