Abstract: A variable speed, constant temperature laminator including a slot with a terminal portion for receiving perfect binders, rollers for applying heat and pressure to items to be laminated therebetween, a channel for feeding the items to be laminated between the rollers, a heater disposed along a length of the channel terminating in at least one arcuate fin member disposed closely adjacent to and at least partially about the rollers, the heater further includes a thin walled portion proximate the terminal portion of the slot for heating perfect binders received in the slot; and a driver for driving the rollers at variable speeds for maintaining a constant actual temperature for the heater and constant pressure while achieving a variable effective temperature for items passing between the rollers.

Abstract: A low mass heater is disclosed for rapid heat-up having thin arcuate heater portions adjacent the rollers and separated therefrom by a narrow gap for injecting heat into peripheral portions of the rollers. These arcuate portions may be ductile and have slots therein for adjusting the gap, and also include finger members for self-cleaning of the rollers. A notch is formed in a heater portion for easy lamination of a perfect binder of a booklet. Also, the laminator casing is shaped in the form of a dome having air passage slots therein, which eliminates the need for a cooling fan for the electronic components of the laminator. The dome shape also provides a large sloping surface for an ergonomic control arrangement. After lamination of a first batch of plastic envelopes requiring high laminating temperatures, a second batch requiring low temperatures can be immediately laminated without waiting for cooling down of the heater, by increasing the angular drive roller velocity.

Abstract: Upon monthly revalidation of a benefit, the client's pin is read off of the client's benefit card and a PC produces a time slot assigned to the client who receives a food benefit allocation for the month only if the current date and time of day is within his assigned time slot. Since the assigned time slot is only 1-2 hours each month, and since the card holder stands in line, he simply doesn't have time to collect two food benefit allocations from two separated issue stations. He can't get a second food benefit card with a different time slot because the assigned time slot is tied to his unchanging biometric characteristics. However, since the time slots at each issue station are synchronized, he can report to any issue station for convenience. Transfer of a second fraudulently obtained card to an accomplice is thwarted by ink jet printing the applicant's facial image on the benefit card when issued, or using the pin to display his facial image on a CRT.

Abstract: A customized insert sheet is laminated by heat and pressure between a plastic cover sheet and a major portion of a folder sheet. A heat activatable adhesive strip may thereafter be applied to an adhesive strip receiving channel adjacent a side edge of the plastic cover sheet, and edge portions of a stack of sheets may then be affixed to the adhesive strip receiving channel by heating the adhesive strip. The cover sheet is affixed to a side edge portion of the folder sheet to reduce wrinkling of the cover sheet upon lamination.

Abstract: A method of laminating a customized presentation folder including placing a plastic cover sheet on one cover face of the folder and sealing the bottom of the plastic cover sheet thereon, inserting an insert sheet behind the plastic cover sheet in-between it and the cover face, inverting the folder and urging the folder, bottom first, through a laminator for fabricating a customized presentation folder in which any skinning that occurs on the inside of the folder is hidden.

Abstract: Two plastic cover sheets, each of which would produce warping upon lamination by heat and pressure, are loosely affixed to a presentation folder paper core sheet to provide a plastic envelope. Graphic indicia bearing insert sheets can be laminated between both sides of the core sheet and the plastic cover sheets to provide an attractive display of the graphic indicia. Manufacturing costs are saved since anti-warpage backing sheets need not be face laminated to substantial areas of the folder sheet. Also, the plastic envelope sold to the user before lamination is not bowed in contrast to the prior art envelope. A security folder which is difficult to compromise, using carbonless paper, is also disclosed.

Abstract: A current applicant for a government benefit presents a fingerprint signature to a large data bank to determine if his signature is already in the data bank, to thus indicate fraud. His fingerprint is rapidly machine correlated with the fingerprints of prior approved applicants and a number of close matches are thereafter visually examined by a human operator to definitively determine whether the current applicant's fingerprint is already in the data bank. However, a coarse biometric index (CBI) of the current applicant is first compared with all CBIs of approved applicants and only a tiny percentage of positive CBI matches result in the correlation of fingerprints and visual examination by the human operator, thereby to save huge amounts of human matching time and cost. The result is reliable and economical scanning of huge data banks such as the Social Security data base. The CBI can display facial images and eliminate fingerprints altogether if desired.

Abstract: Memorabilia insert sheets are pressed against a support sheet having rows and columns of small area self-stick visual fiducial adhesive zones imprinted thereon. Since the adhesive in the zones is releasable and reusable, misaligned insert sheets may be readily mounted upon the support sheet a number of times by an unskilled user until the insert sheet edges are parallel with respect to the support sheet edges and the surrounding borders are even. A transparent cover sheet is then laminated to the insert sheet by the application of heat and pressure to make a long-lasting, attractive display.

Abstract: A single configuration presentation folder is provided, enabling a user to heat laminate custom printed sheets to the face of the folder without the use of a conventional paper carrier. Portions of the folder are scored to produce folders with one or two pouches holding sales literature or pouchless versions for stand-up displays, or folders containing saddle-stitched data sheets therein or laminated data sheets mounted within a loose leaf or spiral bound cover. Various arrays of fiducials are provided for enabling easy, accurate manual positioning of variable sized insert sheets with respect to the folder edges. The fiducials may be made to disappear upon lamination or are otherwise visually non-obtrusive to the eye. The fiducials may consist of disappearing ink, readily releasable adhesive, grid lines formed in the heat activatable adhesive of the cover sheet, indentations in the folder or inks having low visual contrast.

Abstract: A single configuration presentation folder is provided, enabling a user to heat laminate custom printed sheets to the face of the folder without the use of a conventional paper carrier. Portions of the folder are scored to produce folders with one or two pouches holding sales literature or pouchless versions for stand-up displays, or folders containing saddle-stitched data sheets therein or laminated data sheets mounted within a loose leaf or spiral bound cover. Various arrays of fiducials are provided for enabling easy, accurate manual positioning of variable sized insert sheets with respect to the folder edges. The fiducials may be made to disappear upon lamination or are otherwise visually non-obtrusive to the eye. The fiducials may consist of disappearing ink, readily releasable adhesive, grid lines formed in the heat activatable adhesive of the cover sheet, indentations in the folder or inks having low visual contrast.

Abstract: A number of bearers concurrently use card-keys, having a common access code, and a unique lockout code to open a single lock. If a particular bearer is to be selectively locked out, the lockout code sensing device in the lock is changed to lockout the particular bearer but not all other bearers concurrently using their card keys to open the same lock.

Abstract: A reliable, precise, inexpensive, portable digitizer is provided for receiving an identification medium having a fingerprint thereon, including at least one fingerprint discontinuity associated therewith. The exact position of the discontinuity with respect to the edges of the medium is then encoded by the digitizer by rotating an elongated scale coupled to the base of the digitizer until the fiducial line on the scale is coincident with the discontinuity. A reading is thereafter recorded proportional to the position of the discontinuity along the elongated scale and a reading is also recorded indicative of the angle of the elongated scale, with respect to the base member. These readings are recorded upon the medium, and since the medium has an exact position with respect to the base member, the recorded data is proportional to the position of the discontinuity relative to the dimensions of the card.