Patent Application
20070138044
The present invention relates to articles, enclosures, and pockets useful for storing and organizing materials such as documents.
Even with the proliferation of electronic technology, today's consumers still have paper documents that need to be managed. Illustrative paper documents include, but are not limited to, receipts for purchased goods, bills for services, such as telephone and utility bills, coupons, tickets for events, shopping lists and the like. At work, the employee may have a variety of documents that needs to be managed, including but not limited to, incoming and outgoing mail, notes left by coworkers, papers in transition, such as papers that need to be filed. In general, when the documents are organized as they are received, most consumers and workers spend less time to later organize or find the documents when they are needed.
Document organization tools such as envelopes with flaps can be cumbersome to use as the flaps seal the envelope and they are prone to being torn off with repeated use. The envelopes can also be easily misplaced or lost in a pile of paperwork or in a drawer.
While a variety of organization tools are commercially available, other solutions and tools are needed.
In one aspect, the present invention pertains to an article for storing and organizing materials. The article comprises: (1) opposing front and rear panels that are substantially similar in geometry as defined by a perimeter, each panel having an inside surface and an outside surface, wherein the front and rear panels are joined along substantially the entire perimeter such that at the inside surface of the front panel is proximate to the inside surface of the rear panel; (2) an opening disposed in the front panel; and (3) an adhesive disposed on at least a portion of the outside surface of the rear panel.
In another aspect, the present invention pertains to a stack of a plurality of articles for storing and organizing materials. The stack forms a pad of articles. Each article in the stack comprises: (1) opposing front and rear panels that are substantially similar in geometry as defined by a perimeter, each panel having an inside and an outside surface, wherein the front and rear panels are joined along substantially the entire perimeter such that the inside surface of the front panel is proximate to the inside surface of the rear panel; (2) an opening disposed in the front panel; (3) an adhesive disposed on at least a portion of the outside surface of the rear panel; wherein the outside surface of the rear panel of a first article is proximate to the outside surface of the front panel of a second subsequent article in the stack.
The inventive articles are particularly suited for use in organizing documents, such as receipts, bills, tickets, mail, magazines, lists and the like, and office supplies products such as writing utensils, paperclips, and repositionable notes. The article can further include indicia or images that engender artistic expression, have aesthetic appeal, and or have functional utility. In use, the consumer typically removes the liner (if present) from the article and attaches it to a display surface, such as a wall or a refrigerator door, and as documents are received, organize and store them therein. The article can be displayed on vertical surfaces (such as the wall) or horizontal surfaces, such as in a folder or a binder. New articles can be displayed for different durations of time, such as, a new week or a new month. The article can also be used for a specified project or a specified event. For example, at income tax reporting time, such an article can be used for the tax year, and the various pockets can be used for different categories of documents, such as W-2 wage statements, stock sales, dividends earned, child care expenses, medical expenses, home interest payments, and the like.
The invention can further be described with reference to the drawings, wherein:
a to 7c are perspective views of the embodiment of
The figures are ideal, are not drawn to scale, and are intended only for illustrative purposes.
The front and rear panels are joined along the top perimeter forming top seam 22a, along the bottom perimeter forming bottom seam 22b, and along side perimeter forming side seams 22c and 22d. The seams can be formed through any suitable attachment means, such as, e.g., through adhesive 17. Other attachment means can be used, as described in detail below. The choice of the attachment means will depend on the materials used to construct the front and rear panels. The attachments means should join the two panels securely together. In the embodiment of
The front panel has a major axis, L10, disposed substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the article. The major axis defines the longest dimension of the front panel. The front panel may further include a minor axis, defining a shortest dimension across the panel. In the embodiment of
Optionally, the front panel may further include release coating 13 disposed on a portion thereof or on substantially the entire outside surface of the front panel. The release coating used should be compatible with the material used for the front and rear panels. In one embodiment, the release coating is of a composition that allows the consumer to write or to image the panels. Imaging techniques would include, but are not limited to, using any digital printers. Suitable release coatings include those that based on straight chain alkane derivatives, polydialkyl siloxane derivatives, or fluorocarbon derivatives. One exemplary release coating is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,032,460 (Kanter et al.). Yet another exemplary release coating is disclosed throughout U.S. Pat. No. 6,251,512 (Gustafson et al.) such as disclosure starting at column 5, line 18 to 52 and the various examples, such as examples RC1 to RC4.
The opening, the front panel, and the rear panel can be of any configuration, such as a simple geometric shape or irregularly shaped. The term “simple geometric shape” generally means polygons (such as, but not limited to, rectangles, squares, and trapezoids) and ovals (such as, but not limited to, circle and ellipse). The term “irregularly shaped” generally means a bounded shape, and such shapes may include combinations of straight and curves lines. In the embodiment shown in
Article 10 further includes adhesive 16 disposed on outside surface 14b of rear panel 14. In one embodiment, the article further includes liner 18 to protect the adhesive.
The article in
The article further includes internal seams 84 and 86 disposed substantially orthogonal to each other. The internal seams attach the front and rear panels creating four substantially equal pockets 71, 73, 75, and 77, each pocket having its own opening 80, 81, 82 and 83 respectively. Because the internal seams bisect the entire length and width of the front and rear panels, the pockets are fully enclosed. The openings can be self sealing using mechanical means such as zippers, hook and loop fasteners, or polymeric based zip and lock type fasteners commonly used in Ziploc® bags. If desired, the internal seams may be perforated. By tearing along the perforations, the consumer can create plurality of articles with a smaller footprint for storage or for other application.
Continuing on with
a to 7c show perspective views of the embodiment of
If desired, at least one of the front and rear panels can include graphics or other indicia to create an article with artistic expression or functional utility or for aesthetic purposes. For example, in embodiment of
A variety of materials can be used as the front and rear panels. In one embodiment, the front and rear panels are of the same or substantially similar materials. In another embodiment, the front and rear panels are of different materials. Suitable materials for the front and rear panels include, but are not limited to, paper, plastic, canvas, non-woven, fabric, and metal-based film. Combinations of these materials can be used. In one embodiment, a portion of the front and or rear panel can be transparent to provide a window thereby allowing the consumer to see the contents inside the article. An exemplary material useful for the panel includes the writeable matte article disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,251,512 (Gustafson et al.).
On a portion of the front and or rear panels of the article, color-coding can be added to help the consumer visually organize the articles. For example, different colors can be used for different days in the week or different types of documents stored in the article. The inventive article could further include tabs that can be adhesive or mechanically attached to anywhere along the perimeter of the article. Such tabs can be helpful when the consumer intends to store or archive the article in a filing system.
The front and rear panels are joined together along the perimeter using a variety of methods. The method chosen depends on the type of material used. The joining of the front and rear panels does not have to be continuous throughout the perimeter of the panels. Suitable methods include, but are not limited to, adhesives means, mechanical fastener means, ultrasonic welding means, lamination means, and sewing means. Combinations of these methods can also be used. For example, adhesive means is very versatile and can be used when the front and rear panels are of the same material or of different materials. Adhesive means include but are not limited to tape, such as double sided tape, liquid adhesives such as glues, solid adhesives, such as glue sticks, and the like. Ultrasonic welding means is more particularly suited for plastics and non-wovens. Ultrasonic welding means typically create localized spot welding of the front and rear panels so that overall, the panels are jointed, but they are not continuously joined along the entire perimeter. Sewing means is more particularly suited for canvas and fabrics. An illustrative mechanical fastener means would be the hook and loop combination, where the hook can be disposed on one panel while the loop can be disposed on the other panel. Lamination means generally refer to using heat and or pressure to attach the front and rear panels. Lamination means are particularly suited for non-wovens, especially where the non-woven fibers contains a plurality of different polymeric constituents and one of the constituent exhibits adhesive properties at elevated temperature and pressure.
An adhesive is disposed on the outside surface of the rear panel. Any permanent or repositionable adhesive can be used in the present invention. Various repositionable adhesives can be used. Suitable repositionable adhesives are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,691,140 (Silver); U.S. Pat. No. 3,857,731 (Merrill et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 4,166,152 (Baker et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 4,495,318 (Howard); U.S. Pat. No. 5,045,569 (Delgado); U.S. Pat. No. 5,073,457 (Blackwell) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,571,617 (Cooprider et al.), U.S. Pat. No. 5,663,241 (Takamatsu et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 5,714,237 (Cooprider et al.); U.S. RE 37,563 (Cooprider et al.); and U.S. Pat. No. 5,756,625 (Crandall et al.) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,824,748 (Kesti et al.). The repositionable adhesive can be solvent based, water based, or can be a solvent-less, hot melt adhesive.
The adhesive can be coated on the outside surface of the rear panel in any configuration. For example, the rear panel can include a fully adhesive coated or partially adhesive coated outside surface. Suitable partially coated configurations include, but are not limited to stripes of adhesive, discrete islands of adhesives, or patches of adhesives. The type of adhesive coating configuration depends on the type of adhesive used, the size of the inventive article, and to some extent, the display surface.
The liner is used to protect the repositionable adhesive until application. The liner can be any paper or plastic sheet that bonds to the repositionable adhesive securely during storage and while passing through the feed mechanism of a printer. The liner releases cleanly and easily from the repositionable adhesive after printing the photo paper. The liner may be treated with a release coating to achieve the desired release performance. Suitable silicone-based release liners are commercially available from Loparex, Inc., Willowbrook, Ill.
The inventive article can be made from a variety of methods. One illustrative method is to provide front and rear panels, where the front panel optionally has been coated with a release agent and has a precut opening therein. If desired, graphics and indicia have been preprinted on the outside surface of the front panel to add artistic or functional expression or aesthetic utility. On the outside surface of the rear panel, an adhesive is coated on the rear panel. Optionally, a liner is laminated to the adhesive. The front and rear panels are joined continuously along the panels' perimeter to form the inventive article.
In the case of pad, the enclosures are made substantially under the same method as the individual article, as described in the preceding paragraph. A liner is used for the last enclosure in the pad. In one embodiment, the liner covers substantially the entire outside surface of the rear panel.
