Registers – Records – Conductive
Patent
1997-12-18
2000-12-12
Le, Thien M.
Registers
Records
Conductive
235375, G06K 1906
Patent
active
061586633
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relate to a card which has an information recording portion thereon and which is used, for example, as a prepaid payment card, a credit card, a debit card, or the like.
DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART
Recently, prepaid payment cards, credit cards, debit cards, and the like, made of a card body having an information recording portion thereon, are frequently used in public telephones, along highways, on railroads, for shopping, or for performing banking procedures, etc. For most cards used for performing such transactional functions, the direction of insertion of the card into a card reader is determined in order to ensure positional alignment of the information recording portion of the card with a reading position of the card reader. However, cards of this type which have been used hitherto merely bear a print of an arrow on their surfaces for indicating the proper insertion direction, with or without printing of some additional wording explaining that the card should be inserted in the direction of the printed arrow.
Therefore, users must visually recognize the indication. It is difficult to visually discriminate the insertion direction of the card with respect to the card reader, particularly for visually handicapped persons, or when the card is used in a dark place, and such users often experience the inconvenience that the card must be reinserted into the reader repeatedly, after changing its direction of insertion.
Also, there are different kinds of cards having various transactional functions for accomplishing different purposes. With conventional cards, users must distinguish the purpose of use of a particular card through means of a visual print, or pattern of letters, appearing on the surface of the card. It is therefore very difficult for a visually handicapped person to distinguish whether a card in his or her hand is the card that he or she currently intends to use. Considering the numerous types of cards that are progressively increasing and being used for various purposes and fields of society, this drawback creates a serious problem.
The invention is therefore directed to the problem that existing cards having an information recording portion thereon are inconvenient for use in dark places or for visually handicapped persons, because they have no means of indicating the insertion direction, or the specific kind or purpose of use of the card, through tactile sensation.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
To solve the above-described problems, the present invention is characterized in that a card includes a card body having a tactually recognizable indication, which indicates the kind of card or purpose of its use, as well as the insertion direction of the card relative to a card reader.
With such means, users can confirm, both visually and tactually, the kind or purpose of use of the card, along with its insertion direction relative to the card reader, and hence it is especially useful for visually handicapped persons.
According to the first mode of the present invention, there is provided a card having a tactually recognizable depression or projection.
According to the second mode of the present invention, there is provided a card having a tactually recognizable cutout.
According to the third mode of the present invention, there is provided a card having a tactually recognizable indication formed along a peripheral edge of the card body.
According to the fourth mode of the present invention, there is provided a card having a tactually recognizable indication of a predetermined shape, and provided at a predetermined position on the card body depending on the specific kind or purpose of use of the card.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIGS. 1 to 4 are plan views showing embodiments according to the first mode of the present invention;
FIGS. 5 to 10 are plan views showing embodiments according to the second mode of the present invention;
FIGS. 11 and 12 are plan views showing embodiments according to the third mode of the present invention; and
FIGS. 13 to 15
REFERENCES:
patent: 3943335 (1976-03-01), Kinker et al.
patent: 4591937 (1986-05-01), Nakarai et al.
patent: 4761542 (1988-08-01), Kubo et al.
patent: 4868849 (1989-09-01), Tamaoki
patent: 5473148 (1995-12-01), Tanaka et al.
Guss Paul A.
Le Thien M.
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