1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the area of musical instruments. More particularly, the invention is directed to a method for forming a dye sublimation image of a simulated animal skin or some other graphic in a vibrating membrane employed in a musical instrument.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The use of graphic art on musical drumheads is well known in the prior art. Images on drumheads are used for all kinds of purposes, including, for example, simple aesthetics, to create a theme or personality for a musician or a band, or for general promotion. Examples of prior art graphic applications include silk screening, hand painting, stenciling or attaching the graphic born on a separate medium with adhesive. The dye sublimation process itself is also not new in the art, and has been used to apply a large assortment of graphic images of various colors and designs to drumheads of all kinds and sizes, including, without limitation, tom-toms, snares and bass drums.
Screened, stenciled or painted images are applied directly to the surface of the membrane and, thus, are inclined to peel or wear off over time due to the constant pounding of drumsticks, exposure to weather and other factors. The use of an adhesive backing introduces still another physical medium to the membrane, which tends to deaden its sound. With regard to all these applications, in addition to problems with delamination of the graphic from the substrate, the musical sound qualities and durability of the drumhead are severely undermined. Even with the dye sublimation process, there are instances when the application of a graphic image to a drumhead membrane, though aesthetically appealing, will produce a sound of inferior quality due to the inferiority of or other problems associated with the process itself. This concern is especially high in regard to drumheads used for timpani drums and for ethnic drums, including, for example, congas, bongos, Djembes and Doumbeks, which in the past have used heads made from actual animal skins. Synthetic drumheads then replaced the animal skins to improve the longevity of the heads, which resisted moisture brought about by changing climate and other weather conditions. The ability to apply a graphic to a drumhead, particularly one that so realistically simulates a genuine animal skin, and maintain and even enhance the quality of the synthetic drumhead sounds in the process is just another important benefit of the technology of the present invention. Nevertheless, except for some small, though important, advances in the art involving the use of simulated animal skins or other kinds of graphics with synthetic heads, nothing, until now, has succeeded in achieving a method for producing a synthetic drumhead with the superior musical sound qualities and the delamination and wear resistant properties of the present invention. The present invention results in a significantly superior dye sublimation imaging method for drumhead membranes than heretofore were unattainable in the prior art.
The present invention provides a method for forming a dye sublimation image in a vibrating membrane employed in a musical instrument comprising the steps of: providing an image, digitally prepared or otherwise, consisting of a simulated animal skin or another form of graphic; printing the image on a substrate employing a heat transfer ink dye; joining the substrate with the printed image with a sheet of a gas permeable membrane comprised of bi-axially oriented non-woven polyester fibers having a plurality of surface pores and vibrating and musical note producing capability; applying a combination of heat and pressure to the joined substrate with the printed image and the membrane to cause the individual surface pores to expand to enable the dye to gasify and permeate the surface pores to transfer the image; and, cooling the membrane to enable the surface pores to seal closed and encase the image within the surface of the membrane to protect against delamination and wear when the membrane vibrates which results from the intense and constant pounding of a drumstick, a mallet, a person's hand or some other rigid-like object.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved method to more effectively and permanently form a dye sublimation image within a vibrating membrane employed in a musical instrument.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved method to more effectively and permanently form a dye sublimation image within a vibrating membrane employed in a musical instrument comprised of bi-axially oriented non-woven polyester fibers having a plurality of surface pores and a vibrating and musical note producing capability.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved method to more effectively and permanently form a dye sublimation image within a vibrating membrane that can resist normal delamination and wear when constantly pounded by a rigid object.
A further object of the present invention is to provide an improved method to more effectively and permanently form a dye sublimation image within a vibrating membrane that enhances the tonal qualities produced by a musical instrument.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide an improved method to more effectively and permanently form a dye sublimation image within a vibrating membrane that enhances the visual qualities of the musical instrument.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide an improved method to more effectively and permanently form a dye sublimation image within a vibrating membrane that produces the image of an authentic animal skin.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide an improved method to more effectively and permanently form a dye sublimation image within a vibrating membrane that enables the mass production of a variety of musical drumheads with integrated dye sublimation images.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an improved method to more effectively and permanently form a dye sublimation image within a vibrating membrane that is easy and cost effective to use.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following specifications when considered in light of the attached drawings wherein the preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated.
The present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the preferred embodiment shown in
Polyester is comprised of long chain polymers chemically composed of an ester, a dihydric alcohol, and a terephthalic acid. The family of polyesters include, among a variety of chemical materials, linear, light molecular weight thermoplastics, such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET).
Woven polyester, PET or otherwise, requires continuous filaments or fibers, which are converted into fabric using looms or knitting machines to produce, for example, a variety of apparel products.
In contrast, non-woven polyester materials are typically manufactured by combining fibers in the form of a sheet or web and then bonding these fibers together, either mechanically, chemically or thermally. Because these materials are not made by weaving or knitting, there is no need to convert the fibers to yarn, as required with the process used to produce woven materials.
Woven fabric contains filaments or fibers oriented typically in one direction, generally in parallel relation. In contrast, non-woven fabric or film of the plastic kind, for example, is bi-axially oriented with the placement of filaments generally normal to one another.
One of the most common, if not the predominant, material used to manufacture the modern day synthetic drumhead is polyethylene terephthalate film, which is an extruded and bi-axially oriented version of PET fiber which, for example, DuPontâ„¢ sells under the well-known trademark MYLARâ„¢.
Again, with reference to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, transfer substrate 10 and permanent substrate 14 are joined and then exposed concurrently to heat between 250 and 394 degrees Fahrenheit and pressure between 20 and 100 PSI for a period of 30 seconds to 3 minutes. Variance in the temperature, pressure and time depend on the material composition of the substrates.
Other alternatives available for performing the method of the present invention include the use of heated and pinch rollers (not shown) similar to a steam press or a lamination machine in lieu of platen 20 and platen 22 described herein.
While the invention will be described in connection with a certain preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that it is not intended to limit the invention to that particular embodiment. Rather, it is intended to cover all alternatives, modifications and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 12929269 | Jan 2011 | US |
Child | 13136641 | US |