Sicpa Holding Sa

Sipca Holding S.a.

Edgar Muller

Claude-Alain Despland

Mathieu Schmid

Pierre Degott

Evgeny Loginov

Myron Seto

Neda Nikseresht Ghanepour

Milan Vasic

Philipp Egger

Thomas Tiller

Olivier Rozumek

Anton Bleikolm

Xavier Marguerettaz

Marlyse Demartin Maeder

Sylvain Jaquier

Ghanepour Neda Nikseresht

The invention relates to the field of the protection of security documents such as for example banknotes and identity documents against counterfeit and illegal reproduction. In particular, the present invention provides processes for magnetically transferring one or more indicia into a not yet hardened coating layer made of a coating composition including platelet-shaped magnetic or magnetizable pigment particles so as to produce optical effect layers (OELs) as anti-counterfeit means on security documents or security articles or for decorative purposes.

Processes for producing effect layers

The invention relates to the field of the protection of security documents such as for example banknotes and identity documents against counterfeit and illegal reproduction. In particular, the present invention provides processes for magnetically transferring one or more indicia into a not yet hardened coating layer made of a coating composition comprising platelet-shaped magnetic or magnetizable pigment particles so as to produce optical effect layers (OELs) as anti-counterfeit means on security documents or security articles or for decorative purposes.

The apparatus and methods of the present disclosure relate to devices comprising spinning magnets driven by electric motors for use with printing or coating equipment. These devices and methods are for orienting magnetic or magnetisable pigment particles in an unhardened coating composition on a substrate. Specifically, these devices and methods are for producing optical effect layers. The apparatus comprises a holder, onto which is mounted a motor and a permanent magnet assembly. The motor is configured to spin the permanent magnet assembly. The holder is configured to be removably fixed to a base of a rotating magnetic cylinder (RMC) or a flatbed printing unit.

Apparatuses for producing optical effect layers

The invention concerns a device for magnetically transferring indicia, such as a design or an image, to a wet coating layer applied on a substrate, such as a sheet or a web, wherein the said coating layer comprises at least one type of magnetic or magnetizable particles; said device comprising a) at least one magnetized permanent-magnetic plate () carrying relief, engravings or cut-outs, mounted such that its relief surface remains accessible, b) at least one additional magnet (), disposed below said at least one permanent-magnetic plate, facing the surface of the magnetic plate which is opposite to the relief, engraving or cut-out, and c) a holder (), which has the mechanical function to hold the pieces together in fixed positions. A method for producing the device, the use of the device, and magnetically induced designs obtained with the device, which are useful for protecting currency, value&#x2014;and identity documents, are disclosed as well.

Method and means for magnetically transferring indicia to a coating composition applied on a substrate

A method for marking and authenticating a security article, such as a banknote, a document, a ticket, a foil, a thread, a label, a card, or a commercial good, so as to provide for an easy authentication of said article by a machine, such as a currency acceptor, a ticket validator, or a hand-held authentication device. The security article is marked with a user-defined design, wherein said marking comprises dyes or pigments belonging to an extended, or hyperchromic color space which is not reproducible by commercially available, 4-color desktop reproduction equipment. The marking is authenticated by mathematically transforming crude spectral information to statistically independent hyper-color coordinates, and comparing selected hyper-color coordinates with corresponding reference values.

Method and ink sets for marking and authenticating articles

The invention discloses a method for marking and authenticating a security article, such as a banknote, a document, a ticket, a foil, a thread, a label, a card, or a commercial good, so as to provide for an easy authentication of said article by a machine, such as a currency acceptor, a ticket validator, or a hand-held authentication device. According to the disclosed method, the security article carries a marking in the form of a user-defined design, wherein said marking comprises dyes or pigments belonging to an extended, or hyperchromic color space which is not reproducible by commercially available, 4-color desktop reproduction equipment. The authentication of said marking includes the mathematical transformation of the crude spectral information to statistically independent hyper-color coordinates, and the comparison of selected hyper-color coordinates with corresponding reference values.

The invention discloses a method and a device for the authentication of a document, a valued good or a packaging, carrying a marking (M) exhibiting a viewing-angle dependent light reflection spectrum. The authentication method is based on a measurement of the intensity of light reflected by the marking at least at two different viewing angles in response to a sequential wide-angle illumination with light of different spectral characteristics, and the comparison of the measured intensity values with corresponding reference values. The authentication device () has at least two light sources () of different spectral characteristics, a wide-angle illumination optics (), and at least two photodetectors () collecting light reflected by said markings at least at two different viewing angles. It may further have a programmed 'learning mode' for measuring and storing a set of reflected intensity values of a reference item, and a programmed 'testing mode', for measuring a corresponding set of intensity values on an item to be authenticated and comparing them with the previously stored set of reference values, hereby deriving and indicating a test result.

Method and device for the authentication of documents and goods

Re-dispersible pigmented printing ink compositions, preferably for the continuous ink jet printing process are obtained by the addition of a flocculating agent to the pigment dispersion in the printing liquid. The compositions do not form hard sediments and are easy to re-disperse on stopping and resuming the printing operations. Suitable flocculating agents bind the pigment particles in the sediment into three-dimensional 'airy' structures, which are easy to break up. The ink compositions of the invention are furthermore characterized by a good printability in the dispersed state.

Pigmented ink composition

The invention refers to a measurement probe for measuring magnetization data of at least one item (), specifically a security document comprising at least one magnetic security material (M), said measurement probe comprising at least one core free magnetizing coil () characterized in that at least two magnetic field sensors () are disposed at both ends inside said coil () at its both ends. The invention relates further to an authentication device comprising said measurement probe and to an authentication method carried out by means of said measurement probe and authentication device.

Measurement probe and authentication device comprising the same

A luminescent probe marking is excited with at least one excitation pulse of at least one excitation source. The probe intensity values of emission intensity from emission radiation of the luminescent probe marking are measured in response to the excitation pulse(s) at time intervals. A probe intensity-versus-time emission function is formed of the probe intensity values, and the probe intensity-versus-time emission function is compared with at least one reference intensity-versus-time emission function after the probe intensity-versus-time emission function and the reference intensity-versus-time emission function have been normalized.

Method, device and security system, all for authenticating a marking

Security documents or articles carrying luminescent marker compounds which show a time-deferred emission characteristic are authenticated by a method and device which allows for rapid extraction of characteristic luminescent parameters, such as emission intensity and time constants. The method is not sensitive to perturbations by ambient light and reduces optical filtering requirements.

Luminescence characteristics detector

The invention relates to optically variable pigments ( ) having a color shift between two distinct colours of any of the known designs. The pigments having incorporated a totally reflecting layer made by physical vapour deposition from aluminum alloy ( ). This pigment exhibits excellent chromaticity, corrosion resistance, particularly in any kind of coating composition or printing ink and especially when water is present.

OPTICALLY VARIABLE PIGMENTS PROVIDING A COLOR SHIFT BETWEEN TWO DISTINCT COLORS, COATING COMPOSITION COMPRISING THE SAME, METHOD FOR PRODUCING THE SAME AND SUBSTRATE COATED WITH THE COATING COMPOSITION

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Fribourg, Switzerland

Edgar Muller