Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company

Kenneth J Perrington

Robert A Luhman

Karl M Kropp

Gary K Kuhn

Michael W Gruber

Clair J Emery

Peter J Vogelgesang

Robert D Kampfer

Phillip A Taylor

James M DeWanz

Keith P Wilson

Thomas H Hunter

Laser perforation of all types of paper provides paper having sufficient strength characteristics to survive stresses imposed during handling, such as experienced in sheet feed processes. The paper so perforated is readily separable along the perforation line when separation is desired. Carbonless paper products particularly benefit from use of a laser in perforation. The paper, capsule, and capsule fill material are vaporized during the laser process, thus forming clean holes and leaving little residual material on the paper.

Laser perforation of paper

Brochures, pamphlets, books, and the like containing a plurality of laser-perforated paper which has been folded and bound (in either order) on the lines of perforation have, among other things, substantially improved compressed, lay-flat properties (i.e., significantly reduced bowing) as compared to conventional perforated paper containing books, pamphlets, and the like. Additionally, the inventive articles have surprisingly high strength on the lines of perforation and low paper slippage as well. The inventive processes provide for an easy and efficient way to produce brochures, pamphlets, signatures, and other paper-based products which are easy to handle, store, and transport.

Multi-page signatures made using laser perforated bond papers

An apparatus for binding a plurality of sheets of paper together is disclosed. A pair of clamping plates presents one edge of the sheets for binding after a jogging plate aligns the edges. After a solid hot melt adhesive material sheet is placed along the edge of the sheets, a heating platen heats and melts the hot melt adhesive material sheet and causes the liquid adhesive to bind the sheets together. The method of binding the stack of a plurality of sheets of paper includes positioning a plurality of sheets between the clamping plates, vibrating the sheets to square and align their edges, clamping the aligned sheets of paper, presenting the aligned edge of the paper to the heating platen, placing an adhesive hot melt material sheet on the edge of the sheets, heating and melting the hot melt adhesive material sheet onto the edge, and removing the bound sheets from the apparatus.

Hot melt adhesive bound book

Hot melt adhesive applicator

Hot melt adhesive binding method

Adhesively edge-padded stack of carbonless copy paper better separates upon fanning into collated sets when a thin layer of hot-melt adhesive is used for the edge-padding. As in the prior art, the outer surfaces of each set should have a release coating such as a fluorocarbon. The layer of hot-melt adhesive includes, by weight:

Edge-bonded sets of carbonless copy paper

A latex adhesive made from a polymer such as a ethylene/vinyl acetate or styrene/butadiene copolymer, a low-boiling alcohol, such as isopropanol, a non-crystallizing polyhydric alcohol such as sorbitol, and preferably a cellulose thickener. The latex adhesive dries so quickly that an adhesively edge-padded stack of paper sheets formed using the adhesive can be cut by hand into tablets within about 30 minutes. These tablets do not leave an upstanding ridge of adhesive when a number of the sheets are torn off.

Producing adhesively edge-padded paper tablets with a fast-drying latex

Fan-out padding using a hot melt adhesive

Known adhesive compositions for edge-padding a stack of sets of collated sheets of carbonless copy paper have not provided both good fanout and good adhesion within individual sets unless used with carbonless copy paper from the company that supplies the adhesive. This problem is here resolved by using a water-based adhesive composition that differ from those in current use simply by adjusting the amount and type of monohydric and polyhydric alcohol. Best results are attained when the polyhydric alcohol is noncrystalline sorbitol.

Edge padding adhesive composition for carbonless papers

Known adhesive compositions for edge-padding a stack of sets of collated sheets of carbonless copy paper have not provided both good fanout and good adhesion within individual sets unless used with carbonless copy paper from the company that supplies the adhesive. This problem is here resolved by using a water-based adhesive composition that differs from those in current use simply by adjusting the amount and type of monohydric and polyhydric alcohol. Best results are attained when the polyhydric alcohol is noncrystalline sorbitol.

Adhesively edge-padding a stack of collated carbonless paper

A composite strip material for forming graphics such as letters, numbers, symbols or pictures. The strip includes an accepting tape comprising a layer of latent adhesive material in face-to-face contact with a layer of microgranules lightly adhered to a donor web. At least one of the layers bears a radiation absorbing pigment which, when selectively heated in accordance with a pattern of radiation, momentarily softens adjacent portions of the adhesive material. Upon separation of the accepting tape and donor web, microgranules transfer to the accepting tape only in irradiated areas.

Growing community of inventors

Maplewood, MN, United States of America

Kenneth J Perrington