EP1192049A1

EP1192049A1 - Pencil

Info

Publication number: EP1192049A1
Application number: EP00949307A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Manfred Schweizer
Original assignee: Schwan Stabilo Schwanhausser GmbH and Co KG
Current assignee: Schwan Stabilo Schwanhausser GmbH and Co KG
Priority date: 1999-07-12
Filing date: 2000-07-11
Publication date: 2002-04-03
Anticipated expiration: 2020-07-11
Also published as: ATE236022T1; DE19932460C1; JP2003504243A; WO2001003946A1; EP1192049B1; US6409407B1; DE50001632D1; ES2192536T3

Abstract

A pen or pencil having a shaft which in its peripheral surface has at least one first and at least one second surface region. Irradiation of the first surface region with light of a first light quantity per unit of surface area results in an emission of visible light in the second surface region, wherein the light quantity emitted in the second surface region per unit of surface area for at least one first frequency is greater than the light quantity per unit of surface area of the first frequency, which is absorbed in the first surface region.

Description

PEN

The invention relates to a pin with a shaft, which has at least a first and at least a second surface area in its outer surface.

Pens of the type mentioned are known. If such pens are to be individualized, the two surface areas mentioned serve this purpose. If they are suitably arranged and visually different from one another, they can be used for individualization. It can not only be provided that, for example, the second surface area has the shape of a lettering. Rather, it can also have the shape of a pattern, such as longitudinal strips (for example on longitudinal edges). In known pens, the second surface area is often formed in that it is raised or deepened compared to the first surface area. An optical effect is thereby achieved. However, this optical effect is often not distinctive enough, which is why it can easily be overlooked. Another possibility of the optically different design between the first and the second surface area consists in covering a shaft of a first color with sections of a layer of a second color in order to form the second surface area. However, there are problems with this solution in particular if the second surface area is raised in relation to the first surface area or is arranged approximately in the area of the edges mentioned above, because then the colored layer wears out too easily during use.

The invention has for its object to form a pin of the type mentioned in such a way that the second

Surface area is optically easily distinguishable from the first surface area, but still not the risk of

There is wear.

According to the invention, the object is achieved in that irradiation of the first surface area with light of a first light quantity per unit area leads to the emission of visible light in the second (adjacent to the first surface area) surface area, the amount of light emitted into the second surface area per unit area for at least one first frequency is greater than the amount of light received in the first surface area per unit area of the first frequency.

In other words, it won't be like the other colored one

Support for the formation of the second surface area, the light simply striking the second surface area diffracted, but it is used to optically distinguishable the second surface area that light that strikes the first surface area.

Since light is therefore not (only) reflected in the second surface area, but instead radiates out from the inside, the second surface area has a "fluorescent" effect, as a result of which it can be easily distinguished optically from the first surface area.

Since there is no need for a support for the second surface area that differs in color from the first surface area, there is also no risk of wear, even if the second surface area should be raised compared to the first surface area.

In principle, any desired mechanisms can be used according to the invention in order to produce a "glow" of the second surface area in response to the appearance of the first surface area. According to the invention, however, it is preferred that the first surface area is the outside of a light-transmissive part of the shaft which contains a light-collecting substance, the light-collecting substance receiving light illuminating the first surface area and light emitted by the light-collecting substance at least partly in the second surface area emerges from the shaft.

Technically, this solution is particularly easy to implement.

As already mentioned above, according to the invention the shaft can have at least one longitudinal edge which at least partially coincides with the second surface area. In other words, it becomes a pen with at least one "Luminous" longitudinal edge created, this lighting effect is retained even if the edge should be repelled.

In order to further protect the longitudinal edge and to intensify the lighting effect, it can be provided according to the invention that it has the shape of a fillet.

According to a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention, the cross section of the shaft has the outer contour of a polygon, the corners of the polygon each coinciding with a longitudinal edge. In other words, the invention according to this embodiment creates a pen with several "glowing" longitudinal edges.

To further simplify the invention, it can be provided that at least one surface area of the shaft lying between two longitudinal edges does not coincide with the first surface area. In other words, according to this embodiment of the invention, light for the “luminous” edge strips is not collected in every area lying between two edge strips. This allows production u. Material costs can be saved.

For example, it can be provided that the shaft has an even number of longitudinal edges and only every second surface area lying between two longitudinal edges coincides with the first surface area. So seen in the circumferential direction alternate light-receiving and non-light-receiving areas. However, since each longitudinal edge is adjacent to a light-receiving area, each longitudinal edge can also be supplied for "lighting".

According to one embodiment of the invention it is provided that the part of the Shaft extends in the radial direction over the entire thickness of the shaft. In other words, in this embodiment, the shaft material is used in its entire depth for "feeding" the second surface area.

Alternatively, it can be provided that the part of the shaft which contains the light-collecting substance, viewed in the radial direction, extends only over the outer 10% percent, preferably 5% percent, further preferably 2% percent of the thickness of the shaft. This embodiment of the invention is based on the knowledge that the light-collecting substance only has to be used up to a certain “penetration depth” of the light to feed the second surface area and that — with conventional pen dimensions — a comparatively small proportion of the total available Shank is sufficient to feed the second surface area sufficiently.

According to the invention, the light-collecting substance Oracet Yellow 8GF (Solvent Yellow 145) and / or Oracet Pink RF (Pigment Red 181) is preferred.

The barrel can have the shape of a sleeve, the interior of which serves as a storage for the writing substance. In particular, if the barrel is completely transparent, the fill level of the writing substance memory can be seen through the barrel. Since the second surface areas are not formed by colored overlay layers, they can also be seen through unhindered and therefore the storage level can always be reliably recognized even when the second surface area is comparatively large. It is expressly pointed out that the interior of the sleeve is also regarded as a memory in the sense of the invention if it accommodates a pencil lead, a ballpoint pen lead, etc. It is preferably provided according to the invention that the shaft is made of plastic, preferably of polypropylene, polyester, polyacrylate, polymethyl methacrylate, polycarbonate, polyamide, polyacetate, polyacetal, polystyrene and / or a combination of polystyrene with a polystyrene / butadiene copolymer. Different types of the plastics mentioned can also be mixed or combined with one another, for example types with different molecular chain lengths. The choice of plastic or plastic mixture depends, among other things, on whether it should contain the light-collecting substance and whether it should come into contact with the writing substance. For example, polypropylene is not sufficiently transparent, but it is ideally suited for the formation of the writing substance memory, because of the best compatibility with all types of known writing substances, including water-based and alcohol-based writing materials.

As a result, different plastics, on the one hand to accommodate the light-collecting substance and on the other hand to form the writing fluid reservoir, it is particularly preferred according to the invention that the shaft is produced by coextrusion of two or more plastics. This avoids that different areas of the barrel (for example an area with the light-collecting substance and another area for forming the memory for the writing substance) have to be produced separately and then joined together by gluing or the like. If different plastics are co-extruded, they should have comparable melting ranges and comparable shrinkage behavior.

The invention is explained in more detail below with the aid of preferred exemplary embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawing. Show 1 shows a sectional perspective view of a pin according to a first embodiment of the invention,

Fig. 2 u. 3 sectional views of further exemplary embodiments of the invention.

1, a pen has a shaft 10 and a writing tip 12 (only shown schematically). The shaft 10 has an essentially hexagonal outer contour in cross section. Longitudinal edges are formed at the corners of the hexagon, one of which is designated by reference numeral 14. Like the other longitudinal edges, it has the shape of a fillet. The shaft 10 is made of transparent polystyrene. A light-collecting dye, namely Oracet Yellow 8GF (Solvent Yellow 145), is added to the polystyrene.

Adjacent to the longitudinal edge 14 is a surface area, which is designated by 16.

The shaft 10 is hollow on the inside, the cavity designated 18 serving as a storage for the writing substance, in the example shown an alcohol-based writing material. At this point, it should be pointed out that polystyrene is ideally suited for forming a storage space for alcohol-based writing materials.

Light that strikes the first surface area 16 penetrates into the shaft 10 because of the transparency of the polystyrene and hits the pigments of the light-collecting substance there. Because of the given geometries, reflections of the light emitted by the light-collecting substance increasingly occur on the second surface 16 and on the inner surface of the shaft 10, whereas on the surface of the fillets shaped longitudinal edge 14 hardly occur reflections. The light emitted by the light-collecting substance will therefore preferably emerge in the region of the adjacent longitudinal edge 14, which is why the shaft 10 "shines" out of the hollow-shaped longitudinal edge when the first surface region 16 is illuminated.

There is therefore the optical impression that light enters the shaft 10 via the first surface area 16 and exits again from the flute-shaped longitudinal edge 14 which is directly adjacent to the first surface area 16.

Since it is not necessary to form a colored outer layer in order to form the "luminous" second surface area (hollow-shaped longitudinal edge 14) that is optically different from the first surface area 16, the manufacturing process is correspondingly simplified. In addition, the "glowing" longitudinal edge is "resistant to abrasion", in contrast to a colored layer in the edge area.

The embodiment of FIG. 2 differs from that of FIG. 1 in that the entire shaft is not made of plastic containing light-collecting substance. Rather, light-collecting substance (Oracet Yellow 8GF (Solvent Yellow 145)) is only in segments 20, 22 and. 24, whereas segments 26, 28 u. 30 contain no light-collecting substance. But since the groove-shaped longitudinal edges 32, 34, 36, 38, 40 u. 42 each of the segments 20, 22 u. 24 are adjacent to the light-collecting substance, a glow effect nevertheless occurs on all longitudinal edges.

The segments described are produced by means of coextrusion, which is advantageous compared to a production method in which the segments are produced individually and then joined together (for example by gluing). In comparison with the exemplary embodiment according to FIG. 1, plastic which contains less light-collecting substance is required in accordance with FIG. However, the basic material of all segments is also polystyrene according to FIG. 2.

3, the shaft is again divided into several sections, but this time not in comparable segments, but in a base body 44 made of polystyrene and outer layers 46, 48 and. 50 made of a polystyrene / butadiene copolymer, the outer layers mentioned containing the light-collecting substance, in this case Oracet Pink RF (Pigment Red 181).

As can be seen in FIG. 3, fillet-shaped longitudinal edges 52, 54, 56, 58, 60 and. 62 on the outer layers 46, 48 u. 50 so that they are directly adjacent to the outer surfaces of said outer layers 46, 48 and serving as first surface areas. 50 lie.

As already in the case of the exemplary embodiments according to FIGS. 1 u. 2 is light that in the outer layers 46, 48 u. 50 penetrates, encounter pigments of the light-collecting substance contained therein. The light emitted by the pigments of the light-collecting substance is again mainly due to the given geometries in the region of the groove-shaped longitudinal edges 52, 54, 56, 58, 60 and. 62 emerge, so that a "glow effect" arises.

The outer layers 46, 48 u. 50 made of the polystyrene / butadiene copolymer are in the embodiment according to

Fig. 3 coextruded by coextrusion with the base body 44 made of polystyrene, which is easy because of comparable melting ranges and comparable shrinkage behavior. 3 is not to scale. In fact, the thickness d of the outer layers 46, 48 u. 50 only about 2% of the thickness D of the base body. In this embodiment of the invention, plastic which contains very little light-collecting substance is therefore required in order to achieve a "glowing" of the longitudinal edges.

The features of the invention disclosed in the above description, the claims and the drawing can be essential both individually and in any combination for realizing the invention in its various embodiments.

Claims

EXPECTATIONS

1. pin with a shaft (10) which has at least a first (16) and at least a second (14) surface area in its outer surface,

characterized in that

Irradiation of the first surface area (16) with light of a first light quantity per unit area leads to the emission of visible light in the second surface area (14), the amount of light emitted in the second surface area (14) per unit area being greater for at least a first frequency than that in FIG the amount of light received per unit area of the first frequency is the first surface area (16).

2. Pen according to claim 1, characterized in that the first surface area (16) is the outside of a translucent part (20, 22, 24; 46, 48, 50) of the shaft (10) which contains a light-collecting substance, wherein the light-collecting substance receives light illuminating the first surface region (16) and light emitted by the light-collecting substance at least partly in the second surface region (14; 32, 34, 36, 38, 40, 42; 52, 54, 56, 58, 60, 62) emerges from the shaft (10).

3. Pen according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the shaft (10) has at least one longitudinal edge (14; 32, 34, 36, 38, 40, 42; 52, 54, 56, 58, 60, 62), which at least partially coincides with the second surface area.

4. Pen according to claim 3, characterized in that the longitudinal edge (14; 32, 34, 36, 38, 40, 42; 52, 54, 56, 58, 60, 62) has the shape of a groove.

5. Pen according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that the shaft (10) in cross section has the outer contour of a polygon, the corners of the polygon each having a longitudinal edge (14; 32, 34, 36, 38, 40, 42; 52, 54, 56, 58, 60, 62) coincide.

6. Pen according to claim 5, characterized in that at least one between two longitudinal edges (42, 32) lying surface area of the shaft does not coincide with the first surface area (16).

7. Pen according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that the shaft (10) has an even number of longitudinal edges (14; 32, 34, 36, 38, 40, 42; 52, 54, 56, 58, 60, 62) and only every second surface area lying between two longitudinal edges (14; 32, 34, 36, 38, 40, 42; 52, 54, 56, 58, 60, 62) coincides with the first surface area (16).

8. Pen according to one of claims 2 to 7, characterized in that the part containing the light-collecting substance (20, 22, 24) of the shaft (10) extends in the radial direction over the entire thickness of the shaft (10).

9. Pen according to one of claims 2 to 7, characterized in that the part containing the light-collecting substance (46, 48, 50) of the shaft (10) viewed in the radial direction only over the outer 10%, preferably 5%, more preferably 2% of the thickness (D) of the shaft (10) extends.

10. Pen according to one of claims 2 to 9, characterized in that the light-collecting substance is Oracet Yellow 8GF (Solvent Yellow 145) and / or Oracet Pink RF (Pigment Red 181).

11. Pen according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the shaft (10) has the shape of a sleeve, the interior (18) of which serves as a memory for a writing substance.

12. Pen according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the shaft (10) is made of plastic, preferably polypropylene, polyester, polyacrylate, polymethyl methacrylate, polycarbonate, polyamide, polyacetate, polyacetal, polystyrene and / or a combination of polystyrene with a polystyrene / butadiene copolymer.

13. Pen according to claim 12, characterized in that the shaft (10) is produced by coextrusion of two or more plastics.