The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
May. 03, 1988
Filed:
May. 07, 1986
Turpen A Daughters, Pinole, CA (US);
Patricia A McGinnis, San Anselmo, CA (US);
Personal Computer Card Corporation, New York, NY (US);
Abstract
An IC information card includes a programmed microprocessor and a nonvolatile read/write memory (EPROM) embedded in a plastic card. Terminal contacts on the face of the card enable interfacing with a reader/writer coupled to a host computer, such as an IBM-XT. The data storage portion of the memory in the card is segmentable into one or more data zones, each requiring either no access code or one or more access codes to be entered in the card in order to access (read and/or write) that zone. Segmentation of the card memory and the assignment of required access codes is achieved by writing a zone definition table and one or more access codes into the card memory using a special access code that is fixed in the microprocessor program. The access codes for the data zones are thus stored on the card and the programmed microprocessor in the card compares incoming codes to the stored codes to determine whether access to a particular data zone is permissible. The access codes for the data zones of the card memory are advantageously stored in a control card, which is interfaced to a two-card reader/writer together with the card to be accessed.