METHOD FOR MAKING SAID BOARD.

DESCRIPTION

The present invention concerns a cover board particularly suited to be used for the covers of bookbinding products, openable containers, folders, packaging items or the like.

The invention also concerns a cover comprising said board, as well as a method for making said board.

As is known, an increasing number of editorial products on sale are provided with a memory support like, for example, a CD or a DVD.

The above mentioned memory support is generally associated with the book cover by means of an anchorage element that is applied to the inner side of a cover board by means of an adhesive material.

According to a known technique, the above mentioned anchorage element is a plastic container or a paper envelope shaped so as to accommodate the support.

Alternatively, the above mentioned anchorage element can be a rubber or plastic cylindrical button-shaped element whose diameter corresponds to the diameter of the hole present in the CD or DVD.

The known techniques described above pose a common drawback lying in that the anchorage element must be applied to the finished product that, therefore, must be handled again, thus further complicating the production cycle.

A further drawback posed by the above mentioned known techniques lies in that the anchorage element is relatively bulky, which considerably affects the thickness of the finished product.

Furthermore, especially in the case of books, the anchorage element occupies a portion of thickness that remains visible from the outside, thus worsening the aesthetic appearance of the product.

The present invention intends to overcome all the drawbacks of the known art as outlined above.

In particular, the object of the present invention is to provide a cover for bookbinding products, openable containers, packaging items or analogous products, which makes it possible to accommodate a memory support, in particular a CD or DVD, with no need to successively apply an anchorage element. The object described above is achieved by a cover board according to claim 1, whose inside is provided with a housing for a plate-like object, for example a CD, a DVD, a memory card or any other analogous memory support.

The above mentioned object is also achieved by a cover according to claim 5, as well as by a method for making a cover board according to claim 8.

Further details of the board, the cover and the method that are the subjects of the invention are described in the corresponding dependent claims.

As the cover board itself serves as a housing for the memory support, it is not necessary to successively apply a further anchorage element separate from the cover.

Therefore, the production cycle is advantageously simplified compared to the production cycle required for making a cover of one of the known types described above.

Furthermore, advantageously, the fact that the housing is integrated in the cover makes it possible to minimize the thickness of the cover and thus of the finished product.

Still advantageously, integrating the housing in the cover means making a product that has no empty spaces visible from the outside and that therefore is aesthetically more pleasant than the products obtained according to the known art.

The said object and advantages, and others which are better highlighted below, will be illustrated in detail in the description of a preferred embodiment of the invention which is provided by way of non-limiting example with reference to the attached drawings, wherein:

- Figures 1 and 2 show different stages in the making of the cover board that is the subject of the invention;

- Figure 3 shows a plan view of the cover board that is the subject of the invention;

- Figure 4 shows a plan view of the cover that is the subject of the invention; - Figure 5 shows a bookbinding product comprising the cover shown in

Figure 4;

- Figure 6 shows a cross section of the board of Figure 3 along plane VI-VI. The cover board of the invention, indicated as a whole by 1 in Figure 3, is preferably made of a paper-based material, for example board or pasteboard. Construction variants of the invention can obviously include the use of different materials like, for example, plastic, wood, metal or derived materials, even combined with each other.

The board 1 is provided with a centre area 2 having a predefined thickness and delimited on two opposing sides 3 and 4 by two corresponding raised areas 5 and 6 whose thickness exceeds said predefined thickness, as shown in the cross section of Figure 6.

The opposite shaped edges 5a, 6a of the raised areas 5, 6 and the centre area 2 define a housing 7 that is suited to accommodate a plate-like object 8 like, for example, a CD or a DVD, whose outline is schematically represented with a broken line in Figure 3.

As shown in Figure 6, the housing 7 is lowered with respect to the raised areas 5 and 6.

The thickness of the raised areas 5 and 6 is preferably such that the height of the housing 7 is at least equal to the thickness of the plate-like object 8 to be accommodated therein.

This advantageously prevents the plate-like object 8 from projecting from the housing 7.

Obviously, in variant embodiments of the invention not illustrated herein, the housing 7 can be configured so as to accommodate a plate-like object in a shape different from the circular shape illustrated herein, like for example a rectangular shape, like that of memory cards, postcards or other analogous plate-like objects.

It can therefore be understood that the cover board 1 described above features the housing for the plate-like object 8 integrated therein and therefore eliminates the need to apply a further anchorage element to the cover, as required, on the contrary, in the known art.

Obviously, the shaped edges 5a, 6a of the housing 7 can have a shape different from the one illustrated herein, depending on the shape and size of the particular plate-like object 8 to be accommodated that, instead of being a CD or a DVD, can be any other analogous object like, for example, a memory card or the like.

In particular, in the case of a circular plate-like object 8 like a CD or a DVD, the shaped edges 5a and 6a are preferably configured so as to define in the housing 7 corresponding opposing recesses 20 delimited between two shaped portions 21 and 22 facing towards the inside of the housing 7. Advantageously, the above mentioned recesses 20 are able to firmly hold the plate-like object 8 on opposite sides.

Preferably, the above mentioned recesses 20 and the shaped portions 21 and 22 are configured so that the plate-like object 8 can be inserted in the housing 7 by exerting a slight pressure, with the advantage of preventing the plate-like element 8 from spontaneously coming off the housing 7.

This is preferably obtained by shaping the shaped edges 5a and 6a so that the housing 7 at the level of the shaped portions 21 and 22 is slightly narrower than the plate-like object 8.

The centre area 2 of the housing 7 preferably extends in a direction parallel to the direction of development of the opposing sides 3 and 4 of the centre area 2 until reaching one edge of the housing 7, so as to allow the plate-like object 8 to be inserted and extracted according to a direction that is substantially parallel to the plane defined by the centre area 2.

In particular, the shaped portions 22 are preferably rounded, so as to facilitate the insertion and extraction of the plate-like object 8.

Advantageously, the possibility of inserting and extracting the plate-like object 8 in the way described above makes it possible to cover the housing 7 so as to protect the plate-like object 8, as will be explained in greater detail below.

The board 1 described above can be used to make a cover 12 of the type shown in Figure 4, suitable for example for a book 18 of the type shown in Figure 5, or an analogous bookbinding product, or a container, or to make folders or similar products.

In particular, as shown in Figure 5, the cover 12 comprises a thin body 13 that is applied to the raised areas 5 and 6 of the board 1 so as to cover the centre area 2 of the housing 7, and that preferably but not necessarily serves as a flyleaf.

Advantageously, said thin body 13 protects the plate-like object 8 from dust or scratches.

Still advantageously, a housing 7 made as described above has the advantage of being completely integrated in the cover 12 and, therefore, gives the cover 12 a more pleasant appearance compared to the covers of known type described above.

The thin body 13 is preferably provided with a shaped opening 14 facing the centre area 2, so as to leave the centre area 2 partially uncovered to allow the plate-like object 8 to be grasped and extracted from the housing 7.

If the plate-like object 8 is a CD or a DVD, the shaped opening 14 is preferably a slot arranged at the centre of the housing 7, at the level of the centre hole of the CD or DVD.

Advantageously, the above mentioned slot 14 makes it possible to easily extract the CD or DVD from the housing 7, by introducing a finger in the centre hole and sliding it along the slot to withdraw the object.

Obviously, in variant embodiments of the invention, the shaped opening 14 can be a hole, a slot, or even a recess on the edge of the thin body 13.

The cover board 1 and the cover 12 described above are preferably made from a base thin element 9 shown in Figure 1.

The thickness of the base element 9 corresponds to the predefined thickness of the centre area 2 and preferably its dimensions are substantially equivalent to those of the cover board 1.

At the level of each one of the opposing sides 3, 4 of the base element 9 there is a corresponding superimposed thin shaped element 10, 11, whose profile corresponds to that of a corresponding raised area 5, 6.

The shaped elements 10 and 11 are connected to the base element 9 so as to delimit the housing 7.

In particular, if the thin elements 9, 10 and 11 are made of a paper-based material, they can be mutually joined by a glueing operation.

Obviously, they can be joined using any other known technique suitable for the type of material used.

The thickness of the shaped elements 10 and 11 is preferably but not necessarily equal to at least the thickness of the plate-like object 8 to be accommodated.

In this way, advantageously, the height of the housing 7 is sufficient to contain the plate-like object 8 completely, so that it does not project beyond the thickness of the cover 12.

Said base element 9 and shaped elements 10 and 11 are preferably but not necessarily obtained by cutting a sheet material 15.

Said sheet material 15 can be a paper-based material, like for example board or pasteboard, or a different material, including plastic, wood, metal or their derivatives, or again a combination of the above mentioned materials. Preferably, as shown in Figure 1 , the base element 9 and the shaped elements 10 and 11 are obtained by means of a single cut, made so that the shaped elements 10 and 11 remain connected to corresponding opposing edges 16 and 17 of the base element 9.

Successively, and as shown in Figure 2, the shaped elements 10 and 11 are folded along the above mentioned opposing edges 16 and 17 of the base element 9 so that they overlap the latter.

Preferably, in order to facilitate said operation of folding the sheet material 15, an impression 15a is previously made along said opposing edges 16 and 17. Said impression 15a can be obtained, for example, through a cut made in the sheet material 15, compression or an equivalent system.

It is obvious that in variant embodiments of the invention the shaped elements 10 and 11 can be obtained separately from the base element 9, for example in order to allow the use of different materials and/or thicknesses for the different elements.

In further variant embodiments of the invention, the thin elements 9, 10 and 11 can be obtained, rather than by cutting a sheet material, through any other known method suitable for the special type of material used.

The cover 12 preferably but not necessarily comprises a further sheet of thin material that is larger than the board 1.

The edges 19 of the above mentioned sheet of thin material that project from the board 1 are folded over the inside of the cover 12, as shown in Figure 4, to the advantage of the sturdiness and the aesthetic appearance of the cover 12 itself.

The cover board 1 and the cover 12 made according to the above can be used in a book 18 of the type shown in Figure 5 but also in any openable container, in order to make a folder or other similar items.

It is also evident that said cover board 1 and the resulting cover 12 can be provided with a plurality of housings 7 made as described above.

From the description provided it can be understood that the cover board and the cover illustrated above, as well as the method for making them, achieve the object of the invention.

In fact, the housing integrated in the cover can accommodate plate-like objects, in particular CDs, DVDs or other memory supports, thus eliminating the need to apply a suitable anchorage element once the cover has already been completed, to the advantage of production simplicity.

Furthermore, the final product is more compact and is aesthetically more pleasant than the products provided with the covers of known type previously described.

On implementation, the invention may undergo further changes or variants that, though neither illustrated in the drawings nor described herein, shall nonetheless be covered by the present patent, provided that they come within the scope of the claims that follow.

Where technical features mentioned in any claim are followed by reference signs, those reference sings have been included for the sole purpose of increasing the intelligibility of the claims and accordingly such reference signs do not have any limiting effect on the protection of each element identified by way of example by such reference signs.