Abstract:
A method and apparatus for making insignias with a raised design is capable of providing more aesthetic appearance to the insignias thus made. A base material consisting of a base sheet and a surface sheet overlaying the base sheet is prepared for making into an insignia. The base material is coating with a surface coating of decorative material. A bottom mold and an upper mold are used to press the base material to form raised design of patterns. The bottom and upper molds are coupled to a composite heating device including high-frequency induction and electric heating means for applying both high-frequency induction heat and electric heat to the base material while the upper molding is being pressed against the bottom mold. The upper mold is formed with a plurality of edge-defining blades for cutting an edge for the insignia, a plurality of pattern-defining blades for forming a pre-designed pattern on the insignia. During the pressing, the composite heat is concurrently applied to the upper and bottom mold so as to cut and melt away part of the surface sheet to form the pattern. The remnants cut away by the pattern-defining blades can be easily removed by brushes. The final product is an insignia with raised design of patterns with shining appearance.

Description:
This application is a divisional application of prior U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/772,726, filed on Dec. 23, 1996, entitled “Method and Apparatus for Making Insignias with Raised Designs” now U.S. Pat. No. 5,834,037. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a method for making insignias used as badges, chevrons, trademarks, or the like, and more particularly, to a method for making insignias with a raised design, which have a more prominent, distinctive and vivid appearance. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     People usually attach insignias of special design on their clothing as an indication of something special, such as membership, authority or achievement. The insignias can also bear trademark designs symbolizing logos that are attached to fashionable goods such as jeans, purses and so on to promote their sales. The designs on insignias are usually made in relief so as to provide a more prominent, distinctive and vivid appearance. A conventional method for making insignias is to prepare a base sheet on which a decorative material shaped into a desired design is formed. A high-frequency heating machine is used to bond the decorative material on the base sheet and a mold having cutting blades is used to form the decorative material into a desired shape. After that, manual work is used to remove parts of the ornamental material that are cut away from the base sheet so as to form patterns on the insignia. The pattern on the insignia is pre-designed with the mold, which is made in advance according to customer specifications. 
     A conventional method for making insignias with raised designs is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,143,672, by Kuwahara, entitled “ Method for Forming Emblem of Thermoplastic Synthetic Resin Film ”. The mechanism used to perform this method includes an engraving die having one or more fusion cutters thereon for pressing the film. During the pressing process, the film is high-frequency-induction heated by the engraving die such that it is partly melted away and thus reduced in thickness to allow the base to be visible through the film. This method is capable of forming fine patterns on the emblem. However, one drawback to this method is that it is still unable to form highly texturized patterns on the emblem. During the heating process of this method, the thermoplastic synthetic resin film is pressed to form recessed portions and raised portions that constitute a visually 3-D pattern on the emblem. However, the 3-D pattern is roughly formed and is thus still considered a plane pattern. 
     Moreover, the heating process of Kuwahara&#39;s method is carried out by high-frequency-induction. One drawback to this heating process is that the heat generated by the high-frequency-induction heating is not enough to treat thick base material. Therefore, the method can only be used to form thin emblems and cannot be used to form thick emblems. 
     Roughly speaking, under the condition that the heating temperature is fixed, the fineness of the pattern on the emblem is decreased as the thickness of the emblem is increased. The use of only the high-frequency-induction heating means to heat the emblem usually causes the formation of rough, fuzzy patterns on the emblem. Moreover, the edges of the emblem cut by the cutters are fluffy. With these drawbacks, the method is still unable to make highly texturized 3-D patterns on emblems. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is therefore a primary objective of the present invention to provide a method for making insignias with raised designs by using a composite insulated heating device. 
     It is another objective of the present invention to provide a method for making insignias with fine and delicate patterns. 
     It is still another objective of the present invention to provide a method for making insignias with a prominent aesthetic appearance. 
     It is yet another objective of the present invention to provide a method by which the procedural steps for making an insignia are simplified. 
     In accordance with the foregoing and other objectives of the present invention, a new and improved method for making an insignia is provided. The method comprises the following steps of: (1) preparing a base material consisting of a base sheet and a surface sheet overlaying the base sheet, the base material being covered with a surface coating; (2) placing the base material between a bottom mold and an upper mold, the upper mold and/or bottom mold being coupled to a composite heating device including a high-frequency-induction heating device and an electric heating device, the upper mold being provided with a plurality of edge-defining blades near the edges, a plurality of pattern-defining blades which are shorter than the edge-defining blades, and a plurality of toothed surfaces which are formed with a plurality of pointed projections much shorter than the pattern-defining blades; (3) pressing the upper mold against the bottom mold so as to form the base material with a raised design of patterns, and meanwhile applying the composite heat to the bottom and upper molds from the high-frequency-induction heating device and the electric heating device, whereby the edge-defining blades cut an edge for the insignia and the pattern-defining blades form a pattern on the insignia; and (4) removing remnants cut away by the pattern-defining blades. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
     The present invention can be more fully understood by reading the subsequent detailed description of the preferred embodiments thereof with references made to the accompanying drawings, wherein: 
     FIG. 1 shows a cross-sectional diagram depicting the initial step involved in the method according to the present invention for making an insignia; 
     FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view depicting a heating and pressing step involved in the method according to the present invention for making an insignia; 
     FIG. 3 shows an enlarged view of part of FIG. 2; 
     FIG. 4 shows an enlarged view of part of FIG. 3; 
     FIG. 5 shows a cross-sectional view of the finished product of an insignia made by t he method according to the present invention; 
     FIG. 6 shows a cross-sectional view of the finished product of an insignia made by u sing a single upper mold to heat and press the base material; 
     FIG. 7A is a cross-sectional diagram used to depict a heating and pressing step carried out by a first upper mold in the apparatus according to the present invention for making the insignia; 
     FIG. 7B is a cross-sectional diagram used to depict a heating and pressing step carried out by a second upper mold in the apparatus according to the present invention for making the insignia; 
     FIG. 7C is a cross-sectional view of the base material being heated and pressed by a set of first movable upper and bottom molds in a first stage; 
     FIG. 7D is a cross-sectional view of the base material being heated and pressed by a set of second movable upper and bottom molds in a second stage; 
     FIG. 8A is a top view of the semi-finished insignia which is made through the process depicted in FIG. 7C; 
     FIG. 8B is a top view of the semi-finished insignia which is made through the processes depicted in FIG.  7 C and FIG. 7D; 
     FIG. 9 shows a perspective view of the apparatus according to the present invention for making an insignia; 
     FIG. 10 shows an enlarged view of part of the apparatus of FIG. 9; 
     FIG. 11 shows a side view of the movable upper mold being linked to a cutting knife; and 
     FIG. 12 shows the same as FIG. 11 except for showing the cutting knife being moved downwards to cut away unwanted portions of the insignia. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring to FIG. 1, the base material for making an insignia by the method according to the present invention is a base sheet  10  overlaid with a surface sheet  12 . The base sheet  10  can be made of woven fabric, non-woven fabric, synthetic leather, plastic, or the like, and the surface sheet  12  is a sheet of heat-deformable synthetic resin such as polyvinyl chloride or polyurethane. An adhesive layer  14  is coated on the bottom of the surface sheet  12  so as to glue the surface sheet  12  to the base sheet  10 . A surface coating  16 , which can be a deposited layer of metal, a printed layer of oil ink or a laser-photochromic display layer, is formed over the surface sheet  12 . Alternatively, the surface coating  16  can be formed by depositing a layer of metal first and then printing a layer of oil ink over the metal layer. 
     Referring to FIG. 2 together with FIG. 3, the base material is placed on a bottom mold  20  mounted on a platform  22  on a composite heating machine that includes high-frequency induction and electric heating means for the composite heating purpose. The bottom mold  20  is made of a metal or non-metal material, such as zinc, copper, steel, alloy, plastic or plaster. A movable upper mold  24  is mounted above the platform  22  and is used to press against the base material laying between it and the bottom mold  20 . The bottom mold  20  and the upper mold  24  are respectively electrically coupled to the opposite electrodes of an electricity source on the composite heating machine, which is used to perform a composite insulation heating process on the base material. 
     Referring also to FIGS. 2-4, the bottom mold  20  is provided with a plurality of toothed surfaces  23  and that of a pattern-defining recess  21 ; and the upper mold  24  is formed with a plurality of edge-defining blades  28  for cutting an edge for the insignia, a plurality of pattern-defining blades  30  (which are slightly shorter than the edge-defining blades  28 ) for forming a pre-designed pattern on the insignia, and a plurality of surfaces  32 , which are formed with a plurality of pointed projections much shorter than the pattern-defining blades  30 , and collectively used to press against the base material. The edge-defining blades  28  are each formed with a pointed tip  34  used to define the edge  17  (see FIG. 4) of the insignia to be made from the base material. The pattern-defining blades  30  are each formed with a pointed tip  36  not as sharp as that of the edge-defining blades  28  and a length slightly less than the overall length of the surface sheet  12  plus its upper and bottom coatings. When the pattern-defining blades  30  are pressed against the surface sheet  12 , the surface coating  16  on the surface sheet  12  will be cut apart by the application of heat and pressure thereto and part of the adhesive layer  14  that is in contact with the pointed tips  36  will melt into liquid, which then infiltrates into the base sheet  10  so as to glue the surface sheet  12  to the base sheet  10 . Each pattern-defining blade  30  thus creates a groove  18  on the surface sheet  12 , as illustrated in FIG.  4 . The surface  32  is used to press against the surface coating  16  on the surface sheet  12  but will not break it so as to impress a grain-like pattern  19  thereon. During the heating and pressing, those portions of the surface sheet  12  and the adhesive layer  14  that are in contact with the pointed tips  36  will be melted into liquid, which then infiltrates into the base sheet  10 , allowing the surface sheet  12  to be glued to the base sheet  10 . 
     Referring to FIGS. 3,  4 ,  5 , and  8 B, since the edge-defining blades  28  are used to cut and define the edge  17  of the insignia, the part  15  of the base material that is to be cut away is not included within the range that is to be pressed by the upper mold  24 . Therefore, the cutaway part  15  can be easily removed by workers with suitable tools. On the surface sheet  12 , grooves  18  and grain-like patterns  19  are formed. The grooves  18  are pressed by the pointed tip  36  to a depth that allows the underlying base sheet to be substantially visible. This allows the surface coating  16  to display a shiny and contrasting appearance due to the quality of the overlaying material, i.e., the deposited layer of metal or printed layer of ink. This appearance is similar to or better than the insignias that are made by weaving golden threads on fabrics. 
     In the foregoing process, if it is desired to have a more plump look, a foam member made of heat-deformable synthetic resin, such as polyvinyl chloride or polyurethane, can be inset between the base sheet  10  and the surface sheet  12 . 
     Furthermore, a protective film made of plastic can be attached on the bottom side of the finished product of the insignia. After purchase, the consumer can easily remove the protective film and use an iron or thermal-transfer printing means or the like to heat and attach the insignia onto clothing, hats or similar articles. 
     Referring to FIG. 6, in other embodiments, a single mold can be used instead of two, as in the previous embodiment, to apply heat and pressure to the base material of the insignia. Here, in the heating and pressing process, the base material of the insignia is placed on the platform  22  and then a movable mold  24   b  mounted on a support  26  is used to apply pressure thereto. 
     In order to allow the raised pattern on the insignia to be more sharply defined, the above-mentioned composite heating and pressing process can be carried out for the second round. As shown in FIG. 7A, in this process, a first movable upper mold  80 , formed with a plurality of pattern-defining blades  82  and a plurality of pattern surfaces  84 , is used to press against the base material of the insignia so as to form a pattern of raised patterns of narrow width. Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 7B, a second movable upper mold  86 , formed with a plurality of edge-defining blades  88 , is used to press the base material of the insignia for the second round so as to define the edge of the insignia. 
     When the finished insignia has a thickness of above 5 to 10 mm by specification, the pattern formed on the insignia may not be clear-cut and the edge thereof could be fuzzy if the pressing and heating process was carried out only once. To eliminate this unfavorable appearance, the pressing and composite heating process should be carried out at least twice. 
     Referring to FIG. 7C, a first movable upper mold  80 , having a pressing cutting knife  82  (which services as a pattern-defining knife) and/or a pressing surface  84 , is used in combination with a fixed bottom mold  90  having a pattern-defining recess  91  and a pattern-defined top surface  911  used for the first stage heating and pressing process on the base sheet  10  and surface sheet  12 . This allows the finished insignia to have clear-cut patterns with fine line textures, as, for example, the one shown in FIG.  8 A. After that, as illustrated in FIG. 7D, a second movable upper mold  86  having a plurality of heat-cutting knives  88  (which serve as edge-defining knives) is used in combination with the fixed bottom mold  90  for the second stage heating and pressing process on the same. This cuts away the fuzzy edge on the patterns such that the patterns appear to be more clear-cut, allowing the insignia  40  to have a more distinct look as, for example, the one shown in FIG.  8 B. Further, the area of the pressing surface  84  of the first movable upper mold  80  can be greater than the area bounded by the heat-cutting knife  88  on the second movable upper mold  86 , such that after completion of the first stage heating and pressing process, the semi-finished insignia  40 ′, as shown in FIG. 8A, has an additional edge texture  19 ′ formed around the main pattern. This edge texture  19 ′ can be removed along with the surface part  15  beyond the outline  17  of the desired pattern on the insignia in the subsequent second stage heating and pressing process. This allows the insignia  40 , as the one shown in FIG. 8B, to be formed with clear-cut, precisely-aligned patterns. In conclusion, the pressing cutting knife  82 , the pressing surface  84 , and heat-cutting knife  88  on the first second movable modes  80 ,  86  can be used to form the pattern, as shown in FIG.  8 B. Taking a cross section in FIG. 8B, for example, the apparatus should be provided with three pressing cutting knives  82 , a number of pressing surfaces  84 , and six heat-cutting knives  88 , as shown in FIG.  7 D. 
     Referring to FIG. 9 together with FIG. 10, the heating means employed by the present invention can be a high-frequency induction heater combined with an electric heater, supersonic wave heater, or the like. FIG. 10 shows a combined heating apparatus  50  that includes both the high-frequency induction heater and the electric heater in a unit. The apparatus includes a bottom mold  20  coupled electrically to a first electrode  52  on the heating apparatus and an upper mold  24  coupled electrically to a second electrode  54 . In the operation, the base material of the insignia is first placed at a fixed position on the bottom mold  20 . Then the operator can tread on a pedal  56  so as to move the upper mold  24  downwards, thereby allowing the upper mold  24  and the bottom mold  20  to together clasp the base material of the insignia placed therebetween. Further, in the case of using a single mold to form the insignia, an auxiliary pressing means, such as a pneumatic or hydraulic means, can be used to add more pressing force to the insignia. Meanwhile, electricity is applied to the electrodes  52 ,  54 , causing the molds  20 ,  24  to generate heat to the base material of the insignia and thereby heating the base sheet  10  and the surface sheet  12  together. After the process is completed, the operator releases the pedal  56 , which causes the upper mold  24  to move back to the original position. An insignia with raised design is thus produced. 
     The high-frequency induction heater, used for generating heat, and the pedal, used for moving the upper mold down, are both known in the art. 
     The heating device  58  for temperature adjustment is further coupled integrally between the platform  26  and the electrode  54 . The magnetic flux generated by the electrode  54  and the heat generated by the heating device  58  can thus be combined and transferred to the upper mold  24  and/or the bottom mold  20 . These two heat sources are referred to hereinafter in this specification as “composite heat”. The use of composite heat not only significantly shortens the process time, but also allows the apparatus to handle base material of substantial thickness. The drawback of the high-frequency induction heater used in prior art that causes base material of substantial thickness to be insufficiently heated is therefore eliminated. Moreover, the heating device  58  can be manually adjusted by a temperature regulating switch  60  in accordance with the thickness and quality of the base material to generate a sufficient amount of heat for the process. 
     Referring together to FIG.  11  and FIG. 12, the movable upper mold  24  can be alternatively coupled to the inside of a recess  93  in the knife holder  92 . The knife holder  92  is fixed at a position below the platform  26  and has its periphery formed with cutting knives  94  which are used to cut away unwanted parts of the finished insignia. A buffer spring  95  is set between the movable upper mold  24  and the recess  93 . When operating the apparatus to make the insignia, the platform  26  along with the knife holder  92  will be driven downwards to a first position, as illustrated in FIG. 11, in which position the movable upper mold  24  comes into contact with the surface sheet  12 , but the cutting knives  94  are kept a distance away from the base material. Under this setup, the foregoing heating and pressing process is carried out. After this, the platform  26 , along with the knife holder  92 , is driven further downwards to a second position, as illustrated in FIG.  12 . In this position, the cutting knives  94  cut away the unwanted parts of the base sheet  10  and surface sheet  12  beyond the finished insignia. At this time, the buffer spring  95  acts as a resistance to the downward movement of the movable upper mold  24 , allowing the movable upper mold  24  to stay at the first position when the knife holder  92  is moved to the second position, thus preventing the insignia from being broken apart. By the foregoing arrangement, the heating and pressing process and the process of removing unwanted parts can be combined into a single process, which significantly simplifies the manufacture of insignias. 
     The present invention has been described hereto with exemplary preferred embodiments. However, it is to be understood that the scope of the present invention need not be limited to the disclosed preferred embodiments. On the contrary, it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements within the scope defined in the following appended claims. The scope of the claims should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements.