Afterglowing sign

Description of the invention

The subject of the present invention is a glow sign, in particular printed with glow pigments.

In the event of danger, alarm, fire, smoke, hazards, etc., clearly visible signs in the premises are extremely important, for example to indicate the nearest escape route or to locate fire extinguishing equipment. According to the color requirements established by the relevant authorities, the signs should have one or more standard symbols on a red or green surface.

Afterglow safety signs are known, some of the existing afterglow safety signs are used, inter alia, to indicate and display escape routes and emergency exits and to indicate the location of fire extinguishing equipment. However, the glow pigments used do not exist in the shades of color required for optimal color reproduction both in daylight and, with a color glow, in the dark. The known solution to this problem has hitherto been based on the assumption that these signs show glowing symbols only in the dark and in that case their base color remained black.

There is known from the Polish patent description No. PL 177312 a method of producing signs with improved durability and longer service life, containing a luminescent layer which is permanently attached to a rigid plate with a contrasting color of the substrate.

A solution is known from French patent FR897807A, also relating to an enameled or glazed glow mark comprising an inactive coating covered with a glaze layer on which an active layer containing radioactive active substances is applied.

Thus, the color requirements of these afterglow safety signs are only met for daylight and for illuminated locations, since the available glow pigments do not fully meet the requirements for both daylight and illuminated and dark locations.

An afterglow sign printed with afterglow pigments according to the invention is characterized in that the afterglow pigments are supplemented by at least partial screen printing which includes an opaque ink.

Preferably, a contour recess is formed in the afterglow surface along the outline of the symbols printed on the sign.

Preferably, the afterglow pigments are white / yellowish white, red and optionally green pigments.

Preferably, the screen printing is of the line mesh or dot mesh type.

Preferably, the afterglow pigments are printed as entire surfaces, in the form of grids or incorporated into the material of the sign.

Preferably, the mark is made of metal, plastic or composite.

Preferably, the sign is made of a transparent or translucent material.

An afterglow sign printed with afterglow pigments according to the invention is characterized in that the afterglow pigments are supplemented by at least partial screen printing which includes transparent ink.

Preferably, a contour recess is formed in the afterglow surface along the outline of the symbols printed on the sign.

Preferably, the afterglow pigments are white / yellowish white, red and optionally green pigments.

Preferably, the screen printing is of the line mesh or dot mesh type.

Preferably, the afterglow pigments are printed as entire surfaces, in the form of grids or incorporated into the material of the sign.

Preferably, the mark is made of metal, plastic or composite.

Preferably, it is made of a transparent or translucent material.

An advantage of the present invention is to provide an afterglow sign which gives optimal color reproduction both in daylight and, with a colored glow, in the dark. This advantageous effect is achieved according to the invention by a glow mark which is printed with afterglow pigments which are introduced at least partially by screen printing using opaque or transparent ink.

PL 201 788 B1

It is particularly advantageous according to the invention, in order to increase the contrast between the symbols and the background in the dark, to provide a contour recess along the outline of the symbols printed on the sign in the surface of the substrate with a glow.

Another advantage of the solution is the possibility of using afterglow pigments which are white / yellowish white, red and possibly green.

A further advantageous effect is obtained when the screen printing is a line mesh or a line mesh.

The advantages of the solution also result from the fact that the afterglow pigments are printed as complete surfaces in the form of meshes or incorporated into the material of the sign.

A further advantage is that the mark is made of metal, plastic or composite, and that the mark is otherwise made of a transparent or translucent material.

The subject of the invention in the exemplary embodiments is shown in the drawing, in which Fig. 1 shows a sign according to the invention, in an example in which a line grid is used when adding complementary opaque or alternatively transparent paint, in view, Fig. 2 - a sign according to the invention, in an example wherein a dotted grid is used when adding complementary opaque or alternatively transparent paint, in view, and Fig. 3 - a sign according to the invention, in which a contour recess is formed in the surface of the afterglow substrate along the outline of the symbols, in a schematic view.

The afterglow mark 1 in the preferred examples of the present invention is shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, in which two indicia are shown. Figure 1 shows an escape route sign which according to the standard has a green background with white symbols and a border line. Figure 2 shows a sign 1 for indicating the location of the fire extinguishing equipment which according to the standard has a red background and a white symbol and a border line.

The signs 1 are made of aluminum or plastic and are screen-printed. Any type of glow pigments can be used, with MoAl being a preferred but non-limiting pigment₂ABOUT₃ doped with Eu as a white / yellowish white afterglow pigment, (Ca 0.8 Sr 0.2) S - CaS as a red afterglow pigment and MoAl₂ABOUT₃ doped with Eu plus fluorescent green pigment as green pigment with glow.

The choice of a glow pigment or a glow ink is not a decisive point and hence the technical effect does not depend on the pigment or ink used to obtain the glow print if the sign is provided with a grid of opaque or transparent ink.

First, the afterglow pigments are printed on the sign either as whole surfaces or in the form of screen printing 2. A contour recess 4 along the outline of the symbols 3 and a border line approximately 1.5-3 mm wide can also be made (see Fig. 3). ) when printing a background with a glow to increase the contrast in the dark between the background and the symbols / border line.

The surfaces printed with red and green afterglow pigments, i.e. the background, are supplemented with a line grid 5 (fig. 1) or, alternatively, a dot grid 6 (fig. 2) of opaque or transparent ink. The mesh is preferably printed with a red and a green opaque pigment, respectively, to complement a red or green glow background.

It can be appreciated that modifications to the above-described preferred embodiments are possible within the scope of the invention and fall within the scope of the inventive idea. For example, the afterglow sign 1 need not be an escape route sign 1 or a sign 1 to indicate the location of the fire extinguishing equipment, but may be a sign of some other type, for example a sign 1 used for advertising purposes.