1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an apparatus for engraving images and its adaptor. More particularly, it relates to an apparatus for engraving images such as photographs of faces, addresses, names, autographs, the images for engraving information identifying one's identity, the images from a digital camera, scanner or other information taken from a computer through a network on identification cards such as passports, drivers' licenses, employee certificates or credit cards, and its adaptor.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There have been proposed various engraving apparatuses (for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,232,321, Japanese Patent publication Nos. 115676/1989, No. 201762/1988). 
According to the conventional apparatus for engraving images on the passports, driver's licenses, employee certificates or credit cards, a magnetic layer is coated on a surface of a plastic card or synthetic paper, and if necessary, a thin colored layer is coated on a surface of the magnetic layer or synthetic paper. A given magnetic picture or image is engraved on the colored layer by a cutting head or a stylus.
When making the passports, driver's licenses, employee certificates or credit cards, the photographs of faces, addresses, names, autographs, the images for engraving information identifying one's identity, etc. are engraved on them together with the position, ID number, etc. in order to increase the security of the engraved cards and to avoid their forgery.
Engraving data source can be roughly classified into image data and text data, which are displayed on a personal computer as independent data, and if necessary, they are combined in the personal computer.
In accordance with the conventional engraving apparatus, independent character data and independent image data are inputted by an independent controller.
In addition, it takes a long time and costs much to develop software and data, and it is also necessary for a user to get used to the method of using the conventional engraving apparatus, thus increasing the burden to the user and making it difficult to transmit, edit and compress the data and causing much confusion and trouble.
The biggest disadvantage of the conventional engraving apparatus is that when making a personal card, it is necessary to make engraving apparatus file data such as a face picture, address, name, or autograph of one person independently and to designate all of the files and to collect and integrate the data.
For the media engraving data such as a face picture, address, name, autograph and the images for engraving information identifying one's identity, etc., there are plastic cards in addition to the magnetic or non-magnetic cards.
There are a lot of kinds of magnetic cards, non-magnetic cards or plastic cards such as standard sized, large-sized, passport size and other sized cards. Accordingly, it is necessary to make a lot of kinds of expensive engraving apparatuses in accordance with these media and their properties. Further, it is likely that vibrations of an engraving head of the conventional engraving apparatus oscillate the engraving apparatus itself to cause incorrect engraving.