GB2428033A

GB2428033A - Sticker sheet with underlying image

Info

Publication number: GB2428033A
Application number: GB0513761A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Vanessa Laws
Original assignee: CAVE TECHNOLOGY Ltd
Current assignee: CAVE TECHNOLOGY Ltd
Priority date: 2005-07-06
Filing date: 2005-07-06
Publication date: 2007-01-17
Anticipated expiration: 2025-07-06
Also published as: GB2428033B; GB0513761D0

Abstract

A sticker sheet has an underlying background image 22 on a carrier layer 10, and a number of overlying image carrying stickers 16,18, each of which also carries a portion which is a repeat representation of a portion of the background. Thus continuity of the background image remains, whether a sticker is in place on the carrier layer or removed. The stickers may be kiss cut down to the backing layer, and may be removed from their original seating, and placed on different overlying portions of the cover sheet 20. The sheet may be a toy or a game for a child.

Description

Sticker sheet This invention relates to a sticker sheet, ie a sheet with

at least two layers, one layer being a carrier layer and another layer constituting decals or stickers which can be peeled off from the carrier layer.

Sheets of stickers are known products. Conventionally, sticker sheets consist of a carrier or backing sheet which carries the stickers until the end user is ready to peel the stickers off, and a printed image or sticker layer. The carrier layer is coated with a coating from which the stickers themselves can be readily peeled off without leaving any significant adhesive residue on the carrier layer.

The image layer is printed with desired images. At the printing stage, the image layer will be substantially of the same overall dimensions as the carrier layer, and will be kiss-cut' to separate the stickers which the user will peel off from the waste' which will remain on the carrier layer.

The term "kiss-cut" refers to a process whereby a cut is made from into the sticker sheet from the front face, the depth of the cut being such that it cuts right through the image layer, but not through the carrier layer, so that subsequently a part of the image layer surrounded by such a cut can be lifted off from the carrier layer without disturbing either the remainder of the image layer or the carrier layer.

According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a sticker sheet comprising a carrier layer and an image layer, the image layer having adhesive on its face in contact with the carrier layer (its back face), and the image layer being kiss-cut to define regions of the image layer which can be peeled off from the carrier layer and then stuck in another location, wherein there is printing on the face of the carrier layer in contact with the image layer and printing on the outer face of the image layer, and wherein the printing on the carrier layer is such that, when a sticker is peeled off from the sheet, printing is revealed on the portion of the carrier layer revealed by the removal of the sticker, and the revealed printing on the carrier layer forms a continuous image with the printing on the image layer.

The image on the image layer may be such that there is a position on the image layer where the peeled off region can be placed to make a continuous image which preferably differs from the continuous image at that position before that position is covered by the peeled off region.

The carrier layer is preferably card, or is laminated with a card or other rigid or semi-rigid layer. However the carrier layer may itself be made up of a secondary image layer and a rigid or semi-rigid backing substrate. This construction may be useful to facilitate printing; ie the secondary image layer being printed to provide the image on the carrier layer and then being permanently stuck to the backing substrate, or at least being more securely stuck to the backing substrate than the image layer will be to the secondary image layer.

In this latter construction, the image layer will be removably stuck to the surface of the secondary image layer which is a part of the carrier layer.

Preferably substantially the whole of the image layer is printed with an image.

The carrier layer may be printed over its whole surface, or only in areas where peel-off regions of the image layer will be positioned.

The adhesive is preferably a re-peelable adhesive.

According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a sticker sheet comprising a carrier layer and a plurality of printed stickers applied to the carrier layer, wherein the carrier layer carries a printed image, and the stickers are printed with an image which forms a continuation of the image on the carrier layer, such that the image presented by the sheet is continuous both when the stickers are in place on the carrier layer and when one or more of the stickers have been removed.

The invention will now be further described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a schematic view of a sticker chart in accordance with the invention; Figure 2 shows the chart of Figure 1 after a sticker has been removed and replaced elsewhere on the chart; Figure 3 is a section through a portion of the chart of Figure 1; Figure 4 is a view corresponding to Figure 1, but showing an alternative embodiment; and Figure 5 is a section through a chart, corresponding to Figure 3 but showing a different embodiment.

The chart shown in Figure 1 has a carrier layer or backing sheet 10 with an image layer 12 adhered to the carrier layer. In this embodiment, the image layer covers most of the carrier layer, but there is a margin 14 where the carrier layer is exposed. The image layer may alternatively extend right up to the edge of the carrier layer.

In the drawings, the layers 10 and 12 are shown with a thickness, to aid understanding of the invention.

The image layer is adhered to the carrier layer over its whole area, by means of a re-peelable adhesive applied to the back of the image layer. The adhesive allows the image layer to be peeled off the carrier layer, and reapplied, either to the carrier layer or to another surface. The carrier layer will normally have a surface finish on its upper face which will allow the adhesive to stick to that face, but will allow the image layer (or part of the layer) to be peeled away without leaving any residue on the carrier layer. The surface finish may for example be a lacquer or varnish applied to the layer 10.

In Figure 1, the image layer is printed with a picture of waves and sea. The layer is kiss-cut to separate two regions 16 and 18 from the rest 20 of the image layer. The regions 16 and 18 (which are sometimes referred to here as "stickers") can then be peeled away to expose the carrier layer beneath. The regions 16 and 18, when peeled away, retain their adhesive on their under faces so that they can be stuck either back where they came from, or somewhere else. The regions 16 and 18 are thus "stickers". Although Figures I and 2 show only two kiss-cut regions 16 and 18, it is likely that a finished product in accordance with the invention will have a larger number of such regions.

In Figure 1, the region 16 is shown separated from the image layer. The region 16 shows a shark swimming in the sea. Once the region 16 has been separated from the image layer, a portion 22 of the carrier layer 10 is exposed through the resulting "window" in the image layer. The carrier layer is also printed, at least in the area beneath the region 16, and as can be seen in Figure 1, the printing on the carrier layer forms a continuous image with the printing on the image layer. It will be seen that the wave pattern on the sea is the same on the region 16 and on the exposed portion 22. However, while the region 16 shows a shark swimming in the sea, the portion 22 shows a goldfish swimming in the same sea.

The region 18 shows a jellyfish, and the printed portion of the carrier layer beneath this region may show a different sea scene, but again with the sea appearing continuously across the edges of the remaining part 20 of the image layer and the revealed portion of the carrier layer.

The carrier layer 10 therefore has to be printed on its upper face before the image layer 12 is applied to it. The printing may cover the whole of the carrier layer upper face, or only those parts where there will be removable stickers in the image layer. It is clearly important that the registration between the printed carrier layer and the printed image layer be accurate, so that when a sticker is removed, the design on the image layer continues on the carrier layer.

However the design of the print on the image layer should allow for some tolerance, as cutter movements can occur which can affect registration between the kiss-cut cutter and the image area to be within the kiss-cut. The carrier layer may be printed prior to the application of a varnish over the printing.

Figure 2 shows the shark sticker 16 now reapplied on top of the image layer at another location 24, where the representation of the sea is again continuous across the edge of the sticker. The application of the sticker in this place then changes the appearance of the part of the layer. Some form of registration mark (eg a faint dotted line) may be provided on the image layer to indicate suitable secondary locations for the stickers where a continuous image will be presented after application of the sticker, ie the background will appear uninterrupted across the edge of the sticker.

Figure 3 shows a section through the chart, showing the kiss-cuts 26 in the image layer and the adhesive 28 on the back of the image layer. The carrier layer 10 may be mounted on a rigid or semi-rigid card 30, to provide stiffness to the chart.

Figure 4 shows an alternative embodiment. In this case, the whole of the carrier layer 100 is printed with an image and the image layer 114 is printed at least in the kiss-cut regions 116,118. After printing, the whole of the waste portion of the image layer is removed from the carrier layer to leave just the stickers 116, 118 on the carrier layer, so that the image presented by the sheet is partly on the carrier layer and partly on the stickers. When a sticker is removed, the underlying image on the carrier layer 100 will be continuous across the region where the sticker was originally present.

Figure 4 also shows that the printing on the waste 120 only needs to be in the areas where the stickers are to be separated from the rest of the image layer.

It may be difficult to print on the card 30 of Figure 3, especially if that card is thick. In an alternative form therefore, the carrier layer may itself be a two-ply product. Figure 5 shows an embodiment in which the carrier layer 210 comprises a backing sheet 230 and, stuck to the front of that sheet, a secondary image layer 232. The secondary image layer is first printed with the carrier layer image, and then stuck to the backing sheet 230 by adhesive 234.

The carrier layer is then ready to receive the printed image layer 212 which is stuck to the carrier layer by adhesive 236. The adhesive 236 is a repeelable adhesive, whereas the adhesive 234 is a permanent adhesive, or at least more permanent that the adhesive 236.

The chart can be used in many ways; it can be a stand-alone product as shown, or can be incorporated into a book or booklet, or can be combined with other printed or non-printed pages. The images on the chart can be purely for amusement, or the chart could be designed as a reward chart, with the sticker regions 16, 18 being intended to be removed on achievement of a particular goal, with the image behind constituting some form of "reward".

Claims

Claims 1. A sticker sheet comprising a carrier layer and an image layer,

the image layer having adhesive on its face in contact with the carrier layer (its back face), and the image layer being kiss-cut to define regions of the image layer which can be peeled off from the carrier layer and then stuck in another location, wherein there is printing on the face of the carrier layer in contact with the image layer and printing on the outer face of the image layer, and wherein the printing on the carrier layer is such that, when a sticker is peeled off from the sheet, printing is revealed on the portion of the carrier layer revealed by the removal of the sticker, and the revealed printing on the carrier layer forms a continuous image with the printing on the image layer.
2. A sticker sheet as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the image on the image layer is such that there is a position on the image layer where the peeled off region can be placed to make a continuous image which preferably differs from the continuous image at that position before that position is covered by the peeled off region.
3. A sticker sheet as claimed in Claim I or Claim 2, wherein the carrier layer is card or is laminated with a card or other rigid or semi-rigid layer.
4. A sticker sheet as claimed in Claim I or Claim 2, wherein the carrier layer is made up of a secondary image layer and a rigid or semi-rigid backing substrate.
5. A sticker sheet as claimed in Claim 4, wherein the image layer is removably stuck to the surface of the secondary image layer which is a part of the carrier layer.
6. A sticker sheet as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein substantially the whole of the image layer is printed with an image.
7. A sticker sheet as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the carrier layer is printed over its whole surface.
8. A sticker sheet as claimed in any one of Claims I to 6, wherein the carrier layer is printed only in areas where peel-off regions of the image layer will be positioned.
9. A sticker sheet as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the adhesive is a re-peelable adhesive.
10. A sticker sheet comprising a carrier layer and a plurality of printed stickers applied to the carrier layer, wherein the carrier layer carries a printed image, and the stickers are printed with an image which forms a continuation of the image on the carrier layer, such that the image presented by the sheet is continuous both when the stickers are in place on the carrier layer and when one or more of the stickers have been removed.
11. A sticker sheet substantially as herein described with reference to any one embodiment shown in the accompanying drawings.