November 10, 2014, Seoul – Infineon Technologies (Korea Representative Director Seung-soo Lee) announced innovative “Coil on Module (CoM)” technology. This technology simplifies the manufacturing and improves the performance of electronic identification cards, electronic driver's licenses, and health insurance cards that utilize both contact and contactless interfaces. Holders of these dual-interface cards can use existing infrastructure at government agencies or hospitals, as well as convenient contactless applications.

Infineon has successfully introduced dual-interface CoM packaging technology using a wired card antenna for the first time in the industry. This technology can be conveniently integrated into cards made of polycarbonate, a material essential for producing government identification cards with long validity periods and extremely high security.

Dual interface cards serve as a bridge between today's predominantly used contact card applications and future mobile solutions. Therefore, the demand for dual interface solutions is expected to grow faster than that for purely contactless solutions over the next few years. According to a recent survey by market research firm IHS (July 2014), the number of dual interface cards for use in government and healthcare sectors is projected to increase at an annual rate of 22 percent from 2013 to 2019. In comparison, purely contactless cards are expected to grow at a rate of 14.3 percent.

Dr. Stefan Hofschen, President of Chip Cards and Security at Infineon Technologies, said, “Infineon’s ‘Coil-on-Module’ technology is already firmly established in the payments sector. Now, by applying this technology to government identification cards that have long validity periods and extremely high security, we are able to simplify and improve the manufacturing of these cards.” “Infineon helps customers succeed in their markets by fully understanding their systems and requirements and providing security solutions suitable for their respective fields,” he said.
Just as it applied the award-winning first-generation CoM technology to dual-interface payment cards, Infineon utilizes an RF link between the chip module and the card antenna instead of a conventional mechanical-electrical connection. This eliminates the complex and cumbersome process of connecting the chip module and the card antenna during card manufacturing. In addition, CoM technology offers many other advantages, such as the following:

In terms of dual interface cards, there are the following advantages.
- The chip module and the card antenna can be damaged due to physical stress, but since they do not need to be electromechanically connected, they are highly robust.
- Since the chip module is nearly one-fifth thinner than a conventional module, additional security functions (security layers) can be integrated into the card, thereby increasing security.
- It has excellent durability due to the use of superior materials.

Card manufacturers and national printing agencies can produce dual interface cards faster and at a lower cost, allowing them to better meet the growing demand.
- Dual interface cards can be manufactured using the existing process lines used for contact-type chip cards, so no additional investment is required.
- Manufacturing costs can be lowered by simplifying the production process and increasing yield.
- Chip modules can be embedded into cards up to 5 times faster than when using existing dual interface production techniques.

CoM technology was developed based on Infineon's accumulated expertise in chip and antenna design, high-frequency technology, and chip module development. As a result, the chip, module, and antenna are perfectly compatible, eliminating the need for additional tuning by card manufacturers. Therefore, the CoM chip module and card antenna can be directly integrated into the card. In addition, it has been proven through testing to have excellent durability against stress for up to 10 years.

supply
Samples and starter kits of “coil-on-module” chip modules for use in government identification cards will be supplied starting in November 2014.