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J. H. $TEVEN$ ET AL
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IMITATION NATURAL PRODUCT AND PROCESS OF PRODUCING THE SAME
Filed Dec. 17, 1924
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patented July 20, 1926.
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1,593,314
UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.
JOHN HENRY STEVENS, OF SOUTH ORANGE, vAND WILLIAM G. LINDSAY, OF NEWARK,
NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNORS TO THE CELLULOID COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW
JERSEY. _
IMITATION NATURAL PRODUCT AND PROCESS OF PRODUCING THE SAME.
Application ?led December 17, 1924. Serial No. 7565M.
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I-Ieretofore, it has been customary to form of animal, vegetable and mineral specimens,
artificial amber, horn, shell and similar we render the operator independent of the
products by combining the separate parts usual restrictions of the separate coloration
or colors in rolls, presses or stuffing ma method of rolls and presses, and give full
chines according to certain pattern-aims, scope to his artistic‘skill. ln other words,
which, however, have been limited to the we venable him to reproduce at will much
elliciency of such means of combination. closer approximations of horn, shell, semi
Thus horn and marbleized effects are pro
precious stones, ?ne woods,.ambers, corals,
to sheet or lump form and afterwards ef
has merely a limited use but will neverthe
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duced by coloring or pigmenting separately and the like, than is possible with present
the desired components, then reducing them methods. As for stufl'er ?gures our method
fecting the ?nal combination by mixing or less apply. Its aim is principally the pro
flowing these forms or parts according to duction of sheets. For stuffed e?ects the
taste,.all within the circumscribed possibili sheeting will have to be ?rst produced by
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ties of rolls, presses, and staffers. As a con the roll or press operation.
The principle involved in our invention
sequence of these limitations the imitations
aimed at have only been accomplished with is the building up of a mass of imitative 70
some di?iculty and more or less imperfectly. substance by means of successive layers
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as a base a pressed block of one simple color, natural substance imitated. It is obvious
preferably a transparent, and secure the nec as well that we can also produce fanciful
Now according to our invention, we use which represent the fractional parts of the
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essary con?guration by printing or other colorations not necessarily imitative of any 75
wise applying the ?gure or vdesign on suc particular stone or substance; but the chief
cessive planings, which are then reunited value of our method is its adaptability to
into a block from which sheets can be cut the ?ne reproduction of those natural sub
in the usual manner. We thus do away stances which according to trade prefer
with all uncertainty of design and predeter ences should be copies of the original de
mine our con?gurations according to the de sign. The ~accentuation of pattern by ?ow
sired pattern. Sheets in dry condition can in the ress or other machinery is not ex
be used if they are suitably softened to per cluded ut can be employed effectively as
desired.
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mit resolidi?cation.
While our process is particularly valuable
As an example of our process and product
we shall consider the subject to be that of in making imitations of transparent prod
horn. For this purpose we ?rst make a‘ nets of nature it can be also applied to pat
pressed block of pyroxylin plastic colored terns in which'translucency or semi-trans
parency plays a part, by which products we
parent part. After smoothing off the top mean any substance whose surface effects
' and slightly clouded to represent the trans
a
of the block We print by means of stencil or variations are in?uenced by colors lying
or type or patterned roller, and preferably under such surface. We can also produce
with a solvent ink, such part of the design semi-solid or opaque variegations by so
in streaks or blotches as will represent the printing and pressing that the planer knife 95
appearance of natural horn when of an or subsequent carving operations will bring
equivalent thickness or gauge. This thick out a varied surface of streaked, blotched
ness will vary say from 5 to 25 thousandths
of an inch according to the thickness of the
or wavy appearance.
'
In the accompanying drawing, which il
lustrates conventionally one embodiment of
lation or shifting of the printing effect we our invention, Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive represent 100
?nal sheet or article. By suitable manipu
are enabled to create alsothe necessary va
successive planings upon each of which has
riety of pattern in these successive plan been printed or otherwise impressed a de
ings, so that the built-up sheets ?nally pro—
duced will represent the pattern or mixture
"of components in a piece of natural horn.
By this process as applied to imitations
sign in imitation of the natural design ap
pearing on successive sections of tortoise
shell, and Fig. 5 shows the product formed
by consolidating the sheets of Figs. 1 to
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1,593,314
4 and wherein the different designs of thickness 25 thousandtlis inch or less, and
bgieets 1-4 are all visible in the consolidated then reuniting the said printed planings to
form the completed reproduction.
s eet.
In one of the many possible embodiments
4. An imitation of horn or other natural
of our invention, shown in the drawing, the product which consists of a solidi?ed as
?nal decorated product is formed by the con semblage of printed planings from a block
solidation of four decorated sheets. These of pyroxylin or analogous plastic, such plan
sheets might be ‘313;,’ in thickness and the ings being of a thickness 25 thousandths inch
10
15
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?nal out sheet four times that thickness. or less.
.
For a shell of forty-one thousandths inch
5. A carved solidi?ed assemblage of
the individual sections could be approxi printed sheets in fanciful or natural pat
mately ten thousandths inch. For half an terns whose effect is shown by transmitted
inch they might be one hundred thousandths light.
inch, or for a close pattern full of detail
6. An imitation natural product which
six, eight or even ten sheets might make up consists of a solidi?ed assemblage of printed
the ?nal product. In the ‘production of plastic sheets.
imitation tortoise shell, the component sheets
7 . The process which consists in forming
would be transparent amber, and the print designs on the surfaces of transparent plastic
ings would be dark brown, the detail of sheets and subsequently uniting the sheets.
which would be the peculiar ?ne broken
8. A process of making imitation natural
lines of the real tortoise shell.
Though we prefer to operate with py
products which consists in forming similar
designs on a plurality of transparent sheets
roxylin plastics of “celluloid” character, our of a plastic and consolidating said sheets
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method is e ually applicable to any plastic to form a mass in which said designs are
which can e planed from a block, then visible at varying depths below the surface
printed upon, and then resolidi?ed to form of the mass.
an imitation of natural or fanciful pat
9. The process of making imitation nat
terns. We refer, for example, to a plastic ural products which consists in forming
of acetylcellulose or other derivative or ma similar designs on a plurality of transparent
terial that can be produced in transparent sheets of a plastic and assembling the sheets
or translucent‘ sheet form, printed upon and so that the designs are progressively and
assembled by suitable means to solidify the laterally spaced from one another and con—
layers.
solidating said assembled sheets.
l/Vhile we refer speci?cally to the solidi?
10. The process of imitating horn or other
cation of block planings, any similar con natural products which consists in printing
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solidation of printed or marked ?lms or the design or part-pattern on successive
40.
sheets or layers made by other processes is planings of a pressed block of pyroxylin or
within the scope of our invention.
similar plastic, said design or part-pattern
‘We claim:
representing the appearance of the horn or
1. The process of imitating horn or other (.thcr product when of equivalent thickness .
natural products which consists in print to said planing, and then uniting the said
ing the design or part-pattern on successive printed planings to form the completed re
planings of a pressed block of pyroxylin or production.
similar plastic and then reuniting the said
11. The process of imitating horn or other
printed planings to form the completed natural products which consists in printing
reproduction.
the design or part-design on successive plan
2. An imitation of horn or other natural ings of a pressed block of pyroXy-lin or other
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product which consists of a soli?ed assem plastic, said design or part-pattern repre
blage of printed planings from a block of senting the appearance of the horn or other
pyroxylin or analogous plastic.
product when of equivalent thickness to said
3. The process of imitating horn or other planing, uniting the said printed planings
natural products which consists in printing to form a block and cutting the block into
the design or part-pattern on successive sheets of desired thickness. '
planings of a pressed block of pyroxylin or
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similar plastic, such planings being of a
JOHN HENRY STEVENS.
WILLIAM G. LINDSAY.
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