Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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ENVELOPE WITH INTEGRATED TRACKING LABELS
TECHNICAL FIELD
(00011 The present invention relates to an envelope
with integrated tracking labels detachable from the envelope
and providing proof of mailing and reception of the envelope
and its contents.
BACKGROUND ART
fooo2l When shipping important articles in envelopes,
such as passports, computer discs, and other such important
material, it is necessary to provide proof of mailing and
reception of such envelope. Usually this is done by
providing envelopes with detachable forms that are filled
out, signed by both sender and recipient, and often by the
shipper. These forms are usually adhesively secured to the
package and copies are detached at the point of expedition
to the point of reception. A disadvantage of such forms is
that they can be damaged during transport and they require a
two-step assembly when making the envelope, namely, the
envelope making assembly and the form attaching step. Also,
many sheets of paper are required to produce such a form and
it is costly. For examples of such mail tracking products,
reference is made to U.S. Patents 6,120,063 and 6,133,195.
fooo3l There is therefore a need to provide an envelope
which is easy to produce, and preferably from a single paper
sheet, and which incorporates therein tracking material to
identify the envelope and provide proof of forwarding and
reception of such envelope and contents placed therein.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
Iooo4) It is a feature of the present invention to
provide an envelope with integrated tracking labels which
overcome the disadvantages of the prior art and which
fulfill the required need.
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fooosl Another feature of the present invention is to
provide an envelope which is produced from a single sheet of
reinforced paper stock material and which provides a
detachable receipt tab as well as one or more tracking
labels matching the tracking code printed on the envelope.
tooosl Another feature of the present invention is to
provide an envelope for mailing important articles such as
documents, passport, computer discs, etc. and wherein the
envelope has reinforced edges and is provided with
integrated tracking labels all formed from the envelope made
of reinforced paper stock material.
fooo~~ According to the above features, from a broad
aspect, the present invention provides an envelope which
comprises a front panel and a . rear panel . An edge opening
is provided for access to an interior of the envelope
between the panels. Sender and receiver address labels are
printed on an exterior face of at least one of the panels.
A securing flap is formed in one of the panels and projects
from a fold line adjacent the edge opening. A receipt tear
panel is formed in a free end section of the securing flap
and has a tracking number printed thereon. A glue strip
extends longitudinally across an inner face of the securing
flap. A release liner is removably retained over the glue
strip. A tracking label having the tracking number is die-
cut in the securing flap over the release liner. The
release liner is die-cut to form a tracking label release
liner section adhered to the glue strip about the tracking
label whereby to retain the tracking label in the securing
flap. The glue strip secures the securing flap to an edge
section of the other of the panel when folded thereon on the
fold line. The tracking number is also printed on one of
the panels. The tracking label is removed from the tracking
label release liner of the securing flap as proof of sending
or reception of the envelope.
fooosl According to a further broad aspect of the
present invention, there are two of these tracking labels
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die-cut in a securing flap and each retained therein by
respective ones of tracking label release liner sections.
Looosl According to a still further broad aspect of the
present invention there is provided a tear tab strip formed
by perforation lines in the securing flap adjacent the fold
line for access to the interior of the envelope when sealed
by the securing flap.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
(000101 A preferred embodiment of the present invention
will now be described with reference to the accompanying
drawings in which:
foooil) FIG. 1 is a plan view of a single sheet of paper
stock material in which the mail envelope of the present
invention is die-cut and illustrating the construction of
the inner surface of the securing flap;
foooi2~ FIG. 2 is a fragmented perspective view
illustrating the release liner being removed from the
securing flap to expose a glue strip whilst leaving on the
glue strip tracking label release liner sections;
foooi3~ FIG. 3 is a plan view of one of the panels over
which the securing flap has been adhesively secured;
(000141 FIG. 4 is a fragmented view of a corner section
of the envelope showing the receipt tear panel being
detached from the securing flap;
(oooi5l FIG. 5 is a plan view of the other panel;
(ooois~ FIG. 6 is a fragmented view of a form or record
keeping sheet showing the use of a tracking label which has
been removed from the mail envelope of the present
invention; and
toooi~l FIG. 7 is a fragmented perspective view showing
a manner in which a tracking label can be removed from the
envelope.
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DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
fooolsl Referring to the drawings, and more particularly
to Figure 1, there is shown generally at 10 a mail envelope
constructed in accordance with the present invention and
formed from a sheet of reinforced paper stock material 11.
The stock material 11 is formed of two layers of paper 8 and
8' with a layer of plastic film 9 in between. The form is
die-cut to form a single sheet blank which defines a front
panel 12 and a rear panel 13 interconnected to the front
panel by a bottom edge fold line 14. Opposed side edge
flaps 15 and 15' are integrally formed with one of the
panels, herein the front panel 12 and is inwardly foldable
over the interior face 12' of the front panel along fold
lines 16 and 16' . An adhesive 17 may be provided along an
edge of an inner face 13' of the rear panel to secure to the
folded edge flaps 15 and 15', respectively, whereby to form
a reinforced envelope along the side edges. These
reinforced edges prevent tearing of the envelope during
shipment by shifting flat rigid articles placed in the
envelope such as computer discs, important documents such as
passports, etc. and wherein delivery and proof of reception
is mandatory.
fooolsl As hereinshown a securing flap 18 is formed
integral with one of the panels, herein the front panel 12
and projects from a fold line 19 adjacent an edge opening
formed by securing the rear panel to the front panel via the
side edge flaps. Receipt tear panel 20 is formed in a free
end section of the securing flap and detachable therefrom by
a perforation line 21.
tooo2ol With additional reference to Figure 2, it can be
seen that a glue strip 22 extends longitudinally across an
inner face 23 of the securing flap 18 with a release liner
24 removably retained over the glue strip. As hereinshown,
a tear tab strip 25 is also provided across the securing
flap 18 and formed by a pair of perforation lines 26 spaced
adjacent the fold line 19 of the securing flap to provide
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access to the interior of the envelope when sealed by the
securing flap. As also herein shown, the glue strip extends
over the tear tab strip and the perforation lines 26 extend
through the release liner 24 whereby a section of the
release liner will remain attached to the tear strip when
removed. The tear strip 25 exceeds the edges 29 of the flap
to be readily grasped by the fingers to open the envelope.
The end projections 28 may also be colored for ease of
location of the tear strip 25.
fooo2~1 With additional reference now to Figure 3, it
can be seen that the receipt tear panel 20 is provided with
a tracking number or code 30 representative of the specific
envelope 10 intended to be utilized. The receipt tear panel
20 also contains a telephone number 31 should the sender
require information about the location of the envelope after
mailing. The telephone number is that of the carrier
company handling the delivery of the envelope. After the
contents are placed in the envelope, the receipt tear panel
is removed from the securing flap 18 and retained by the
sender. One of the panels, herein the rear panel 13, is
also provided with printed matter 32 to permit the sender to
write in his name and address information as well as the
receiver name and information. A barcode 33 is also printed
on one of the panels for quick identification by scanning
equipment as is well known in the art. The tracking number
30 is also printed on one of the panels and matches the
tracking number 30 on the receipt tear panel.
fooo2al Once the contents are placed in the envelope, in
order to seal the securing flap, it is necessary to remove
the release liner 24 as shown in Figure 2. When the release
liner is removed, the glue strip 22 is exposed to seal the
securing flap to one of the panels. As shown in Figures 1
to 3, the securing flap 18 is also provided with at least
one, herein two, tracking labels 34 and 34~; each of which
is also provided with the tracking number 30. These
tracking labels 34 and 34~ are die-cut in the securing flap
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over the release liner 24. The release liner 24 is also
die-cut at 35 to form a tracking label release liner 36
which is better illustrated in Figure 2 and which is also
adhered to the glue strip 22 about the tracking labels 34
and 34'. These tracking label release liner sections 36 and
36', shown in Figure 1, retain their respective tracking
labels 34 and 34' in the securing flap 18. There may be
provided one or two or more of the tracking labels 34 and
34' depending on the intended use of the envelope. In this
particular application where there are two tracking labels,
one of the labels is removed by the sender for his
particular use for record keeping. These tracking labels
have the adhesive 22 on the backside thereof and therefore
can be stuck into record keeping ledgers, etc. The other
tracking label may be retained by the transporter as proof
of delivery and, as shown in Figure 6, it is stuck also in a
ledger book together with the signature 37 of the receiver
person. The ledger book would also contain a date of
delivery, such as indicated by reference numeral 38.
tooo23~ Figure 5 illustrates the front panel and as
hereinshown, it only contains wording 39 indicative of the
use of the envelope 10 such as prepaid express post delivery
to identify the nature of the envelope to the transporter.
tooo241 Detachable tracking labels 34 and 34' are small
narrow tracking labels formed integral with the securing
flap and these may have other shapes. These tracking
labels, as hereinshown, are formed with a rounded end 40
whereby to identify the grasping end for the removal of same
from the securing flap. The rounded end also has a solid
color 41 for easy identification. These labels are grasped
from this end by inserting the fingernail. under the rounded
end and simply peeling it off. They can also be removed by
applying a folding force by the fingers to form a fold 42 in
the securing flap as shown in Figure 7 and extending across
an end section of the tracking labels whereby an end section
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of the label becomes automatically detached from the
tracking label release liner 36 or 36'.
fooo2s7 It is within the ambit of the present invention
to cover any obvious modifications of the preferred
embodiment described herein provided such modifications fall
within the scope of the appended claims.
