A process for the production of advertising and/or promotional printed matter comprising samples of scent, essence or smell and printed matter so obtained are described. By using a single pass in a printing press, printed matter (10), wherein a layer (28) based on scent is enclosed in a sandwich structure by a material (26) such as polyethylene or a waterproofing paint and by the printed matter (10) itself, below a die-cut portion (32), which can be lifted to test the scent, is obtained.
The present invention relates to a process for the production of advertising andlor promotional printed matter comprising samples of scent, essence or smell and the printed matter so obtained.
Two different methods, shown respectively in Figs. 1 and 2, have been recently developed in addition to the traditional samples for the promotion and the advertising of essences and the like. The first method, shown in Figure 1, consists of at least an unprinted zone (102) on a printed matter, whereon a scent (104) comprised in microcapsules, is applied and afterwards is covered by another unprinted strip (106) by folding (108) of the printed matter. A detachment of the superior strip (106) causes the microcapsules to be broken and the scent to be emitted. This printed matter is produced in a very convenient manner, e.g. during an offset printing, but it shows some disadvantages. First of all, particular attention must be paid to the material used for printed matter and glue, because they can alter the essence of scent. Secondly and for the same reasons, the zone (102), which the essence is deposited on, must not be, as said, printed, with a consequent lack of aesthetics of the final product.
The second printed matter of the prior art, shown in Fig.2, solves the two cited inconvenients because it shows a deposition of scent (110) on a transparent label (112) of a suitable polymeric material, such as polyethylene, which isolates the scent from the printed matter and from the underlying material. The scent (110) is subsequently covered with a second transparent label (114) of the same material, which can be lifted in order to appreciate the scent. The disadvantage of the process in order to obtain this second known printed matter consists of its slowness and insufficient automatism due to the need of applying subsequently the second label.
Object of the present invention is to provide a process for the production of advertising andlor promotional printed matter comprising samples of scent, essence or smell and the respective printed matter, which combine the advantages of the two aforementioned known techniques, i.e. a process which allows printed matter, having excellent features of retaining the original scent until the promotional printed matter is tested by a receiver, to be obtained in a single pass in a printing press, in particular but not exclusively in the finishing part of a printing press such as rotoffset press.
The above mentioned problems are brilliantly solved through a process for the production of advertising andlor promotional printed matter comprising samples of scent, essence or smell and through the printed matter obtained by the process, and both having the features stated respectively in the characterizing part of claims 1 and 6. Further advantageous features of said process and said printed matter are recited in dependent claims.
Features, objects and advantages of the present invention will be more evident from the following description and from the accompanying drawings conceming examples of non limitating embodiments of the invention. Obviously the same reference numbers in the drawings indicate identical or equivalent parts.
The various figures show:
As figures 1 and 2 are already described in the preliminary part of the present description because these show two known types of printed matter, the description of the process and the printed matter according to the invention, will now follow by making reference to the remaining figures.
Figure 3 shows the finishing part of a rotoffset printing press, adapted to the process according to the invention. In such a finishing part at inlet A, each leaflet (10) of the printed matter of the present invention is as shown in Figures 4 and 5, which show the two faces of the leaflet. Figures 4 and 5 point out that both faces have been printed, for example in four-color printing, in the previous part of the printing press, but this part may also be separated from finishing part. These faces are ideally divided in three zones, stated respectively as 12, 14, 16 and 18, 20, 22. The zones 20, 22 are basically unprinted because they are not visible in the finished product as it will be clear as the description goes on, with the exception of a possible drawing 24 in a portion of zone 20 ( this drawing 24 is omitted from the following figures for semplicity). The leaflets 10 reach inlet A like a roll, wherein they are located as in figure 7. Figure 6 shows the step identified as B in figure 3, i.e. the deposition of an adhesive label 26 consisting of polyethylene or similar material or a waterproofing paint between the two zones 20,22. The material of label 26 or paint has to show neutral features compared to scent and when the drawing 24 is present it has to be transparent. Not considering for the moment step B1 concerning a variant of process of the invention, step C shows a longitudinal slitting of the leaflets 10, better shown in Figure 7 already referred to, whereby the zones 18 and 22 or respectively 12 and 16, of two rows of adiacent leaflets 10, are separated. Afterwards in step D of figure 3, a thin layer 28 based on scent is deposited on label 26 or waterproofing paint (Figure 8). As before step B2 will be explained further on, while the preparation of the substance to be deposited on layer 28, hereinafter stated briefly as scent layer, will be subsequently described.
The substance is obtained by cross-linking of an essential oil or a scent with appropriate thickening agents, which help the obtained suspension to be structured when mixed, by confining in its own gel-lattice a lot of molecules, with a consequent increase of viscosity. In this way the scent layer is grasped at the label below without spreading out further on the printed matter. The lattice so obtained is "ruptured" by a contemporaneous action of temperature, acidity and moisture (eudermic values) so as to liberate the entrapped guest from the cross-linked structure.
The process for producing the flavouring substance comprises the following steps:
Going back to the description of the process, after the deposition of scent, the deposition step E of the glue 30 is carried out (figure 9) around the label or paint 26 on zones 20,22 of the leaflets 10. Of course this is a delicate step because the glue 30 must not interfere with scent 26 already deposited. On the other hand glueing is less critical according to the present invention than it is in the first cited prior art (Figure 1), because here there is no contact between scent and glue, which can thus be of any kind suitable to the material of which the printed matter is constituted. Immediately after the deposition of glue, during step F and step G the leaflets can be folded and glued by superposing and coinciding the zones 20,22 (Figura 10). In this way, the scent 28 is confined between two layers of label 26 consisting of polyethylene or waterproofing paint and separated from the glue 30 and from the leaflet 10 so as to preserve its features for a long time. Subsequently a diecutting step is carried out which sometimes can be carried out conveniently also before the deposition step of scent and glue (H in Figure 3, Figure 11), wherein a die-cut 32 is made on zone 12, in correspondence with label or waterproofing paint 26 comprising scent 28 and optionally with drawing 24 (Figure 5). This must be a very light die-cut because only the leaflet 10 or optionally part of the label thickness has to be cut into, in order to avoid emissions of scent 28. In figure 12 the second folding I of zone 18 is represented on zone 12 and the horizontal or transverse cutting (L in Figure 3), which finishes the process of the invention, is represented in Figure 13.
The leaflet 10 according to the invention obtained by the described process, is used as shown in Figures 14 and 15: a promotional campaign receiver opens the leaflet 10, now closed like a book, while exposing zone 12 having the die-cut 32. Afterwards a small window is opened by lifting the punched part as appropriately explained in the captions on the leaflet, and this causes rupture of the underlying label 26 and the emission of the scent layer 28, which can be tested. When the drawing 24 is present it will be visible below scent 28. So this drawing can coincide with the one on the part confined by the die-cut 32. The small window can be taken off completely or rather attached to the leaflet on one of its sides so as to be closed and opened at will.
Figures 16 and 17 show two steps of an alternative process according to the invention. For this alternative process, in step B the first label or waterproofing paint 26' is located on zone 20 and in step B1 the second label or waterproofing paint 26" is located on zone 22. After the side slitting in step C, the scent will be deposited on one of the labels 26',26" or painted zones so as to form respectively layer 28' in step D or layer 28" in step D1. Of course the two labels or painted zones 26', 26" will be in a symmetrical position against the parting line of the two zones 20,22 so as to coincide during the following folding of step F in order to bind scent 28', 28" in a sandwich structure between polyethylene and painted zones in this alternative process too.
It will be clear that many variations, arrangements, integrations, variants and substitutions can be carried out in the examples of embodiments of the invention previously described as being illustrative and not limitative, without departing from the scope of the invention, so as stated in the enclosed following claims. In particular, it must be clear that, though the invention has been described with reference to a leaflet folded in three parts, either a leaflet, which is folded in the only two functional parts to be tested for scent, or a leaflet, which is folded in four or more parts and comprises many samples of scent also different from each other, falls also within the invention, as the variations to be carried out in the shown process are obvious and in the knowledge of a skilled person of art. This may also be said for the printed matter arrangement in the rool, which can be different from the one shown in Figure 7. Thus with the terms leaflet and/or printed matter it is to be understood any printed article adapted to be treated with the process of the present invention. The same production, here described on a rotoffset printing press, can be easily carried out horizontally or, however on other printing press models.