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INTRODUCTION :
Optical embossing on rigid supports and reading devices were produced from 1975 in the central laboratories of Landis & Gyr (Zug) and Sodeco (Geneva). Very quickly, laboratory stored memory optical-cards (Phonocards) with high levels of quality and security were tested from June 1976 and few field-trials with Phonocards were performed in the end of 1976 for the acceptance of the optical system. In January 1977 the first customer (RTT Belgium) ordered a quantity of 5.000 Phonocards which were manufactured within few days and introduced in Brussels from February 1977 (see FI-STU11-BEL-01 and FI-STU11-BEL-02). That was the earliest industrial application and production in the revolutionary field of coherent optic ! Sony and Philips both developped in laboratories optical digital audio disks and reading devices from 1975 with a first industrial production of CD-Rom in the late 1982 (five years after the introduction of Phonocards in 1977).
This website is devoted to this decisive innovation launched in 1972 in Switzerland by visionary collaborators from firms Landis & Gyr (Zug) and Sodeco Payphone Division (Geneva).
CONTENT :
* Online Catalogue including the earliest optical-cards produced by Landis & Gyr (Zug),
* Technical Features about production of optical-cards (Zug) and optical-readers (Geneva),
* Articles for download (in English, french, German) about optical-cards' systems,
* Last News about community and events from all over the world,
* Tutorial to be consulted in case of first access !
LAST UPDATES :
Jul : Second prints added for FI-STU22-CHD-01 and -02,
Jul : Article about russian L&G cards added (see FI-STU13-RUS-01-02, FI-STU20-RUS-01),
Jun : SE-STU04-BEL-02 and SE-STU04-BEL-03 modified,
Mai : CN and pictures added for FA3-STU04-BEL-04,
Apr : VI-STU07-GBR-01 for Great-Britain added,
Apr : RE-STU11-GEN-01 augmented with its dummy-card,
Apr : DY-SWI-27 for Switzerland augmented with new Hashimoto test-prints,
Apr : DY-TWN-18 and DY-TWN-19 for Taiwan augmented with new test-prints,
Apr : FI-STU22-ARG-02 added for Argentina,
Mar : TE-STU09-NED-02, TE-STU07-GBR-13 and AD-BSK36-GEN-01 added,
Mar : Ranges of 12 colours for silk screen printed cards shown under DY-GBR-08,
Mar : Forum for Classic Phonecards added in the Phonecards Sites' Links,
Feb : FI-STU11-BEL-03 and FI-STU11-BEL-04 augmented with new printrun details,
Jan : SILJA-LINE ferry-cards with prefix 107H and 109H added,
Jan : Field-Trials augmented with Dragsvig Tammisaari, Tampereen Puhelin, Kankaanpää,
Dec : Finland cards augmented with new details about distribution and dissemination,
Dec : 30u and 20u OF cards completed for Turkey,
Nov : FA3 erasing-card added for Belgium (120u on 20u cards),
Nov : "Lake Geneva" Democards completed for Taiwan, Israël, Algeria and Stu. 22,
Nov : FA3 cards added for Switzerland (Kinebar/Sprinter), Portugal & Argentina (Zugersee),
Oct : Central-Laboratory section augmented with new articles,
Oct : Adjusting cards augmented with new scans and new details,
Oct : DE-STU16-THA-01 augmented with Royal-Tai-Hologram for Millenium cards,
Oct : L&G Reviews, Brochures and Cards' Production augmented with new articles,
Oct : Technical Feature about SK12 Systems developped in Lausanne and Geneva,
Oct : Experimental card for ultrasonic erasing tests (EX-STU11-BEL-02) is added,
Sep : 1976 Field-Trials for University of Geneva (FI-STU11-SWI-01 to -04) detailed,
Sep : 1977 Field-Trials for Head-Office of Sodeco Saia in Geneva (FI-STU11-SWI-05) added,
Sep : 1977 Field-Trials "A" in Bruxelles (FI-STU11-BEL-01 to BEL-06) detailed,
Sep : 1980 Field-Trials for Bundeshaus Bern (FI-STU11-SWI-06) detailed.
FEATURES in PREPARATION :
* Cards production in Zug (Switzerland), Croydon (Great-Britain), Hsinchu (Taiwan PRC),
* Understanding the cards' production and embossing of the optical structures,
* Panorama of Payphones produced by Sodeco in Geneva...
Sincerely yours, Alain Knecht (July 2010). |
