Patent Application
20110107631
The present invention relates to display systems, and more particularly, to mirror display systems for different purposes, such as, for advertising.
The widespread utilization of mirrors for advertising purposes is well known, with their visual illusions widening and heightening space and intensifying lighting. Mirrors provide a false sense of depth and provide a surface shine that is seen to complement contemporary interiors. Henceforth, commercial designers have exploited these visual characteristics and have employed mirrors and other reflective surfaces as a base upon which to paint slogans, logos, product container designs, and the like. Prior art known includes a patent to Borda, namely, U.S. Pat. No. 4,747,223, entitled Mirrored Communication System, which discloses a device for causing a plurality of images having different optical characteristics to appear through a continuous mirrored screen. Borda teaches a partially transparent mirrored screen extending continuously over a preselected area and containing a distribution of reflective material which varies in optical density to define regions of differing optical transmittance to light.
Multiple regions are selectively back-lighted to reveal two-dimensional or three-dimensional images embodied within media behind the screen. The densities of the regions are chosen so that the images are displayed clearly when the regions are back-lighted and disappear in the absence of backlighting, leaving the screen uniformly reflective of environmental light in an “off” condition. In a preferred embodiment of Borda, the reflective material includes a front layer of uniform optical density over the preselected area and a rear layer of non-uniform optical density. The front layer corresponds to the density required for the visibility of a first object or image-bearing sheet located behind one region of the mirror and the rear layer provides a different density for a sheet located behind another region.
Products of this type are offered commercially by Focus Technology Co., Ltd. under the name of MAGIC MIRROR.
The placement of a selectably illustrated image behind a one-way mirror is taught in US. Pat. No. 5,657,563 (1997) to Lane.
Previously known advertising mechanisms have also employed music or light effects to attract the consumers along with a graphical image of a product, which may be placed on the outside surface of the mirror. However, the product, as depicted in the graphic, is without any visual effects, so that the consumers can hardly be impressed by the product and consequently, the advertising effect is limited. An example thereof appears in WO 95/23401 to Werbe-Spiegel that teaches use of endless loop advertising behind a semi-reflecting mirror.
Other techniques for advertising have limited applications, mainly due to technology and cost factors, and, as a result, such advertising slogans, graphics, symbols, and the like, have been placed on the outside surface of the mirror. This surface placement tends to work against the illusion of depth that mirrors are otherwise able to create, although efforts have appeared in the art to use multiple mirrors to produce multiple images of the same product. See U.S. Pat. No. 2,132,475 (1938) to Holm.
Therefore, as may be seen, there exists a need in the art for a new age advertising mechanism that utilizes the visual dynamics offered by mirrors, along with the message, and which eliminates the recognized deficiencies of the prior art.
An integrated mirror and graphics display system comprises a sheet of substantially transparent material, said sheet having a front and a back, said back having a silvered or reflective region and at least a primary non-silvered region; a sheet of translucent material having printed thereupon, embedded therein, or in the form of a paint, a graphic of interest to a system user, said translucent sheet secured or adhered upon the back of said transparent sheet within or against said non-silvered region; and an illumination element defining an area smaller, equal to or greater than that of said non-silvered region and secured in optical communication with said translucent sheet and non-silvered region.
It is an object of the invention to provide a novel integrated mirror and graphic display system.
It is another object to provide a system capable of functioning as a mirror and a display of an affinity-related graphic.
It is a yet further object to provide a personalized affinity-related mirror and display system.
The above and yet other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the hereinafter set forth Brief Description of the Drawings, Detailed Description of the Invention and Claims appended herewith.
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Alternatively to the use of a non-silvered region 30 may be the direct printing or deposition of the personalized information upon the sheet of glass 10 and beneath the primary graphic 22, this as is shown in
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While there has been shown and described the preferred embodiment of the instant invention it is to be appreciated that the invention may be embodied otherwise than is herein specifically shown and described and that, within said embodiment, certain changes may be made in the form and arrangement of the parts without departing from the underlying ideas or principles of this invention as set forth in the Claims appended herewith.
