The invention relates to mailers and sheet products for use as parts of mailers and, in particular, to sets of uniquely encoded cards, tags, labels and other sheet elements used in mailers.
A substantial market has developed in recent years for inexpensively manufactured, individually encoded, transaction cards for such uses as store credit cards, membership cards, I.D. cards, etc. The transaction cards typically bear the code in a bar format to permit automatic machine scanning of the card. Such cards typically are supplied in sets with one or more labels, tags, etc. being supplied with each card and bearing the same individual code number as the card for attachment to application forms, membership lists, etc.
Previously, it has taken many separate manufacturing steps to provide such sets. Perhaps the most efficient prior method has been printing in multiple steps, individual sheets of uniquely encoded, typically sequentially numbered, transaction cards, printing separate strips of release paper back adhesive labels with the same, unique codes as the cards, in the same sequence of codes as the codes appear on the cards of the sheets, and attaching the strip(s) with the appropriate code numbers to each sheet with the labels adjoining the like coded card(s).
In practice, this apparently simple, straightforward method requires several labor intensive steps. The appropriate labels for each sheet of cards must be identified and applied by hand to the sheet so that the labels properly adjoin the associated transaction cards. Because this correlation of the separate elements of each sheet is done by hand, considerable time and effort also must be spent in checking the final product to assure accuracy.
In addition, because the transaction card sheets and label strips must be printed separately, more time is needed to complete the task if the same printer is used to print the transaction card sheet and label strips. Alternatively, several printers must be available to simultaneously print the cards and the strips.
The present invention is directed to solving the twin problems of relatively high cost and errors associated with hand production of sets of plural related printed elements, all bearing some code unique to each set of elements, by eliminating hand collation and assembly of the separate elements into the sets as well as the material costs associated with such elements.
The present invention is also directed to solving the problem of the numerous printing steps which are currently required to produce related sets of card sheets and separate label strips, by reducing the number of required printing steps.
The present invention is also directed to solving problems associated with mailing other types or card or cardsized objects that, in some way, require the provision of multiple, variable data sets with each mailer.
In one aspect, the invention is a multilayer, integral, planar, individual printed sheet product comprising a flexible, printable planar core having first and second opposing major sides, the core being printed on at least one of the major sides, the printing on at least the one major side including at least a first variable data field with a unique printed code to uniquely identify the individual printed sheet product; a first flexible cover strip integrally and permanently secured to at least the first side of the core; a magnetic stripe data storage element permanently and integrally fixed together with the core and the first cover strip on the first side of the core; and scoring extending at least sufficiently through the sheet product to define a first identification element removable from a remainder of the individual printed sheet product, the first removable identification element including at least the magnetic stripe data storage element and only part of the first flexible cover strip.
In another aspect, the invention is a multilayer, integral, individual printed sheet product with planar major opposing sides comprising: a flexible, planar core having major opposing first and second sides on the major opposing sides of the sheet product; a first flexible cover strip integrally and permanently secured to at least the first side of the core; printing on at least one of the major sides of the sheet product, the printing including at least a first variable data field with a unique printed code to uniquely identify the individual printed sheet product; a magnetic stripe data storage element permanently and integrally fixed together with the core and the first cover strip on the first side of the core; and scoring extending at least sufficiently through the sheet product to define a first identification element removable from a remainder of the sheet product, the first removable identification element including at least part of the magnetic stripe data storage element on the sheet product and only part of the first flexible cover strip on the sheet product.
In yet another aspect, the invention is a multilayer, integral, printed sheet with two planar opposing major sides made during manufacture of individual sheet products, the sheet comprising: a core formed of flexible planar material, the core having first and second opposing major sides on the opposing major sides of the sheet; a first flexible cover strip integrally and permanently secured to at least the first major side of the core; a plurality of sets of variable data fields printed on at least one major side of the core, each set of variable data fields including at least one field printed with a code unique to the set and different from the code of each other set of variable data fields printed on the sheet; at least one magnetic data storage strip permanently and integrally fixed together with the core and the first cover strip on the first side of the core; and scoring extending at least sufficiently through the sheet product, the first cover strip and any magnetic data storage strip, where present, to define at least a plurality of first identification elements equal in number to the plurality of sets and removable from a remainder of the printed sheet product and a plurality of second identification elements equal in number to the plurality of sets and separable from the first identification elements and any remainder of the printed sheet product, each of the plurality of first identification elements containing only a portion of one magnetic data storage element strip and each of the plurality of the second removable elements, one from each set, containing at least a variable data field printed with the unique code different from the printed unique code of each other second removable element and each other set of the plurality.