US2084026A - Transparent printed wrapper and method of making the same - Google Patents

Description

June '1937. GURwjCK 2,084,026

TRANSPARENT PRINTED WRAPPER AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME original Filed May 12. 1932 T d g4 Z8 g8 Z6 25 24 l INVEN-rol? "rvmg Gqvwlck ATTORN EYS Patented June l5, ld?

aoaoae TRANSPARENT PRIN'ED vii i METHOD F MA igt@ Ware

This invention relates to printed sheets or Wrappers made of transparent regenerated cellulose paper, and to a method for making the same.

A type of sheet or wrapper for packaging goods for visible display and sale which has proved to be exceedingly popular in recent years is a transparent cellulose paper made, for example, from regenerated cellulose. This paper is lustrous and perfectly transparent, and is grease-proof, that is,

F0 non-absorbent with respect to oil or grease, but tends to be hygroscopic and to absorb moisture unless Water-proofed by coating the same with a water-proof coating such as transparent lacquer.

Typical examples of the transparent paper here referred to are the products commercially sold and known under the trade names cellophane and Sylphwrap.

The present invention centers generally about certain discoveries and improvements which I 2O have made in printing or/ and tinting such paper with transparent ink or color, and to methods for using transparent colors on the said transparent paper, as well as the products resulting from the same.

One object of the present invention resides in the provision of a blank or wrapper for packaging goods, which blank or wrapper will be transparent even thoughprinted or/and tinted, thereby eX- posing the Wrapped goods for examination and 30 in many cases enhancing the attractive appear' ance thereof by reason of the color applied to the wrapper.

Tinted sheets of transparent cellulose paper have already been made by the manufacturers of4 such paper, but this is done by dyeing the material `of the paper during its manufacture. The process is elaborate and expensive and must be practiced on a Very large scale; so that only a few" standard. 'colors are available and even these are not made unless ordered in very sillostantial quantities. A more particular object of the present invention is to overcome the foregoing diculties and to provide a method for tinting any desired small quantity oi the said transparent paper with any preferred tint or shade of color best adapted to the uses oi? any particular purchaser.

Another object of my invention resides in the provision of sheets or Wrappers which will not adhere one to another when compressed in stacked relation, so that the same will be suitable for use with the automatic feed mechanism oi wrapping machines and the like. A still further object of my invention is to improve the resist- 55 ance to moisture of transparent paper, as afore- Application May 12, 1932, Serial No. @M

Renewed November 7, 1936 ter about the printing or/and tinting of a transparent sheet or wrapper in a plurality of colors,

and more particularly are to make possiblethe printing of the sheet with a plurality of colors,

each retaining its true color value; to retain the transparency of the sheet; and to retain the luster and brilliancy of the individual colors without-- darkening or blackening of the same by subtrace tion oi colors.

Further objects of my invention center about the use of transparent ink for printing on a dii-A ferently colored background, and more particularly are to retain the simplicity or registration afforded by color on color printing, while at the same time obtaining a desired brilliance and depth of the matter printed on the background; to provide a background `which will not be marred in"v appearance when wrapped about an oit-bearing article; to provide a brilliant andlustrous color for printed matter even when printed on a metallic background; and, in each of the above cases, to make possible the tinting o the bulk or main body of the sheet or 'wrapper exclusive of the described printed background.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and such other objects as may hereinafter appear, my

invention consists in the method and products resulting therefrom, and the elements of each as well as their relation one to the other, as herein aiter are more particularlydescribed in the speelcation and sought to he defined in the elaine-3.*

The specication is accompanied by a drawing in which:

Fig. i is a plan view oi a printed and tinted wrapper embodying features of my invention:

Fig. 2 is a plan view o1 a sheet at one stage in the process of manufacture;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of a sheet at a later stage in the process oi manufacture;

Fig. e is a section taken in the plane of the line liin Fig. l;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged section similar to Fig. showing a modification o the invention; and

Fig, 6 is a section through a portion of a tinted previously water-proofed sheet.

cellulose paper made, for example, from regenerated cellulose paper is lustrous, transparent, and ordinarily colorless. This paper has also been tinted, but only during manufacture, and, because of obvious manufacturing dificulties and because of the large scale of the 'manufacturing operations inv0lved,fthe paper has been provided in only a limited number of standardized tints or shades of color which 1o must be ordered and purchased in large quantities. I have discovered that the desired fully transparent yet tinted color effect may be obtained by coating an already manufactured sheet of transparent cellulose paper with a layer or coating of transparent ink. The ink may be a resin or like gum color, but is preferably a lacquer color, particularly one which will dry bone-dry at a low temperature, say, '70 F. The sheet is preferably printed by an intaglio printing cylinder, and the color is then preferably dried by a high velocity blast of air, as is described in my copending application Serial No. f 361,584 entitled Intaglio printing and filed May Si, 1929, which application now has issued as Patent No. 1,867,405.

- I have found that when using a transparent color or ink for this purpose, the sheet retains all of its desirable luster and transparency, and yet is tinted in a manner fully comparable with the tinting obtained by dyeing the material during manufacture. In addition, my method of tinting the sheet possesses manifold advantages, for the sheet may be printed with any Ydesired shade of color; a limited -quantity of wrappers 35 may be printed; and the tinting instead of being a solid body cf color may, if desired, be grained or mottled or otherwise altered by engraving of the intaglio printing cylinder used to apply the color, in the desired manner.' Part only instead 4,0 of all of the sheet may be tinted, i; e., anl untlnted Window, or border, may be left in the wrapper.

A further advantage obtained by the practice of my method is that the lacquer color applied to the surfaceof the sheet is water-proof and greatly increases the resistance to moisture of the sheet. In this connection it may be mentioned that transparent regenerated cellulose paper of the so-called water-proofed type consists simply of an ordinary sheet of transparent paper coated on both sides with a thin layer of colorless lacquer. It is evident that when my method oi' tinting the sheet is employed, the sheet is water-proofed on one side, and consequently when an article such as a candy bar or the like is fully wrapped up in the sheet, a non-hygroscopic and substantially water-proof protection of the article is provided. Furthermore, the water-proof or non-hygroscopic coating provided by the transparent surface tinting of my invention prevents the sheets from adhering one to the other when they are stacked. As is pointed out in greater detail in my copending application Serial No. 600,415 to Wrapper and method of making the same, filed March 22, 1932, which has matured into Patent No. 1,935,708, Nov. 2l, 1933, despite the popularity of transparent cellulose Wrappers, considerable diihculty has arisen in attempting to use the same with automatic Wrapping machines and the like because the sheets tend to adhere one tof-the other due to their hygroscopic nature and consequent absorption of moisture. The automatic feed mechanisms of Wrapping machines and the like are incapable of separating aoegoee sheets which tend to adhere, and it is therefore essential that the sheets be readily separable and slidable one on the other. It `ivill be evident that when the wrappers are tinted in accordance with the present invention, a shiny non-hygroscopic surface is presented between each of the successive sheets, thereby fully and successfully solving the problem in question without resort- I ing to the particular solution of the same set forth in'my Patent No. 1,935,708 previously referred to.

Still another advantage of my method of tintlng transparent paper resides in the fact that it is equally vwell applicable whether the paper is of the ordinary kind or of the more expensive water-proofed kind. The water-proofed paper is relatively costly, and yet large' quantiiiesrare frequently discarded because of imperfections in the paper or in the water-proofing coating applied thereto, such imperfections arising by reason of warping, stretching, and inequalities in the web of paper during the water-proofing operation. Such paper if colored or tinted may be usefully applied for a variety of purposes, but no such salvagehas heretofore been accomplished for the reason that the ordinary tinting processes cannot be resorted to because, among other things, of the water-proof coating on the paper. Thus, referring to Fig. 6 of the drawing, a sheet of transparent cellulose paper is indicated at 32, this sheet being coated on both surfaces with a layer of water-proofing material, say, colorless lacquer, indicated at 34. However, such sheets may be tinted by my process without difficulty and, in fact, interchangeably with the regular transparent paper, as is indicated by the coating or layer 36 of transparent color, shown in Fig-6. Of course, all of the advantages previously outlined as regards the printing of a relatively small quantity of wrappers with any desired special shade or tint are equally valuable in connection with the waterproofed paper, so that the purchaser in addition to being offered full latitude in quantity, color, finish and the like, also has ya free choice of whether or not water-proofed paper is to be used.

A further advantage of my invention resides in the fact that the sheet may be tinted or/and printed with a plurality of transparent colors. These colors, 'I have found, should preferably be printed in side by side registration rather than in superposition because the colors are trans,- parent and are being printed on a transparent medium. In eiect, a transparency is being dealt with, and when dealing with a transparency the colors if superposed are subtractlve and result first, in changing the true color value; second, in darkening the area of superposition; thirdly, in reducing if not destroying the transparency of the wrapper; and fourthly, in blackening and spoiling the brilliancy of the colors. If instead the colors are printed on mutually exclusive areas, each color retains its true color value, and the desired transparency and brilliancy of the sheet are in no Way affected. Thus, referring to the drawing and particularly Fig. 2 thereof, a sheet 2 of transparent regenerated cellulose paper may first be printed with a coating of transparent color indicated at 4, which coating, however, does not extend over the area 6. This area may next be printed with a different transparent color, and no darkening or loss of transparency or change of color effect will result. Instead, the entire area 6 being provided with the second transparent color, a portion only may be printed, as is exemplified by the word Candy in Fig. l. Obviously, the entire surface of the sheet may be tinted with vertical or horizontal bars or other geometric patterns in two or more transparent colors. The article contained in the wrapper will nevertheless be visible through the wrapper and in many cases its appearance may be improved by an appropriate selection of the tint or color used for the wrapper.

In many cases it is not essential that the entire sheet remain fully transparent, and in such case superposition of printing may be used instead of side by side registration, thus greatly simplifying the problem of accurate registration. Specifically, referring to the drawing and particularly to Fig. i thereof, the sheet l2 is tinted throughout nearly all of its area, as is indicated at I4 except for a rectangular background I6 which is tinted with a color different from theJemainder of the sheet. The word Candy and the frame IB may be printed with a third color, the latter being superposed on the previously printed sheet. 'I'he tinting itl and the background area it are cut in, that is, located in side by side registration, as is clearly shown in Figs. 3 and 4. The nal printing is the only one which might oier difiiculty in registration, and this stage instead of being cut in is superposed, as is clearly evident in Fig. 4. This not only avoids the dlfculty of registration, but helps conceal any slight error in registration which may exist between the areas it and l 6. The only sacrifice of transparency is the relatively small area covered by the lettering, and this in many cases is negligible.

I have further found that transparent ink, particularly transparent lacquer color, is valuable not only for tinting a sheet where transparency is desired, as has already been described, but also for printing in superposition on an opaque background, particularly a light background such as White or yellow. I have found that thea transparent color if used for the final or top color, instead of merely coating the top of the background like a layer of paint, penetrates through the background and acts as a dye serving to dye the background With its color. Thus, referring to Fig. 5, the transparent sheet is indicated at 22. A layer of transparent color or tint is shown at 24, and a cut in background is shown at 26. Lettering similar to that indicated in Figs. l and 2 is superposed on the background 26, as is indicated at 28. However, in this case a transparent color, say,

red, is used for the lettering, and this penetrates through and dyes the background 26, as is indicated at 30. 'I'he result of this is to give the color 28 a brilliant full-bodied effect superior to that obtained when an opaque color is used. It is important to note that despite the transparency of the color 28, its tone is not altered by the color of the background because the background is itself dyed to the new color.

This phenomenon, while valuable in connection with a light background as aforesaid, is particularly valuable in connection with an opaque metallic background. If a wrapper is used to wrap an oil-bearing article, say, figs 4 or dates, and a white background is used on the wrapper, the oil even if it does not penetrate the sheet, severely mars and discolors the sheet because the presence of the oil on the inside of the sheet is visible from the outside of the sheet.v In other words, a white area becomes blotched because the oil does not uniformly coat the back of the sheet but is distributed in a non-uniform manner and is visible as a dncqloration even if it is attempted to make the whiteb'ackground an opaque rather than a transparent background. I have found that if this background'ls made metallic, say gold simulated by bronze, or silver` simulated by aluminum, the oil does not show through and no discoloration or change in appearance takes place.

However, it is exceedingly diiiicult to print lettering on such a metallic background, for the surface of the metal is relatively rough and does not seem to take the superimposed color in an effective manner. I have found that if the iinal printing be made with transparent ink or color as aforesaid, the color tends to dye through even the metallic background and results in a brilliant finish which fully retains the bright color of the printing and at the same time retains the luster and reiiective iinish of the metallic background through the printing.

In each case, of course, the balance of the sheet may be and preferably ls tinted with a transparent color, and this color may be selected '1n accordance with the character of the goods being wrapped, so that disflguration by reason of the oily nature of the article will not be discernible.

It is believed that the method of my invention, the article resulting therefrom, and the many advantages thereof will for the most part be apparent from the foregoing detailed description thereof. The method cf tinting the transparent cellulose paper is applicable to any desired quantity; may be used with any one or a plurality of colors or tints; and the tinting may be made solid or grained as desired.. The tinted sheet has improved moisture resistance and is non-adherent to adjacent sheets when stacked. Waterproofed sheets may be tinted when a plurality of colors are used. The colors are preferably registered or cut in so that each color retains its true color value and brilliancy, while the sheet retains its transparency color subtraction. Combinations of registration for large areas, with color-superposition for small areas, may be employed if convenient in any particular case. Transparent ink may be used for tinting transparent areas ,on the Wrapper and may also be used for color superposition even on a non-transparent background where it is desired to dye the background with a superposed color in order to obtain an improved appearance; and this is particularly advantageous in connection with the use of a metallic background, which in turn is valuable when wrapping oil-bearing articles.

It should be understood that the example of my invention here illustrated is an exceedingly simple case selected by way of ready illustration of the principles of my invention, and in no way does justice to the beautiful appearance and effect which may be obtained in actual practice. Furthermore, it should be appreciated that it is exceedingly difficult to depict on a at black and White ink drawing the luster and transparent tinting as well as the brilliant lettering which are obtained by my invention.

It will be apparent that while I have shown and described the method of my invention and a product resulting therefrom in illustrative forms, many changes and modifications may be made therein, without departing from the spirit of the invention, defined in the following claims.

I claim:

l. A tinted blank or Wrapper' made of iustrous grease-proof transparent cellulose paper having colored printed matter, a differently colored background area for said printed matter, the back- `without darkening by ground area being printed directly on the transparent paper, the printed matter being superimposed on the background area, and a portion of the remainder of said sheet being tinted by a coating of transparentcolor applied directly to the surface of the sheet exclusive of the aforesaid background area.

2. A tinted blank or wrapper made of lustrous grease-proof transparent cellulose paper having colored printed matter, a metallic background area for said printed matter, the metallic background area being printed directly on the transparent paper, the coloredprinting being a transparent color superimposed on the background area, and a portion of the remainder of said sheet being tinted by a coating of transparent color applied directly to the surface of the sheet exclusive of the aforesaid metallic background area.

3. A blank or wrapper made of transparent celluloseA paper having printed matter and a printed background therebeneath, ythe printed background being rnetallic and opaque, and the printed matter thereon being made of a transparent color which penetrates and dyes the background therebeneath, resulting in a brilliant color.

4. The method of printing and tinting a blank or wrapper made of transparent cellulose paper,

which includes printing a background area on a portion of the sheet, tinting only a. portion of the remainder of the sheet exclusive of the background area with a transparent lacquer color, and superimposing desired printed matter on the background area.

5. The method of printing and tinting a blank or wrapper made of transparent cellulose paper, which includes printing a background area on a portion of the sheet, tinting only a portion oi' the remainder of the sheet exclusive of the background area with a transparent color, and superimposing desired printed` matter on the background area, said superimposed printed matter being made of a transparent color which penetrates and dyes the background color therebe-l neath. j i

6. The method of printing a blank or wrapper made of transparent cellulose paper intended to be wrapped around an oil-bearing article, which includes printing a background area with a metallic color, and superimposingI the desired printed matter on the background yarea by means of a transparent color which penetrates and dyes the metallic background area therebeneath.

IRVING GURWICK.

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