A card (10) for use as a telephone authorization card or the like is comprised of a layer of a backing material (20) such as a stiff plastic material which has some pliability. A thin sheet lenticular lens material (12) has a flat surface (14) on which is printed selected interlaced images. On the other side of the lens material is formed a plurality of lenticules (16) through which the images are viewed. The flat side of the lenticular material is secured to one face (22) of the backing in a convenient manner. A cutting tool is now used to form an opening (32) in the outer face of the lenticules and a programmed microchip (30) is inserted in the opening and secured in place. On the outer face of the backing material a magnetic strip (40) containing magnetically encoded indicia is secured. The card is usable in a reader (R) which can scan the magnetic strip and read information from the microchip to allow the user to place a telephone call or conduct other transactions.
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1. A card for use in telephone authorization comprising:
a sheet of a transparent lenticular lens material having a flat surface on which selected interlaced images are printed, said interlaced images comprising information in the form of words or graphical images or a combination thereof, a plurality of lenticules being formed on the other side of said sheet; a backing material to which said flat side of said lenticular material is secured; and, a microchip insertable in an opening formed in said lenticules and secured in place therein, said card being scannable by a reader to access information on said microchip to allow the user to place a telephone call.
0. 16. A credit card for use in conducting business transactions comprising:
a sheet of transparent lenticular lens material having a flat surface on which selected interlaced images are printed, said interlaced images comprising information in the form of words or graphical images or a combination thereof, a plurality of lenticules being formed on the other side of said sheet; a backing material on which said flat side of said lenticular material is mounted; and a microchip insertable in an opening formed in said lenticules and secured in place therein, said card being scannable by a reader to access information on said microchip to allow a user of the card to conduct a transaction.
0. 14. A card for use in telephone authorization comprising:
a sheet of a transparent lenticular lens material having a flat surface on which selected interlaced images are printed, said interlaced images comprising information in the form of words or graphical images or a combination thereof, a plurality of lenticules being formed on the other side of said sheet; a backing material to which said flat side of said lenticular material is secured; and, a magnetic strip mounted on said backing material on a side opposite that to which said lenticular lens material is mounted, said card being scannable by a reader to access information on said magnetic strip to allow a user to place a telephone call.
0. 15. A credit card for use in conducting business transactions comprising:
a sheet of transparent lenticular lens material having a flat surface on which selected interlaced images are printed, said interlaced images comprising information in the form of words or graphical images or a combination thereof, a plurality of lenticules being formed on the other side of said sheet; a backing material on which said flat side of said lenticular material is mounted; and a magnetic strip mounted on said backing material on a side opposite that to which said lenticular lens material is mounted, said card being scannable by a reader to access information on said magnetic strip to allow a user of the card to conduct a transaction.
8. A credit card for use in conducting business transactions comprising:
a sheet of transparent lenticular lens material having a flat surface on which selected interlaced images are printed, said interlaced images comprising information in the form of words or graphical images or a combination thereof, a plurality of lenticules being formed on the other side of said sheet; a backing material on which said flat side of said lenticular material is mounted; a microchip insertable in an opening formed in said lenticules and secured in place therein; and, a magnetic strip mounted on said backing material on a side opposite that to which said lenticular lens material is mounted, said card being scannable by a reader to access information on said microchip and magnetic strip to allow a user of the card to conduct a transaction.
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Not applicable.
Not applicable.
This invention relates to cards such as telephone calling cards, credit and debit cards and the like, and more particularly, to such cards manufactured using a lenticular lens material.
Lenticular lenses and lenticular lens materials have a wide variety of uses, particularly for advertising purposes. Heretofore, the material has been used on cereal boxes and other packaging to promote movies, for example. As is well-known in the art, one of the advantages of using lenticular lenses is that it can be used to provide a variety of visual effects which are created as the lens material is viewed from different angles.
It is becoming more and more common for people to use cards not only for charging a purchase on credit, but also to debit an account, obtain funds from an automatic teller machine (ATM), place long distance telephone calls, etc. These cards, all of which are about the same size as a conventional credit card, are used at points of purchase, inserted in an ATM, or inserted into a reader on a telephone. The card includes a microchip having authorization information, account numbers, and other information which, when accepted, allows the user to complete an appropriate transaction. The use lenticular lens material is also known. Recently, a thin sheet lenticular lens material has been developed which has features which, when combined with current card technology provides certain advantages over conventional cards now in use.
Among the several objects of the present invention may be noted the provision of a card such as a telephone card, credit card, debit card, ATM card and the like made with the use of a lenticular lens material;
the provision of such a card made with the use of a thin film lenticular lens material so the resulting thickness of the card is compatible with that of conventional cards so the card is usable in the various readers provided for the respective types of cards;
the provision of such a card in which interlaced image segments are printed on one side of the lenticular material, different images being seen through the material when the face of the card is subsequently viewed by a user;
the provision of such a card which is a laminated card having a backing material to which the lenticular material is secured, a magnetic strip or the like being attached to the opposite side of the backing material to which the lenticular material is secured;
the provision of such a card in which an opening is formed in the lenticular material for attaching a machine readable microchip to the material; and,
the provision of such a card in which use of the printed lentcular material provides an attractive presentation to the company sponsoring the card and a user thereof.
In accordance with the invention, generally stated, a card for use as a telephone authorization card or the like is comprised of a layer of a backing material such as a stiff plastic material which has some pliability. A thin sheet lenticular lens material has a flat surface on which is printed selected interlaced images. On the other side of the lens material is formed a plurality of lenticules through which the images are viewed. The flat side of the lenticular material is secured to one face of the backing in a convenient manner. A cutting tool is now used to form an opening in the outer face of the lenticules and a programmed microchip is inserted in the opening and secured in place. On the outer face of the backing material a magnetic strip containing magnetically encoded indicia is secured. The card is usable in a reader which can scan the magnetic strip and read information from the microchip to allow the user to place a telephone call or conduct other transactions. Other objects and features will be in part apparent and in part pointed out hereinafter.
In the drawings,
Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the drawings.
Referring to the drawings, a card indicated generally 10 in
Sheet 12 is secured to a backing material 20 in any suitable manner including use of an adhesive, heat bonding, chemical bonding, etc. Sheet 12 is secured to the material with flat side 14 of the sheet being secured to a mating surface 22 of the backing material. As shown in
A microchip 30 is insertable in an opening 32 formed on the sheet and extending through the lenticules. The microchip is secured to surface 22 of backing 20 again, in any convenient manner. The microchip contains encoded information which allows the user to conduct a transaction when the card is inserted into reader R. The size of opening 30 corresponds to the dimensions of the microchip. Further, while the placement of the microchip is shown in the drawings as being toward one end of the card, the placement can be in any convenient location.
In addition to microchip 30, a magnetic strip 40 also containing encode user related information can be attached to the opposite side 24 of backing material 20. The magnetic strip is secured to this surface in the conventional manner. Also, this side of the backing material may be coated with a thin film layer 26 of a suitable lamination material to protect the magnetic strip. Alternatively, the magnetic strip can be affixed to the same side of the card as the microchip. In this instance, a second opening corresponding in size to that of the magnetic strip would be made in the lenticules 16 and the strip secured in place. Again, the strip would be coated with a thin film layer 26 to protect the strip.
In use, as shown in
What has been described is a telephone card or the like made with the use of a thin film lenticular lens material. This allows the resulting thickness of the card to be compatible with conventional cards of a similar type so the card is usable in a reader provided for such cards. Interlaced image segments are printed on one side of the lenticular material so different images are viewed through the lenses when the face of the is subsequently card angled one way or another. Each card is a laminated card having a backing material on which the lenticular material is mounted, and a magnetic strip is attached to the opposite side of the backing material. An opening is formed in the lenticular material for mounting a microchip containing relevant user information to the card. Use of the printed lentcular material provides an attractive presentation for the company sponsoring the card to a user thereof.
In view of the foregoing, it will be seen that the several objects of the invention are achieved and other advantageous results are obtained.
As various changes could be made in the above constructions without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.
Not applicable.
Bravenec, Daniel W., Marsh, Gary C.
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