Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company

3m Innovative Properties Company

Other

Alden R Miles

Timothy A Mertens

John J Emmel

James C Nygard

David C Windorski

Harry A Loder

Bruce W Carlson

Kim K Tsujimoto

Ray A Hunder

Dorman N Thompson

Stephen H Dwyer

Theodore F Schwandt

Lloyd S Vasilakes

William A Mittelstadt

Paul S Montgomery

Dennis L Crawford

Eugene N Reshanov

Bruce E Nelson

Wayne K Darvell

George J Clements

Mark S Vogel

Gary R Hanson

Larry A Bettenhausen

Gregory Francis Stifter

Andrew C Lamberson

Melvin R Collins

Scott E Michel

Nora J Grayson

Mark G Gjertson

Dennis L Luense

William H Sheeler

A method for sequentially and precisely registering cut sheets for application onto advertising signatures at high speeds employs an initial roll of sheeting material. The sheeting material is unwound to track a process path, where eyemarks on the sheeting material are detected for use in registering the sheeting material to be cut into discrete sheets and to be aligned with a moving advertising signature for affixation thereto. The sheeting material has a repositionable pressure sensitive adhesive along one side edge thereof for use in adhering the cut sheet to the advertising signature. In one embodiment, the sheeting material is generally opaque adjacent one side edge and is sufficiently transparent adjacent its other side edge so that when a sheet cut from the sheeting material is adhered to an advertising signature, images on the advertising signature are visible through at least a portion of the sheet.

Method for adhering linerless repositionable sheets onto articles

A method of applying repositionable pressure-sensitive adhesive sheets to moving articles includes aligning a plurality of articles for sequential movement through a sheet application station. Each article has at least two different sheet landing areas defined on a common surface thereof A repositionable pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet from a first applicator is applied at the sheet application station onto a first landing area of every other article as it passes the sheet application station. A repositionable pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet from a second applicator is applied onto a second different landing area on all of the remaining articles as they pass through the sheet application station. The resultant stack of articles formed in this way does not have all of the note sheets aligned vertically in the stack, thus reducing the overall height of the stack by dispersing horizontally the added thicknesses of the note sheets on the articles.

Article assembly stacks

A method and apparatus for sequentially and precisely registering cut sheets for application onto advertising signatures at high speeds employs an initial roll of sheeting material. The sheeting material is unwound to track a process path, where eyemarks on the sheeting material are detected for use in registering the sheeting material to be cut into discrete sheets and to be aligned with a moving advertising signature for affixation thereto. The sheeting material has a repositionable pressure sensitive adhesive along one side edge thereof for use in adhering the cut sheet to the advertising signature. In one embodiment, the sheeting material is generally opaque adjacent one side edge and is sufficiently transparent adjacent its other side edge so that when a sheet cut from the sheeting material is adhered to an advertising signature, images on the advertising signature are visible through at least a portion of the sheet.

Method and apparatus for adhering linerless repositionable sheets onto articles

A web of sheet material has a plurality of longitudinal rows of indicia patterns printed on a front face thereon, with the indicia patterns all aligned on the web in common readability orientation. On its back face, the web has a plurality of longitudinally disposed patterns of repositionable pressure sensitive adhesive thereon, with the adhesive patterns being oriented in registration with the rows of indicia patterns. Longitudinal severing of the web thus results in a plurality of identical web strips. Lateral severing of the web strips results in a plurality of identical note sheets, each note sheet bearing one of the indicia patterns on its front face and a pattern of repositionable pressure sensitive adhesive on its back face. The note sheets are applied in registration to an advertising piece to create a promotional assembly. In this process, unique intermediate rolls of the web and web strips are developed. The web strips are provided in linerless form, or may be carried on a liner sheet for further processing and application to an advertising piece.

Repositionable note sheets and method of formation thereof

A method of applying repositionable pressure-sensitive adhesive sheets to moving articles includes aligning a plurality of articles for sequential movement through a sheet application station. Each article has at least two different sheet landing areas defined on a common surface thereof. A repositionable pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet from a first applicator is applied at the sheet application station onto a first landing area of every other article as it passes the sheet application station. A repositionable pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet from a second applicator is applied onto a second different landing area on all of the remaining articles as they pass through the sheet application station. The resultant stack of articles formed in this way does not have all of the note sheets aligned vertically in the stack, thus reducing the overall height of the stack by dispersing horizontally the added thicknesses of the note sheets on the articles.

Method of article assembly formation

A strip for attaching a document to a binder without punching openings in the document or for reinforcing a document around openings formed in the document through which the document can be mounted in a binder. The strip comprises an elongate layer of thin flexible material, and a coating of repositionable pressure sensitive adhesive on one major surface along an inner edge portion. That layer is free of adhesive on both of its side surfaces along an outer edge portion. That outer edge portion is visually distinctive, and the juncture between the inner and outer portions is straight and visibly distinctive. The strip has at least one opening through its outer edge portion adapted to receive a portion of a binders so that a document to which the coating of adhesive along its inner edge portion is adhered with the edge of the document along the juncture between the inner and outer portions can be bound in the binder without punching the document, or, alternatively, so that a punched document having a through opening by which the document is bound in a binder can be reinforced by adhering the coating of adhesive to the document with the opening in the outer edge portion in alignment with the opening in the document.

Attaching strips for documents

A thin dispenser package including a housing having a peripheral edge portion with through openings that can be mounted in a ring binder or a hook like projection that can be engaged in pocket folders, portfolios or the like. The dispenser package includes a stack of flexible sheets adhered together by layers of pressure sensitive adhesive with first and second ends of successive sheets in the stack adjacent; and the enclosure in which the stack of sheets is positioned that has a slotted top wall. The first end portion of the uppermost sheet on the stack projects through the slot. As that uppermost sheet is pulled through the slot, the first end portion of the first underlying sheet moves through the slot with the second end portion of the uppermost sheet to leave, after the uppermost sheet is fully peeled from the first portion of the first underlying sheet, the first end portion of the first underlying sheet in a position projecting through the slot.

Dispenser package for use in ring binders

A sheet dispenser or sheet dispenser subassembly including a coherent stack of tape flags or other adhesive-bearing sheets that can be unobtrusively permanently or removably adhered on a page of a book, catalog, brochure, etc., because it has a supple cover layer that is a thin, tear-resistant polymeric film. The dispenser subassembly has a pressure-sensitive adhesive layer on a peripheral portion of the cover layer by which it can be adhered to the page which then serves as a back layer for the dispenser, whereas the dispenser includes a bottom layer on an outer surface of which is a layer of pressure-sensitive adhesive layer by which the dispenser can be adhered to a surface.

Sheet dispenser and dispenser subassemblies

An adjustable tray assembly adaptable for use in desk drawers having side walls spaced at various distances. The tray assembly includes a first portion having a plurality of open top receptacles and a support lip projecting away from one side, and a second portion also with a projecting support lip and mounted on the first portion to affording relative movement between the portions to change the spacing between the first and second support lips so that they can be supported on the upper edge surfaces of the side walls of the drawers of different widths with the first and second portions bridging therebetween. The tray assembly can also include dispensers for office supplies including note paper, tape flags and tape; the tape dispenser being of a novel low profile design.

Adjustable tray assembly for use in desk drawers

A pad assembly comprising a multiplicity of flexible sheets each having a band of repositionable pressure sensitive adhesive coated on its rear surface adjacent and spaced by a small predetermined spacing from a first edge. The sheets are disposed in a stack with the band of repositionable pressure sensitive adhesive on each sheet adhering it to the adjacent sheet in the stack; and a layer of padding compound is disposed over and adhered to aligned first edges of the sheets in the stack. The padding compound allows, after the band of repositionable pressure sensitive adhesive on the rear surface of one of the sheets in the stack is separated from the front surface of the adjacent sheet in the stack, that one sheet (and any sheets above it) to be pivoted away from that adjacent sheet while remaining adhered to the adjacent sheets. The small predetermined spacing between the band of repositionable pressure sensitive adhesive and the first edge of each sheet provides a tactile feel when the band of repositionable pressure sensitive adhesive on the rear surface of one of the sheets in the stack separates from the front surface of the adjacent sheet in the stack that signals the person peeling the sheet away that such separation has occurred, and allows that person to reduce the force he is applying to the sheet, thereby restricting inadvertent separation of that sheet from the padding compound. After a sheet is intentionally separated from the padding compound, the band of repositionable pressure sensitive adhesive on the sheet affords adhesion of that sheet to a vertical surface.

Pad assembly

Paper binding machine

A binding system including a method for binding sheets in which a stack of the sheets is shingled to disclose narrow side surface portions along their spine edges, a uniform layer of pressure sensitive adhesive is adhered to those spine edges and narrow side surface portion after which the spine edges are moved into alignment at a right angle to the side surfaces of the sheets to re-form the pressure sensitive adhesive along the spines of the sheets, and a flexible backing is adhered over the re-formed adhesive along the spine edges and at the side surfaces of the sheets to retain the spine edges of the sheets in that alignment. The system also includes a novel cover structure which facilitates the method and includes cover plates, the pressure sensitive adhesive and the backing; and a novel device for holding and positioning the sheets during binding.

Binding system

A binding system including a method for binding connected fan folded sheets in which a stack of the sheets is shingled to disclose narrow side surface portions along their spine edges, a layer of pressure sensitive adhesive on a highly flexible backing is adhered to those spine edges and narrow side surface portion after which the spine edges are moved into alignment at a right angle to the side surfaces of the sheets to cause the backing and layer of pressure sensitive adhesive to pleat around the spines of the sheets. The system also includes a novel cover structure which facilitates the method and includes cover plates, the pressure sensitive adhesive and the backing; and a novel device for holding and positioning the sheets during binding.

Binding system for connected fan folded sheets

A sheet including a layer of flexible polymeric material having a coating of repositionable pressure sensitive adhesive on a second end portion that is generally transparent when adhered to a substrate, while being free of adhesive along a visually distinctive first end portion. A pad of the sheets in a stack with adjacent ends of the sheets aligned and with the first and second ends of successive sheets adjacent can be disposed in a chamber partially defined by a top wall having a slot through which the first end portion of the uppermost sheet projects. Relative movement is afforded between the top wall and the uppermost sheet to afford, as the uppermost sheet is pulled through the slot, alignment of the slot with successive portions of the uppermost sheet toward its second end as those successive portions are peeled from the stack. In a final relative position between the top wall and the uppermost sheet the slot is along the second end portion of that sheet and the first end portion of the underlying sheet to cause movement of the first end portion of the underlying sheet through the slot with the second end portion of the uppermost sheet to leave the first end portion of the underlying sheet projecting through the slot after the uppermost sheet is removed.

Growing community of inventors

Lakeville, MN, United States of America

Alden R Miles