U.S. patent application number 09/899688 was filed with the patent office on 2001-12-06 for one-way see-thru panel and method of making same.
Invention is credited to Nelson, Stephen G..
Application Number | 20010049008 09/899688 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 26713384 |
Filed Date | 2001-12-06 |
United States Patent
Application |
20010049008 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Nelson, Stephen G. |
December 6, 2001 |
One-way see-thru panel and method of making same
Abstract
A see-through, one-way panel having a white opaque substrate
with a dark pigmented adhesive on the rear side. The pigmented
adhesive is covered with a release liner. The substrate, adhesive
and liner are perforated and thereafter an imperforate barrier is
laminated over the release liner. The front surface may be top
coated to accept a dye based ink. The front surface is printed with
an image by thermal or piezo ink jet printing technology. The
resulting panel may then be adhesively applied to a surface.
Inventors: |
Nelson, Stephen G.;
(Phoenix, AZ) |
Correspondence
Address: |
Gregory J. Nelson
NELSON & ROEDIGER
Suite 212
3333 E. Camelback Road
Phoenix
AZ
85018
US
|
Family ID: |
26713384 |
Appl. No.: |
09/899688 |
Filed: |
July 5, 2001 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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09899688 |
Jul 5, 2001 |
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09037315 |
Mar 9, 1998 |
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6258429 |
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60036678 |
Mar 11, 1997 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
428/202 ;
347/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G09F 7/12 20130101; Y10T
428/24322 20150115; G09F 19/226 20130101; Y10T 428/1486 20150115;
Y10T 428/14 20150115; Y10T 428/1471 20150115; Y10T 428/2486
20150115; Y10T 428/24331 20150115; G09F 19/22 20130101; Y10T
428/24876 20150115; Y10T 428/1467 20150115; B44F 1/10 20130101;
Y10T 428/24901 20150115 |
Class at
Publication: |
428/202 ;
347/1 |
International
Class: |
B41J 002/01; B32B
003/00; B32B 007/06 |
Claims
I claim:
1. A method for producing a one-way see-thru panel assembly
comprising: (a) providing an opaque light colored substrate having
opposite first and second surfaces; (b) applying a dark pigmented
adhesive to the first surface of said substrate; (c) applying a
release liner over said adhesive; (d) top coating said second
surface with an inkjet ink encapsulating substance; (e) perforating
the top-coated substrate and release liner with a distinct hole
pattern; (f) applying an imperforate barrier over the release
liner; and (g) applying an image to the second surface by using an
ink jet applicator.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein said substrate is selected from
the group consisting of polyesters, vinyl and polyolefin films.
3. The method of claim 1 wherein said top coating is selected from
the group consisting of clays, gels, resins and latex combination
coatings.
4. A method of producing signage for application to a transparent
surface comprising: (a) providing a polymeric light colored opaque
substrate having opposite first and second surfaces; (b) applying a
pigmented adhesive to the first surface; (c) applying a release
liner over said adhesive; (d) top coating said second surface with
an inkjet ink encapsulating substance; (e) perforating the
top-coated substrate and release liner with a distinct hole
pattern; (f) laminating an imperforate barrier over the release
liner; (g) applying an image to the second surface by using an ink
jet applicator; (h) removing the barrier and release lining to
expose the adhesive; and (i) contacting the adhesive with said
transparent surface.
5. The method of claim 4 wherein said ink jet applicator applies an
ink selected from the group consisting of dye based ink, pigmented
ink and solvent based inks.
6. The method of claim 4 wherein said ink jet applicator is apiezo
ink jet applicator.
7. The method of claim 4 wherein said ink jet applicator is a
thermal ink jet applicator.
8. A one-way, see-through panel for application to a surface
comprising: (a) an opaque light-reflecting substrate having
opposite first and second surfaces; (b) a pigmented adhesive layer
on said first surface; (c) a release liner over said adhesive
layer; (d) said substrate and liner defining a pattern of
spaced-apart perforations; and (e) an imperforate barrier film
covering said release liner.
9. The panel of claim 8 wherein an ink jet printed image is applied
to said first surface.
10. The panel of claim 9 wherein said first surface is top coated
with an ink encapsulating substance. CANCEL claims 8 to 10
11. A method of producing printable signage material for
application to a transparent surface, said method comprising: (a)
providing a plastic substrate having opposite first and second
surfaces, said first surface being light colored and said second
surface being dark colored; (b) applying an ink encapsulating ink
receptive coating to said first surface; (c) perforating said
substrate to provide see through visibility when viewed from said
second surface.
12. The method of claim 11 wherein said substrate is selected from
the group consisting of polyester, vinyl and polyolefin films.
13. The method of claim 11 wherein said coating is selected from
the group consisting clays, gels, resins and latex combination
coatings.
14. The method of claim 11 including the additional step of
applying an adhesive and release liner to said second surface.
15. The method of claim 11 wherein an image is applied to the first
surface by ink jet application.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] This application is a divisional of patent application Ser.
No. 09/037,315, filed Mar. 9, 1998 entitled "One-Way See-Thru Panel
and Method of Making Same."
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] See-thru or one-way films have become well known and are
used for various purposes, mainly advertising displays. Most
see-thru films are fabricated having a substrate which is
perforated and which is coated on one side with a black pigment.
The opposite side is white opaque and printed with an image and
conventional practice is to print the image by use of silkscreening
or lithography. The perforations permit viewing in one direction
which is substantially unobstructed. The white opaque surface
receives the image which is viewable from the opposite side. For
example, see U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,883,556 and 4,940,622 to Leavitt
which teach silkscreening a perforated substrate. Similarly, U.S.
Pat. No. 5,525,177 teaches a printing or image transfer method
using an electrostatic process in which a reverse image is
transferred to a surface of a perforated membrane.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] The problem with using conventional printing methods such as
screen printing is that screen printing is not cost effective for
short runs, is time consuming and the resulting product while
acceptable, does not have a high quality of resolution. Also,
screen printing images cannot be tiled for unique one-of-a-kind
graphics. Similarly, deficiencies exist with electrostatic
processes.
[0004] Electrostatic printing is applicable to short-run graphics.
However, the equipment necessary for electrostatic printing is much
more expensive than silkscreening, thermal or piezo ink jet
printing and is more complicated involving the use of a laminator
to transfer the printed image to an electrostatically charged
substrate.
[0005] The present invention relates to an improved method for
producing or imaging see-thru panels or films with ink jet
technology. See-thru films have the advantage that an image may be
applied and viewed from one side and, because of the perforations,
substantial light passes through the film allowing the viewer
relatively unobstructed vision from the opposite side. Thus,
see-thru films are widely used on such advertising applications as
the signage applied to the sides of vehicles such as buses,
allowing the passengers a relatively unobstructed view. See-thru
films are also used where visibility for security purposes is
important. Glass panels such as windows and cooler cases are other
typical applications for these types of film.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] Briefly, the present invention provides a high resolution,
see-thru, one-way vision panel manufactured using an opaque
substrate which may be polyester, vinyl or a polyolefin and which
is outdoor durable. Preferably the substrate is pigmented with a
white opaque pigment. The substrate is coated on one side, the rear
side, with a black pigmented adhesive which is protected by a
release liner such as silicon coated paper. Once the adhesive and
release liner are applied, the substrate is perforated to create a
distinct hole pattern. The perforations can be accomplished by
using a mechanical or laser perforating process. Typically, the
hole pattern consists of {fraction (1/16)}" diameter holes which
are staggered {fraction (3/32)}" from one another but other
patterns may be applied. The opposite or front side of the
substrate is chemically treated to encapsulate dyes and pigmented
inks. Synthetic films, such as polyesters and vinyls which are not
top-coated, will not absorb certain types of ink, particularly dye
based and pigmented inks. Top coatings such as clays, resins, gels
and latex combination coatings are best. Another embodiment of the
invention involves the application of solvent based inks to form an
image on the substrate, the application of which does not require
top coating.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a one-way panel
manufactured and imaged according to the invention;
[0008] FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the panel
shown in FIG. 1; and
[0009] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of the method of the
invention.
[0010] Turning now to the drawings, FIGS. 1 and 2 show a cross
section of a typical panel 10 according to the invention. The panel
10 includes a substrate 12 which is a polymeric film such as a
polyester or preferably vinyl sheet material having a typical
thickness of 4 mils. The substrate 12 may be transparent or opaque
although opaque having a white colorization is preferred. In lieu
of using an opaque substrate, the front surface may be flood coated
with a white or light reflecting screen printing or the like.
[0011] The rear surface is coated with an adhesive layer 14. "Rear"
as used herein refers to the surface which would normally be
applied to a surface such as glass store front as signage. The
image is viewed from the front and when the panel 10 is viewed from
the rear, see-through vision is provided due to passage of light
through perforations 16. The image on the front is not visible from
the rear.
[0012] The adhesive layer 14 is pigmented with a black or
light-absorbing pigment. The adhesive is preferably an acrylic
adhesive which may be applied by conventional methods such as
rolling or spraying. The adhesive layer 14 is then covered with a
peelable release liner 20 such as a silicone coated paper which is
removed to expose the adhesive at the time of application. The
liner 20 is generally roll fed and applied by a pressure
roller.
[0013] Perforations 16 extend through the release liner and the
release liner is backed with a barrier film 22 which prevents bleed
through of inks when the image is applied. Both the release liner
20 and barrier 22 are removed at the time the panel is installed.
The front surface is then top coated with a coating 25 which will
absorb ink of the type applied by jet inks and enhance UV
durability, stability and weather resistance. Dye-based ink jet
inks are not generally used for outdoor applications because of
their tendency to fade in sunlight and to be detrimentally effected
by water. With the present invention, ink jet printing techniques,
either piezo or thermal, which are fast and less expensive than
e-stat, can be utilized for applications such as exterior signs and
particularly one-way vision panels.
[0014] The top coating may be selected from various materials which
adhere to the polymeric substrate and which will absorb and
encapsulate the ink jet dye. Representative of such top coats are
clays, gels and resins such those manufactured by Precision
Coatings, Inc. under the Renaissance.TM. trademark. American
Coating Technology also markets a similar coating designated
Protecoat Formulation #4119.
[0015] After top coating, the assembly is perforated using either
conventional mechanical punching with dies or punches or by laser
perforating in the desired pattern as described more fully in U.S.
Pat. No. 5,550,346.
[0016] After perforating, an imperforate barrier 22 is applied to
the rear of the assembly. The barrier 22 and release liner 20 will
be removed at the time of application. However, the barrier 22
prevents spray through of dyes at the time the image is applied to
the front surface. Also, use of the imperforate barrier facilitates
handling of the material by use of vacuum tables and equipment thus
making handling much more efficient.
[0017] FIG. 3 illustrates the process described above in schematic
format.
[0018] The following are examples of one-way, see-through
substrates manufactured according to the present invention:
EXAMPLE 1
[0019] A top-coated polyester of the type manufactured by Sumner
& Taylor, a member of the SIHL Group, designated Photomatte
Waterproof PMW was utilized. The pigmented acrylic based adhesive
of the type manufactured by Mac-Tac was gravure-coated on the back
of the film and laminated with a suitable release liner, in this
case 110# silicone coated paper.
[0020] Thereafter, the substrate with attached release liner and
adhesive was perforated using a mechanical perforating die to apply
a hole pattern of {fraction (1/16)}" diameter holes staggered on
{fraction (3/32)}" centers. After laminating, a nonperforated
backing was applied to the back or exposed side of the release
paper. The backing was a 1.7 mil. polyester. Printing was
accomplished by using a computer-controlled ink jet printer.
Several types of large format ink jet printers are available such
as the one manufactured by Encad, such as the Encad Novajet Pro
Printer are acceptable. Other similar printers are available such
as the Hewlett Packard Design Jet 2000, which is a cartridge color
ink jet printer, accommodating papers or substrates up to 36" wide
and with color resolution up to 600 dpi. These printers are thermal
which require heating the ink. Piezo technology printers are
relatively new and may also be used. The desired image is applied
with the nonperforated vinyl backing preventing "spray through" of
the ink because of its absorbency. After the image is applied, the
substrate is ready for application. At the point of application,
the perforated release liner and the nonperforated backing are
removed and the substrate may be applied directly to a surface such
as a window.
EXAMPLE 2
[0021] A top-coated polyester, again Photomatte Waterproof PMW
available from Sumner & Taylor of the SIHL Group was utilized.
The substrate was perforated, again using conventional perforating
dies to apply a distinct hole pattern as for example {fraction
(1/16)}" diameter holes staggered at {fraction (3/32)}".
[0022] Again, perforating one side of the substrate was coated with
an adhesive and a nonperforated release liner was laminated over
the adhesive.
[0023] The image is then applied again using an ink jet printer
such as the Hewlett Packard Design Jet 750C. large format printer.
The latter example is less expensive to manufacture than that
described in Example 1 as it utilizes a single nonperforated liner
which is removed at the time of application.
[0024] While the principles of the invention have been made clear
in the illustrative embodiments set forth above, it will be obvious
to those skilled in the art to make various modifications to the
structure, arrangement, proportion, elements, materials and
components used in the practice of the invention. To the extent
that these various modifications do not depart from the spirit and
scope of the appended claims, they are intended to be encompassed
therein.
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