EP1237732A1

EP1237732A1 - Method for producing the cover plate of a neon sign or the like

Info

Publication number: EP1237732A1
Application number: EP00969493A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Herrmann Grimm; Ernst Schmid
Original assignee: Westiform & Co KG GmbH
Current assignee: Westiform & Co KG GmbH
Priority date: 1999-10-26
Filing date: 2000-10-12
Publication date: 2002-09-11
Also published as: DE19951404B4; AU7918800A; WO2001030592A1; DE19951404A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for producing the cover plate of a neon sign or the like which comprises printing a carrier plate (1) that consists of a clear, transparent acrylic glass with a decorative paint in those areas in which such a decorative paint is intended to be applied. All those areas that are not to be provided with a metallic layer are covered by a highly transparent clear lacquer (5). The glass transition temperature (softening temperature) of said clear lacquer (5) is superior to the softening temperature of the acrylic glass material. The carrier plate (1) is heated to a temperature that is above its own softening temperature but below the glass transition temperature of the clear lacquer (5). An embossed sheet (6) that comprises a synthetic carrier film (7) and a metallic layer (8) is pressed, metallic layer (8) first, onto the laminated structure comprising the carrier plate (1), the decorative paint (3) and the clear lacquer (5). The metallic layer (8) of the embossed sheet (6) adheres to the sticky surface areas of the carrier plate (1) that are devoid of the clear lacquer (5) but not to the non-sticky surfaces of the clear lacquer (5). Once the embossed sheet (6) is peeled off, the carrier plate (1) is therefore coated with a metallic layer (8) only in the desired areas.

Description

Process for producing the cover plate of a neon sign or the like

The invention relates to a method for producing the cover plate of a neon sign or the like with a carrier plate made of clear, transparent acrylic glass and at least one metal-coated area, in which

a) the surface of the carrier plate is provided with a cover layer in the areas not to be coated with metal;

b) an embossing foil which has a plastic carrier foil and a metallic layer carried by it, with the metallic layer being pressed onto the heated carrier plate;

c) the stamping foil is pulled off the carrier plate again, the metallic layer of the stamping foil adhering to a specific area of the carrier plate.

Such a method is described in DE-PS 38 08 689. Here, a cover film is applied by screen printing to those areas of the carrier plate which are not to be coated with metal.

If the embossing film is pressed onto this layer structure, its metallic layer remains adhering both to the cover film and to the areas of the carrier plate to be coated with metal. Finally, the cover film is removed so that the metallic coating tion only remains on the desired surface areas of the carrier plate. However, pulling off the carrier film is a relatively complex work step.

A manufacturing process that eliminates the need to peel off a carrier film is described in DE 42 40 817 AI. Here, the carrier plate is coated with an adhesive in the areas to be coated with metal. If the stamping film is pressed onto the carrier plate prepared in this way, the metallic layer of the carrier film only adheres to the areas of the surface of the carrier plate provided with adhesive. When the embossing foil is peeled off, the desired image of the metallic coated area is created directly on the carrier plate. However, it is extremely difficult to find an adhesive which achieves the described effect with the desired reliability and in which a deep-drawing process of the carrier plate can possibly take place subsequently.

The object of the present invention is to provide a production method of the type mentioned at the outset in which the cover layer no longer has to be removed.

This object is achieved in that

d) a highly transparent clear lacquer is used as the covering layer, the glass transition temperature of which is above the softening temperature of the acrylic glass material;

e) the clear coat is cured and then

f) the layer structure of the carrier plate and clear lacquer is brought to a temperature which is higher than the softening temperature of the acrylic glass material but lower than the glass transition temperature of the clearcoat, so that

g) the metallic layer of the embossing film after pressing on adheres to the exposed sticky areas of the surface of the carrier plate, but not to the non-sticky areas coated with clear lacquer.

Because a highly transparent clear lacquer is used as the covering layer according to the invention, it is not necessary to remove this covering layer again; Rather, it can remain in the entire layer structure of the cover plate without disturbing the visual impression. The selection between such surface areas that are to be coated with metal and those surface areas in which no metallic coating is to take place is based on the different adhesive properties of these areas: At a suitable temperature, which is between the softening temperature of the acrylic glass material and the glass transition temperature of the clear lacquer only the surface areas to be coated with metal become sticky, but the areas covered with clear lacquer do not. After the stamping foil has been pressed on, its metal layer only adheres to the sticky surface areas formed by the acrylic glass material of the carrier plate, not to the areas coated with clear lacquer, from which it is removed again together with the plastic carrier foil of the stamping foil.

A UV-curing clear lacquer is preferably used, which therefore hardens and under the influence of UV light does not soften when the temperature is increased.

It is advisable to use a clear varnish whose glass transition temperature (softening temperature) is above 150 ° C. A sufficiently wide working range then arises between the softening temperature of the acrylic glass material and the glass transition temperature of the clearcoat, in which the process according to the invention can be carried out successfully.

In general, cover plates of the type of interest here contain, in addition to the areas to be coated with metal, areas which are to be provided with a colored decoration. In this case, it is recommended that the decorative dye be applied in the corresponding areas before carrying out steps a to g of the method according to the invention. This means that the surface areas of the carrier plate bearing the decorative color, which are not intended to be provided with a metallic layer, are also coated with clear lacquer.

A particular advantage of the manufacturing method according to the invention is that the finished, coated carrier plate can be subjected to a final deep-drawing process. The clear coats used have the required elasticity.

An embodiment of the invention is explained below with reference to the drawing; show it

FIG. 1: schematically the top view of the cover plate of a neon sign produced by the method according to the invention;

Figures 2 to 7: in section along line AA of Figure 1 different stages of the manufacturing process.

Figure 1 shows a schematic plan view of the cover plate of a neon sign. It comprises a carrier plate 1 made of clear, transparent acrylic glass, which in turn bears a decor. For the purposes of illustration, a schematic, simple decor was chosen, which consisted of a gold metallic capital letter "T" 2 on a colored, e.g. green, reason 3 and a gold metallic edge 4 is also.

The cover plate is manufactured in the following way:

First, after a corresponding cleaning of the surface of the carrier plate 1 to be coated, the colored decorative parts are applied by means of screen printing, in the present example the green base 3, on which the "T" 2 is later supposed to be gold-metallic. This is shown in Figure 2. In this figure and in FIGS. 3 to 7, all the layer thicknesses are shown in an exaggerated manner for reasons of drawing. In a second step, all those areas that are not to be coated with a gold-metallic layer, that is to say in the present example the area of the green base 3, are covered congruently with a layer 5 of highly transparent clear lacquer. This clear lacquer is preferably a UV-hardening lacquer whose glass transition temperature (softening temperature) is significantly above the softening temperature of the acrylic material of the carrier plate 1. In general, the softening temperature of clearcoat 5 should be above 150 ° C. The layer structure thus created is shown in FIG. 3. rH 0

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Claims

claims

1. A method for producing the cover plate of a neon sign or the like with a carrier plate made of clear, transparent acrylic glass and at least one metallic coated area, in which

a) the surface of the carrier plate is provided with a cover layer in the areas not to be coated with metal.

b) an embossing film which has a plastic carrier film and a metallic layer carried by it, with the metallic layer being pressed onto the heated carrier plate,

c) the stamping foil is pulled off the carrier plate again, the metallic layer of the stamping foil sticking in certain areas of the carrier plate,

characterized in that

d) a highly transparent clear lacquer as a covering layer

(5) is used whose glass transition temperature is above the heating temperature of the acrylic glass material;

e) the clear lacquer (5) is cured and then

f) the layer structure of the carrier plate (1) and clear lacquer (5) is brought to a temperature which is higher than the heating temperature of the acrylic glass material but is lower than the glass transition temperature of the clearcoat (5), so that

g) the metallic layer (8) of the embossing film (6) remains adhered to the exposed sticky areas of the surface of the carrier plate (1) but not to the non-sticky areas coated with clear lacquer (5).

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that a UV-curing clear coat (5) is used.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that a clear lacquer (5) is used, the glass transition temperature is above 150 C.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, in which the carrier plate has, in addition to the metallically coated area, an area coated with decorative paint, characterized in that the decorative paint (3) is applied in the corresponding area before carrying out steps a to g ,

5. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the color coated

Carrier plate (1) is subjected to a final deep-drawing process.