Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture – Methods – Surface bonding and/or assembly therefor
Reexamination Certificate
2000-06-23
2003-09-30
Johnstone, Adrienne C. (Department: 1733)
Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture
Methods
Surface bonding and/or assembly therefor
C156S271000, C156S291000, C229S069000, C229S092100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06627033
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the printing and/or fabricating of sheets, and more particularly to a means for applying contact adhesive to the stock prior to the printing process in order to preclude the premature adhesion of adjacent sheets together prior to the printing process. The present invention enables the user to print and assemble such sheet stock (paper, etc.) using an adhesive which bonds with itself upon contact, rather than requiring the specialized equipment for heating, moistening, or applying pressure to a type of adhesive to join the forms together. Yet, the patterns of applied adhesive to not allow facing or adjacent sheets to bond together prior to the printing process and the subsequent collating and assembly of the sheets.
2. Background and Related Art
The use of plural sheets for various business and other forms and documents has evolved to become a common procedure. Such forms often provide an original and one or more copies which are distributed to various parties, according to the accounting, tracking, or other system being used. Often, one sheet is folded to form an outer envelope, with a second (or additional) sheet(s) assembled therewith and folded therein. Accordingly, various printing, collating, and processing machines have been developed in order to enable businesses to construct, print, and distribute such multiple sheet forms and documents as required.
One common point required by all such documents, is some means of securing the various sheets together. This has in the past been accomplished by some type of adhesive which requires some actuation means (heat, pressure, moisture), or by mechanically crimping the individual sheets together. All of these sheet assembly means require some additional costly equipment over and above the printing, collating, folding, and bursting (document separating) equipment required for the production of such forms and documents.
An adhesive which would allow the individual sheets to be secured together automatically during the printing or collating process would be ideal, as the forms could be produced at considerably less cost by eliminating the need for an additional costly machine to supply the heat, pressure, moisture, or mechanical action required to secure the sheets together. The concept of using such a contact adhesive applied to is the facing surfaces of a document to secure them together has been raised in the past. However, it has to this point proven unworkable, as the application of such adhesive prior to the printing process, causes the sheets to be bonded together prior to their being run through separate printing processes (e.g., document and cover sheet or envelope, etc.) and thus to be unusable for multiple sheet forms.
Accordingly, a need will be seen for some means of applying a contact adhesive, i.e., an adhesive which bonds automatically to an identical adhesive material applied to another article, to one or both sides of plural sheets of material, in a pattern or patterns which preclude contact between contact adhesive material on facing sheet surfaces of in-registry sheets. Yet, the contact adhesive matters should provide for the adhesion of selected sheets from different stock supplies, or non-adjacent sheets in the same stack or supply, as desired in order to secure the various sheets of a given form together automatically, thus saving the cost of specialized equipment serving to actuate other types of glues. A discussion of the prior art relating to the present invention, and its differences from the present invention, is provided below.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,277,016 issued on Jul. 7, 1981 to William R. Wakeman et al. describes an Envelope Assembly wherein identical patterns of a contact adhesive material are applied to facing surfaces of a multiple ply document. Some of the contact adhesive extends inwardly from the borders of the sheets, to grip an internal sheet therebetween to preclude its movement within the envelope formed by the outer sheets. Wakeman et al. are silent regarding the means used to keep the two outer sheets from sticking together prior to assembly, while they are stacked together in storage prior to the printing and assembly process. It would appear that the continuous feed sheets would require an additional adhesive application machine immediately prior to the assembly of the sheets. The present invention provides a non-congruent adhesive pattern for facing surfaces prior to printing, thus allowing the sheets to have the contact adhesive applied prior to printing and yet preclude the adhesion of the facing surfaces of adjacent sheets together during storage.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,738,391 issued on Apr. 19, 1988 to Robert F. Wiseman describes a Temporarily And Permanently Sealable Envelope Or The Like, wherein the flap of the envelope has two different types of adhesive applied thereto. The primary adhesive is a moisture activated glue, which provides a permanent seal when activated. A secondary tab includes an adhesive which secures to an adjacent surface by means of light pressure, as in a Post-It™ note or the like. This is not a traditional contact adhesive as defined in the present disclosure, as this adhesive does not require an identical adhesive material on the opposite surface to which it is to be secured. Moreover, Wiseman provides a release sheet to cover his adhesive tab until adhesion is desired. No means of precluding adhesion of the facing surfaces by means of offsetting the contact adhesive patterns is disclosed, as provided by the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,817,860 issued on Apr. 4, 1989 to Ruth Shapiro describes a Fragrance Releasing Envelope wherein a temporary adhesive includes microencapsulated fragrance mixed therein. Separating the temporary adhesive portions to open the envelope, ruptures the micro capsules and releases the fragrance. The envelope is sealed prior to use, with an end flap remaining open for the insertion of a card or other article into the envelope. This end flap is sealed using moisture activated adhesive, not a contact adhesive. No means is provided by Shapiro to preclude the stocking of the two temporary adhesive portions together before such adhesion is desired, as in the alternatingly staggered or offset contact adhesive patterns of the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,951,864 issued on Aug. 28, 1990 to David Dicker describes a One-Piece Mailer And Apparatus For Folding Same, using moisture activated glue along the lateral edges of the blank. Dicker notes the disadvantages of heat activated adhesives in non-impact printers (e.g., laser), wherein a great deal of heat is generated during the printing process. This can cause such glues to be activated, which can damage the printer as well as destroying the article being printed. The contact adhesives used in the carrying out of the present invention are safe for use in such printers, as any heat will tend to reduce their surface tack and thus further preclude any chance that they may adhere weakly to some other article than an identical area of contact adhesive. Dicker further recognizes the problem with pre-application of contact adhesive along the edges of such envelope blanks, as he addresses only adhesives activated by some active agent (moisture, heat, etc.). The present invention precludes any requirement for the costly and complex moisture dispensing apparatus of the Dicker disclosure, and is adaptable to the construction of envelopes similar to the envelope of the Dicker patent.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,183,203 issued on Feb. 2, 1993 to Raymond W. Sanders describes a Multiple Purpose Certified Mail Envelope Assembly, wherein one panel of the envelope is provided in a continuous feed web and separate second panels and return receipt cards are glued to each of the first panels. A moisture activated glue is used, as identical patterns of contact adhesive applied to one surface of the panels in an interfolded continuous feed web, would result in the alternating facing surfaces having the contact adhesive thereon,
Greenberg & Traurig
Johnstone Adrienne C.
Kurtz II Richard E.
Musser Barbara J
U-Seal, Inc.
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