| Brite iD, based in Stratford Upon
Avon, UK, has introduced its revolutionary iLam™
process for the production of products containing RFID chips
and antennas for use in the new electronic passports which
are being introduced worldwide. The iLam products can be used
in any of the three positions for the chips allowable under
ICAO regulations – cover, data page or between the centre
pages.
The key difference between iLam™
and the many other systems on the market is the method of
encasing and protecting the chip against damage and tampering.
The chip and antenna are embedded in a Polyester based elastomer
core which is sealed under heat and pressure to two outside
layers without adhesive. This process has been proven not
to cause any damage to the embedded chip. The core is more
flexible and less brittle than polycarbonate and offers better
protection to the chip than paper or thin plastic based inlays.
As the bonding uses no adhesive, it is not possible to freeze
or heat the structure to remove the outside layers and access
the chip without irreparable damage.
For e-passports with a chip incorporated into the cover page,
one face of the iLam™ structure
is the existing cover material, which provides a more secure
construction than a glued-in inlay. It is not possible to
remove and replace the RFID chip without destroying the cover
material or antenna. As an additional security feature, the
outside cover can be 3D embossed to give a unique tactile
verification of the passport which would be extremely difficult
for a counterfeiter to simulate.
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A further benefit of the iLam™
inlay is that it can be used in a standard passport production
line without any modification, whereas many other systems
require the costly installation of an additional lamination
station to glue the inlay to the cover material.
For e-passports with the chip in the data page, the outside
layers of the iLam™ structure
can be printed security paper or laser engraveable polycarbonate.
If security paper is used, it is extended to form a hinge
for sewing into the passport book in the normal way. All the
security features of the paper remain visible after lamination.
Alternatively, the flexible core material in a polycarbonate
faced laminate is extended to form the hinge, avoiding the
problems of PC hinges or the need to attach additional hinge
material. The data page can then be personalised by ink jet
or laser engraving as appropriate and an overlay applied.
One or both sides of the data page inlay can be 3D embossed
as described above.
The iLam™ process is well
proven, having been used for several years for the manufacture
of non-security printed products in a facility in the North
of England. Brite iD was established to make available the
technology to the security printing industry, initially for
the production of electronic passports, but eventually for
the production of electronic ID and other smart cards. |
