According to the 2016 annual report of the World Tourism Organization, there were almost 1.2 billion international tourist arrivals in 2015. The report also predicts that the number of international tourist arrivals will reach 1.8 billion over the next 15 years.
Why is automated optical machine authentication of documents important?
- Travellers want to move through the border crossings more quickly
- Airports cannot afford to install extra resources proportionately
- Every law-abiding citizen wants more security
The ICAO NTWG has recently issued a technical report on «Best Practice Guidelines for Optical Machine Authentication».
The idea is to present guidelines for the standardization of processes using commercially available document scanners used at automatic or semi-automatic border controls.
These document scanners perform both electronic inspection of the chip and optical inspection of the physical features like the KINEGRAM using three different light sources:
- white light
- infra-red
- ultra-violet

Within a few seconds, using software algorithms or check routines, the document model (i.e. document type, country and date of issuance) is identified using optical character recognition and compared with a reference document stored in the authentication database. Pass/Fail criteria are predefined so that a decision can be made on the authenticity of the document.

The KINEGRAM security device can now be designed for optical machine authentication, by including features such as special metallization patterns and UV print which can be inspected using standardized light sources in commercially-available reader devices.
Automatic document inspection processes as well as the machine-assisted manual inspection processes can be made more reliable and secure if the document readers are capable of inspecting complex security features in the KINEGRAM.


- Physical security features will be needed in the digital future
- Combined electronic and optical machine authentication is key
- KINEGRAM can be designed to enhance the efficiency and security of machine authentication
If you need more information about Optical Machine Authentication please fill in the contact form or call on +41 41 555 20 00.