FI124558B - Method and system for marking the product - Google Patents

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a method of labeling a product. The invention further relates to means comprising a system for marking a product. The invention also relates to a product made by the process of the invention.

Background of the Invention

There is a need in the industry for different labels both on the products themselves and on the packaging. Such markings include e.g. various prints, cut marks and embossing markings.

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Product labels are also used to make counterfeiting and copying difficult. Such counterfeiting and copy protection labels need not be visible to the naked eye, and it may even be advantageous that they are not clearly visible to the naked eye when viewed in room lighting conditions. However, the markings must be visible in some way so that the authenticity of the product can be identified by the markings.

Counterfeiting and copying marks can be used at a later stage to identify the authenticity of various products, including for example banknotes and identification. Counterfeiting and copying labels may also be used, for example, in valuable trademark documents, whereby the branding of such products is illegal.

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the production and marketing of highly exploitative pirated products' can be made difficult, g 30

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One example of labels that make counterfeiting and copying difficult is "so-called copy-protected paper, for example when copying, scanning or

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suitable text, such as "unauthorized copying", is printed when faxed, making it impossible for anyone to submit a copy of the original 35 documents. Typically, such copying and security solutions are based on 2 holes in paper or embossed mechanically on paper eg during calendering.

However, despite existing solutions, there would still be a need in the industry for a new solution to label the product.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel method and system 10 for labeling a product, as well as a product made by the method. The method of marking the product according to the invention is essentially characterized by what is stated in the appended claim 1. The devices according to the invention comprising a system for marking the product are essentially characterized by what is stated in the accompanying claim 15. The product according to the invention is essentially characterized by as set forth in claim 10.

In the solution according to the invention, the chemical structure of the optical brightener present in the product is altered by means of an ultraviolet laser, i.e. 20 ns. Using a UV laser locally. Therefore, in the product treated according to the invention, the area treated with UV laser looks different in UV light compared to the area not treated with UV laser.

The invention may be suitable for labeling various products. Labeling 25 may be made, for example, on a product comprising one or more of the following materials at the labeling point: ^ - paper, V - cardboard, - cardboard, g 30 - plastic, and - textiles (fabric),

The material to be labeled may also be, for example, a laminate structure of two or more materials, preferably a laminate structure of two or more of the above materials, such as, for example, plastic-coated paper.

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In one example, a significant product is a garment or other textile product. In this case, for example, it is possible for the manufacturer of the garment and / or fabric to make a mark of authenticity on the textile already at the factory, so that customs can see relatively easily whether it is a genuine product or a counterfeit.

In one embodiment of the invention, the product comprising the optical brightener is coated with a coating agent which does not comprise an optical brightener prior to labeling. Such a coating material may be, for example, a plastic film, such as a polyethylene film. Thus, it is very difficult or impossible to remove and / or change the marking, for example through said plastic, for example mechanically or by heating.

According to one example, a significant product is paper, which may be coated with, for example, plastic. In this case, the authenticity of the documents accompanying the product can be checked by means of a marking according to the invention.

The optical brightener can be added to various products, for example, in the composition of the material to be manufactured and / or on the surface of the product being manufactured. One of the aims of adding optical brightener is to achieve the optimum effect of optical brightener in the product, which is why the optical brightener is present in many products comprising optical brightener substantially uniformly throughout the product.

25 In the solution of the invention, my product already containing an optical brightener does not necessarily need to add or remove material to the product due to the label being formed. In other words, treated in accordance with the invention

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The product still has an optical brightener layer also at the formed label, only the chemical structure of the optical brightener is variable so that the area treated according to the invention appears under UV light differently.

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like an untreated area. This is because a change in the chemical structure of the optical brightener causes the UV-labeled spot m to no longer reflect substantially UV light, making the ™ UV-treated spot on the product look darker than 35 optical an item of a product with the usual chemical structure of the brightener.

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The invention may be used to provide, for example, security markings and / or trademarks on a product, which may subsequently identify the authenticity of the product.

The invention has several advantages. The use of a UV laser allows for very limited labeling on the product. For example, in the case of a natural fiber-based product such as paper, cardboard or cardboard, the use of a UV laser is particularly advantageous because, due to the short duration of UV laser radiation and its UV properties, the cellulosic fibers and inorganic pigments in such materials do laser radiation. As a result, except for a change in the chemical structure of the optical brightener, the properties and structure of the product may remain substantially unchanged.

Furthermore, the manufacturing cost of the product of the invention may be relatively low, especially if the product already contains an optical brightener without the need to add the optical brightener separately to achieve the marking according to the invention.

The method of the invention is not tied to the method or site of manufacture of the product. The labeling by the method of the invention may be applied to the product during and / or after the product has been manufactured. For example, in the case of paper, cardboard or cardboard, the label of the invention may be formed in the manufacture of said article, or may be made at some later stage after the article itself.

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V In the process of the invention, the product itself does not need to be subjected to structural deflections such as holes, openings, or other thinner or thinner sections, but the structure of the product itself may remain unchanged.

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mana. For example, in the case of paper, the advantage of keeping the overall thickness constant is that the paper can be processed without problems with the same

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paper machine processing equipment which handles corresponding S paper grades not marked according to the invention. Similarly, specialty chemicals typically do not pose risks since the solution of the invention does not require specialty chemicals typically used in, for example, anti-copy security papers.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figures 1a-b show, in reduced schematic form, product labeling systems according to certain embodiments 10, 2-4 show some products labeled by the method of the invention; and Fig. 6 shows a schematic view of an optical brightener, where the figure indicates where the chemical structure change in said optical brightener occurs.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION In this application, reference is made to Figures 1-6, wherein the following reference 25 numbers are used:

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a product containing δ ™ 1 optical brightener before the V marking according to the invention, "2 UV laser equipment, g 30 2a UV laser beam,

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Product containing 3 optical brighteners with UV laser-marked spots, m 3a Optical brightener product with UV laser-marked spots, pictures taken in natural light, 35 3b Optical brightener product with UV-marked spots ice spots, photographed under UV light, 6 4 non-optical brightener product or raw material, 5 optical brightener, 20a, 20b, 20c lens, 21 y-axis mirror, 5 22 y-axis mirror motor, 23 x-axis mirror , and a 24 x axis mirror motor.

The method according to the invention comprises the step of chemically affecting the structure of the optical brightener 5 by means of the UV laser beam 2a 10 so that the transform of the shortwave light absorbing and re-emitting the light in the visible brightness, e.g. cis form, which, like the trans form of the optical brightener, does not absorb short-wave light again by emitting light in a longer wavelength visible, for example, blue region.

Optical brighteners 5, denominated among others: - optical brightening agents, OBA, - optical whitening agents, OWA, - optical bleaching agents, OBA, - fluorescent whitening agents, FWA, are dye-like compounds that absorb short-wave light from the electromagnetic spectrum. ultraviolet and violet areas that are invisible to the human eye and re-emitted light in the long wave, often blue area. In other words, optical brighteners make the material look less yellow to human eyes, a change that human eyes interpret

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7 increased whiteness. In addition, an optical brightener typically causes a "product" to "glow" under UV light when applying UV radiation to a product containing £ 30 of optical brightener.

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paper products to provide better optical properties, for example, the whitening effect of paper produced, which is why almost all paper produced contains optical brighteners. Optical brighteners ° are used not only for paper products but also for example. in different textiles and 35 in detergents, for example, to create a "glittering white" impression.

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Some types of optical brightener include, for example, di-, tetra-, and hexanesulfonated stilbene compounds. The amount of sulfonated groups then affects the chemical properties of the optical brightener. Some other commercially available optical brighteners are based on the chemical properties of coumarin and pyrazoline. The types of optical brightener mentioned are just a few examples, and the present invention may be suitable for products using other types of optical brighteners.

According to one embodiment of the invention, the product of interest according to the invention comprises one or more of the following chemical types as optical brightener: stilbene, coumarin and pyrazoline. Of these chemicals, the anionic stilbene compounds may be most advantageous for the invention, working best in the process of the invention.

15 UV radiation, or ultraviolet radiation, is electromagnetic radiation whose wavelength is shorter than the wavelength of visible light. Ultraviolet radiation can be divided into UVA, UVB and UVC radiation. The wavelength of UVA radiation can be defined as 315-380 nm (~ 400 nm), the UVB radiation wavelength 280-315 nm and the UVC wavelength 100-280 nm. Of these radiations, UVA is the lowest energy and UVC is the high energy. Since the process of the invention is not intended to generate substantially heat, a low energy UV radiation is used in a preferred embodiment of the invention. Heat can have a significant effect of degrading the product, such as darkening and / or yellowing on paper. According to one example, the product to be treated is paper or paperboard, whereby the process of the invention avoids undesirable heat-induced changes, such as blackening and yellowing.

o "The invention preferably uses a short processing time, that is, a short laser 30 beam exposure time on a major product, in order to minimize the potential negative impact of the processing on the product quality,

According to a preferred example, the invention employs a UV laser having a wavelength of 100 nm to 400 nm, more preferably 250 nm to 380 nm. According to one example, the invention employs a UV laser having a wavelength of 350 nm to 360 nm, for example about 355 nm. According to one example, the product to be labeled contains a stilbene-based optical brightener and uses a UV laser with a wavelength of 350 nm to 360 nm.

The invention is suitable for marking various products. In the method of labeling the product according to the invention, the product to be labeled may be, for example, paper, cardboard, cardboard, plastic, plastic-fiber laminate or textiles. Advantageously, the major product is paper or board, since most prior art papers already contain optical brightener. In this case, it is not necessary to add the optical brightener separately, but the treatment according to the invention 10 for labeling the product can be carried out on ordinary prior art paper. Thus, since the cellulosic fibers do not substantially react to the short pulse of UV light emitted by the UV laser, the paper itself, with the exception of the optical brightener, typically does not substantially change. In other words, the UV treatment according to the invention can be carried out in such a way that it does not visibly darken or yellow the paper, for example. The method according to the invention works with both papers with an optical brightener added to the surface of the paper and with papers with an optical brightener added to the pulp before forming the web. It is essential that the paper contains an optical brightener.

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If, in the process of the present invention, a product which does not already contain an optical brightener is labeled, the optical brightener is added to the product before the product is labeled. Likewise, it is possible that the amount of optical brightener is increased before the label according to the invention in a product which already has an optical brightener.

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o ™ Figures 1a-1b are schematic diagrams of some embodiments.

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v to label product 1. Figures 2-4 show "some products marked by the method of the invention 3. Figure 5 £ 30 shows an example of a laser apparatus 2 suitable for the invention, wherein

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is a UV laser. Fig. 6 shows the structure of an optical brightener 5 suitable for the invention, m ° Figs. 1a-1b show, in reduced schematic form, certain embodiments of the invention for marking the product. The labeling according to the invention can be done at many different process points. For example, in the case of paper 9, said marking can be done at the dry end of the papermaking machine, with an interleaver, before, after, calendering, winder, packing, etc. Similarly, for example, in the case of Textile, The textile.

The laser apparatus 2 used in the invention may comprise, for example, at least two lenses, for example 2 to 4 lenses, and at least one mirror, for example 2 to 4 mirrors, for guiding the laser beam to the major product 1.

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In the process of the invention, the chemical structure of the optical brightener is modified by converting the active trans form of the optical brightener into an inactive cis form. In other words, the UV laser used in the invention alters the chemical structure of the optical brightener so that the optical brightener reacts from an active trans form to an inactive cis form. The resulting mark is preferably invisible to the human eye in room light so that it can be made visible using UV light. Particularly if the marking is made on a small surface area, it is highly unlikely that the mark will be distinguished in room light by the naked 20 eyes without separate UV light, and the product appears insignificant on the face. Figure 6 shows one possible optical brightener with which the marking according to the invention can be made, i.e. a stilbene-based optical brightener. The dashed line represents the point in the optical brightener 5 where the reaction from active trans to inactive cis takes place.

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δ ™ The marking trace according to the invention is formed by changing the optical

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v chemical structure of dew with a laser that produces UV light. UV laser marking is highly controllable and targetable, since for example, the conduction of 30 heat does not typically cause the marking to be inaccurate. In the UV laser marking according to the invention, the marking can be done not only with extreme accuracy but also quickly. Preferably, the notation is done in a continuous manner, or so-called online solution, δ c \ j 10

According to a preferred example, the laser used for marking the product in the invention is a so-called Nd: YAG laser (= Tripled frequency NdYVo4), which may have a wavelength of 355 nm.

Figure 2 shows the UV light markings made with a UV laser, which are typically not visible in normal room lighting. In the picture it is easy to distinguish e.g. UPM logo, date and bar code. The picture is taken after 24 hours of aging on the Xenotest® 150 S, which corresponds to approximately 192 hours in the Central European midday sun.

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Figure 3a shows various UV laser barcodes depicted in UV light. Figure 3b, in turn, shows corresponding UV laser-made barcodes in daylight.

Figure 4 shows various papers of Figure 3a on the opposite side photographed in UV light. As can be seen in Figure 4, the bar codes are very dim when viewed from the other side of the mark. In other words, it may be possible to label a paper product, such as paper or cardboard, on one side only, i.e., so that the marking is visible under UV light on only one side of the product. Alternatively, the labels may be different on different sides of the paper product, or the labels may be made identical on both sides of the paper product.

Retrospectively deleting the so-called negative designation of the invention is quite difficult. Removal of the label can be further complicated by protecting the label with one or more protective layers, such as a coating layer, such that said label remains in the protective layer.

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Therefore, according to an embodiment of the invention, "after UV marking, the product 3 is coated with a protective layer. If the marked product 3 is paper, cardboard or cardboard, the product may be coated. for example, using prior art £ 2 paper coating pigments.

m ° According to one embodiment of the invention, the UV-labeled product 3 is coated with a shield on one or both sides of the product. By acting in such a way that, after making the label 11 according to the invention, one or more coating layers, which may be somewhat UV-blocking, are added to the surface of the product 3, the labels made by the method of the invention remain protected under said one or more coating layers. In this case, the marking may remain longer than 5 and it is very difficult to change the marking at a later stage. The protective agent to be used should be selected according to the material of the product and the application, so that the label is still legible under UV light. In one example, the protective agent comprises a polymer, such as a polyethylene film. According to another example, the protective agent comprises titanium dioxide. In this case, due to the strong UV absorption of titanium dioxide, it should be noted that the label should be visible under UV light regardless of the protective layer.

In addition to the foregoing, the falsification of the label according to the invention is further complicated by the fact that the devices used for making the labeled markings in the solution according to the invention are special devices, such as a UV laser generating In such cases, the mere purchase of equipment is in itself quite cumbersome, requiring specialized expertise and expensive. The advantage of the method 20 is that producing such a label on a product does not necessarily entail high additional costs for the manufacturer of the product, nor does it necessarily slow down production, since labeling can be implemented even with normal product production and often without changing product line speed. In addition, making a label (or label) 25 does not usually require the addition of special and expensive materials to the product.

^ For example, if a major product is already pre-fabricated with optical brightener ™ paper, cardboard, or textiles, the material costs are not much different

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7 the material cost of a standard product. The advantage of the product's structural $ 5 unchangeability is that the product can be successfully processed with 30 completely unprocessed product-processing equipment

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similar products not having the safety feature of the invention.

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According to one example, the process according to the invention produces 35 marked papers, which can be for example security paper. In this case, said paper may be printable by any conventional technique, since paper 12 typically does not have any mechanical or chemical properties caused by the marking that could interfere with printing. For example, protrusions or lower points, which are present in many known security papers, can severely hamper the offset printing process, as such a deviation of the total thickness of the paper may adhere to the printing rubbers. Similar risks may arise if specialty chemicals are commonly used, for example, in security papers that prevent copying.

If the major product is paper, cardboard or cardboard, the UV laser apparatus 2 may be mounted, for example, on a production line after the drying section of the paper machine / board machine prior to the coating steps. By acting in this manner, the laser beam can process the markings of the invention on paper / board while driving a paper or board machine. For example, the apparatus 2 may be mounted in a beam transverse to the paper or board web so that the beam 15 has a carriage movable back and forth across the paper or board web in its transverse direction. In this case, the carriage may further comprise other longitudinal guides of the paper or board web to which the device for generating the UV laser beam 2a is movably attached at a predetermined distance in the direction of travel of the paper or board web. The predetermined distance can be, for example, 20 between 0.5 and 2 m. the meeting point of the paper web in the direction of travel of the paper or board can be adjusted by turning the beam. Devices used to move and / or rotate the La-25 core beam may be formed by methods known per se in electrical, hydraulic, and / or pneumatic applications. The laser beam can be formed using techniques known in the art.

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v UV laser. When the markings of the invention are applied to a paper or board web, the laser beam can be moved transversely and / or longitudinally with respect to the direction of travel of the paper or board web. The subscription

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During this processing, for example, the laser beam may be moved at a speed corresponding to the speed of movement of the base paper or the board.

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Similarly, the UV laser apparatus 2 may also be installed to label the other product 1 with the product line of each product 1 and / or after the actual product line.

Preferably, the marking according to the invention forms a text or a pattern. The pattern may be, for example, a trademark or a machine-readable code, such as a bar code. It is to be noted that the product according to the invention may also contain other markings which make it counterfeit and unauthorized copying. The invention is not limited to the examples set forth in Figures 1-6 and 10 above, but may be modified within the scope of the appended claims.

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Claims (10)

A method for labeling a product (1), comprising a optical brightener, characterized in that in the method 5 - the marking is formed in the product (1) by affecting the structure of the optical brightener in the product by means of a UV laser. in that the trans-form of the optical white medium, which absorbs short-range light and then emits light with a longer path length in the visible range, reacts under the action of the UV laser and converts to the c / s-shape of the optical white medium, whereby a labeled product (3) is formed, in which the marking formed in the product appears in UV light as a dark point in the product (3) in that the resulting marking is in room light invisible to human eyes. 15 Method according to claim 1, characterized in that said product (1) comprises at the place to be labeled one or more of materials to be mentioned below: paper, cardboard, cardboard, textile, and plastic. Method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that UV laser with a path length between 100 nm and 400 nm is used in the method 25. δ A method according to any one of claims 1-3, characterized in that the marks in the composition form a text and / or a sample, such as, for example, a mark c / j and / or a machine-readable code. CL 30 CL Process according to any of claims 1-4, characterized in that said product (1) comprising an optical brightener is coated with a coating material which does not include optical brightener prior to the marking. δ c \ j Process according to any of claims 1-5, characterized in that said product (3) after the labeling is coated with a coating material comprising a polymer, such as, for example, polyethylene. 5 Method according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the marking is formed in the product (1) by means of UV laser in connection with the manufacture of the product. A means comprising production means and a laser device (2), wherein said production means is arranged to produce a product (1) comprising a transform of an optical brightener, and said laser device (2) is arranged to form a marking in said product (1) by affecting the structure of the optical whitener in the product (1) by means of a UV laser in the manner of the transform of the optical whitener, which absorbs short-path light and then emits light with a longer path length on it. visible area, reacts under the action of the UV laser and is converted to the cis-form of the optical white medium in such a way that the resulting marking appears in UV light as a dark point and in the way said marking is in room light invisible to human eyes. 20 An agent according to claim 8, characterized in that the UV laser is arranged to form said marking on a paper or cardboard web during the operation of a paper or cardboard machine. Product (3) manufactured by the method according to any of claims 1-7. o C \ J i 1 ^ o C \ l CM X cc CL oö m δ CM