A revealable marking comprising a visually identifiable image

Abstract

 A revealable marking for lottery tickets and similar, comprising a visually identifiable image and being applied to a surface of a substrate (2). The marking comprises a layer (5) of water-soluble ink and a contiguous layer (4) of a transparent water-resistant material, said layers (4,5) being arranged such that said water-soluble ink (5) can be at least partially removed by water, thereby revealing said image.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The invention pertains to a revealable marking comprising a visually identifiable image and being applied to a surface of a substrate. The substrate can be a package, a slip of paper or plastic, or any object to which it is desirable to apply a revealable marking.

BACKGROUND ART

[0002] There are many instances when there is a wish to provide an object with a marking that can be concealed up to a point in time when the information conveyed by the marking should be revealed. Such markings are, for example, used on lottery tickets and similar items. The markings are usually covered with a coating that can be scratched off to reveal the marking. A problem with such scratchable coatings is that they leave littering residues that may catch in clothing and other textiles. Furthermore, when used on packaging for sensitive goods, such as foods, the residues left by scratchable coatings may contaminate the packaged article.

[0003] Hence, there exists a need for an alternative marking that can be kept concealed until the information conveyed by the marking is needed and that can be easily and efficiently revealed.

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION

[0004] The present invention presents a solution to the problem of providing a non-littering revealable marking.

[0005] The invention offers a revealable marking comprising a visually identifiable image and being applied to a surface of a substrate. In accordance with the invention, the marking comprises a layer of water-soluble ink and a contiguous layer of a transparent water-resistant material, said layers being arranged such that said water-soluble ink can be at least partially removed by water, thereby revealing said image.

[0006] To reveal the marking's concealed image, the water-soluble ink can be wiped away, for instance by using a wet wipe or can be washed away with water. Revealable markings in accordance with the invention are useful for many applications, such as in safety coding, to ensure authenticity, to detect humidity, as an alternative to coupons or stamps when buying itemised goods, on lottery tickets, on labels, etc. One example of a possible use for the revealable markings is when buying take-out food, such as pizza. Hence, markings on the pizza-cartons may be used as a means of randomly dealing out winning tickets with a discount on the packaged food.

[0007] In one embodiment of the invention, the image is applied to the surface of the substrate and is covered by the layer of water-resistant material, the layer of water-soluble ink being applied to a surface of the layer of water-resistant material being remote from said substrate. The image may be formed in any suitable way on the substrate, and may be applied either directly or indirectly. When removing the layer of water-soluble ink from the layer of water-resistant material, the image is made visible through the transparent layer of water-resistant material.

[0008] According to another embodiment of the invention, the layer of water-soluble ink is applied to the surface of the substrate, either directly or indirectly, and the water-resistant material is arranged in a discontinuous layer over the ink layer such that the ink layer is partially exposed through said layer of water-resistant material. In this context, a discontinuous layer is a layer having discontinuities such as holes or gaps. When wiping or washing the marking with water, the exposed parts of the ink layer are removed, leaving in place those parts of the ink layer that are covered by the water-resistant layer. In this manner, an image corresponding to the configuration of the water-resistant layer is revealed on the substrate.

[0009] The water-resistant material is preferably a water-resistant varnish. By water-resistant is meant a material having the ability to withstand at least some wetting, so that only exposed parts of the water-soluble ink layer are removed when the marking is subjected to wetting. However, it is usually not necessary that the water-resistant material be completely water insoluble in order to function satisfactorily for the purpose of the invention. Normally, wetting or wiping of the marking takes place in a controlled manner and during a short period of time implying that a material having a low water solubility will remain essentially intact. However, when the marking is used in an environment where the exposure to moisture is more prolonged, the water-resistant material is preferably completely water insoluble.

[0010] The ink layer may comprise areas of different colours in order to achieve a multicoloured image. In order for the image to appear clearly, the ink is preferably chosen so as to contrast visibly with the colour of the substrate.

[0011] In accordance with a further embodiment of the invention, the marking may comprise more than two layers. Accordingly, the layer of water-soluble ink may be a first layer of water-soluble ink and the discontinuous layer of water-resistant material may be a first layer of water-resistant material, the marking further comprising a second layer of water-soluble ink being applied as a coating over the first layer of water-resistant material and a second discontinuous layer of water-resistant material being applied as a coating over the second layer of water-soluble ink, said first and second layers of water-resistant material being non-congruent. By two layers being non-congruent is meant that they are partly but not completely overlapping. Hence, there are discontinuities in the first layer of water-resistant material that are overlapping with discontinuities in the second layer of water-resistant material. This means that some portions of the first layer of water-soluble ink is exposed through coinciding discontinuities in the first and second layers of water-resistant material and that only the first layer of water-soluble ink is exposed through some of the discontinuities of the second, outermost layer of water-resistant material. In this manner, it is possible to simultaneously remove portions of the first and second layers of water-soluble ink, leaving a combined pattern formed from portions of the two ink layers.

[0012] When using two or more layers of water-soluble ink, the inks are preferably chosen to have different colours. By choosing combinations of colours that will mix into new colours, such as blue and yellow blending into green, the number of available colours for creating a particular design can be increased.

[0013] A suitable thickness of the water-soluble ink layer is preferably about 10 µm.

[0014] The marking image can be of any suitable form and may comprise a text or a number, a decorative design, a picture, etc.

[0015] The substrate can be a lottery ticket, a packaging material, a label or a hygienic absorbent article. The marking can be applied to any type of material, such as paper, plastic, textile, ceramic, glass, etc.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0016] In the following, the invention will be described in greater detail with reference to the figures that are shown on the appended drawings, wherein:

Fig. 1

shows a planar view of a marking in accordance with the invention;

Fig. 2

shows a section along the line II-II through the marking in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3

shows a section through a marking in accordance with a second embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 4

shows a section through a marking in accordance with a third embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 5

shows a section through the marking in Fig. 4 after the concealed image has been removed; and

Fig. 6

shows the pattern which is concealed in the marking of Fig 4.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

[0017] The revealable marking 1 shown in Figs. 1 and 2 is a laminate of several layers of material and comprises a substrate 2 which is in the form of a sheet of material such as a paper sheet, a plastic film or a metal foil. The substrate 2 is covered by a first layer 3 of water-soluble ink, a layer 4 of water-resistant transparent material, and a second layer 5 of water-soluble ink. The layers are applied on top of each other in the recited order as seen from the substrate 2. For the sake of clarity, the thickness of the individual layers has been greatly exaggerated in the Figs. In reality, each layer has a thickness in the order of about 10 µm.

[0018] The ink layers 3,5, are applied as unbroken, continuous coatings covering the whole surface of the marking. The ink layers 3,5 can be of the same or different kinds of ink and may have the same or different colours. The colour of the ink may also be different within different areas of the same layer.

[0019] The water-resistant material is preferably a layer of transparent varnish, but can be any suitable transparent, water-resistant material, such as a water-insoluble ink, a plastic coating, or the like. The layer 4 of water-resistant material is applied in a pattern having disruptions 6 forming a revealable image on the marking. In the example shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the disruptions 6 are in the form of differently shaped holes in the layer 4 of water-resistant material. The disruptions 6 can, of course, have any desirable form, defining letters, numbers, pictures, ornamental designs, etc. Disruptions in the form of gaps or breaks in the layer of water-resistant material are also conceivable within the scope of the invention.

[0020] In order to reveal the hidden image of the marking, a wet wipe is used to completely remove the second layer 5 of water-soluble ink and the portions of the first layer 3 of water-soluble ink which then become exposed through the disruptions 6 in the layer 4 of water-resistant material. When wiping away the water-soluble ink, the portions of the first layer 3 of water-soluble ink which is positioned beneath the layer 4 of water-resistant material will remain on the substrate and the portions of the substrate which are positioned beneath the disruptions 6 in the layer 4 of water-resistant material will become visible and form image elements. In order for the hidden image to appear clearly, it is preferred that the colour or shade of the substrate contrasts with the colour of the first layer of water-soluble ink.

[0021] Alternatively, the layer of water-resistant material 4 can be applied in such a way that the ink portions 7 remaining beneath individual parts of the layer of water-resistant material define one or more elements of a revealable image.

[0022] The embodiment shown in Fig. 3 has an image layer 8 applied to a substrate 2 and defining an image that is protected by a layer of transparent water-resistant material 4. An outer layer 5 of water-soluble ink covers the layer of water-resistant material and conceals the image up to removal of the water-soluble ink layer 5.

[0023] Fig. 4 shows a marking comprising several layers applied to a substrate 2. The substrate 2 is coated with the following layers applied in the mentioned order as seen in a direction from the substrate 2: a first layer 3' of water-soluble, coloured ink, a first discontinuous layer 4' of water-resistant material, a second layer 3" of water-soluble coloured ink, a second discontinuous layer 4" of water-resistant material, a third layer 3'" of water-soluble coloured ink, a third discontinuous layer 4'" of water-resistant material and a fourth, continuous layer 5 of water-soluble ink. The outer layer 5 of water-soluble ink is non-transparent and conceals the image formed by the different layers beneath. When removing the water-soluble upper ink layer 5 and the portions of the layers 3', 3", 3"', of coloured ink that will then become partially exposed, an image will be revealed. The image is formed from a combination of the different portions of the coloured ink layers 3', 3", 3"', that are left protected by the layers of water-resistant material 4', 4", 4"', when exposed parts of the water-soluble ink layers 3', 3", 3"', are removed. The layers 4', 4", 4"', of water-resistant material are applied such that discontinuities in the different layers 4', 4", 4"', overlap only partly so that elements from different ink layers 3', 3", 3"' combine to form an image. By choosing a suitable pattern and suitable colours or shades for the different layers in the marking, it is possible to obtain a complex, multicoloured image. In the example shown in Fig. 4, the image which is revealed when the exposed parts of the water soluble ink layers ink layers 3', 3", 3"', 5 are removed as shown in Fig. 5 is a pattern of concentric circles, such as illustrated in Fig. 6.

[0024] The invention is not intended to be limited by the disclosed embodiments. Further patterns and combinations of layers are readily envisioned by the skilled person.

Claims

1. A revealable marking comprising a visually identifiable image and being applied to a surface of a substrate (2), characterized in that said marking comprises a layer (5) of water-soluble ink and a contiguous layer (4) of a transparent water-resistant material, said layers (4,5) being arranged such that said water-soluble ink (5) can be at least partially removed by water, thereby revealing said image.

2. A marking according to claim 1, wherein said image is applied to said surface of said substrate (2) and is covered by said layer of water-resistant material (4), said layer of water-soluble ink (5) being applied to a surface of said layer of water-resistant material (4) being remote from said substrate (2).

3. A marking according to claim 1, wherein said layer of water-soluble ink (3) is applied to said surface of said substrate (2) and said water-resistant material is arranged in a discontinuous layer (4) over said ink layer (3) such that said ink layer (3) is partially exposed through said layer of water-resistant material.

4. A marking according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein said water-resistant material is a water-resistant varnish.

5. A marking according to one of claims 1-4, wherein said ink layer (3,5) comprises areas of different colours.

6. A marking according to one of claims 3-5, wherein said layer (3') of water-soluble ink is a first layer (3') of water-soluble ink and said layer (4) of water-resistant material is a first layer (4') of water-resistant material, said marking further comprising a second layer (3") of water-soluble ink being applied as a coating over said first layer (4') of water-resistant material and a second discontinuous layer (4") of water-resistant material being applied as a coating over said second layer (3") of water-soluble ink, said first and second layers of water-resistant material (4', 4") being non-congruent.

7. A marking according to claim 6, wherein said first and second ink layers (3',3") have different colours.

8. A marking according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said water-soluble ink layer (3,5) has a thickness of about 10 µm.

9. A marking according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the image comprises a text or a number.

10. A marking according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the image comprises a decorative design.

11. A marking according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the substrate (2) is a lottery ticket.

12. A marking according to any one of claims 1-11, wherein the substrate (2) is a packaging material.

13. A marking according to any one of claims 1-11, wherein the substrate (2) is a component of a hygienic absorbent article.

Drawing