Method for integrating a hologram into a security document body and security document body

Abstract

A method for integrating a hologram into the body of a security document that has a laminated body. The method includes: providing a holographic film having a backing substrate layer and a photo layer; providing additional substrate layers; carrying out a laminating process in order to form the laminated body, the holographic film together with the additional substrate layers being collated to form a substrate layer stack and being combined, together with the additional substrate layers, in a high-pressure, high-temperature laminating method to form the laminated body. There is also described a corresponding security document body.

Claims

1. A method of integrating a hologram into a security document body that comprises a laminated body, the method comprising: providing a holographic film having a backing substrate layer and a photo layer; providing additional substrate layers; collating the holographic film in a substrate layer stack together with the additional substrate layers; combining the holographic film and the additional substrate layers in a lamination process to form the laminated body; and laminating a curable protective sheet directly onto the photo layer before the combining step.

2. The method according to claim 1, which comprises exposing the holographic film prior to laminating the curable protective sheet onto the photo layer.

3. The method according to claim 1, which comprises fixing the hologram in the holographic film simultaneously with curing the laminated protective sheet.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the backing substrate layer is a plastic layer formed of the same polymer material as at least one of the additional substrate layers adjoining the backing substrate layer.

5. The method according to claim 1, which comprises curing the curable protective sheet by irradiation with electromagnetic radiation.

6. The method according to claim 1, which comprises curing the curable protective sheet on the photo layer before the combining step.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the photo layer includes a photopolymer.

8. A security document body having a hologram, the document body comprising: a laminated body with a plurality of mutually adjoining material layers being a plurality of surface-adjacent substrate layers and a photo layer in which the hologram is stored; and a curable protective sheet laminated directly onto said photo layer; said material layer forming said photo layer being bonded on one side to a material layer being a backing substrate layer, which is an outer member of said plurality of mutually adjacent material layers forming said substrate layers; said plurality of material layers corresponding to said substrate layers including said backing substrate layer, with which said material layer being said photo layer with the hologram is connected, are bonded together by a lamination method to form said laminated body.

9. The security document body according to claim 8, wherein said photo layer includes a photopolymer.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

(1) The invention will be explained in greater detail with reference to a drawing. The drawings show the following:

(2) FIG. 1 shows a schematic view to illustrate the production of a security document body;

(3) FIG. 2 shows another schematic view to illustrate the production of a security document body; and

(4) FIG. 3 shows a schematic sectional view through a security document body.

(5) The same technical features are assigned the same reference numerals in all drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(6) In FIG. 1, the production of a security document body 1 is shown schematically. First, a holographic film 10 is provided, for example as roll material. This holographic film 10 comprises a backing substrate layer 11 and a photo layer 12 applied thereto. The holographic film 10 is additionally bonded to a holographic film protective sheet 13 which protects the photo layer 12 from damage during processing.

(7) The holographic film 10 is fed into a contact copying station 20. In this station, the holographic film 10 is placed in contact with a hologram master 24. A laser 25 generates coherent light 26 which is passed through a spatial light modulator 27. This results in spatial modulation of the coherent light 26. The coherent light 28 that has been modulated in this way penetrates through the holographic film 10 to the hologram master 24 and is diffracted thereon, reconstructing a hologram of the hologram master 24 at different positions with light of different intensity. The diffracted light 29 interferes with the modulated coherent light 28 radiated from the special light modulator in the photo layer 12, and thus stores in the holographic film 10 an individualized copy of the hologram of the hologram master 24.

(8) The exposed holographic film 10 is then optionally fixed in a fixating station 30. As explained below, the fixating may also take place at another time in another station.

(9) In the illustrated embodiment, the holographic film protective sheet 13 is removed from the holographic film in a separation station 40. A curable protective sheet 50 is also provided, for example as roll material. The protective sheet 50 is furnished on one side 53 with a backing sheet 51 and on an opposite side 54 it is furnished with a covering sheet 52. The covering sheet 52 is removed from the curable protective sheet 50 in a separation station 55. In a coating station 60, the curable protective sheet 50 is coated directly onto the photo layer 12 of the holographic film 10, which typically is still bonded to the backing sheet 51. If the curable covering sheet is mechanically self-supporting, the backing sheet 51 may be omitted.

(10) In a curing/fixating station 70, the curable protective sheet 50 is then cured and firmly bonded to the photo layer 12 of the holographic film 10. If the exposed holographic film 10 has not been fixated in the fixating station 30, the fixation of the exposed hologram may take place simultaneously with curing, in the curing and fixating station 70.

(11) For production of the security document body 1, additional substrate layers 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 are additionally provided. In the illustrated embodiment, the additional substrate layers 110-150 are each provided as roll material. In processing stations 160, 170, 180, 190, 200, the additional substrate layers 110-150 may be processed individually, for example by printing, by punching out partial areas, by embossing, by applying and/or introducing additional elements (chips, patches, etc.). The additional substrate layers 110-150 that have been preprocessed in this way are collated in a collating station 300 with the holographic film 10 and the protective sheet 50 applied thereto, to form a substrate layer stack 310. In this case, the backing substrate layer 11 adjoins one of the additional substrate layers 110-150 and forms the outermost of these substrate layers 110-150, 11. The holographic film 10 and substrate layers 110-150 overlap each other over in a full-surface fashion, i.e. at least in a region having a planar extension corresponding to at least one planar extension of a security document body to be produced. In a coating station 400, lamination is then carried out by introducing heat and applying pressure. In this case, the additional substrate layers 110-150 and the backing substrate layer 11 are all planarly bonded to one another. The result is a laminated body 2. The bond is formed without using a primer. In a trimming and/or separating device 500, individual security document bodies 1 are separated and trimmed from the laminated body 2 that has been formed. In a subsequent further processing station 600, further post-processing steps may be carried out, for example individualization by a laser marking, electronic marking by storing data in a microchip inserted between the substrate layers, etc. Additionally, the backing sheet 51 provided with the covering sheet may be removed. This removal may also take place before or during separation and trimming. As a protective layer, however, this sheet may also remain until in place until the security document body 1 is delivered or further processed.

(12) FIG. 2 shows a modification of the production of a security document body 1. The illustrated method differs substantially in that the additional substrate layers 110-150 are provided as sheets. Accordingly, the holographic film 10 is subdivided into sheets in a separating device 800, and sheets of the additional substrate layers 110-150 as well as the sheet of the holographic film 10 are collated with the backing substrate layer 11 in the collating station 300. In this embodiment, the holographic film protective sheet 13 is still arranged on the photo layer and the curable protective sheet 50 is not yet coated onto the holographic film 10. The individual sheets preferably all have the same planar dimensions. The sheets overlap each other in a full-surface manner in a region that corresponds in size to at least the dimensions of a security document body to be produced.

(13) The lamination thus takes place in the laminating station 400 without the protective sheet 50. The holographic film protection film 13 is then removed from the resulting laminated body 2 and the protective sheet 50, from which any covering sheet 52 that may be present is removed, is coated on and then cured in a curing station 900. Subsequently, a possible separation and/or trimming as well as post-processing takes place once again, as explained above in bond with FIG. 1. Likewise, the backing sheet 51 may be removed.

(14) FIG. 3 schematically depicts a cross-section through a finished security document body 1. Dashed lines indicate the transitions 2001-2006 of the material layers 1050, 1012, 1011, 1110-1115 in the laminated body, which coincide with boundary surfaces of the substrate layers 50, 12, 11, 110-150 from which the laminated body is formed. The corresponding material layers are identified by reference numerals which are larger by one thousand than the reference numerals of the substrate layers and sheets from which the material layers are formed.

(15) A material layer 1011 corresponding to the backing substrate layer 11 of the holographic film 10 is arranged over the material layers 1110-1150 formed from the additional substrate layers 110-150. Above this is placed the photo layer 1012 with the hologram exposed therein, and the cover layer 1050 that has been coated thereon and cured.

(16) If the backing substrate layer 11 and the additional substrate layers 110-150 are all produced based on the same polymer material, the result is a monolithic material block 1200 in which no phase transitions with regard to the polymer structure are detectable at the transitions 2003-2007 of the marked material layer boundaries 1011, 1110-1150 that coincide with the original substrate layer boundaries prior to lamination. The photo layer 1012 is arranged on this monolithic material body 1200, with the protective sheet 1050 coated thereon. This yields a security document body 1 that is well-protected from delamination attempts. This may be used for example as a personal identification, identity card, passport, driver's license or the like. If it is attempted to separate the monolithic material body 1200 and the photo layer 1012 with the hologram stored therein, this attempt will lead to damage of the hologram layer, i.e. the photo layer 1012, so that it cannot be used further. Thus, it is not possible to switch holograms and apply the hologram to another monolithic material body for counterfeiting purposes is not possible.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

(17) 1 Security document body 2 Laminated body 10 Holographic film 11 Backing substrate layer 12 Photo layer 13 Holographic film protective sheet 20 Contact copying station 24 Hologram master 26 Laser 26 Coherent light 27 Spatial light modulator (SLM) 28 Individually modulated coherent light 29 Diffracted (reconstructed) light 30 Fixating station 40 Separating station 50 Protective sheet 51 Backing sheet 52 Covering sheet 60 Coating station 70 Curing/fixating station 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 Additional substrate layers 160, 170, 180, 190, 200 Processing stations (printing, punching/embossing, inserting elements such as chips, etc.) 300, 300 Collating station 310 Substrate layer stack 400 Laminating station 500 Trimming/separating station 600 Post-processing station (e.g. laser marking, electronic marking, etc.) 800 Separating device 900 Curing station 1011 Material layer (corresponding to backing substrate layer 11) 1012 Material layer (corresponding to photo layer 12) 1050 Material layer (corresponding to protective sheet 50) 1110, 1120, 1130, 1140, 1150 Material layer (corresponding to additional substrate layers 110, 120, 130, 140, 150) 1200 Monolithic material body 2001-2007 Transitions