Tape indicia on clear film media

• US 20030213848A1
• Filed: 04/29/2003
• Published: 11/20/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 05/01/1992
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bruce E. Mortland, Craig S. Huston, Dale R. Davis, Kenneth J. Knight, Peter C. Morris, Said Zamani-Kord, Todd Medin, William D Meyer
• Original Assignee: Bruce E. Mortland, Craig S. Huston, Dale R. Davis, Kenneth J. Knight, Peter C. Morris, Said Zamani-Kord, Todd Medin, William D Meyer
• Inventors: Morris, Peter C., Knight, Kenneth J., Davis, Dale R., Meyer, William D., Mortland, Bruce E., Huston, Craig S., Medin, Todd, Zamani-Kord, Said
• Granted Patent: US 6,994,254 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 235/491
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/0021 using irradiation
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/00214 using UV radiation
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/00216 using infrared [IR] radiation or microwaves
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/0022 using convection means, e.g. by using a fan for blowing or sucking air
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/0095 Detecting means for copy material, e.g. for detecting or sensing presence of copy material or its leading or trailing end
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1714 Conditioning of the outside of ink supply systems, e.g. inkjet collector cleaning, ink mist removal B41J2/08, B41J2/16517, B41J2/18 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 3/407 for marking on special material
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 1/121 by printing code marks applying code marks to labels B65C9/46; marking or coding completed packages B65B61/26
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 2019/06225 using wavelength selection, e.g. colour code
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/12 using a selected wavelength, e.g. to sense red marks and ignore blue marks
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/24793 Comprising discontinuous or differential impregnation or bond

Abstract

A print medium is encoded with information bearing indicia. A transparent layer or substrate which receives the printed information during printing has a first surface, a second surface and a leading edge. A strip of tape is applied to the first surface. A machine readable information bearing indicia is applied to at least one surface of the tape strip. The indicia is formed by a pattern of fluorescent material which upon excitation by radiation of a given spectral excitation range emits radiation in a fluorescent spectral range. The tape reflects radiation in the given excitation spectral range and in the fluorescent spectral range. In another embodiment, the strip of tape is applied to the first surface of the layer of the print medium, and has a top surface which is exposed when the tape strip is applied to the print medium and a bottom surface adjacent the first surface of the print medium. A first machine readable information bearing indicia is applied to the top surface of the tape strip. A second machine readable information bearing indicia is applied to the bottom surface of the tape strip. One type of indicia is a bar code pattern, although other types can also be employed.

Claims

1. A print medium encoded with information bearing indicia, comprising:

a transparent layer of a print medium having a first surface and a second surface and a leading edge;

a strip of tape applied to the first surface of the layer of the print medium;

a machine readable information bearing indicia applied to a surface of the tape strip, the indicia formed by a pattern of fluorescent material which upon excitation by radiation of a given spectral excitation range emits radiation in a fluorescent spectral range; and

wherein the tape reflects radiation in said given excitation spectral range and in said fluorescent spectral range.

2. The print medium of claim 1, wherein the tape strip has a top surface which is exposed when the tape strip is applied to the print medium and a bottom surface adjacent to the first surface of the print medium, and the indicia is applied to said top surface.

3. The print medium of claim 1, wherein the tape strip has a top surface which is exposed when the tape strip is applied to the print medium and a bottom surface adjacent the first surface of the print medium, and the indicia is applied to said bottom surface.

4. The print medium of claim 1 wherein the tape strip is fabricated of a white material.

5. The print medium of claim 1 wherein the tape strip is comprises a metalized polyester material.

6. The print medium of claim 1 wherein the strip of tape is applied to the layer of the print medium along the leading edge.

7. The print medium of claim 6 wherein the strip of tape extends along the entire extent of the leading edge of the layer of the print medium.

8. The print medium of claim 1 wherein the strip of tape is applied along a longitudinal edge of the print medium.

9. The print medium of claim 1 wherein said indicia comprises a bar code pattern.

10. The print medium of claim 9 wherein said bar code pattern includes a set of lines arranged in parallel to the leading edge.

11. The print medium of claim 9 wherein said bar code pattern includes a set of lines arranged in a direction generally perpendicular to the leading edge.

12. The print medium of claim 9 wherein said bar code pattern includes a set of lines arranged diagonally with respect to the leading edge.

13. The print medium of claim 9 wherein the second indicia comprises a bar code pattern.

14. The print medium of claim 1 wherein the first indicia comprises a checker board pattern which indicates a code along each of first and second orthogonal directions.

15. The print medium of claim 14, wherein the first direction extends parallel to the leading edge of the transparent layer, and the code represented by the checker board pattern repeats along the first direction.

16. The print medium of claim 14 wherein the code is a pattern of ones and zeroes, and the checker board pattern includes solid fill areas of the fluorescent material representing ones and unfilled areas representing zeroes.

17. The print medium of claim 1 wherein the transparent layer is in the form of a sheet.

18. The print medium of claim 1 wherein the transparent layer is in the form of a roll.

19. A print medium encoded with information bearing indicia, comprising:

a transparent layer of a print medium having a first surface and a second surface and a leading edge;

a strip of tape applied to the first surface of the layer of the print medium, the tape strip having a top surface which is exposed when the tape strip is applied to the print medium and a bottom surface adjacent the first surface of the print medium;

a first machine readable information bearing indicia applied to the top surface of the tape strip; and

a second machine readable information bearing indicia applied to the bottom surface of the tape strip.

20. The print medium of claim 19 wherein the strip of tape is applied to the layer of the print medium along the leading edge.

21. The print medium of claim 20 wherein the strip of tape extends along the entire extent of the leading edge of the layer of the print medium.

22. The print medium of claim 19 wherein the strip of tape is applied along a longitudinal edge of the print medium.

23. The print medium of claim 19 wherein said first indicia is defined by a pattern of fluorescent material.

24. The print medium of claim 19 wherein said first indicia comprises a bar code pattern.

25. The print medium of claim 24 wherein said bar code pattern includes a set of lines arranged in parallel to the leading edge.

26. The print medium of claim 24 wherein said bar code pattern includes a set of lines arranged in a direction generally perpendicular to the leading edge.

27. The print medium of claim 24 wherein said bar code pattern includes a set of lines arranged diagonally with respect to the leading edge.

28. The print medium of claim 19 wherein the first indicia comprises a checker board pattern which indicates a code along each of first and second orthogonal directions.

29. The print medium of claim 19, wherein the first direction extends parallel to the leading edge of the transparent layer, and the code represented by the checker board pattern repeats along the first direction.

30. The print medium of claim 19 wherein the code is a pattern of ones and zeroes, and the checker board pattern includes solid fill areas of the fluorescent material representing ones and unfilled areas representing zeroes.

31. The print medium of claim 19 wherein the transparent layer is in the form of a sheet.

32. The print medium of claim 19 wherein the transparent layer is in the form of a roll.

33. A print media detection system for use in a printing device, the print media detection system comprising:

a source configured to transmit a light signal;

a sensor configured to detect light energy and convert the light signal into an electrical signal;

a controller coupled to the sensor, the controller configured to receive the electrical signal from the sensor and based at least in part on the electrical signal control an operating parameter of the printing device; and

a substrate configured to receive a printing composition from the printing device, the substrate having a characteristic and an edge, and a strip of tape applied to the first surface of the layer of the print medium, the tape strip having a top surface which is exposed when the tape strip is applied to the print medium and a bottom surface adjacent the first surface of the print medium, a first machine readable information bearing indicia applied to the top surface of the tape strip, and a second machine readable information bearing indicia applied to the bottom surface of the tape strip, the first and second indicia encoded with information regarding said characteristic.

34. A method of reading data encoded on transparent print media, comprising:

providing a transparent layer of a print medium having a first surface and a second surface and a leading edge, the medium including a strip of tape applied to the first surface of the layer of the print medium, a machine readable information bearing indicia applied to a surface of the tape strip, the indicia formed by a pattern of fluorescent material which upon excitation by radiation of a given spectral excitation range emits radiation in a fluorescent spectral range, and

wherein the tape reflects radiation in said given excitation spectral range and in said fluorescent spectral range;

providing an image transfer device having a light source for illuminating the tape strip and a sensor for detecting the radiation emitted by the indicia; and

illuminating the indicia with the light source and detecting the radiation emitted by the indicia to read the information represented by the indicia.

35. The method of claim 34 wherein the transparent layer is in the form of a sheet.

36. The method of claim 34 wherein the transparent layer is in the form of a roll.