US2156018A - Stamp - Google Patents

Description

April 25, 1939. W. HUMPHNER 2,156,018

` STAMP Filed July 50, 1937 Patented Apr. 25, 1939` UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE STAMP Ferdinand W. Humphncr, Oak Park, ,111., assignor, by mesne assignments, to Mid-States Gummed Paper Company, a corporation oi' Delaware Application July 30, 1937, Serial No. 156,565 s claim. (ci. 'asa-s) This invention relates to a stamp or the like, applying brush when it is desired to apply a and is particularly useful in connection with a stamp to a parcel. When a customer has made sales tax stamp. a purchase, the stamp may be wetted in any In order to insure the collection of sales taxes, suitable way and applied to the carton.' bag, conit has been customary to require dealers to issue tainer, receipt, or any other paperlevidence of y 5 certificates. One dilculty has been the tendency the sale. Where the tax is imposed upon services. of customers to disregard the certicates, leaving the gummed stamp may be applied to the receipt them on the counter, etc., with the result that given for payment of the service charge. the certificates may be used again. An object After the adhesive has been wetted for appli,-

of the present invention is to provide a simple cation, the imprint tends to break up and after 10 and effective means for preventing reuse of sales application the stamp cannot be reused because tax indicia while at the same time providing when the adhesive layer is removed from the obsimple and inexpensive means for insuring the ject to which it is applied, the bottom imprint collection of the taxes. A further object is to is no longer intact and readable. A stamp tax provide a sales tax stamp which may be used in statute could prohibit the use of tax stamps 154 large volume and with very simple procedure Where the imprint on the bottom is not intact whereby the taxes may be collected accurately and equivalent to the imprint on the top of the and eiectively while at the same time requiring paper.

very little effort on the part of dealers, customers, Should the stamp be drawn from the roll and etc. Other specific objects and advantages will separated for application but for some reason not 20 appear as the speciilcation proceeds. applied to the container or receipt, the wetting' The invention is illustrated in a preferred em- 0f the adhesive still serves to break up the imprint bodiment by the accompanying drawing in and prevent its reuse. At the same time, the whichheavy body of adhesive on one side of the stamp Figure 1 is a greatly enlarged side View in elecauses the paper to curl until the stamp forms a 25 vation of a sales vtax stamp or the like showing sealed roll, thus automatically cancelling the the various layers making up the tax stamp body; stamp for effective application.

Fig. 2, a broken plan view of the stamps formed By applying serial numbers to the rolls of in perforated strips for use in 4a roll, the stamps stamps, it is extremely simple for both the dealer being serially numbered; and Fig. 3, a side view and the tax auditor to determine the number of 30 in elevation of a. modiiled form of sales tax stamp sales, taxes due, etc. Further, the issuance of in which a uorescent gelatine or glue is used. rolls of stamps bearing serial numbers prevents As illustrated more clearly in Fig. 1, the stamp duplication, counterfeiting, etc. body consists of a paper base having on its upper In order to prevent counterfeiting of the stamp.

side an imprint; as for example, a sales tax imvarious methods may be used. For example, the 35 print of the type shown in Fig. 2. 0n its lower paper, print, or adhesive layers may be provided side, the s' amp body is provided with a layer of with an invisible ink which becomes visible upon adhesive of 'a type suitable for receiving an imthe application of water or other liquid. Also. print thereon. Preferably, the imprint on the if desired, a chemical indicator may be formed 40 bottom of the adhesive is identical with the imin the paper, print, or adhesive and reacted with 40 print onnthe top of the paper. The adhesive layer some fixed reagent. For example, beta naphthol on the bottom of the stamp is preferably colored dissolved in alcohol may be used in the glue, so as to provide a suitable background to receive paper or ink coatings. In order to dissolve the the imprint, thus making the imprint, and beta naphthol, it is preferably tlrst mixed with particularly the serial number, stand out clearly potassium hydroxide and then dissolved in 45 thereon. In view of the fact that printing upon alcohol. In order to test this xed indicator in adhesive-is well known in the art at the present l, the stamp, I use a small amount of a dye salt time, it is believed .unnecessary to describe the Ydissolved ln alcohol. Instead of beta naphthol, adhesive and its constituents or the printing ink, naphtol A. S. may be used. There are a large etc. number of indicators known to the trade which 50 In the use of the stamps, it is preferable to may be employed.

have them arranged in a roll with perforations If desired, various mechanical means may be separating the individual stamps. The roll may. employed with the dispensing apparatus-for mufor convenience, besupportedin agumming matilating or injuring the stamp when it is fed chine and be fed one at a time over the waterthrough the device. However, it is often easy to n modify the dispensing devices so as to avoid such /muti1ation, and often such modification in dispensing devices occurs through the wear of use. In the us'e of my invention, no apparatus need be 5 employed and the destruction of the imprint upon the adhesive is effected inevitably when the ad.

a stamp to the package or receipt, thus imposingl very little burden upon the dealer. At the same time, the number and extent of sales can be determined readily by the auditor or dealer without counting the stamps individually.

The printing of the design of the stamp upon the bottom of the adhesive of each stamp tends to prevent the roll of stamps from adhering when the same are formed into rolls. The imprint thus not only serves to identify and establish the validity of the stamp in the eyes of the customer and to destroy the eiectiveness of the stamp when it is applied to an article, but also enables the stamps to be readily used ln roll form without adherence and thus permitting serial numbers to be employed eliectively with the stamps to determine at a glance how many have been used.

In the modiiication shown in Fig. 3, I provide the stamp, label or the like with a layer of gelatine or glue which becomes iluorescent when the stamp or label is shielded against ordinary daylight and conned to the ultra violet ray. By the use of such a` layer of gelatine or glue, the identity or genuineness of the stamp or label can be immediately detected by exposing the stamp to the ultra violet ray.

I prefer to employ a gelatine or glue which gives the desired fluorescence upon exposure to the ray while at the same time remaining non-adhesive or non-tacky. In the illustration given, the glue or gelatine layer is applied over the top imprint. However, if desired, the fluorescent glue or gelatine may be allowed to remain tacky or adhesive and used on the bottom of the stamp or it may be used to cover the entire surface of the stamp.

In order to make a glue or gelatine which loses its adhesive or tacky characteristics, I break down the viscosity or gel of the glue or gelatine by means of heat in a hydrolysis process. For example, a gelatine with a viscosity of 170 mil., a gel of 488 grams, is mixed with water on the basis of 3% pounds of gelatine to each gallon `of water. After soaking andmelting the solution, which at this point is very viscous and is quite hard to pour, the solution is placed in an autoclave and heated for 45 minutes at an in- 160 C. The gelatine in this case becomes very liquid and has lost its gelling power and makes an ideal material for imprinting and identifying stamps or labels by virtue of its-fluorescent propc5 erty 7 5 portions of 1 to 3 pounds of pepsin to every 100 ladhesive layer, and at ternal pressure of 90 pounds per square inch at being adapted to destroy said It. will be understood that the gelatine or glue ly dissolved in the propounds of glue or gelatine, dependent upon the grade. This is allowed to soak for two hours and is melted at a temperature of around 120 F. When the solution is complete, concentrated hydrochloric acid is added to lower the pH from 3.5 to 4. The digestion starts at this point and continues until the'glue or gelatine is suiliciently liquefied. At this point,v the temperature is raised to 170 F. to kill the enzymes and the solution may or may not be neutralized with an alkali. As already stated,the stamp or label which is equipped with such a glue or gelatine can be readily detected as to its genuineness by subjecting the stamp or label to ultra violet rays, under which test the glue or gelatine becomes fluorescent. y

While I have shown certain specic means for carrying out the invention, it will be obvious that many modifications may be made without departing from the spiritof my invention. The foregoing detailed description has been given for clearness of understanding only, and no unnecessary limitations should be understood therefrom, but the appended claims should be construed as broadly as permissible, in view of the prior art.

l. A tax stamp comprising a paper base, an imprintv thereon, a water-soluble adhesive on the bottom of said pape and a thin imprint on said adhesive, said imprint being destroyed by the wetting of said adhesive.

2. A roll of tax stamps joined together and provided with weakened lines of separation between 'the stamps, said stamps being numbered serially and each consisting of a paper layer provided on its underside with a water-soluble least one of said layers being provided with al material normally invisible but becoming visible upon the application of water.

3. A tax stamp of thecharacter set forth comprising a paper base layer carrying an imprint layer thereon, a water-soluble adhesive layer'at the bottom of said paper, and an imprint layer onAthe bottom of said adhesive, at least one of said layers being provided with an indicator material normally invisible but becoming visible upon the application of water for softening said adhesive. A

4. A roll of stamps having design imprintsguponv their upper sides, adhesive layers on their undersides, and designs `printed upon said adhesive layers, said last-mentioned designs tending to prevent adherence between the adhesive layer of one stamp and the adjacent surface of another stamp when said stamps are stacked one upon the other. f

5. A roll of stamps each having an upper and a lower side provided with adhesive layer and having also the outer faces of said adhesive layers provided with like designs bearing serial numbers, Isaid adhesive layer being water soluble and water is applied to the adhesive on the lower side of the stamp.

6. A= stamp cpmprisinga paper base, an imprint thereon, an adhesive layer on` the opposite lower design when side of the paper, an imprint on said adhesive and a layer of non-tacky gelatine 'carried by the saine, said gelatine having the characteristic of becoming fluorescent when .exposed to ultraviolet rays.

'7. A tax stamp of the character set forthl comprising a paper base, an imprint thereon,

adhesive for securing the stamp to a surface, and a layer of gelatine carried by said stamp, said gelatine having the characteristic of becoming uorescent when exposed to ultra-violet rays.

8. A sizamp of the character sd: forth comprising a paper base, an imprint on one side thereof, an adhesive layer on the opposite side of said paper, and a gelatine layer over said imprint, said 'gelatine layer having the characteristic of becoming uorescent when exposed to ultra.- violet rays.

' FERDINAND W. HUMPHNER.

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