CA1224667A - Stencilling device - Google Patents

Abstract

STENCILLING DEVICE

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE

A compartmented pouch has two or more sealed compartments formed therein, these compartments being separated from each other by separator means which forms a sealing separator therebetween.
One of the compartments has a stencil formed therein which may be in the form of holes punched in one wall of the compartment arrranged to form a desired marking image which may be letters, numerals or symbols. In lieu of punched holes, the images may be formed by slots in this compartment wall. Removable tape is placed over the holes or slots. One of two fluid components is placed in one compartment and another of two fluid components is placed in another compartment which may or may not be the compartment having the images formed therein; these two components forming an etching or marking material when combined together.
When it is desired to perform the etching operation , the separator means is mechanically actuated to remove this sealing separation between the compartments such that the fluids are mixed with each other thereby forming the etching or marking medium.
The tape covering the holes or slotted portions forming the marking image is removed and the stencil is placed against the surface to be marked, the etching or marking medium being permitted to pass through the holes or slots in the stencil and onto the surface to be marked. In another embodiment, a single fluid may be employed which is contained in one of the compartments.

Description

~ a6~
1 ~ENCILLlNG DEVllCE
3 S P E C I ~ I C A T I O N
4 This invention relates to a m~thod and apparatus for sten-cilling markings on objects, and more particularly to such a 6 device employing a compartmentall2ed pouch having a compartment 7 containin~ an etching or rnarkin~ medium or such a deYice contain-8 a different fluid in each of two or rnor~e compartrnents which are 9 joined together to form the m~rkin~ medium.
The markin~ o~ objects with identification rnarkings which 11 may be in the ~orm of nurnbers, letters or symbols, is used exten-12 sively for security purposes. In achieving the desired end result 13 it is highly desirable to employ a rr~rking medium in the form 14 of an etchant or the like which etches the identification sym-bols into a surface of the object in a rnanner such that it can-16 not be readily erased or removed. Ef~ective etchants for metal 17 and glass and removal resistent paint generzlly contain sub-18 stances which can cause injury to the user's skin or eyes.
19 Such materials must therefore be very carefully handled and limited for use by personnel havin~ adequate protection, as 21 well as sorne skill in their handling. ~his rnakes the rnarking 22 process somewhat rnore expensive than to be desired, and obvia$es 23 its use except to specially trained personnel. Patent No.
24 2,517,430, issued Au~ust l, l~S0, to Hensel et al., describes a typical prior art chemical etching technique.
26 The method and apparatus o~ the present invention obviates 27 the aforementioned shortcomings of the prlor art in providin~
28 a sealed packet containing the ~luids needed for etchin~ or 29 I,painting symbols on a sur~ace which can be employed by an un-30 1I trained person and without the use of any special pro~ective ~1 ! clothin~ or ~loves.

~ 2~667 1 The improvem~nt is achieved in thelpresent invention by

2 employin~ a compartm~ntalized pouch having a plurality of com-

3 partments separa~ed by b ~bouR~ sealln~ partitions. One o~ the

4 compartm~nts mRy contain a firs~ ~iuid, while an adjacent com-partmen~ m~y contain a second fluid which, when com~ined with the 6 first, forms an ac~ive etching or painting substance. In another 7 embodiment of the invention, a single actl~e fluid may be con-8 tained in one o~ the compartments~ The second compartm~Rt 9 may also haYe a stencil orming the identification letters, syn~ols or n~rkings to be placed on a surace of the object 11 to be markedg this stencil being form~d by holes punched through 12 the compartment wall or slots formed in such wall. The stencil 13 is covered over by a tape so that the substance is not released 14 therefrom until the tape is removed and the stencil placed on the surface to be r~rked. In one embodim~nt of the invention, 16 one of the fluids forming the etchant or marking substance Is 17 contained in the s~nc compartm~nt having the stencil form~d 18 thereon, while in another embodiment three compartm~nts are em-19 ployed, two of the compartm~nts containing the fluids formin~
the r~rking substance, while the third co~artn~nt has the sten-21 cil forr~d therein. In this second embodim~nt, the fluids are 22 mixed together in one of the ~irst two compartments and, after 23 mixed to form the m2rking substance, the fluid is forced through 24 the breakaway seal in~ divider into the ~encilled compartm~nt.

~29L667 1 Other types of separator means for forming a sealing 2 separator between the compartments may b~employed. Such separa~or 3 means may comprise a mechanical clamp which can be mechanically 4 actua~ed to open the separation between the comparments; a valve installed in the pouch between the compar~ments; a frangible 6 separator which can easily be broken with 'Einger pressurP; a seal 7 which can be punched by an external piercing member; an internal 8 tear seal; etc.
9 FIG 1 is a top plan ~iew of a first embodiment of the invention;
11 FIG 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the plane 12 indicated by 2-2 in FIG l;
}3 FIG 3 is a top plan view of a second embodiment of the 14 invention;
FIG 4 is an exploded view of the second embodiment;
16 FIG 5 is a top plan view of a third embodiment of the 17 invention;
18 FIG 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along the plane 19 indicated by 6-6 in FIG 5.
FIG 7 is an exploded perspective view of a first embodiment 21 of the invention;
22 FIG 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along the plane 23 indicatetd by 8 8 in FIG l;
24 FIG 9 is a top plan view of a second embodiment of the invention;
26 FIG 10 is an exploded view of fthe second embodiment;
27 FIG 11 is a top plan view of a third embodiment of the 28 inven~ion;

32 3_ ~L~2~L6~7 2 FIG 12 is a cross section view taken along the plane 3 ¦indicated by 12-12 in FIG 5;
4 ¦ FIG 13 is a perspective view of a clamp which may be

5 ¦employed in implementing the invention;

6 ¦ FIG 14 is a perspective view of still another clamp device 71 which may be employed;
8¦ FIG 15 is a perspective view showing a further type of 91 clamp device which may be employed;
10¦ FIG 16 illustrates another clamping member which may be 11¦ employed in the device of the invention;
12 ¦ FIG 17 illustrates a separator device which may be employed 13¦ in the device of the inventiton; and 14¦ FIG 18 illustrates still another type of separator which may 15¦ be employed.
16¦ Referring now to FIGS 1 and 2, a first embodiment of the 17 invention is illustxated. A pou ch !member has a first 18¦ compartment 15 and a second compartment 20 separated by a 19¦ breakaway seal or septum 17. Typical materials which may be 20 employed for the pouch are 50-gauge polyester film, .0015 aluminum 2I¦ foil or .002 polypropylene film, The breakaway seal 17 between 22¦ the compartments may be fabricated by hea~ sealing the pouch 231 material sufficiently to form a wall between the compartments 24 which will separate the fluids but which will give way when the 251 compartment walls are compressed. Depending upon the material 26 used, various amounts of heating will be required as is well known 27¦ in the art. A stencil 22 is formed in the lower wall 12 of 229 compartment 20, this stencil being formed 32 ~ ~ -by punched holes or slots incised in wall 12. A sealing tape 11 is removably adhered to wall 12 to cover up the stencil, this layer being removed when the etchant or other marking medium has been squeezed into compartment 20 and is ready for use in marking the object. Wall 12 is preferably coated with a suitable adhesive. The marking substance may be premixed and placed in compartment 15, or if desired to keep the substance inert until it is ready for use as an etchant, one of two substances to be combined to form the marking medium is placed in compartment 15 and the other is placed in compartment 20, the two substances being mixed together by squeeziny the top wall 24 of compartment 15 to force the fluid through breakaway sealing partition or septum, breaking the septum with the pressure applied thereto and permitting the fluid thus to enter compartment 20 and mix with the other fluid to form the active marking substance.
~ arious examples of implementations of the invention to form a marking medium are as follows:

EXAMPL~ I
A mixture of commercial hydrofluoric acid containing 55 by weight of polyvinyl alcohol of the molecular weights and residual acetate composition commerically designated as Gelvatol 20.60, manufactured by Monsanto Corporation was employed. The material was stored in compartment 15 and forced into compartment 20 when stencilling was desired, this material being employed to stencil onto a sheet of safety glass. The stencil was left on the glass for 15 minutes and them removed, the pattern of the stencil being etched into the glass to a depth of .003 inches.

~22~6~;7 EXAMPLE II
A mixture of ferric chloride and water, available commercially from Phillip Hunt Chemical Company under the label PF
Etchant, was admixed with the polyvinyl alcohol of Example I and placed in compartment 15. The material in compartment 15 was squeezed through breakaway sealing septum 17 into compartment 20.
The tape 11 was removed and the stencil placed on a surface of "1019" steel. After 15 minutes, at room temperature - 20C, the stencil was removed and the image of the stencil was found to have been etched into the steel to a depth of .004 inches.

EXAMPLE I I I
A two-component paint, available commerically as NAZDAR
gloss black, available from Nazdar Company, Chicago, Illinois was employed, the "A" component o the paint being placed into compartment 15, while the l'B" component of the paint was placed into compartment 20. Pressure was exerted on top wall 24 of compartment 15, rupturing breakaway partition 17 and permitting the material in compartment 15 to enter compartment 20. The two components were thoroughly mixed by pushing down on the top wall 27 of compartment 20 in a back and forth rocking action. Tape 11 was removed and the material placed against an aluminum surface to be etched. The stencil was immediately removed and the paint allowed to set.
Referring now to FIG 4, a second embodiment of the invention is illustrated. In this embodiment, three compartments are employed, the compartments, as in the previous embodiment, being separated from each other by a breakaway sealing septum.

~2~ 7 1 First compartm~n~ 1~ has one o~ the two fluids contained therein, Z while compartm~nt 18 has the other of the fluids to be mixed 3 with the irs~ ~luid to form the m~rking substanceO Compartm~nt 4 20 has the stenci~ 22 on its bo~t~n surface, this stenc}l being sealed by a tape 11 as in the ~irst embodim~nt. Compartm~nts 6 IS, 18 and 20 are separated from each other by breakway sealing

7 partition 17~ as in the first embodin~n~ The fluid in compart-

8 ment 15 i5 squeezed out of this compartm~n~ into compartm~nt

9 18 where the two fluids are mixed to form the rnarklng substance.
When ~he m~terials have been thoroughly mixed, the mlxture in 11 compartm~nt 18 is squeezed through breakaway partitlon 17 into 12 compartm~nt 20. The m~erial in compartm~nt 20 is then used 13 to etch the desired surface, as in the previous embodim~nt.
14 Referrin~ now to FIG S, a further embodiment of the in~en-lS tion is illustrated. This embod{rnent is similar to that of FIG
16 4 except ~or the fact that compartn~nts IS and 183 rather than 17 being adjacent to each other, are on opposite ends of compart-18 ment 20. In this embodim~nt, the ~luids in compartr~nts 15 and 19 18 are squeezed into compartr~nt 20 where the mixing thereof is achieved. Otherwise, this embodiment is the sam~ as that 2~ o~ FIG 4.
22 ~he devic2 and technique of the present invention thus can Z3 be effectively used for a number of applications by relatively 24 inexperienced personnel. Such applications include the etching of windows and metal parts; the perm~nent painting of objects 26 m~de of a variety of dif~erent r~erials~ such as plastic, m~tal 27 ~lass; the use of the fluid as a transderm~l mRdlcation; the use 28 of the ~luid as a spot test reagent ~or the identification of 29 r~tal alloys; the use of the fluld as an antiblotic for test-ing the susceptibllity of an organis~ etc.

32 ~ 7-Referring now to FIGS 7 and 8, a further embodiment of the invention is illustrated. A pouch member has a first compartment 15 and a second compartment 20 separated from each other by the action of clamp 17 which forms separator means therebetween which can be mechanically released to permit fluid flow between the two compartments. The clamp shown for illustrative purposes is a conventional laboratory type tubing clamp as illustrated in greater detail in FIG 13 and includes a frame 35, having a screw 37 threadably mounted thereon with a bar member 38 fitted between the screw and the base 39 of the clamp, which clamps the pouch and prevents fluid flow between compartment 15 and 20 when the screw is tightened thereagainst; flow between the compartments being permitted then the screw is loosened. The pouch may be of typical materials specified in connection with the previously described embodime~ts, with a stencil 22 formed in the lower wall 12 of compartment 20, this stencil being formed by punched holes or slots in inside wall 12. A sealing tape 11 is removably adhered to wall 12 to cover up the stencil, this layer being removed when the etchant of other marking medium is ready for use in marking the object as already described.
Referring now to FIG 10, a further embodiment of the invention is illustrated, this embodiment being the same as that of FIG 4 except for the separator means employed. In this embodiment, three compartments are employed, the compartments, as in the previous embodiment, being separated from each other by separator means such as a clamp or the like. The first compartment 15 has one of the fluids contained therein, while compartment 18 has the other of the fluids to be mixed with the ~2~ 7 - 8a -first fluid to form the marking substance. Compartment 20 has stencil 22 on its bottom surface, this stencil being sealed by tape 11 as in the first embodiment. The compartments i5, 18 and 20 are separated from each other by separator means 17 which may comprise a clamp as in the first embodiment. The fluid in ~;~24~7 2 compartment 15 may be forced out of this compartment into 3 compartment 18 where the fluids are mixed to form the marking 4 Isubstance. When the materials have been ~horoughly mixed, the 51 mixture in compartment 18 is caused to flow in~o compartment 20.

61 The material in compartment 20 is then used to etch the desired 71 surface, as in the previous embodiment.

8 Referring now to FIG 11 and 12, a further ernbodiment of the g invention is illustrated~ This embodiment is similar to that of 101 FIG 10 except for the fact that compartments 15 and 18t rather 11¦ than being adjacent to each other, are on opposite ends of 12¦ compartment 20 in this embodiment. The fluids in compartment 15 13¦ and 18 are flowed into compartment 20 where the mixing thereof is 1~¦ achieved. Otherwise, this embodiment is the same as that of FIG
51 10.
¦ Referring now to FIGS 13-18, various different types of 16 l 17 separator means for providing separation between the pouch 18 ¦compartments which can be mechanically actuated to remove such 19 ¦sealing separation are illustrated.
20 ¦ In PIG 13, a conventional laboratory tubing clamp is shown, 21 this clamp having been already described.
22¦ In FIG 14, a plastic retainer clip mechanism 17 is shown.
231 This mechanism has a resilient arm 39 which has a catch 39a which 24 snaps under thumbpiece 40. Thus this clamp mechanism is operated 251 by snapping resilient arm 31 under thumbpiece 40 as shown in the 261 drawing with the clamp being released by downward thumb action on 271 the thumbpiece.

28 In FIG 15, an exploded view of a wedge type clamp which 291 comprises a wedge member 42 having pins 42a and 42b on the 301 opposite ends thereGf is shown. The pouch member ~not shown~ is 31 clamped between wedge member 42 and holder member 44 wi~h the ~ 321 _~

12~466;~ 1 2 wedge being retained in the holder by means of pins 42a and 42b 3 ¦which fit into mating apertures 44a and 44b formed in holder 4 member 44.
5 ¦ FIG 16 illustrates still another type of clamping member 6 which my be employed for forming a separator means between 71 compartments 15 and 20~ This clamping member has a semi-circular 8 slide clamping member 47 which has a pair of rails 47a and 47b 9 which xide in tracks 50a and 50b respectively foxmed in mating clamp member 50. The pouch is effectively c~amped between members 11¦ 47 and 50 at the opposing faces of rails 47a and 47b and tracks 12 50a, 50b respectively.
~31 Referring now to FIG 17, separator means in the form of a 14 ¦Ziploc fastener is illustrated, the separator means being formed 15 ¦by interloc~ing members 54 and 55 of the fastener, compartments 15 16 and 20 being formed on opposite sides of this closure.
17 Referring now o FIG 18, still another type of separator 18¦ means which may be employed is illustrated, this separator means 19 being in the form of a valve having a valve body 60 embedded in 20 l 21 the pouch between compartments 15 and 20 and having a rotatable ~2 231 valve cock 61 installed therei~ which can be manually rotated to 24 either prevent fluid communication between compartments 15 and 20 251 or to permit such fluid communication.
26¦ It should be apparent that many other additional types of 27¦ separator means for achieving the desired end results in 28¦ applicant's device can be employed such as, for example, a 5 29 frangible glass or plastic member which collapses and permits 30¦ fluid flow when manually pinched, as described in U.S. Patent No.
31 4,183,684; a rupturable diaphram as described in U.S. Patent No.

321 -/0^

1 ~ 6~7 13,301,390, a device that is internally punctured by the 2 ¦application of manual pressure such as described in U.S. Patent.

4 INo. 2,907rl73; an internal tear seal device such as described in 5 ¦ U.S. Patent No. 3,294,227; etc, 6 I Thus, it should be apparent many different types of 7 Iseparator means can be employed which proYides sealing separation 8 between the two compartments and which can be mechanically 9¦ actuated to remove the sealing separation to implement the

10 loperation of the device of the inventionO

11 ¦ While the device of ~the invention has been described and

12¦ illustrated in detail, it is to be clearly understood that this is ~3 lintended by the way of illustration and example only anclis not to 14 Ibe taken by way of limitations, the spirit and scope of this ¦invention being limit only by the terms of the following claims.

e; ~

321 _ " _

Claims

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

A compartmented pouch for use in placing a fluid onto the surface of an object comprising:
at least two sealed compartments formed in said pouch, separator means for forming a sealing separator between said compartments, a first one of said compartments having a surface thereof stencilled to form at least one opening, removable means placed on the stencilling surface, and a fluid placed in a second one of said compartments wherein when said separator means is mechanically actuated to remove the sealing separation, the fluid in the second one of said compartments is caused to enter said first one of said compartments, whereby with the removable means removed from the stencilled surface and the stencilled surface placed against the surface of the object to receive the fluid the fluid passes through the opening in the stencilled surface onto the surface of the object.

The pouch of Claim 1 wherein said one of said surfaces is stencilled in the form of a predetermined image to be marked on the surface of the object, said fluid being an image making fluid, whereby said image is marked on the surface of the object when the fluid passes through the stencilled surface.

The pouch of Claim 2 wherein there are two fluids which are admixed with each other to form the marking fluid, one or the other of said fluids being internally contained within each of said two compartments.

The pouch of Claim 1 wherein said separator means comprises, mechanical clamp means for clamping said pouch between said compartments.

The pouch of Claim 1 wherein said separator means comprises value means installed in said pouch between said compartments.

The pouch of Claim 1 wherein the separator means comprises a breakaway partition wherein when said second one of said compartments is squeezed, the pressure imparted to the fluid therein breaks the partition permitting the fluid to enter the first one of said compartments.

The pouch of Claim 2 wherein a third compartment is formed in said pouch, said third compartment containing a first fluid to be admixed with the fluid in said second one of said compartments to form the marking fluid.

The pouch of Claim 7 wherein the third compartment is adjacent to said second compartment.

The pouch of Claim 7 wherein said third compartment is adjacent to said first compartment and on a side thereof opposite to said second compartment.

The pouch of Claim 2 wherein the marking fluid is a chemical etchant.

The pouch of Claim 3 wherein the marking fluid is a two-component paint.

The pouch of Claim 1 wherein said fluid is a transdermal medication.

The pouch of Claim 1 wherein said fluid is a spot test reagent for identifying metal alloys.

The pouch of Claim 1 wherein the fluid is an antibiotic.