Label for microcentrifuge tube and vials and method for labelling same

Abstract

A label set for a tube may have a facestock defining a first label and a second label connected to one another, and a tear line at a junction between the first label and the second label. An adhesive layer may be on an undersurface of the facestock. The first label may be sized to be adhered to a cap of the tube and the second label is sized to be adhered to a body of the tube. The first label and the second label are separable from one another via the tear line once removed from a release liner.

Description

LABEL FOR MICROCENTRIFUGE TUBE AND VIALS AND METHOD FOR LABELLING SAMECROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

[0001] The present application claims the priorities of United States Patent Application No. 63 / 486,557, filed on February 23, 2023, of United States Patent Application No. 63 / 498,744, filed on April 27, 2023, and of United States Patent Application No. 63 / 508323, filed on June 15, 2023, the contents of all of which are incorporated herein by reference.TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] The present application relates to labels used with small diameter tubing, tubes or vials, such as microcentrifuge tubes or vials, for use in conditions featuring exposure to chemicals and solvents.BACKGROUND

[0003] Commonly used containers have cylindrical shapes, such as vials, tubes, test tubes, centrifuge tubes, microtubes, microcentrifuge tubes, microfuge tubes, matrix tubes, cryogenic vials, cryo vials, cryogenic tubes, cryo tubes (including but not limited to tubes with external thread, internal thread, with or without O-ring, stopper, sterile or non-sterile), freezer tubes, freezer vials, PCR tubes, PC R strips, strips of tubes, sample collection tubes, Vacutainer® tubes, hollow cylindrical tubes and tubings, combined cryo containers, and others. These containers can be transparent, opaque, and / or with protective color such as amber color. These containers may have relatively small diameters. However, it is a common procedure to label such containers, tubes and / or vials with two distinct labels, with a first label being on the cap, and a second label being on the container itself. This entails that a tedious procedure must often be performed manually, that may include detaching both labels from a support liner, and adhering both labels individually. In essence, the steps for adhering the labels to a small container are repeated twice, and the small size of the labels makes the procedure tedious and labour intensive which becomes even more difficult when working with gloves.SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0004] It is an aim of the present disclosure to provide a novel label for small tubes, such as microcentrifuge tubes, vials, etc.

[0005] It is an aim of the present disclosure to provide a method for labelling small tubes, such as microcentrifuge tubes, vials, etc.

[0006] Therefore, in accordance with a first aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method for applying labels onto a tube, comprising: releasing a label set including at least a first label and a second label connected together from a common release liner; after the releasing, adhering the first label to a first part of the tube, manually separating the first label from the second label, and adhering the second label to a second part of the tube.

[0007] Further in accordance with the first aspect, for instance, manually separating the first label from the second label includes using a tear line between the first label and the second label.

[0008] Still further in accordance with the first aspect, for instance, the first label to a first part of the tube includes adhering the first label to a cap of the tube.

[0009] Still further in accordance with the first aspect, for instance, adhering the second label to a second part of the tube includes adhering the second label to container body of the tube.

[0010] Still further in accordance with the first aspect, for instance, wherein adhering the second label to container body of the tube includes applying a first end of the second label against a cylindrical surface of a tube, the end having a printing surface; wrapping the second label around the cylindrical surface of the tube; and applying a transparent shielding portion of the second label over the end having the printing surface.

[0011] Still further in accordance with the first aspect, for instance, the method may include printing on the label set prior to releasing.

[0012] Still further in accordance with the first aspect, for instance, manually separating is performed when the first label is adhered to the first part of the tube.

[0013] Still further in accordance with the first aspect, for instance, releasing the label set from the common release liner includes maintaining a release liner portion on part of the second label.

[0014] Still further in accordance with the first aspect, for instance, the method may include removing the release liner portion from the second label before or during adhering the second label to the second part of the tube.

[0015] Still further in accordance with the first aspect, for instance, the method is performed on a microcentrifuge tube or vial.

[0016] In accordance with a second aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a label set for a tube, comprising: a facestock defining a first label and a second label connected to one another, and a tear line at a junction between the first label and the second label; and an adhesive layer on an undersurface of the facestock; wherein the first label is sized to be adhered to a cap of the tube and the second label is sized to be adhered to a body of the tube; wherein the first label and the second label are separable from one another via the tear line once removed from a release liner.

[0017] Further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, including the release liner upon which the first label and second label are adhered as connected to one another.

[0018] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, the facestock is a transparent facestock, an opaque printing area being defined on a top surface of the transparent facestock, the printing area configured to receive data thereon, the printing area covering only a portion of the transparent facestock, whereby a shielding portion is defined by a remainder of the label is transparent.

[0019] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, the opaque printing area is a printing layer defined by opaque ink.

[0020] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, the opaque printing area covers the first label and a portion of the second label.

[0021] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, the shielding portion has a length L2 being TTD < L2 < 3.5TTD.

[0022] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, the printing area has a length Li being 0.8TTD < Li < 1 ,3TTD.

[0023] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, the label set has the capacity to withstand storage at -70C or below.

[0024] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, the label set has the capacity to withstand contact with liquid nitrogen and / or vapor phase nitrogen.

[0025] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, the label set has the capacity to withstand contact with dry ice.

[0026] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, the label set has the capacity to withstand autoclave.

[0027] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, the label set has the capacity to withstand contact with xylene and / or with alcohol.

[0028] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, the adhesive layer is a cryogenic adhesive capable to adhere to frozen vials or vials frozen at at least -70C.

[0029] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, the adhesive layer is a cryogenic adhesive capable to adhere to frozen vials or vials frozen at at least -60C.

[0030] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, the adhesive layer is a cryogenic adhesive capable to adhere to frozen vials or vials frozen at at least -40C.

[0031] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, the release liner is a sheet having multiple ones of the label set thereon.

[0032] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, the release liner is a roll having multiple ones of the label thereon.

[0033] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, the first label is generally circular.

[0034] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, the label set is configured for thermal transfer printing or direct thermal printing.

[0035] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, the label set is configured for laser printing or inkjet printing.

[0036] Still further in accordance with the second aspect, for instance, an edge at a junction between the first label and the second label is arcuate.

[0037] In accordance with a third aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method for applying labels onto tubes, comprising: releasing a label strip including at plurality of labels connected together from a common release liner; after the releasing, adhering a first label from the label strip to a first tube, manually separating the first label from a remainder of the label strip, and adhering a second label from the label strip to a second tube.

[0038] Further in accordance with the third aspect, for instance, manually separating the first label from the label strip includes using a tear line between the first label and the second label.

[0039] Still further in accordance with the third aspect, for instance, adhering the first label to the tube includes adhering the first label to a cap of the tube.

[0040] Still further in accordance with the third aspect, for instance, the method may include printing on the label strip prior to releasing.

[0041] Still further in accordance with the third aspect, for instance, manually separating is performed when the first label is adhered to the first tube.

[0042] Still further in accordance with the third aspect, for instance, releasing the label set from the common release liner includes maintaining a release liner portion on part of the label strip.

[0043] Still further in accordance with the third aspect, for instance, the method is performed on a microcentrifuge tube or vial.

[0044] In accordance with a fourth aspect, there is provided a kit comprising: a label set as above, and a tube or a vial. The label set may be prelabelled onto the tube or vial.

[0045] In accordance with a fifth aspect, there is provided an assembly comprising: at least two label sets, each label set having a facestock defining a first label and a second label connected to one another, and a tear line at a junction between the firstlabel and the second label, and an adhesive layer on an undersurface of the facestock, wherein the first label is sized to be adhered to a cap of the tube and the second label is sized to be adhered to a body of the tube, and wherein the first label and the second label are separable from one another via the tear line once removed from a release liner; the release liner upon which the first label and second label are adhered as connected to one another; and at least one shield defined by the facestock and the adhesive layer, the shield surrounding part of the at least two label sets; wherein the at least two label sets and the shield cover only part of the release liner, such that another part of the release liner is exposed adjacent to peeling edge of the at least two label sets.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

[0046] Fig. 1A is an elevation view of a microcentrifuge tube having a label set in accordance with a variant of the present disclosure;

[0047] Fig. 1 B is an elevation view of the microcentrifuge tube of Fig. 1A, having a label set in accordance with another variant of the present disclosure;

[0048] Fig. 2A is an elevation view of a cylindrical tube having a label set in accordance with another variant of the present disclosure;

[0049] Fig. 2B is an elevation view of the cylindrical tube of Fig. 2A, having a label set in accordance with another variant of the present disclosure;

[0050] Fig. 3A is a plan view of the label set of Fig. 1 A, for microcentrifuge tube;

[0051] Fig. 3B is a plan view of the label set of Fig. 1 B, for microcentrifuge tube;

[0052] Fig. 4A is a plan view of the label set of Fig. 2A, for cylindrical tube;

[0053] Fig. 4B is a plan view of the label set of Fig. 2B, for cylindrical tube;

[0054] Fig. 4C is a plan view of the label set having multiple labels, for a tube strip;

[0055] Fig. 4D is a plan view of the label set of any of the embodiments, showing different tear configurations;

[0056] Fig. 5A is a schematic sectional view of an exemplary construction of the labels of the present disclosure;

[0057] Fig. 5B is a schematic sectional view of another exemplary construction of the labels of the present disclosure, featuring an electronic chip;

[0058] Fig. 6A is an exemplary perspective view of a roll having a plurality of the label set of Fig. 4A;

[0059] Fig. 6B is another exemplary perspective view of a roll having a plurality of the label set of Fig. 4A;

[0060] Fig. 7A is a plan view of a plurality of the label set of Fig. 4A on a sheet, according to a first sheet variant;

[0061] Fig. 7B is a plan view of a plurality of the label set of Fig. 4A on a sheet, according to a second sheet variant;

[0062] Fig. 8 is a perspective view of a plurality of the label of Fig. 4A in a dispenser box;

[0063] Fig. 9 is a schematic close-up view of different edge shapes at a junction between labels of the label set of the present disclosure, showing shearing dynamics;

[0064] Fig. 10 is a schematic close-up view of different edge shapes at a junction between labels of the label set of the present disclosure;

[0065] Figs. 11 A and 11 B are schematic views of labels in accordance with a variant of the present disclosure; and

[0066] Fig. 12 is a flow chart of a method for applying labels on a tube in accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

[0067] Referring to the drawings and more particularly to Figs. 1A, 1 B, 2A and 2B, exemplary sample tubes or vials are illustrated at 1. Reference is made herein to the vial or tube as tube 1 , even though item 1 may be a vial or any other type of container, including a rod. For example, the tube 1 may be a microcentrifuge tube as illustrated in Figs. 1A and 1 B. Microcentrifuge tubes may also be known as eppendorf tubes, microtube, microfuge tubes, and are commonly known to have a container having a cylindrical portion and a conical portion, with a lid. The tube 1 may also be a cylindrical container with lid, as in Figs. 2A and 2B. Other types of tubes may also use the labelset in accordance with the present disclosure, such as matrix tubes, cryogenic vials, freezer tubes, PCR tubes, rods, cryogenic in-vitro fertilization (IVF) straws such as those used in Artificial Reproductive Technologies (ART), hollow cylindrical tubing such as blood transfusion tubing or similar, syringe (including but not limited to pre-filled, empty, sterile, non-sterile), catheter, among other possibilities, Vacutainer® tubes or like vacuum-sealed tubes coated with different substances such as anticoagulants, clot activators, etc such as for use in blood collection, culture tubes for growing and maintaining bacterial and other cell cultures, serum vials, lyophilization vials, flacons, glass ampules, tissue culture flasks and bottles, multi-well plates, quartz tubes, Falcon® tubes (e.g. 15ml, 50ml) or larger size tubes and bottles, liquid chromatography sample vials and bottles, oscillation vials, NMR tubes used for nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, headspace vials with or without aluminum flip off caps with or without rubber stoppers, syringes; tubes with pressurized gas or vacuum inside, bottles (such as bottles for solutions, solvents, chemicals, buffers, biological matters, enzymes, etc...) The label set described herein may be split and applied to the same container or to more than one container such as to the top of one container and to the side of another container, and / or the label set can be split and applied to more than one top or more than one side of more than one container. The tubes 1 are cylindrical in shape or have a cylindrical portion such as in the microcentrifuge tubes, with an outer diameter D usually in the range of millimeters or a few centimeters, and a circumference C expressed as being equal to TTD. In an embodiment, the surface of the tube 1 is made of a low surface energy (LSE) plastic, though the tube may consist of other materials, such as other types of plastics, polymers, copolymers or glass including borosilicate glass, or quartz, or composite materials comprising a mix of materials. In an embodiment, the tube or container or significant portion thereof is made of a polypropylene or a material comprising polypropylene. As another embodiment, the containers or a significant portion thereof are made of polyethylene of any grade or a material comprising polyethylene. As another embodiment, the containers or a significant portion thereof are made of polystyrene of any grade or a material that may include polystyrene. As another embodiment, the vials or containers or significant portions thereof are made of glass or a material comprising glass. As another embodiment, the vials, containers or significant portions thereof are made of polymethylpentane or a material including polymethylpentane. As another embodiment,the vials or containers or significant portions thereof are made of polyethylene (PE) or a material including polyethylene including but not limited to LDPE, LLDPE, HDPE, MDPE, UHMWPE, PEX, XLPE, metallocene polyethylene (mPE). As another embodiment the containers or a significant portion thereof are made of polycarbonate or a material including polycarbonate. As another embodiment the containers or a significant portion thereof are made of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) or polyfluorinated substances (PFAS) or any copolymer of those or a material including PTFE, PFAS or any copolymer of those. As another embodiment, the containers or significant portion thereof are made of metal (e.g., aluminum, stainless steel, coated metal, etc), alloys, magnetic materials or any composite material including metal. As another embodiment the containers or significant portion thereof are made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET, a.k.a., polyester) or a material with PET. In another embodiment, the containers or a significant portion thereof are made of nanomaterials or nanomaterial derivatives or a material having nanomaterials. In another embodiment the containers or a significant portion thereof are made of wood or wood derivatives or a material having wood or wood derivatives, cellulose. In another embodiment the containers or significant portion thereof are made of cardboard or a material having cardboard or fibers of cellulose. In another embodiment, the containers or a significant portion thereof are made of biodegradable, biocompostable and / or environmentally sustainable plastics including but not limited to PLA (polylactic acid), or PHA (polyhydroxyalkanoates), PBS (polybutylene succinate), PCL (polycaprolactone), starch-based plastics, PBAT (polybutylene adipate terephthalate), bio-PE (bio-based polyethylene), bio-PET (biobased polyethylene terephthalate), cellulose-based plastics, or any combination thereof including combinations with other types of non-biodegradable, non-biocompostable and non-environmentally sustainable materials. As another embodiment the cap of the vial is not fully cylindrical and may have some additional elements facilitating opening or facilitating of the vial such as a classic microcentrifuge tube has a tab to push out the cap in order to open it. As another embodiment, the cap of the vial 1 may have threading to screw and unscrew the cap to or from the body of the vial 1 . As another embodiment, the cap of the vial 1 and / or the vial 1 may have a tamper-evident feature that may reveal the opening of vial 1 upon unscrewing the cap (e.g. Micrewlock™ tamper-evident screw-cap from Simport Scientific). As another embodiment, the cap of the vial 1 and the body of the vial 1 may be made of different materials. As anotherembodiment, the cap of the vial 1 and the body of the vial 1 may be made of the same material. As another embodiment, the cap of the vial 1 and the body of the vial 1 may be made of the same material. As another embodiment, the cap of the vial 1 and the body of the vial have a different smoothness, peel-adhesion, loop-tack, adhesive affinity, adhesive release properties, texture and / or are made of a different grade of the same material.

[0068] The outside diameter D of tube 1 may be of around 5.0 - 14.0 mm without the cap, though other diameters are contemplated. In a variant, the outside diameter ranges from around 2.0 mm and 90.0 mm, inclusively. In another variant, the outside diameter ranges from 5.0 mm and 18.0 mm, inclusively. In another variant, the outside diameter ranges from 6.0 mm and 11.0 mm, inclusively. In another variant, the outside diameter ranges from 11.0 mm and 24.0 mm, inclusively. In another variant, the outside diameter ranges from 14.0 mm and 36.0 mm, inclusively. In another variant, the outside diameter ranges from 30.0 mm and 90.0 mm, inclusively. The caps of the tubes can be with external thread, internal thread, friction seal, vacuum seal, rubber stopper seal, silicone stopper seal, glass stopper, headspace cap, flip off cap seal for injection bottle, etc.. An additional cover may be applied over the cap of the container 1 in which case the cap label may be applied to the additional cover. In yet another variant, the tube 1 is part of an IVF straw, and IVF straws are in general made from polymers or copolymers. IVF straws are used for freezing and storing substances such as sperm, eggs and embryos. Commonly used straws are approximately 0.25 ml and 0.5 ml in volume. In a variant, IVF straws have an internal diameter between 1.0 mm and 5.0 mm, inclusively, and more specifically between 1.2 mm and 3.0 mm, inclusively. Some straws may have shapes other than cylindrical shapes such as square, rectangular, polygon, or possibly others, in which case the inner dimensions provided above may indicate the minimal distance between internal edges of the straw.

[0069] A height of the tube 1 may depend on the volume of the tube 1 , and is usually between 5 mm and 150 mm without cap, though other heights outside this range are contemplated. In a variant the height of the tube 1 is between 10 mm and 49 mm without cap. In another variant the height of the tube 1 is between 8 mm and 38 mm without cap. In a variant, the volume of the tube 1 is between 0.2 ml and 100.0 ml, inclusively. In another variant, the volume of the tube 1 is between 0.5 ml and 55.0 ml,inclusively. In another variant, the volume of the tube 1 is between 0.5 ml and 20.0 ml, inclusively. In another variant, the volume of the tube 1 is between 0.4 ml and 5.0 ml, inclusively. In another variant, the volume of the tube 1 is between 0.5 ml and 6.0 ml, inclusively. In another variant the volume of the tube 1 is between 0.25 ml and 2.5 ml. In another variant, the volume of the tube 1 is between 0.6 ml and 15.0 ml, inclusively. In another variant, the volume of the tube 1 is between 1.0 ml and 3.0 ml, inclusively. The tube may have internal threading or external threading to receive a cap (e.g. cryogenic vial) or may be of the vacuum seal type (e.g. Vacutainer® tube) or friction seal type for capping the tube (e.g., microcentrifuge tube). Tubes and caps with other sealing methods may be used. Any of the tube types described above may have caps connected with a body of the tube or be separate from the tube. Some vial caps have inserts for color coding which are plastic pieces that can be inserted inside the indentation of the cap and make the cap a relatively flat surface which can accept the labels of the set. Containers with larger volumes such as bottles can also be labelled with the label set of the present disclosure, such containers having larger volumes such as between approximately 20 ml and 4000 ml, with a height ranging approximately between 25 mm and 400 mm, though other sizes are contemplated. In some applications, the container may be a rod (hollow or solid) in which case the height of the rod can be significantly more, such as several inches, up to a few feet.

[0070] The tube 1 may be open ended so as to receive a sample(s) in its inner cavity. A cap 1A may be sealingly received in the top open end of the tube 1. In an embodiment, it can be said that the cap 1A is an integral part of the tube 1 (i.e., when referring to “tube 1”, this may include the cap 1 A), but the cap 1A may not be part of the tube 1 , or it can be associated with the tube 1 through a plastic band, or through an attachment as shown in Figs. 1A, 1 B, 2A and 2B. The cap 1A is typically made of an elastomer or plastic by which the cap 1A is sealingly received and held captive while capping off the tube 1 , for the sample in the tube 1 to be isolated from its environment by the cap 1 A. The cap 1 A may also be a screw cap, for threaded engagement with the tube 1 , with appropriate threading (e.g. external or internal threading) being present in the tube 1 and on the cap 1A. Other cap materials may be used, the elastomer being an example among others. The caps 1A might have some other parts associated with it such as a swab or brush linked to the internal portion of the cap 1A for the purpose ofswabbing a sample from a patient. Depending on the contemplated use, some types of tubes may include specific substances such as bacterial or viral growth media, some indicators, gas, anaerobe conditions, vacuum, additives, anticoagulants (e.g., Vacutainer® tubes for blood collection), coatings, they may be sterile, non-sterile, at room temperature, refrigerated, frozen in subzero temperatures at 0°C or below, at - 20C° or below, at -40°C or below, at lyophilization conditions, at -70°C or below, cryogenically frozen at -80°C or below, at -196°C or below including inside cryogenic dewars or tanks inside liquid phase liquid nitrogen, vapor phase liquid nitrogen, liquid helium (-269°C) or liquid or vapor phase of liquified cryogenic or non-cryogenic gases, etc. In some applications, containers may be stored at room temperatures or may undergo exposures to higher temperatures such as water bath immersions from 0°C to 100°C for example may be heated inside thermostats between 30°C and 250°C for example, or may undergo pasteurization, such as approximately 62°C and 72°C, steam autoclave sterilization at approximately 121 °C - 134°C under 15-30 psi pressure for example, dry heat sterilization at approximately 150°C-170°C for example, high velocity hot air sterilization at approximately 190°C for example, depyrogenation at approximately 200°C-250°C for example. In some applications, the containers may need to resist multiple cycles inside dishwashers such as in animal facilities or labware washing machines, or they may undergo sterilization via radiation using ionizing radiation such as gamma rays, ultra violet (UV) rays, infrared (IR) rays, LED UV rays, microwaves, chemical sterilization such as hydrogen peroxide or chlorine dioxide, gas sterilization such as ethylene-oxide, or other methods. In some cases, label sets described herein may be exposed to temperatures above 250°C in ovens such as at 350°-400°C or above for short periods of time, again as examples.

[0071] Referring concurrently to Figs. 1A and 3A, a label set 10 for microcentrifuge tube 1 is illustrated. The label set 10 is shown as assembled in Fig. 3A, and as detached in Fig. 1A. The label set 10 has a single integral label facestock, that is separable into a first label 10A, and a second label 10B, with the first label 10A configured to be adhered to the cap 1A, while the second label 10B is configured to be adhered to the body of the container 1. More particularly, the label set 10 has a tear line 10C at a junction between the first label 10A and the second label 10B, to enable a manual separation of the first label 10A from the second label 10B, once the label set10 is separated from its support liner, as described below. The tear line 10C may be defined by a line of perforations (i.e., a perforation line), weakenings and / or embossments in the facestock of the label set 10, the perforations or the like separated by webs of facestock. The perforations may penetrate fully through the facestock or may only penetrate partially without creating a perforation on the opposite side of the facestock. The perforations, weakenings or embossments may also be on the support liner or may penetrate through the support liner fully or partially. Accordingly, the tear line 10C defines a line of separation when a shear force is manually applied on the facestock on opposite sides of the tear line 10C. A third or more labels could also be present as part of the label set 10, with the additional layers also connected to one or more of the labels 10A and 10B, preferably by another tear line 10C.

[0072] The first label 10A is sized to as to fit on the cap 1A, while the second label 10B is received on the body of the container 1. For example, the first label 10A may be generally circular, though with a possible straight line at the tear line 10C, making the first label 10A a truncated circle or shape, which truncation may be visible or non-visible by naked eye. In some other possible implementations, the tear line 10C can be straight, concave in the direction of the rectangle (e.g., as in Fig. 4A (1) or concave in the direction of the circle (not shown in the illustrations)). Other shapes are considered for the first label 10A and for the second label portion 10B, such as circular, eclipse, oval, square, rectangular, triangular, pentagonal, hexagonal, heptagonal, octagonal, nonagonal, decagonal, various polygonal shapes such as regular polygons, irregular polygons, concave polygons, convex polygons, trigons, quadrilateral polygons, pentagonal polygons, hexagonal polygons, wavy, crescent, trapeze, cross, ring, rhombus, flower-type, asymmetric, other geometrical, non-geometrical, asymmetric shapes, irregular shapes and any modification, truncation or combination thereof is contemplated, and with rounded or straight corners where desired. The first label 10A may be located at different positions relative to the second label 10B, as exemplified by (1) and (2) of Fig. 3A.

[0073] In the embodiment of Fig. 1A, the second label 10B has a tail in the form of a triangle (or other shape) projecting from a generally rectangular portion, so as to increase a height of the second label 10B and thus define a greater printable zone, such as for a barcode, as shown. The generally rectangular portion may have roundedcorners as an option, as shown, and other shapes are considered, such as any polygon, oval, etc. Moreover, a depression may be present at the location of the tear line 10C. The tail is shown as being in the form of a triangle, as the triangle is well suited to be applied to the conical portion of the microcentrifuge tube 1 , without folds. However, other tail shapes or like extension are possible as well. More than one tail may be provided, and may extend from the rectangular portion of label 10B. The tail portion may also be optional.

[0074] Referring concurrently to Figs. 1 B and 3B, a variant of the label set 10 is shown, the label set 10 for microcentrifuge tube 1 being illustrated as having a similar geometry as that of the label set 10 of Figs. 1A and 3A. The label set 10 is shown as assembled in Fig. 3B, and as attached to a microcentrifuge tube in Fig. 1 B. Again, the label set 10 has a single integral label facestock, that is separable into the first label 10A, and the second label 10B, with the first label 10A configured to be connected to the cap 1A, while the second label 10B is configured to be connected to the body of the container 1. Thus, the label set 10 has the tear line 10C at a junction between the first label 10A and the second label 10B, to enable a manual separation of the first label 10A from the second label 10B, once the label set 10 is separated from its support liner, as described below. The tear line 10C may be defined by a line of perforations, and / or weakenings and / or embossments in the facestock of the label set 10, the perforations or the like separated by webs of facestock. Accordingly, the tear line 10C defines a line of separation when a shear force is manually applied on the facestock on opposite sides of the tear line 10C.

[0075] Again, the first label 10A is sized to as to fit on the cap 1A, while the second label 10B is received on the body of the container 1. For example, the first label 10A may be generally circular, though with a possible straight line at the tear line 10C, making the first label 10A a truncated circle. Other shapes are considered for the first label 10A, such as square, rectangle, polygon, etc. The first label 10A may be located at different positions relative to the second label 10B, in similar fashion to the embodiment of Fig. 3A, as exemplified by (1) and (2) of Fig. 3A.

[0076] In the embodiment of Fig. 1 B and 3B, the second label 10B may or may not has a tail in the form of a triangle (or other shape) projecting from a generally rectangular portion, so as to increase a height of the second label 10B and thus definea greater printable zone, such as for a barcode, as shown. The generally rectangular portion may have rounded corners as an option, as shown, and other shapes are considered, such as any polygon, oval, etc. Moreover, a depression may be present at the location of the tear line 10C. The tail is shown as being in the form of a triangle, as the triangle is well suited to be applied to the conical portion of the microcentrifuge tube 1 , without folds. However, other tail shapes or like extension are possible as well. The tail portion may also be optional.

[0077] A difference between the variants of Figs. 1 A and 3A, and of Figs. 1 B and 3B lies in the fact that the second label 10B has an opaque surface 11A for information to be inscribed or printed thereon, and a transparent shield portion 11C, that will be laid upon the opaque surface 11A to shield it. The second label 10B is wrapped onto itself, for the transparent shield portion 11C (a.k.a., shielding portion 11C) to cover the opaque printing surface 11 A. An additional triangle on the transparent portion of 10B may be added to match the triangle on the opaque portion of 11A which may superimpose and laminate the triangle of 11 A, as shown. In an embodiment, the entire label of Fig. 3B may be transparent or translucent. As another embodiment of Fig. 3B, the label 10A is opaque while the label 10B including portions 11A and 11C are transparent or translucent. In another embodiment of Fig. 3B, the label 10A is transparent, whereas the portions 11A and 11 C portions of label 10B may be opaque, transparent or translucent or any combination of opacity, transparency and / or translucency at any location of the label 10B. The term transparent may mean any level of transparency, translucency, haziness or see-through characteristic. The term opaque may mean any level of opacity. In an embodiment, the label 1 or any portion thereof can be white or can be in any color printed on or incorporated inside any component of the label, including but not limited to facestock or any layer of the facestock, varnish, topcoat, primer, adhesive, support liner. In an embodiment, the facestock is a multilayer film or paper. In an embodiment, the facestock 11 comprises a barrier layer or tielayer. In an embodiment, the facestock 11 may have inkjet receptive coating. For example, the label set 10 may be as in one or more of US Patent Application No. 17 / 554,117, entitled Transparent Adhesive Label and incorporated herein by reference; PCT Application No. PCT / IB2022 / 052848, entitled Direct Thermal Label and Method of Use, incorporated herein by reference; US Patent Application no. 17 / 711 ,422entitled Label for Steam Autoclaving and Method of Use, incorporated herein by reference; US Patent No. 11 ,472,214 and associated continuation, entitled Shielded Direct Thermal Label and Methods, incorporated herein by reference; US Patent Application No. 18 / 060,778, entitled Label with Wireless Communication Capability for Vial or Tube, incorporated herein by reference; and / or US Patent Application No. 63 / 384,470, entitled Embedded-Tissue Label with Metal Detection Capability, incorporated herein by reference. Some of the portions of the label set 10 described herein, such as portions 10A, 10B, 11A may have a thin metal foil such as aluminum, stainless steel, copper, lead, magnetic alloys, ferromagnetic alloys, for detectability using a metal detector. Because of the presence of the metallic component in the label set 10, the metal detector may emit a signal indicative of the presence of a metal. The metal detector 30 may be tuned to detect objects the size of the metallic component, so as to filter out any other metallic objects that may be correctly present in a waste bin. The metal detector may be of any appropriate type. In an embodiment, the metal detector operates using a magnetic field. The metal detector may therefore include an electromagnet(s) that generate electromagnetic waves, as well as a sensor(s) to detect eddy currents produced by the metallic component. In an embodiment, the metal detector is a handheld device similar to the ones used in airports or at border entries. In another embodiment, the metal detector is using ionizing radiation such as backscatter scanners and cabinet X-ray machines that use low energy X-Rays to scan the waste disposal. As another embodiment the metal detector is using non-ionizing radiation such as millimeter wave machines to scan the waste disposal.

[0078] The tail portion of the second label 10B (if present) and / or the first label 10A are shown as being opaque as well, though they may also be transparent.

[0079] Referring concurrently to Figs. 2A and 4A, a label set 10 for small cylindrical tube 1 is illustrated. The label set 10 is shown as assembled in Fig. 4A, and as detached in Fig. 2A. The label set 10 has a single integral label facestock, that is separable into a first label 10A, and a second label 10B, with the first label 10A configured to be adhered to the cap 1A, while the second label 10B is configured to be adhered to the body of the container 1. More particularly, the label set 10 has a tear line 10C at a junction between the first label 10A and the second label 10B, to enable amanual separation of the first label 10A from the second label 10B, once the label set 10 is separated from its support liner, as described below. The tear line 10C may be defined by a line of perforations (i.e., a perforation line) including microperforations, weakenings and / or microcuts, and / or cuts and / or embossments in the facestock of the label set 10, the perforations or the like separated by webs of facestock. Accordingly, the tear line 10C defines a line of separation when a shear force is manually applied on the facestock on opposite sides of the tear line 10C. Fig. 4A shows different tear line configurations, by which the tear line 10C may be straight or rounded, and the first label 10A is connected at different positions relative to the second label 10B, with other positions also contemplated, as exemplified in (1), (2), (3) and (4) of Fig. 4A. The perforation line connecting the two shapes may be straight or convexed relative to either shape such as circle or rectangle. A third or more labels could also be present as part of the label set 10, with the additional layers also connected to one or more of the labels 10A and 10B, preferably by another tear line 10C. For example, in Fig. 4C, a label set 10 has eight labels 10A and eight labels 10B, for example for use with a tube strip, such as a 8-PCR tube strip. More or less of the labels 10A and 10B may be present. In a variant shown as (5) of Fig. 4A, the label set 10 may include two or more labels 10A for a single label 10B. The reverse arrangement is also possible. Such an arrangement may be as a function of a contemplated use: for example, the label of (5) of Fig. 4A may include the additional label 10A that is used in a notebook or the like, while the first label 10A and the label 10B are on a vial. (6) and (7) of Fig. 4A show a label set 10 having two labels 10A and two labels 10B. In a variant, this allows a user to do a single peeling step to then label two vials 1 , thereby reducing the number of peeling maneuvers vis a vis the vial labelling maneuvers. The label set 10 of Fig. 4A (6) has labels as in (1) and (2) of Fig. 4A. The label set 10 of Fig. 4A (7) has labels as in (3) and (4) of Fig. 4A.

[0080] As shown in Fig. 2A, the first label 10A is sized to as to fit on the cap 1A, while the second label 10B is received on the body of the container 1 . For example, the first label 10A may be generally circular, though with a possible straight line at the tear line 10C, making the first label 10A a truncated circle. Other shapes are considered for the first label 10A, such as square, rectangle, polygon, etc.

[0081] In the embodiment of Fig. 2A, the second label 10B extends lengthwise along the cylindrical tube, i.e., along the central axis of the tube 1. The second label 10B may have a generally rectangular shape, with optional rounded corners, as shown. Other shapes are considered, such as square, rectangle, or any polygon, oval, etc. Moreover, a depression may be present at the location of the tear line 10C, namely an out-of-plane deformation resulting for example from die-cutting.

[0082] Referring concurrently to Figs. 2B and 4B, a variant of the label set 10 is shown, the label set 10 for small cylindrical tube 1 being illustrated as having a similar geometry as that of the label set 10 of Figs. 2A and 4A. The label set 10 is shown as assembled in Fig. 4B, and as detached in Fig. 2B. Again, the label set 10 has a single integral label facestock, that is separable into the first label 10A, and the second label 10B, with the first label 10A configured to be connected to the cap 1A, while the second label 10B is configured to be connected to the body of the container 1. Thus, the label set 10 has the tear line 10C at a junction between the first label 10A and the second label 10B, to enable a manual separation of the first label 10A from the second label 10B, once the label set 10 is peeled away from its support liner, as described below. The tear line 10C may be defined by a line of perforations, weakenings and / or cuts, or microcuts, or embossments in the facestock of the label set 10, the perforations or the like separated by webs of facestock. Accordingly, the tear line 10C defines a line of separation when a shear force is manually applied on the facestock on opposite sides of the tear line 10C. All tear line configurations of Fig. 4A are applicable to the label set 10 of Fig. 4B.

[0083] Again, the first label 10A is sized to as to fit on the cap 1A, while the second label 10B is received on the body of the container 1. For example, the first label 10A may be generally circular, though with a possible straight line at the tear line 10C, making the first label 10A a truncated circle. Other shapes are considered for the first label 10A, such as square, rectangle, polygon etc. The first label 10A may be located at different positions relative to the second label 10B, in similar fashion to the embodiment of Fig. 4A, as exemplified by (1) and (2) of Fig. 4B.

[0084] In the embodiment of Fig. 2B and 4B, the second label 10B has a generally rectangular portion may have rounded corners as an option, as shown, and othershapes are considered, such as square, rectangle, or any polygon, oval, etc. Moreover, a depression may be present at the location of the tear line 10C.

[0085] A difference between the variants of Figs. 2A and 4A, and of Figs. 2B and 4B lies in the fact that the second label 10B has an opaque surface 11A for information to be inscribed or printed thereon, and a transparent shield portion 11C, that will be laid upon the opaque surface 11A to shield it. The second label 10B is wrapped onto itself, for the transparent shield portion 11C (a.k.a., shielding portion 11C) to cover the opaque printing surface 11 A, at least partially.

[0086] In Fig. 4D, there is illustrated at (1) that the junction between the label 10A and the label 10B may be at an angle ©. Thus, the junction is essentially equivalent to two straight lines intersecting one another, the intersection being a point, i.e., a sharp angle. While the label 10A may be circular as taught herein, in a close zoom, its periphery resembles a straight line at the junction. In an embodiment, as shown in (2) of Fig. 4D, an arcuate profile may be defined at a junction between labels 10A and 10B. This arcuate profile, also referred to as a rounded intersection, may provide additional endurance. More particularly, as shown in Fig. 9, the two configurations are illustrated. The arcuate profile (a.k.a., arcuate edge) is shown as R1 , as being at a junction between the labels 10A and 10B and the tear line 10C. The labels 10A and 10B may also meet at an apex P1 , as also shown in Fig. 9, as an alternative. Due to the zoom in, in Fig. 9, the edge of the label 10A is shown as being a straight line though it is arcuate if the label 10A is round. When the label set 10 is peeled off a support liner, a shear force may be along vector V1 , as being aligned with the edge 10B’ of the label 10B. The vector V1 may therefore generally be collinear with the tear line 10C. In the arrangement featuring apex P1 , the shear force may therefore propagate into the facestock of the label set 10 during the peeling, and more easily cause a separation of the labels 10A and 10B, such that the label 10A may remain on the support liner. In a variant, this is not desired, as it may be preferred that the labels 10A and 10B be separated from the support liner as a single label set 10, to then be detached as explained herein. Therefore, by having the arcuate profile R1 , the shearing force will be deflected, as shown as V2 (though V2 could even be shown as perpendicular to V1), such that V2 is not collinear with the tear cut 10C. Thus, the arcuate profile R1 at the junction between the labels 10A and 10B and tear cut 10C may reinforce the label set10, and assist in keeping the labels 10A and 10B attached when released from the support liner. The arcuate edge could be present in any of the label sets 10 described herein. The connection angle(s) is or are between 0° and 179° or 0° and -179°. At the connection point or intersection point or transition point of the two shapes, lines may have a form or shape of parabola, semi-parabola, truncated parabola, hyperbola, semihyperbola, truncated hyperbola, round-shape, rounded shape, semicircle, truncated circle, ellipse, semi-ellipse, truncated ellipse, oval, semi-oval, truncated oval, U-shape, truncated U-shape, V-shape, truncated V-shape, rounded-bottom V-shape, pear-like shape, conical shape, balloon-like shape, shape resembling a rounded-bottom flask, conical bottom flask, Traditional incandescent light bulb-type shape, curvy line, curvatures, any type of curve e.g. simple curve, vertical curve, compound curve, reverse curve, spiral curve, free-hand design, elements or segments of any of the aforementioned shapes and any combination thereof. The same label may comprise more than one of the aforementioned shapes. The radius of intersection of 2 straight lines has a value of 0. Any radius at the intersection of the 2 lines or 2 shapes is covered under this invention. As a preferred embodiment the radius at the connection point of the 2 shapes or the lines is between 0.0005mm and 26.0 mm. More preferably between 0.005mm and 13.0 mm. More preferably between 0.05mm and 6.5mm, more preferably between 0.08 mm and 3.25 mm. The distance from the tip of the arc to the 1stperforation cut is between 0.005 mm and 3.0 mm. More preferably the distance is between 0.05 mm and 1.5 mm. More preferably the distance is between 0.1 mm and 1.0 mm. More preferably the distance is between 0.25 mm and 0.75 mm. More preferably the distance is between 0.3 mm and 0.5 mm. Fig. 10 provides exemplary shapes. The label 10A may be a truncated circle or may have a truncated shape, may be a concaved circle or shape, or may be a convexed circle or shape, as other embodiments.

[0087] Referring concurrently to Fig. 5A, a construction of the labels of the label set 10 for the tube 1 is shown. Fig. 5A is a schematic illustrations that may not be representative of the actual appearance of the label 10. The label 10 may have various layers, such as a facestock 11 , printing layer or print receptive layer 11 B, adhesive layer 12, and support liner 13. The printing layer 11 B is optionally, and may define the opaque surface 11A described for the embodiments of Figs. 1 B, 2B, 3B and 4B. In anembodiment, the printing layer 11 B can be applied to any transparent, translucent or opaque facestock material that may be used for making any of the labels described in this disclosure. The facestock 11 forms the body of the labels 10A and 10B. Some shading has been added in Fig. 5A to assist in distinguishing the layers. However, the shading should not be interpreted as indicating any particular characteristic other than what is described in the present disclosure. The printing layer 11 B, if under the facestock 11 , may be printable via direct thermal for example. In an embodiment, the printing layer 11 B may be a direct thermal coating to release ink upon heating. The direct thermal coating may be opaque, transparent, hazy or translucent. In an embodiment, the layer 11 B, if under the facestock 11 , may be pre-printed with indicia and / or graphics, color, via any method of printing including commercial printing. For example, the layer 11 B may be printed in the manner described in United States Patent Application No. 11 / 472,214, entitled Shielded Direct Thermal Label and Methods, or in United States Patent Application No. 17 / 711 ,422, entitled Label for Steam Autoclaving and Method of Use, both of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0088] The facestock 11 is the main layer of the labels 10A and 10B, in that its periphery defines the footprint of the label 10. In use, the facestock 11 is the main exposed layer of the label 10 when applied to a tube 1. The facestock 11 may be a polymeric transparent film. For example, the facestock 11 may be any polymer or monomer film such as a thermoplastic film including but not limited to any type or variety of the following films: polyvinyl, polyester a.k.a., polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polypropylene (PP), oriented polypropylene (OPP), biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP), biaxially oriented polypropylene terephthalate (BOPET), polyethylene (PE) including various density of polyethylene films (such as Low Density, High Density or any variety of polyethylene films), polyolefin, polyvinyl (e.g., polyvinyl chloride, PVC, polyvinyl fluoride (PVF), etc), polystyrene, nylon, polyimide, polyamide, satin, acrylate or acrylate based films, foil, aluminum foil, stainless steel foil, copper foil, lead foil, any type of metallic foil, fusion of metallic layer to any polymeric or paper material, laminated foil, multi-layer film (e.g., a layer of polyethylene tied to a layer of polyester through a tie layer adhesive), barrier film which has at least 2 layers and optionally a middle layer, heat-sealable films, synthetic papers, non-woven fabrics, Tyvek® (flash-spun high density polyethylene fiber based), nanomaterials, siliconerubber or any other polymer based material and / or any combination thereof. The presence of a metallic layer, such as in the form of the foils described above, may provide the label 10 with detectability when used with a metal detector. Also, the facestock 11 may be a thermoset material. In another embodiment, the facestock is environmentally friendly such as biodegradable, environmentally sustainable and / or biocompostable to any degree examples of which may include PLA (polylactic acid), or PHA (polyhydroxyalkanoates), PBS (polybutylene succinate), PCL (polycaprolactone), starch-based plastics, PBAT (polybutylene adipate terephthalate), bio-PE (bio-based polyethylene), bio-PET (bio-based polyethylene terephthalate), cellulose-based plastics, or any combination thereof including combinations with other types of non- biodegradable, non-biocompostable and / or non-environmentally sustainable materials. Facestock 11 may undergo additional treatments or may include other layer(s) on its surface or under its surface, such as non-limitative examples: corona treatment, plasma treatment, flame treatment, chemical etching, primer, varnish, top-coat, ink-receptive coating, thermal-transfer receptive coating, direct-thermal receptive coating, laser-print receptive coating, inkjet-receptive coating, UV-inkjet receptive coating, nano-coatings, electron beam (EB) print-receptive coating, LED-print receptive coating, digital print- receptive coating, dye-sublimation print-receptive coating, dot-matrix print-receptive coating, flexo print-receptive coating, offset print-receptive coating, gravure print- receptive coating, screen-print receptive coating, pen-writable coating including but not limited to pencil, ballpoint pen, rollerball pen, gel pen, fountain pen, felt-tip pen, permanent marker e.g. Sharpie® permanent marker, CryoMarker™ or ScienceMarker™ from GA International, chisel-tip pen, acrylic coatings, polyurethane coating, ceramic coating, lamination. In an embodiment the facestock 11 may include antibacterial agents to kill or inhibit the growth of bacteria, viruses or microorganisms such as silver nanoparticles, zinc oxide nanoparticles, triclosan, etc. In an embodiment, the facestock 11 may be a paper or paper-based material (such as comprising cellulose fibers), including coated paper, impregnated paper (e.g., latex impregnated paper), laminated paper. In an embodiment, the facestock 11 may be a water soluble material that can dissolve in water or inside aqueous solution within seconds or within few minutes, for the reuse of the container, tube or vial. In an embodiment, the facestock 11 may have a tamper-evident feature such as a destructible material that may break into pieces upon any attempt to remove after it is adhered to a substrate. In another embodiment, thefacestock 11 of the label 10 may have some cuts that will cause label destruction upon attempt to remove after it is adhered to a substrate and reveal an evidence of tampering. Other types of tamper evident features such as the use of special facestock materials, material treatments, material layers, adhesives, inks and any combination thereof are also contemplated. In another embodiment, the facestock 11 of the label 10 may have more than one layer of material such as it may have a thin metal foil such as aluminum foil, steel layer, stainless steel foil, copper foil, lead foil or any type of metallic foil fused or laminated which will allow metal detection by a metal scanner or detector, X-ray machine, scanners used by border protection and airports, or by any other type of metal detecting equipment. In another embodiment the label 10 may incorporate electrodes / wires that can conduct electricity.

[0089] Referring to Fig. 5B, another construction of the label set 10 is shown, and is equivalent to the construction of Fig. 5A, but with the presence of an electronic chip or tag 14 (e.g., RFID, NFC, RF inlay, etc.). The electronic chip 14 may have its own adhesive 14A (though this is optional), and have its top surface adhered to the adhesive layer 12. The adhesive 14A may be adhered to the release liner 13. In a variant, the label set 10 of Fig. 5B has the electronic chip 14 aligned with the printing layer 11 B, if present. While the printing layer 11 B and the electronic chip 14 are shown to one side of the label set 10, they may be elsewhere (such as centrally positioned). The electronic chip 14 may be in the label 10A, in the label 10B. In a variant, there are two electronic chips 14 per label set 10, with an electronic chip 14 in the label 10A, and another in the label 10B. In an embodiment, the RFID electronic chip may be capable of recording the temperature and storing it in its memory for revealing the temperature log of the vial. This feature is useful for a cold storage of the samples in temperature controlled environments.

[0090] In some variants, a thickness of the facestock 11 may be equal to or less than about 30.0 mil. More specifically, the label facestock 11 may have a thickness of between about 0.3 mil and 6.0 mil, and even more specifically, the facestock 11 may have a thickness of between about 0.4 mil and 4.8 mil, or of between about 0.8 mil and 3.5 mil, or still more specifically, of between about 0.9 mil and 3.2 mil, or still more specifically, of between about 1.0 mil and 4.0 mil. The possibility of using more than one facestock such as a lamination over the facestock 11 is contemplated. The possibility ofusing a multi-layer facestock 11 , such as a coextruded material, or heat-sealed material, or a material with a tie-layer, or material laminated using a pressure-sensitive adhesive is contemplated. The facestock 11 may be selected to as to receive ink thereon, even if the facestock 11 is transparent. In an embodiment, the material of the facestock 11 may be paired with ink types for cross-linking to occur, for the ink to set onto the facestock 11 and resist exposure to some solvents and / or cryogenic temperatures. As another embodiment, the material of the facestock 11 may have features to be paired with various types of inks or ink formulations, resulting in a bond that may be resistant to one or more of the following or any combination thereof: water (short-term or long-term immersion in water, exposure to hot water, exposure to boiling water), buffers (e.g., tris buffer or other buffers of any pH), chemicals (e.g., acids, bases, salts), , detergents (e.g., sodium dodecyl sulfate, SDS), solvents (e.g., alcohols, ketons, xylene, toluene, MEK, hexane, ethers, peroxide, bleach, DMSO, formalin), fuels (e.g. gasoline, diesel, kerosene, jet fuel, etc.) freeze-thaw cycles (e.g., using alcohol-dry ice bath intermitting with hot water bath or warm water bath), high temperatures, low temperatures, freezer temperatures, cryogenic temperatures, friction, mechanical forces, exposure to environmental conditions (e.g., exposure to sun), dry ice, steam autoclave, sterilization, radiation (e.g. ionizing radiation, ultraviolet (UV) rays, infrared (IR) rays, LED UV). In another embodiment, the ink or ink formulation is environmentally friendly such as biodegradable or biocompostable of any degree or environmentally sustainable.

[0091] In a variant, the printable portion 11A of the facestock 11 , referred to as printing area or print-receptive area, may be coated with a printing layer or print- receptive layer 11 B, on a first surface of the facestock 11 , as in Fig. 5A. The printing layer 11 B may be an opaque ink, such as a white ink, or any other contrasting layer upon which printing may be done. The ink layer 11 B may have an additional layer capable of receiving ink such as a top coating, varnish, lamination, another layer of a facestock of any level of opacity, etc. The printing layer 11 B is provided, with or without its own adhesive layer, to define the printable portion 11 A, notably as being an opaque layer for the transparent facestock 11. In a variant, the printing layer 11 B is under the facestock 11 and may not receive ink directly thereon (ink is received on the facestock 11), but the printing layer 11 B defines the contrast by being opaque, such that dataprinted on the facestock 11 over the printing layer 11 B will be visible. In such a case, the printing layer 11 B is provided, with or without its own adhesive layer, to define the printable portion 11 A, notably as being an opaque layer for the transparent facestock 11. The printing layer 11 B may have its own facestock and may be adhered to the facestock 11. The printing layer 11 B may include one or more layers, including transparent (a.k.a., clear) or translucent layers. Ink of the printing layer 11 B may be water based, acrylic based, solvent based, emulsion based, latex based, metallic based or any combination thereof. The inks of the printing layer 11 B may require no curing or can be curable of any methods including but not limited to Infrared, UV curable, LED UV curable, electron beam (EB) curable, water based inkjet, UV inkjet, laser, liquid electrography, offset, thermal-transfer, direct-thermal, thermochromic, screen printing, laser etchable material, etc. In an embodiment, the 11 B layer is fully transparent. As another embodiment, the layer 11 B may be absent and the 11A and 11C portions are both transparent or translucent or hazy or have any degree of transparency, translucency or haziness in which case the portion 11C will be going over and laminating the portion 11A at least partially.

[0092] As shown in Fig. 5A, in some of the embodiments, the printing layer 11 B is the surface of the labels 10A and 10B that can accept ink or printing and this may include printing using a thermal printer, a thermal-transfer printer, a direct-thermal printer, a laser printer, an inkjet printer, a UV inkjet printer, water-based inkjet printer, LED printer, UV printer, impact printer, dot-matrix printer, laser-etching printer, flexographic printer, offset printer, liquid electrography printer, digital printer or a printing press or any other type of printer or device or writing instrument (e.g., pencil, pen) capable of delivering ink on the printing layer 11 B. The printing layer 11 B may incorporate a thermochromic ink system (such as leuco dye), for example in a layer of coating that is part of the printing layer 11 B or incorporated in the material of the printing layer 11 B, for the color to be revealed or transitioned upon heating or upon being exposed to a temperature change (e.g., cooled). In a variant, the ink of the printing layer 11 B is a direct thermal printable ink for printing with direct-thermal printers. In an embodiment use of any reversable or non-reversable chromic inks is contemplated such as photochromic inks, hydrochromic inks, solvatochromic inks, piezochromic inks, electrochromic inks, chemochromic inks, halochromic inks, etc. In a variant, the inksthat are used are nano inks, examples of which include conductive nano inks, carbon nanotube inks, quantum dot inks, gold nanoparticle inks, magnetic nano inks, photovoltaic nano inks, nanoparticle-based pigment inks, thermochromic nano inks. In a variant, the printing is done via etching such as laser etching. The labels can be printed using desktop roll printers of commercially available brands such as Zebra, CAB, Datamax O’Neil, Printronix, Citizen, Intermec, Godex, Dymo, Toshiba, Brady, Epson, Brother or sheet format printers such as HP, Brother, Canon, Xerox, Samsung, Lexmark, OKI, Dell, Ricoh, Kyocera, Epson, Konica Minolta, Panasonic, etc.

[0093] As observed from Fig. 1 B, 2B, 3B, 4B, 5A and 5B, the printing layer 11 B covers only portion of the facestock 11 , forming the printable portion 11 A. A remainder of the label 10, i.e., excluding the printable portion 11 A, is the transparent shielding portion 11C that may shield the opaque portion partially or in its entirety. It may encircle the opaque part more than once. The transparent shielding portion 11 C may simply be the transparent facestock 11. The printable portion 11A and the transparent shielding portion 11 C occupy opposite ends of the label 10B. In an embodiment, as described below, the footprint of the transparent shielding portion 11C is equal or greater than that of the printable portion 11A. The portion 11C may also be smaller than the portion 11A in another embodiment, as long as a total length of the facestock 11 is at least equal to 1 .1 TTD (IT used herein being equal to about 3.1416), for the label 10 to overlap itself when on a vial 1 having a diameter D. It can overlap approximately 10% or more of the L1 width of 11A. In an embodiment, it can overlap 100% of the L1 width of 11A. In another embodiment, it can overlap between 10% and 50% of the L1 width of 11A. In another embodiment, it can overlap between 50% and 100% of the L1 width of 11 A. In another embodiment, it can overlap more than 100% of the L1 width of 11A by passing over L1 and overlapping L2 width of 11 A. The transparent shielding portion 11 C may cover any ink on the printable portion 11 A to protect the ink.

[0094] An adhesive layer 12 is coated on a second surface of the facestock 11 , and may also be transparent. The adhesive in the adhesive layer 12 may be any type of adhesive including pressure-sensitive adhesives, and non-limitative examples include a water-based adhesive, acrylic-based adhesive, an emulsion adhesive, a hot melt including a UV hot melt, a rubber-based adhesive, a latex-based adhesive, a solventbased adhesive, a silicon-based adhesive, a UV-curable adhesive, EB-curableadhesive, a LED-curable adhesive including a LED-UV-curable adhesive, a cross-linked adhesive, heat activated adhesive, adhesives for cold-stamping or hot-stamping, any combination thereof, etc. In an embodiment, the adhesive may be water soluble and can dissolve in water within the range of seconds or a few minutes. In another embodiment, the adhesive is environmentally friendly such as environmentally sustainable, biodegradable or biocompostable to any degree. Similarly, in a variant, the adhesive can be permanent, while in another scenario, the adhesive can be removable and / or repositionable, allowing repositioning of the label 10 on the surface to be labelled. The adhesive of the adhesive layer 12 can also be a glove-friendly removable adhesive, for example. In an embodiment, the adhesive may be transparent. As another embodiment, the adhesive may have different degree of transparency, haziness, translucency or opacity. As another embodiment, the adhesive is opaque. As another embodiment, the adhesive may have color such as black color to provide full opacity to the label. As another embodiment, the adhesive may have a color for other than opacity purpose. As another embodiment, the adhesive may have a odour such as perfumery, cosmetic, esthetic, culinary or for any other purpose. As another embodiment, the adhesive may have anti-bacterial ingredient to prevent growth of bacteria or viruses or microorganisms. It is noted that any pressure-sensitive adhesive could be used. In an embodiment, the adhesive of the adhesive layer 12 can adhere to frozen containers at surface temperature around or up to -72C or below and subsequently placed inside cryogenic Dewar inside liquid phase liquid nitrogen or vapor phase liquid nitrogen, with such adhesive being known and available commercially as CryoSTUCK® label from GA International Inc (Laval, Canada). The label 10 may have such adhesive as the adhesive layer 12 for uses in biorepositories, tissue and cell banks where the cryogenic vials and containers cannot be thawed when relabelling is required. In an embodiment, the label 10 can be applied to containers including but not limited to low-energy plastics at a surface temperature between around -25°C and -40°C on tube 1 having an outside diameter 15.0 mm or less. In another embodiment, the label 10 can be applied to containers including but not limited to low-energy plastics at a surface temperature between around -40°C and -70°C on tube 1 having an outside diameter 15.0 mm or less. In another embodiment, the label 10 can be applied to containers including but not limited to low-energy plastics at a surface temperature between around -70°C and - 80°C on tube 1 having an outside diameter 15.0 mm or less. In another embodiment,the label 10 can be applied to containers including but not limited to low-energy plastics at a surface temperature between around -80°C and -100°C on tube 1 having an outside diameter 15.0 mm or less. In another embodiment, the label 10 can be applied to containers including but not limited to low-energy plastics at a surface temperature between around -100°C and -120°C on tube 1 having an outside diameter 15.0 mm or less. In another embodiment, the label 10 can be applied to containers including but not limited to low-energy plastics at a surface temperature between around -120°C and - 196°C on tube 1 having an outside diameter 15.0 mm or less. In another embodiment, the label 10 can be applied to containers including but not limited to low-energy plastics at a surface temperature at -196°C or below on tube 1 having an outside diameter 15.0 mm or less. In another embodiment, the label 10 can be applied to containers including but not limited to low-energy plastics at a surface temperature at around -72°C to -80°C on tube 1 having an outside diameter 15.0 mm or less and subsequently immerse the tube 1 into liquid phase or vapor phase liquid nitrogen such as inside Dewar vessel filled with liquid nitrogen. In an embodiment, the label 10 can be applied to containers including but not limited to low-energy plastics at a surface temperature between around -25°C and -40°C on tube 1 having an outside diameter 40.0 mm or less. In another embodiment, the label 10 can be applied to containers including but not limited to low-energy plastics at a surface temperature between around -40°C and -70°C on tube 1 having an outside diameter 40.0 mm or less. In another embodiment, the label 10 can be applied to containers including but not limited to low-energy plastics at a surface temperature between around -70°C and -80°C on tube 1 having an outside diameter 40.0 mm or less. In another embodiment, the label 10 can be applied to containers including but not limited to low-energy plastics at a surface temperature between around -80°C and -100°C on tube 1 having an outside diameter 40.0 mm or less. In another embodiment, the label 10 can be applied to containers including but not limited to low-energy plastics at a surface temperature between around -100°C and - 120°C on tube 1 having an outside diameter 40.0 mm or less. In another embodiment, the label 10 can be applied to containers including but not limited to low-energy plastics at a surface temperature between around -120°C and -196°C on tube 1 having an outside diameter 40.0 mm or less. In another embodiment, the label 10 can be applied to containers including but not limited to low-energy plastics at a surface temperature at -196°C or below on tube 1 having an outside diameter 40.0 mm or less. In anotherembodiment, the label 10 can be applied to containers including but not limited to low- energy plastics at a surface temperature at around -72°C to -80°C on tube 1 having an outside diameter 40.0 mm or less and subsequently immerse the tube 1 into liquid phase or vapor phase liquid nitrogen such as inside Dewar vessel filled with liquid nitrogen. In an embodiment, the adhesive 20A of the RFID inlay is for application to a frozen surfaces as low as around -70°C. In another embodiment, the adhesive 20A of the RFID inlay is for application to frozen surfaces at temperature range between -70°C and -80°C The use of RFID tags inside liquid nitrogen tanks immersion into liquid phase and vapor phase liquid nitrogen has been described in US Patents Nos, 7,350,703, and 10,762,308, and US Patent Application No. 18 / 060,778 all of which are incorporated herein by reference. While US Patent Application No. 18 / 060,778 recites given dimensions of containers, the label set 10 of the present disclosure may be configured for other container dimensions to be used with the vial 1 or tube 1 described above.

[0095] In some implementations, the adhesive of the adhesive layer 12 can be weakened or even neutralized at one or more locations using any adhesive neutralizing agent such as a varnish, an ink or UV varnish, a UV ink or the like. The use of pattern coated adhesives, i.e., areas of the material devoid of adhesive, is also contemplated. The use of combinations of adhesives in the same area or in different areas of the label10 is contemplated.

[0096] The adhesive layer 12 may have a thickness equal to or less than about 4.0 mil. Adhesive thickness of more than 4.0 mil is contemplated. More specifically, the adhesive layer 12 could have a thickness of between about 0.05 mil and 2.0 mil, and even more specifically, the adhesive layer 12 could have a thickness of between about 0.4 mil and 1 .5 mil, or of between about 0.6 mil and 1 .2 mil, or still more specifically, of between about 0.7 mil and 1 .0 mil.

[0097] A support liner 13, also known as a release, a release liner, a silicone liner, a backing or a liner, may also be provided, from which the adhesive 12 with the facestock11 can be released. For example, the support liner 13 may include a release coating, such as a silicon coating on which the adhesive 12 is harboured. Any other coatings facilitating the release of the adhesive may be used instead of silicone. The release liner 13 may be paper based, or polymer based, with contemplated polymers including a polyester (PET), polypropylene (PP), bi-axially oriented polypropylene (BOPP) or anyother type of a polymer. For example, the release liner 13 may be a silicone or fluorosilicone coated support on which the adhesive layer 12 is harboured or retained, though other materials can be used, including waxes or other adhesive release coatings, etc, on a substrate. For example, if the support liner 13 is paper based, a low friction coating (e.g., silicone, fluorosilicone, or non-silicone based release coating, or wax) may be present to facilitate the peeling off of the facestock 11 and adhesive layer 12 from the support liner 13. Accordingly, when the release liner 13 is removed, the facestock 11 may be adhered to the vial surface, by the adhesive layer 12. In another embodiment, the release liner 13 may have imaging properties meaning that the manual writing with a pen or a pencil or with any type of impact instrument or impact printer can create a copy of the image on the release liner 13. In this case, when the facestock 11 is removed from the liner 13, the copy of the printed information or the image remains on the release liner 13 similar to carbon-copying. In another embodiment, the label 10 may be linerless. The support liner 13 may have a surface coating (a.k.a., release coating) or any low adherence surface or feature, upon which the adhesive layer 12 is laid, to facilitate the separation of the facestock 11 and adhesive layer 12 from the support liner 13. The support liner 13 may have printed information, graphics, indicia or data on either side of the liner. The support liner 13 may also be in any color including white, natural kraft, or any other color. Other features associated with the liner 13 may be as described in United States Patent Application No. 17 / 092,719, filed on November 9, 2020 and incorporated herein by reference, such features including the presence of a slit in the liner 13 to facilitate the peeling of the removable liner 13 and the application of the label 10 to a tube 1 .

[0098] Dimensions of the label 10B are now provided. The dimensions of the label 10B are as a function of the dimensions of the tube 1 , such as the outer diameter D. While in Figs. 3B and 4B the printable zone 11A is to one side of the label 10B, the following dimensional ratios also apply to embodiments in which the printable zone 11A is centered, with segments of the transparent shielding portion 11C being on either side of the printable zone 11 A. Accordingly, when the label 10B is to be used with a tube 1 , the label 10B may be selected by a user as a function of the outer diameter D, to achieve the coverage shown in Figs. 1 B and 2B. The dimensions are expressed inheight and length, with the label 10B being wrapped in length on the tube 1 , and the height generally parallel to a central axis of the tube 1 .

[0099] The length Li of the printable portion 11A may be expressed as:

[0100] 0.8TTD < Li < 1 .3TTD

[0101] The relative lengths of the printable portion 11A and of the transparent shield portion 11C may be expressed as:

[0102] Li < l_2 < 2.5L1

[0103] The length L2 of the transparent shield portion 11C, which length L2 is the cumulative length of the two segments for embodiments in which the printable portion 11 A is centered may be expressed as:

[0104] TTD < l_2< 3.5TTD

[0105] Variations may exist for length L2 of the transparent shield portion 11C, such as the two variants expressed as:

[0106] 0.5TTD < l_2< 2TTD

[0107] 1 ,5TTD < l_2< 3TTD

[0108] The total length of the label 10B, Li + L2 is:

[0109] 1 ,8TTD < (Li + L2) < 3.5TTD

[0110] In another variant, the height Hi of the label 10B is selected based on the dimensions of the tube 1 , including the tail portion of the label 10B. For example, Hi may be between 4.0 mm and 100.0 mm. In another variant, the height Hi of the label 10B may be between 6.0 mm and 30.0 mm. In another variant, the height Hi of the label 10B may be between 9.0 mm and 22.0 mm. In yet another variant, the height Hi of the label 10B may be between 7.0 mm and 70.0 mm. In yet another embodiment, the height Hi of the label 10B is between 15.0 mm and 64.0 mm. In yet another embodiment, the height Hi of the label 10B is between 12.0 mm and 26.0 mm.

[0111] Although the dimensions provided below have the transparent shield portion 11C capable of covering a full circumference, it may also be possible to have shorter shield portion 11 C, such as just enough to have an overlap of the label 10B on itself. For example, in the case of low surface energy polymers for the tubes 1 , it may bedesired to have an adhesive to facestock bonding as a result of the overlap for more secure attachment of the label 10B to the tube 1. For example, if Li is equal to the circumference C, then L2 may be 10% or more of Li to have sufficient overlap on L-i. If Li is less than the circumference then the L2 should be longer in order to achieve the 10% coverage of L2, for the total length of the label 10B to be at least 1 ,1 TTD. It is also considered to have a length to the label 10B to enable multiple revolutions around the tube 1. The adhesive would be adjusted as a consequence to allow the unwinding of the label 10.

[0112] Referring to Fig. 6A, a plurality of the label sets 10 are shown on a common release liner 13, the release liner 13 being in the form of a roll 20. Rolls of the label sets 10 may usually be wound on a paper core or plastic core. Cores can be of any diameter. Standard core diameters are 1” or 3” but in some occasions they may be on a core diameter of 0.5”, 0.75”, 1.5”, 2.0”, 4.0”, 6.0”. Although the label sets 10 are of the type shown in Figs. 4A, all other label sets described herein may be on a roll. As other embodiments, the release liner 13 may be in the form of a sheet 30 as in Fig. 7A and 7B (such as a letter size 8.5” x 11”, legal size 8.5”x14”, A4, Hagaki, ledger 11 ”x17” or other sheet formats) with rows and columns of the label sets 10, or in the form of flat strips with rows of the label sets 10, booklet, fanfold, etc. In an embodiment, when the label sets 10 are intended for printing in a laser printer, an inkjet printer, a LED printer or any other type of printer or copier in a sheet format, the release liner 13 may be resistant to heat without curling when it is passed through such a printer (for example laser printer). Such release liners are also known as “layflat” liners. In some cases the layflat liners may be thicker than regular release liners, and may be for example up to around 7.0 mil in thickness or even thicker. Still referring to Fig. 7A, the sheet 30 may be configured to have one or more printing shields 31 surrounding the labels 10A, and surrounding part but not all of the labels 10B. The printing shield 31 may also be known as matrix. Therefore, the sheet 30 exhibits on its printable side a plurality of the label sets 10, one or more printing shields 31 , and the release liner 13. In the illustrated embodiment, there are five printing shields 31 , namely one for each column of label sets 10. As there may be more or fewer columns of label sets 10, there may be more or fewer printing shields 31. Moreover, there may be more than one printing shield 31 per row. The printing shields 31 may be made of the same facestock material as the labelsets 10. The printing shield(s) 31 may be present as a result of a die-cutting step that is used to define the label sets 10 relative to a remainder of the facestock. As such, the die-cutting may also have created a waste portion(s) of facestock, that has been removed in the sheet 30 of Fig. 7 A, which waste portion(s) was(were) where the release liner 13 is exposed on the printable side of the sheet 30, as shown in Fig. 7A. Stated differently, the columns of label sets 10 and associated printing shields 31 are like islands surrounded by release liner 13, after removal of the waste portion(s). The removal of the waste portion(s) may optionally be done at manufacturing, such that end users or purchasers of the sheets 30 receive them in the manner shown in Fig. 7A or in Fig. 7B, i.e., with releaser liner 13 showing. It may also be the users or purchasers that remove the waste portion. The printing shields 31 are sized to leave an edge 10B” (e.g., a peeling edge) or other portion of the labels 10B exposed, i.e., adjacent to the release liner 13. This may facilitate the grasping and peeling of the label set 10 from the sheet 30, via this edge 10B”, as a user’s finger or a robot manipulator may not be hampered by adjacent facestock. In Fig. 7A, one configuration for defining the edges 10B” is to have a distance D1 from an edge of the printing shields 31 to the edges 10B”. Other configurations are possible. Fig. 7B shows a similar arrangement, but without such a distance D1 . Moreover, it is considered to have such a peeling edge 10B” on the side of the labels 10A. The printing shields 31 may surround a substantial portion of the label sets 10, thus serving as a shield for any ink that is added to the sheet 30 that is outside of the boundaries of the label sets 10. Indeed, during the printing of the label sets 10 on the sheet 30, while the intention may be that ink is only added to the label sets 10, ink may be printed outside of the boundaries of the label sets 10, for various reasons, such as error, miscalibration, splash, etc. It may also be desired to use the printing shield(s) 11A to support data that may identify the label sets 10, in which case the ink on the printing shields 31 is desired. In such a case, the printing shields 31 may be regarded as printing margins. The printing shield 31 may function as an area for printing additional information, indicators, headings, titles, instructions, and other information that maybe useful to the user or for record keeping and archival. The printing shield 31 , whether used as a shield or as a margin, has a protective function, as it receives ink thereon, instead of such ink being applied to the release liner 13. Ink on the release liner 13 may be unwanted, for example for given types of ink, and given substances at the surface of the release liner 13 (e.g., coating ofsilicone). Ink may not adhere or bond to some release liners 13, and thus the presence of ink on some release liners 13 may be problematic, for example by staining printing equipment and user fingers, etc. Stated differently, ink on the release liner 13 may smudge more easily, may be unstable, and is thus undesired. The present of the printing shields 31 reduces the amount of release liner 13 exposed. However, some release liner 13 may be exposed to facilitate the peeling of the label sets 10 from the sheet 30. The printing shield 31 is shown in the sheet 30, but may also be present in the rolls of label sets 10 as in Fig. 6A, 6B, strips of label sets 10, etc. The label sets 10 could be in any orientation, not only those shown in the figures. Printing shields 31 may be used with any of the label sets 10 described herein, to cover part of the release liners 13 harbouring such label sets 10. Perforations or microperforations of the release liner from top to bottom of the sheet in the area between the columns may be incorporated to separate the columns of the labels from the remainder of the sheet 30. In an embodiment, the sheet of labels may not have printing shield 31 but may instead have the matrix left intact and the entire sheet of labels have no exposed release liner 13 which may be covered by the matrix, except for the edges of the sheet, such as a frame around the sheet which will prevent adhesive oozing and jamming of a printer. In another embodiment, the entire matrix is removed and the release liner 13 will be exposed everywhere except at the locations of the label sets 10.

[0113] When in a roll 20, as in Fig. 6A, tear lines 13A may be provided to separate the liner 13 in segments. For example, the tear lines 13A may be formed in the liner 13 between each label 10, such that a label 10 and its associated portion of liner 13 may be detached from the roll 20, or from a sheet, booklet, fanfold or any other format of label sets 10 and liner 13. As a variant, the perforation lines 13A may be absent. In another variant, the perforation lines 13A may be spaced, such as to be between every 2nd, 3rd 4th |abe| or at any number of labels or at any intervals between the label sets 10, to have multiple label sets 10 per single support liner 13. To facilitate the peeling of the label set 10, the SimPEEL technology from GA International Inc. (Laval, Canada) described in United States Patent Application Publication No. 20220058984 may be used, the content of this patent application being incorporated herein by reference. In an embodiment, shown in Fig. 6B, the support liner 13 may have a slit or back-slit 13B to facilitate the peeling of the label sets 10 from the liner 13. The back-slit 13B may beat any distance from the edge of the roll 20 in a form of a continuous vertical slit that is positioned under the label set 10, allowing a separation of the liner 13 and exposing the adhesive side of the label set 10 to facilitate peeling from the support liner 12. Moreover, this slit 13B may be combined with perforation lines 13A or other slits to allow the manipulation of the label sets 10 in the manner described in US Patent Application No. 17 / 092,719, incorporated herein by reference. In an embodiment, a portion of the support liner, shown as 13C, remains on the label set 10 after the label set 10 has been released from a remainder of the support liner 13. This support liner portion 13C may be used for manipulating the label set 10 when applying it against the tube or vial 1. Once the label 10A is attached to the tube or vial 1 , the support liner portion 13C may be removed from the label 10B, or it may be removed after a user has begun adhering the label 10B on the tube or vial 1 . In an embodiment, the roll 20 of the labels may be provided in a dispenser box 40, as in Fig. 8, that can be placed on a bench and dispense label sets 10 for manual writing. In an embodiment, the roll 20 of labels may be provided in a kit with a dispenser such as a single-roll dispenser or multiroll dispenser which may or may not have a spindle to accommodate the roll 20 of labels. The label set in the current disclosure has a combination of separable labels for easy peeling combined with an arcuate angle with perforation and back-slit in the liner that makes the peeling and application of it significantly more efficient compared to prior art labels. In our tests the labeling of microtubes can be done at least 30% faster using the label of current disclosure.

[0114] Although not shown, cut-outs may be provided in the liner 13 of the roll 20, at repeated intervals. For example, the cut-outs may disrupt the tear lines 13A. The cutouts serve as a visual or optical marker for a printer (a.k.a., notch, label position indicators), to locate the label sets 10 when printing from the roll 20. Notches are another possible label position indicator. The notch for visual or optical detection by the sensor of the printer may be located in any area of the roll 20 depending on the position of the sensor in the printer (whether a dynamic or static sensor printer is used). In an embodiment that differs from the notches or cut-outs, the visual marker is in the form of a printed contrasting line (a.k.a., black mark, mark sensing lines). The contrasting lines may have a color or tone contrasting from its surroundings, to be detected optically by a sensor of the printer. Stated differently the contrasting lines serve as a marker for aprinter, to locate the label sets 10 when printing from the roll 20. The contrasting lines may be of different length covering entirely the width of the roll or the label or they may only partially cover the width of the roll or the label. Depending on the type of printer or a printing device there may be other types of contrasting lines or contrasting shapes (e.g., square, rectangle, etc) that may be located any place on the underside of the roll that provide a detection of the label by the sensor of the printer. In an embodiment, the cut-outs, notches and / or contrast lines may not be present in the roll 20 or other format, in which case the sensor of the printer may be located under the location of the printing portion 11 B (opaque print area) or printable portion 11A to detect the labels by the detecting the opacity of the 11 B or 10A, 10B or 10C in Figs. 3A, 4A, 4C.

[0115] In an embodiment, with reference to Fig. 12, a method 100 for applying the label set 10 onto a tube 1 may include one or more of: a step 101 of releasing a label set including at least a first label and a second label connected together from a common release liner; after the releasing, a step 102 of adhering the first label to a first part of the tube, by optionally pressing the round label to secure it on the cap 1A of the vial 1 via adhesive using a finger, a step 103 of separating the first label from the second label using for example a tear line between the first label and the second label optionally while pressing onto the first label, and a step 104 of adhering the second label to a second part of the tube. Adhering the first label to a first part of the tube may include adhering the first label to a cap of the small tube. Adhering the second label to a second part of the tube may include adhering the second label to container body of the tube. As an option, adhering the second label to container body of the tube may include applying a first end of the second label against a cylindrical surface of a tube, the end having a printing surface; wrapping the second label around the cylindrical surface of the tube; and applying a transparent shielding portion of the second label over the end having the printing surface. Printing or writing on the label set may occur prior to releasing. The separating is performed when one of the first label and the second label is adhered to the small tube.

[0116] In an embodiment, the label set 10 comes in a kit. The kit may include one or more of the label sets 10, such as label set 10 on the release liner 13, in a roll 20, sheet, booklet, fanfold, strip, and one or more tubes 1. In the kit, labels 10 may be provided detached. The kit may also include the presence of a liquid or othersubstance in the tube 1. Some or all of the components of the kit may be sterile (i.e., sterilized) as an option. The label set 10 can be non-sterile, sterile or clean-room certified or compliant. The label sets 10 can be provided blank or pre-printed, and / or may be with any background color or color indicator such as chromic or thermochromic ink, and / or image, and / or information and / or barcode and / or alphanumeric markings, and / or indicia etc. The kit may also include ink and / or inked ribbon, which ink is compatible with the material of the facestock 11 to provide some resistance to solvents (e.g., alcohol, xylene, bleach, formalin, acid, base, MEK, fuel, gasoline, ketones, acetones,) and / or cryogenic conditions, or other conditions or phenomenon such as freezer, autoclave, dry heat, gamma sterilization, resistance to radiation, physical friction, mechanical force, water, boiling water, radiation, rays such as UV rays, microwave, dishwasher. The kit may include also the printing or writing device such as a printer. In an embodiment, the kit is part of a diagnostic kit or a sample collection kit e.g. DNA collection kit, genetic testing kits, biological sample collection kits, any other types of kits used in laboratory, or any other industry.

[0117] In addition to the embodiments shown herein, the label sets 10 can be positioned in any orientation on a roll or sheet, such as landscape, portrait, vertical, with any appropriate angle. An orientation can be provided to facilitate automatic peeling from a peeling device, and / or label applicator device or from a robotic device. Label set 10 can be used in any robotic device that may include modules such as a printer, an RF encoder, a peeler, an applicator, robotic arm, an actual robot or any an other module for manipulation or combination thereof. Label set 10 may facilitate an automation process by simplifying the peeling of more than one label in one motion. The label set 10 may be suitably used in cryogenic storage or applied to frozen surfaces, in one contemplated use among others, for instance in a manner described in US Patent No. 10,762,308, and entitled “Method and system for Wireless Identification of Samples in Cryogenic Liquid Storage”, and in US Patent Application No. 18 / 060,778, the contents of which are incorporated by reference, as above. The RFID tags may be encoded with specific information, such as described in US Patent No. 7,350,703 and entitled “Low temperature radio frequency identification tracking system”, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. The label 10 may be printed by using a VerificationSystem for Label Printer, as described in United States Patent Application No. 17 / 826,888, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference.

[0118] As shown above, more than two labels may be provided in the label set 10, such as a third label that can be peeled in one motion and be attached to a form or a notebook or to a duplicate aliquote. Often in clinical labs, it may be required to identify multiple specimens from a single patient on multiple tubes, which multiple tubes must be labeled. The multiple specimens may be blood, urine and other types of biological fluids, specimens and tissues. In some cases, microscope slide, IVF straw, IVF goblet, cryogenic box, freezer box, cell culture plate, microtiter plate, microarray plate, PCR plate, Petri dish, PCR tube, or similar or other containers can be used as a part of identifying patient specimen. Peeling of multiple labels in one motion for identifying multiple containers will be highly desirable. For example, instead of label set 10 being a circle and rectangle, label set 10 may be multiple circles which can be peeled in one motion or multiple rectangles that can be peeled in one motion for labeling vials or containers. In an embodiment, any other shapes described in this application is contemplated. With reference to Fig. 11A, a plurality of labels 10A, a label strip, are shown tied to one another by a tear line, as positioned on a same support liner 13. A user may therefore remove the support liner 13, and have five labels 10A that may be adhered to five microcentrifuge tubes or vials, such as to the caps. While five labels 10A are shown, there may be more or fewer labels 10A in the strip of Fig. 11A. Thus, the user only has to remove the support liner 13 to have enough labels 10A for multiple tubes or vials. In a variant, a slit 13B is optionally present in the support liner 13, such that a support liner portion 13C remains on one or more of the labels 10A. The slit 13B may be at other location as long as it is positioned under any of the labels 10A. Therefore, the user can manipulate the strip of labels 10A from the portion 13C, with a remainder of the support liner 13 removed to expose the adhesive of the labels 10A (e.g., adhesive 12 as above). The portion 13C is then removed when the last label(s) 10A is to be applied. With reference to Fig. 11 B, a plurality of labels 10C are shown tied to one another by a tear line, as positioned on a same support liner 13, in a similar fashion as for the labels 10A in Fig. 11A. A user may therefore remove the support liner 13, and have five labels 10C (or more or less) that may be adhered to an equivalent microcentrifuge tubes or vials, such as to the lateral surfaces of the tubes or vials.Thus, the user only has to remove the support liner 13 to have enough labels 10C for multiple tubes or vials. In a variant, a slit 13B is optionally present in the support liner 13, such that a support liner portion 13C remains on one or more of the labels 10C. The slit 13B may be at other location as long as it is positioned under any of the labels 10C Therefore, the user can manipulate the strip of labels 10C by the portion 13C, with a remainder of the support liner 13 removed to expose the adhesive of the labels 10C (e.g., adhesive 12 as above). The portion 13C is then removed when the last label(s) 10C is to be applied. In both instances, numerous back and forth steps are avoided. Though illustrated, the tear line is optional. The user may rely on the narrowing at the junction between labels to separate them. As in other embodiments, weakening lines could also be used to facilitate the manual separation. In another embodiment, the weakening lines such as cuts or perforations may be of unequal size or configuration to provide enough cohesive strength to remove the labels from the support liner in one motion and significant fragility to easily be separated from each other. In another embodiment, more than one slit 13B may be present in the liner 13.

[0119] The label set 10 may further include a RF inlay as shown as 14 in Fig. 5B. The RF inlay 14 may have a memory, that may be any of a TID (Tag Identifier) memory may encode the unique identification number of the RF inlay; EPC (Electronic Product Code); USER memory allowing the user to encode and read information; RESERVED memory is for locking the read and write functions of the RF inlay. It is contemplated that the label 10 covers any possible form of RFID memory or functions, or any other wireless chips of any appropriate frequency (e.g., NFC, UHF, HF, radiowave). The label set 10 may be cut to define the labels 10A and 10B using a a rotary die cutter, semi-rotary die cutter, a laser cutter, flat-bed die-cutter (a.k.a. kiss-cutter), digital cutter, plotter, etc. In an embodiment, the die cutting is done via rotary die cutter which may be part of a flexographic press. As another embodiment, the cutting is done via laser cutter using a laser beam to cut the labels. In an embodiment, the die cutting is done via stand-alone rotary die cutter or laser cutter, In an embodiment, the die cutting is done via rotary die cutter or laser cutter as part of any printing press or equipment. In an embodiment, the die cutting is done via rotary die cutter-finisher or laser-cutter-finisher after printing on a web of material.

[0120] The label 10 may thus be described a label set for a tube such as small tube, the label 10 may have a facestock defining a first label and a second label connected to one another, and a tear line at a junction between the first label and the second label; and an adhesive layer on an undersurface of the facestock; wherein the first label is sized to be adhered to a cap of the tube and the second label is sized to be adhered to a body of the tube; wherein the first label and the second label are separable from one another via the tear line once removed from a release liner.

[0121] The label set 10 may be applied to an IVF straw for a storage inside liquid phase or vapor phase liquid nitrogen. Also, the label set 10 may be applied to a tube for storage inside liquid phase or vapor phase liquid nitrogen, or for storage inside ultra-low temperature freezers in temperature range from - 70C to - 196C, and / or dry ice.

[0122] The label configurations and methods described hereinafter may be used in any industry where labels are used. Some implementations of the label configurations and methods may further be particularly well suited for use in certain industries. In particular, the labels used in some industries - such as in biotechnology, biomedicine, cell banking, tissue banking and other fields involving cryogenic bio-preservation or freezing of biological specimen - are typically required to be thinner and more flexible than in other fields and are therefore substantially more difficult to peel using prior art methods. Cryogenic application for the sake of the present disclosure is at -70C and below. Specifically storage in liquid phase of liquid nitrogen at -196C, storage in vapour phase of liquid nitrogen, freezers with temperatures at -70C, -80C, -120C, -196C or below, and / or in dry ice. In some applications, the labels 10 may be used in condition in which they are contacting liquid helium at -269C. Storage or use of other liquified gases in storing or contacting labels is contemplated For example, it has been shown that cryogenic label materials that are intended for use at -80 C and below such as inside liquid nitrogen tanks at -196 C or below or that are exposed to liquid helium at -269 C may have facestock elongation values between 10% and 500% or even more. Labels of the present disclosure may be used in any temperatures including but not limited to ambient temperatures, inside refrigerators around from +10°C to 0°C, in freezers from around -1°C to -150°C, inside ice such as ice cubes, inside dry ice, in thermostats from around 25°C to 250°C, inside steam-sterilization autoclave, and other higher or lower temperatures achievable in laboratory or industrial settings.

[0123] It will be understood that the label configurations and methods described hereinafter are not limited to use in these fields, and may be used instead in other fields such as clinical trials, pharmaceutical, healthcare, biobanking, histology, plant science, animal science, entomology, homeopathy, archeology, geology, fuel analysis, perfume, environmental labs, water and soil analysis, air quality, veterinary, animal husbandry, packaging, automotive, electrical, electronics, avionics, aerospace, food, chemical, agricultural, fashion, gas and oil, plumbing, heavy industrial, light industrial, construction, jewelry, eyewear, or any other suitable field or industry or laboratory. Tamper evident cuts may be provided in the facestock, which cuts break the label upon any attempt to remove it from a vial. Destructible facestock materials may be used and may be of the type that destructs upon attempt to remove. Other types of tamper- evident material constructions are also contemplated. Water-soluble material may be used to remove labels / information. Labels may be made using laser cutting, rotary diecutting, flat die-cutting a.k.a., kiss-cutting, or plotter cutting using a computer driven blade or knive such as a Roland plotter or similar. The different portions of the same label 10 may include different adhesives or be devoid of adhesive while the other portion is with adhesive. Different portions of the label 10 may be made from different facestock materials. Software template design (e.g. using MS Word®) for printing on any of the labels of the present disclosure is contemplated.

[0124] With reference to the shearing discussed in Fig. 9, when the labels 10A and 10B are connected or transitioned under angle without having any curvature, such as straight lines, the connection between two labels 10A and 10B may be weak and the disassociation of labels 10A and 10B may occur during a peeling process. More in depth analysis showed that a reason is the weakening of the integrity of the structure. To overcome it, a V-shape or parabolic shape transition between the labels 10A and 10B may be used, with 1stperforation approximately 0.5mm from the top and bottom of the rounded-bottom V-shapes. This configuration may result in the structure being significantly more solid with no failures upon peeling. When the snapping force necessary to snap was measured for a non-rounded bottom V-shape without any curvature on the transition line compared to three other implementations when the transition between the two labels 10A and 10B were rounded-bottom V shapes, it was confirmed that there was a significant difference in a snapping force.

[0125] For example, tensile tests were performed for the label set 10 according to ASTM D638-99- Tensile properties for plastic. The speed of the test was set to 10 mm / min. The tests were done at room temperature, and 10 specimens for each sample were tested. The Electromechanical machine Insight (MTS Insight) was used for this test, with load cells of 5 N and 100 N.

[0126] The results for the force needed for the rupture of the samples are as follows:

[0127] Actual measurement of samples with different connection patterns showed a significant difference in the tensile strength when the force necessary for snapping the labels 10A and 10B was measured. Gen 1 is the negative control which has an angle without any curvature, whereas Gen 3 is the identical label with a rounded V-shape transition. The tensile force necessary for snapping the shapes is 3x more for rounded corner with a perforation at approximately 0.5mm from the connection point. Gen4 and Label 562 have rounded V-shape transitions except that the width of the connection is 4.0 mm compared to 5.0mm for Gen3 and Genl . Even with 20% narrower connection the Gen4 and Label562 have at least 2.5x stronger in tensile strength compared to Genl .

Claims

CLAIMS:1 . A method for applying labels onto a tube, comprising: releasing a label set including at least a first label and a second label connected together from a common release liner; after the releasing, adhering the first label to a first part of the tube, manually separating the first label from the second label, and adhering the second label to a second part of the tube.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein manually separating the first label from the second label includes using a tear line between the first label and the second label.

3. The method according to claim 1 , wherein adhering the first label to a first part of the tube includes adhering the first label to a cap of the tube.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein adhering the second label to a second part of the tube includes adhering the second label to container body of the tube.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein adhering the second label to container body of the tube includes applying a first end of the second label against a cylindrical surface of a tube, the end having a printing surface; wrapping the second label around the cylindrical surface of the tube; and applying a transparent shielding portion of the second label over the end having the printing surface.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, including printing on the label set prior to releasing.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein manually separating is performed when the first label is adhered to the first part of the tube.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein releasing the label set from the common release liner includes maintaining a release liner portion on part of the second label.

9. The method according to claim 8, further including removing the release liner portion from the second label before or during adhering the second label to the second part of the tube.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the method is performed on a microcentrifuge tube or vial.

11. A label set for a tube, comprising: a facestock defining a first label and a second label connected to one another, and a tear line at a junction between the first label and the second label; and an adhesive layer on an undersurface of the facestock; wherein the first label is sized to be adhered to a cap of the tube and the second label is sized to be adhered to a body of the tube; wherein the first label and the second label are separable from one another via the tear line once removed from a release liner.

12. The label set according to claim 11 , further including the release liner upon which the first label and second label are adhered as connected to one another.

13. The label set according to claim 11 or claim 12, wherein the facestock is a transparent facestock, an opaque printing area being defined on a top surface of the transparent facestock, the printing area configured to receive data thereon, the printing area covering only a portion of the transparent facestock, whereby a shielding portion is defined by a remainder of the label is transparent.

14. The label set according to claim 13, wherein the opaque printing area is a printing layer defined by opaque ink.

15. The label set according to claim 13 or claim 14, wherein the opaque printing area covers the first label and a portion of the second label.

16. The label set according to any one of claims 13 to 16, wherein the shielding portion has a length L2 being TTD < L2 < 3.5TTD.

17. The label set according to any one of claims 13 to 17, wherein the printing area has length Li being 0.8TTD < Li < 1 .3TTD.

18. The label set according to any one of claims 11 to 17, wherein the label set has the capacity to withstand storage at -70C or below.

19. The label set according to any one of claims 11 to 17, wherein the label set has the capacity to withstand contact with liquid nitrogen and / or vapor phase nitrogen.

20. The label set according to any one of claims 11 to 17, wherein the label set has the capacity to withstand contact with dry ice.21 . The label set according to any one of claims 11 to 17, wherein the label set has the capacity to withstand autoclave.

22. The label set according to any one of claims 11 to 17, wherein the label set has the capacity to withstand contact with xylene and / or with alcohol.

23. The label set according to any one of claims 11 to 17, wherein the adhesive layer is a cryogenic adhesive capable to adhere to frozen vials or vials frozen at at least -70C.

24. The label set according to any one of claims 11 to 17, wherein the adhesive layer is a cryogenic adhesive capable to adhere to frozen vials or vials frozen at at least -60C.

25. The label set according to any one of claims 11 to 17, wherein the adhesive layer is a cryogenic adhesive capable to adhere to frozen vials or vials frozen at at least -40C.

26. The label set according to claim 12, wherein the release liner is a sheet having multiple ones of the label set thereon.

27. The label set according to claim 12, wherein the release liner is a roll having multiple ones of the label thereon.

28. The label set according to any one of claims 11 to 27, wherein the first label is generally circular.

29. The label set according to any one of claims 11 to 28, wherein the label set is configured for thermal transfer printing or direct thermal printing.

30. The label set according to any one of claims 11 to 18, wherein the label set is configured for laser printing or inkjet printing.

31. The label set according to any one of claims 11 to 30, wherein an edge at a junction between the first label and the second label is arcuate.

32. A kit comprising: a label set according to any one of claims 11 to 31 , and a tube or a vial.

33. The kit according to claim 32, wherein the label set is prelabelled onto the tube or vial.

34. Creating an electronic template matching the design of the label set of any one of claims 11 to 31.

35. Electronic data populating a template or design matching the configuration and for printing the label set of any one of claims 11 to 31 .

36. An assembly comprising: at least two label sets, each label set having a facestock defining a first label and a second label connected to one another, and a tear line at a junction between the first label and the second label, and an adhesive layer on an undersurface of the facestock, wherein the first label is sized to be adhered to a cap of the tube and the second label is sized to be adhered to a body of the tube, and wherein the first label and the second label are separable from one another via the tear line once removed from a release liner;the release liner upon which the first label and second label are adhered as connected to one another; and at least one shield defined by the facestock and the adhesive layer, the shield surrounding part of the at least two label sets; wherein the at least two label sets and the shield cover only part of the release liner, such that another part of the release liner is exposed adjacent to peeling edge of the at least two label sets.

37. A method for applying labels onto tubes, comprising: releasing a label strip including at plurality of labels connected together from a common release liner; after the releasing, adhering a first label from the label strip to a first tube, manually separating the first label from a remainder of the label strip, and adhering a second label from the label strip to a second tube.

38. The method according to claim 37, wherein manually separating the first label from the label strip includes using a tear line between the first label and the second label.

39. The method according to claim 37, wherein adhering the first label to the tube includes adhering the first label to a cap of the tube.

40. The method according to any one of claims 37 to 39, including printing on the label strip prior to releasing.

41. The method according to any one of claims 37 to 40, wherein manually separating is performed when the first label is adhered to the first tube.

42. The method according to any one of claims 37 to 41 , wherein releasing the label set from the common release liner includes maintaining a release liner portion on part of the label strip.

43. The method according to any one of claims 37 to 42, wherein the method is performed on a microcentrifuge tube or vial.

Images