Patent Application
20060202466
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to scrapbooks, fragrance impregnated paper, and diffusion barriers for volatile aromatic compounds.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Paper has long been used as a substrate for fragrances. Many examples of paper-based air fresheners are readily available in commerce. Because fragrances, by their very nature, are volatile compounds. Without some type of containment, they evaporate rapidly into the atmosphere. In addition, multiple fragrances in close proximity tend to mix and lose their individuality.
During the past several decades, the hobby of scrapbooking has become increasingly popular. The popularity has spawned an entire industry dedicated to fulfilling the needs of scrapbooking hobbyists. Scrapbooks are typically glorified photo albums dedicated to recording and preserving events of interest, as well as personal and family histories. The detail, complexity and ornateness of scrapbooks is limited only by the hobbyist's imagination. The compilation of a single ornate scrapbook can represent the expenditure of many hundreds of hours of time and many hundreds of dollars.
Memories of a particular event or a particular series of related events generally involve all of the senses: sights, sounds and smells. There is a trend in scrapbooking that attempts to memorialize events in ways that they will be well remembered. The manipulative creativity that accompanies digital photography has certainly enhanced the sight aspect of the recorded memory. Low-power sound chips, such as the multi-level analog sound storage of Winbond Electronics Corporation of America, provide an opportunity to store sound aspects of particular events. Such chips are small enough that they could be incorporated in a playable module stored in a pocket on the pages of a scrapbook and removed for playing. The smells associated with particular events pose certain problems related to storage within a scrapbook. Fragrances, by their very nature, must be volatile compounds so that they can either sublimate or evaporate into the air. Clearly, unless a the compound emanating the fragrance is stored in a sealed container, it will eventually be lost to the atmosphere. In addition, volatile compounds readily diffuse through materials that are porous or have a molecular structure that allows the volatile compound to be absorbed and pass through the material. The diffusion of volatile compounds through materials, such as paper, makes it impossible to store volatile compounds for any length of time, as well as to maintain multiple fragrances stored in close proximity as discrete and separate compounds.
The present provides a scrapbook in which multiple fragrances associated with memorable events can be stored for extended periods of time. If a particular event is associated with a certain fragrance, that fragrance can be applied to all paper sheets of the scrapbook associated with that event. For example, a camping trip to the mountains might be preserved on pages to which pine or other evergreen fragrance has been applied. Pages for a wedding might use rose fragrance. Sheets of paper pre-impregnated with a particular fragrance may be purchased, or a particular fragrance may be sprayed, rolled, painted, stamped, or printed on the paper. Alternatively, a sheet of paper may be totally immersed in a solvent bath containing the desired fragrance. A barrier sheet is placed between sections of the scrapbook containing different fragrances and at the beginning and end of the scrapbook inside the front and back covers. The use of barrier sheets at the beginning and end of the scrapbook dramatically reduces the surface area from which the fragrance may diffuse and evaporate into the atmosphere, thereby greatly prolonging the storage life of the fragrance. If each of the paper sheets within the scrapbook is not enclosed in a page protector, then with the use of barrier sheets, the only escape path available to the stored fragrances during storage is through the edges of the paper. Rapid evaporation of the volatile fragrance compounds occurs only when a particular page is open and the entire surface is exposed to the atmosphere. The barrier sheets may be any polymeric film or laminar sheet which has a resistance to oils and other chemicals. In order to enhance the barrier qualities of the polymeric films, a metal layer may be deposited on the films. Because of its low cost, aluminum is the preferred deposition metal. Polypropylene provides an excellent barrier to oils and gases, as does polyethylene terephthalate. Aluminized films made from the latter compound, also known as polyester or Mylar®, are readily available. Polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride are two additional materials which may be used for barrier films.
In order to further control the release of fragrance that has been applied to sheets of paper, each of those paper sheets is enclosed in a see-through page protector having a basic shape similar to those in notorious use in the scrapbooking industry. See-through page protectors, which look like plastic sleeves and are made from transparent polymeric plastic films, are such an integral part of scrapbooking that many manufacturers include them in the purchase prices of their album systems. One scrapbook page (finished on both sides), or two back-to-back pages, can be slipped into a single page protector. Like the albums, page protectors come in many sizes, from 4 inches×5 inches to 12 inches×15 inches, and even larger. A very popular size is probably 12 inches×12 inches.
Other than size, page protectors are generally available having a single option selected from each of the following four groups:
Page protectors fabricated from polypropylene films are widely used in the scrapbooking industry, as they are relatively inexpensive, have excellent transparency, and are tough and long-lasting. Regardless of the material from which it is made, a page protectors are typically fabricated from a sheet of polymeric material that is folded back on itself to create a double layer assembly that is subsequently heat sealed around the non-folded edges to form an envelope or sleeve. The loading slit is placed along the top or side edge. For the present invention, the page protectors are fabricated from the same polymeric materials as those used for the barrier sheets, with the exception that they are not metalized. Both sides of the page protector has a plurality of small fragrance release apertures, which are of sufficient number and size to permit a controlled escape of the fragrance when the major surface of the sheet. Preferably, the apertures are punched or stamped through both sheet layers simultaneously, removing the chads, and leaving an unperforated border that is about 1 to 3 centimeters in width. It should be understood that a greater number of smaller apertures is preferred to a smaller number of larger apertures, as greater protection is thus afforded to the page stored within the protector sleeve. An evenly-spaced array of circular apertures of up to 1 millimeter in diameter is deemed to be the currently preferred embodiment.
The use of page protectors having sealed edges greatly increases the time period during which fragrances may be effectively stored within a scrapbook. Only when a page is open is there direct exposure of a fragrance-impregnated page through the individual apertures, as the page protector is sealed around the edges. If the page protector is designed so that the loading slit is covered with a flap, the individual apertures are the only escape route for volatile aromatic compounds. Alternatively, the loading opening can be heat sealed after a page is inserted within the page protector sleeve. The preferred shape of the fragrance release apertures is circular, as there is no stress point within the aperture that would lead to tearing of the protective sheet. In addition, small round apertures as opposed to oval apertures, for example, provide the greatest protection to the page within the page protector sleeve. However, the preferred use of round apertures is not intended to be limiting.
Fragrances in all odor categories are contemplated for the use in scrapbooking. The following fragrances are listed as only a few of those which are available: fruit fragrances such as strawberry, raspberry, peach, cherry, apple and pear; citrus fragrances such as orange, lemon, grapefruit, and lime; floral fragrances such as rose, magnolia, gardenia, jasmine, blackcurrant, hyacinth, lilac, lily-of-the-valley, calyx, osmanthus, orange blossom, apple blossom, rose, Japanese Yuzu, and freesia; woody fragrances such as cedarwood, sandalwood, oak, and pines; leather fragrances, i.e., dominant scents from the quinoline family; oriental fragrances such as musk, vanillin, laubdanum, and oak moss scents; aldehydic scents; mint fragrances such as spearmint and peppermint; and food fragrances such as vanilla, chocolate, chocolate mint, pizza, popcorn, barbecued meats (beef and chicken).
The invention and its method of manufacture will now be described in detail with reference to the attached drawing
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Fragrances in all odor categories are contemplated for the use in scrapbooking. The following fragrances are listed as only a few of those which are available: fruit fragrances such as strawberry, raspberry, peach, cherry, apple and pear; citrus fragrances such as orange, lemon, grapefruit, and lime; floral fragrances such as rose, magnolia, gardenia, jasmine, blackcurrant, hyacinth, lilac, lily-of-the-valley, calyx, osmanthus, orange blossom, apple blossom, rose, Japanese Yuzu, and freesia; woody fragrances such as cedarwood, sandalwood, oak, and pines; leather fragrances, i.e., dominant scents from the quinoline family; oriental fragrances such as musk, vanillin, laubdanum, and oak moss scents; aldehydic scents; mint fragrances such as spearmint and peppermint; and food fragrances such as vanilla, chocolate, chocolate mint, pizza, popcorn, barbecued meats (beef and chicken).
Although only several embodiments of the invention have been heretofore described, it will be obvious to those having ordinary skill in the art that changes and modifications may be made thereto without departing from the scope and the spirit of the invention as hereinafter claimed.
