Printed matter – Having revealable concealed information – fraud preventer or... – Utilizing electromagnetic radiation
Reexamination Certificate
2000-12-15
2002-12-17
Wellington, A. L. (Department: 3722)
Printed matter
Having revealable concealed information, fraud preventer or...
Utilizing electromagnetic radiation
C040S626000, C283S094000, C359S002000, C428S042100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06494491
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an item with a surface area exhibiting an optical effect. Also within the scope of the invention is a process for manufacturing the item and the use thereof.
2. Background Invention
Proof against forgery in packaging is of great importance especially for the pharmaceutical industry. Basically, however, in other branches of industry there is a wish for forgery-proof packaging or products, in particular in the consumer industry, e.g., the packaging of foodstuffs, cosmetic items, clothes, software and music CDs or bonds. The item with the surface area exhibiting the optical effect may be packaging, packaging material, an aid to packaging or a product itself on which a surface area is provided with a security part, e.g., in the form of a label bearing an optical effect.
Forgery-proof packaging or packaging material may serve as guarantee of origin, enabling the customer to recognize that the purchased item was actually manufactured and packaged by the desired manufacturer. Forgery-proof packaging material may also be used as guarantee of first opening, e.g., in the form of a label, band or sealing strip, etc., which has, e.g., been affixed to the goods over a bottle closure or over a closure on a wide-necked glass, across a seam between a lid and a container or over the tear-off closure on a pouch. On opening the packaging in question the label, band or sealing strip is broken, demonstrating that the package has already been opened. It is also possible to place objects in an outer packaging bearing characteristic, unmistakable features that cannot be copied, showing that the packaging of the contents has been performed by a particular supplier.
Known forgery-proof packaging and products are provided with holograms on their surface or they exhibit color coding or invisible features. Methods that have proved themselves in practice include, e.g., holograms. Examples are hologram labels or foil lids with integral holograms. Manufacturing holograms, however, involves enormous expenditure.
BROAD DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The object of the invention is therefore to provide at least a part of the surface of items, such as, packaging, packaging materials, packaging aids or products themselves, with an optical effect that can be produced in a cost favorable manner, but cannot be forged in a simple manner.
That objective is achieved by way of the invention in that the surface area exhibiting the optical effect exhibits at least two images separated a distance from each other by means of a transparent layer of material, and such that the distance between the images and the distance between two neighbouring elements forming the images are adjusted with respect to each other, and such that on altering the viewing angle the perceived overall image formed by the overlapping of the images is altered.
The invention makes use of a phenomenon known as the moiré effect. Moiré patterns are two dimensional images that result from the interference of two overlapping patterns. By displacing two immediately adjacent patterns, the moiré interference pattern also changes, leading to the known, changing light-dark image effects.
The present invention makes use of the changing moiré interference that occurs without mechanical displacement of the pattern. As a result of the mutual distance between the images, a spatial arrangement results, which on changing the angle of viewing leads to chang-ing moiré interference effects. By using reflecting materials it is possible, in the region of the angle of reflection, to observe a reflected image of one of the images instead of moiré interference patterns, while moiré interference occurs outside the range of the angle of reflection. The essential core of the invention lies therefore in the preparation of a three dimensional moiré pattern.
In order to create the effect according to the invention, the already known distances between neighbouring image elements in the moiré pattern have to be maintained. The said patterns may be made up of individual parallel lines or dots. In the simplest case of a line pattern the distance between neighbouring lines is always the same. In a simple arrangement two identical image patterns are arranged directly over each other and a distance from each other. It is possible, however, to displace regions of one image pattern with respect to the other image pattern e.g. by half the distance between neighbouring image elements, or to provide the first image with another pattern with the result that, on changing the angle of viewing, for example several changes from lightness to darkness and vice versa are observed. Of course images may also contain a combination of straight and curved lines or other image elements. As a result it is e.g. possible to incorporate trade names and the like signs with three dimensional moiré effects in the packaging material. In order to increase the protection against forgery further, one of the images may contain an additional structure to that of the pattern of lines. Another means of increasing protection against forgery and to conceal data is to design the image in such a manner that the additional information can be seen only after an additional filter has been superimposed on the image. Such filters are made up of a grid-type pattern, the dimensions of which are chosen to suit the dimensions of the line pattern.
The transparent layer of material that acts as a spacer between the images serves as a means of setting the desired minimum distance. This cannot be changed if the patterns are mounted immediately on the different sides or planes of the transparent material layer. If however the transparent layer lies on at least one of the images without being permanently attached there, i.e. at least one of the images is free of the layer of transparent material, then the distance from the pattern is variable and the three dimensional moiré effect is even more pronounced.
The layer of transparent material may be provided with an image on both sides. Another version is such that the layer of transparent material is made up of at least two partial layers and the images are deposited on the different partial layers. In a further version one of the images is deposited on an opaque foil e.g. an aluminium foil.
Instead of two images being deposited, one image may be the mirror image of the other. In this case one side of the layer of transparent material borders on the reflecting layer e.g. an aluminium foil with a highly reflective finish.
The images may be deposited in the form of coloured printed patterns. The printed image may be monochromatic or multi-coloured. As additional security one may employ colours that make the moiré pattern visible only under UV or IR light. Another possibility is for at least one image to be in the form of a surface structure with structural elements displaced with respect to their height e.g. as an embossed or etched pattern. Embossed or etched structures are suitable e.g. for depositing images on an aluminium foil. Embossed patterns may also be deposited on plastic or aluminium/plastic laminates using hot and/or cold embossing. Foils or laminates with an image pattern in the form of a surface structure are especially suitable for the production of tube laminates e.g. for manufacturing toothpaste tubes.
The images may also be created in the form of micro-perforations on an opaque foil, especially on an aluminium foil. The diameter or breadth of the perforations is thereby about 10 to 1000 &mgr;m, preferably 50 to 200 &mgr;m.
The images may also include basic matrix elements with individual image elements, the related image elements of different basic matrices being displaced with respect to each other in order to produce different local light-dark contrast or colours. The image preferably form patterns that produce defined light-dark contrast or colours as a result of various combinations of superposition. As these kind of images require extremely good matching of the super-imposed basic matrices to produ
Lohwasser Wolfgang
Lüthi Markus
Zeiter Patrik
Alcan Technology & Management Ltd.
Carter Monica
Fisher Christen & Sabol
Wellington A. L.
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