Optically variable personalized indicia for identification documents
The invention relates to identification documents, and in particular to providing optically variable personalized data to identification documents. In one implementation, we provide an identification document comprising a document layer and a first indicium. The document layer comprises a material capable of being printed by a thermally transferable optically variable ink. The first indicium is printed on the document layer and comprises personalized data and printed to the document layer by a thermally transferred optically variable ink. The first indicium may be printed to the document layer by disposing a thermally transferable optically variable ink in a mass transfer panel of a printer ribbon adapted for use in a dye diffusion thermal transfer printer, and printing the first indicium as part of a mass transfer printing process. The thermally transferred optically variable ink can be selected and printed such that the first indicium has at least one of a luster, shine, sheen, pearlescent appearance, iridescent appearance, and mirror-like appearance. This technology enables the creation of a halftone “mirror image” over a color ghost image to achieve a layered and linked multiple personalization scheme of ID documents.
1. An identification document comprising:
a document layer comprising a material for receiving printing of thermally transferable optically variable pigment;
a first indicium printed on the document layer, the first indicium being printed to the document layer by a thermally transferred optically variable pigment;
the first indicium being at least partially overlaid with a second indicium printed to the document layer by a thermally transferred covert pigment,
wherein the first and the second indicia are printed on the document layer by:
disposing a thermally transferable optically variable pigment in a mass transfer panel of a printer ribbon configured for dye diffusion thermal transfer printing or mass transfer printing to form a first layer;
disposing a thermally transferable covert pigment in the mass transfer panel to form a second layer over the first layer;
printing the first and second indicia as part of a mass transfer printing process, such that, the second indicium printed in covert pigment at least partially overlays the first indicium printed in optically variable pigment; and
wherein the first indicium comprises a digital image, the digital image formed by:
providing an initial image that is to be used as a model to generate the optically variable image, the digital image comprising personalized data;
detecting edges or boundaries within the digital image, the detected edges or boundaries forming an intermediate image; and
emphasizing the edges or boundaries within the intermediate image.
2. The identification document of claim 1 wherein the thermally transferred optically variable pigment is selected and printed such that the first indicium has at least one of a luster, shine, sheen, pearlescent appearance, iridescent appearance, and minor-like appearance.
3. The identification document of claim 1 , wherein the first indicium and second indicium are based upon the same digital image, wherein:
the first indicium comprises a first portion of pixels of the digital image; and
the second indicium comprises a second portion of pixels of the digital image.
4. The identification document of claim 3 , wherein the first portion of pixels differs from the second portion of pixels.
5. The identification document of claim 3 , wherein the first portion of pixels is the inverse of the second portion of pixels.
6. The identification document of claim 3 , wherein the first portion of pixels is printed using a first optically variable printing medium and the second portion of pixels is printed using a second optically variable printing medium.
7. The identification document of claim 1 wherein the second indicium comprises an image that is substantially identical to the first indicium.
8. The identification document of claim 1 further comprising a third indicium, the third indicium being substantially identical to the first and second indicia.
9. The identification document of claim 1 wherein at least a portion of the third indicium overlays at least one of the first and second indicia.
10. The identification document of claim 1 wherein the first, second, and third indicia are interlaced.
11. The identification document of claim 1 wherein the first and second indicia are interlaced.
12. The identification document of claim 1 , wherein the first and second indicia are selected and printed so as to give the appearance of a single image having an appearance that shifts from a positive image to a negative image depending on the angle of viewing.