Magnetic marking system, method and machine for producing the same

Abstract

The invention relates to a marking system comprising wires exhibiting ultrasoft ferromagnetic properties. Said wires are arranged on or in a carrier and are associated with pre-established parallel positions which are separated by a constant gap according to a pre-established frame. The wires can be present or absent in each position, forming a detectable binary code. The inventive marking system can especially be embodied as a magnetically coded label. The invention also relates to a method for producing one such marking system by continuously incorporating ferromagnetic wires into an adhesive complex. The inventive marking system is used to identify and authenticate articles, products or objects.

1 . A magnetic marking system, characterized in that it comprises, on or in a carrier, in correspondence with pre-established parallel positions separated by a constant gap according to a pre-established frame, one or more wires having ultrasoft ferromagnetic properties, these parallel wires being present or absent in each of said positions so as to form, through the set of wires present or absent, a detectable binary code.  
   
   
       2 . A magnetic marking system, characterized in that the carrier is of the two-dimensional type and constituted by a sheet of adhesive-coated material, which fixes the wires having ultrasoft ferromagnetic properties in their pre-established positions.  
   
   
       3 . The magnetic marking system as claimed in  claim 2 , characterized in that the adhesive-coated carrier sheet is covered, at least in its initial state, with a protective sheet, of the silicone-coated paper kind, which thus also covers the wires.  
   
   
       4 . The magnetic marking system as claimed in  claim 2 , characterized in that the carrier sheet is a transparent sheet.  
   
   
       5 . The magnetic marking system as claimed in  claim 1 , characterized in that the carrier is of the three-dimensional type, in which case the wires having ferromagnetic properties are embedded in the thickness of this carrier, in their pre-established positions.  
   
   
       6 . The magnetic marking system as claimed in  claim 1 , characterized in that the wires are glass-clad amorphous ferromagnetic filaments.  
   
   
       7 . The magnetic marking system as claimed in  claim 6 , characterized in that the metal core of the filaments possesses a diameter of the order of some ten to a few tens of microns, the thickness of the glass cladding not exceeding a few microns, the total diameter of the filaments not exceeding 50 microns.  
   
   
       8 . The magnetic marking system as claimed in  claim 6 , characterized in that the filaments are made from an amorphous magnetic alloy composed of cobalt or of iron, of nickel, of boron, of silicon and of carbon.  
   
   
       9 . The magnetic marking system as claimed in  claim 1 , characterized in that the wires comprise, in addition to the wires defining a binary code, a first wire for tagging the start of the reading zone.  
   
   
       10 . The magnetic marking system as claimed in  claim 1 , characterized in that in the reading zone, the spacing between the possible positions of wires is equal at the minimum to 2 millimeters.  
   
   
       11 . The magnetic marking system as claimed in  claim 1 , characterized in that at least one nondetectable wire, for example a nonmagnetic wire, constituting a “decoy” is incorporated into the marking.  
   
   
       12 . A method for the production of a magnetic marking, more particularly of a marking constituted by a carrier sheet made of adhesive-coated material, which fixes the wires having ferromagnetic properties in their pre-established positions, this carrier sheet having to be covered with a protective sheet, as claimed in  claim 3 , characterized in that it consists in unwinding a coil of virgin adhesive complex, which coil consists of a carrier sheet made of adhesive-coated material and of a protective sheet covering the adhesive-coated face, in performing an operation of delamination of this adhesive complex, consisting in separating the adhesive-coated carrier sheet from the protective sheet, while advancing these two sheets, in depositing wires having ultrasoft ferromagnetic properties on the adhesive-coated carrier sheet in the longitudinal direction of travel of this sheet, while positioning the wires transversely in a precise manner in correspondence with the code adopted for the marking, then in performing a relamination operation, consisting in returning the protective sheet onto the adhesive-coated carrier sheet henceforth furnished with the wires, and finally in rewinding the reconstituted adhesive complex and incorporating the wires.  
   
   
       13 . The method as claimed in  claim 12 , characterized in that the coil finally obtained is subjected to printing and cutting operations, so as to obtain separate adhesive carriers, for example magnetically coded labels with incorporated wires.  
   
   
       14 . A machine intended for the implementation of the method as claimed in  claim 12 , for the production of the magnetic marking constituted by a carrier sheet made of adhesive-coated material which fixes the wires having ferromagnetic properties in their pre-established positions, this carrier sheet being covered with a protective sheet, characterized in that it comprises, in combination and from upstream to downstream: 
 means for carrying and unwinding a coil of virgin adhesive complex, consisting of a carrier sheet made of adhesive-coated material and a protective sheet;    means of bringing and depositing wires having ultrasoft ferromagnetic properties onto the adhesive-coated sheet, including means for the transverse positioning of these wires in correspondence with the code adopted for the marking;    means of relamination, ensuring the rejoining of the protective sheet and of the carrier sheet made of adhesive-coated material, furnished with the wires; and    means of driving and winding up the reconstituted adhesive complex incorporating the wires.    
   
   
       15 . The machine as claimed in  claim 14 , characterized in that the means of bringing and depositing wires having magnetic properties comprise: 
 a vertically mobile carrier, for a plurality of coils of wires having ferromagnetic properties;    means for the initial fastening and the pulling of the ends of the wires emanating from these coils; and    between said coils of wire and these means of fastening and of pulling, a device for transverse positioning of the wires.    
   
   
       16 . The machine as claimed in  claim 15 , characterized in that the means for the initial fastening and the pulling of the ends of the wires emanating from the coils comprise a ram, oriented longitudinally, whose frontward directed rod bears members for fastening the ends of the wires.  
   
   
       17 . The machine as claimed in  claim 15 , characterized in that the device for transverse positioning of the wires comprises a comb, whose various teeth are transversely displaceable, a ram being provided for controlling the raising and the lowering of the comb.  
   
   
       18 . The machine as claimed in  claim 15 , characterized in that it is furthermore equipped, in its downstream part, with means for checking the presence and the correct positioning of the laid wires, these means being able to intervene by “reading” the code formed by the wires.  
   
   
       19 . The machine as claimed in  claim 18 , characterized in that it comprises, interposed between the means of bringing and depositing the wires and the means of relamination, at least one additional module for laying a wire, making it possible to automatically cope with the “breakage” of a wire, noted by the means for checking the presence and the correct positioning of the wires.