Abstract:
Supplemental labels and methods of manufacturing supplemental labels are disclosed herein. A supplemental label according to an embodiment includes a presentation portion having a front face and a coupling portion extending from the presentation portion and having opposed front and rear faces. The presentation portion front face includes indicia. Transparent adhesive is adhered to the coupling portion rear face to removably couple the coupling portion to an object. The presentation portion includes a first material, and first and second sheets of transparent laminate sandwich the first material and comprise the coupling portion.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
       [0001]    The present invention relates generally to labeling, and in particular to retail shelf labeling with printed labels having transparent sections and methods of making the same. 
         [0002]    Printed labels comprise an important form of communication. Labels are commonly used for conveying information in a wide range of applications. In the retail sector, for example, labels are commonly applied to product displays (i.e., “point-of-sale” displays) to identify objects and to convey information about those objects to customers. Retail establishments may employ various types of labels to communicate such product information as pricing, product identification, etc. 
         [0003]    In retail establishments, product information tends to be dynamic in that product offerings and pricing undergo frequent changes. Point-of-sale product labeling is often changed by applying new labels to shelves on which the products are displayed. Such shelf labeling is a significant part of the labeling activity in retail commercial establishments, and the frequent relabeling which occurs in many stores consumes significant labor resources. 
         [0004]    Many prior art labels are adhesively attached to the shelf edges in a manner that requires excessive labor to remove the labels before being updated with replacements. Improvements have been made to these basic adhesive labels to reduce the bond between the labels and shelves through employing various types and amounts of adhesive. While these improved labels reduce the labor required to update the information, they are generally meant as replacements for the outdated labels and do not allow the consumers to view the prior product information unless that information is included on the new label. If an item is “on sale”, for example, the store owner may want the consumers to see the original price of the item. Additionally, barcode information and other static (unchanging) information has to be printed on each new label. 
         [0005]    Another prior art labeling system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,632,316. This system uses labels removably placed inside transparent label display strips to avoid the labor associated with removing labels that have been adhesively bonded to shelves. While outdated labels can be easily replaced by new labels in this system, the consumers still are not typically able to view the prior product information unless that information is included on the new label. Barcode information and other static information has to be printed on each new label. 
         [0006]    One prior art label is made of paper and has a “window” covered by a transparent laminate (similar to many envelope windows). Two-sided transparent tape is then coupled to the transparent laminate so that the label may be attached to a store shelf and an underlying label can be seen through the window. While this addresses some of the problems noted above, the two-sided tape coupled with the laminate can make the underlying label difficult to see, the portion of the label surrounding the window requires undue attention in applying the label over the underlying label, and the portion of the label surrounding the window can make the underlying label difficult to see even if care is taken when applying the label. In addition, the manufacture of this label is unnecessarily complicated and expensive. 
         [0007]    While a prior art flag is known that has a first end of clear film with adhesive and an opposed second end of paper or clear film without adhesive, the second end has predetermined printed material and this flag does not allow a user (e.g., a store manager) to customize the printed material. As such, the flag is of little use besides drawing attention to a product. The known prior art embodiment of this flag that has opposed ends of clear film is manufactured by printing on the clear film and adding adhesive to one of the ends. The known prior art embodiment of this flag that has one end of clear film and an opposed end of paper is manufactured by adding adhesive to the clear film and using the adhesive to attach the clear film to part of the paper. A removable backing material is then applied to the exposed adhesive. Due to the method of manufacture, a strip of the exposed adhesive approximately half a millimeter wide is often left uncovered by the backing. This uncovered adhesive can attract debris or be otherwise undesirable. 
         [0008]    A supplemental label is needed that can be adhesively attached to a shelf, label display strip, or other suitable device so that the underlying label can be easily viewed through the supplemental label. Methods of manufacturing such supplemental labels are also needed. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0009]    A supplemental label according to an embodiment includes a presentation portion having a front face and a coupling portion extending from the presentation portion and having opposed front and rear faces. The presentation portion front face includes indicia. Transparent adhesive is adhered to the coupling portion rear face to removably couple the coupling portion to an object. The presentation portion includes a first material, and first and second sheets of transparent laminate sandwich the first material and comprise the coupling portion. 
         [0010]    A method of manufacturing a supplemental label according to an embodiment includes the steps of providing a first material; providing a first sheet of laminate having an inner face with transparent adhesive and an outer face; providing a second sheet of laminate having an inner face with transparent adhesive and an outer face; completely encasing the first material between the first and second sheets of laminate, whereby the adhesive on the first sheet of laminate couples the first sheet of laminate to the first material and to the second sheet of laminate and whereby the adhesive on the second sheet of laminate couples the second sheet of laminate to the first material and to the first sheet of laminate; introducing a pattern of transparent adhesive to one of the first sheet of laminate outer face and the second sheet of laminate outer face; and removably coupling a backing to the pattern of transparent adhesive for selectively concealing the pattern of transparent adhesive. 
         [0011]    A method of manufacturing a supplemental label according to an embodiment includes the steps of providing a first material; providing first and second sheets of laminate, each sheet of laminate having an inner face and an outer face; completely encasing the first material between the first and second sheets of laminate; coupling a portion of the first sheet of laminate extending beyond the first material to a corresponding portion of the second sheet of laminate extending beyond the first material to form a coupling portion; introducing a pattern of transparent adhesive to one of the first sheet of laminate outer face and the second sheet of laminate outer face at the coupling portion to selectively couple the first material, the first sheet of laminate, and the second sheet of laminate to an object; and removably coupling a backing to the pattern of transparent adhesive for selectively concealing the pattern of transparent adhesive. 
     
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0012]      FIG. 1  is a front perspective view of a supplemental label according to an embodiment. 
           [0013]      FIG. 2  is a rear perspective view of the supplemental label of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0014]      FIG. 3  is a slightly exploded side view of the supplemental label of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0015]      FIG. 4  is a front perspective view of the supplemental label of  FIG. 1  coupled to a shelf. 
           [0016]      FIG. 5  is a front view of a sheet of the supplemental labels of  FIG. 1  according to an embodiment. 
           [0017]      FIG. 6  is an exploded view of  FIG. 5 . 
           [0018]      FIG. 7  is a side view of  FIG. 5 . 
           [0019]      FIG. 8  is a diagram representing a manufacturing process according to an embodiment for creating the supplemental label of  FIG. 1 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0020]      FIGS. 1 and 2  show a supplemental label  110  having a presentation portion  112  and a coupling portion  115 . The presentation portion  112  has top and bottom ends  112   a ,  112   b  and opposed sides  112   c ,  112   d . While the ends and sides  112   a ,  112   b ,  112   c ,  112   d  of the presentation portion  112  are shown to collectively be generally rectangular, non-rectangular configurations may alternately be defined. 
         [0021]    The presentation portion  112  further includes a front face  113   a  ( FIG. 1 ) and a rear face  113   b  ( FIG. 2 ). The front face  113   a  may include indicia  114  that may be generic (e.g., “sale”) and/or specifically tailored. The presentation portion  112  is shown including a single layer of material  111  (e.g., paper, card stock, etc.), though additional layers may be included. 
         [0022]    Two sheets of transparent laminate  119  are shown encasing the presentation portion  112  and defining the coupling portion  15  ( FIG. 3 ). Each sheet of transparent laminate  119  has an inner face  119   a , and each inner face  119   a  has an adhesive  117  (e.g., a transparent pressure-sensitive adhesive) that is used to couple the sheets of transparent laminate  119  to each other and the material  111 . The coupling portion  115  is depicted to have top and bottom ends  115   a ,  115   b  and opposed sides  115   c ,  115   d . While the ends and sides  115   a ,  115   b ,  115   c ,  115   d  of the coupling portion  115  are shown to collectively be generally rectangular and the coupling portion  115  is shown to have a width that is approximately equal to a width of the presentation portion  112 , non-rectangular configurations and/or other widths may alternately be defined. As shown throughout the drawings, the coupling portion sides  115   c ,  115   d  may be unbounded beyond the presentation portion end  112   a . In other words, it is not necessary to provide a border around the coupling portion sides  115   c ,  115   d , though such a border may be used. 
         [0023]    The coupling portion  115  has a front face  116   a  ( FIG. 1 ) and a rear face  116   b  ( FIG. 2 ), and the rear face  116   b  has adhesive  120  (i.e., a transparent pressure-sensitive adhesive) that may be used to couple the coupling portion  115  to an object. The adhesive  120  may entirely cover the coupling portion rear face  116   b  or may define a strip (or any appropriate configuration) that only partially covers the coupling portion rear face  116   b .  FIG. 4  shows the adhesive  120  coupling the coupling portion  115  to a store shelf  30  over another label  32 . A liner or backing  122  having a release material (e.g., a silicone release, etc.) or otherwise being easily separable from adhesive bonds may be coupled to the adhesive  120  to selectively conceal and expose the adhesive  120 , as shown in  FIG. 3 . 
         [0024]      FIGS. 5 through 7  show a sheet  500  of the supplemental labels  110  according to an embodiment. The sheet  500  may be 8½ inches by 11 inches or any other appropriate size. The sheet  500  includes a first layer  510  of the transparent laminate  119 . A sheet  520  of the material  111  (e.g., paper, card stock, etc.) is atop the first layer  510  of laminate  119  and is coupled to the laminate  119  by the adhesive  117  on the inner face  119   a  of the laminate  119 . Multiple sheets  520  of the material  111  may be spaced along the first layer  510  of the laminate  119 . A second layer  530  of the transparent laminate  119  is atop the sheet(s)  520  and the first layer  510  with the inner face  119   a  facing the first layer  510  and the sheet(s)  520 . The second layer  530  is coupled to the first layer  510  and the sheet(s)  520  by the adhesive  117  on the inner face  119   a  of the second layer  530  and the adhesive  117  on the inner face  119   a  of the first layer  510 . The strip of transparent adhesive  120  extends along the first layer  510  opposite the sheet  520  where the first and second layers  510 ,  530  of the transparent laminate  119  are coupled directly together (i.e., coupled together without separation by the material  111 ), and the backing  122  is coupled to the adhesive  120  to temporarily conceal the adhesive  120 . A plurality of the supplemental labels  110  are distinctly defined by the described composition, such as through a cutting step as discussed further below, and each supplemental label  110  may be easily separated from each other supplemental label  110 . 
         [0025]      FIG. 8  shows a manufacturing process  800  according to an embodiment that may be used to create the sheets  500  of the supplemental labels  110 . At a first station  801 , indicia may be printed upon the material  111 , such as through a laser printer, a dot-matrix printer, or another printing device. The material  111  may be provided as one or more roll  802  capable of being separated into many sheets  520 , or sheets  520  of the material  111  may be used. As the transparent laminate  119  may provide a surface that cannot be easily or economically printed upon, it may be important to print all desired indicia on the material  111  at station  801  or at least before the material  111  is introduced to the laminate  119  as described below. In other words, the indicia may be printed on the material  111  in a process separate from (and prior to) process  800 . 
         [0026]    At a station  804 , a cutting tool  804   a  may cut the material  111  and a vacuum  804   b  or another suitable device may then separate and remove the cut material from the remainder of the material  111 . This may provide the spacing between the material  111  (i.e., at the coupling portions  115 ) as discussed above. 
         [0027]    At a station  806 , the first and second layers  510 ,  530  of the transparent laminate  119  may be coupled to the material  111  using the adhesive  117  and conventional press equipment (e.g., rollers  805 ). The transparent laminate  119  may be provided as rolls  803 , for example. The laminate  119  may be coupled to the material  111  so that the material  111  is spaced along the laminate  119  to maintain the spacing between the material  111  (i.e., at the coupling portions  115 ). 
         [0028]    At a station  809 , the transparent adhesive  120  and the backing  122  may be introduced to the first layer  510  of the transparent laminate  119 . Conventional press equipment, such as rollers  810 , may be used in coupling the adhesive  120  and the backing  122  to the laminate  119 . The backing  122  and the adhesive  120  may be coupled to the first layer  510  of laminate  119  in a single step as shown in  FIG. 8 , or through multiple steps. The adhesive  120  and the backing  122  may be coupled to the laminate  119  at the spacing between the material  111  (i.e., at the coupling portions  115 ). 
         [0029]    At a station  812 , a cutting tool may cut through the material  111 , the clear laminate  119 , the adhesive  120 , and the backing  122  to define a plurality of the supplemental labels  110  so that the individual supplemental labels  110  can be separated from one another. If the material  111 , the transparent laminate  119 , and/or the backing  122  is provided in rolls, the cutting tool at station  812  or another cutting tool (not shown) may separate the material  111 , the laminate  119 , the adhesive  120 , and the backing  122  into the sheets  500  of the supplemental labels  110 . 
         [0030]    Returning to  FIG. 4 , a respective supplemental label  110  may be separated from a respective sheet  500  ( FIG. 5 ) and coupled to the store shelf  30  over the other label  32  using the adhesive  120  exposed by removing the backing  122 . Because of the transparency of the coupling portion  115  (i.e., the clear laminate  119  and the adhesive  120 ), the other label  32  may still be viewed. Because the other label  32  may still be viewed, a customer can easily make comparisons between information on the supplemental label  110  and the other label  32 , and there is no need for a product&#39;s barcode or other static data to be printed on the supplemental label  110 . For example, a customer may see an original price on the other label  32  and a sale price on the supplemental label  110  and feel confident that the price has been lowered. Once the supplemental label  110  is no longer needed (e.g., a sale is over), the supplemental label  110  may be separated from the shelf  30  and leave and the other label  32  intact. To do this, it is important that the adhesive  120  is not too aggressive. However, the adhesive  120  must be strong enough to couple the transparent laminate  119  to the shelf  30  as desired. Perforations  129  may be included generally between the coupling portion  115  and the presentation portion  112  as shown in  FIG. 4  to allow the presentation portion  112  to be separated from the coupling portion  115 . As such, the presentation portion  112  may be separated from the coupling portion  115  and the shelf  30 , and the coupling portion  115  may remain over the other label  32 . 
         [0031]    Those skilled in the art appreciate that variations from the specified embodiments disclosed above are contemplated herein and that the described embodiments are not limiting. The description should not be restricted to the above embodiments, but should be measured by the following claims.