Giesecke & Devrient Gmbh

Giesecke+devrient Currency Technology Gmbh

Jurgen Schutzmann

Manfred Heim

Elisabeth Paul

David Sacquard

Michael Rahm

Wolfgang Rauscher

Dieter Stein

Winfried Hoffmuller

Andreas Rauch

Steffen Schmalz

Stefan Bichlmeier

Christoph Mengel

Joseph Lohner

Peter Schiffmann

Alexander Bornschlegl

Helmut Pradel

Walter Berngeher

The magnetic checking of value documents with highly coercive and/or lowly coercive magnetic regions, involves after the magnetization of all magnetic regions in a first direction, a second magnetization is effected, in which only the lowly coercive magnetic material is re-magnetized, but the highly coercive magnetic material remains aligned in the first magnetization direction. Magnetic signals are detected with an inductive magnetic detector, having several measuring tracks transverse to the transport direction of the value document. To evaluate the magnetic signals of the measuring tracks, the strongest two local minima and/or maxima of the respective magnetic signal are ascertained by a measuring track as a function of time. A minima comparison value and/or maxima comparison value of the respective measuring track is determined. The magnetic coding of the security element is checked on the basis of the minima comparison values and/or maxima comparison values of the measuring tracks.

Magnetic testing of valuable documents

A method for checking value documents includes checking a security element having a plurality of magnetic regions, including a high-coercivity magnetic region, optionally a low-coercivity magnetic region and optionally a combined magnetic region which contains the high-coercivity as well as the low-coercivity magnetic material, and optionally a soft-magnetic magnetic region. After the magnetization of all the magnetic regions in a first direction, first magnetic signals of the security element are detected with a first magnetic detector. Subsequently, a second magnetization is performed wherein the low-coercivity magnetic material is remagnetized anti-parallel to the first magnetization, but the high-coercivity magnetic material remains aligned in the first magnetization direction. Second magnetic signals are detected with a second magnetic detector. On the basis of the magnetic signals, a magnetic region of the security element is identified as a high-coercivity, a low-coercivity, a combined or a soft-magnetic magnetic region.

Method and apparatus for checking value documents

The invention relates to a magnetic sensor which is designed for checking value documents, and to a method for calibrating the magnetic sensor. The magnetic sensor has different calibrating parameters for hard-magnetic and soft-magnetic magnetic regions, with which parameters the magnetic sensor can correct the detected magnetic signals of a value document, in order to compensate the magnetic sensor's measurement deviations in dependence on the type of the respectively detected magnetic region. For calibration, the magnetic sensor detects calibration measurement values of a calibration medium which is transported past the sensor. By means of the calibration measurement values the function of the magnetic sensor is tested. Where applicable, there is effected after the calibration an adjustment of the sensor using the calibration measurement values, upon which adjustment the calibrating parameters for hard-magnetic and/or soft-magnetic magnetic regions are determined from the detected calibration measurement values of the calibration medium.

Calibration of a magnetic sensor

The invention concerns a security element having a magnetic coding consisting of magnetic coding elements. At least one of the magnetic coding elements has a grid-shaped magnetic region which is formed by a plurality of mutually parallel grid strips made of magnetic material which respectively have a magnetic anisotropy. The grid strips lead, through their magnetic anisotropy, to the magnetization direction of the coding element being able to differ from the direction of the applied magnetic field. Since the resultant magnetic signals that the grid-shaped magnetic regions deliver cannot be simulated by conventional magnetic regions, said coding elements increase the anti-forgery security of the security element.

Security element for value documents

A method or apparatus for examining a security element of a value document involves at least one optical property of the security element influenceable by a magnetic field. The value document is transported through a magnetic field which is inhomogeneous transversely to the transport direction and/or is changed time-dependently. An image of at least one portion of the value document having the security element is captured and image data describing the image are formed. The optical properties of the security element are influenced by the magnetic field, and the image data is checked whether they have a location dependence transverse to the transport direction corresponding to the location dependence of the magnetic field and/or have a location dependence in the transport direction corresponding to the time dependence of the magnetic field.

Device for examining a value document and method for examining a value document

A testing configuration for testing a security document includes a security element, having a high-coercivity magnetic material and a low-coercivity magnetic material, a device comprising such a test configuration and to a relevant test method. The high- and low- coercivity magnetic materials of the security element are magnetized in a first direction by the interaction of first and second magnet pair units, and subsequently the low-coercivity magnetic material is remagnetized in a second magnetization direction by means of the second magnet pair unit. The magnet pair units are arranged with respect to one another in such a closely adjacent manner along the transport path of the security document that the first magnet field strength is greater than the magnet field strength provided by the first magnet pair unit alone and is greater than the magnet field strength provided by the second magnet pair unit alone.

Checking arrangement for value-document check

The invention relates to a method for calibrating a sensor which is configured for checking value documents. The sensor senses measurement signals of a calibration medium which is transported past the sensor. From the sensed measurement signals there are determined reference data of the calibration medium and there is moreover determined a transport property of the calibration medium, e.g. the transport speed or the transport position of the calibration medium. From the transport property there is ascertained at least one correction value which is employed for correcting the sensed reference data of the calibration medium. After the calibration, the corrected reference data are compared with target data of the calibration medium. Optionally there is then effected an adjustment of the sensor using the corrected reference data.

Calibration of a sensor for processing value documents

The present invention relates to an apparatus for processing documents of value having a sensor device for checking the documents of value and a transport device by means of which the documents of value are transported along a transport direction past the sensor device. On a side opposing the sensor device there is disposed a guide element for passively guiding the document of value, which is moved as soon as several documents of value are transported at the same time past the sensor device. By the guide element according to the invention, documents of value can be reliably and accurately checked without great effort.

Method and device for processing value documents

The present invention relates to an elongated security element () for security papers, value documents and the like, having a longitudinal direction and, perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, a transverse direction, and having, arranged on a support, a magnetic layer () that includes machine-readable magnetic regions. According to the present invention, the magnetic layer comprises a plurality of frame-shaped magnet elements () that include the machine-readable magnetic regions and that are arranged along the longitudinal direction of the elongated security element ().

Elongated security feature comprising machine-readable magnetic regions

The invention relates to a method and an apparatus for checking documents of value which have a security element with several magnetic areas, including at least one high-coercive magnetic area, at least one low-coercive magnetic area and at least one combined magnetic area which contains both the high-coercive and the low-coercive magnetic material. After the magnetization of all magnetic areas in a first direction, first magnetic signals of the security element are detected with a first magnetic detector. After a subsequent second magnetizing, which is effected antiparallel to the first magnetizing and magnetically reverses only the low-coercive magnetic material, second magnetic signals of the security element are detected. For identifying the magnetic areas, the second magnetic signals or a signal derived therefrom are compared with two thresholds.

Method and device for testing value documents

The invention relates to a magnetic sensor for checking documents of value and an apparatus and a method, wherein there are used a magnetization device for magnetizing a document of value and the magnetic sensor for detecting magnetic signals of the document of value. The magnetic sensor has two sensor lines which have several magneto-sensitive elements with different main sensitivity directions which are oriented in particular perpendicular to each other. The first sensor line selectively detects first magnetic areas of the document of value of a first coercive field strength and the second sensor line selectively detects second magnetic areas of the document of value of a second coercive field strength. Since the differently coercive magnetic areas of the document of value are detected independently of each other, there can be ascertained reliably and independently of each other two magnetic codings from differently coercive magnetic areas, which are arranged on the same document of value.

Magnetic sensor for checking value document

Value documents including a security element having magnetic material for securing the value documents. Along the security element, for example along a longitudinal direction of the security element, there are disposed one or more magnetic areas and one or more gap areas. The extension of the magnetic areas or the gap areas along the security element is preferably chosen so that the magnetic signals of adjacent magnetization steps interfere constructively with each other when transported past the magnetic sensor.

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Pfaffenhofen, Germany

Jurgen Schutzmann