Information display with sliding data card

Abstract

 An information display device (50), having at least one form printed sliding data card (26A,26B,) portions of which (D) are visible through one or more apertures (36) in the data card cover (32), is made from a preprinted composite paper sheet (20). The information display device can be personalized for use as a direct mail article.

Description

[0001] This invention relates generally to printed information display devices, which are capable of manufacture from a continuous web of paper stock, and more particularly to information display devices having one or more sliding display cards or panels. The invention comprises methods of manufacture which are particularly suitable for the production of personalized information display devices which can be addressed and sent as direct mail articles.

[0002] Information display devices having sliding data display cards provide a compact, convenient and easily operable means for conveying data which vary with respect to one or more parameters. Typical examples of such variable data include conversion tables, such as metric to English, insurance benefits and premiums, bank account deposit and interest rate data and schedules for athletic events and the performing arts. Such display devices are usually produced commercially in large quantities and are form printed with vendor or advertiser information, for use in promoting various products or services. These devices are typically provided free of charge by merchants to visiting customers or are included as an enclosure in a direct mail campaign. Prior to the development of the present invention, such information display devices have not been used as direct mail articles, because methods for producing the display devices economically in the form of articles suitable for mailing and capable of being personalized with addressee or other information directed to a specific recipient were not known.

[0003] It will be understood by those familiar with the art that the terms "personalized" and "personalizing" as used throughout this specification refer to the printing on the information display devices of information unique to the recipient. Such information can include the recipient's name, address, gender, age, customer account or billing number and any other pertinent demographic information. The personalized information can be reproduced in the form of conventional alpha-numeric characters readable by eye, by optical character recognition (OCR) devices or by indicia readable by appropriate computer peripheral equipment, such as bar code scanners and the like.

[0004] Accordingly, it is an objective of the present invention to provide a method of manufacturing an information display device having one or more sliding date display cards which can be form printed and personalized.

[0005] It is a further objective of the present invention to provide a method of manufacturing an information display device having at least one sliding data display card, in the form of a self-contained direct mail article which can be economically produced in large volume for use in direct mail campaigns.

[0006] It is still a further objective of the present invention to provide a method of manufacturing an information display device having one or more sliding data display cards, which can be form printed, personalized and assembled from a web of paper stock in a continuous operation.

[0007] The present invention thus relates to a method of making a personalized information display device comprising one or more sliding data display cards from a preprinted composite sheet of paper or card stock. The preprinted sheet can be a separate sheet or a section which is initially part of a continuous web, which is perforated along transverse separation lines to divide the web into repeating sheet sections. Each of the composite sheets is divided along transverse fold lines into a cover section and a card section, the latter comprising one or more data cards. The cover section is further divided to define front and rear data card cover panels. The composite sheet is preferably form printed, as a separate sheet or as part of a continuous web, and the data card cover section, the data card section or both are personalized. The sheets are then die cut to provide at least one aperture in the data card cover, in the area between the marginal edges of the cover sheet which will subsequently be positioned over the data card, and the marginal areas of the data card sections are cut and removed. The sections are folded along the transverse fold lines to position the narrower card within the cover panels, so that at least a portion of the form printed data card is viewable through the aperture. The cover panels are bound together and the data card or cards are separated from the cover panels along the transverse fold line.

[0008] In a preferred aspect of the invention, at least a portion of the data card cover sheet can be form printed with information, such as the sender's name, address and postal data. Personalization and form printing in this manner allow the information display device to be used as a direct mail article, so long as it otherwise conforms to applicable postal regulations.

[0009] In other preferred embodiments of the invention, the data card cover sheet comprises front and back covers folded to position the data card therebetween. The front and rear covers are either joined along a first transverse fold line or they are spaced apart from one another, at opposite ends of the data card section, and are fan-folded. The data card can be form printed on both sides to provide information which can be viewed through apertures formed in each of the front and back covers. The front and rear cover panels are bound to one another, to maintain the superposed position of the sections, by means of a suitable adhesive such as a pressure-sensitive or hot melt adhesive, crimping, stapling or any other suitable means.

[0010] An information display device having two or more sliding display cards is formed by dividing the data card section and the card cover section along one or more longitudinal lines into two or more pairs of corresponding front and rear card cover panels. The data card cover section is then folded along the longitudinal line or lines, so as to locate the sliding data display cards over one another. At least one of the front and rear covers of each of the two sliding display cards is provided with one or more apertures for viewing data, which are form printed on both sides of its corresponding data card. In a further preferred aspect of this embodiment, at least one of the front covers is form printed and personalized and the front and rear card covers are releasably bound to one another by suitable means to provide an article which is suitable for mailing.

[0011] In another embodiment of the invention, the data card cover section is joined to the data card section along a transverse fold line and the opposite lateral or marginal edges of the cover section extend beyond the edges of the data card and are folded so as to enclose the data card partially or totally, following folding of the data card and cover into a superposed position. In one aspect of this embodiment, the card has a front cover with one or more apertures, but not a complete rear cover. The slidable card is held in position by its frictional contact with the fold lines of the marginal flaps. In an alternative aspect of this embodiment, the marginal flaps overlap and are bonded together to form a two-part rear cover.

[0012] The methods described can be readily adapted to produce articles in a variety of sizes and formats which are within the capabilities of commercial lithographic and computer-directed printers and folding equipment at present available.

[0013] In the broadest sense, the invention comprises a method of manufacturing an information display device, comprising a separate data card slidable within a cover, from an integral preprinted composite sheet which comprises:

(a) a data card section defining a data card, joined along at least one transverse fold line to

(b) a card cover section consisting of a rear cover panel and a front cover panel, the width of the data card being less than the width of the cover panels, and the method is characterised by:

(A) die cutting the data card section along the longitudinal margin edges of the data card;

(B) removing the marginal portions of the data card section lying outside the data card and along a transverse fold line;

(C) die cutting the cover section to provide at least one aperture in either or both of the front cover panel and the rear cover panel;

(D) folding the composite sheet to position the data card between the front and rear cover panels; and

(E) separating the data card from the adjoining cover panel along the transverse fold line so that the data card is slidably enclosed within the front and rear cover panels.

[0014] In accordance with a preferred embodiment, the method of the invention, for making an information display device comprising a plurality of separate slidable data cards from an integral preprinted composite sheet which comprises a data card section defining at least two data cards joined along a first fold line to a card cover section divided into a front cover section and a rear cover section along a second transverse fold line, the data card section and the card cover sections being divided along at least one longitudinal fold line to define front and rear cover panels, is characterised by:

(a) die cutting the longitudinal marginal edges of the data cards;

(b) removing the portions of the data card section lying outside the data cards and along the first transverse fold line;

(c) die cutting the cover section to provide at least one aperture in either or both of the front cover panel and the rear cover panels;

(d) folding the composite sheet along the first and second fold lines to position the data card section between the front and rear cover sections;

(e) bonding together the marginal edges of the front and rear cover panels adjacent the data cards to form a card cover; and

(f) separating the data cards from the cover section along the first transverse fold line so as to provide a plurality of data cards slidably enclosed within adjacent front and rear cover panels.

[0015] The invention, in various embodiments, is described in greater detail below, by way of illustrative example, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Additional specific uses and advantages of the various formats which can be employed in practising the methods of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art. In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a composite sheet which is a repeating form in a continuous paper web;

Fig. 1A is a plan view of a composite sheet comprising one data display card;

Fig. 2 is a schematic side view illustrating the sequence of folding of the composite sheet of Fig. 1;

Fig. 2A is a schematic side view illustrating the sequence of folding of the composite sheet of Fig. 1A;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a completed information display device having a pair of sliding display cards produced from the composite sheet of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of a partially finished composite sheet illustrating another embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of a partially finished composite sheet illustrating a further embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a completed information display device formed from the composite sheet of Fig.5; and

Fig. 6A is a perspective view of a modified embodiment of a completed information display device illustrated in Fig.6.

[0016] Referring to the drawings in detail, where like reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several figures, and particularly to Fig. 1, a web 10 is divided by perforated transverse parting lines 12 into a plurality of repeating composite sheets 20. Each sheet 20 in the embodiment of Fig. 1, is designed to provide a finished information display device 50, having a pair of sliding display card sections 52 and 54, as shown in Fig. 3. However, it will be appreciated that the method of the invention is applicable to the manufacture of information display devices having a greater or lesser number of sliding display cards. For example, Figs. 1 and 3 illustrate a composite sheet from which a pair of cards in a single device are produced. As will be apparent to those skilled in the art, the composite sheet of Fig. 1 or the finished assembly of Fig. 3 can be divided at various stages of the manufacturing process into two separate devices, each with a single card. Embodiments having varying numbers of sliding display card sections are described in greater detail below.

[0017] The web 10 is a continuous paper web with marginal strips 14 of line holes 16 for engagement by one or more computer-directed printers. This arrangement permits high speed feeding and proper indexing of the composite sheet 20, during form printing and personalization, and facilitates the folding and die cutting operations described below.

[0018] With continued reference to Fig. 1, the composite sheet 20 is divided by a first transverse fold line 25 into a card section 22 and a cover section 24. The data card section 22 is further divided by a central longitudinal fold line 28 into data cards 26A and 26B. These data cards 26A and 26B can be form printed with data fields D on one or both sides which are arranged in a single data column or into a plurality of data columns, as illustrated. The data fields D can comprise numeric, alpha-numeric, graphic and colour-­graphic data or any combination of desired form. The cover section 24 is divided by a second transverse fold line 30 and a longitudinal fold line 28 into a pair of front covers 32A, 32B and a pair of back covers 34A and 34B. Any one or all of the front and back covers 32A, 32B, 34A,34B can be provided with one or more apertures or windows 36 for viewing the data fields D. Finger grip apertures 38 are die cut and removed along the fold line 30, to facilitate gripping of the data cards 26A and 26B with the finger tips. The data card section 22 is die cut along marginal lines 42 and lines 43 on both sides of the longitudinal fold line 28 to provide marginal and central strip portions 44, which are removed prior to folding. Removal of these strip portions 44 allows the data cards 26A and 26B to be positioned between the marginal edges of their corresponding front and back card covers 32A and 34A, 32B and 34B, when the respective sections are folded into a superposed position. A suitable adhesive, such as a pressure-sensitive or hot melt adhesive, is applied along lines 40 at the edges and adjacent the longitudinal fold line 28 of one or both card covers of each corresponding pair of card covers, to bind the corresponding front and back covers together, following sheet folding.

[0019] With reference to Fig. 2, the data card section 22 is folded along the perforated first transverse fold line 25 toward the back covers 34A, 34B. The front covers 32A and 32B are then folded to a superposed position over their respective data cards and back covers, as illustrated in the figure. Alternatively, the front and back covers can be bound, e.g. by passing them through crimping wheels, or by the use of other suitable mechanical binding means, such as stapling. Following folding and binding, the data cards and the front and back card covers are separated along the transverse line 25 and 30, as by scissor wheel cutting, to provide the finished information display device 50 comprising a pair of display sections, which, as illustrated in Fig. 3, can be further folded along the longitudinal line 28 so that the two sliding display card sections 52 and 54 face one another. These display card sections 52 and 54 can be temporarily joined by a wafer seal or adhesive strip 27, to ensure the integrity of the information display device while it is in the mail. Alternatively, a spot of releasable adhesive (not shown) can be applied to the surface of one or both of the back cover sections 34A and 34B to bind the display card sections 52 and 54 temporarily.

[0020] With reference to the single card embodiment illustrated in Figs. 1A and 2A, an alternative layout is shown where the data card section 22′ lies intermediate the cover section 24′ the latter consisting of a front cover panel 32′ and a rear cover panel 34′. After die cutting of the viewing apertures 36′ and the finger grip apertures 38′ and removal of the marginal portions 44′ adjacent the data card 26′. the sheet is fan-folded as schematically illustrated in Fig. 2A along the transverse lines 30′ and 35′, to position the data card between the cover panels and the cover panels are then bound as described above.

[0021] With reference to Fig. 4, a partially processed composite sheet 20′ for forming a three panel information display device is shown. The sheet 20′ is similar to the composite sheet 20 depicted in Fig. 1, except that the data card and card cover sections 22 and 24, respectively, are divided into third by the longitudinal lines 28 and 28′. The composite sheet 20 is processed in a manner similar to the sheet 20. Thus, the composite sheet 20′ is form printed, personalized and die cut to provide the viewing apertures 36 and the pull tab apertures 38 and to separate the data cards 26A and 26B. A third data card 26C, shown in phantom in the drawing, can be provided, so that an information display device having three sliding display card sections is formed, or the card 26C can be removed prior to folding, to provide an information display device having two sliding display card sections and a cover. Following the steps of folding along the perforated transverse fold lines 25 and 30 and binding in the manner described above, the information display device can be folded along the longitudinal lines 28 and 28′ and releasably bound as described above, to provide as more compact configuration to facilitate mailing of the display device.

[0022] With reference to Figs. 5 and 6, a further embodiment is shown of the personalized information display device of the present invention. As illustrated in Fig. 5, a composite sheet 200 comprises a data card section 220 and a card cover section 240 joined along a transverse perforation line 225. The data card section 220 contains a single data card 260, which can be form printed with one or more data fields, as described above. The data card 260 is die cut along lines 242 and the resultant marginal strips 244 are removed, so that the card 260 has a width "w" which is substantially less than the width "w" of the card cover section 240. As is shown in Fig. 6, the marginal edges of the cover section 240 extend a distance "d" beyond the edges of the data card 260 to form marginal strips 270. The data card 260 is folded along a transverse fold line 250 into superposed position over the cover 240 and each of the marginal strips 270 is folded along longitudinal lines 290 around the data card 260, as shown in Fig. 6. The sheets 220 and 240 are then separated from one another, so that the data card 260 can slide freely within the folds 275 formed by the marginal strips of the cover sheet.

[0023] In a modified embodiment of Fig. 6A, the marginal flaps 270′ are of sufficient width to enclose the card 260′ and overlap along the line 280′, where they are bonded using adhesive. As will be apparent to those skilled in the art, apertures can also be provided in the rear cover by die cutting the marginal flaps.

Claims

1. A method for manufacturing an information display device (50), comprising a separate data card (26A,26B; 26′; 26C; 260, 260′) slidable within a cover (24; 24′; 240), from an integral preprinted composite sheet (20; 20′; 200) which comprises:
(a) a data card section (22; 22′; 220) defining a data card, joined along at least one transverse fold line (25; 250) to
(b) a card cover section (24; 24′; 240) consisting of a rear cover panel (34′) and a front cover panel (32′) the width of the data card being less than the width of the cover panels,
characterised by:

(A) die cutting (42; 242) the data card section along the longitudinal marginal edges of the data card;

(B) removing the marginal portions (44; 44′; 244) of the data card section lying outside the data card and along a transverse fold line (25; 25′; 225);

(C) die cutting the cover section to provide at least one aperture (38; 36, 36′, 38′) in either or both of the front cover panel and the rear cover panel;

(D) folding the composite sheet to position the data card between the front and rear cover panels; and

(E) separating the data card from the adjoining cover panel along the transverse fold line so that the data card is slidably enclosed within the front and rear cover panels.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein, prior to step (E), the marginal edges of the front and rear cover panels are bonded together (40).

3. A method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the data card is joined to the cover section along a first transverse fold line (25; 25′; 250) and the front cover panel is joined to the rear cover panel along a second transverse fold line (30; 30′, 35′; 225, 275) the data card being separated from the bonded cover panels along the first transverse fold line.

4. A method according to claim 3, wherein the cover panels are trimmed along the second fold line.

5. A method according to claim 3 or 4, wherein a finger grip aperture is die cut on the second fold line.

6. A method according to claim 3, wherein the data card section is intermediate the front and rear cover panels and is joined to them along first and second transverse fold lines, the data card being separated from the bonded cover panels along the first and second transverse fold lines.

7. A method according to claim 6, wherein a finger grip aperture is die cut on the first fold line and at the end of the cover panel opposite the second fold line.

8. A method according to any preceding claim, wherein the data card and cover panel are separated by skin trimming.

9. A method according to any of claims 1 to 7, wherein the fold lines are perforated.

10. A method according to claim 9, wherein the perforations in the first fold line are slit perforations.

11. A method according to any preceding claim, wherein the data card is printed and the composite sheet is folded in step (D) so as to position the cover section over the card section so that the printed area of the card is visible through an aperture in the cover section.

12. A method according to claim 2 or any of claims 3 to 11 as dependent thereon, wherein the marginal edges of the cover section are of a sufficient width to overlap and the overlapping portions are bonded together.

13. A method according to claim 12, wherein the overlapping marginal edges are bonded together with adhesive.

14. A method for making an information display device (50), comprising a plurality of separate slidable data cards (26A, 26B; 26′, 26C; 260, 260′) from an integral preprinted composite sheet (20; 20′; 200) which comprises a data card section (22; 22′; 220) defining at least two data cards joined along a first fold line (25; 250) to a card cover section (24; 24′; 240) divided into a front cover section (32A, 32B) and a rear cover section (34A, 34B) along a second transverse fold line (30; 30′, 35′; 225, 275) the data card section and the card cover sections being divided along at least one longitudinal fold line (28; 28′; 280, 280′) to define front (32′) and rear (34′) cover panels,
characterised by:

(a) die cutting (42; 242) the longitudinal marginal edges of the data cards;

(b) removing the portions (44; 44′; 244) of the data card section lying outside the data cards and along the first transverse fold line;

(c) die cutting the cover section to provide at least one aperture (38; 36, 36′; 38′) in either or both of the front cover panels and the rear cover panels;

(d) folding the composite sheet along the first and second fold lines to position the data card section between the front and rear cover sections;

(e) bonding together (40) the marginal edges of the front and rear cover panels adjacent the data cards to form a card cover; and

(f) separating the data cards from the cover section along the first transverse fold line so as to provide a plurality of data cards slidably enclosed within adjacent front and rear cover panels.

15. A method according to claim 14, wherein the composite sheet is form printed and personalized.

16. A method according to claim 15, wherein the data card cover is form printed.

17. A method according to claim 16, wherein the data card section is form printed on both sides and the front and back cover panels are die cut to provide at least one aperture in each panel.

18. A method according to any of claims 14 to 17, wherein the front and rear covers are bonded by adhesive.

19. A method according to any of claims 14 to 18, wherein adjacent data card cover panels are folded to a superposed position along intermediate longitudinal fold lines.

20. A method according to claim 19, wherein the date card covers are releasably secured together.

21. A method according to claim 20, wherein the data card covers are secured by a releasable adhesive.

22. A method according to claim 20, wherein the data card covers are secured by a wafer seal.

23. A method according to any preceding claim, wherein the preprinted composite sheet is part of a continuous web, from which the composite sheet is separated.

24. A method according to claim 23, wherein personalized data are printed on the composite sheet before its separation from the web.

25. A method according to claim 23 or 24, wherein the composite sheet is separated from the web along a transverse line of perforations.

Drawing