US3806397A

US3806397A - Decorative articles

Info

Publication number: US3806397A
Application number: US00261035A
Authority: US
Inventors: M Kukoff
Original assignee: KUKOFF J
Current assignee: KUKOFF J; KUKOFF J US
Priority date: 1972-06-08
Filing date: 1972-06-08
Publication date: 1974-04-23
Anticipated expiration: 1991-04-23

Abstract

THE INVENTION COMPRISES A THIN LAYER OF POLYVINYL CHLORIDE PLASTISOL WHICH IS APPLIED THROUGH AN OPEN-WORK DESIGN IN A SILK SCREEN ONTO A RELEASE MATERIAL. THE LAYER OF POLYVINYLCHLORIDE PLASTISOL MAY BE MADE THICKER OR THINNER DEPENDING UPON ITS PROPOSED USE AND THE THICKNESS OF THE SCREEN. THE POLYVINYLCHLORIDE FORMS A BASE MATERIAL AND IS IN A TACKY CONDITION. A MULTIPLICITY OF LIGHT REFLECTIVE PARTICLES, EACH OF THE PARTICLES BEING COATED WITH A LAYER OF TRANSPARENT POLYVINYLCHLORIDE SUCH THAT THE LIGHT REFLECTIVE QUALITY OF EACH PARTICLES IS NOT RETARDED.

THE COATED LIGHT REFLECTIVE PARTICLES AFTER BEING RANDOMLY FLOCKED ONTO SAID BASE MATERIAL IS THEREAFTER PERMANENTLY AFFIXED TO THE TOP SURFACE THEREOF BY A FUSION PROCESS AND THEREAFTER COOLED. THE BOTTOM SURFACE OF SAID BASE MATERIAL HAS APPLIED THERETO A COATING OF ADHESIVE MATERIAL WHEREBY SAID DECORATED BASE MATERIAL MAY THEREAFTER BE ADHERED TO A FLAT OR MULTIFACETED SURFACE, OR WITHOUT THE ADHESIVE USED AS AN ORNAMENT.

Description

April'23, 1914 v KUKOFF 3,806,397

DECORATIVE ARTICLES Filed June 8, 1972 3i Z 40 J4 United States Patent U.S. Cl. 161-4 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The invention comprises a thin layer of polyvinyl chloride plastisol which is applied through an open-work design in a silk screen onto a release material. The layer of polyvinylchloride plastisol may be made thicker or thinner depending upon its proposed use and the thickness of the screen. The polyvinylchloride forms a base material and is in a tacky condition. A multiplicity of light reflective particles, each of the particles being coated with a layer of transparent polyvinylchlorlde such that the light reflective quality of each particle is not retarded. The coated light reflective particles after being randomly flocked onto said base material is thereafter permanently affixed to the top surface thereof by a fusion process and thereafter cooled. The bottom surface of said base material has applied thereto a coating of adhesive material whereby said decorated base material may thereafter be adhered to a flat or multifaceted surface, or without the adhesive used as an ornament.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION (1) Field of the invention The invention relates to a decorated material which has permanently atfixed thereto reflective particles.

(2) Description of the prior art Heretofore, numerous attempts have been made to provide decorative materials which may be fixed to flat or multifaceted surfaces or surfaces which are being continually flexed. The earlier efiorts resulted in numerous failures because of several reasons.

Firstly, the decorative materials were usually comprised of a cloth or paper base material on which glitter material was glued. In this situation the glitter material continuously flecked-off creating a plaguing cleaning problem for the housewife.

Secondly, the glue or adhesive material which was supposed to hold the glitter material to the base material would become rigid so that the material was not flexible. This nonflexibility severely limited the use of the decorated material, as a practical matter, to flat rigid surfaces.

Thirdly, prior attempts at providing decorative materials, because of the structure and materials used could not be washed or dry cleaned so if the decoration became dirty, as so it must with our air pollution problems, the decoration had to be discarded.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is the general object of the present invention to avoid and overcome the difficulties with and deficiencies in prior art decorative materials by providing an inexpensive and sturdy decoration, which may be applied to flat or multifaceted surfaces and to surfaces which may be continuously flexed or merely be used by itself as a decoration.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a decoration from which reflective particles will not flake off.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an extremely thin base material which may be flexible in all directions and which can permanently support highly reflective particles thereon.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a polyvinylchloride thick or thin base material with highly reflective particles randomly flocked thereon and which are permanently aflixed thereto in such a manner that the base material is flexible in all directions without loosening the reflective particles.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a decoration which may be cleaned without removing any of the reflective particles from the base materials to which they are attached.

Yet a further object of the present invention is to provide a base material which is comprised of a flowable plastisol which will flexibly solidify when cured.

Still a further object of the present invention is to permit a decoration to be aflixed to an infinite variety of surfaces.

The above objects and other objects which will become more apparent as the description proceeds are achieved by providing a decorative material which comprises a thin or thick polyvinylchloride base material formed by sponging or pouring a polyvinylchloride plastisol through a design in a screen onto a release material and thereafter applying a multiplicity of randomly shaped highly reflective particles by flocking the same to said base material. Each of the highly reflective particles being coated with a transparent layer of polyvinylchloride material such that the light reflective qualities of the particles are not inhibited. Each of said light reflective particles being permanently aflixed to said base material when said base material and particles are heated so that the layer of polyvinylchloride coating the reflective particles combines with the polyvinylchloride of the base material. After removing the release paper the bottom surface of the base material may be provided with a coating of adhesive material and the adhesive may thereafter be covered with a release paper thereover.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In order to more readily understand the nature of the invention, I provide the drawings listed below wherein like numerals of reference represent similar parts throughout the respective views and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a decorative article;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the application through a screen to form a base material;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the decorative article;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a coated light reflective particles; and

FIG. 5 is a schematic representation of the steps of curing the particles and base material.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now to FIG. 1, a decorative article is generally shown and indicated by the reference numeral 10. As shown in FIG. 1, the decorative article 10 takes the form of a five-pointed star having a light reflective upper surface 12 comprised of a multiplicity of randomly shaped light reflective particles 14. Although a five-pointed star is shown as the decorative article 10, it should be understood that the article may take any one of an infinite number of shapes or forms varying from a circular shape to a multifaceted shape. I have successfully shape my article, for example, in the forms of names, Christmas trees, stars, all of the geometric figures and many others. The decorative article 10 is formed by applying a quantity of polyvinylchloride plastisol through a screen 16 and having the desired design 18 cut therein by sponging the plastisol over the open-work design 18 in the screen 16. In this manner a layer 20 of polyvinylchloride is formed in a particular shape, as dictated by the opening or design 18 in the screen 16. The thickness of the layer 20 may be a function of the thickness of the screen 16 and to some extent the viscosity of the plastisol.

Disposed beneath the screen 16, there is placed a release material 22 such as a release paper or Teflon on which the layer 20 of polyvinylchloride plastisol is deposited through the screen. Whatever design is formed in the screen 16 will be formed on the release material 22, by the polyvinylchloride plastisol.

The polyvinylchloride plastisol layer 20 forms a base material 24 on which the multiplicity of light reflective particles 14 may be flocked. Each of the light reflective particles 14, I prefer to use, are aluminum particles 26 which are coated with a thin layer 28 of polyvinylchloride. Although I prefer to use aluminum as the material for the particles 26, other light reflective materials which may be coated with polyvinylchloride may also be used.

As shown in FIG. 4, each particle 14 is comprised of a metalized light reflective aluminum portion 26 with a layer or coating 28 of polyvinylchloride therearound. The polyvinylchloride coating 28 is transparent such that the light reflective qualities of the aluminum particle 26 is not inhibited.

As indicated earlier the thickness of the base material 24, formed by the plastisol, may be governed by the thickness of the screen 16. For example, if the silk screen 16 is one-sixteenth of an inch thick then the distances between the top surface 30 of the release material 22 and the top surface 32 of the screen 16 will be approximately one-sixteenth of an inch. Any polyvinylchloride plastisol disposed between the top surface 30 of the release paper 22 and upper surface 32 of the screen 16 will define the thickness of the base material 24. Since the base material 24 is formed by the plastisol, the flexibility of the base material 24 is a direct function of the thickness thereof so that flexibility of the base material 24 is a direct function of the thickness thereof so that if a more rigid article is to be formed the thickness of the screen should be such that there would be created a thicker base material 24. Conversely, if a higher degree of flexibility is required, the thinness of the screen 16 would provide a thin base material 24 which is more flexible in nature.

It should be particularly noted that designs of the base material 24 may be formed on the release material 22 without using a screen of any kind. The use of the screen is to be able to reproduce a particular design or produce many designs at one time on the release material 22. Further, the use of the screen 16 provides base materials of uniform thickness which simplifies the curing technique hereinafter to be described. When the polyvinylchloride plastisol is placed, in whatever manner preferred, on the release paper 22, it is in a tacky or sticky condition.

With the plastisol in such condition, the randomly shaped polyvinylchloride coated light reflective particles 14 are flocked onto the still tacky or plastisol. A portion of each of the coated particles 14 will, by their own weight, be slightly embedded in the top surface 33 of the layer of plastisol 20. In order to permanently aflix each of the light reflective particles 14 in place in the plastisol, the tacky polyvinylchloride with the partially embedded particles 14 may be subjected to an interval of heat. The interval of heat may vary from thirty (30) seconds to one minute (depending upon the thickness of the base material 24) at temperatures ranging from 300 F. to 350 F. As shown in FIG. 5, the layer of plastisol 20 with the light reflective particle 14 flocked thereon may be placed on a conveyor belt 35 while either still resting on the release material 22 or after having been removed therefrom, and subject to heat which emanates from heat lamps 37.

During the exposure of the plastisol and flocked light reflective particles 14 to the heat, as above specified, the outer coating 28 on the aluminum particles 26 may partially melt and become fused with the base material 24 such that the coated light reflective particles 14 will be permanently aflixed to the base material 24. The manner of fusion of each particle 14 to the base material, in essence, resembles a light reflective member in a transparent container which is permanently affixed to the base material. With such arrangement the combination of base material and embedded particles may be subjected to ordinary cleaning, washing or dry cleaning processes which will not dislodge the light reflective particles 14 from the base material 24.

After the light reflective particles 14 have been fused to the base material 24 the article may be removed from the release material 22 leaving a decorated piece of base material 24. The bottom surface 34 of the base material 24 which was formerly in contact with the release material 22 may be coated with an adhesive material 36. The adhesive material 36 thereafter may have release paper 40 applied thereto to prevent its sticking to other materials during the storage of the decorative articles 10. When the decorative article 10 is to be applied either to a fabric or other surface to be decorated the release paper 40 may merely be removed and the adhesive bottom surface of the base material 24 may be urged against the surface to be decorated by physical pressure. It should be particularly understood that the type of surface and material to which the decorative article may be applied is in part a function of the flexible nature of the base material 24 after the curing or fusion process.

For example, the decorative material may be applied to a multifaceted surface, if the plastisol base is thin enough to permit the proper flexibility. For application to garments, the plastisol may take a thicker cross section and, therefore, not require a high degree of flexibility.

The decorative articles, with the complete upper surface of the base material being covered by the light reflective particles forms a randomly or irregularly textured upper surface which is required to create the highly light reflective design desired. For example, it would defeat the beauty of the decorative article if the light reflective surface created by the randomly flocked particles was merely flat and regular or pressed down to create a flat surface. The arbitrary nature of the reflective surface adds to the beauty of the decorative articles 14 of different shapes and this is further enhanced by the fact that the particles cannot be flocked off even though the base material is flexible in all directions.

It will be recognized that the base material and flocked particles may be used as hanging ornaments alone, without resorting to the use of the adhesive material 36. In fact, many ornamentations have been made as I have described above.

In any case, the application of the decorative article is extremely broad and the variety of designs are almost infinite in nature.

While in accordance with the patent statutes, preferred and alternative embodiments have been shown and described in detail, it should be particularly understood that the invention is not limited thereto or thereby.

I claim:

1. A decorative article comprising a layer of tacky polyvinylchloride plastisol formed in a particular design, a plurality of light reflective particles flocked onto said tacky polyvinylchloride plastisol, each of said light reflective particles having a polyvinylchloride coating thereabout, said coating about each light reflective particle being fused to said layer of polyvinylchloride plastisol, and a surface formed by said flocked multiplicity of light reflective particles being irregular in nature, said polyvinylchloride plastisol being flexible in all directions after said light reflective particles have been fused thereto.

2. A decorative article according to claim 1 wherein said polyvinylchloride plastisol is provided with a bottom surface which is free of light reflective particles, said bottom surface being coated with an adhesive material, and a release material covering said adhesive material.

3. A decorative article in accordance with claim 2. 2,241,365 5/1941 Meyer ..161--4X wherein said light reflective particle is composed of a 2,624,967 1/1953 Phillipi 161-4X thin layer of aluminum. 2,750,300 6/ 1956 Kukolf 16187 X 4. A decorative article according to claim 3 wherein 3,043,196 7/1962 Palmquist et al 350105 each of said light reflective particles may be randomly 5 3,288,618 11/1966 De Vrics 161---168X shaped.

References Cited HAROLD ANSHER, Primary Examiner UNITED STiTES aliATENTS 6 US Cl.

3,574,043 4/1971 Lu er et 161-1 8 I 2,710,046 6/1955 Markus et al 161-40 161 54 410 3,226,287 12/1965 Shanok et a1. 161-4 X