Kane Graphical Corporation

Michael N Kane

Lawrence R Hogan

A mass-production technique for fabricating individual indicia-bearing display sign plaques (10) employs fabricating sheets of large plaque stock (36) as a laminate of a stiffening substrate (12) and an indicia-bearing front sheet (22) adheringly affixed thereto, the indicia (24) on the front sheet bearing the indicia of the desired plaque replicated thereon preferably as a large rectangular array of elements having common boundaries subsequently to be severed along severance lines (38). For wall-mounting of finished plaques adhesive tape strip stock (40) is affixed to lie generally centered on the common boundaries of the array elements, as well as around the periphery of the laminate stock. An edge-registered stack (41) of laminates 41 is then cut along the severing lines by repeated passes of a guillotine-type blade 42. The material forming the substrate and all layers emplaced thereon is chosen to yield clean shearing under such a blade, with the result that the individual plaques 10 when separated have clean sharp edge faces with the peripheral adhesive tape precisely edge-registered thereto. Hot-forming of finished plaques allows them to be configured into self-supporting structures

Method of mass manufacture of rigid display sign

A mass-production technique for fabricating individual indicia-bearing display sign plaques (10) employs fabricating sheets of large plaque stock (36) as a laminate of a stiffening substrate (12) and an indicia-bearing front sheet (22) adheringly affixed thereto, the indicia (24) on the front sheet bearing the indicia of the desired plaque replicated thereon preferably as a large rectangular array of elements having common boundaries subsequently to be severed along severance lines (38). For wall-mounting of finished plaques adhesive tape strip stock (40) is affixed to lie generally centered on the common boundaries of the array elements, as well as around the periphery of the laminate stock. An edge-registered stack (41) of laminates 41 is then cut along the severing lines by repeated passes of a guillotine-type blade 42. The material forming the substrate and all layers emplaced thereon is chosen to yield clean shearing under such a blade, with the result that the individual plaques 10 when separated have clean sharp edge faces with the peripheral adhesive tape precisely edge-registered thereto. Hot-forming of finished plaques allows them to be configured into self-supporting structures.

Rigid display sign

A wall mountable frame comprises a rectangular pan-shaped frame including a main rectangular vertical rear wall having forwardly extending magnet-attracting marginal walls defining with said main wall a rectangular sign or poster receiving recess. Screw head-receiving holes are provided in said main vertical wall for receiving the heads of wall mounting anchoring screws which will be fully recessed in said holes, the defining walls of said holes being formed by rearwardly projection portions of said main vertical wall. Magnet bars are insertable along the inner margins of the marginal walls of the frame to hold the margins of sheet material upon said rear wall. Spacers are preferably in the form of double adhesive coated synthetic plastic foam strips are positioned behind said frame to extend along the margins of the rear wall of the frame. The strips space the hole-forming projecting portions of the rear wall from the mounting wall surface of the frame. The strips have a peelable outer layer to cover the outer adhesive layer thereof. The strips are compressed by the tightening of the screws when screws are the frame anchoring means, and can be used as the sole anchoring means of the frame when the peelable outer layer is removed therefrom.

Wall mounted frame for posters and other printed material

The rear surfaces of sign component pieces carry printed alignment indicating direction indicia in the form of arrowheads that are of a dark color and have a glossy surface luster while the front surfaces of the pieces carry a printed background of the same color but having a flat surface luster. The direction indicia serve to indicate the alignment of the pieces for proper insertion into a changeable sign and for proper shearing from a large sheet during manufacture. The dark color and glossy surface luster reduce eye strain during the shearing of manufacture.

Changeable sign

A method of making sign component pieces to be interfitted in close abutting relationship. The preferred method aspect of the invention involves imprinting upon one or more flexible rectangular translucent cover sheets successive horizontal bands of repeated sign-forming indicia, the indicia being precisely positioned with respect to two intersecting reference margins of the sheet. The cover sheets are then laminated to a thin flexible backing sheet capable of adhering subsequent to be severed component sign pieces to a component piece support surface. The resulting laminated sheet is then applied to individual cutting devices, each having an adjustable backstop positioned to effect a linear cutting operation spaced a distance therefrom equal to the horizontal or vertical extent of the component piece involved. The cutting devices are scissor-type shearing devices which forms a bevelled undercut so that the bevelling is identical for the top and right sides of each severed component piece and forms an opposite bevelled undercut along the left and bottom margin of each component piece formed therefrom.

Method of making a changeable display sign

A unique multiple configuration display sign system including a selection of a sign unit supporting and interconnecting hardware and standard sign units of special size, shape and construction as to be capable of use in any one of a multiplicity of display configurations through use of such hardware. The sign unit supporting and interconnecting hardware includes top side and bottom side linking brackets, linking plates or wall hanger brackets for abutting together one or more vertical sides of the sign units to form a selected sign configuration. The sign units supporting and interconnecting hardware integrated within an assembled display configuration to conceal such hardware so that the joined sign units appear to be free standing and unsupported by any visible structure.

Multiple configuration display sign system

A display assembly for posters or signs includes a cover frame having a clear sealed window at the front surface thereof. The display assembly is generally rectangular, the cover frame having four outwardly facing walls configured to slide into forwardly extending closely fitting walls extending from a one piece wall-mountable shroud-forming frame. Magnetic strips affixed to interior faces of the shroud-forming frame capture and hold an inserted cover frame, and the closely fitting shroud walls and immediately confronting cover frame walls serve to defeat the insertion of conventional tools to remove the cover when so emplaced. A special spatulate tool is configured with projections stressed to spring out of the plane of the blade in the relaxed state. The extensions are temporarily pressed flat during insertion, to spring outward when inserted to maximum depth into the assembly, the extensions when thus deployed confronting and engaging a rear portion of the cover frame. Withdrawal of the tool causes withdrawal of the cover frame for replacement of the contents.

Tamper-proof display assembly

A changeable sign comprises a support wall for changeable sign components having removably attached thereto a plurality of thin, flat, rectangular, flexible sign component pieces arranged in close contiguous rows so as to fill an entire sign-forming area of the sign and so that the sign component pieces from a distance appear to form a single sheet sign having one continuous flat surface. The sign component pieces are of two basic types, one type being indicia-containing sign component pieces having visible from the front faces thereof one or more numeric digits, symbols, and/or alphabet character indicia so as to form alone or with other adjacent sign component piece, numbers, words, and/or the like, and the other type being blank spacer component pieces which fit between adjacent indicia-containing sign component pieces. There are spacer component pieces between adjacent rows of the indicia-forming pieces which are horizontally elongated strips extending the full width of the sign and spacer component pieces between indicia-containing pieces in each row of the same which are narrow pieces.

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River Forest, IL, United States of America

Michael N Kane