Solid housing tag

• US 9,324,015 B2
• Filed: 03/14/2013
• Issued: 04/26/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 05/22/2012
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: CHECKPOINT SYSTEMS, INC. (CCL Industries Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: CHECKPOINT SYSTEMS, INC. (CCL Industries Incorporated)
• Inventors: Wu, Wei, Qiao, Yong, Mazoki, Gary T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Michael G
• Assistant Examiner(s): ELLIS, SUEZU Y
• Application Number:
  US13/804,237
• Publication Number:
  US 20130313327A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,139 Days
• Field of Search: 235/492, 340/572.1, 340/572.8, 340/572.9, 340/573.1, 340/573.2, 340/568.1, 70/571, 242/041, 242/042
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: E05B 17/0004 Lock assembling or manufacturing making locksmith's goods of sheet metal B21D53/38; assembling in general B23P21/00
• CPC Class Codes: E05B 17/0008 Lock parts made by extrusion process
• CPC Class Codes: E05B 73/0017 Anti-theft devices, e.g. tags or monitors, fixed to articles, e.g. clothes, and to be removed at the check-out of shops
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/06 characterised by the kind of the digital marking, e.g. shape, nature, code
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/2434 Tag housing and attachment details
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/244 Tag manufacturing, e.g. continuous manufacturing processes
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49002 Electrical device making
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49169 Assembling electrical component directly to terminal or elongated conductor
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 70/5004 For antitheft signaling device on protected article

Abstract

A solid housing tag and method to form the solid housing tag, the method including for example, an injection molding process. The solid housing tag has a single, continuous housing of which at least partially surrounds one or more various tag components arranged about a frame. The tag components may include a lock component and/or security component. The security component may include EAS elements, such as AM, EM, and/or RF technology elements; RFID elements; and/or benefit denial type elements.

Claims

1. A tag comprising:

a core piece, comprising;

a security component;

a lock component, wherein the lock component comprises a lock component opening for receiving a first end of a lock pin, the lock component configured to lock the lock pin to the tag and thereby secure merchandise between a pin head at a second end of the lock pin and the tag; and

a frame, wherein the security component and lock component are arranged about the frame; and

a single-piece housing enclosing all sides of the core piece except for an accessway configured to provide the first end of the lock pin access to the lock component opening.

2. The tag of claim 1, wherein the frame is a single skeleton piece.

3. The tag of claim 1, wherein the housing is formed in the general shape of the core piece.

4. The tag of claim 1, wherein the security component is an acousto-magnetic element or a radio frequency element.

5. The tag of claim 4, wherein the acousto-magnetic element as the security component comprises:

a wire wrapped around a closed encasing portion of the frame;

a capacitor connected to opposite ends of the wire, wherein the capacitor is located about the closed encasing portion; and

a ferrite rod located inside the closed encasing portion of the frame, wherein the ferrite rod is positioned in an open end of the closed encasing portion at a particular length inside the closed encasing portion to attain a proper frequency for detection of the acousto-magnetic element by a detector.

6. The tag of claim 4, wherein the radio frequency element as the security component comprises:

a wire wrapped around a perimeter piece of the frame, wherein the perimeter piece encircles a remainder of the frame and connects to the remainder of the frame by one or more bridge portions of the frame; and

a capacitor connected to opposite ends of the wire, wherein the capacitor is located about the perimeter piece of the frame.

7. The tag of claim 1, wherein the frame comprises:

a lock component cavity formed within a lock component compartment and a lock component compartment dome, wherein the lock component compartment is a wall extending around a circumference of the lock component cavity and wherein a bottom edge of a dome wall of the lock component compartment dome connects to a top edge of the lock component compartment and wherein the dome wall extends up from the connection with the top edge of the lock component compartment and reduces in circumference further from the connection with the top edge of the lock component compartment to form the lock component compartment dome,

wherein the lock component is partially located in the lock component cavity, and wherein the lock component compartment and the lock component compartment dome form a portion of the frame.

8. The tag of claim 7, wherein the lock component comprises:

a spring;

a pusher having a closed end and an open end opposite the closed end, wherein a first end of the spring is positioned through the open end of the pusher and against an internal side of the closed end of the pusher;

two or more balls located against an external side of the closed end of the pusher; and

a lock component chamber having an open end and a floor end opposite the open end of the lock component chamber, wherein the two or more balls are located internally in the lock component chamber on an internal side of the floor end and wherein the floor end comprises the lock component opening through the floor end,

wherein a second end of the spring is located against the lock component dome inside the lock component cavity, and

wherein when the first end of the lock pin is located through the lock component opening in the floor end of the lock component chamber, the lock pin is in engagement with the two or more balls to lock the lock pin to the tag.

9. A method for forming a tag comprising:

assembling a security component and a lock component about a frame to form a core piece; and

forming a housing around the core piece by applying a housing material, via an injection molding process, over and about the core piece such that the housing material encloses all sides of the core piece except for an accessway configured to provide the first end of a lock pin access to a lock component opening;

wherein the lock component opening is configured to receive a first end of the lock pin; and

wherein the lock component is configured to lock the lock pin to the tag and thereby secure merchandise between a pin head at a second end of the lock pin and the tag.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein assembling the security component about the frame further comprises assembling the security component, wherein the security component is an acousto-magnetic element or a radio frequency element.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein assembling the acousto-magnetic element about the frame comprises:

wrapping a wire around a closed encasing portion of the frame;

connecting a capacitor to opposite ends of the wire, wherein the capacitor is located about the closed encasing portion of the frame; and

positioning a ferrite rod inside the closed encasing portion of the frame at a particular length so as to attain a proper frequency for detection of the acousto-magnetic element at a detector.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein assembling the radio frequency element about the frame comprises:

wrapping a wire around a perimeter piece of the frame, wherein the perimeter piece encircles the remainder of the frame and connects to the remainder of the frame by one or more bridge portions of the frame; and

connecting a capacitor to opposite ends of the wire and positioning the capacitor about the perimeter piece.

13. The method of claim 9 further comprising:

forming a lock component cavity within a lock component compartment and a lock component compartment dome, wherein the lock component compartment is a wall extending around a circumference of the lock component cavity and wherein a bottom edge of a dome wall of the lock component compartment dome connects to a top edge of the lock component compartment and wherein the dome wall extends up from the connection with the top edge of the lock component compartment and reduces in circumference further from the connection with the top edge of the lock component compartment to form the lock component compartment dome; and

forming the lock component partially inside the lock component cavity,

wherein the lock component compartment and the lock component compartment dome form a portion of the frame.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein forming the lock component partially inside the lock component cavity comprises:

positioning a first end of a spring against the lock component dome inside the lock component cavity;

positioning a second end of the spring through an open end of a pusher and against an internal side of a closed end of the pusher, wherein the pusher comprises the closed end and the open end opposite of the closed end;

positioning two or more balls against an external side of the closed end of the pusher; and

positioning the two or more balls through an open end of a lock component chamber and against an internal side of a chamber floor end of the lock component chamber, wherein the chamber floor end comprises the lock component opening on the chamber floor end and wherein the chamber floor end is opposite the open end of the lock component chamber;

wherein when the lock component opening receives the first end of the lock pin, the lock pin is in engagement with the two or more balls to lock the lock pin to the tag.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein application of housing material further comprises:

inserting the core piece partially into a cavity of a lower mold and partially into a cavity of an upper mold;

connecting the core piece to one or more ejection bars located in either mold, wherein at least one ejection bar is connected at the lock component opening in the chamber floor;

closing the upper mold and lower mold;

injecting housing material into the cavity of the upper mold and the lower mold; and

removing the ejection bar connected at the lock component opening in the chamber floor when the injection of housing material is complete.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the application of housing material further comprises removing the one or more ejection bars connected with the core piece, except for the ejection bar connected to the lock component opening in the chamber floor, prior to completion of injection of housing material to eliminate apertures on the housing at the former ejection bar connection with the core piece.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein applying the housing material comprises:

applying the housing material over a portion of the frame not including the lock component cavity prior to forming the lock component partially inside the lock component cavity; and

then applying more housing material over portions of the core piece after forming the lock component partially inside the lock component cavity.

18. A method for forming a tag comprising:

forming a core piece comprising a frame, a security component, and a lock component, the lock component comprising a lock component opening for receiving a pin, the lock component configured to lock the pin to the tag to thereby secure the tag to merchandise; and

after forming the core piece, applying a housing material, via an injection molding process, over and about the core piece, the housing material substantially enclosing all sides of the core piece while avoiding the lock component opening.