DECAL-COATED PROJECTILE LAUNCHER

Abstract

A non-lethal projectile launcher toy that comprises a full-colour, high DPI, printed aggregate coating on an outer shell (101, 301); the decal coating is not limited to flat surfaces, allowing for substantially unrestricted product design, and is substantially undisturbed visual continuity when crossing part lines between discrete parts that make up the outer shell. Methods of producing the decal-coated toy gun using inkjet printing technology are also provided, allowing for high-detail and comprehensive colour range aggregate coatings that may be programmatically controlled to maximise the visual quality of the applied decal.

Claims

1. A projectile launcher comprising: at least two abutting shell parts that form at least part of an outer shell of said projectile launcher, wherein a first of said shell parts has an outer surface (herein after first surface) that is contiguous an outer surface (herein after second surface) of a second of said shell parts; an aggregate coating comprising at least two sub-coatings, a first sub-coating is carried at said first surface by said first shell part and a second sub-coating is carried at said second surface by said second shell part.

2. A projectile launcher as claimed in claim 1, wherein said first sub-coating and said second sub-coating are contiguous.

3. A projectile launcher as claimed in claim 1 wherein the first surface and second surface generally extend away from each other, from where they are contiguous, in non-parallel directions.

4. A projectile launcher as claimed in claim 1 wherein at least one of said first surface and second surface comprises of at least one outer face that has at least two non-parallel normals.

5. A projectile launcher as claimed in claim 1 wherein at least one of said first surface and second surface comprises of two or more outer faces that are inclined to each other.

6. A projectile launcher as claimed in claim 4 wherein a said sub-coating is carried by and continuously across at least part of said at least one outer face.

7. A projectile launcher as claimed in claim 1 wherein the first and second surfaces have had their respective sub-coatings received independently.

8. A projectile launcher as claimed in claim 1 wherein the first and second surfaces have had their respective sub-coatings applied by a printing process.

9. A projectile launcher as claimed in claim 1 wherein each shell part notionally comprises a first and second direction that are perpendicular to each other and a third direction that is orthogonal to the first and second direction wherein said sub-coating spans no greater than 30 mm in the third direction.

10. A projectile launcher as claimed in claim 1 wherein at least one of said shell parts has its sub-coating applied to at least part of its outer surface within a region of two notional parallel planes no greater than 30 mm apart.

11. A projectile launcher as claimed in claim 5 wherein at least one of said shell parts has its two faces at where sub-coating is applied within a region of two notional parallel planes no greater than 30 mm apart.

12. A projectile launcher as claimed in claim 5 wherein the first outer face is inclined to a second outer face at an angle of less than 60? and on both of which a said sub-coating is carried.

13. A projectile launcher as claimed in claim 1, wherein said aggregate coating comprises at least one graphical element, wherein said graphical element is continuous across the contiguous surfaces of abutting shell parts.

14. A projectile launcher as claimed in claim 1, wherein at least one sub-coating comprises of a plurality of colours.

15. A projectile launcher as claimed in claim 1, wherein at least one sub-coating comprises a glazed outermost layer.

16. A method of creating a projectile launcher comprising of two abutting shell parts, a first shell part having an outer surface (herein after first surface) that is contiguous an outer surface (herein after second surface) of a second shell part, to define at least part of the outer shell of the projectile launcher, the method comprising: when said two shell parts are separated from each other, printing a sub-coating on the first surface and printing a sub-coating on the second surface; assembling said shell parts to abut each other and to position said sub-coatings contiguous of each other to define an aggregate coating on said outer shell that is visually continuous including at where the sub-coatings are positioned contiguous of each other.

17. A method as claimed in claim 16 wherein said sub-coatings are applied by ink deposition printing, the direction from which the deposition of ink was received of one of said shell parts is, when said shell parts are assembled, at between 30 and 120? to the direction from which the deposition of ink was received of the abutting shell part.

18. A method as claimed in claim 16 wherein as least one of said first and second surfaces has a plurality of faces, said printing occurring by way of ink deposition on said faces that present so that the angle of incidence of ink deposition on said faces is no greater than 60?.

19. A method of producing an outer shell of a projectile launcher comprising: (i) receiving at least two shell parts, wherein each shell part comprises an outer surface; (ii) depositing ink onto the outer surface of each of the at least two of said shell parts, forming a sub-coating on each outer surface of said shell parts; (iii) assembling said shell parts together to form at least a part of the outer shell of said projectile launcher, wherein at least two shell parts that each comprise a sub-coating are abutting, and wherein said sub-coatings are contiguous.

20. A method as claimed in claim 19, wherein for each shell part, said ink is deposited along a printing direction onto said outer surface at any point on the outer surface between a top height and a bottom height of a said sub-coating, wherein said top height and bottom height are less than 30 mm apart.

21. A method as claimed in claim 19 wherein for each shell part, said ink is deposited along a printing direction onto said outer surface at any point on the outer surface that comprises a normal direction that is angled to said printing direction by an angle of less than 60?.

22. A method as claimed in claim 19, wherein said ink is UV curable, wherein said method further comprises curing the ink on each shell part with UV light, prior to assembly of the outer shell.

23. A method as claimed in claim 19, wherein said ink is a pigment-based ink.

24. A method as claimed in claim 19, wherein the ink deposited onto each outer surface is cumulatively deposited across a plurality of print passes.

25. A method as claimed in claim 24, wherein for a said sub-coating, a number of print passes during which ink is deposited onto a point on said outer surface that a direction of printing is normal to, is less than a number of print passes during which ink is deposited onto a point on said outer surface that said direction of printing is angled to.

26. A method as claimed in claim 19, wherein said ink is deposited using an inkjet printer.

27. A method as claimed in claim 26 wherein said each inkjet printing is a piezo electric inkjet printer.

28. A method as claimed in claim 19, further comprising receiving at least one said shell part onto a jig tray, wherein said jig tray is shaped and configured to allow said shell parts to register with the jig tray for subsequent printing.

29. A method as claimed in claim 28, wherein said jig tray is shaped and configured to receive a plurality of said shell parts to allow said plurality of shell parts to register with said jig tray for subsequent printing.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0164] The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide further understanding of the invention are incorporated and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

[0165] In the drawings:

[0166] FIG. 1 displays a front three-quarter view of a projectile launcher outer shell that is optimised to be able to receive sub-coatings on multiple shell parts.

[0167] FIG. 2 displays an exploded front three-quarter view of the projectile launcher outer shell from FIG. 1.

[0168] FIG. 3 displays a front three-quarter view of an outer shell of a preferred embodiment of a decal-coated projectile launcher, with said view illustrating an aggregate coating across a plurality of outer shell parts.

[0169] FIG. 4 displays an exploded front three-quarter view of the outer shell of the embodiment, with said view illustrating an aggregate coating across a plurality of outer shell parts.

[0170] FIG. 5 displays a rear three-quarter view of the outer shell of the embodiment, with said view illustrating an aggregate coating across a plurality of outer shell parts.

[0171] FIG. 6 displays an exploded rear three-quarter view of the outer shell of the embodiment, with said view illustrating an aggregate coating across a plurality of outer shell parts.

[0172] FIG. 7 displays a top view of the outer shell of the embodiment, with said view illustrating an aggregate coating across a plurality of outer shell parts.

[0173] FIG. 8 displays a side view of the outer shell of the embodiment, with said view illustrating an aggregate coating across a plurality of outer shell parts.

[0174] FIG. 9 displays a front view of the outer shell of the embodiment, with said view illustrating an aggregate coating across a plurality of outer shell parts.

[0175] FIG. 10 displays a rear view of the outer shell of the embodiment, with said view illustrating an aggregate coating across a plurality of outer shell parts.

[0176] FIG. 11 displays a side view of an inkjet printer head depositing ink onto a top face of an outer shell part, wherein the top face is orthogonal to the direction of printing.

[0177] FIG. 12 displays a side view of an inkjet printer head depositing ink onto a face of the outer shell part of FIG. 11, wherein the face is inclined to the direction of printing.

[0178] FIG. 13 displays a perspective view of a jig tray that may receive and register a plurality of shell parts during printing of said shell parts.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0179] As used hereinbefore or after, when referring to a shell part of a projectile launcher, shell part or outer shell part refers to a part that may form a discrete portion of an outer surface of the projectile launcher.

[0180] As used hereinbefore or after, when referring to an outer shell of a projectile launcher, outer shell refers to an assembly comprising a plurality of shell parts that collectively form all, or a substantial portion, of the outer-facing surfaces of the projectile launcher and disregards discrete parts that make up internal mechanisms or housing surfaces that are entirely occluded by outer parts.

[0181] As used hereinbefore or after, when referring to a sub-coating of a shell part or of an aggregate coating, sub-coating refers to a digitally rasterised printed coating on an outer surface of a shell part, such that the sub-coating is received by a discrete shell part and does not physically span to other shell parts.

[0182] As used hereinbefore or after, when referring to an aggregate coating of a decal-coated projectile launcher or an outer shell or a plurality of shell parts, aggregate coating refers to a coating made up of multiple sub-coatings, wherein the sub-coatings may abut other sub-coatings to provide an apparent continuity between discrete shell parts, and may also comprise common decal elements that are duplicated throughout said sub-coatings, or span between said sub-coatings; such abutment, and/or visual similarity, results in visual coherence providing an aggregate coating.

[0183] As used hereinbefore or after, when referring to a decal-coated shell part, outer shell, or projectile launcher, decal-coated refers to the presence of an aggregate coating and/or a sub-coating on said shell part, outer shell, or projectile launcher.

[0184] As used hereinbefore of after, when referring to a decal element of a sub-coating or an aggregate coating, decal element refers to a graphical element that may be discernible as a discrete sprite, layer, component, or object within a sub-coating or aggregate coating.

[0185] As used hereinbefore or after, when referring to a background decal element of a sub-coating or an aggregate coating, background decal element refers to a decal element that serves as part of a base texture or base pattern. Examples of background decal elements may include, but are not limited to, one or more solid colours, one or more colours forming a gradient, a pattern, an image, text, 2D or 3D shapes.

[0186] As used hereinbefore or after, when referring to a foreground decal element of a sub-coating or an aggregate coating, foreground decal element refers to a decal element that serves as a focal point, or primary graphical element within a sub-coating or aggregate coating, over top one or more background decal elements. Examples of foreground decal elements may include, but are not limited to, logos, text, icons, images, 2D or 3D shapes, characters, animals, plants, or natural elements such as fire or lightning.

[0187] As used hereinbefore or after, when referring to a printing pass of a printing method, printing pass may refer to either: firstly, one of multiple printing operations of applying a decal onto an article in a single position, wherein the decal is made up of multiple printed layers to create a thicker final layer, or secondly one of multiple printing operations of applying a decal onto an article, wherein the article may be in varying positions and/or orientation during each said printing operation, and each said printing operation may deposit multiple layers of material.

[0188] As used hereinbefore or after, when referring to a printing plane of a printing method, printing plane refers to a plane that is orthogonal to a direction of a jet of ink, or alternative printing deposition, and, when printing onto a surface, the printing plane is coincident to an impact point of said jet of ink on the surface.

[0189] The invention as disclosed in its current form comprises of: A projectile launcher assembled from a plurality of shell parts, with one or more of the shell parts having a sub-coating on it. The geometry of the decal-coated shell parts is optimised to facilitate the sub-coating in a way that substantially obviates visual distortion and voids in the applied decal.

[0190] Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 2, this is an outer shell 101 of a projectile launcher comprising a plurality of shell parts: a top rail 201, a left side 202, a right side 203, a left grip half 204, a right grip half 205, and a front barrel 206. In a finished projectile launcher, the outer shell 101 would house internal mechanisms to launch a projectile, such as a foam dart, out of a hole 209 in the front barrel 206 as well as comprise user interactable hardware such as a trigger or a cocking handle. Each outer shell part abuts one or more other to form the outer shell, with some parts, such as the left grip half 204 and right grip half 205 abutting along a mid-plane of the outer shell, while parts such as the left side 202 and the right side 203 abut to either side of the top rail 201 and the front barrel 206 comprises an outer edge that follows the contour of the front edges 208, 207 of the left side 202 and right side 203 respectively. Lastly, the geometry of the top rail 201, left side 202, and right side 203 are designed such that they may be optimal to receive a sub-coating on their outward-facing surfaces, where the top rail acts as a bridge part in the width direction between the left side and right side to further accommodate the ability for the left side and right side to comprise geometry that is optimised to receive a sub-coating.

[0191] Referring now to FIGS. 3 to 10, this is a preferred embodiment of an outer shell 301 of a decal-coated projectile launcher, structurally equivalent to the plain outer shell 101 of FIGS. 1 and 2, comprising a plurality of discrete shell parts: a top rail 401, a left side 402, a right side 403, a left grip half 404, a right grip half 405, and a front barrel 406. In this embodiment, the outer shell 301 comprises an aggregate coating which comprises three sub-coatings: a first sub-coating 302 on an outer surface of the top rail 401, a second sub-coating 304 on an outer surface of the left side 402, and a third sub-coating 504 on an outer surface of the right side 403, such that the aggregate coating spans across the three shell parts in a visually continuous way; the left grip half 404, right grip half 405, and the front barrel 406, however, are all plain plastic injection moulded parts without a sub-coating.

[0192] The aggregate coating comprises three foreground decal elements 501 502 503 that each span throughout the sub-coatings 302 304 504, and consequently across the top rail 401, left side 402, and right side 403 such that the foreground decal elements appear undisturbed when the outer shell is assembled. For instance, the shell parts 401 402 interface at said abutting edges 601 602 and as the first sub-coating 302 is contiguous with the first abutting edge 602 and the second sub-coating 304 is contiguous with the second abutting edge 601, the first foreground element 501 appears to span across the abutting edges 601 602 and over to the adjacent outer shell part; equivalently, the second and third foreground decal elements 502 503 also span across the abutting edges and over to corresponding adjacent outer shell parts. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the aggregate coating includes three background decal elements 701 702 703, that are each discreetly situated within the first sub-coating 302, second sub-coating 304, and third sub-coating 504, respectively. In this embodiment, the second sub-coating's background decal element 702 and the third sub-coating's background decal element 703 are a substantially similar decal element, while the first sub-coating's background decal element 701 is different. Each of these background decal elements are discretely located on their respective sub-coatings, and consequently their respective outer shell parts; although the aggregate coating is visually continuous across the abutting edges 601 602 and the abutting edges 603 604, none of the background decal elements 701 702 703 span across the edges and over to the adjacent outer shell part.

[0193] It should be noted that this particular aggregate coating's distinction between how the foreground decal elements 501 502 503 span across discrete sub-coatings and outer shell parts, and how the background decal elements 701 702 703 are separated and confined within a corresponding sub-coating and shell part, serve as an example that, although the entire aggregate coating may be designed to appear continuous across multiple outer shell parts, the decal elements that comprise it may be either discrete or visually continuous, depending on the desired artistic design.

[0194] In this embodiment, each outer shell part that comprises the aggregate coating is optimised to be able to receive a sub-coating by an inkjet printing method, such that the outer shell parts do not have outer surfaces that require a sub-coating and extend beyond a height range of greater than a maximum printing range of the inkjet printer; presently, a value of 30 mm exists as this maximum height range, assuming the printer head has clearance to be located near said height range. Accordingly, the top rail 401 comprises a top sub-coating height 801 and a bottom sub-coating height 802, such that the distance between them is less than 15 mm, and the left side 402 comprises a top sub-coating height 901 and a bottom sub-coating height 902, such that the distance between them is less than 10 mm. Additionally, the outer shell parts do not have outer faces intended to receive a sub-coating that are also inclined to a printing plane greater than a maximum printing angle of the inkjet printer; presently a value of 60? exists as this maximum angle of incline. Accordingly, the top rail 401 comprises faces that are all below 60?, such as a rear corner face 704 that is inclined at approximately 45? to a printing plane, and the left side 402 comprises sub-coating-comprising faces that are all below 60?, such as an angled face 903 that is inclined at approximately 45? to a printing plane. It should be noted that referenced printing planes for each outer shell part are not the same; such printing planes refer to a momentary plane that is orthogonal to a direction that the outer shell part is receiving a sub-coating from. Furthermore, it should also be noted that the right side 403 is substantially identical, but mirrored, to the left side 402 such that it comprises the same height range and maximum surface incline specifications.

[0195] Due to the left grip half 404 and right grip half 405 not comprising the aggregate coating, their geometry does not need to be optimised as such; this allows the left grip half 404 and right grip half 405 to comprise surfaces that span around 90? angles in order to have their abutting edge 1002 at a midplane of the outer shell and require fewer total parts in the assembly of the outer shell 301. Contrarily, although these two outer shell parts are not optimised to receive a sub-coating on all their geometry, a decal could still be easily deposited onto their side faces 803 in a single printing orientation; this sub-coating would just not be easily continued onto all surfaces of the outer shell parts without reorienting the outer shell part.

[0196] When assembled, the outer shell 301 comprises a rear opening 1001 which may be used to allow access to internal volumes or comprise user-interfaceable parts that actuate internal mechanisms of the decal-coated projectile launcher. In this embodiment, the rear opening 1001 serves as an opening that a lever may extend from, such that the lever may be operated by the user to set a spring-powered action. In other embodiments it may be preferable to comprise similar openings that lead into the interior of the outer shell and may facilitate features including, but not limited to, triggers, levers, buttons, projectile magazines, LED lights, speakers, digital displays, or battery compartments. Equivalently, the outer shell 301 comprises a trigger opening 303 which may be used to allow access to internal volumes or comprise user-interfaceable parts that actuate internal mechanisms of the decal-coated projectile launcher. In this embodiment, the trigger opening 303 serves as an opening that a trigger may extend from, such that the trigger may be operated by the user to release a spring-powered action. Furthermore, if the top rail 401 comprised a vertical face extending downward to cover the rear opening 1001 then that face would not be optimised to receive a sub-coating by an inkjet printer in the same way that the top rail 401 is currently optimised as such.

[0197] Furthermore, it should be noted that the construction of the inner mechanisms of a projectile launcher should be apparent to those skilled in the art, thus the description of this invention focuses primarily on the novelty of the outer shell of a decal-coated projectile launcher.

[0198] It is preferable in this embodiment that each outer shell part that comprises a sub-coating that substantially covers the outer surface. Such a comprehensively covered outer shell part provides a sub-coating that appears intrinsic to the outer shell part's material, rather than a thinly applied layer; this increases the perceived value and perceived quality of the product. Common exemptions that may be made to this preferable feature include functional features such as fastener holes, or other geometry required to fabricate and assemble the projectile launcher.

[0199] A preferred method of producing a decal-coated projectile launcher is now described: A decal-coated projectile launcher may be produced by constructing a plurality or outer shell parts, locating each outer shell part to receive a sub-coating, using a piezo electric inkjet printer to dispense a UV curable, pigment-based, ink to apply a sub-coating onto each outer shell part, directing UV light onto each outer shell part to bond the sub-coating to the outer surface of the outer shell part, and assembling a projectile launcher using the now coated outer shell parts to form at least a part of the outer shell of the projectile launcher. To produce a high-quality decal-coated projectile launcher, it is preferable to ensure that each outer shell part comprises geometry that is optimal to receive a sub-coating from an inkjet printer, as previously mentioned, particularly where the outer surface of each outer shell part to receive a sub-coating do not span a height range of greater than 30 mm and are not inclined to the horizontal printing plane by more than 60?.

[0200] The method of this embodiment utilises inkjet printing technology to apply an aggregate coating to the projectile launcher since inkjet printers can print full colour, high resolution images, and may utilise UV curable inks to hasten the drying process and adhere to a range of material types. Furthermore, since inkjet printing deposits microdroplets from a printer head that is not in contact with the printed surface, it allows for variances in height of the subject's geometry, including angled surfaces, offset surfaces, protrusions, indentations, bumps, textured surfaces, or any other features that cause variances in height in relation to the printer head.

[0201] Referring now to FIGS. 11 and 12, an illustration of the previously described method can be seen; namely, an outer shell part 1106 is shown to be receiving a sub-coating onto its outer surface from an inkjet head 1101 in a first position. The inkjet head 1101 is depositing a jet of ink 1102 in a printing direction 1105 onto a top face 1103, where the nozzle 1104 of the inkjet head is spaced a minimum distance away from the top face 1103. Additionally, the inkjet head 1101 is shown in a second position 1201 to be depositing a jet of ink 1202 from the nozzle 1204, which is at the same height as the first position, onto an inclined face 1203 where the inclined face is inclined to a printing plane at an incline angle 1205, where the incline angle 1205 is 45?. The geometry of this outer shell part 1106 is optimised to receive a sub-coating, such that the height range of the part defined by a top printing height 1206 and a bottom printing height 1207 is less than 30 mm and the maximum inclination of a surface, related to a printing plane, is less than 60?; specifically, the height range of this outer shell part 1106 is approximately 15 mm, and the maximum angle of inclined surfaces is approximately 45?.

[0202] Referring now to FIG. 13, an illustration of a jig tray 1301 can be seen; this jig tray may be used in a preferred embodiment of the previously described method. The jig tray comprises a plurality of shell part spaces 1302 such that each of the shell part spaces may receive a shell part. Each shell part space comprises at least two retaining pegs 1304, such that the retaining pegs fix said shell part from translating or rotating when received by the corresponding shell part space. Each shell part may have an outer edge contour, and correspondingly, each shell part space's retaining pegs 1304 are designed to abut said outer edge contour. Furthermore, each shell part space may comprise a slight depression with an outer edge contour 1303 that interfaces with said outer edge of the corresponding shell part the shell part space is designed to receive.

[0203] It is a preferred method to injection mould the outer shell parts out of a polymer, such as PP, PE, PVC, or other common plastics; this allows the base colour of the outer shell part to be optimised, such as plain white, to facilitate the coloured aggregate coating. Printing onto a coloured material dulls the ink's colour due to subsurface scattered light from the base surface transmitting that colour throughout the aggregate coating, therefore it is ideal to ensure that the base colour is substantially monochromatic and to ensure that the base colour comprises substantial radiance to induce greater subsurface scattering and highlight the colours of the aggregate coating.

[0204] Furthermore, an alternative embodiment of the method may support application of a sub-coating on outer shell parts with geometry that includes substantial height variances, substantially inclined faces, 90? spanning surfaces, and/or other features suboptimal to print on from a single printing direction; such method may be achieved by printing a sub-coating in discrete passes, where a given outer shell part is situated in a first orientation and a first printing pass may apply a sub-coating on all feasible faces of the outer shell part, and subsequently the outer shell part is manipulated to a secondary orientation such that a secondary printing pass may continue the sub-coating on surfaces that were previously problematic to print on while in the first orientation. Naturally, this alternative embodiment may comprise as many additional orientations of the given outer shell part and corresponding and printing passes as is required to satisfy the sub-coating requirements.

[0205] Furthermore, said alternative method may preferably apply a sub-coating in discrete passes that correspond to discrete orientations using an articulated joint such that the outer shell part be printed at a single print station with automated mechanism that manipulates the outer shell part to each discrete orientation. This method may be used for a single outer shell part, or even printing onto an assembled outer shell such that an assembled outer shell of a projectile launcher may treated as a single part that is manipulated into discrete orientations for corresponding discrete printing passes.

[0206] Furthermore, it is preferable that the method prints a decal based on one or more rasterised digital images. This allows the decal to be designed in a scalable vector format, and subsequently rasterised to an optimal DPI for the inkjet printer.

[0207] Furthermore, when printing onto an outer shell part that comprises inclined faces from a single direction, when the printing direction is not orthogonal to the inclined face the resultant decal elements will appear proportionally correct when viewed from said original printing direction, however when viewed orthogonally to the inclined surface, the resultant decal elements may appear stretched. Therefore, in alternative embodiments of the method, it may be preferable to rasterise the digital image that should be printed such that portions of the image are squeezed in one or more directions and the resultant decal will appear proportionally correct when viewing faces that are inclined to the printing direction from an orthogonal perspective. Such a modification to the printed image however will result in proportional distortion when viewing the inclined surface along the printing direction; consequently, when designing the decal, it should be considered what the most nominal, or most important, angle from which the user will be viewing the aggregate coating, or the relevant sub-coating will be.

[0208] The invention has been described with examples relevant to its current form, however, potential embodiments will include any form that is within the scope of the appended claims. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variation can be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Thus, it is intended that the present invention cover the modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.