In-mold label forming surfaces for molded articles

A method of making a molded article having front and back sides and a central portion bounded by a peripheral portion having a perimeter and including an outer boundary located near the perimeter and an inner boundary located near the central portion, with the article including an in mold label (IML) at least on the angled or curved peripheral portion of the article, which method comprises:

• providing an in-mold label comprising:
• a laminated film that includes a backing layer, a printed surface supported by the backing layer, with the printed surface incorporating one or more designs thereon, and a protective film layer upon the printed surface, with the laminated film configured in at least two separate arc segments that at least conform to the peripheral portion of the article, with each segment having ends that are configured to intersect with the ends of the other segment to ensure conformance of the IML to the peripheral portion of the article;
• providing a mold used in a molding process during which the molded article is fabricated, with the mold having a mold cavity formed by first and second molding surfaces with the first surface corresponding to the front side of the article and the second surface corresponding to the back side of the article, into which cavity resin is deposited to form the article and from which the molded article is extracted;
• transferring the IML to the mold so that the printed surface is placed adjacent one of the molding surfaces of the mold cavity;
• closing the mold by bringing the other of the molding surfaces into position to form the mold cavity;
• delivering the resin to the mold cavity having the IML therein;
• and
• recovering the molded article from the mold with the IML present at least on the peripheral portion of the molded article.

A method of making a molded article having front and back sides and a central portion bounded by a peripheral portion having a perimeter and including an outer boundary located near the perimeter and an inner boundary located near the central portion, with the peripheral portion transitioning from the outer boundary to the inner boundary by an angled surface such that the peripheral portion is configured as an open conical surface, and with the article including an in mold label (IML) at least on the angled peripheral portion of the article, which method comprises:

• providing an in-mold label comprising:
• a laminated film that includes a backing layer, a printed surface supported by the backing layer, with the printed surface incorporating one or more designs thereon, and a protective film layer upon the printed surface, with the laminated film configured in at least two separate arc segments that at least conform to the peripheral portion of the article, with each segment having ends that are configured to intersect with the ends of the other segment to ensure conformance of the IML to the peripheral portion of the article, wherein the ends of the IML segments overlap by a minimum intersection of 0.5 mm, and wherein the IML is provided within the inner and outer boundaries of the peripheral portion;
• providing a mold used in a molding process during which the molded article is fabricated, with the mold having a mold cavity formed by first and second molding surfaces with the first surface corresponding to the front side of the article and the second surface corresponding to the back side of the article, into which cavity resin is deposited to form the article and from which the molded article is extracted;
• transferring the IML to the mold so that the printed surface is placed adjacent one of the molding surfaces of the mold cavity;
• closing the mold by bringing the other of the molding surfaces into position to form the mold cavity;
• delivering the resin to the mold cavity having the IML therein;
• and
• recovering the molded article from the mold with the IML present at least on the peripheral portion of the molded article.