Geometrical instruments – Miscellaneous – Light direction
Patent
1996-11-12
1998-10-13
Will, Thomas B.
Geometrical instruments
Miscellaneous
Light direction
33 11, 33494, 33476, B43L 700
Patent
active
058194223
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
This application claims the benefit of prior U.S. provisional application, Ser. No. 60/002,773 filed on Sep. 5, 1995.
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention pertains to rulers and cutting guides, and, more particularly, to an improved transparent measuring device having multicolor graduations formed thereon and methods of making the same.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is related to applicant's Transparent Measuring Device with Multicolored Lines that is the subject of U.S. Pat. No. 4,779,346, which is incorporate herein by reference. As described therein, the measuring device uses a novel formation of composite lines to enhance the visibility of the lines against a multicolor background. More particularly, each composite line is formed from two adjacent lines of contrasting colors or hues.
One embodiment of the previous invention has been marketed by Omnigrid, Inc., under the trademark Omnigrid.RTM.. This embodiment uses a pattern of multicolor graduations, each graduation ideally being formed from a combination of a yellow line and a dark-shade green line. When the two lines are combined, the dark-shade green line will appear black because the yellow line is overlaid on the dark-shade green line during the manufacturing process.
The manufacturing process for this previous device involves several steps. By way of simplified explanation, the dark-shade green lines are applied to the back side of a sheet of transparent material, typically by the silk screening method. The yellow lines, which are wider than the dark-shade green lines, are then applied on top of selected dark-shade green lines. Because the yellow lines are wider, they appear on both sides of the dark-shade green lines, resulting in a two-color composite line. To insure uniformity in the appearance of the yellow lines on both sides of the dark-shade green lines, the wider yellow line must be precisely centered over the dark-shade green line. Imprecise centering of the yellow line will result in an irregular appearing composite line that can be confusing to the eye and interfere with precise alignment and measurement.
With the silk screen printing method, great care must be used in aligning the images on the screens and in applying the pigment in order to have precisely centered lines. Minor variations in technique will result in misalignment of the lines. For example, a small change in the speed of the squeegee or the pressure applied to the squeegee will cause variations in the appearance of the line. In addition, changes in the tautness of the screen and in the viscosity of the pigment will yield nonuniform lines. The alignment of the lines is also affected by environmental factors, such as temperature and humidity, which must be carefully controlled to keep the alignment within close tolerances.
In order to avoid these adverse factors during the manufacturing process, great care must be taken to stabilize the environment, maintain precise alignment of the equipment, and utilize trained and experienced personnel in the transferring of the images to the sheet of transparent material. However, even with these controls, unacceptable variations can occur, resulting from such things as an operator's fatigue or illness, as well as interruptions and distractions.
Consequently, there is a need for a process that requires less precision and results in an improved measuring device having uniformly appearing lines. Such a process should permit greater latitude in aligning images, enable the use of relatively unskilled labor, require less time in setting up equipment, and speed up the process of creating and printing or transferring the line images. In addition, such a process should be adaptable to other forms of manufacturing and printing, including, but not limited to, lithographic printing, lamination of a printed sheet to another sheet, laser etching, resist plating, use of UV-cured adhesive ink, and the use of high speed ink jet and laser printers, as well as printing on the front ("right reading") or back (reverse or "wron
REFERENCES:
patent: 2171504 (1939-08-01), Keuffel et al.
patent: 2459694 (1949-01-01), Gordon
patent: 2463868 (1949-03-01), Gutridge
patent: 4779346 (1988-10-01), Schafer
patent: 4942670 (1990-07-01), Brandt
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