Method for personalizing flat supports

A method for personalizing flat supports by embossing, characterized by comprising the following stages: withdrawing a card to be personalized from a holder, transferring the card into an embossing station in which a bar code is embossed corresponding to data to be personalized, transferring the embossed card to a bar code reading station, and verifying that the bar code data read in the reading station corresponds to the bar code data memorized in a control unit. If the bar code and memorized data does not correspond then the card is eliminated, while if the data does correspond, the card is returned to the embossing station for completing the embossing cycle by embossing the card with alphanumeric characters corresponding to the bar code characters.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
 This invention relates to a method for personalizing flat supports, an 
 apparatus for effecting the method, and a support obtained by the method. 
 DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART 
 Methods for personalizing metal or plastic cards by embossing 
 alphanumerical characters are known. 
 These methods generally involve the use of a gripper which from a holder 
 containing a plurality of stacked cards withdraws one card and transfers 
 it into a position below an embossing unit which forms in relief a series 
 of alphanumerical characters corresponding to the data to be personalized 
 on the card, and also effects other possible processes to which the card 
 has to be subjected. 
 With the increasing use of bar code readers in recent years, card 
 personalizing methods have been proposed using a bar code. This system of 
 personalization has however not been found to be reliable because it does 
 not enable the correctness of the data transferred to the card to be 
 checked after processing. 
 Moreover, attempts to personalize the card either by embossing 
 alphanumerical data or by embossing data in bar code have encountered a 
 considerable limitation because the card obtained may carry impressed 
 alphanumerical data and bar code data not corresponding to the effective 
 data to be personalized. Again, whereas incorrect cards can be eliminated 
 by visual reading if in alphanumerical code, the same cannot be said if in
 bar code, which as stated cannot be checked. 
 To this must be added the fact that after the control system for the 
 embossing unit has transferred the data to said unit, it generally 
 eliminates the data from its memory, hence if the data embossed in bar 
 code do not correspond to the alphanumerical data, not only is the card 
 unusable but in addition the control system has to be reloaded with the 
 data, with considerable time loss. 
 JP-A-1.253.495 discloses an apparatus for personalizing flat supports 
 comprising a hopper, a printer, an embossing unit and a typing unit under 
 the control of a controller. 
 The object of the invention is to eliminate these drawbacks by providing a 
 method for personalizing a flat support which enables data to the embossed
 both in alphanumerical characters and in bar code, the method enabling the
 correctness of the embossed bar code data to be checked. 
 BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
 This object and other ones are attained according to the invention through 
 a method for personalizing flat supports by embossing, comprising the 
 following stages: 
 withdrawing from a holder a card to be personalized, 
 transferring said card into an embossing station in which a bar code is 
 embossed corresponding to the data to be personalized, said data being 
 memorized in a control unit, 
 transferring said embossed card to a bar code reading station, 
 verifying in the control unit that the bar code read in the reading station
 corresponds to the data memorized in the control unit, and if they do not 
 correspond then eliminating said card, or if they do correspond then 
 returning said card to said embossing station for completing the embossing
 cycle with the alphanumerical characters corresponding to the bar code 
 characters as memorized in the control unit. 
 To effect the method an apparatus is provided comprising: 
 at least one container for a plurality of card a to be personalized, 
 a same embossing unit both for alphanumerical characters and for bar code 
 characters, 
 a bar code reader, 
 a discharge station, 
 a station for feeding the cards to other processing stages, 
 a movable member for transferring said card between said container, said 
 embossing unit and one of said stations, 
 a control unit.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
 As can be seen from the figures, the method of the invention involves the 
 use of an apparatus comprising substantially an embossing unit 2 
 consisting of two superposed rotatable discs 4,6, of which the upper disc 
 4 comprises a plurality of radial appendices carrying impressions 
 corresponding to the overlying reliefs. 
 Operating hammers 8 are provided in a position above the upper disc 4 and 
 below the lower disc 6. 
 To the side of said unit there are provided two containers 10,12 for a 
 plurality of stacked cards 14, the width of the cards in one container 
 being different from the width of the cards in the other container. On 
 that side of the embossing unit distant from the containers there is 
 provided a discharge tray 16 with an overlying optical reader 17, to the 
 side of these there being provided a station 18 for feeding the card to 
 the subsequent processing stages. Said station consists of an advancement 
 belt 20 provided with a dragging tooth 22. In said station there is also 
 provided a movable side wall 24 with its operating device regulated by a 
 group of photoelectric cells 25 provided in correspondence with the card 
 containers 10,12. 
 The loading containers 10,12, the embossing unit 2, the discharge tray 16 
 and the station 18 are longitudinally aligned, there being provided 
 parallel to said components a guide 26 on which there is slidingly mounted
 a gripper 28, which is also movable transversely to the slide. 
 Finally the apparatus comprises a unit 30 for controlling and handling the 
 various operations such as the rotation of the discs 4,6, the operation of
 the hammers 8, the movement of the gripper 28, the operation of the belt 
 20, the movement of the movable side wall 24, etc. 
 The apparatus also comprises a plurality of operating members (motors, 
 actuators, etc.), transmission members and automatic devices (switches, 
 counters, various controls, etc.) for effecting the automatic processing 
 cycle, but which have not been illustrated or described for simplicity, 
 they will however be referred to in the course of the following 
 description by a simply mentioning their presence, they being of 
 traditional type and as such known to an expert of the art. 
 The apparatus of the invention operates as follows: 
 After bringing the gripper 28 into a position facing one of the two loading
 containers 10,12, a pusher member (not shown on the drawings) inserts the 
 lower card of the stack between the jaws of the gripper, which then moves 
 along the guide 26 to position the card between the two discs 4,6 of the 
 embossing unit 2. 
 During this withdrawal stage the group of photoelectric cells 25 measures 
 the width dimension of the card, the control unit 30 then causing the side
 wall 24 of the discharge station to move in order to adapt to this 
 dimension. 
 On the basis of the information received the unit 30 then causes the discs 
 to rotate so that by acting on the radial appendices, the hammers 8 punch 
 a bar code. 
 On termination of this stage the gripper 28 advances along the guide 26 and
 positions the card above the discharge tray 16 and below the optical 
 reader 17, which reads the bar code embossed into the card and feeds the 
 reading to the control unit for comparison with the memorized data. If the
 bar code embossed into the card and the data memorized in the control unit
 do not coincide, this latter causes the gripper to slacken its jaws so 
 that the card falls into the discharge tray 16. If however the data 
 coincide, the control unit causes the gripper to reposition the card in 
 the embossing unit where the alphanumerical characters corresponding to 
 the data already embossed in bar code are now embossed. 
 On termination of this operation the gripper transfers the card to the 
 discharge station 18 where, as already stated, the movable side wall 24 
 has been shifted to a distance such as to form a stop for the transverse 
 movement of the card and its consequent resting against the advancement 
 belt. 
 From the a foregoing it is apparent that the method of the invention has 
 numerous advantages, and in particular: 
 it enables the correctness of the data impressed in bar code to be 
 verified, 
 it provides reliable correlation between the data impressed in 
 alphanumerical characters and the data impressed in bar code, 
 it effects these operations in a reliable manner.