Patent ID: 7497004

Claim:
A method of producing a very thin, flexible ultra high frequency (UHF) antenna for an electronic article surveillance (EAS) or radio frequency identification (RFID) tag: providing a conductor sheet comprising a layer of electrically conductive material having a top surface and an undersurface, said conductor sheet having a thickness in the range of approximately 5 to approximately 50 microns; providing a liner sheet having a top surface; disposing said conductor sheet on said liner sheet so that said undersurface of said conductor sheet is releasably secured to said top surface of said liner sheet by an adhesive substantially coextensive with said conductor sheet; forming said conductor sheet into a shape desired for said antenna by bringing a cutting die having said desired shape into engagement with said conductor sheet, whereupon said die pierces through said conductor sheet, but not through said liner sheet, thereby creating a die cut antenna having said desired shape releasably secured to said liner sheet; and wherein said conductor sheet is in the form of a conductive material web and said liner sheet is in the form of a carrier web, and wherein said method comprises die cutting a series of antennas in said conductive material web but not through said carrier web, whereupon said antennas are surrounded by the portion of said conductive material web outside the peripheries of said series of antennas, said portion of said conductive material web outside the peripheries of said series of antennas constituting scrap material.