Patent Application
20110082020
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to embossing dies, and more particularly to an embossing die with a cutting function.
2. Description of Related Art
Embossing dies used in the handicrafts industry mainly involve imprinting certain patterns or characters on sheet materials such as paper, films, foam, soft magnets, photos, leather and cloth, or imprinting embossing patterns or characters on the surface of the sheet materials, which are generally used for fabricating cards, photo albums or packaging materials.
A conventional method for fabricating an embossing die involves etching a metal material to form a group of metal templates with patterns thereof corresponding to each other (metal templates with corresponding concave and convex portions), and adhering the two metal templates to a foldable plastic board. As such, the user only needs to fold the plastic board so as to imprint a three-dimensional embossing pattern on a piece of paper.
To use the conventional embossing die, the user puts a piece of paper on the first metal template 11a or the second metal template 11b and then folds up the first frame 10a and the second frame 10b such that the first pattern 110a and the second pattern 110b are aligned with each other and pressed against the piece of paper at the same time, thereby imprinting a three-dimensional embossing pattern on a piece of paper.
However, etching is required for forming the patterns of the first and second metal templates 11a, 11b, which is time-consuming and costly and accordingly is not suitable for industry application.
Further, a cutting step using a knife or scissors is usually needed after an embossing pattern is imprinted so as to trim the embossing pattern, which is rather time-consuming and laborious and accordingly is not suitable for industry application.
Therefore, it is imperative to provide a cutting die to overcome the above-described drawbacks of the prior art.
In view of the above drawbacks of the prior art, it is an objective of the present invention to provide a cutting die for allowing a cutting operation and the embossing operation to be concurrently performed to thereby enhance the application value of the cutting die.
Another objective of the present invention is to provide a cutting die conducive to reduction of manufacturing costs.
In order to achieve the above and other objectives, the present invention provides a cutting die comprising a first plastic template and a second plastic template detachably coupled to each other, the cutting die is characterized in that: a first pattern and a third pattern are formed on a surface of the first plastic template and a surface of the second plastic template, respectively, so as for the first pattern and the third pattern to correspond in position to each other and be foldable together, and at least one of the first pattern and the third pattern is provided with a cutting portion configured for hole-punching.
The cutting portion is a carbon steel knife, and detachably disposed on the pattern. The first plastic template is coupled to the second plastic template through a bi-directionally foldable means such that the first and second plastic templates can be bi-directionally folded relative to each other
The cutting die further comprises a first frame and a second frame that are detachably coupled to each other and have bases formed on opposite surfaces thereof so as for the first and second plastic templates to be disengageably disposed on the bases of the first and second frames, respectively. The bases are groove-shaped, and the bottom of each of the grooves is defined as an embossing surface.
The first and second frames can be coupled together through a hinge such that the first and second frames can be folded relative to each other.
The first and second plastic templates can be disengageably disposed on the bases of the first and second frames through an attracting means or an engaging means.
According to another embodiment, a second pattern is formed on another surface of the first plastic template, and a fourth pattern is formed on another surface of the second plastic template to be correspondingly assembled to the second pattern. Further, the cutting portion is formed on at least one of the second pattern and the fourth pattern.
The plastic templates of the present invention reduce the fabrication cost compared with the conventional metal templates. Further, the cutting portion of the present invention allows the cutting operation to be performed while the embossing operation is performed so as to dispense with the cutting step that is performed after the pattern is imprinted in the prior art, thereby improving the application properties of the cutting die.
The following illustrative embodiments are provided to illustrate the disclosure of the present invention, these and other advantages and effects can be apparent to those skilled in the art after reading the disclosure of this specification.
The first frame 20a has a groove-shaped first base 200a with a first embossing surface 201a defined on the bottom thereof.
The second frame 20b has a groove-shaped second base 200b with a second embossing surface 201b defined on the bottom thereof and corresponding to the first embossing surface 201a such that the second embossing surface 201b can be covered with the first embossing surface 201a.
Preferably, the second frame 20b is coupled to the first frame 20a through a bending structure 25, such as a hinge, such that the first frame 20a and the second frame 20b can be folded together so as to allow the second embossing surface 201b to be covered with the first embossing surface 201a. A wide variety of bending structures are previously disclosed in the art, but the conventional bending structures are not considered an essential technical feature of the present invention, and thus detailed description of the conventional bending structures is omitted herein. Further, a material of which the frames are made can be selected, depending on the plastic templates; and there is no special limit to the material according to the present invention.
The first plastic template 21a is detachably disposed on the first embossing surface 201a of the first frame 20a. The first plastic template 21a has two opposite surfaces provided thereon with a first pattern 210a and a second pattern 211a, respectively.
The second plastic template 21b is detachably disposed on the second embossing surface 201b of the second frame 20b. The second plastic template 21b has two opposite surfaces provided thereon with a third pattern 210b and a fourth pattern 211b, respectively. The third pattern 210b and the first pattern 210a correspond in position to each other and are foldable together, so as for a first three-dimensional embossing pattern to be fabricated from the third pattern 210b and the first pattern 210a. The fourth pattern 211b and the second pattern 211a correspond in position to each other and are foldable together, so as for a second three-dimensional embossing pattern to be fabricated from the fourth pattern 211b and the second pattern 211a. The patterns of the plastic templates can be formed by injection molding, which is well known in the art and thus detailed description thereof is omitted herein.
The cutting portion 212 is disposed on the first and third patterns 210a, 210b or/and the second and fourth patterns 211a, 211b. Preferably, the cutting portion 212 is detachably disposed on the pattern, for example, the cutting portion 212 can be adhered to or engaged with the pattern. In the present embodiment, the cutting portion 212 of a heart shape is disposed on the first pattern 210a. Further, the cutting portion 212 is a carbon steel knife configured to facilitate the cutting operation.
In mass production, the first and second plastic templates 21a, 21b can be molded to form desired patterns and then the cutting portion 212 made of carbon steel is adhered to the patterns positioned at portions to be cut, thereby saving time and reducing material costs. Compared with the conventional metal templates, the first and second plastic templates 21a, 21b of the present invention are suitable for mass production and can efficiently reduce the cost.
In the present embodiment, the cutting die further comprises an engaging portion, which comprises an engaging hole 22a disposed on the first plastic template 21a, and an engaging column 23a disposed on the first embossing surface 201a and corresponding in position to the engaging hole 22a. By engaging the engaging hole 22a with the engaging column 23a, the first plastic template 21a can be positioned on the first embossing surface 201a. It should be noted that the engaging hole 22a and the engaging column 23a together provide a positioning function but do not provide an integration function. Therefore, the first plastic template 21a is not integrated with the first embossing surface 201a, but instead is detachable from the first embossing surface 201a.
Further, an engaging hole 22b is disposed on the second plastic template 21b, and an engaging column 23b is disposed on the second embossing surface 201b and corresponding in position to the engaging hole 22b such that when the engaging hole 22b is engaged with the engaging column 23b, the second plastic template 21b can be detachably positioned on the second embossing surface 201b.
To imprint a first three-dimensional embossing pattern of
To form a second three-dimensional embossing pattern (referring to patterns of
The present invention discloses at least a plastic template whereby patterns can be formed on two surfaces of the at least a plastic template by injection molding, and thus the present invention saves time and cuts material costs more than the prior art. Further, the cutting portion 212 of the cutting die allows a cutting operation and an embossing operation to be concurrently performed, thereby dispensing with the conventional cutting step otherwise performed after the pattern is imprinted and increasing application value. Furthermore, the plastic templates of the present invention can be used for printing patterns.
The cutting die further comprises an attracting portion that can be a sucker-type element or a magnetic type element whereby the plastic templates are attracted to the embossing surfaces. In the present embodiment, the attracting portion is, but not limited to, of a magnetic type.
The edge 24a of the first plastic template 21a is attracted to the first embossing surface 201a, and the edge 24b of the second plastic template 21b is attracted to the second embossing surface 201b. Further, the edge 24a of the plastic template can be disposed with a metal material, and the frame is made of a magnetic material. Alternatively, magnets of opposite polarity are disposed on the edges 24a, 24b of the plastic templates and the frames, respectively, such that the plastic templates and the frames attract each other. In the second embodiment, the second and fourth patterns 211a, 211b face outwards for imprinting a pattern.
Furthermore, the cutting portion 212 of a flower shape is disposed on the third pattern 211a of the first plastic template 21a.
The second plastic template 21b is detachably coupled to the first plastic template 21a. The first pattern 210a and the third pattern 210b correspond in position to each other and are foldable together. At least one of the first pattern 210a and the third pattern 210b has a cutting portion 212 disposed thereon. Preferably, the second plastic template 21b is coupled to the first plastic template 21a through a bending structure 25′ such that the first plastic template 21a can be bi-directionally folded to the second plastic template 21b, wherein the bending structure 25′ is a bi-directionally rotatable hinge. A wide variety of bi-directionally rotatable elements are previously disclosed in the art, but the conventional bi-directionally rotatable elements are not considered an essential technical feature of the present invention, and thus detailed description of the conventional bending structures is omitted herein.
The first pattern 210a and the third pattern 210b can be aligned with each other and pressed against a piece of paper at the same time so as to imprint the first three-dimensional embossing pattern on the piece of paper.
Referring to
The second plastic template 21b is connected to the first plastic template 21a by a connecting portion 21c, so as for the first plastic template 21a to be folded to the second plastic template 21b by means of the connecting portion 21c.
Therefore, the plastic templates of the present invention cut material costs and save time in mass production. Further, the cutting portion of the present invention allows a cutting operation and an embossing operation to be concurrently performed so as to dispense with the conventional cutting step otherwise performed after the pattern in imprinted, thereby improving application value.
The above-described descriptions of the detailed embodiments are intended to illustrate the preferred implementation according to the present invention but not intended to limit the scope of the present invention, Accordingly, all modifications and variations made to the embodiments of the present invention by persons skilled in the art should fall within the scope of present invention defined by the appended claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 098218292 | Oct 2009 | TW | national |
