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BS ISO IEC 11693 — Identification Cards Optical Memory Cards Standard Series (General Characteristics and Authentication Techniques)
Identification Cards — Optical Memory Cards: General Characteristics and Authentication Techniques
🪪 BS ISO/IEC 11693 is an optical memory card standard developed by ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17 (Cards and personal identification) and adopted by the British Standards Institution (BSI) as a UK national standard. This batch includes ISO/IEC 11693-1:2012 (General characteristics) and ISO/IEC 11693-3:2015 (Authentication techniques), providing unified requirements for the construction, physical characteristics, data read/write, and optical authentication of optical memory cards.
💡 Unlike magnetic cards or IC cards, an optical memory card stores large amounts of data optically and can be protected against forgery through optical authentication elements — commonly used in health cards, driving licences, and identity documents requiring high security and large capacity.
1. Series Overview and Positioning 📌
An optical memory card is an identification card with an optical recording layer on the card substrate, read/written by laser. It offers large storage capacity, repeatable/one-time writing, and physical anti-counterfeiting. The ISO/IEC 11693 series comprises several parts; the two in this batch cover general characteristics and authentication techniques.
| Standard | Title | Year | Core Content |
|---|---|---|---|
| BS ISO/IEC 11693-1:2012 | General characteristics | 2012 | Card construction, height/width/thickness, corners and edges, physical characteristics, data read/write characteristics |
| BS ISO/IEC 11693-3:2015 | Authentication techniques | 2015 | Optical authentication element dimensions, technology combinations, card construction, authentication methods |
⚠️ This series supersedes and withdraws the earlier BS ISO/IEC 11693:2005. The 2012 edition of Part 1 incorporates a November 2012 corrigendum; check version status when citing.
2. General Characteristics (Part 1) 📐
Part 1 specifies the general characteristics of optical memory cards, mainly covering:
- Card construction: an optical memory card consists of a substrate, an optical recording layer, and a protective layer, with the recording layer in a defined area of the card.
- Dimensions: card height, width, thickness, corner rounding, and edges shall comply with the identification-card dimension standard (typically the ID-1 size of ISO/IEC 7810).
- Physical characteristics: mechanical strength, temperature/humidity resistance, and flexural properties.
- Data read/write characteristics: the write, read, and erase characteristics of the optical recording layer, plus the position and size of the accessible optical area.
💡 Consistency of dimensions and physical characteristics is the precondition for interchangeability: only cards meeting unified dimensions and physical requirements are usable across different readers.
3. Authentication Techniques (Part 3) 🔐
Part 3 specifies the authentication techniques for optical memory cards, to prevent forgery and ensure the authenticity of the card and holder:
- Optical authentication elements: features using optical effects (e.g. holograms, diffraction, colour-shifting inks, microtext) that are human- or machine-verifiable.
- Authentication element dimensions and position: requirements for size and placement on the card face.
- Technology combinations: multiple authentication technologies may be combined to increase forgery resistance.
- Card construction: authentication elements must be co-ordinated with the substrate, recording layer, and protective layer to preserve overall card performance.
| Authentication Category | Typical Realisation | Anti-counterfeit Feature |
|---|---|---|
| Optical diffraction/hologram | Hologram, diffraction grating | Visually verifiable, hard to copy |
| Colour-shifting ink | View-angle-dependent colour | Angle-dependent, anti-copy |
| Microtext | High-resolution micro-characters | Requires magnification to verify |
| Combination | Multiple technologies layered | Significantly higher forgery resistance |
4. Key Technical Requirements ⚙️
- Optical memory cards shall meet the general identification-card dimension and physical characteristics for reader interchangeability.
- The optical recording layer shall meet specified write, read, and retention characteristics (data-retention years, read/write cycles).
- Authentication elements shall be at defined positions with defined dimensions and must not affect data-area reading/writing.
- Authentication technology selection should balance forgery resistance against manufacturing cost, using combinations where necessary.
⚠️ The optical recording layer of an optical memory card is sensitive to scratches, contamination, and strong light. Avoid mechanical damage and contamination during use and storage, otherwise read failures or data corruption can occur.
5. Engineering Practice 🛠️
- Documents and health cards: use large capacity to store medical records and identity information, combined with optical authentication for anti-forgery.
- Access control and identification: a high-security identification medium in physical access control.
- Data distribution: pre-store large volumes of data (e.g. maps, archives) for offline distribution.
- Anti-forgery design: combine holograms, colour-shifting inks, and other authentication technologies into a multi-layer anti-forgery scheme.
6. Frequently Asked Questions ❓
❓ Q: How does an optical memory card differ from a common IC card?
A: An optical memory card reads/writes data optically in a recording layer, offering larger capacity and optical authentication; an IC card stores data electrically in a chip, with smaller capacity but programmable processing.
A: An optical memory card reads/writes data optically in a recording layer, offering larger capacity and optical authentication; an IC card stores data electrically in a chip, with smaller capacity but programmable processing.
❓ Q: What does Part 1 mainly specify?
A: Part 1 specifies general characteristics of optical memory cards: construction, dimensions (height/width/thickness, corners and edges), physical characteristics, and data read/write characteristics — the basis for interchangeability.
A: Part 1 specifies general characteristics of optical memory cards: construction, dimensions (height/width/thickness, corners and edges), physical characteristics, and data read/write characteristics — the basis for interchangeability.
❓ Q: What is an optical authentication element?
A: An optical authentication element is an anti-forgery feature using optical effects, such as holograms, diffraction gratings, colour-shifting inks, and microtext, verifiable by human eye or machine.
A: An optical authentication element is an anti-forgery feature using optical effects, such as holograms, diffraction gratings, colour-shifting inks, and microtext, verifiable by human eye or machine.
🔍 Q: Why combine multiple authentication technologies?
A: A single technology may be copied or counterfeited; combining multiple technologies significantly raises forgery resistance, forming a multi-layer defence and lowering forgery risk.
A: A single technology may be copied or counterfeited; combining multiple technologies significantly raises forgery resistance, forming a multi-layer defence and lowering forgery risk.