Patent Application
20110120655
The present invention relates to apparatus for producing adhesive-backed labels, and more particularly, to a system for dispensing adhesive-backed labels in multiple operating modes.
Conventional apparatus for producing and dispensing adhesive-backed labels include: (i) a device for printing information/symbology on the face of a label supply, i.e., a web/spool of a label face/liner material, and (ii) a cutting apparatus for separating the label face/liner material from the web/spool i.e., to produce a single adhesive-backed/lined label. While some of the label producing apparatus provide a stack of individually-printed labels ready for an operator to remove the liner (also referred to as the “backing material”), other label fabrication systems (oftentimes including a device known as “peeler bar”) automatically separate the face material from the liner to provide an application-ready label. With regard to the former, it will be appreciated that the stack of labels facilitates application thereof at a subsequent time or at a remote location, i.e., not within the immediate vicinity of the label producing apparatus. However, the operator is tasked with removing the adhesive backed label from the liner at the time of application which can be a laborious/costly operation. With respect to the former, it will be appreciated that the automated system for separating the adhesive-backed label face from the liner can be complex, and does not provide the operator with the option of applying the label at a remote location. That is, an operator must apply individual labels immediately upon label dispensation.
Mailing machines are devices which may include a label fabrication and/or dispensing system for the purpose of applying postage to mailpiece envelopes. These machines often include an option to print and dispense postage indicia/franking symbology either; (i) directly on the face of a mailpiece envelope, or (ii) on an adhesive-backed label which can, thereafter, be applied to the mailpiece envelope. With respect to the latter, the option to print a postage indicia/franking label is often selected when the surface contour of the mailpiece envelope is irregular and printing directly on the face may result in a distorted image. Examples include envelopes having irregularly shaped content material, or those including a liner or layer to protect fragile content material (“bubble-wrap” protection).
These options are accommodated by a print station having at least one print head which is moveable, along rails or guides, from one feed path to another. In one operating mode, the print head is positioned in the feed path of a sealed/completed envelope to print on the face of the envelope, and, in another operating mode, the print head is positioned directly over the feed path of a supply/spool of label face/liner material. Once printed, the label is cut, accumulated and/or dispensed in the manner described above in connection with conventional label fabrication/dispensing systems.
In addition to the various shortcomings associated with conventional label fabrication/dispensing systems, mailing machines introduce the added complexity of printing currency on the labels which are fabricated. That is, inasmuch as the label fabrication systems commonly associated with mailing machines print currency, these systems must be highly reliable to prevent the operator from incurring additional cost as a result of a torn or damaged postage indica/franking label. It will be appreciated that, once debited from the vault of the mailing machine, a damaged or improperly printed/dispensed postage label cannot be easily/immediately credited without being validated by an authorized source, e.g., a Postal Authority.
A need, therefore, exists for a label fabrication and dispensing system which (i) accommodates multiple operating modes, i.e., labels dispensed with a liner intact or removed, and (ii) facilitates the separation of the label face from the liner removal, (iii) minimizes complexity for added reliability.
A postage label dispensing system is provided for dispensing adhesive-backed labels including a face material having an adhesive backing and a liner material detachably bonded to the adhesive backing. The adhesive backing defines a plurality of longitudinal adhesive strips and at least one non-adhesive region disposed therebetween and the face material includes at least one longitudinal cut disposed adjacent to, and aligned with, the non-adhesive region. The label dispensing system includes a system for displacing a supply of label material along a feed path and a peeler guide interposing the feed path operative to (i) guide the label material between upper and lower guide members of the peeler guide, (ii) induce a bend in the liner material along an axis substantially parallel to the at least one longitudinal cut, and (iii) separate an edge of the face material from the liner material along at least a portion of the longitudinal cut. The upper guide member, furthermore, defines an opening for receiving the edge of the face material upon separation from the liner material and dispensing an application-ready label through the opening. A processor controls the operation of the conveyance system to draw the label material through the guide members such that the separated edge of the application-ready label is dispensed through the opening in the upper guide member of the peeler guide.
Further details of the present invention are provided in the accompanying drawings, detailed description, and claims.
a is an enlarged, broken away front view of a cutting apparatus operative to produce a cut of a prescribed depth through the label material (i.e., a kiss-cut)
a is a side view of the peeler guide and label material shown in
a is a cross sectional view taken substantially along line 4a-4a of
b is a cross sectional view taken substantially along line 4b-4b of
c is a cross sectional view taken substantially along line 4c-4c of
d is a cross sectional view taken substantially along line 4d-4d of
A system for dispensing and/or fabricating adhesive-backed labels is described herein. The invention is described in the context of a system for dispensing printed labels, a removable module for dispensing printed labels, and a system for fabricating and dispensing postage labels. The inventive teachings are also described in the context of a mailing machine for printing postage indicia/franking labels, although, it should be appreciated that any label producing and/or dispensing apparatus may be employed. A mailing machine merely provides an illustrative example of one embodiment of the invention, and should not be considered limiting when interpreting the meaning and/or scope of the appended claims.
The mailing machine 10 and label dispensing system 20 of the present invention include a processor 24 which receives operator input through a conventional input device 26, e.g., a touch screen display, keyboard, etc., to control the various operations of the mailing machine 10 and label dispensing system 20. With regard to the mailing machine 10, these inputs may include information regarding the type of mailpieces being processed, their weight, (if the machine is not equipped with a scale, or weigh-on-the-way system), print resolution, vault information, encryption/security inputs, network information, etc. In addition to these inputs, the mailing machine 10 of the present invention includes an option to print postage indicia and/or franking symbology either: (i) on the face of the mailpiece envelope 16, or (ii) on the face of the postage label 22. This is achieved by mounting at least one of the print heads 28 on a moveable carriage 30/rail system 32 which extends orthogonally across the feed path FPE of the processed mailpiece envelope 16 or, the feed path FPS of a web/spool 36 of label material 38. More specifically, the processor 24 is operatively coupled to an actuator (not shown) in the print station 12 to reposition at least one of the print heads 28 along one of the feed paths FPE, FPS depending upon the option selected by the operator. In a first position P1 (shown in phantom lines), the print heads 28 are disposed across the feed path of finished mailpieces and print postage indicia directly on the face of the mailpiece envelope 16. In a second position P2, (shown in solid lines), the print heads 28 are positioned across the feed path FPS of the web/spool supply 36 to print the postage indicia on the face of the label material 38.
While not shown in the schematic illustrations, each feed path FPE, FPS includes a transport system for conveying the finished envelope 16 or supply of label material 38. An envelop transport system may include a series of rollers along an envelope transport deck 42 of the mailing machine 10 for conveying the finished mailpiece through the print station 12 to the stacking tray 14. Similarly, a label material transport system may include rollers (not shown) to pay-out the label material 38 along a label transport deck 44 through the print station 12 to the label dispensing system 20.
Before discussing the operation of the label dispensing system 20, it will be useful to provide a brief description of the various components and their arrangement within the mailing machine 10. In the described embodiment and referring to
The face material 46 includes an adhesive backing AB defining a plurality of adhesive strips ASC, ASE and at least one non-adhesive region NA disposed therebetween. Furthermore, the face material 46 includes at least one longitudinal cut 47 disposed adjacent to, and aligned with, each non-adhesive region NA. Generally, the longitudinal cut 47 bisects the non-adhesive region NA, although the cut 47 may be biased toward one or the other of the adhesive strips ASC, ASE. In the illustrated embodiment, the face material 46 includes a pair of longitudinal cuts 47a, 47b disposed between a central adhesive strip ASC and edge strips ASE disposed to each side of the central strip ASC. As such, the label material 38 includes an intermediate strip 46C of face material 46 wherein a postage indicia IN may be printed and edge strips 46SE which may be used to augment separation of the intermediate strip 46C from the liner material 48 during dispensation of a printed label. This aspect of the invention will be discussed in greater detail when discussing the operation of the label dispensing system 20 and the dispensation of an application ready label.
The label dispensing system 20 includes a detachable housing 50 having a dispensing and waste outlets D and W, respectively, for dispensing (i) application-ready labels 22R (
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Additionally, the guide surface 56b of the lower guide member 54b defines a convex curvature CS, projecting upwardly toward the opening 58 in the upper guide member, to impart a complimentary curvature to the printed label 22 upon dispensation of each application ready label. This feature imparts bending stiffness to the label material 38 and the printed label 22R to facilitate separation of the face material 46 from the liner material 48. Moreover, the guide surfaces 56a, 56b of the peeler guide 52 define an end deflector portion 52D which directs the liner material 48 downwardly toward the waste outlet W, i.e., a portion which effects a bend about an axis 52TA orthogonal to the feed path once the face material 46 has begun to separate from the liner material 48. These features of the invention will be discussed in greater detail when discussing the various operational steps of the label dispensing system 20.
The peeler guide 52 is pivotally mounted within the housing 50 by a displacement mechanism 62 which repositions or reconfigures the peeler guide 52 such that the label material 38 is received between the guide members 54a, 54b, in a first operating mode, and slides over or across an upper guide surface of the peeler guide 52, in a second operating mode. In the described embodiment, the peeler guide 52 is pivotally mounted to the housing 50 by a four bar linkage arrangement which effects rotational and vertical translation of the peeler guide 52 relative to the feed path FP of the label material 38. More specifically, one or more pairs of links 64 are pivotally mounted to the underside of the peeler guide 52 at one end thereof and to a stationary platform 66 of structure of the housing 50 at the other end. Furthermore, a linear actuator 68, controlled by the processor 24 is pivotally mounted to one of the links 64 at one end thereof and to the stationary platform 66 at the other end to reposition the peeler guide 52 from the first to the second positions depending upon the selected operating mode. In the second operating mode, i.e., when the label material 38 passes over an upper surface of the peeler guide 52, a spring biased roller assembly 70 may be employed to capture/secure the label material 38 as it slides over the peeler guide.
Alternatively, the upper guide member 54a may be separated from the lower guide member 54b, i.e., raised upwardly, such that the label material 38 is not captured and/or directed by the peeler guide 52. Accordingly, in the second operating mode, the label material 38 passes over the lower guide member 54b and out the dispensing outlet D. This aspect of the invention will also become clear when discussing the operation of the label dispensing system 20.
The conveyance system 72 includes a first and second pair of rollers, 74 and 76, respectively, disposed on the input and output sides of the peeler guide 52 to displace the label material 38 through the guide members 54a, 54b of the peeler guide 52. While the guide surfaces 56a, 56b of the peeler guide 52 includes a deflector guide portion 52D, it should be appreciated that a deflector guide (not shown) may be independently mounted to the housing 50 and positioned by a separate actuation device. In the illustrated embodiment, the first pair of rollers 74 are vertically oriented, i.e., rotate about axes which lie in a vertical plane, and define a first drive nip N1 which displaces the label material 38 along a substantially horizontal feed path FP. The second pair of rollers 76 are horizontally oriented, i.e., rotate about axes which lie in a horizontal plane, and define a second drive nip N2 which displaces the label material 38 along a substantially vertical feed path FP. While the first and second drive nips N1, N2 are substantially orthogonal to change the direction of the feed path from horizontal to vertical, it should be appreciated that other orientations are contemplated depending upon the location of the dispensing and waste outlets D, W.
Each pair of rollers 74, 76 may be driven by respective rotary drive motors M1, M2 which are controlled by the processor 24. The processor 24 can drive each of the motors M1, M2 and the respective rollers 74, 76 in either direction, i.e., to bi-directionally displace the label material 38 along the feed path FP and at the same or at variable speeds relative to each other. In this way, the label material 38 may be paid-out or drawn back at different rates of speed to increase or decrease the length of label material between each of the drive nips N1, N2.
While the supply of label material 38 may include precut label material, i.e., regularly spaced kiss-cuts penetrating through the face material 46, the label fabrication system 20 may include a cutting apparatus 80 for the purpose of cutting the face material 46 to any length. That is, since the label transport rollers and drive rollers 74, 76 control the amount of label material 38 which is paid-out from the label supply 36, each postage label 22 may be cut to any size, e.g., from two (2) inches to eight (8) inches, depending upon the information to be printed. For example, some labels 22 may contain only the postage indicia while others may include barcode security or other symbology. In the described embodiment and referring to
In addition to the first cutting apparatus 80, a second cutting apparatus 90 may be disposed upstream thereof, to sever the label material 38, i.e., cut through the liner material 48 or through the combined face and liner materials 46, 48. This cutting apparatus 90 may be disposed in either the mailing machine 10 or in the label dispensing system 20 and may be controlled by the same processor 24 employed to control the position of the peeler bar 54, the conveyance system 72, and the first cutting apparatus 80. As will be described in greater detail when discussing the operation of the mailing machine 10 and label dispensing system 20, the second cutting apparatus 90 is principally employed to cut each application ready label and/or discard waste material following the dispensation of an application ready label 22R.
In
It will be recalled from the previous description of the peeler guide 52 that the convex curvature of the lower guide member 54b (see
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Notwithstanding the synchronization of the printing and dispensing operations, in
In summary, the system for dispensing labels 22 operates in at least two operating modes to dispense (i) printed labels 22R in a condition ready for application, (ii) waste material 38W, and (iii) lined labels 22L which may be used at any time or at any location produced. A first mode of operation dispenses application ready labels 22R through the dispensing outlet D in an optimum orientation for immediate application. In another operating mode, waste material 38W is discarded through a bottom/lower waste outlet W and uses gravity to augment collection and removal of waste material 38W, i.e., into a waste receptacle. And, in a second operating mode lined labels 22L are dispensed as a stream of tandemly arranged printed labels 22L or stacked for use at a subsequent time or at a remote location.
It is to be understood that the present invention is not to be considered as limited to the specific embodiments described above and shown in the accompanying drawings. For example, while the peeler guide 52 has been depicted as inducing a first bend about longitudinal axes 52LA and a second bend about a transverse axis 52TA, i.e., a first bend upstream of a second bend, it will be appreciated that the curvature induced by the peeler guide 52 may occur coincidentally or simultaneously. Furthermore, the bends induced may be more or less aggressive depending upon the strength and width of the adhesive backing AB employed. Additionally, the geometry of the peeler guide 52 may vary depending upon the location and width of the non-adhesive regions NA. The principle requirement, however, is that the peeler guide 52 induce a bend about a longitudinal cut 47, adjacent a non-adhesive region of the label material 38 such that edge 46E of the printed label 22 or face material 46 projects through the opening 58 in the upper guide member 54a.
The illustrations merely show the best mode presently contemplated for carrying out the invention, and which is susceptible to such changes as may be obvious to one skilled in the art. The invention is intended to cover all such variations, modifications and equivalents thereof as may be deemed to be within the scope of the claims appended hereto.
