The invention relates to protective covers for books.

My Irish patent no. 61667 describes a book protective cover product having an elongate web of (typically transparent) material and adhesive strips along the side edges. It is effective for covering books of a variety of sizes.

The present invention is directed towards improving upon this protective cover to achieve greater versatility and/or ease of use.

According to the invention there is provided a book protective cover apparatus as claimed in claim 1.

In a further embodiment, the internal adhesive is of aqueous acrylic composition.

In one embodiment, at least one of the edge and internal adhesives has a peel-off liner with a measurement scale marked on it.

In one embodiment, the apparatus comprises a transverse adhesive strip extending substantially between the side edges.

In one embodiment, the apparatus further comprises a scissors for cutting the web, the scissors having blades cranked upwardly from adjacent to the pivot joint.

In one embodiment, the apparatus further comprises a cutting device comprising a rail and a blade for cutting across the web as it slides on the rail. In one embodiment, the blade is on a wheel. In one embodiment, vertical level of the blade is adjustable. In one embodiment, the cutting device comprises a base having alignment indicia marked on it. In another aspect, the invention provides a method of covering a book using any apparatus defined above, the method comprising the steps of:

• placing the book on the cover material with the internal adhesive being exposed and the book and the material being at a desired mutual orientation;
• pressing the book and the material together sufficiently for the material to grip onto the book at the internal adhesive to retain the book and the material at the desired orientation; and
• completing flaps to provide a protective cover.

In one embodiment, the book top and bottom edges are substantially parallel to the material side edges, and the internal adhesive maintains this mutual position during the remainder of the method.

In an alternative embodiment, the book is placed across the cover material with its top and bottom edges perpendicular to the cover material side edges, and the side edges of the material are folded over to overlie part of the inside surfaces of the book's covers so that a protective cover in the form of a dust jacket is formed.

In one embodiment, the book is placed so that the book spine is directly on the internal adhesive.

In one embodiment, the web is cut to a length equalling the height of the book.

In one embodiment, the method comprises the further step of peeling the cover material from the book and re-aligning the book with the cover material and re-pressing the cover material against the book to adjust the position.

The invention will be more clearly understood from the following description of some embodiments thereof, given by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:-

• Fig. 1 is a perspective view and Fig. 2 is an end view of a book protective cover product of the invention;
• Figs. 3 is an end view showing an internal adhesive strip in more detail;
• Fig. 4 is a perspective view showing cutting of a length of material for covering a book;
• Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a cutting apparatus, and Figs. 6, 7, and 8 are perspective views showing the apparatus in use;
• Figs. 9 and 10 are perspective views showing how a protective cover is applied in one method;
• Fig. 11 is a perspective view showing application of a cover in another method;
• Figs. 12(a), 12(b), and 12(c) are perspective views showing use of the product for forming a dust jacket for a book;
• Figs. 13(a), 13(b), and 13(c) are perspective views showing an alternative method of forming a dust jacket; and
• Figs. 14 to 16 are plan views of alternative book protective cover products which do not form a part of the invention.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 3 a book protective cover product 1 comprises a roll of transparent plastics web cover material 2 having an adhesive strip 3 along each side edge. There is also an internal, central, adhesive strip 4. Each adhesive strip 3 has a length of permanent adhesive 6 and a release liner 5. The adhesive 6 comprises a polyester tissue carrier coated on both sides with permanent adhesive of synthetic rubber composition and with a peel strength in the range of 300 N/m to 3000 N/m, in this embodiment 1200N/m. The adhesive may alternatively be of acrylic, and the carrier may alternatively be polyproplene.

The central strip 4 has adhesive 8 of the releasable, peel-off, type used widely for removable adhesive notes. There is a release liner 5 on the adhesive 8. This adhesive is clear, and it is UV-resistant. The adhesive 8 comprises aqueous acrylic with a peel strength of 200 N/m, although the full range of possible strengths is 25 N/m to 300N/m. This adhesive is transparent so that it does not block visibility of the book when a protective cover is in place.

There is a measurement scale 7 marked on the peel-off release liners 5. The release liners 5 are of siliconed release liner paper or film.

Referring to Figs. 4 to 11 a scissors 20 may be used to cut off an appropriate length of material 2, using guidance from the measurement scale 7. In this embodiment a scissors 20 has blades 21 and 22 which extend upwardly from the pivot axis so that the lower blade 21 easily fits under the material 2. Also, a rounded end profile of the lower blade helps to ensure that the underneath surface is not scratched.

Alternatively, a cutting apparatus 30 may be used to cut off a length of material 2. This comprises a base 31 and end pillars 32 supporting a rail 33 on which runs a carriage 34 having a cutting wheel 35. As shown in Fig. 6 the material 2 is trained between the base 31 and the rail 33, and alignment marks 36 allow one to easily ensure that the device 30 is square. The exact length to cut off can be accurately and easily determined by placing a book on the material 2 and viewing the measurement scale 7 to ensure that there is sufficient at each end.

As shown in Fig. 7 the cutting wheel 35 maybe used initially to cut the peel-off liner 5 of the central strip 4, which is then peeled off. It is then used to cut the material 2 as shown in Fig. 8. Figs. 9 and 10 show how cuts are made to provide top flaps 40, bottom flaps 41, and side flaps 42. When these flaps have been formed the cover is then completed by folding them over and adhering the flaps in place. Of course, a scissors may be used instead of the device 30.

An important aspect is that the protective cover is easily applied because of assistance arising from the fact that the internal adhesive 8 adheres to the outside surfaces of the book covers. By simply pressing the material 2 against the book outer surface the desired mutual positions and orientations of the book and the cover material 2 may be retained. This helps to prevent skewing of the book and therefore helps to speed up the covering task. This is very advantageous as it avoids the need for use of pegs or weights to ensure that the book remains square on the material. It is only necessary for the user to shape the cover after putting the book on the exposed internal adhesive 8. The internal adhesive 8 maintains the book and cover in position and square. Thus both quality and speed of covering are improved.

Fig. 11 shows a method in which top and bottom flaps 50 have outer edges 51 aligned with the edges of the book covers.

Another aspect of the product 1 is that it may also be easily alternatively used to cover books with a protective cover of the dust jacket type. Referring to Figs. 12(a), 12(b), and 12(c), a portion 55 of material 2 is cut either with a scissors or the device 30. The length of the portion 55 exactly matches that of the book B to be covered, as easily gauged using the measurement scale 7. The book B is then placed on the material 2 at right angles to the manner described above and with the spine of the book B directly over the (exposed) central strip of adhesive 8. The peel-off liners 5 of the edge strips 6 are then peeled away and the side edges are folded over to form flaps 60 held in place by the adhesive 6 of the side strips 3. Application of a protective liner of the dust jacket type is particularly simple because the internal adhesive 8 helps to maintain the book spine in alignment, parallel to the material 2 side edges.

Alternatively, as shown in Figs. 13(a) to 13(c) if the material 2 is not cut to the exact length, flaps can be cut afterwards with a scissors. In this case excess flaps 70 and 71 at one end are cut and folded over. There may, of course, be flaps both top and bottom.

It will be appreciated from the above that the product 1 allows covering of a book with greater accuracy and ease of use arising from the internal adhesive 8, and alternatively covering with a dust jacket if desired. The end user can choose on a book-by-book basis which type of protective cover to make. Also, the cutting apparatus 30 allows very easy and accurate cutting of the material 2 and separate cutting of the peel-off liners 5 if desired.

Referring to Figs. 14 to 16 products may be provided in sheet form, each sheet being for one book. A sheet 80 has longitudinal edge strips 81 with permanent adhesive; and a central strip 82 and transverse end strips 83 with peelable adhesive. A sheet 100 shown in Fig. 15 has longitudinal edge strips 101 with permanent adhesive; and transverse edge strips 102 and a transverse central strip 103 with peelable adhesive. A sheet 110 shown in Fig. 16 has longitudinal edge strips 111 with permanent adhesive and a single, central, transverse strip 112 with peelable adhesive.

The invention is not limited to the embodiments described but may be varied in construction and detail. For example, in the method for forming a cover, the cuts may be made so that the edge adhesive only contacts film material and there is no adhesive contact with the book itself. This is achieved by providing sufficient excess film on the sides so that the folded-in flap covers most of the inside surfaces of the covers. With this method the cover may be removed from the book while keeping the cover intact, if desired. For possible removal of the cover the strength of the adhesive on the internal strip needs to be sufficient to assist with forming the cover by adhering to the book, but also weak enough to allow removal of the cover from the book, and adjustment of mutual positions during the covering method.

Also, in a variation of the method the book may lie across the web, the width of the web being sufficient to encompass the full width of the book and an excess for the side flaps. Similar cutting and folding steps are then implemented, as for the situation where the book lies as illustrated in Fig. 6.

Further, different adhesive compositions and peel strengths may be used within the scope of the invention. For example, the adhesive of the edge strips may be of the peelable type or of the perm-peel type. If they are peelable, there is excellent versatility for removing dust jackets, which would be particularly convenient for children. In another example, the edge strip adhesive may be of aqueous acrylic composition, or either the internal adhesive or the edge adhesive may be of solvent acrylic composition Also, any of the adhesive strips may be interrupted, consisting of a series of short strips. The web material may be of any desired gauge/thickness to suit the intended use. The liners for the adhesives may not be silicone-coated, and may instead comprise a film of plastics or plastics composite material without a coating. The liner overhang for finger lift may be on one or both sides. Also, the cover material may be of any desired type, including paper.