Stamping a coating of cured field aligned special effect flakes and image formed thereby

• US 8,118,963 B2
• Filed: 06/27/2007
• Issued: 02/21/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/13/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Viavi Solutions, Inc. (Lumentum Holdings Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Viavi Solutions, Inc. (Lumentum Holdings Inc.)
• Inventors: Argoitia, Alberto
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Katarzyna Wyrozebski
• Assistant Examiner(s): DODDS, SCOTT
• Application Number:
  US11/769,274
• Publication Number:
  US 20080003413A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,700 Days
• Field of Search: 156/272.2, 156/242, 156/246, 264/108, 264/293, 264/435, 264/437, 264/438, 283/72, 283/82, 283/83, 283/94, 283/113
• US Class Current: 156/246
• CPC Class Codes: B05D 3/12 by mechanical means
• CPC Class Codes: B05D 3/14 by electrical means
• CPC Class Codes: B05D 3/207 post-treatment by magnetic fields
• CPC Class Codes: B05D 5/06 to obtain multicolour or other optical effects B05D5/02 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 3/14 Security printing securities B42D25/29
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 2033/16 Magnetic or magnetisable material
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 2035/24 Colours
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 25/29 Securities; Bank notes
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 25/328 Diffraction gratings; Holograms
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 25/369 Magnetised or magnetisable materials
• CPC Class Codes: B44C 1/1729 Hot stamping techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/04 Preventing copies being made of an original
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/043 by using an original which is not reproducible or only reproducible with a different appearence, e.g. originals with a photochromic layer or a colour background
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 2215/0013 for producing copies with MICR
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 2215/00793 Stamping device
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 2215/00881 Magnetic information
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 2215/00932 Security copies
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 41/16 the magnetic material being applied in the form of particles, e.g. by serigraphy , to form thick magnetic films or precursors therefor H01F41/18 -H01F41/24 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/24851 Intermediate layer is discontinuous or differential

Abstract

A method of forming a security device is disclosed wherein a magnetically aligned pigment coating coated on a first substrate upon a release layer is hot stamped onto another substrate or object. Multiple patches with aligned magnetic flakes can be oriented differently in the form of a patch work or mosaic. For example, a region of stamped aligned flakes having the flakes oriented in a North-South orientation can be stamped onto one region of an object or substrate and another region of stamped same flakes removed from a same substrate can be stamped onto a same object oriented in an E-W orientation. By first aligning and curing flakes onto a releasable substrate, these flakes can be stamped in various shapes and sizes of patches to be adhesively fixed to another substrate or object.

Claims

1. A method of forming an image comprising the steps of:

a) coating a first substrate with a pigment coating having field alignable flakes in a carrier;

wherein the field alignable flakes are diffractive flakes having a diffractive pattern of grooves therein;

b) applying a magnetic or electric field to the pigment coating so as to align the flakes therewithin along field lines of the magnetic or electric field so that the grooves are parallel to the field lines;

c) after performing step (b) curing the pigment coating;

d) stamping a first region of the cured coated first substrate with a stamp having a first shape to yield a first stamped transferable image formed of aligned flakes;

e) stamping a second region of the first substrate or of a second substrate to yield a second stamped transferable image formed of aligned flakes wherein the aligned flakes have grooves; and

,

f) transferring the first and second stamped transferable images to a third substrate or object, wherein the grooves of the aligned flakes in the first stamped transferable image are oriented differently than the grooves of the aligned flakes in the second stamped transferable image providing different visual effects from the first and second stamped transferable images in lighting conditions other than normal incidence.

2. A method as defined in claim 1 wherein the first stamped transferable image is transferred to the third substrate or object while it is being stamped.

3. A method as defined in claim 1 wherein the first stamped transferable image is transferred to the third substrate or object by hot stamping.

4. A method as defined in claim 1 wherein the first stamped transferable image is adhesively transferred to the object.

5. A method as defined in claim 1 wherein the first substrate has a release coating thereon so that the stamped image can be released from the release coating.

6. A method as defined in claim 1 wherein step (d) is performed a plurality of times so as to yield a plurality of stamped images formed of aligned flakes.

7. A method as defined in claim 6 wherein at least some of the applied stamped images are disposed next to each other on the third substrate or object such that their diffractive patterns are not parallel.

8. A method as defined in claim 6, wherein the stamped images are subsequently transferred to the third substrate or object and wherein one stamped image is applied at least partially over another.

9. A method as defined in claim 1 wherein the field alignable flakes are color-shifting diffractive flakes.

10. A method as defined in claim 1 wherein the first and second stamped transferable images have different shapes or sizes.

11. A method of forming an image comprising the steps of:

a) coating a first substrate with a pigment coating having field alignable flakes in a carrier therein;

b) applying a magnetic or electric field to the pigment coating so as to align the flakes therewithin along field lines of the magnetic or electric field;

c) after performing step (b) curing the pigment coating;

d) stamping a first region of the cured coated first substrate with a stamp having a first shape to yield a first stamped transferable image formed of aligned flakes;

e) stamping a second region of the first substrate or of a second substrate to yield a second stamped transferable image formed of aligned flakes; and

,

f) transferring the first and second stamped transferable images to a third substrate or object, wherein the aligned flakes in the first stamped transferable image are oriented differently than the aligned flakes in the second stamped transferable image providing different visual effects from the first and second stamped transferable images in lighting conditions other than normal incidence;

wherein step (b) results in the flakes being aligned at an angle to the first substrate so that at least some of the flakes are substantially upstanding with their faces orthogonal to the substrate.