U.S. patent application number 10/857214 was filed with the patent office on 2004-12-02 for identification bracelet.
Invention is credited to Chadwick, Robert, Grenier, James Robert.
Application Number | 20040237366 10/857214 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 33457563 |
Filed Date | 2004-12-02 |
United States Patent
Application |
20040237366 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Chadwick, Robert ; et
al. |
December 2, 2004 |
Identification bracelet
Abstract
Identification bracelets for use in locations such as hospitals
that require that the identification bracelet be easy to apply,
resistant to common solvents, difficult to remove, and printable by
means of a standard office printer with high resolution print that
is resistant to wear and to common solvents. The bracelet is made
up of a strip of material that is resistant to common solvents and
that has adhesive on a single end of the side of the strip opposite
the printed side. The bracelet is made by wrapping the bracelet
around the extremity of the person being identified and attaching
the end with the adhesive to the printed side. Some versions
include tabs on the end with the adhesive. The adhesive extends to
the tabs and when the end with the adhesive has been attached to
the printed side, the tabs are folded under and attached to the
unprinted side. The bracelet may be made from material that is
printable by an office laser printer or from material that is
printable by an ink jet printer that uses water-soluble inks. In
the latter case, the material permits high resolution printing and
renders the printing resistant to wear and to common solvents.
Inventors: |
Chadwick, Robert;
(Haverhill, MA) ; Grenier, James Robert;
(Salisbury, MA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
Gordon E. Nelson
Patent Attorney P.C.
57 Central Street
P.O. Box 782
Rowley
MA
01969
US
|
Family ID: |
33457563 |
Appl. No.: |
10/857214 |
Filed: |
May 28, 2004 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
60474189 |
May 29, 2003 |
|
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|
Current U.S.
Class: |
40/633 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G09F 3/005 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
040/633 |
International
Class: |
A44C 005/00 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. An identification bracelet comprising: a strip of material that
is resistant to common solvents and to tearing and that has a first
surface that may be written or printed upon and a second surface
opposite the first; and an adhesive layer on the second surface of
a single end of the strip of material.
2. The identification bracelet set forth in claim 1, wherein: the
adhesive is a contact adhesive.
3. The identification bracelet set forth in claim 1, wherein: the
adhesive layer is an adhesive that does not soften when exposed to
body temperature.
4. The identification bracelet set forth in claim 1, wherein: the
identification bracelet is formed by securing the adhesive layer to
the first surface.
5. The identification bracelet set forth in claim 1, wherein the
end comprises: a tab on a long side of the strip; and the adhesive
layer on the end includes the tab, whereby the end may be attached
to the first surface and the tab may be folded-over and attached to
the second surface.
6. The identification bracelet set forth in claim 5, wherein: there
is a plurality of the tabs and the adhesive layer on the end
includes the tabs.
7. The identification bracelet set forth in claim 6 wherein: the
plurality of tabs includes tabs that are opposite each other on
long sides of the strip.
8. The identification bracelet set forth in claim 1, wherein:
writing or printing on the first surface that is done using water
soluble inks is waterproof.
9. The identification bracelet set forth in claim 8, wherein:
writing or printing on the first surface of the strip is resistant
to other common solvents.
10. The identification bracelet set forth in claim 9, wherein: a
coating on the strip of material renders the writing or printing
resistant to water and other common solvents.
11. The identification bracelet set forth in claim 1, wherein: the
strip of material accepts high resolution printing from an ink jet
printer.
12. The identification bracelet set forth in claim 11, wherein: the
strip of material is an oriented and cross laminated polyethylene
film.
13. The identification bracelet set forth in claim 12, wherein: the
strip of material is Valeron.
14. A secure identification bracelet comprising: a strip of
material with a first surface that may be written or printed upon
and a second surface opposite the first, the strip of material
being resistant to stretching or tearing once formed into an
identification bracelet; a pair of tabs opposite each other on a
single end of a strip of material; and an adhesive layer on a
second surface of a single end of the strip of material the
adhesive layer including the pair of tabs.
15. The identification bracelet set forth in claim 14, wherein: the
strip of material is an oriented and cross laminated polyethylene
film.
16. The secure identification bracelet set forth in claim 15,
wherein: the strip of material is Valeron.
17. The secure identification bracelet set forth in claim 14,
wherein: the identification bracelet resistant to stretching or
tearing when a force of up to 57 foot pounds is applied to the
identification bracelet.
18. The secure identification bracelet set forth in claim 17,
wherein: the strip of material has a minimum width of approximately
1 inch.
19. The secure identification bracelet set forth in claim 18,
wherein: the strip of material has a minimum thickness of
approximately 0.0125 inches.
20. The secure identification bracelet set forth in claim 14,
wherein: writing or printing on the first surface that is done
using water soluble inks is waterproof.
21. The identification bracelet set forth in claim 20, wherein:
writing or printing on the surface of the strip is resistant to
other common solvents.
22. The identification bracelet set forth in claim 21, wherein: a
coating on the strip of material renders the writing or printing
resistant to water and other common solvents.
23. The identification bracelet set forth in claim 22, wherein: the
coating further accepts high resolution printing from an ink jet
printer.
24. A business form comprising: a face ply of bracelet material
into which one or more strips suitable for forming an
identification bracelet have been die cut, the strip including a
printable surface; and an other surface with a contact adhesive
disposed on a single end of the strip; a liner ply disposed against
the face ply, the line ply comprising: an outer surface; and an
inner surface with a release coating allowing the face ply and
liner ply to be separated.
25. The business form set forth in claim 24 wherein: each strip
further has a label associated therewith in the form, the label
also being die cut into the face ply.
26. An identification bracelet comprising: a strip of material
comprising a first surface for printing or writing upon and a
second surface opposite the first surface, the strip of material
being resistant to common solvents and to tearing and permitting
high-resolution printing thereupon by an ink-jet printer; a tab on
a long side of the strip; and an adhesive layer on a single end of
the second surface of the strip of material, the adhesive layer
being a contact adhesive, whereby the identification bracelet is
formed by securing the adhesive layer to the first surface of the
opposite end of the strip of material and folding the tab over and
attaching the tab to the second surface.
Description
CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The present patent application claims priority from U.S.
provisional patent application No. 60/474,189, Robert Chadwick and
James Grenier, Personal identification system, filed May 29, 2003.
The entire provisional patent application is hereby incorporated
herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates generally to identification
bracelets and more particularly to temporary identification
bracelets for use in environments in which the bracelets are
applied by people other than the wearer and are exposed to moisture
and common solvents.
[0004] 3. Description of Related Art
[0005] Identification bracelets are used in many situations where
subjects require short-term identification. Examples of the use of
identification bracelets include identification of participants at
meetings, of guests in a resort, of passengers in transportation,
and particularly patients in hospitals or other institutions. In
the hospital setting, proper identification is particularly
important: it prevents patients from receiving the wrong medication
or medical procedure and it allows hospital administration to track
the usage of hospital facilities by a patient for billing
purposes.
[0006] The hospital environment places extraordinary demands on
identification bracelets:
[0007] They need to be produced where they are used, namely at the
nurses' stations;
[0008] They often need to carry photographs and barcodes, both of
which require high resolution to be useful;
[0009] Both the bracelet and whatever is written or printed on it
must be resistant to water and other common solvents;
[0010] The bracelet must be comfortable for the patient to
wear;
[0011] The bracelet must be sanitary;
[0012] In many situations, the bracelet must be strong enough to
withstand deliberate attempts by its wearer to remove it; and
[0013] The bracelet must be easy for the hospital personnel to make
and apply.
[0014] Two main types of identification bracelets are presently
used in hospitals and related institutions. The first type are
bracelets that use paper protected by a plastic sleeves or an
adhesive plastic film to make a band that is as printable as paper
but has greater tear resistance and resistance to environmental
degradation. An example of prior art of this type can be found in
U.S. Pat. No. 6,510,634 to Riley, which discloses a multiple
computer generated multi-web moisture proof identification
bracelet. The Riley patent discloses an adhesive backed transparent
film layer to encapsulate the paper strip. Problems with the first
type of bracelet include the following:
[0015] Film sleeves and adhesive backed films are difficult for
hospital staff to handle. The strip of paper must first be printed
or written upon. The strip is then inserted into the film sleeve,
the sleeve is looped around the patient's wrist or ankle, and the
ends of the bracelet are attached using a metal or plastic clasp or
adhesive on the sleeve. When an adhesive backed laminate is used,
the printed strip of material is placed on the adhesive backed film
and the film is folded over the strip of material to encase the
printed strip. A bracelet can then be formed in the same manner
described above. Alternatively, the bracelet is first fitted to the
patient and then encapsulated with the adhesive backed film.
[0016] The plastic sleeve or laminate is often not tight enough to
protect any paper or print within from being destroyed when the
bracelet is immersed in water.
[0017] Barcode readers can have difficulty reading barcodes through
the film sleeve or laminate. The Riley patent solves this problem
with a die cut window in the laminate for the barcode. The drawback
of this feature is that the barcode is exposed to the environment
and can therefore easily be destroyed.
[0018] Where the bracelets have barcodes, the paper must be printed
with laser printers. "Wicking" of the water-based inks used in ink
jet printers makes the barcodes unreadable.
[0019] The second type of identification bracelets are those made
using a printable plastic strip. An example of this type of
identification bracelet can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 6,641,048 to
Schintz et al., which discloses a bracelet made of a strip of
polyesterplastic. The strip is printable by a standard office laser
printer. The strip has adhesive at both ends of its inner side and
is made into a bracelet that fits closely to the patient's wrist or
ankle as shown in FIG. 1: To form the bracelet from the strip of
plastic 100, the end with the first adhesive attachment point 101
must be looped and pressed against the inner surface of the strip
103, creating an adhesive bond. The second adhesive contact point
102 is then looped over and pressed against the outer surface of
the strip opposite 104. Problems with the second type of bracelet
include:
[0020] The plastic strip must be printed by a laser printer and
consequently cannot have a thickness beyond what a laser printer
will accept. The Schintz patent discloses a 0.002 inch thick
polyester film. A film of this thickness can be easily torn, either
by accident or deliberately by its wearer, and can thus be easily
removed by its wearer or lost. Stretching can further make the
barcodes and other information unreadable.
[0021] The thin plastic used for the bracelet is also hard for
hospital staff to handle, as can be seen from the foregoing
description of how the Schintz band is applied. Moreover, the
loop-back technique creates a space in the band where moisture or
micro organisms can gather.
[0022] None of the bracelets presently being used has a good
mechanism for making a close-fitting bracelet. Attachment
mechanisms have included the following:
[0023] Metal or plastic clasps; the problem with these is that the
clasps are separate from the bracelet and easily lost.
[0024] Adhesive attachment mechanisms; these generally simply
attach the ends of the bracelet to each other. The bracelet fits
closely only where the patient happens to be the same size as the
bracelet. Schintz solves this problem, as described above, but at
the cost of a difficult application process.
[0025] It is an object of the invention disclosed herein to provide
an improved identification bracelet and thereby to overcome the
foregoing difficulties of prior art identification bracelets.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0026] The object of the invention is attained in one aspect by an
identification bracelet that is made from a strip of material that
may also be written upon with an ink pen or printed upon using a
standard office printer. The invention further has an adhesive
layer that is located on a single end of the strip of material
opposite the surface that is printed or written upon.
[0027] In an additional aspect of the invention, the adhesive layer
is made from a contact adhesive.
[0028] In an additional aspect of the invention, the adhesive layer
is made from an adhesive that will not soften when exposed to heat
from the wearer's body.
[0029] In an additional aspect of the invention, an identification
band is formed by looping the end of the strip of material with the
adhesive layer on the second surface over the first surface of the
opposite end and pressing the adhesive end down to create an
adhesive bond.
[0030] In another aspect of the invention, the identification
bracelet has a tab on one end of the long side of the
identification bracelet and the adhesive has been applied to the
second surface of the tab in addition to the end of strip of
material. To form a bracelet, a loop is created from the strip of
material by placing the second surface of the adhesive end over the
first surface of the opposite end of the strip of material. The
ends are pressed together and an adhesive bond is created. The
lateral tab is then folder over such that the adhesive layer on the
second surface of each tab makes contact with the second surface of
the opposite end of the strip of material, creating an additional
adhesive bond.
[0031] In an additional aspect of the invention, the identification
bracelet has two tabs on one end of the long sides of the
identification bracelet and the adhesive has been applied to the
end and the tabs on the second surface of the strip of material. To
form a bracelet, a loop is created from the strip of material by
placing the second surface of the adhesive end over the first
surface of the opposite end of the strip of material. The ends are
pressed together and an adhesive bond is created. The lateral tabs
are then folded over such that the adhesive layer on the second
surface of each tab makes contact with the second surface of the
opposite end of the strip of material, creating an additional
adhesive bond.
[0032] In an additional aspect of the invention, the bracelet is
made from a material that after being written or printed upon by
water soluble inks from a pen or ink-jet printer renders the
writing or printing waterproof and resistant to removal by common
solvents. In a preferred embodiment, this effect results from a
coating on the strip of material.
[0033] In an additional aspect of the invention, the identification
bracelet is made from a strip of material that is coated to accept
high resolution ink jet printing. The print on the material is
resistant to degradation caused by water, common solvents, cleaning
agents, moisture, and heat. The material can be a cross laminated
polyethylene film such as the oriented and cross laminated
polyethylene film. An example of such a material is VALERON.RTM.
produced by Valeron Strength Films of Houston Tex.
[0034] In-another aspect of the current invention, the
identification bracelet is a secure identification bracelet. The
secure identification bracelet is made from a strip of material
that is of sufficient width and thickness to prevent the
identification bracelet from being stretched or torn by the wearer
of the secure identification bracelet. The secure identification
bracelet has two tabs on a single end of the strip of material with
an adhesive layer on the second surface of the end of the strip of
material including the pair of tabs.
[0035] In an additional aspect of the current invention, the secure
identification bracelet can resist stretching and tearing when a
wearer of the bracelet applies up to 57 foot pounds of force on the
secure identification bracelet. The strip of material has a minimum
thickness of approximately 0.0125 inches and a minimum width of
approximately 1 inch.
[0036] In another aspect, the invention is a business form. The
business form is made up of a face ply of material into which one
or more strips suitable for forming an identification bracelet have
been die cut. The strip or strips have a print surface to receive
the print from a standard office printer. The strip has a second
surface with a contact adhesive placed on a single end. The
business form also has liner ply that that is disposed against the
face ply of material. The liner ply has an outer surface and an
inner surface with a release coating to allow the face ply and the
liner ply to be separated from each other.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0037] FIG. 1 is a top view of a prior art identification
bracelet.
[0038] FIG. 2 is a top view of a strip of material used to produce
an identification bracelet illustrating the placement of printed
indicia on the bracelet.
[0039] FIG. 3 is a side view of FIG. 1 highlighting the placement
of adhesive on a single end.
[0040] FIG. 4 is a bottom view of a strip of material used to
produce an identification bracelet with a single tab placed on the
long side of the strip of material.
[0041] FIG. 5 is a top view of a strip of material used to produce
an identification bracelet with a pair of tabs opposite each other
on the long side of the strip of material.
[0042] FIG. 6 is a top view of a business form containing an array
of bracelets.
[0043] FIG. 7 is a top view of a business form containing an array
of bracelets and labels.
[0044] Other objects and advantages of the invention will be
apparent to those skilled in the arts to which the invention
pertains upon perusal of the following Detailed Description and
drawing, wherein:
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0045] Referring first to FIG. 2, the print side of an
identification bracelet 200 made according to the current invention
is shown. The bracelet includes two long edges 201 and 202. The
bracelet 200 can be of various lengths and thicknesses, allowing
for bracelets that will fit all ages and sizes of subjects and that
have the resistance to tearing and stretching required for a
particular type of subjects. The bracelet 200 is formed by looping
the short edge 204 over the short edge 203 and pressing an adhesive
area opposite 206 on the non-print side of the bracelet to the
outer body 205 of the print side of the bracelet. The adhesive area
opposite 206 on the non-print side of the bracelet has a width
equal to the width of the bracelet.
[0046] An advantage of having adhesive at only one end of the
bracelet is that short bracelets can be combined to make long
bracelets simply by attaching the adhesive end of a first short
bracelet to the printed side of the non-adhesive end of a second
short bracelet and then attaching the adhesive end of the second
short bracelet to the printed side of the non-adhesive end of the
first short bracelet. Of course, any number of bracelets may be
hooked end to end by this technique.
[0047] In a preferred embodiment the material of the identification
bracelet 200 is itself impervious to environmental degradation and
may be printed using a standard office ink jet printer. The
printing has high resolution and is impervious to environment
degradation as well. The material is the oriented and
cross-laminated polyethylene film commercially known as
VALERON.RTM.. With Valeron, the relationship between material
thickness and tensile strength is as follows:
1 Thickness in Tensile Strength Inches (ASTM D-882 .0025 21 LbF
.003 22 .004 24 .0065 42 .0086 47 .0125 57
[0048] An advantage of Valeron is that its relatively great
thickness when compared with plastic materials such as the ones
used in Schintz' bracelets gives it handling properties that are
closer to those of paper than to those of thin plastic sheets.
These handling properties in turn make bracelets made of Valeron
easier to apply than those made of thin plastic sheets.
[0049] In an alternate embodiment, the material of which the
bracelets are made is impervious to environmental degradation and
may be printed using a standard office laser printer. The printing
has the high resolution and imperviousness to environmental
degradation characteristic of laser printing generally. The
material is oriented polyethylene film with a symmetrical toner
receptive coating. One commercially available form of this material
is Solution II.TM. Xerographic Laser Film and is manufactured by
ICI Imagedata.
[0050] The resolution of the printing in both embodiments permits
machine readable bar codes 207, thumbnail images 208, institutional
logos 209, patient name 210, admitting and age information 211,
color codes 212, patient sex 213, and allergy information 214, as
well as any other kind of information which can be fit onto the
bracelet.
[0051] Referring next to FIG. 3, a side view of an identification
bracelet 300 is shown. The strip of material contains a first
surface with an area 301 for printing on. On a single end of the
strip of material a contact adhesive 303 on the second surface is
shown. The identification bracelet is formed by looping the end 303
over the contact area 302 until the bracelet fits properly then
pressing the area 305 such that the contact adhesive 304 creates an
adhesive bond on the contact area 302.
[0052] Referring next to FIG. 4, a non-printed side of an
identification bracelet 400 is shown. The strip of material
includes two edges 401 and 402 which are the long edge of the strip
used to form an identification bracelet. On a single end of the
strip, a tab 405 projects from the long edge 402. The second
surface of the strip of material contains a contact adhesive 406
which is dispersed along the lateral tab 405 and the end of the
strip of material 404. The identification bracelet is formed by
looping the end 404 over the first surface 408 causing the contact
adhesive 406 to be pressed against the first surface opposite 408.
The lateral tab 405 is then folded over at the line 407 such that
the adhesive on the second surface comes in contact with the second
surface 408.
[0053] Referring next to FIG. 5, identification bracelet 500 is
harder for a wearer to remove than the identification bands of
FIGS. 2 and 4. The strip of material includes two edges 501 and 502
which are the long edge of the strip used to form an identification
bracelet. In a preferred embodiment the strip is wider than the
strips of FIG. 2 and FIG. 4. The wider strip makes the
identification bracelet stronger and thus more resistant to
stretching. On a single end of the strip two tabs 505 and 506
project laterally from the long edges 501 and 503 respectively. The
second surface of the strip of material contains a contact adhesive
opposite 509 which is dispersed along the lateral tabs 505 and 506
and the end of the strip of material 505. In a preferred
embodiment, the contact adhesive is resistant to softening at body
temperature. The identification bracelet is formed by looping the
end 504 over the first surface 508, causing the contact adhesive
opposite 509 to be pressed against the first surface 508. The
lateral tab 505 is then folded over at the line 511 such that the
adhesive on the second surface comes in contact with the second
surface opposite 508. The lateral tab 506 is then folded over at
the line 510 such that the adhesive on the second surface comes in
contact with the second surface opposite 508. The lateral tabs 505
and 506 when folded over meet but do not overlap. The two tabs
anchor the end of the bracelet so that it cannot be pried up by the
wearer. In a version of bracelet 500 used for adult wearers who may
attempt to remove the bracelet, 500 the width of the bracelet 500
is 1 inch. The thickness of the identification bracelet 500 is a
range of approximately 0.010 inches to approximately 0.020
inches.
[0054] Referring next to FIG. 6, a business form 600 with multiple
plies and an array of identification bracelets is shown. The top
ply 605 of the business form 600 is constructed with a strip of
material from which bracelets are made. The identification
bracelets 601-604 can be removed from the form 600 along a
preferential line of weakness 606. Interposed between the top ply
605 and the liner ply 607 is a contact adhesive on a single end 608
of each identification bracelet 601-604. The liner ply 607 contains
a release coating to allow the removal of the identification
bracelets 601-604 with the adhesive end 608. The business form 600
is inserted into the input tray of a standard office printer or
manually fed into a standard office printer for the purposes of
printing indicia on the surface of the identification bracelets
601-604.
[0055] Referring next to FIG. 7, a business form 700 with multiple
identification bracelets and a label are disclosed. The business
form 700 contains an identification bracelet 701 suitable for
wearing by a larger child. The form further contains a second
identification bracelet 702 suitable for wearing by an infant or
smaller pediatric patient. The form 700 also contains a label 703
suitable for labeling an item related to the patient such as the
patient's file or medicine intended for the patient.
[0056] Conclusion
[0057] The foregoing Detailed Description has disclosed to those
skilled in the relevant technologies how to make and use the
identification bracelet of the invention and has further disclosed
the best modes presently known to the inventors of so doing. It
will be immediately apparent that many variations on the techniques
disclosed herein are possible. For instance any sheet material that
resists environmental degradation and permits high-resolution
printing with ordinary office printers that is resistant to
environmental degradation can be used for the bracelets. Width and
thickness of the bracelets, as well as the kind of adhesive used
and the number of tabs depend on their intended wearers. As for
what is printed on the bracelets, that is limited only to what will
fit. It will be further apparent that the techniques disclosed
herein may be employed in any application of identification
bracelets but are particularly useful in applications whose
requirements for identification bracelets are similar to those of
hospitals.
[0058] The Detailed Description is therefore to be regarded as
being in all respects exemplary and not restrictive, and the
breadth of the invention disclosed herein is to be determined not
from the Detailed Description, but rather from the claims as
interpreted with the full breadth permitted by the patent laws.
* * * * *