Special receptacle or package – With indicia or area modified for indicia
Reexamination Certificate
1999-11-22
2001-09-18
Fidei, David T. (Department: 3728)
Special receptacle or package
With indicia or area modified for indicia
C206S315900
Reexamination Certificate
active
06290062
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to sports equipment packaging, particularly for golf and tennis equipment, which has a remarkably decorative and elegant appearance.
2. Prior Art
Packaging for sports equipment, such as golf and tennis equipment, is lacking in decorativeness and elegance. In the case of boxes used to package golf balls, for example, the logo, slogans, coloring, images and other material describing features of the golf balls inside are printed over part or all of the box with ordinary pigment inks, leaving the displayed material flat and one-dimensional.
The application of holographic displays to the surface of various types of packaging for decorative effects has already been described (see, for example, Japanese U.M. Application Kokai Nos. 62-143663 and 4-24340). In most such packaging, a specular area that regularly reflects incident light is formed within a diffuse area that diffusely reflects incident light, causing three-dimensional patterns to appear in the specular area as the viewing angle is changed. This falls short of creating an attractive and elegant appearance that draws the attention and interest of the consumer.
Recently, there was devised a packaging for golf balls which is colored with a pigment that exhibits colors due to an interference effect by reflected light, giving the packaging an appearance wherein the color tone varies with the viewing angle (JP-A 6-183454). Yet, this too leaves something to be desired in terms of decorativeness and elegance. A need has thus been felt for further improvement.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a packaging for sports equipment which is able to create a novel appearance of outstanding attractiveness and elegance.
According to the invention, a novel appearance of outstanding attractiveness and elegance is created by combining the diffuse reflection effect of a hologram with a marking layer which is formed of an ink that undergoes changes in the three attributes of color (these being lightness, saturation and hue) due to interference with the diffusely reflected light from the hologram. Alternatively, the marking layer is formed by laminating another hologram onto the first hologram.
In one aspect, the invention provides a packaging for sports equipment, comprising an enclosure or container which encloses and holds an article of sports equipment, a hologram formed on at least a portion of the enclosure for diffusely reflecting incident light, and a marking layer on the hologram comprising an ink. The ink contains a dye or pigment having the color attributes of lightness, saturation and hue, at least one of which varies due to interference with diffusely reflected light from the hologram.
In another aspect, the invention provides a packaging for sports equipment, comprising an enclosure which encloses and holds sports equipment, a hologram formed on at least a portion of the enclosure for diffusely reflecting incident light, and a marking layer on the hologram comprising an organic or inorganic ink.
In yet another aspect, the invention provides a packaging for sports equipment, comprising an enclosure which encloses and holds sports equipment, a first hologram formed on at least a portion of the enclosure for diffusely reflecting incident light, and a marking layer comprising one or more second hologram layer laminated on the first hologram.
Preferably, the hologram in the sports equipment packaging is a rainbow hologram. The packaging of the invention is typically for sports equipment such as golf or tennis equipment.
According to certain aspects of the invention, packaging for sports equipment, such as golf or tennis equipment, has formed on at least a portion of an enclosure a hologram which diffusely reflects incident light. The hologram has formed thereon a marking layer of an organic or inorganic ink or of an ink containing a dye or pigment the three color attributes of which vary due to an interference effect with diffusely reflected light from the hologram. This causes incident light to be diffusely reflected by the hologram, giving a brilliant, iridescent appearance when the packaging is viewed from different directions. At the same time, the marking layer formed of ordinary organic or inorganic ink seems to stand out in relief, providing a novel and distinctive appearance. If the marking layer is formed of an ink having an interference effect with the diffusely reflected light from the hologram, the three attributes of color (lightness, saturation and hue) undergo subtle changes, producing novel color tones and contrasts of light that give the packaging a highly decorative and elegant appearance.
Furthermore, according to another aspect of the invention, packaging for sports equipment has a first hologram formed on at least a portion of an enclosure that diffusely reflects incident light, and a marking layer laminated on the first hologram that includes one or more second hologram layer. This results in subtle interference between the diffusely reflected light from the first hologram and the diffusely reflected light from the second hologram, giving the packaging a special and elegant appearance that would be unachievable with a conventional single-layer hologram.
The distinctive appearance of the sports equipment packaging of the present invention is able to strongly attract the attention and interest of consumers, making it highly effective for product differentiation with other brands and makes.
It should be noted that JP-A 6-183454 discloses golf ball packaging coated with a pigment which exhibits colors due to an interference effect by reflected light, and in particular composite particles comprising a mica nucleus coated with a light-reflecting substance composed primarily of titanium oxide. The coated portion of packaging varies the color tone according to the viewing angle. However, this reference neither discloses nor suggests any of the following features of the present invention.
(1) The formation, on a hologram, of a marking layer composed of an organic or inorganic ink.
(2) The formation, on a hologram, of a marking layer made of an ink the three color attributes (lightness, saturation, and hue) of which change due to interference with diffusely reflected light from the hologram.
(3) The formation, on a first hologram, of a marking layer by laminating a second hologram onto the first hologram.
(4) The use of above features (1) to (3) to provide a novel appearance of outstanding decorativeness and elegance. It is therefore apparent that the present invention differs clearly and fundamentally from the above-described prior art.
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patent: 5881444 (1999-03-01), Schaefer et al.
patent: 5882116 (1999-03-01), Backus
patent: 6044970 (2000-04-01), Shinoda
patent: 62-143663 (1987-09-01), None
patent: 4-24340 (1992-02-01), None
patent: 5-183454 (1994-07-01), None
Ohno Takahisa
Sato Nobuhiko
Bridgestone Sports Co. Ltd.
Fidei David T.
Sughrue Mion Zinn Macpeak & Seas, PLLC
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