We wanted to know the story behind IAI’s Laser Colour Inkjet (LCI) Family—how and why it was created. In this exclusive interview, we spoke with Marc del Pozo, team leader for new product innovations at IAI Industrial Systems, to learn about the genesis and evolution of this unique technology.
Not familiar with IAI’s Laser Colour Inkjet Family? Go to the IAI website to read a brief overview and watch a short, animated video that illustrates the LCI 3-step process.
Keesing Platform (KP): How long has the LCI technology been available from IAI?
Marc del Pozo (MdP): The technology behind the LCI was first introduced in a project that we contributed in 2019 which triggered us to further develop it into the feature family that we have. Since then, the LCI Family has grown into four variations that are available both for passports, via our BookMaster® systems, and ID cards, via our CardMaster®One system. The first project featuring one of the LCI members was launched in 2022, and interest in its other variations has been steadily increasing ever since.
KP: What is the principle behind the LCI family and how does it bring security to the ID document?
MdP: The LCI Family combines an embedded grayscale, laser-engraved, high-definition image registered with a high-resolution CMY print layer on top of the polycarbonate surface. The CMY layer can be finished with an optional varnish coating on top that does not detract from the holder’s image. This is the basic, yet powerful, principle behind the LCI Family that offers an embedded multi-layer personalization approach that enhances document security by making it virtually impossible for counterfeiters to forge the document without leaving behind clear evidence of tampering. The same approach of multi-layer personalisation has already been used successfully to protect ID documents around the world for many years with the IAI’s ImagePerf® Family. This approach, of securing identity document with innovative features introduced at the point of personalisation, is also employed in our latest security feature PaperProtect™. As you can see, IAI strengths rely not only on protecting each layer of our ID documents but to (inter-)connect them to offer a tamper-proof personalisation; an approach that has a long history of global trust.
Polycarbonate passport with LCI Protect having a DOVID in between the laser engraved and inkjet printed images.
KP: What inspired IAI to create the LCI Family? Did you have requests for a
tamper-proof photograph from document designers, issuing agencies, and/or forensic experts?
MdP: The market had been demanding for many years a secure colour portrait of the holder as it provides more information than a grey scale image and thus becomes more complex to forge and easier to verify; it is also visually more appealing than a black and white picture. However, attempts to create a tamper-proof colour portrait embedded inside the document were either not there at the time in terms of technology, or the available options were complex and expensive to implement. The demand was and remained there and therefore from IAI we took the challenge to develop a colour photograph that was easy to implement without compromising security or quality.
KP: Were there any earlier versions of LCI to which you added “steps” to the process over time?
MdP: Yes, for sure, we started with the basics, by just combining and accurately registering a grey scale laser engraved image with CMY inkjet topped with an optional varnish layer. Today, our LCI Family consists of four variations of combining technologies, as shown in this table:
Each variation holds different feature combinations. As the LCI Family evolved, we added more complexity to each layer of the feature which further enhanced the initial tamper-proof colour photograph. While adding complexity, we did not compromise our commitment to maintain flexibility in document design, easy implementation, security, and quality.
In addition, our developments stay aligned with the new and upcoming market trends. For example, the latest LCI UV Tactile offers a security feature that is efficient in the use of the layout’s state as it overlaps both data and portrait in the same location. This makes the LCI UV Tactile ideal to implement in the portrait layout ID card that everyone is talking about since the ICAO introduced it last year. The portrait layout offers a modern and fresh canvas for document design; however, it provides less space for secondary portrait images due to the larger main portrait. One way to address this is by adding complexity to the main portrait, making it less reliant on secondary features. IAI already offers multiple solutions to achieve this through the LCI family and other security feature families.
KP: With this many variations, how do document designers choose what is best for them?
MdP: At IAI we believe in partnerships and not only in being a machine supplier. Consequently, we help and advise our customers and their document designers in the process of aligning traditional credential security elements with personalisation features that both enhance the document design and its overall secuity. This throughout the project, from document design concept to going live with a new design to finally maintaining it throughout the project life. When preparing for new projects we try to find the most elegant solution to the document designers’ wishes, to keep in mind its implementation with emphasis on delivering quality. It’s then, at those early stages, that we discuss the different toolsets that we have available from IAI and advise our customers on the best solutions to their specific forgeries concerns.
KP: Did your designers and product developers encounter some challenges during the development of the LCI Family? If so, how did they overcome them?
MdP: One challenge was preserving the readability of the portrait while adding complexity to it and thus enhancing the security of the overall document. Our goal is to personalize the document to meet the needs of the user, which in this case are the border control agents. The document’s security features need to be easily and rapidly inspected by the agents to determine if there is a reason for a more detailed document inspection. If the security features do not show clear evidence of document forgery or counterfeiting at that stage, the falsification will not be spotted. Therefore, making something complex yet easy to inspect was a challenge. To overcome it, we put our expertise in play and integrated seemingly multiple technologies together that resulted in a multi-layered tamper-proof high-resolution full colour image where the different layers can be addressed or enhanced under different light conditions as shown in the image below where the holder’s image and ease of recognition is not compromised. This approach makes identification both clear and rapid.
Following the same train of thought, another challenge we overcame was a clear differentiation from an overlay. Since the LCI Family puts information on top, we needed a way for border agents to clearly differentiate our LCI family from an overlay. We accomplished that by having a matte finish of our inkjet printing and by later, with the LCI UV Tactile making that varnish layer personal and with changing optical properties to make it both unique and difficult to replicate.
LCI UV Tactile feature properties shown under different light conditions:
a) white incident light, b) white light from the side, c) UV-light.
KP: Regarding the two-step process of engraving a black photo and a color photo, was it a challenge to create a production process that was both efficient and easy to implement? If so, how did you achieve this?
MdP: The main driver for the creation was ensuring a reliable high-quality solution. We ensure the dots per inch (dpi) of the laser and the inkjet match each other, and we have developed our own alignment system between the engraved and the inkjet printed images to ensure perfect registration between them at different layers. This required intensive development by our R&D team to ensure we create a high-quality full colour portrait image at high speed.
KP: What kind of testing did you do to ensure that the colour photograph would last for ten years?
MdP: The feature is composed of multiple layers and therefore we needed to test all of them. For the embedded laser engraved image, this has already been proved many times to meet the industry’s standards. Therefore, the testing focused on evaluating whether the inks of top were also durable. For that, we worked with our supplier to develop special inks that on top of the polycarbonate have suitable durability according to ISO standards in combination with the embedded laser engrave image; and this has been also certified by an independent third party.
KP: What security features can be used along with photographs created by the LCI Family?
MdP: Actually, many. One of the distinctive strengths of IAI lies in its flexible approach to document personalisation and its ability to seamlessly integrate multiple security features and technologies into a single document design. This is the reason why we love the multi-layer personalization approach that I was talking about earlier. When we launched the first project in 2022, we combined it with the standard DOVID patch over the portrait which in this case was located between the engraved and inkjet printed images. Despite the ink droplets being located on top of the DOVID, its full reflective colours remain visible. This is very positive as overlapping a DOVID on the main portrait is an industry standard for protecting the main portrait, and the LCI Family is perfectly compatible with that.
More recently, we have started to explore its combination with our ImagePerf® Family. Specifically, the combination with our Tilted Laser Number (TLN) offers an interesting approach. Perforating over the LCI allows for additional protection of the portrait image and easy identification of forgery attacks.
Finally, as mentioned before, we like to work in partnerships and so we are currently working with JURA to merge their technologies with the LCI Family. For example, a strong combination appears when combining the LCI UV Tactile and TLN with the IPI technology from JURA (see the image below). Combining all three security features across the multiple layers brings that extra level of security and safeguards multiplication across all layers of the document that we are seeking, when choosing the security feature for a document. The result of combining these three features is a complex high-resolution full colour portrait that is easy and fast to inspect, a clear example of tamper-proof document designing.
A concept ID card with a portrait layout combining in the portrait area the LCI UV Tactile and TLN and JURA IPI technologies
In the example shown above, the picture is taken with a lens placed on top of the portrait to decode the JURA IPI embedded information, top right of the portrait. Additionally, UV-light is used to partially glow the UV Tactile fields within the LCI technology. Finally, the backlight is used to show the TLN perforated numbers in the portrait area. These different light conditions and lens allow in a single shot to visualize the different embedded data across the different layers of the portrait, showing casing both the complexity of it and easy and rapid inspection at the same time.
KP: Finally, does the LCI Family stop here? Or do you have big plans for the future?
MdP: As you have learned through this interview, the LCI Family is a versatile toolset for ID documents, offering security, striking designs, and complexity all in the same space thanks to its multi-layer structure. This offers a lot of possibilities. And, while we already offer a wide range of possibilities for portrait protection, we will continue to expand the technology by continuously increasing the level of complexity in alignment with market needs, trends, and developments while ensuring flexibility in document design. This way we can continue to anticipate our customers’ needs by staying on top of new trends in document forgery.
This concludes our interview. For more information about IAI’s Laser Colour Inkjet (LCI) Family, visit the company’s website
About IAI Industrial Systems B.V.
IAI industrial systems B.V. is a Dutch company based in the Netherlands and is a trusted manufacturing partner for centralized and decentralized (automated) solutions that personalize identity documents, such as passports, driver’s licenses, ID cards, and residence permits. IAI continuously develops technologies that enhance the security of identity documents. IAI has over 30 years of experience, with more than 70 million documents produced in over 50 countries.
Sources/Reference:
IAI Industrial Systems B.V.
Marc del Pozo Puig is a scientist and innovator in nanotechnology and advanced materials. With a PhD from Eindhoven University of Technology, Marc has pioneered stimuli-responsive materials for 4D printing and security features for ID documents. As team leader at IAI Industrial Systems B.V., Marc drives new product innovations, including the LCI Family, blending scientific rigor with real-world security solutions.
