Rolled up articles of consumption provided with means of digital information

The present invention relates to rolled up articles of consumption, especially articles of consumption that are rolled/wrapped on a core, which core or article of consumption is equipped with means of digital information in the form of a memory stick/card, touch screen, radio stick RFID (Radio frequent Identification) as a tag or chip, SIM-card or similar in compliance with the preamble of claim 1. Articles of consumption may include such articles as toilet paper, adhesive films, aluminium foil, plastic, rope, cables, and fax paper, kitchen paper and similar.

Background

In regards to distribution of information and advertisements it is essential not only to reach the consumer, but also to ensure that this is achieved in such way that he/she picks up the information enclosed, preferably in such an easy way that the consumer makes use of the information in the most modern way accessible today and in the future. Furthermore the information should be environmentally creative and counteract a consumption that increases "the global warming". Furthermore the information shall be easily accessible and preferably contain something that the consumer will be excited to realize. There exist solutions where traditional means provides information placed in connection with rolled up articles of consumption, for instance as information that reveals itself when a roll of toilet paper or a roll of kitchen paper is nearly or completely empty or finished. This can be anything ranging from discount coupons, tickets, ads and so on. A great disadvantage with known prior art, as for instance shown in WO A1 2002/32670, is that it promotes consumption in connection with reaching the information. Typically a consumer will remove the article of consumption in order to reach the information as quickly as possible.

An example of this kind is also shown in the applicant's Norwegian patent 312320. In today's society, IT is a great part of people's everyday life, thus there is great potential in finding good solutions combining information that the consumers seek and good IT- solutions that can give information to the consumers, where this in return can create increased sales. Known technique does not address the problem of turning articles of consumption into a digital information channel. The existing solutions, as mentioned above, are directed towards traditional visual information and are not directed towards the future, where digital information is the most effective way to distribute information. The invention at hand will thus solve the problem of turning articles of consumption into a digital information channel.

Object

The object of the invention is to solve the above described problems in connection with prior art by combining and creating a digital information channel for those who wish to reach the consumers of articles of consumption through equipping the articles of consumption with means that enables a consumer to make use of digital information in a modern and creative way.

Furthermore it is an object of the invention that the digital information shall be accessible even though the article of consumption hides the carrier of digital information.

The invention

The invention is stated in claim 1. Advantageous features of the invention are stated in the remaining claims.

Today's electronic technology has led to an explosive increase in the global market of memory sticks/cards. Such electronic memory sticks/cards can these days be used by customers in several places. Most people have today a cellular telephone where memory sticks/cards can be read. Those with access to a PC can read the information on different memory sticks/cards and most new printers for PC's or cameras are equipped with a reader for memory sticks/cards. Cameras (digital cameras) and MP3-players can also use memory sticks/cards. Today even TV's, DVD-players and similar have means for reading memory sticks/cards.

The latest in the field of electronic memory sticks is a memory stick that has a surface, that when touched, gives a digital picture in 30-60 seconds, before a new touch is needed to repeat this. The information on these sticks can additionally be retrieved out on to an electric apparatus equipped with a suitable reader.

This means that most people in today's society will be able to make use of the information that memory sticks/cards contain.

If one's own equipment does not fit fits the given memory stick/card, there are now adaptors that are universal and can read both the older and the newer memory sticks/cards, so that the information these contain can be read via the adaptor and/or the PC's USB-port or similar.

Today's memory sticks/cards have great storage capacity, preferably with a storing capacity of 1 gigabyte or more. When the next generation memory stick/card comes, the capacity will have increased further and it will be compatible in more locations. At the same time as the capacity increases, the physical size decreases and this gives new opportunities for the use of such memory sticks/cards.

In connection with the invention, a memory stick/card will be used as a storage medium for digital information from, for instance a producer or merchant that wishes to sell something to the consumers/clients. For the commodity trade in general, we can say that it is advertisement for their products, in addition there can be enclosed "things", for instance from a telecommunication company there can be enclosed some new ring tones for mobile phones, a game for a mobile phone, some free SMS or MMS, or new free minutes of call, game for PC, "cheat codes" for games, software or similar.

One example can for instance be a picture game from, for instance a travel operator, adventure centre or similar. For these reasons there exists a great market and many opportunities for the described invention.

The term memory stick/card refers to all kinds of memory sticks/cards that can contain digital information and that can be read by the user by the aid of a telephone, computer, printer, and digital camera or similar that has the means to read memory sticks/cards. Means for digital information can also include a radio chip in the form of, for instance a RFID-tag or chip. A RFID-tag or chip is an active or passive radio chip and the radio chip can be read by an external reader/scanner. The term RFID-tag refers to all kinds of tags and chips that have a radio frequency that can be read by a reader/scanner. A RFID-tag or chip, being programmed by the producer or the wholesale dealer, can e.g. be read at the location of the sale, by the grocery store chain at the moment of purchase.

The unique feature of the invention is to use the above described memory sticks/cards/radio tag in connection with rolled up articles of consumption, such as toilet paper, adhesive films, aluminum foil, plastic, ropes, cables, fax paper, kitchen paper and similar, where the core is made of paper, plastic, metal or similar, which core's surface and/or inner region is equipped with a memory stick/card/radio tag. Furthermore, the memory stick/card/radio tag can be arranged on the outer surface and/or the inner surface of the article of consumption that have been rolled/wrapped on the core.

Furthermore the memory stick/card/radio tag can be arranged integrated in the cores material or integrated in a material thickness between the outer surface and the inner room of the core.

For instance, the turnaround time for paper goods in stores is so great that the information quickly will reach the customers. Currently there are 235 million toilet rolls being sold each year in Norway, which makes the turnaround time on these items quick. The customers need a steady refill, which allows the producers to run different campaigns that run a given time span, as well as knowing the information will reach the customers within a reasonable time frame.

For any campaign period the producers have today, there is always a "certain time" passing from the advertisements being produced to the customers seeing the commercial, for instance on TV, or as flyers in the mail, as ads in news papers, weekly magazines and other publications. By the aid of the invention, the producers can reach their customers with information in a new and effective way. In addition it will give the consumers an excitement that in turn will lead to the fact that they actually will check out the information that is on such a memory stick/card that comes with a product. The direct marketing of today (flyers) is something the authorities as well as the environmental organizations alike want us all to reduce or bring to an end as soon as possible. This is due to the damage caused to the environment by chopping of woods for production of paper for advertising purposes. In addition, the large quantity of used commercials being burned or put in the garbage dumps makes a substantial contribution to the global warming. An electronic memory stick or similar can, in the long term, relieve much of the direct marketing that comes as flyers into the mailboxes of consumers. The memory sticks are very small and they are recyclable through today's garbage handling of electronics. This is both creative and environmentally friendly handling of commercial carriers to the consumers. Further details of the invention will bei stated in the following example description.

Short explanation of the drawings:

The invention will now be described in greater detail with reference to the Figures, where: Fig. 1 shows a first embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 2 shows a second embodiment of the invention. Fig. 3a shows a third embodiment of the invention, and Fig. 3b shows a cross section along the line A-A in Fig. 3a.

Fig. 1 shows a first embodiment of the invention, where a core 10 for rolled up articles of consumption, such as toilet paper, adhesive films, aluminum foil, plastic, ropes, cables, fax paper, kitchen paper and similar are equipped with means 11 for digital information. Means 11 for digital information includes in the example a SIM-card, memory stick/card, RFID or a digital touch screen for electronic picture, advantageously of a standard that is readable in most platforms and most stick/card readers. The means 11 for digital information can have various capacities and contain various information as described above. It can, as mentioned, be anything from commercials, films, games, ring tones and similar.

The means 11 for digital information in the first embodiment is arranged in connection with the core 10, either inside the region 12 inside the core 10, integrated within the core 10, within a material thickness arranged between the outer surface and the inner region of the core 10 itself, or as shown in Fig. 1 , on the outer surface 13 of the core 10. The means 1 1 is advantageously fastened to the core 10 by the aid of an adhesive means (not shown), such as glue or a double-sided tape or similar, that makes it easy to fasten and release the means from the core 10. In the first embodiment, the means 11 , if arranged on the outer surface 13 of the core 10 will first be visible after the article of consumption, that is rolled/wrapped on, is used up, but if the means 11 is arranged within the region 12 of the core 10, the means 11 may be accessible before the article of consumption is used up. Dependent on the desired purpose, one may choose between these alternatives.

Fig. 2 shows a second embodiment of the invention, where the means 11 for digital information is arranged on the very article of consumption 14 that is rolled/wrapped on to the core 10, for instance a paper material or similar. The means 11 can be arranged both to the outer surface 15 of the article of consumption 14, as shown in Fig. 2, or on the inner surface of the article of consumption. The means 11 can be arranged anywhere on the article of consumption, either early on the roll, further along the roll or on the latter part of the article of consumption that lies close to the core 10. For consumption, the final alternative would be an advantage, as the consumer uses up the article of consumption 14 in order to reach the means 11 of information. Here too, the means 11 of information are arranged on the article of consumption 14 by the aid of adhesive means (not shown), such as glue or double sided tape or similar that enables the means 1 1 to easily be fastened and released. It is in all cases an advantage that the consumer is made aware of the fact that the product contains means 11 with information, which for instance can be done by making the consumer aware of this on the container of the product. This can lead to the consumer choosing this product over another, not containing such means 11 of information, due to advantages that can be connected to such information. The information found on the means 11 for digital information can, as mentioned, be anything from pictures that can be printed, games, commercials, codes for games, new boards for games, lottery tickets, discount coupons, ring tones, free MMS or SMS, free minutes of call, software etc. In short, there will be unlimited possibilities for interesting information that can be stored on such a memory stick/card. The submitted invention is usable with different kinds of material, such as card board, paper, plastic, metal and other similar products. The core 10 may have different shape, such as circular, sleeve/tubular or bar, or include other shapes such as triangular, quadrangular or other approximately circular multiple edged shapes.

Of course, one or more of the production forms may be combined, for instance there can be both means for digital information provided on the article of consumption 14 and provided on the core 10.

For a RFID tag or chip, one example can be that a pallet of toilet paper from the merchant contains a RFID tag or chip that is hidden within the material or fastened to the surface/or to the tubular surface. Information can be added to these as the merchant "scans" the pallet and enters only the information the grocery store chain desires. This could for instance be a lottery, giving a prize, which may be a new mobile phone, or the customer can win the groceries he/she has in his/her cart at that time. When passing the cash register, the cash register attendant receives information from the package of rolls as a reader installed in the cash register reports that in this package there is inserted a RFID tag or chip that tells that the customer is the winner of a prize. For instance, a chain of stores that has prizes on some of their toilet rolls in a shorter period (campaign period), can expect that the information that the customer can win small or large prizes, quickly will spread, and that the greater flow of customers for just this nationwide grocery store chain can increase their turnover.

In thought of producing a child safe product, it will be especially interesting to integrate means for digital information into the core or in a material thickness, as there will be no loose parts that a child can swallow. An example of this is shown in the Figures 3a-b, where means for digital information 1 1 is installed and lies hidden within the core's 10 material thickness 16. The means for digital information 11 lies in this way in a thickness between the outer surface 13 of the core 10 and the core's inner region 12, and is concealed within the material 16 which the core 10 is made of, being cardboard, paper, polymer, composite material or similar products.