Method and device for examining value documents

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12159504-B2
Application number	US-202017632975-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 7, 2020
Priority date	Aug 12, 2019
Publication date	Dec 3, 2024
Grant date	Dec 3, 2024

Abstract

A method for checking value documents involves the steps of: irradiating, by an excitation device, a first side of the value document with excitation radiation for exciting luminescence of a luminescent substance on the value document, such that the first side is a back side of the value document, capturing luminescence radiation which was excited by excitation of the luminescent substance at a front side of the value document by at least a part of the excitation radiation after transmission through the substrate of the value document and exits the value document at least partly at the back side of the value document after transmission through the value document, by a capture device, and checking the value document in dependence on at least one property of the captured luminescence radiation by means of an evaluation device.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for checking value documents which have a front side and a back side opposing the front side and which comprise a substrate and a specified luminescent substance applied to the substrate in at least a section of the front side of the value document, comprising the steps of:
irradiating, by means of an excitation device, a first side of the value document with excitation radiation for exciting luminescence of the luminescent substance, wherein the first side is the back side of the value document,
reflecting a part of the excitation radiation, which after transmission through the value document has exited on the front side of the value document, and/or reflecting luminescence radiation, which was generated by excitation of the luminescent substance on the front side of the value document by means of the excitation radiation and is emitted on the front side of the value document, wherein upon reflection the excitation radiation and/or luminescence radiation is at least approximately focused at the value document,
capturing luminescence radiation which was excited by excitation of the luminescent substance at the front side of the value document by at least a part of the excitation radiation after transmission through the substrate of the value document and exits the value document at least partly at the back side of the value document after transmission through the value document, by means of a capture device, and
checking the value document in dependence on at least one property of the captured luminescence radiation by means of an evaluation device.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein upon checking it is checked whether the captured luminescence radiation represents an indication of the presence of the luminescent substance at the front side of the value document.

3. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising:
reflecting a part of the excitation radiation, which after transmission through the value document has exited on the front side of the value document, at least partly back onto the value document, and exciting, by the reflected part, the luminescent substance to emit luminescence radiation, and
wherein, when capturing, at least a part of the luminescence radiation excited by the reflected part of the excitation radiation is also captured after transmission to the back side of the value document and exit from the value document.

4. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising:
reflecting luminescence radiation, which was generated by excitation of the luminescent substance on the front side of the value document by means of the excitation radiation and is emitted on the front side of the value document, at least partly back onto the value document, and
wherein, when capturing, the reflected luminescence radiation is also captured at least partly after transmission to the back side of the value document and exit from the value document.

5. The method according to claim 1 , wherein a value document is checked, whose substrate is a polymer substrate.

6. An apparatus for checking value documents which have a front side and a back side opposing the front side and which comprise a substrate and a specified luminescent substance applied to the substrate in at least a section of the front side of the value document, in a capture region of the apparatus, comprising:
an excitation device for irradiating a first side of an individual one of the value documents in the capture region from a first side of the capture region for exciting the luminescent substance to emit luminescence radiation,
a capture device for capturing luminescence radiation excited by means of the excitation radiation and emanating from the first side of the value document in the capture region in the direction of the first side of the capture region, and
an evaluation device for checking the value document in dependence on at least one property of the captured luminescence radiation,
wherein the excitation device, the capture device and the evaluation device are configured for carrying out a method according to claim 1 .

7. The apparatus according to claim 6 , which is adapted to carry out the method, and for this purpose further comprises a reflection device which reflects back excitation radiation emanating from a second side of the value document opposing the first side and/or luminescence radiation emanating from a second side of the value document opposing the first side.

8. The apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein the reflection device is configured to focus the reflected excitation radiation and/or luminescence radiation into the capture region.

9. The apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein the reflection device is offset with respect to the excitation device.

10. The apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein the evaluation device has an interface by means of which at least one signal is capturable which renders the orientation of the value document, and
wherein upon checking, it is also ascertained whether the first side is the front side or the back side.

11. An apparatus for processing value documents which have a front side and a back side opposing the front side and which comprise a substrate and a specified luminescent substance applied to the substrate in at least a section of the front side of the value document, comprising:
a feeding device for value documents to be processed, into which value documents are introducible and outputable therefrom in singled form,
an output device in which processed value documents are depositable,
a transport device for transporting value documents in singled form from the feeding device along a transport path to the output device,
a control device for controlling the transport device and/or output device, and
an apparatus for checking value documents according to claim 6 ,
wherein the apparatus for checking and the transport device are configured and disposed such that the transport path extends through the capture region of the apparatus for checking, and
wherein the control device is connected to the apparatus for checking via a signal connection and is configured to control the transport device and/or the output device in dependence on results of the apparatus for checking.

12. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising checking whether an intensity of the captured luminescence radiation lies within first or second reference intervals.

13. A method for checking value documents which have a front side and a back side opposing the front side and which comprise a substrate and a specified luminescent substance applied to the substrate in at least a section of the front side of the value document, with the steps of:
transporting the value documents individually past an excitation device which is configured to emit excitation radiation for exciting luminescence of the luminescent substance,
meanwhile irradiating at least a section of a first side of a respective value document with excitation radiation by means of the excitation device,
reflecting a part of the excitation radiation, which after transmission through the value document has exited on the front side of the value document, and/or reflecting luminescence radiation, which was generated by excitation of the luminescent substance on the front side of the value document by means of the excitation radiation and is emitted on the front side of the value document, wherein upon reflection the excitation radiation and/or luminescence radiation is at least approximately focused at the value document,
capturing at least a part of the luminescence radiation which emanates from the first side of the

Assignees

• Giesecke & Devrient Currency Technology Gmbh

Inventors

• Deckenbach Wolfgang
• Giering Thomas
• Happ Thomas

Classifications

• G07D2207/00

  Paper-money testing devices · CPC title

• B42D25/29

  Securities; Bank notes · CPC title

• G07D7/121 Primary

  Apparatus characterised by sensor details · CPC title

• G07D7/12 Primary

  Visible light, infrared or ultraviolet radiation · CPC title