GB2319648A

GB2319648A - Signature verification

Info

Publication number: GB2319648A
Application number: GB9624193A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Nicholas Turville Bullivant
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1996-11-21
Filing date: 1996-11-21
Publication date: 1998-05-27
Also published as: GB2334803A; WO1998022859A2; GB9912964D0; WO1998022859A3; AU4961297A; GB9707518D0; GB2334803B; GB9624193D0

Abstract

An unforgable signature device for personalised mapping of the acceleration, deceleration and speed at which a signature is written, has an outer casing 5 a writing plane 1 for the placement of documents 3 and suspended in and relatively moveable to at least one face of the outer casing 5 a propulsion means for propelling the writing plane 1, a key pad 4 with pre-set memory for controlling the speed, direction and/or frequency of the writing plane 1, and a marking implement with intermittent or oscillating marking capability with adjustable frequency control.

Description

"Fraudulent signature detector" This invention relates to the creation of unforgable signatures and therefore to the detection of fraudulent signatures.

The most common means of personal identification is by our signature. Most financial transactions require a signature for authorisation. Credit card and cheque fraud is wide spread and costs billions of pounds worldwide.

Once a credit card has been stolen the thief has most of the information necessary to use the card i.e. the signature. It is the object of this invention to provide a means of creating an unforgable signatures According to the present invention there is provided an unforgable signature device for personalised mapping of the acceleration, deceleration and speed at which a signature is written, comprising an outer casing, a writing plane for the placement of documents and suspended in and relatively moveable to at least one face of the outer casing, a propulsion means for propelling the writing plane, a key pad with pre-set memory for controlling the speed, direction and/or frequency of the writing plane, and a marking implement with intermittent or oscillating marking capability with adjustable frequency control.

The invention will now be explained by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which; Fig 1 is an isometric view of an unforgable signature device according to the invention. Fig la is a side cross section view. Fig 2 is an oscillating marking device, in this case, a ball point pen.

Referring to Fig 1, the outer case 5 houses the writing plane 1, the key pad 4, the propulsion means 8 and the frequency memory circuitry 7. In this example the propulsion means is oscillating solenoids with a movement of about 2 mm. The solenoids' coils are secured to the outer casing and the reciprocating components are attached to the writing plane 1. The object to be signed 3 is held in place by the clips 2. When a number is keyed in on the key pad 4 the frequency memory circuit 7 sends a pre-set frequency to the oscillating solenoids 8, whereby causing the writing plane to oscillate. If for example the letter "1" is written and takes 1 second from start to finish and the frequency is set at 10 cycles per second, there will be 10 minimum and maximum points along the length of the line of about 2 mm. If the letter "1" takes 0.5 seconds then only 5 maximum and minimum points will appear. As the acceleration of the pen stroke will vary from person to person, a non-linear pattern of maximum and minimum points will appear, if the frequency is 20 cycles per second and the letter "1" takes 1 seconds then 20 maximum and minimum points will appear and so on.

Referring to Fig 2 the pen case 9 has a ball point pen 10 inserted into the solenoids 11, controlled by the frequency memory circuits 12 powered by the battery 13 and manually adjustable by the adjustment knob 14. In this case the ball point pen 10 is oscillating along its axis by means of the oscillating solenoid 11. A low friction bearing 15 surrounds the ball point pen to glide over the writing surface when the ball is not in contact. When the desired frequency has been selected by the adjustment control and the pen is moved over the writing surface the ball point will make intermittent contact with the writing surface whereby displaying a series of dots and dashes the length of which is determined by the speed of the stroke and the oscillating frequency.

The arrangement being such that when the frequency of the writing plane and the marker pen are set to a personal pin number and, combined with the acceleration, deceleration and speed of a signature will provide a unique map. For example the user will place their new unsigned credit card onto the writing plane, key in a number of their choice, which sets the machine at a given oscillating frequency, and sign their name in their usual manner. All machines will be calibrated to each other so that when the user makes a purchase from any retailer the credit card slip is placed onto the writing plane, the number known only to the cardholder is keyed in and the slip is signed with the oscillating marker, and the signature is compared to the original. However clever a forger is, he cannot know the speed at which the original signature was written or the speed at which the machine is going to oscillate at. If writing speeds prove to be unique then a standard frequency can be used without the need for a pin number.

Fig 1 and Fig 2 can be wired together to harmonise the two frequencies or can be used independently. The variations of the embodiment are many and varied in the spirit of the idea, for example the document can be moved in any direction, the effect of which will compress, elongate, pillar up or pillar down the written text. The process can be used for product identification, used in conjunction with cNC machines, to produce a bar code type language customised to the users' security requirements. The device can be integrated into any relevant unit such as a scanner, till, or counter top.

Claims

An unforgable signature device for personalised mapping of the acceleration, deceleration and speed at which a signature is written, comprising an outer casing, a writing plane for the placement of documents and suspended in and relatively moveable to at least one face of the outer casing, a propulsion means for propelling the writing plane, a key pad with pre-set memory for controlling the speed, direction and/or frequency of the writing plane, and a marking implement with intermittent or oscillating marking capability with adjustable frequency control.
2 An unforgable signature device substantially as herein before described with reference to the accompanying drawings.