New design of contactless cards

[img_assist|nid=7247|title=|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=100|height=70]Card manufacturers now can use a new Texas Instruments (TI) ultrathin module to produce better contactless cards with intricate design.

The new ultrathin module is 26 percent thinner than usual contactless chip. Due to it manufacturers will be able to create more attractive and peculiar cards in large volumes. This was not possible before because of former thick chip modules which caused imprint distortions.

To hold their customers and to pull up new ones banks are developing new design contactless cards stressing their distinctive brand.

The production of opaque contactless cards is predicted to achieve the number of 50 million within the next few years and by 2010 the number is expected to double.

TI ultrathin chip module allows card manufacturers to fabricate thinner PVC prelaminate sheets for the contactless layer. Prelaminates may be as thin as 345um.

This allows the card manufacturers to print the card's colourful artwork on thicker print stock while maintaining the 680-840um ISO standard for card thickness.

Trevor Pavey, Manager of Contactless payment at Texas Instruments: "With the new ultrathin design of our contactless payment module, card manufacturers can achieve higher production yields, while keeping bank customer satisfaction high and giving them the flexibility to bring to market a new range of exciting new card products".

"The new ultra thin module developed by Texas Instruments will allow printing on much thicker core stocks", says Jean Francois Durand, Vice President of Global Manufacturing Operations for Oberthur Technologies of America Corp.

"The use of the TI ultrathin contactless payment module integrates TI's radio frequency performance into a thin new design that enables our banking customers to create unique contactless cards with high-quality, bold new graphics that keep their products 'top of wallet' with consumers", says Matt Smoczynski, VP of Marketing of Perfect Plastic Printing.