Management tags

Abstract

To provide a sheet-like management tag used by being inserted into an article such as a booklet, having a configuration that is less prone to damaging the article.SOLUTION: A management tag 1 used by being removably inserted into an article comprises: a base material sheet 2 having an insertion piece 5 to be inserted into the article; and an RFID inlet 3 having an IC chip 11 and an antenna 12 provided on one face of a film base material 10. An opening 15 is formed in the insertion piece 5, and the RFID inlet 3 is joined on one face side of the insertion piece 5 so as to block the opening 15, while the IC chip 11 is made to face the base material sheet 2 side. Furthermore, the IC chip 11 is provided in a position overlapping the opening 15, and the opening 15 is opened towards the other face side of the insertion piece 5.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a management tag used by being inserted into an article such as a booklet. [Background Art]

[0002] Management tags including RFID inlets storing identification information of booklets such as books and magazines are attached to booklets, and inventory management and the like via wireless communication are performed. Among such management tags, sheet-shaped management tags that are used by being insertably and removably inserted into a booklet so as to be easily detached at the time of sale or delivery have been proposed (see Patent Document 1). The management tag of Patent Document 1 includes an insertion piece portion to be inserted into a booklet and an immersion preventing piece portion arranged above the booklet, and the RFID inlet is adhered to the insertion piece portion and inserted into the booklet together with the insertion piece portion. [Prior Art Documents] [Patent Documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2011-20309 [Summary of the Invention] [Problem to be Solved by the Invention]

[0004] An RFID inlet, which is formed by arranging an IC chip and an antenna on a film base material, is not flat structurally, and the arrangement portion of the thick IC chip is raised to form a convex portion. When the convex portion is brought into contact with the booklet in a state inserted into the booklet, the convex portion may get caught and damage the booklet when the tag is inserted or removed. Therefore, in the management tag of the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, the convex portion at the arrangement portion of the IC chip is eliminated by sandwiching the RFID inlet between a thick base material and a protective sheet. However, with this configuration, the entire tag becomes thick, so when a force is applied in the thickness direction of the booklet, the tag may bite deeply into the booklet and leave a mark.

[0005] This invention was made in view of the current situation, and aims to provide a management tag that is inserted into articles such as booklets, with a structure that is less likely to damage the articles. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The present invention relates to a management tag used by being inserted into an article in a removable manner, comprising a base sheet having an insertion piece for being inserted into an article, and an RFID inlet having an IC chip and an antenna arranged on one side of a film base material, wherein an opening is formed in the insertion piece, the RFID inlet is bonded to one side of the insertion piece with the IC chip facing the base sheet side and closing the opening, the IC chip is positioned to overlap with the opening, and the opening is open on the other side of the insertion piece.

[0007] As in the present invention, the protrusions at the IC chip placement area can be eliminated by the thickness of the base sheet surrounding the opening where the IC chip is placed, and by leaving the other side of the opening open without covering it with an outer casing, the thickness of the tag can be made thinner than in conventional configurations. In general management tags equipped with an RFID inlet, an outer casing is required to protect the IC chip from impact and pressure, but when used by being inserted into an item, most of the impact and pressure from the outside are absorbed by the item, so no significant force is applied to the IC chip even if the RFID inlet is not covered with an outer casing. For this reason, in the management tag of the present invention, even if the other side of the opening that overlaps with the IC chip is open, there is no risk of the IC chip being damaged by external impact or pressure. Thus, the management tag of the present invention eliminates the protrusions in the IC chip placement area and can be made thinner than conventional designs, thus offering the advantage of being less likely to damage items during use compared to conventional designs.

[0008] In the present invention, a configuration is proposed in which the IC chip is exposed to the other side of the insertion piece through the opening.

[0009] As in this configuration, by exposing the IC chip on the other side of the opening without covering its surface, the protrusions at the IC chip placement area can be minimized, thereby further reducing the thickness of the management tag.

[0010] In the present invention, the RFID inlet has one side covered with an adhesive layer, In addition, a configuration has been proposed in which the portion of the adhesive layer that overlaps with the opening is covered with an adhesive killer.

[0011] With this configuration, management tags can be easily manufactured using a so-called wet-type RFID inlet, which has an adhesive layer pre-applied to the entire surface of one side.

[0012] Furthermore, in the present invention, a configuration is proposed in which the RFID inlet is exposed on one side of the insertion piece.

[0013] As mentioned above, when used by being inserted into an item, an outer casing to protect the IC chip is unnecessary. Therefore, by exposing the RFID inlet on one side of the insertion piece without covering it with an outer casing, as in this configuration, the thickness of the management tag can be further reduced.

[0014] Furthermore, in the present invention, a configuration is proposed in which the thickness of the base sheet of the insertion piece is 80% to 200% of the thickness of the IC chip.

[0015] According to the inventor's research, if the thickness of the insertion piece is 80% or more of the thickness of the IC chip, there is no risk of damage to the item due to the protrusions of the IC chip's placement area. On the other hand, if the thickness of the insertion piece exceeds 200% of the IC chip's thickness, the tag may deeply penetrate the item and leave a mark. [Effects of the Invention]

[0016] As described above, the management tag of the present invention has the advantage of being less likely to damage items compared to conventional designs. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0017] [Figure 1] They are (A) a front view and (B) a back view of the booklet management tag 1 of Embodiment 1. [Figure 2] It is a cross-sectional view taken along line X-X in FIG. 1. [Figure 3] They are (A) a perspective view and (B) an exploded perspective view of the booklet management tag 1 of Embodiment 1. [Figure 4] It is an exploded perspective view of the RFID inlet 3. [Figure 5] It is a perspective view showing a state where the booklet management tag 1 of Embodiment 1 is inserted between pages of a booklet K. [Figure 6] It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the booklet management tag 1a of Embodiment 2. MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

[0018] Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the following examples. In the following examples, one surface side of the insertion piece according to the present invention corresponds to the back side of the insertion piece 5, and the other surface side of the insertion piece according to the present invention corresponds to the front side of the insertion piece 5. EXAMPLES

[0019] In the present example, the present invention is applied to a booklet management tag 1 used for inventory management of booklets such as books and magazines. The booklet management tag 1 is in the form of a sheet, and is used by being insertably and removably sandwiched in a booklet. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the booklet management tag 1 is composed of a base sheet 2 and an RFID inlet 3 adhered to the back surface of the base sheet 2.

[0020] As shown in Figure 3(B), the base sheet 2 has an inverted L-shape consisting of an insertion piece 5 that is elongated in the vertical direction and an anti-immersion piece 6 that protrudes laterally from the upper end of the insertion piece 5. The base sheet 2 can be made of paper or a resin sheet. The base sheet 2 may be a single layer, or it may be made of multiple sheets laminated together. Examples of resin materials that can be used for the base sheet 2 include polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polypropylene (PP), polyacetal (POM), polycarbonate (PC), polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), and polyphenylene sulfide (PPS). In particular, among these, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polypropylene (PP), which are rigid, have excellent tensile strength, bending strength and compressive strength, and possess appropriate elasticity, can be preferably used.

[0021] The RFID inlet 3 is an information medium that allows contactless reading and writing of information via wireless communication. As shown in Figure 4, the RFID inlet 3 consists of an IC chip 11 and a thin-film antenna 12 arranged on one side of a synthetic resin film substrate 10. The IC chip 11 has a memory that can store information in a rewritable manner, and is configured to store the required information in the memory and read the stored information at any time by wirelessly communicating with an external device via the antenna 12. A wide range of general-purpose RFID inlets 3 can be used.

[0022] The antenna 12 can be formed by printing a conductive material in a predetermined pattern on one side of a film substrate 10. The IC chip 11 is fixed to a predetermined connection point on the antenna 12 and electrically connected to the antenna 12. In this embodiment, the antenna 12 is a dipole antenna for communication using electromagnetic waves in the UHF band, but the electromagnetic waves used for communication by the RFID inlet according to the present invention are not limited to electromagnetic waves in the UHF band, and the planar shape of the antenna 12 can be appropriately changed depending on the type of electromagnetic wave used for communication.

[0023] As shown in Figure 4, the thin-film antenna 12 is extremely thin compared to the film substrate 10, but the IC chip 11 has a thickness greater than or equal to that of the film substrate 10, and the RFID inlet 3 has a protruding portion where the IC chip 11 is placed, which bulges out from the surface of the film substrate 10. Also, as shown in Figure 4, an adhesive layer 13 is formed on the RFID inlet 3 so as to cover the mounting surface side where the IC chip 11 and antenna 12 are placed. In other words, the booklet management tag 1a can be manufactured by applying an adhesive to the mounting surface side of the RFID inlet 3 to form an adhesive layer 13, and then attaching the RFID inlet 3 to the back side of the insertion piece 5 of the base sheet 2 via the adhesive layer 13, as shown in Figure 3.

[0024] As shown in Figure 5, the booklet management tag 1 of this embodiment is attached to the booklet K by inserting the insertion piece 5 into the booklet K. If the anti-immersion piece 6 is not inserted into the booklet K but protrudes above the booklet K and is positioned to rest on the spine or cover, even if the booklet K loosens its grip on the insertion piece 5, the entire booklet management tag 1 will not immerse itself inside the booklet K, and the upper end of the booklet management tag 1 can be pulled out from the top of the booklet K with a finger. In Figure 5, the insertion piece 5 is shown inserted between the pages of the booklet K, but the booklet management tag 1 may also be attached by inserting the insertion piece 5 between the endpapers of the booklet K. In addition, although the anti-immersion piece 6 protrudes above the booklet K in Figure 5, the base sheet 2 may be folded at a right angle at the boundary between the insertion piece 5 and the anti-immersion piece 6, so that the anti-immersion piece 6 lies flat on the top of the booklet K.

[0025] The booklet management tag 1 attached to booklet K allows for contactless reading and writing of the stored information on the IC chip 11 via wireless communication, even when booklet K is lined up on a bookshelf. Therefore, if booklet management tags 1, which store the information of the booklet to be attached to, are attached to each booklet lined up on a bookshelf in a bookstore or library, information on a large number of booklets lined up on the bookshelf can be obtained in a short time using an external device, making inventory management and booklet retrieval easier. In addition, since inventory management and booklet retrieval are performed contactlessly, the opportunities to touch the booklets are reduced, thus reducing the risk of damaging the booklets.

[0026] The booklet management tag 1 in this embodiment is used by inserting it into the booklet K without attaching or embedding it in the booklet K. Therefore, when the booklet management tag 1 is no longer needed, such as when the booklet K is sold, it can be easily removed from the booklet K by pulling out the insertion piece 5. In particular, it can be removed from the booklet K very easily by pinching the anti-immersion piece 6 that protrudes from the top of the booklet K. Furthermore, the booklet management tag 1 that has been removed from the booklet K can be reused by inserting it into a new booklet K and rewriting the information in the memory of the IC chip 11 to relate to the new booklet K.

[0027] The essential components of the present invention are described below. In this embodiment, the booklet management tag 1 has an RFID inlet 3 where the IC chip 11 is located is not covered by the outer casing and is exposed on both the front and back of the tag. Specifically, as shown in Figures 1-3, the insertion piece 5 has an opening 15 that penetrates the base sheet 2 in the thickness direction, and the RFID inlet 3 is attached to the back side of the insertion piece 5 so as to cover the opening 15. The opening 15 is rectangular in shape and slightly larger than the IC chip 11, and the RFID inlet 3 is attached to the insertion piece 5 with the mounting surface where the IC chip 11 is located facing the base sheet 2, so that the entire location of the IC chip 11 overlaps with the opening 15.

[0028] Here, as shown in Figures 1-3, the opening 15 of the insertion piece 5 is covered from the back by the RFID inlet 3, but the front side of the opening 15 is not covered by an outer covering such as a sheet, and the opening 15 is open to the front side of the insertion piece 5. For this reason, the IC chip 11 of the RFID inlet 3 is exposed to the front side of the insertion piece 5 at the opening 15. As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the RFID inlet 3 has a non-adhesive portion 16 in which the adhesive layer 13 is not formed in the portion that overlaps with the opening 15, thus exposing the IC chip 11 etc. without being covered with adhesive. This is because if an adhesive layer 13 is formed in the portion exposed to the opening 15, there is a risk that the adhesive will adhere to the booklet K when it is inserted into the booklet K.

[0029] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 2, the IC chip 11 is positioned with its mounting surface facing the base sheet 2, overlapping the opening 15 of the insertion piece 5, so that it fits inside the opening 15 and is exposed on the front side of the insertion piece 5. In this embodiment, the thickness of the base sheet 2 constituting the insertion piece 5 is approximately equal to the thickness of the IC chip 11, so that the surface of the base sheet 2 and the top surface of the IC chip 11 are arranged to be approximately flush. In this way, in this embodiment, the protrusions of the IC chip 11 placement area are completely eliminated by the thickness of the base sheet 2 around the opening 15, and the entire front side of the insertion piece 5 is approximately flat.

[0030] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the back side of the insertion piece 5 is not covered by an outer casing, and the RFID inlet 3 attached to the back side of the insertion piece 5 has the film substrate 10 exposed on the back side of the insertion piece 5.

[0031] Thus, in this embodiment, the front side of the opening 15 where the IC chip 11 is placed is left open without being covered by an outer casing, allowing the tag to be thinner compared to conventional configurations. In particular, in this embodiment, the thickness of the base sheet 2 constituting the insertion piece 5 is approximately equal to the thickness of the IC chip 11, so the tag can be realized with a minimum thickness approximately equal to the thickness of the RFID inlet 3. Specifically, while the booklet management tag (mounting holder for books) described in the embodiment of Patent Document 1 has a thickness of 400 to 500 μm, in the configuration of this embodiment, the thickness of the booklet management tag can be reduced to less than half using the same RFID inlet.

[0032] As described above, the booklet management tag 1 of this embodiment is thinner than conventional designs, so even if force is applied in the thickness direction of the booklet K while it is inserted into the booklet K, there is no risk of the booklet management tag 1 deeply digging into the booklet K and leaving a mark. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the thickness of the surrounding base material sheet 2 eliminates the protrusion of the IC chip 11 placement area, so when inserting or removing the insertion piece 5 from the booklet K, the protrusion will not catch on the booklet K and damage it. For this reason, the booklet management tag 1 of this embodiment has the advantage of being less likely to damage the booklet K compared to conventional designs.

[0033] While typical RFID tags require an outer casing to protect the IC chip from shocks and pressure, the booklet management tag 1 in this embodiment, as shown in Figure 5, is used by being inserted into the booklet K. Therefore, any shocks or pressure applied from outside the booklet K are absorbed by the booklet K itself and not applied to the IC chip 11. For this reason, in this embodiment, even if the front side of the opening 15 where the IC chip 11 is placed is open, there is no risk of the IC chip 11 being damaged by external shocks or pressure. [Examples]

[0034] This embodiment is a modified version of the configuration of Embodiment 1 described above. Specifically, in the RFID inlet 3 according to Embodiment 1, a non-adhesive portion 16 is formed in the area overlapping with the opening 15 of the insertion piece 5, where the adhesive layer 13 is omitted, exposing the IC chip 11, etc. In contrast, in the booklet management tag 1a according to this embodiment, as shown in Figure 6, the adhesive layer 13 is formed to cover the entire mounting surface of the RFID inlet 3, including the area overlapping with the opening 15. Furthermore, in the area overlapping with the opening 15 of the insertion piece 5, an adhesive-killing treatment is applied to prevent the adhesive from adhering to the booklet. In the adhesive-killing treatment, an adhesive-killing agent consisting of varnish is applied to the surface of the adhesive layer 13, thereby covering the adhesive layer 13 with a non-adhesive adhesive-killing agent layer 17. The adhesive-killing treatment can be performed even after attachment to the insertion piece 5, but it is easier to perform before attachment to the insertion piece 5. Since the other components are the same as in Example 1, the same reference numerals are used in the text and figures as in Example 1, and their explanations are omitted.

[0035] In this embodiment, the booklet management tag 1a, like in Embodiment 1, eliminates the protrusions on the IC chip 11 mounting area, allowing the tag to be made thinner, thus offering the advantage of being less likely to damage the booklet K compared to conventional configurations. In this embodiment, the surface of the IC chip 11 is covered with an adhesive layer 13 and an adhesive neutralizer layer 17, resulting in a slightly thicker mounting area for the IC chip 11 compared to Embodiment 1. However, since it can be manufactured using a wet-type RFID inlet 3 where the entire mounting surface is covered with an adhesive layer 13, manufacturing costs may be reduced compared to Embodiment 1.

[0036] Although embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the configurations of the embodiments described above, and can be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0037] For example, while booklets are ideal for inserting the management tag of the present invention, the management tag of the present invention can also be used in articles other than booklets. For example, it can be used in articles that have gaps suitable for inserting a sheet-like insertion piece, such as wallets, business card holders, cardholders, and file folders. Furthermore, in storage cases for optical media, memory cards, game cartridges, etc., the insertion piece may be inserted into the gap between the housing and lid of the storage case, or into the gap between the storage case and a film binder disposed on its surface.

[0038] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the RFID inlet 3 is attached to a plain base sheet 2, but information or patterns may be printed on the base sheet 2. Specifically, it is proposed that some or all of the information to be stored in the IC chip 11 be printed on the base sheet 2 so that the information can be confirmed visually.

[0039] Furthermore, although the booklet management tag 1 in the above embodiment is equipped with an insertion piece 5 and an anti-immersion piece 6, the anti-immersion piece 6 may be omitted, and the entire booklet management tag 1 may be inserted into the booklet for use. Also, although the insertion piece 5 in the above embodiment is a long, vertical strip, the shape of the insertion piece according to the present invention is not particularly limited, and it is sufficient if it is of a size and shape to which an RFID inlet can be attached.

[0040] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, no outer covering is provided on the back side of the insertion piece 5, and the RFID inlet 3 is exposed on the back side of the insertion piece 5. This configuration further reduces the thickness of the booklet management tag 1, however, the management tag of the present invention may also have the back side of the RFID inlet covered with an outer covering such as a protective sheet.

[0041] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the thickness of the base sheet 2 constituting the insertion piece 5 is made approximately the same as the thickness of the IC chip 11, but the thickness of the base sheet 2 and the IC chip 11 do not have to be exactly the same. If the thickness of the base sheet 2 around the opening 15 is the same as or greater than the thickness of the IC chip 11, the protrusion of the IC chip 11 placement area can be completely eliminated. Also, even if the thickness of the base sheet 2 around the opening 15 is less than the thickness of the IC chip 11, the protrusion of the IC chip 11 placement area can be eliminated to some extent, thus providing an effect of preventing damage to the booklet. According to the inventor's research, in a prototype in which the thickness of the base sheet 2 of the insertion piece 5 was 80% or more of the thickness of the IC chip 11 (100 μm), no damage to the booklet pages due to the protrusion of the IC chip 11 placement area was observed even when the insertion piece 5 was repeatedly inserted and removed. On the other hand, in a prototype where the thickness of the base sheet 2 of the insertion piece 5 was greater than 200% of the thickness of the IC chip 11 (100 μm), the entire tag became thick, causing it to dig into the page and leave marks. For this reason, it is desirable that the thickness of the base sheet 2 around the opening 15 of the insertion piece 5 be 80% to 200% of the thickness of the IC chip 11.

[0042] Furthermore, the shape and size of the opening 15 according to the present invention are not limited to the shape and size of the embodiment, but are sufficient as long as they are a shape and size that can overlap with the entire IC chip 11. However, if the opening 15 is too large compared to the IC chip 11, the gap between the opening edge of the opening 15 and the IC chip 11 will become large, and the protrusions of the placement area of ​​the IC chip 11 will become more noticeable. Therefore, it is desirable that the area of ​​the opening 15 be 50 times or less the area of ​​the IC chip 11 in a plan view, and that the gap between the opening edge of the opening 15 and the IC chip 11 be 2 mm or less in width. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0043] 1,1a Tags for managing booklets (management tags) 2. Base sheet 3 RFID Inlet 5 Insertion piece 6 Immersion prevention piece 10 Film substrate 11 IC chips 12 antennas 13. Adhesive layer 15 Opening 16. Adhesive removal section 17. Adhesive killer layer K books

Claims

1. A management tag that is inserted into an item in a removable manner for use, A base sheet having an insertion piece for inserting into an article, An RFID inlet has an IC chip and antenna arranged on one side of a film substrate. Equipped with, The aforementioned insertion piece has an opening formed therein. The RFID inlet is bonded to one side of the insertion piece so as to close the opening, with the IC chip facing the substrate sheet side. The IC chip is positioned to overlap with the opening. The opening is open to the other side of the insertion piece. The RFID inlet has one side covered with an adhesive layer. The management tag is characterized in that the portion of the adhesive layer that overlaps with the opening is covered with an adhesive killer.

2. The management tag according to claim 1, characterized in that the IC chip is exposed from the opening to the other side of the insertion piece.

3. The management tag according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the RFID inlet is exposed on one side of the insertion piece.

4. The management tag according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the thickness of the base sheet of the insertion piece is 80% to 200% of the thickness of the IC chip.

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