WO1990008873A1

WO1990008873A1 - Method and device for transferring of valuable documents

Info

Publication number: WO1990008873A1
Application number: PCT/SE1990/000059
Authority: WO
Inventors: Bo-Göran ADNOFF; Heinz Pettersson; Jan Svedman
Original assignee: Diforga Ab
Priority date: 1989-01-30
Filing date: 1990-01-29
Publication date: 1990-08-09
Also published as: SE8900304D0; SE8900304A; AU5093890A; SE461163B

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for transferring valuable documents according to which a covering, containing said valuable documents, a specification of said valuable documents, and an identification of the owner of the covering, are transferred to a receiver. According to the invention the covering, prior to being transferred to the receiver, is sealed with a mechanically readable label (13) providing an identification of the covering, the covering then, prior to the sealing being opened, being disposed in a reference box (20). In said reference box the label is checked and the weight of the complete covering is determined. The weight of the intact covering provides a determination of the content of the covering that can be used but is not complete, and by means of said determination the cause for loss of any valuable document is located.

Description

Method and device for transferring of valuable documents

The invention relates to a method and a device for transferring valuable documents, according to which a covering containing said valuable documents, a speci¬ fication of said valuable documents and an identification of the owner of the covering are transferred to a receiver., Often transferring of valuable documents, such as bank¬ notes, share certificates, bonds and the like to a bank take place after the closing hour of the bank. The trans¬ ferring normally takes place by means of a so called service box, which is mounted in a foundation in an outer wall of the bank. The clerk puts the valuable documents in a covering together with a specification of the valuable documents, some kind of identification of the owner of the covering, i.e., the owner of the valuable documents, and in some cases some kind of debit order or the like. The com¬ plete covering is then, sometimes after closing or sealing, in said service box, which is then closed by the clerk or a representative thereof.

A content-checker or a clerk on the receiving side, normally from the bank staff, opens after some shorter or longer time period the covering and determines the content thereof. Normally the covering and documents are treated by special personnel or by several persons together. If there is a difference between the specification made by the content-checker and the specification enclosed in the covering there is a problem about the origin of the source of error. The clerk on the owner side may deliberately or by mistake have prepared an incorrect specification, or may the content-checker have made a specification, which is not in accordance with the true content of the covering. A cause for the problem is that the content of the covering cannot be determined before the covering is opened. The problems indicated above are known since long and many attempts have been made to overcome it by increasing the surveillance on one hand of the personnel (clerk and representative) on the side of the owner and on one hand of the personnel (content-checker) on the receiving side but without a satisfactory result.

An object of the present invention is to overcome essentially the problem and to insure that the source of error is determined when there is a difference between a specification made in advance on the content of a covering and a specification made after the opening of the covering.

This object is accomplished through the features of claim 1 and 6, respectively.

The method according to the invention will now be described in more detail by means of an embodiment of the device according to the invention with reference to the accompanied drawing.

The person transferring valuable documents to a bank or something similar, that is the representative, puts in a conventional way the valuable documents together with a specification thereof and an identification in a covering 10 e.g., an envelope. According to the invention the covering 10 is then sealed by means of a label 13, which carries mechanically readable information about the covering. Optionally the label also carries information specific to the owner. The sealing is made in such a way that the label cannot be read mechanically in a predeter¬ mined way if the covering has been opened or has been a subject to any other damage. The representative then disposes the covering in a conventional so called service box 11, which is mounted in a foundation 12 in the outer wall of the bank building.

The next step according to the invention is that a clerk of the bank staff disposes one covering at the time in a reference box 20, which is enclosed in a boxlike hous 15. Inside, in the ceiling of the house there is disposed an electronic reading unit 17 under which a high precision weighing machine is arranged. In one of the sidewalls of the reference box there is provided a door 18, through which the covering is inserted and disposed on the weighing-machine. The door is provided with a monitoring unit 19, which is monitoring if the door is open or closed.

The weighing-machine 14, the reading unit 17 and the monitoring unit 19 all comprise a computer interface, and are all operatively connected to a computer 16, in which there is stored among other things data about when the steps mentioned below are taken and about data evaluated from the measurements^'.

When the covering has been disposed on the weighing- machine in the reference box 20 the door is closed and when the monitoring unit indicates that the door is completely closed the method of measuring and recording is initiated. A control program in the computer 16 makes the reading unit read data on the label. The actual time for the reading is recorded in the computer together with the data read.

If the label in some way is damaged and cannot be read as intended the method is interrupted and other methods not shown here are taken. To ensure that the covering cannot be opened without breaking the seal the label is formed in such a way that any damage for this purpose is identified by the reading unit and the computer. E.g. the label can be "chequered", that is cut through.

If the reading is completed and read data is recorded a control signal from the computer then initiates a first weighing of the non-broken covering by means of the weighing-machine 14, which is operatively connected to the computer. The weighing-machine is of high precision type and the accuracy is so high that existing differences in weight between e.g., two banknotes of the same amount are recorded. The measured value REF1 of the weight is recorded and stored in the computer, the clerk having no direct access to the measured data. The bank staff is then given access to the covering when the computer turns of the surveillance of the door. The covering is then taken out and opened and a specification of the content is made by the bank staff.

The specification made at this point is compared with the specification enclosed in the covering by the bank . staff and if the specifications are identical the future treatment of the valuable documents takes place in a commo and requested way. However, if there is a difference between these specifications the following measures accor¬ ding to the invention are taken.

A second weighing is requested through a command to the computer and the opened covering is disposed, together wit the content thereof, on the weighing-machine previously used or on another weighing-machine having the same proper ties, and a second weighing is carried out in the same way. The value EF2 now measured is compared with the value REF measured previously and the result of the comparison directly points out the origin of the difference. If REF1^REF2, i.e. the weight of the covering has not been changed during the treatment in the bank, the specificatio enclosed in the covering is not correct and thus an error has been made either by the representative or the clerk on the side of the owner. The result is very safe because above all banknotes, even those of the same value, but als other valuable documents, have a weight that varies a lot, at least with the accuracy of measurement utilized. However, if REF1 REF2 (REF1 not equal to REF2) the weight and thus also the content of the covering have been changed since the first weighing and the source of error i in the bank. If certain security routines have been followed the source of error in the bank is then located exactly. Data stored in the computer about at what times the measures described above were taken are then helpf l.

As stated above the accuracy of the measurement is chosen so high that in practice it is impossible to ex- change even a smaller part of the content of the covering without influencing the weight of the covering. For in¬ stance it is completely out of the question that an ex¬ change of a number of banknotes with a corresponding number of paper sheets could be made without discovery, even if the weight of the paper sheets corresponds to the average weight of the banknotes. As neither the weighing itself or the recording of the weight can be influenced by the bank staff also other types of attempts of fraud from the bank staff are excluded. In some applications the labels described above are designed in such a way that the data is not visible but can be read only mechanically by means of infrared light or by means of other electromechanical or magnetic fields. The reading unit is then correspondingly designed to read that type of labels.

The invention is applicable also in other areas than in transferring through service boxes. One application is in repeated transfers by means of a courier or the like of valuable documents, such as share certificates, collected in a covering, without intermediate control and checking of the content of the covering. Another application of the invention is in conveyance of goods, above all when the goods are valuable, where "packages" containing several objects are closed by the sender and are weighed according to the invention at the receiver, the cause for loss of an object easier being located thereafter.

Claims

1. Method for transferring of valuable documents accor¬ ding to which a covering containing the valuable documents, a specification thereof and an identification of the owner of the covering are transferred to a receiver, c h a ¬ r a c t e r i s e d in that the covering before being transferred to the receiver is sealed by a mechanically readable label (13) from which the covering is identified, that the covering before the seal is broken is disposed in a reference box (20), that the seal of the covering is mechanically checked and data of identification on the label (13) is mechanically read, that a first value (REF1) of the weight of the covering is determined mechanically, the covering being disposed in said reference box, that th first value (KEF1) is mechanically stored together with data of identification also read, and that the content of the covering is collected and compared, by a clerk on the receiving side, with the specification enclosed in the covering, a determination of a second value (REF2) on the total weight of the opened covering and the content thereo being made if the content of the covering is not in agree¬ ment with the specification enclosed in the covering, the relationship between said first value (REF1) and said second value (REF2) defining the origin of the lack of identity.

2. Method according to claim 1, c h a r a c t e ¬ r i s e d in that a value of time when the mechanical determination of said first value of the weight takes plac is stored together with said value.

3. Method according to claim 1 or 2, c h a r a c t e ¬ r i s e d in that said values are stored out of access for the clerk on the receiving side.

4. Method according to claim 1, c h a r a c t e ¬ r i s e d in that the reference box comprises a space. which is protected against mechanical influence and which is under automatic surveillance.

5. Method according to claim 1 or 2, c h a r a c t e ¬ r i s e d in that data of identification and said first value (REFl) are stored in a computer (16).

6. Device for carrying out the method according to claim 1 for transferring of valuable documents, according to which a covering containing said valuable documents, a specification thereof and an identification of the owner o the covering, are transferred to the receiver, c h a ¬ r a c t e r i s e d in that a reading means (17) for a mechanical reading of data on a label (13) sealing said covering is provided in a closable reference box (20), that a weighing-machine (14) is provided in said space for a mechanical determination of the weight of the covering, and that storing means (16) are provided for a mechanical storing of the value qf the weight of the covering together with data of identification read.

7. Device according to claim 6, c h a r a c t e - r i s e d in that the space is designed in such a way that the weighing-machine (14) and reading means (17) are enclosed in a space enclosed by a housing (15) to be pro¬ tected against mechanical influence and being accessable through a door (18), and that a monitoring means (19) is provided to monitor the position of the door (18).

8. Device according to claim 5, c h a r a c t e ¬ r i s e d in that the reading means (17) and the weighing-machine (14) are provided with a computer inter¬ face and are operatively connected to a computer (16).

9. Device according to claim 6, c h a r a c t e ¬ r i s e d in that the monitoring means (19) is provided with a computer interface and is operatively connected to a computer (16) .