Cylindrical structure and method for marking cylindrical structure

Abstract

To provide a stamping method capable of making an output state constant regardless of line thickness when stamping with a laser marking on a cylindrical structure used for a writing instrument.SOLUTION: A cylindrical structure in a long and cylindrical shape used for a writing instrument comprises a cylindrical surface on which a stamp is formed with fine type portions and bold type portions, where the bold type portions are composed of aggregated fine type portions.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a cylindrical structure of a writing implement having an engraving applied to its surface, and a method for engraving such a cylindrical structure. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for engraving identification information on the surface of a ballpoint pen tip by laser processing, and Patent Document 2 discloses a technique for marking the surface of a pencil with letters or the like by using a laser beam. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-155426 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 62-138072 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, when engraving identification information such as characters on the surface of a cylindrical structure such as a writing instrument barrel or refill by laser marking, it is necessary to adjust the output conditions depending on the line thickness, and this adjustment has not been easy. An object of the embodiment of the present application is to make it possible to maintain a constant output state regardless of the line thickness when engraving a cylindrical structure used in a writing instrument by laser marking. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] In view of the above problems, an embodiment of the present application is a long, cylindrical tubular structure used for a writing instrument, in which an imprint consisting of a thin portion and a thick portion is formed on the surface of the tubular shape, and the thick portion is composed of a collection of thin portions. The tubular structure here refers to a tubular member that constitutes a part of the writing instrument, such as the barrel of the writing instrument or the ink reservoir of a writing instrument refill. The writing instrument refill is a refill contained in the barrel of the writing instrument, such as a ballpoint pen refill, a marking pen refill, or a mechanical pencil refill.

[0006] It is desirable that the direction of the thin characters constituting the bold character portion is different from the longitudinal direction of the cylindrical shape. Furthermore, it is desirable that the markings by the bold character portion are formed in a plurality of places, and that the direction of the thin characters constituting at least one bold character portion is different from the direction of the thin characters constituting the other bold characters. In this way, by making the direction of the thin characters constituting each bold character portion different, it is possible to increase the design interest.

[0007] The markings can be formed by laser marking the surface of the cylindrical structure. In this case, both the bold and thin portions can be made of lines with the same thickness as the thin portion, so that the bold portion can be formed while the laser beam output is set to the output of the thin portion. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] Since the embodiment of the present application is configured as described above, when engraving a cylindrical structure used in a writing instrument using laser marking, the output state can be kept constant regardless of the line thickness, making it easy to engrave. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating the appearance of a cylindrical structure according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] The bolded part of Figure 1 is shown enlarged. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the "front end" refers to the side of the cylindrical structure (in the following description, a writing instrument refill) where the writing tip (for example, a writing ball) is provided, and the "rear end" refers to the opposite side. Furthermore, common symbols in each drawing indicate the same components or parts unless otherwise specified in the description of the following drawings. In each drawing, the left side of the drawing is the front end side, and the right side is the rear end side.

[0011] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating the appearance of a tubular structure 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The tubular structure 10 according to this embodiment has a long, tubular shape and is used in a writing instrument. Here, the term "tubular structure" refers to a hollow, substantially cylindrical structure. Furthermore, the term "long" refers to a structure in which the length in the front-to-rear direction is longer than the length in the radial direction.

[0012] Specifically, the cylindrical structure 10 of this embodiment is configured as a writing instrument refill, and includes a cylindrical ink reservoir 11 that contains ink (not shown), a joint 12 that is attached to the tip of the ink reservoir 11, and a ballpoint pen tip 13 that is attached to the tip of the joint 12 and holds a writing ball 14 at its tip. In other words, this writing instrument refill is a ballpoint pen refill. Note that the writing instrument refill is not limited to a ballpoint pen refill; for example, a marking pen refill or a mechanical pencil refill can also be used as the cylindrical structure 10 of this embodiment.

[0013] The ink reservoir 11 is made of synthetic resin that allows the interior to be seen. An example of this synthetic resin is polypropylene resin. The ink reservoir 11 may also be made of metal. An inscription 30 consisting of a thin portion 32 and a thick portion 31 is formed on the surface of the ink reservoir 11, which has a cylindrical structure. The thick portion 31 is also made up of a collection of thin portions 32, as shown in FIG. 2. In this embodiment, the inscription 30 is formed by laser marking.

[0014] Generally, when printing bold and thin characters on a surface using laser marking, the laser output when printing bold characters needs to be stronger than when printing thin characters. For this reason, it is necessary to adjust the output conditions depending on the area to be printed.

[0015] On the other hand, in this embodiment, the bold portion 31 can be formed while maintaining the output conditions for the thin portion 32, so there is no need to adjust and change the output conditions for the bold portion 31 and the thin portion 32. Furthermore, by using laser marking, it is possible to easily form the marking 30 in which thin and thick characters are freely combined, for example.

[0016] In the stamp 30 shown in FIG. 1, the six letters "REFILL" are formed as the bold portion 31, and the four letters "2021" are formed as the thin portion 32. All six letters in the bold portion 31 are formed by a collection of lines of the same thickness as the lines forming the thin portion 32. Here, the six letters in the bold portion 31 of the actual ballpoint pen refill appear to be stamped in the same way when visually inspected with the naked eye. However, as shown in FIG. 2, which shows an enlargement of the bold portion 31, the lines of the thin portion 32 that make up the bold portion 31 are oriented in different directions.

[0017] That is, in the bold portion 31 representing "R," the thin portions 32 are formed in a 45° upward and to the right relative to the longitudinal direction, which is different from the longitudinal direction. In the bold portion 31 representing "E," the thin portions 32 are formed in a parallel direction to the longitudinal direction. In the bold portion representing "F," the thin portions 32 are formed in a perpendicular direction to the longitudinal direction, which is different from the longitudinal direction. In the bold portion 31 representing "I," the thin portions 32 are formed in a 45° downward and to the right relative to the longitudinal direction, which is different from the longitudinal direction. In the bold portion 31 representing "L" on the left, the thin portions 32 are formed in a combination of directions parallel to the longitudinal direction and directions perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, and include portions that are different from the longitudinal direction. In the bold portion 31 representing "L" on the right, the thin portions 32 are formed in a combination of directions upward and to the right at 45° downward and to the right relative to the longitudinal direction, both of which are different from the longitudinal direction. As described above, the direction in which the thin portions 32 constituting at least one bold portion 31 are formed is different from the direction in which the thin portions 32 constituting the other bold portions 31 are formed.

[0018] The surface of the fine print section 32 is formed by laser processing to create minute irregularities. By setting the irregularity depth to 0.1 to 1 mm and the irregularity pitch to 0.05 to 0.3 mm, which varies for each character, the light is reflected in a diffused manner, making it possible to recognize it as simply part of the scattering structure, further improving the design.

[0019] As described above, by changing the formation direction of the thin portion 32 for each character in the bold portion 31, a specific formation direction pattern can be selected for a specific product, which not only enhances the design interest but also makes it possible to distinguish a specific product from other products. Furthermore, because the bold portion 31 is formed by laser marking, the formation method of the thin portion 32 can be easily changed. This makes it possible to change the formation direction pattern of the thin portion 32 for each character in the bold portion 31 depending on the time of production, which can also be used to identify the production time of the product.

[0020] The above has described the formation of the marking 30 on a writing instrument refill as a cylindrical structure 10, but the marking 30 can also be formed in a similar manner on the barrel of a writing instrument as a cylindrical structure 10. Furthermore, the marking 3 can also be formed in a similar manner on a cylindrical structure 10 made of metal by appropriately adjusting the type and output of the laser light. [Industrial Applicability]

[0021] The present invention can be used for cylindrical structures such as the barrel of a writing instrument or a refill. [Explanation of symbols]

[0022] 10 cylindrical structure 11 ink containing tube 12 joint 13 Ballpoint pen tip 14 Writing ball 30 Engraving 31 Bold section 32 Fine section

Claims

1. A long, cylindrical structure used in a writing instrument, an engraving consisting of a thin portion and a bold portion is formed on the surface of the cylindrical shape; The bold portion is composed of a set of thin portions, The fine-printing portion is a cylindrical structure formed by laser processing to create irregularities having a depth of 0.1 to 1 mm and a pitch of 0.05 to 0.3 mm, and the pitch of the irregularities varies for each character.

2. The direction in which the thin portion constituting the thick portion is formed is different from the longitudinal direction of the cylindrical shape, The cylindrical structure according to claim 1, wherein the markings are formed in a plurality of locations using the bold portions, and the direction in which the thin portions constituting at least one of the bold portions are formed is different from the direction in which the thin portions constituting the other bold portions are formed.

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