The present disclosure relates generally to a frame assembly, and more particularly to a frame assembly in which the front and side walls can be printed using a variety of techniques including digital or screen printing.
Traditional frames for holding photographs or other keepsakes are made from wood, metals, glass and various other materials that have inherent limitations. For example, a wooden frame can be susceptible to warping and moisture damage, a glass frame can be fragile and susceptible to breaking, while a metal frame can rust. Each of these inherent limitations make outdoor use or exposure to moisture and elements challenging. In addition, they are often heavy, which is problematic for certain applications that require the frame to be easily moved or transportable, such as point of purchase displays. Further, these traditional frames cannot be directly printed on all sides. They also cannot be folded to display an image and/or color in a 3-dimensional manner.
As a result, there is a need for a durable, light-weight frame assembly that is impervious to the elements and allows color and/or graphics to be displayed on the visible areas of the frame. There is also a need for a method of directly printing on the substrate used in the construction of the frame to eliminate additional processes and materials currently required to mount/laminate printed graphics on a thin substrate, which is subsequently attached to a traditional wood, plastic, or metal frame assembly.
The disclosed frame assembly and method of making it are directed to overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above and/or other problems of the prior art.
In an embodiment, there is disclosed a frame assembly for displaying an object, comprising: a printable, rigid material forming an outer frame that defines an area in which the object is displayed. In this embodiment, the outer frame comprises two or more sides that are fixed to each other, wherein each side is made of a contiguous piece of the printable rigid material having a front surface (f) and a back surface (b) opposite the front surface, wherein the back surface (b) has a first groove (g1) that permits the areas of the rigid material on each side of the first groove (g1) to fold from 85° to 95°, such as 90° relative to each other to create a right angle for forming an outer side edge (e).
In the described embodiment, the back surface (b) further comprises a second groove (g2) and a third groove (g3) that are adjacent to each other and located at a distance (d) from the first groove (g1), wherein the second groove (g2) and third groove (g3) permit the contiguous piece of printable rigid material to fold 180 degrees such that the back surface (b) of the rigid material adjacent the second groove (g2) comes into contact with the rigid material adjacent the third groove (g3) to form an interior surface (i) of the outer frame assembly.
In another embodiment, there is disclosed a method of making a frame assembly, the method comprising: providing a contiguous piece of printable, rigid material having a front surface (f) and a back surface (b) opposite the front surface; forming one side of the frame assembly by machining multiple grooves into the back surface (b).
In this embodiment, the machining provides: a first groove (g1) that permits the areas of the rigid material on each side of the groove (g1) to fold 90 degrees relative to each other to create a right angle and forming an outer side edge (e), two adjacent grooves (g2 and g3) located at a distance (d) from groove (g1), wherein grooves g2 and g3 permit the contiguous piece of printable rigid material to fold 180 degrees such that backside of the printable rigid material on each side of g2 and g3 come into contact with each other to form an interior surface (i) of the outer frame assembly;
The method described in this embodiment further comprises repeating the forming steps to produce multiple sides of the frame and fastening the multiple sides of the frame to produce an outer frame that defines an area in which the object is displayed.
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate disclosed embodiments and, together with the description, serve to explain the disclosed embodiments. In the drawings:
It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the invention, as claimed.
There is disclosed a frame assembly for displaying an object, comprising: a printable, rigid material forming an outer frame that defines an area in which the object is displayed, wherein the outer frame comprises two or more sides that are fixed to each other.
As used herein, “printable” is intended to mean a surface on which an image can be directly print thereon, such that the image can be wrapped around the frame. It can provide a multi-dimensional look.
As used herein, a “rigid material” includes a sturdy, lightweight plastic, such as a recycled plastic. In one embodiment, the rigid material is both fire and water-resistant. One non-limiting example of such a material is polyvinylchloride (PVC).
A more detailed description of the body of the frame assembly is provided in the
To add integrity to the finished frame by keeping the walls of the frame folded in a desired configuration, such as shown in
An expanded view of intermediate product of the flattened out rigid material is provided in
In an embodiment, the distance (d) defines the width of one side of the frame assembly. See, for example,
In one embodiment, a 5 mm groove was routed to shape using a 90° or 91° V-Groove bit. This embodiment is described for a PVC containing material having a thickness of about 5 mm. However, the PVC containing material can have a thickness ranging from 2 mm to 6 mm, such as from 3 mm to 5 mm.
In order to be used in settings not typically used by most frames, such as outdoor displays that are exposed to weather, the frame assembly described herein comprises a printable, rigid material that is resistant to chemicals, corrosion, fire and moisture. In one embodiment, the frame material may comprise a thermo-plastic material, such as a polyvinyl chloride (PVC). With reference to
In an embodiment, the outer frame comprises two or more sides attached to each other by at least one nail, screw, adhesive or combinations thereof. For example, in an embodiment shown in
There is also disclosed herein a shadowbox that is integrally attached to the disclosed frame assembly. As used herein, a “shadowbox” refers to an enclosed glass-front display case containing an object or objects. The objects within a shadowbox are typically grouped with a general theme or concept. For example, a shadowbox may contain action figures or movie characters from a particular movie, athlete for a particular team, and the like, or any object of particular significance to the person using the shadowbox. It is understood by one-skilled in the art that the grouping of the objects and the depth effect created by their relative heights from the backing creates a dramatic visual result.
The shadowbox described herein can be made using the same materials and procedures described herein. For example, the materials comprise a PVC the back of which has been machined to provide grooves that allow the sides to fold as previously described. One difference between the frame assembly and the shadowbox is in the size of the edge. The side edge of a shadow box is larger than the frame in order to provide sufficient space for displaying the object within the shadowbox. See
In various embodiments, and with reference to
The frame assembly alone, or both the frame assembly and the attached shadow box, may include a printed image. The printed image can be tailored to be consistent with the object being displayed in the frame assembly. For example, if action figures are displayed in the shadowbox, an image of the movie starring the action figures can be printed in the frame. Similarly, if an athlete is displayed in the frame assembly, the logo of the team on which the athlete plays can be printed on the surrounding frame. In addition, the printed image may further comprise at least one UV ink or UV clear coat.
There is also disclosed a method of making a frame assembly and the shadowbox as described herein. For example, in an embodiment, the method comprises: providing a contiguous piece of printable, rigid material having a front surface (f) and a back surface (b) opposite the front surface; forming one side of the frame assembly by machining multiple grooves into the back surface (b), wherein said machining provides: a first groove (g1) that permits the areas of the rigid material on each side of the groove (g1) to fold 90 degrees relative to each other to create a right angle and forming an outer side edge (e), two adjacent grooves (g2 and g3) located at a distance (d) from groove (g1), wherein grooves g2 and g3 permit the contiguous piece of printable rigid material to fold 180 degrees such that backside of the printable rigid material on each side of g2 and g3 come into contact with each other to form an interior surface (i) of the outer frame assembly.
In this embodiment, the forming steps described above are repeated to produce multiple sides of the frame, such as four sides to produce a rectangular shaped frame, which is followed by fastening the multiple sides of the frame to produce an outer frame that defines an area in which the object is displayed.
In one embodiment, adhering the backside of the printable rigid material on each side of g2 and g3 that come into contact with each other is done by depositing an adhesive or using a chemical welding technique.
As previously described, fastening the sides of the outer frame comprises mitering each side at an angle sufficient to give the desired shape (
In an embodiment, the outer frame comprises four side, and each side is mitered at an angle of 45 degrees to give the outer frame a rectangular shape. See
The method described herein may further comprise printing an image on the front and/or side walls by digital printing or screen printing.
In one embodiment the frame assembly described herein further comprises an outer back panel that is removably attached to the outer frame. This embodiment may further comprise an inner back panel located between the outer frame and the outer back panel. Various forms of these embodiments are shown in
In one embodiment, there is disclosed an assembled frame, as described herein. Reference is made to
With reference to
This easel stand allows the frame assembly to stand upright to display an object without being attached to a wall. In this embodiment, the easel stand 1220 includes a threaded post that can be screwed into a nut attached to the die cut insert 1230 that is attached to the frame, such as a T-nut 1240.
There is disclosed various methods for hanging the assembled frame from a substantially vertical surface, such as a wall or refrigerator. In an embodiment, the thumb screw includes a magnetic member, such as a magnetic head, for removable attaching the frame assembly to a magnetic surface. In another embodiment, the frame assembly comprises two thumb screws and a wire attached to the thumb screws for hanging the frame assembly, such as to a wall.
The above embodiments describe a frame assembly for displaying an object which includes one or more material, panel or layer that has been die cut to specifically fit within the outer frame. For example, the one or more material may comprise a transparent or translucent material, such as a glass or plastic plate located between the rectangular shaped outer frame and the first back panel. In other embodiment described herein, the frame assembly comprises a transparent or translucent material that is held in a fixed position by brackets. For example,
In addition to the benefit associated with the printable, rigid material that forms the rectangular shaped outer frame that defines an area in which the object is displayed, the present disclosure improves the way in which the contents displayed in the frame are secured. In an embodiment, the contents displayed in the frame are secured using screws and a backer, screws and turn buttons or other method in combination with the corner braces. The disclosed mounting hardware is unique in that it can simultaneously secure the frame, pictures and backer.
The printable, rigid material, the brackets, or both are made of a multilayer substrate. In an embodiment, the multilayer substrate may comprise a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) containing material, such as one comprising a foamed PVC inner layer located between two smooth, hard PVC layers.
It was previously described to use a glue or chemical welding technique for keeping the walls of the frame folded in a desired configuration. The same adhesive techniques can be used to attach brackets to the rectangular shaped outer frame. Namely, a gluing method comprising hot gluing at 253° F. using a commercially available glue, such as Infinity SuperTac™ 500 can be used to permanently attach areas of the frame assembly that a nail or screw is not desired. This method comprises depositing glue or a chemical welding solvent at the bend points or on the flat surfaces that touch an adjacent surface. Non-limiting examples of the chemical welding solvents that can be applied using an applicator include Weld-On™ 2007 Series/Weld-On™ 66 Series.
The same adhesive techniques described above can be used to attach brackets to the rectangular shaped outer frame. Other attachment techniques include a screw or nut. In an embodiment, the outer back panel may be configured such that it is attached to the rectangular shaped outer frame using the same screw or nut associated with the brackets. To do this, the outer back panel comprises a hole or holes that are aligned with the screw or nut of the brackets. This allows the screw or nut to simultaneously secure the brackets and the outer back panel. As shown in
As described, the frame assembly and shadowbox comprise an outer frame that is made of a material on which standard printing techniques, such as by digital printing or screen printing, can be used to form an image. Thus, in an embodiment, the frame comprises a printed image that contains at least one UV ink or UV clear coat. The ability to deposit at least one UV ink or UV clear coat coating directly on the exposed frame (rather than on a separate substrate that is then laminated onto the frame) allows a lightweight, preferably recycled material that is durable, moisture resistant and warp resistant. The Inventors have discovered that in order to impart these beneficial characteristics and protect the visible or exposed parts of frame, the disclosed printing method provide a UV stabilized coating on the surface of the frame.
In one aspect, the present disclosure is directed to a frame assembly or shadowbox for displaying an object. The disclosed frame assembly comprises a printable, rigid material forming a rectangular shaped outer frame that defines an area in which the object is displayed. For example, the printable rigid material can comprise a multilayer substrate, such as a PVC foam sandwiched between rigid, smooth surfaces to have an outer frame with a front and back surface. This printable, rigid material is configured to bend, such as by having a V-shaped groove on the back surface that allows the material to bend to form both front and side walls of the outer frame. In an embodiment, the frame assembly comprises brackets located on each corner of the back surface of the rectangular shaped outer frame.
In an embodiment, the assembly further comprises one or more back panels, such as an inner back panel and an outer back panel. In an embodiment, only the outer back panel is required, and the inner back panel is not required. When the assembly does comprise an inner back panel, it should be in plane with the brackets, which allows the inner back panel to hold the object to be displayed in a fixed position. In this embodiment, the outer back panel is larger than the inner back panel and located over the inner back panel, where the outer back panel is removably attached to the brackets, such as by a screw or nut.
There is also disclosed a method of making the frame assembly and shadow box described herein. In an embodiment, the method comprises providing a printable, rigid material having a front and a back surface; machining at least one V-shaped groove into the back surface of the printable, rigid material; forming one side of a frame by bending the printable, rigid material at the V-shaped groove to form the frame having a front face and a sidewall; and repeating the forming step to produce four sides of the frame. In an embodiment, the four sides of the frame are attached to each other to produce a rectangular shaped outer frame that defines an area in which the object is displayed. In an embodiment, fastening occurs by positioning a bracket on each corner of the rectangular shaped outer frame, such as by gluing, chemical welding, or a magnet.
The disclosed frame assembly, and a method of making it may be applicable to an individual's use of a frame or shadowbox, or a more commercial use, such as a point of purchase display in a commercial setting. Whether individual or commercial, the disclosed assembly can be exposed to elements and thus used in outdoor environments.
Other embodiments of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the invention disclosed herein. It is intended that the specification and examples be considered as exemplary only, with the true scope of the invention being indicated by the following claims.
This application claims the benefit of priority to Provisional Applications 62/669,700, filed May 10, 2018, the entire contents of which are expressly incorporated herein by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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62669700 | May 2018 | US |