JP7680933B2 - Cursive writing set for water-discoloring sheets - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a writing set for water-discolorable sheets. More specifically, the present invention relates to a writing set for water-discolorable sheets that has a pen that applies water to a sheet-like water-discolorable material and a holder that holds the pen.

Conventionally, attempts have been made to construct a water-discolorable sheet by arranging a porous layer, in which a low refractive index pigment that is opaque when it does not absorb water and becomes transparent when it absorbs water, in a dispersed state fixed in a binder resin on a colored layer, and then applying water to the surface of the porous layer with a writing implement or the like to form an arbitrary water-discolorable image, allowing the colored written image to be seen through the underlying colored layer. Numerous proposals (Prior Document 1 (JP Patent Publication 50-5097, etc.)) have been disclosed, and these have been put to practical use as toys or teaching materials.

The water-discoloring sheet described above uses a pen with a container for storing water and a pen tip into which the water penetrates. The pen tip is made of, for example, a resin-processed polyester fiber or polyamide fiber, or a brush made of natural hair or wool felt, because it is highly elastic and does not easily damage the surface of the water-discoloring body. However, these pen tips may develop mold if moisture continues to adhere to them for a long period of time or if dirt from fingers or the like adheres to them. Furthermore, moisture makes it easy for dust and other debris to adhere to them, so after use it is desirable to drain the water from the pen and dry the pen tip into which the water has penetrated.

Therefore, from the viewpoint of protecting the pen tip, it is effective to cover the pen tip with a cap, but a structure in which a cap is placed over the pen tip to seal the entire tip is not suitable in terms of the growth of mold. This issue is also disclosed, for example, in Prior Art Document 2 (WO 2019/230623).

Special Publication No. 50-5097 International Publication No. 2019/230623

The object of the present invention is to provide a writing set for water-discolorable sheets that can protect the pen tip while preventing the occurrence of mold and the adhesion of dirt to the pen tip, and can also be carried together with a pen and a number of water-discolorable sheets bundled together.

The present invention relates to
"1. A writing set for water-discolorable sheets, comprising a holder and a pen to be attached to the holder,
The holder is provided with a semi-cylindrical portion having a U-shaped cross section, the semi-cylindrical portion having a lower arc portion and two straight portions extending upward from the arc portion in parallel, a sheet ring for holding together a plurality of water-discolorable sheets is attached to one end of the semi-cylindrical portion, and an inner flange is formed with two opposing locking portions on the straight portions on the other end of the semi-cylindrical portion,
The pen has a container for storing water and a pen tip that communicates with the container and through which the water permeates, and a groove is formed in front of the container;
This writing set for water-discolorable sheets is characterized in that, when the pen is inserted into the holder, the tip of the pen is stored in the semi-cylindrical portion of the holder, the groove portion of the pen is supported by the inner flange of the holder, and the pen is clamped by the engaging portion to fix the pen to the holder.
2. The writing set for water-discolorable sheets according to claim 1, wherein the two locking portions of the inner flange of the holder are two opposing protrusions formed on the inner flange.
3. The writing set for water-discolorable sheets according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the semi-cylindrical portion of the holder is gradually widened from the other end side toward the one end side.
4. The writing set for water-discolorable sheets according to any one of items 1 to 3, characterized in that a large-diameter portion formed wider than the inner width of the semi-cylindrical portion of the holder is provided behind the groove of the container.

The straight line portion of the semi-cylindrical portion of the holder is formed to have a dimension such that at least the tip of the pen fits within the semi-cylindrical portion when the pen is inserted. The inner flange provided on the other end of the semi-cylindrical portion of the holder is formed to engage with the groove of the pen. The two opposing locking portions formed on the inner flange are convex or concave portions for holding the pen. When the locking portions are two opposing convex portions, the pen is held between the two convex portions when the pen is inserted into the holder, and the pen is fixed to the holder by the flange portion located on the arc portion. When the locking portions are two opposing concave portions, the shape of the concave portions may be matched to the outer shape of the pen so that the two concave portions can hold the pen between the two concave portions when the pen is inserted into the holder. The inner diameter of the arc portion is formed to be larger than the outer diameter of the pen inserted into the semi-cylindrical portion. The gap between the two straight line portions extending parallel to each other from the arc portion upward is formed to be larger or slightly smaller than the outer diameter of the front of the pen to be inserted. However, if they are formed slightly smaller, the lengths of the two straight portions are set so that they can be separated from each other while elastically deforming.
The shape of the seat ring is not particularly limited, but for example, it is possible to form it in a circular ring shape with a portion spaced apart, provide engageable and detachable locking claws and locking holes at both spaced apart ends, and connect a middle portion of the seat ring located opposite the both ends to a middle portion of the arc portion at one end side of the semi-cylindrical portion, thereby making the connection compact.
The shape of the pen tip is not particularly limited, but if the tip is rounded or elastically deformable, the water-discolorable sheet is less likely to be damaged and writing becomes easier.

The material of the pen tip may be, for example, a resin-processed polyester fiber or polyamide fiber, or a brush made of natural hair or wool felt.
Examples of the material for the container include resins such as polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate, polyvinyl chloride, nylon, and polycarbonate, as well as metals and glass.
Examples of the material for the holder include polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate, polyvinyl chloride, nylon, polycarbonate, etc. Note that polypropylene and polyethylene terephthalate are preferable for facilitating flexible elastic deformation when inserting a pen into the semi-cylindrical portion and when opening and closing the seat ring.

The water-discoloring sheet has a discoloration portion constituted by a porous layer, and the porous layer is a layer in which a low refractive index pigment is fixed in a dispersed state in a binder resin. The support is not particularly limited as long as it is made of a material in which a water-repellent layer and a discoloration portion can be formed, and examples of the support include paper, synthetic paper, plastic film (sheet), fabrics such as knitted fabrics, woven fabrics, and nonwoven fabrics, synthetic leather, leather, plastics (molded products), metals, glass, ceramics, wood, and stone.
The shape of the support is not particularly limited, and may be flat, sheet-like, or have a curved or uneven surface.

The porous layer is a layer in which a low refractive index pigment is fixed in a dispersed state together with a binder resin, and which is opaque when it does not absorb liquid and becomes transparent when it absorbs liquid.
Examples of the low refractive index pigment include silicic acid and its salts, baryte powder, barium sulfate, barium carbonate, calcium carbonate, gypsum, clay, talc, alumina white, and magnesium carbonate.

The low refractive index pigment has a refractive index in the range of 1.4 to 1.8, and exhibits good transparency when it absorbs a liquid.
Examples of the salt of silicic acid include aluminum silicate, potassium aluminum silicate, sodium aluminum silicate, calcium aluminum silicate, potassium silicate, calcium silicate, sodium calcium silicate, sodium silicate, magnesium silicate, and potassium magnesium silicate.
The particle size of the low refractive index pigment is not particularly limited, but is preferably 0.03 to 10.0 μm. Two or more types of low refractive index pigments can be used in combination.
An example of a low refractive index pigment that is preferably used is silicic acid.

The silicic acid may be silicic acid produced by a dry method (hereinafter referred to as dry method silicic acid), but silicic acid produced by a wet method (hereinafter referred to as wet method silicic acid) is preferred.
This point will be explained below.
Silica is produced as non-crystalline amorphous silicic acid, and depending on the production method, it can be roughly divided into dry methods using a gas phase reaction such as thermal decomposition of silicon halides such as silicon tetrachloride, and wet methods using a liquid phase reaction such as decomposition with an acid such as sodium silicate.
Dry process silicic acid and wet process silicic acid have different structures. Dry process silicic acid has a structure in which silicic acid is densely bonded, whereas wet process silicic acid has a structural portion in which silicic acid is condensed to form a long molecular arrangement.
Therefore, since wet-process silicic acid has a coarser molecular structure than dry-process silicic acid, it is presumed that when wet-process silicic acid is applied to a porous layer, it has better diffuse reflection of light in a dry state than a system using dry-process silicic acid, and has greater hiding power in the normal state.
In addition, since the porous layer absorbs water, wet-process silicic acid has more hydroxyl groups present as silanol groups on the particle surface than dry-process silicic acid and has a higher degree of hydrophilicity, and is therefore preferably used.
In order to adjust the hiding power of the porous layer in a normal state and the transparency in a liquid-absorbed state, other low refractive index pigments may be used in combination with the wet-process silica.

Examples of the binder resin include urethane resins, nylon resins, vinyl acetate resins, acrylic ester resins, acrylic ester copolymer resins, acrylic polyol resins, vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer resins, maleic acid resins, polyester resins, styrene resins, styrene copolymer resins, polyethylene resins, polycarbonate resins, epoxy resins, styrene-butadiene copolymer resins, acrylonitrile-butadiene copolymer resins, methyl methacrylate-butadiene copolymer resins, butadiene resins, chloroprene resins, melamine resins, and emulsions of each of the above resins, casein, starch, cellulose derivatives, polyvinyl alcohol, urea resins, and phenol resins.
The mixing ratio of the low refractive index pigment and the binder resin depends on the type and properties of the low refractive index pigment, but is preferably 0.5 to 2 parts by mass, more preferably 0.8 to 1.5 parts by mass, of binder resin solid content per part by mass of the low refractive index pigment. If the binder resin solid content is less than 0.5 parts by mass per part by mass of the low refractive index pigment, it is difficult to obtain a practical film strength of the porous layer, and if it exceeds 2 parts by mass, the permeability of water into the inside of the porous layer becomes poor.

The porous layer has a smaller mixing ratio of binder resin to colorant than a general coating film, so it is difficult to obtain sufficient film strength. Therefore, it is preferable to use nylon resin or urethane resin among the binder resins to increase the abrasion resistance.
The urethane resin may be a polyester urethane resin, a polycarbonate urethane resin, a polyether urethane resin, etc., and two or more of them may be used in combination. In addition, a urethane emulsion resin in which the resin is emulsified and dispersed in water, or a colloidal dispersion type (ionomer type) urethane resin in which the urethane resin having ionic properties (urethane ionomer) is self-emulsified without the need for an emulsifier due to the ionic group of the resin itself, and dissolved or dispersed in water, may be used.

The urethane resin may be either an aqueous urethane resin or an oil-based urethane resin, but in the present invention, an aqueous urethane resin, particularly an urethane emulsion resin or a colloidal dispersion type urethane resin, is preferably used.
The urethane-based resin can be used alone, but can also be used in combination with other binder resins depending on the type of support and the performance required for the film. When a binder resin other than the urethane-based resin is used in combination, in order to obtain a practical film strength, it is preferable that the binder resin of the porous layer contains the urethane-based resin in an amount of 30% or more by solid mass ratio.
In the above-mentioned binder resin, if it is crosslinkable, the strength of the film can be further improved by adding an arbitrary crosslinking agent to crosslink the binder resin.
The binder resin has a large or small affinity with water, and by combining these, it is possible to adjust the time for penetration into the porous layer, the degree of penetration, and the drying speed after penetration. Furthermore, the above adjustment can be controlled by adding a dispersant as appropriate.
The coating amount of the porous layer is 5 to 50 g/m2, preferably 10 to 30 g/m2.
If the coverage is less than 5 g/m2, it is difficult to obtain sufficient hiding power in normal conditions, and if the coverage exceeds 50 g/m2, it is difficult to obtain sufficient transparency when liquid is absorbed.

Incidentally, general dyes, fluorescent dyes, and color pigments can be added to the porous layer to diversify the color changes.
Examples of the color pigment include general pigments, fluorescent pigments, and metallic luster pigments such as titanium dioxide-coated mica, iron oxide-titanium dioxide-coated mica, iron oxide-coated mica, guanine, sericite, basic lead carbonate, acidic lead arsenate, and bismuth oxychloride.

A colored layer may be provided between the color-changing layer (porous layer) and the support (i.e., below the color-changing layer) so that the hue of the colored layer can be visually recognized when the porous layer is in a liquid-absorbing state.
Furthermore, a colored image (design layer) such as a picture can be disposed on the upper layer of the color-changing layer or on the support surrounding the color-changing layer to further diversify the appearance changes and improve the decorativeness of the game toy. Examples of the colored image (design layer) include pictures, letters, symbols, patterns, etc.

The color-changing layer (porous layer), colored layer, and design layer formed on the support can be appropriately formed by any known means, such as printing means such as screen printing, offset printing, gravure printing, coater, pad printing, and transfer printing, brush coating, spray coating, electrostatic coating, electrodeposition coating, flow coating, roller coating, and dip coating.

The writing set for water-discolorable sheets according to the present invention can protect the pen tip while preventing the growth of mold and the adhesion of dirt to the pen tip, and can also provide the effect of allowing multiple water-discolorable sheets to be bundled together and carried together with the pen.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a writing set for a water-discolorable sheet and a water-discolorable sheet in this embodiment, with the pen removed from the holder. Figure 2 is an oblique view showing the writing set for water-discolorable sheets and the water-discolorable sheets in this embodiment, with the pen inserted in the holder and the sheet ring engaged to bundle the water-discolorable sheets together.

This embodiment is shown in FIG. 1 and FIG.
The writing set 1 for water-discolorable sheets of this embodiment is composed of a holder 2 and a pen 3 attached to the holder 2. The holder 2 is provided with an arcuate portion 21a on the bottom surface and two straight portions 21b extending in parallel upward from the arcuate portion 21a, and a semi-cylindrical portion 21 having an opening 21c at the top is formed. The holder 2 also has an annular sheet ring 22 attached to the middle portion at one end side of the semi-cylindrical portion 21. The sheet ring 22 is spaced apart on the side opposite to the joining portion 23 with the semi-cylindrical portion 21, and has locking claws 22a and locking holes 22b at both ends to be able to be engaged and disengaged.
An inner flange 21d is formed on the other end side of the semi-cylindrical portion 21, and two opposing protrusions (locking portions) 21e are provided in the middle portion of the inner flange 21d.

The holder 2 in this embodiment is made of polypropylene, and the semi-cylindrical portion 21 and the seat ring 22 are integrally formed. The holder 2 is elongated in the direction along the axis of the pen 3, and the length of the semi-cylindrical portion 21 is 37 mm, with the width being 15.3 mm at one end and 16.5 mm at the other end. The inner dimension of the inner flange 21d in the straight portion 21b is 13 mm, and two protrusions 21e with a height of 0.9 mm are formed in the middle of the inner flange 21d in the straight portion 21b.

The pen 3 of this embodiment is made up of a container 31 for storing water (not shown), a main body 32, and a tip opening 33 that is detachably screwed onto the main body. A pen tip 34 is disposed at the front end of the container 31. A groove 3a is formed between the main body 32 and the tip opening 33.

In the pen 3 of this embodiment, the body 32 and tip 33 constituting the container 31 are made of polypropylene, and the pen tip 34 is made of polyamide fiber so that the water in the container 31 can penetrate. The pen 3 is formed so that the overall length of the container 31 is 108 mm, the outer diameter of the front end of the body 32 and the rear end of the tip 33 is 13.5 mm, and the outer diameter of the valley of the groove 3a is 13 mm, the same as the inner dimension of the inner flange 21d of the holder 2. The pen tip 34 protrudes 7 mm from the tip 33, and the overall length of the pen 3 is 115 mm.

2, with the pen 3 inserted in the holder 2, the pen tip 34 of the pen 3 is housed in the semi-cylindrical portion 21 of the holder 2, the inner flange 21d of the holder 2 supports the groove portion 3a of the pen 3, and the two protrusions 21e of the holder 2 sandwich the front end of the body 32 and the rear end of the tip opening 33 of the pen 3, and the pen 3 is fixed to the holder 2 by the inner flange 21d located in the arc portion. At this time, the inner flange 21d of the holder 2 is inserted into the groove portion 3a of the pen 3 and slid to insert and fix the pen 3 to the holder 2, so that the pen 3 can be easily aligned and fixed to the holder 2.
In this embodiment, the pen 3 is set to be inserted into the holder 2 with a force of 20 N or less so that even children can easily operate it. Since the seat ring 22 is located on one end side of the semi-cylindrical portion 21, when inserting the pen 3 into the holder 2, the back surface of the other end side of the semi-cylindrical portion 21 can be supported by hand, making it easier for the pen 3 to climb over the two protrusions 21e of the holder 2. Since the seat ring 22 is located on one end side of the semi-cylindrical portion 21, even when the pen 3 is inserted into the holder 2, the locking claws 22a can be easily disengaged from the locking holes 22b.
Considering carrying, the pen 3 is set not to come off when pulled with a force of 2N or less from the holder 2, and the pen 3 is not to come off by its own weight even when inserted in the holder 2 and lightly shaken.
The three water-chromatic sheets 4 have round holes 4a through which sheet rings 22 are inserted, and the locking claws 22a engage with the locking holes 22b to hold the water-chromatic sheets 4 together.
In this embodiment, the thickness of the seat ring 22 is 4.5 mm, and the outer diameter is 40 mm.

In the present embodiment, when the pen 3 is inserted into the holder 2, the pen tip 34 is exposed to the outside, making it easy to dry and protecting the pen tip 34 while preventing the growth of mold and the adhesion of dirt. It is also highly convenient as multiple water-discolorable sheets can be carried together with the pen 3 in a bundled state.
In addition, when the pen 3 is used intermittently, such as when writing on the water-discolorable sheet 4 with the pen 3 and then stopping writing, the pen tip 34 of the pen 3 is in a state where water is permeated, but by inserting the pen 3 into the holder 2, it is possible to prevent objects around the pen 3 from getting wet with the water from the pen tip 34.
Furthermore, since the semi-cylindrical portion 21 of the holder 2 is gradually widened from the other end side toward the one end side, the inside especially on the pen tip 34 side becomes wider and more open.
Furthermore, a large diameter portion 3b that is wider than the inner width of the semi-cylindrical portion 21 of the holder 2 is provided behind the groove portion 3a of the container 31. As a result, the pen 3 cannot be inserted into the holder 2 in the direction opposite to the state shown in Figure 2. When the pen 3 is inserted into the holder 2, the pen tip 34 is securely stored in the semi-cylindrical portion 21, thereby protecting the pen tip 34.

In the present embodiment, the water-discolorable sheet 4 is prepared by uniformly mixing and stirring 5 parts of blue pigment, 50 parts of acrylic ester emulsion (solid content 50% by weight), 0.2 parts of silicone-based defoamer, 3 parts of thickener, 2 parts of wetting agent, 1 part of leveling agent, 10 parts of water, and 2.5 parts of epoxy-based crosslinking agent on a support made of white synthetic paper, followed by screen printing with a 180-mesh screen to form a colored layer. Next, on the colored layer, 15 parts of fine silica produced by a wet method [trade name: Nipsil E-200A, manufactured by Nippon Silica Kogyo Co., Ltd.], 50 parts of aqueous urethane resin as a binder resin [trade name: Hydran AP-10, polyester-based urethane resin, solid content 30% by weight, manufactured by Dainippon Ink and Chemicals Co., Ltd.], 30 parts of water, 0.5 parts of silicone-based defoamer, 3 parts of aqueous ink thickener, 1 part of ethylene glycol, and 2 parts of epoxy-based crosslinker were uniformly mixed and stirred to form a porous layer, and a water-discolorable sheet 4 with a thickness of 0.4 mm and a size of 220 mm x 320 mm was obtained. The water-discolorable sheet 4 is white in normal conditions, but when the water-soaked pen tip 34 of the pen 3 is used to write on the porous layer, water is attached to the water-discolorable sheet 4, and a blue water-discolorable image (letter) can be formed.

1... Water-discolorable sheet writing set,
2...Holder,
21: semi-cylindrical portion; 21a: arc portion; 21b: straight portion; 21c: opening;
21d: inner flange; 21e: protrusion;
22... Seat ring, 22a... Locking claw, 22b... Locking hole,
23... joint part,
3...pen, 3a...groove portion, 3b...large diameter portion,
31: container, 32: main body, 33: tip, 34: pen tip,
4...water-discolorable sheet, 4a...round hole.

Claims (4)

A writing set for a water-discolorable sheet, comprising a holder and a pen attached to the holder,
The holder is provided with a semi-cylindrical portion having a U-shaped cross section, the semi-cylindrical portion having a lower arc portion and two straight portions extending upward from the arc portion in parallel, a sheet ring for holding together a plurality of water-discolorable sheets is attached to one end of the semi-cylindrical portion, and an inner flange is formed with two opposing locking portions on the straight portions on the other end of the semi-cylindrical portion,
The pen has a container for storing water and a pen tip that communicates with the container and through which the water permeates, and a groove is formed in front of the container;
This writing set for water-discolorable sheets is characterized in that, when the pen is inserted into the holder, the tip of the pen is stored in the semi-cylindrical portion of the holder, the groove portion of the pen is supported by the inner flange of the holder, and the pen is clamped by the engaging portion to fix the pen to the holder. The writing set for water-discolorable sheets according to claim 1, characterized in that the two locking parts of the inner flange of the holder are two opposing protrusions formed on the inner flange. The writing set for water-discolorable sheets according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the semi-cylindrical portion of the holder gradually widens from the other end side toward the one end side. The writing set for water-discolorable sheets according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that a large diameter portion wider than the inner width of the semi-cylindrical portion of the holder is provided behind the groove of the container.

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