MULTI-PART FORM AND LABEL ASSEMBLY AND METHOD OF MAKING THEREOF

ASSEMBLAGE D'ETIQUETTES ET DE JEUX D'IMPRIMES MULTIPLES, ET METHODE DE FABRICATION CONNEXE

English Abstract

A multi-part business form assembly having a first
sheet containing non-variable information printed
thereon and having a release coating disposed thereon. A
label is mounted on the first sheet. The label has
nonvariable information printed on one side and has a
pressure-sensitive adhesive disposed on the other side.
A self-imaging second sheet having non-variable
information printed thereon is attached to the first
sheet and disposed adjacent to and in registry with the
first sheet. The information entered on the top sheet
and the removable label is recorded by carbonless
imaging techniques onto the sheets of the form attached
underneath the top sheet. The label portion of the
assembly may be removed from the remainder of the form
and affixed to another surface.

Claims

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WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:
1. A multi-part business form assembly, comprising:
a first sheet having a first side and a second side
disposed opposite the first side, the first side having
a first portion containing non-variable information
printed thereon and a second portion having a release
coating disposed thereon;
a removable label having a pressure-sensitive
adhesive disposed thereon and having non-variable
information printed thereon, the label mounted on the
second portion of the first sheet; and
a self-imaging second sheet having non-variable
information printed thereon, the second sheet attached
to the first sheet and disposed adjacent to and in
registry with the first sheet.
2. The multi-part business form assembly of Claim 1,
wherein the first sheet is a carbonless CB sheet.
3. The multi-part business form assembly of Claim 2,
wherein the second sheet is a carbonless CF sheet.
4. The multi-part business form assembly of Claim 3,
further comprising at least one carbonless CFB third
sheet disposed between and attached to the first and
second sheets.
5. The multi-part business form assembly of Claim 4,
wherein each of the first, second and at least one third
sheets are provided with vertically aligned marginal
feed holes at opposite ends of the sheets.
6. The multi-part business form assembly of Claim 5,
wherein each of the first, second and at least one third
sheets are provided with at least one vertically-


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aligned line of weakness at opposite ends of the form
and disposed between the feed holes and the nonvariable
information such that after the multi-part form is fed
through a printer portions of the form containing the
feed holes can be removed from the remainder of the
assembly.
7. The multi-part business form assembly of Claim 1,
wherein the first and second portions of the first sheet
are joined by a line of weakness.
8. The multi-part business form assembly of Claim 7,
wherein the second and at least one third sheets have a
line of weakness aligned with the line of weakness
between the first and second portions of the first
sheet.
9. The multi-part business form assembly of Claim 1,
wherein the first, second, and at least one third sheets
are attached to one another along a marginal area on one
side of the assembly.
10. The multi-part business form assembly of Claim 1,
wherein the label is die cut.
11. A multi-part business form assembly, comprising:
a carbonless CB first sheet having a first section
and a second section, the first section of the first
sheet having non-variable information disposed thereon,
the second section of the first sheet having a release
coating deposited thereon;
a die-cut label mounted on the second section of
the first sheet and having a first side and a second
side, the second side having a pressure-sensitive
adhesive disposed thereon, the first side having
nonvariable information printed thereon;


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a carbonless CF second sheet having nonvariable
information printed thereon, the second sheet attached
to the first sheet and disposed adjacent to and in
registry with the first sheet; and
at least one carbonless CFB third sheet having
nonvariable information printed thereon and disposed
between and in registry with the first and second
sheets.
12. The multi-part business form assembly of Claim 11
wherein each of the first, second, and at least one
third sheets have a central portion and two marginal
portions disposed on opposite sides of the central
portion, the marginal portions containing tractor feed
openings, the central portion and the marginal portions
separated by a line of weakness.
13. A method of making a multi-part business form
assembly, comprising:
providing a first sheet having a first side and a
second side disposed opposite the first side, the first
side having a first portion containing non-variable
information printed thereon and a second portion having
a release coating disposed thereon;
providing a removable label having a pressure-
sensitive adhesive disposed thereon and having non-
variable information printed thereon, the label mounted
on the second portion of the first sheet; and
providing a self-imaging second sheet having non-
variable information printed thereon, the second sheet
attached to the first sheet and disposed adjacent to and
in registry with the first sheet.
14. The method of Claim 13, wherein the first sheet is
a carbonless CB sheet.



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15. The method of Claim 14, wherein the second sheet is
a carbonless CF sheet.
16. The method of Claim 15, further comprising at least
one carbonless CFB third sheet disposed between and
attached to the first and second sheets.
17. The method of Claim 16, wherein each of the first,
second, and at least one third sheets are provided with
vertically aligned marginal feed holes at opposite ends
of the sheets.
18. The method of Claim 17, wherein each of the first,
second, and at least one third sheet are provided with
at least one vertically aligned line of weakness at
opposite ends of the form and disposed between the feed
holes and the nonvariable information such that after
the multi-part form is fed through a printer portions of
the form containing the feed holes can be removed from
the remainder of the form.
19. The method of Claim 13, wherein the first and
second portions of the first sheet are joined by a line
of weakness.
20. The method of Claim 19, wherein the second and at
least one third sheet have a line of weakness aligned
with the line of weakness between the first and second
portions of the first sheet.
21. The method of Claim 13, wherein the first, second,
and at least one third sheet are attached to one another
along a marginal area on one side of the assembly.
22. The method of Claim 13, wherein the label is die
cut.



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23. A multi-part business form assembly, comprising:
first sheet means for receiving and organizing
variable information;
coating means for releasably coating a portion of
the first sheet means;
a removable label having a pressure-sensitive
adhesive disposed thereon and having non-variable
information printed thereon, the label mounted on the
second portion of the first sheet; and
second sheet means for receiving variable
information that is entered on the first sheet means and
on the label.

Description

. CA 02326913 2000-11-27
MULTI-PART FORM AND LABEL ASSEMBLY
AND METHOD OF MAKING THEREOF
FIELD OF INVENTION
The present invention relates to business forms,
and in particular to multi-part business forms.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Many attempts have been made to combine two or more
business forms into a single form. For example, forms
have been produced which include a label portion which
may be removed from the remainder of the form and
affixed to another surface. Such forms are typically
comprised of several plies of paper, polymeric film,
etc, and are coated on one or more surfaces with a
pressure sensitive adhesive or release coating.
There is a need for a multi-part business form
assembly with a top sheet having an area containing
nonvariable information and having an area for receiving
a removable label. The assembly should include
additional separable sheets attached underneath and in
registry with the top sheet. The additional sheets
should be capable of receiving information from the top
sheet (including information entered on the label) by
means of carbonless paper. Past attempts at such a
multi-part business form have included a carbon backed
top sheet having a separate liner glued to the top sheet
for receiving the label or facestock. The separate
liner has a tendency to "tent" or separate from the top
sheet during printing and feeding. Accordingly, there
is a need for a more economical assembly and method for
such a multi-part business form that does not suffer
from the above-described drawback.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention meets the above-described
need by providing a multi-part business form assembly
and a method of making a multi-part business form
assembly.


CA 02326913 2000-11-27
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The assembly includes a first sheet having a first
side and a second side disposed opposite the first side.
The first side has a first portion containing non-
variable information printed thereon and has a second
portion having a release coating disposed thereon. A
die cut label having a pressure-sensitive adhesive is
mounted on the second section of the top sheet. The
label also has non-variable information printed thereon.
The assembly also includes a self-imaging second sheet
having non-variable information printed thereon. The
second sheet is attached to the first sheet and disposed
adjacent to and in registry with the first sheet. The
assembly may also include one or more intermediate self-
imaging sheets attached to and disposed between the
first and second sheets. Accordingly, the multi-part
business form assembly provides for feeding the form
through a printer such that variable information can be
printed on the form in the first section of the top
sheet and on the label in the second section of the top
sheet. The information contained in the form and on the
labels is recorded by carbonless imaging techniques onto
the sheets of the form attached underneath the top
sheet. The label portion of the assembly may be removed
from the remainder of the form and affixed to another
surface .
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention is illustrated in the drawings in
which like reference characters designate the same or
similar parts throughout the figures of which:
Fig. 1 is a top plan view of the multi-part business
form of the present invention;
Fig. 2 is a side elevational view of the multi-part
business form shown in Fig. 1;


CA 02326913 2000-11-27
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Fig. 3 is an enlarged view of a portion of Fig. 2.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Referring generally to Figs. 1-3, and initially to
Fig. 1, a multi-part business form assembly 10 comprises
a top sheet 13 that is divided into a first section 16
and a second section 19. The top sheet also includes a
central portion 22 and a pair of marginal portions 25,
28 that are disposed on opposite sides of the central
portion 22. The marginal portions 25 and 28 include a
plurality of tractor feed holes 31 for conveying the
form through a printer (not shown) as known to those of
ordinary skill in the art. The central portion 22 and
the marginal portions 25, 28 are divided by frangible,
lines of weakness 29, 30 that extend from one side of
the top sheet 13 to the other and are formed by a series
of apertures or a series of areas of reduced thickness.
The lines of weakness 29, 30 provide a frangible section
such that after the multi-part form is fed through a
printer, the portions of the form containing the feed
holes can be removed from the remainder of the assembly.
The top sheet 13 comprises self imaging paper of
approximately 16 lb. weight. As known to those skilled
in the art, the top sheet 13 may comprise a carbonless
paper with a coating on the bottom surface ("CB"). The
first section 16 of the top sheet 13 contains non-
variable information 34 that is preprinted. The first
section 16 includes spaces and openings 37 for variable
information to be added later.
The second section 19 of the top sheet 13 is
provided with a release coating 40 as known to those of
ordinary skill in the art. One suitable release coating
is a Croda W silicone agent, however any coating or
material capable of releasingly adhering to a pressure-
35 sensitive adhesive to hold a label would also be
suitable.


CA 02326913 2000-11-27
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A plurality of labels 43 are removably attached to
the top sheet 13 in the second section 19. The labels
43 are die cut, have nonvariable information 45 printed
on a top surface 46, and have a pressure-sensitive
adhesive ("PSA") 48 disposed on the bottom surface 49
(shown in Figs. 2 and 3). One suitable form of the PSA
is Crodafix 24-23-3 repositionable adhesive.
Turning to Fig. 2, the top sheet 13 has the release
coating 40 disposed on an upper surface 50 of section
19. An intermediate sheet 53 is provided underneath the
top sheet 13. The intermediate sheet 53 may also
comprise a self-imaging paper. A carbonless CFB sheet
capable of receiving a carbonless image on its top
surface 56 and capable of transmitting a carbonless
image on its bottom surface 59 is suitable. A bottom
sheet 62 may also comprise self-imaging paper that is
CF. The sheets 13, 53, and 62 are attached on the left
hand side of Fig. 2 in a zone 65 disposed between the
line of weakness 29 and a second line of weakness 68.
There may also be an additional frangible line 71
disposed between section 16 and section 19.
On the right hand side of Fig. 2, the label 43 is
shown as it is normally disposed on the top sheet 13 in
section 19 where the release coating 40 has been
applied. As known to those of ordinary skill in the
art, the PSA 48 (Fig. 3) is capable of releasably
adhering to the release coating 40 until such time as
the label 43 is removed from the remainder of the
assembly 10 and affixed to another surface.
Turning to Fig. 3, an edge 70 of the label 43 is
shown as it is being removed from the top sheet 13. The
PSA 48 is disposed on the bottom surface 73 of the label
43. As described above, the release coating 40 is
disposed on the upper surface 50 of the top sheet 13.
In operation, the form assembly 10 is constructed
with the pre-printed information 34, 45 disposed on the


CA 02326913 2000-11-27
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top sheet 13 and on the die cut labels 43, respectively.
The top sheet 13, intermediate sheet 53, and bottom
sheet 62 are disposed in registry and are attached at
one side of the central portion 22 by adhesives or the
5 like as known to those of ordinary skill in the art.
Tractor feed openings are disposed on the marginal
portions 25, 28 and are divided from the central portion
22 by frangible lines. Accordingly, the form assembly
is suitable for feeding into a printer (not shown)
10 having a tractor feed mechanism for engaging the
openings in the marginal portions. As the form assembly
10 is conveyed through the printer, variable information
is printed into the spaces on the top sheet 13 and into
the spaces on the label 43. By means of the CB top
15 sheet 13, the variable information printed onto the top
sheet 13 and the labels 43 is automatically recorded on
the intermediate sheet 53 and bottom sheet 62 by means
of the self-imaging paper. As a result, additional
copies of the documents and of the information contained
20 in the labels are automatically generated.
while the invention has been described in
connection with certain embodiments, it is not intended
to limit the scope of the invention to the particular
forms set forth, but, on the contrary, it is intended to
25 cover such alternatives, modifications, and equivalents
as may be included within the spirit and scope of the
invention as defined by the appended claims.

Representative Drawing