Reinforcement of hang tags
AssigneeAvery Denninson Corporation
InventorIan J. Forster
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Hang tags are provided for mounting on merchandise in a retail setting. The hang tags include a card with a plurality of edges, with a region of reinforcing material located at or adjacent to the top edge of the card, surrounding an aperture through which a fastener is received. The region defines the shape of a pair of intersecting elongated shapes such as ovals or ellipses, thereby positioning the reinforcing material in the locations where it is most needed to prevent theft-based removal of the tag from the merchandise, while omitting reinforcing material from the locations where it is not needed. Also provided is an attachment device, such as an applicator gun, for substantially simultaneously applying the reinforcing material to the tag and fastening the tag to a piece of merchandise.
Claims16
A merchandise hang tag comprising:
- a card having a plurality of edges, including a top edge;
- a region of reinforcing material disposed on an exterior surface of the card and having RFID properties and located at or adjacent to the top edge, wherein
- the region defines the shape of a pair of substantially identical elongated shapes which intersect at an area,
- each of said elongated shapes has a major axis, with the respective major axes of the elongated shapes being substantially perpendicular to each other, and
- one major axis is generally vertically oriented with respect to the top edge of the card;
- and
- a fastener-receiving aperture positioned within the area where the elongated shapes intersect, the aperture being positioned at a location spaced away from the top edge by a distance greater than midway along the major axis that is generally vertically oriented wherein proportionally more reinforcing material is disposed on the card in a first direction leading from the aperture towards the top edge of the card than is disposed on the card in a second direction leading from the aperture towards any one of the remaining plurality of edges of the card.
An attachment device for attaching a reinforced hang tag having RFID properties to a piece of merchandise, comprising:
- a housing having a handle configured to be gripped by a hand;
- a pin extending from the housing;
- a supply of fasteners associated with the pin;
- a supply of reinforcing material associated with the pin wherein the reinforcing material has RFID properties;
- an actuator configured to be operated to substantially simultaneously deploy a fastener and a portion of the reinforcing material to an exterior surface of a card having at least one of barcode or product information to form the reinforced hang tag having RFID properties;
- and
- wherein the supply of reinforcing material is a plurality of individual decals or stickers positioned on a roll of low-adhesion release paper.
A method of attaching a reinforced hang tag having RFID properties to a piece of merchandise using an attachment device having a pin and an actuator, comprising:
- positioning a card having at least one of barcode or product information adjacent to a piece of merchandise;
- pressing the pin of the attachment device through the card and/or the piece of merchandise;
- and
- operating the actuator of the attachment device, thereby substantially simultaneously deploying a fastener and a reinforcing material having RFID properties to an exterior surface of the card to form the reinforced hang tag having RFID properties.
An attachment device for attaching a hang tag to a piece of merchandise, comprising:
- a card having a plurality of edges, including a top edge;
- a region of reinforcing material disposed on an exterior surface of the card and located at or adjacent to the top edge, wherein
- the region defines the shape of a pair of substantially identical elongated shapes which intersect at an area and the reinforcing material has RFID properties;
- a fastener-receiving aperture positioned within the area where the elongated shapes intersect, wherein proportionally more reinforcing material is disposed on the card in a first direction leading from the aperture towards the top edge of the card than is disposed on the card in a second direction leading from the aperture towards any one of the remaining plurality of edges of the card;
- each of the elongated shapes when measured from a center point the aperture to one of the plurality of edges in the first direction, provides reinforcing material least twice that of reinforcing material in a direction transverse to the first direction, and
- each of the elongated shapes when measured from a center point of the aperture to one of the plurality of edges perpendicular to the first direction, provides reinforcing material at least one and a half times that of reinforcing material in the direction transverse to the first direction, and
- an edge of the elongated shape does not extend to the edge of the card.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.