US5109153A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Flash imaging and voidable articles
Assignee: FLASHMARK TECHNOLOGIES LLC
•
Filing: 1990-04-17
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Granted: 1992-04-28
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Expires: 2010-04-17
Abstract
Abstract Voidable articles are made with an identification code and a radiant energy responsive material coated over said code. The material is invisible and remains unactivated in ambient light but obscures the identification code upon being exposed to radiant energies such as heat or light from within a particular wavelength range. Printing can be accomplished by imaging light onto a substrate coated with photosensitive material including an infrared absorbing dye. A cancellation device for voiding documents of the present invention is made with a scanner, a comparator and a radiant energy source for exposing the document to activate the energy responsive material on the document.
Inventors
- 👤 Edward L. Johnsen
- 👤 Stephen D. Fantone
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-29 11:03
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06K; G06K19/00; G06K19/06; G06K19/06009; G06K19/06046; G06K1/00; G06K1/12; G06K1/126; G06K19/02; G07; G07B; G07B11/00; G07B11/11
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 39
Claim 1
Independent Claim
74 words
A voidable article comprising: a printed surface; a machine readable identification code on an area of said printed surface; a material, peculiarly responsive to a particular form of radiant energy not normally present in ambient light in amounts sufficient to cause said material to discolor, positioned on said printed surface in the area of said machine readable code, said material making said code unreadable after being exposed to said particular form of radiant energy.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
74 words
A voidable article comprising: a printed surface; a machine readable identification code on an area of said printed surface; a material, peculiarly responsive to a particular form of radiant energy not normally present in ambient light in amounts sufficient to cause said material to discolor, positioned on said printed surface in the area of said machine readable code, said material making said code unreadable after being exposed to said particular form of radiant energy.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
13 words
The voidable article of claim 1 wherein said identification code is machine readable.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
14 words
The article of claim 1 wherein said particular form of radiant energy comprises heat.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
18 words
The article of claim 1 wherein said particular form of radiant energy comprises a range of light wavelengths.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
20 words
The article of claim 4 wherein said range of light wavelengths covers from about 750 nanometers to about 950 nanometers.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
18 words
The article of claim 5 wherein said material comprises a mixture of dry silver and infra-red absorbing dye.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
14 words
The article of claim 1 wherein said machine readable code is a bar code.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
16 words
The article of claim 7 wherein said bar code is a UPC code identifying a product.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
17 words
The article of claim 7 wherein said bar code is an original indicia uniquely identifying said document.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
22 words
The article of claim 1 wherein said material is located so as to be spread over an entire face of said document.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
13 words
The article of claim 1 wherein said material is embedded in said document.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
25 words
The article of claim 1 wherein said material is not visible on said document until it is exposed to said particular form of radiant energy.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
12 words
The article of claim 1 wherein said document is a merchandise coupon.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
77 words
A voidable document comprising: a document; a machine readable code on an area of said document; an invisible photoresponsive material unresponsive to ambient light, located on said document so that upon being exposed to a sufficient intensity of non-visible wavelength light to activate said photoresponsive material, a visible marking appears on said document, wherein said sufficient intensity of non-visible wavelength light is an intensity for said non-visible wavelength light greater than is normally present in ambient light.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
77 words
A voidable document comprising: a document; a machine readable code on an area of said document; an invisible photoresponsive material unresponsive to ambient light, located on said document so that upon being exposed to a sufficient intensity of non-visible wavelength light to activate said photoresponsive material, a visible marking appears on said document, wherein said sufficient intensity of non-visible wavelength light is an intensity for said non-visible wavelength light greater than is normally present in ambient light.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
31 words
The document of claim 14 wherein said photoresponsive material is placed in the area of said machine readable code so that when said photoresponsive material is activated said code is obscured.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
14 words
The document of claim 14 wherein said photoresponsive material is embedded throughout said document.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
30 words
The document of claim 14 wherein said photoresponsive material is positioned on said document in the form of an image so that when activated the image appears on said document.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
19 words
The document of claim 14 wherein said photoresponsive material comprises a mixture of dry silver and infrared absorbing dye.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
33 words
The document of claim 14 wherein said photoresponsive material exhibits high absorption of light wavelengths in an approximate range from about 750 nanometers to about 950 nonometers and low absorption below said range.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
15 words
The document of claim 14 wherein said sufficient intensity comprises about 50 ergs/cm 2 .
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
14 words
The document of claim 14 wherein said machine readable code is a bar code.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
16 words
The document of claim 21 wherein said bar code is a UPC code identifying a product.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
17 words
The document of claim 21 wherein said bar code is an original indicia uniquely identifying said document.
Claim 26
Independent Claim
93 words
A device for invalidating articles comprising: a scanner capable of reading a machine readable code on an article; comparator means for receiving a signal from said scanner representative of said machine readable code and for generating a validity signal indicating whether said article has met a validity criteria; and a radiant energy source which exposes at least a portion of said article to a dose of radiant energy in response to a validity signal from said comparator means, said radiant energy causing a marking to appear on said article thereby invalidating said article.
Claim 27
Independent Claim
93 words
A device for invalidating articles comprising: a scanner capable of reading a machine readable code on an article; comparator means for receiving a signal from said scanner representative of said machine readable code and for generating a validity signal indicating whether said article has met a validity criteria; and a radiant energy source which exposes at least a portion of said article to a dose of radiant energy in response to a validity signal from said comparator means, said radiant energy causing a marking to appear on said article thereby invalidating said article.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
11 words
The device of claim 24 wherein said radiant energy comprises heat.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
11 words
The device of claim 24 wherein said radiant energy comprises light.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
19 words
The device of claim 24 wherein said radiant energy source comprises a light source directed via fiber optic methods.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
15 words
The device of claim 24 wherein said radiant energy source comprises a tungsten halogen bulb.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
20 words
The device of claim 28 wherein said radiant energy source produces light in excess of about 50 ergs/cm 2 .
Claim 33
Dependent Claim
33 words
The device of claim 24 wherein said radiant energy source exposes at least said machine readable code so as to obscure said code in response to a validity signal from said comparator means.
Claim 34
Independent Claim
36 words
A method for printing comprising flashing light in selected fiber optic bundles from an array of said bundles to form a desired pattern on a surface coated with a photosensitive material and an infra-red absorbing dye.
Claim 35
Independent Claim
36 words
A method for printing comprising flashing light in selected fiber optic bundles from an array of said bundles to form a desired pattern on a surface coated with a photosensitive material and an infra-red absorbing dye.
Claim 36
Dependent Claim
16 words
The method of claim 31 wherein said light is produced by a plurality of laser diodes.
Claim 37
Dependent Claim
13 words
The method of claim 31 wherein said desired pattern comprises a bar code.
Claim 38
Dependent Claim
15 words
The method of claim 31 wherein said desired pattern comprises an image of a number.
Claim 39
Dependent Claim
26 words
The document of claim 14 wherein the visible marking formed on said document by the sufficient intensity of non-visible wavelength light comprises a substantially premanent marking.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1995-04-28 | 1995-10-28 | 1996-04-28 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1999-04-28 | 1999-10-28 | 2000-04-28 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2003-04-28 | 2003-10-28 | 2004-04-28 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |