Patent Application
20180310727
This invention relates generally to displays, and, more specifically, to displays for figurines and ornaments.
Ornaments (figurines) configured to be attached to clothing by means of a pin attachment are often prized by their owners due to heirloom status or a particular affinity for the lifestyle, hobby, etc. which the ornament may represent. However, when the ornaments are not being worn, they are often stored out of sight in a jewelry box or other container, preventing their owners from enjoying them. The present invention aims to remedy this by providing a safe, transparent storage and display mechanism.
This invention relates generally to displays, and, more specifically, to displays for figurines and ornaments.
This invention is comprised essentially of a transparent cover, a base, and a post. The transparent cover may be configured to fit snugly over the top of the base, and the post may be configured to couple with the base such that the post, and the ornaments coupled thereto, are visible through the transparent cover.
The base may include two parts, an upper and a lower part, which is configured, in part, to grant access to the underside of the upper base, allowing a user to disconnect the base from the post. The post may be insertably coupleable, including tabs that are compressed to be inserted into an opening of the base, which tabs then expand when clearing the walls of the opening, locking the post in the base. For removal, the tabs can be compressed and the post lifted from the base. In some embodiments, the upper portion of the base may be configured to sit within a perimeter of the lower portion of the base. The transparent cover may, in some embodiments, sit atop an edge formed by the perimeter of the lower portion of the base, covering the post and the upper portion.
In some embodiments, the transparent cover may include tabs configured to hold a decorative backing. The taps may be disposed at any portion along one or more vertical walls of the transparent cover, securing the decorative backing against one or more of the walls of the cover. In preferred embodiments, the tabs may be disposed inside the transparent cover. In some embodiments, the tabs may be on one or more external walls. In some embodiments, the decorative backing may be further disposed within a gap formed between the upper and lower portions of the base. In some embodiments, the decorative backing may include additional functional elements, such as protective coatings for ultraviolet light exposure, a plastic or laminate covering to prevent the backing from becoming folded or torn, and more.
In some embodiments, the post may be entirely or substantially vertical. In other embodiments, it may be disposed at an angle to horizontal, depending on which ornament is configured to be coupled with the post. In some embodiments, the post may include an extension upon which a FigPin™ can rest. In some embodiments, the post may include one or more holes through which the backing of an ornament, a brooch, an earring, a tack, etc., can be disposed. In some embodiments, the holes may be configured to receive a straight pin backing. In other embodiments, the holes may be configured to receive a locking pin mechanism.
In addition to the foregoing, various other methods, systems and/or program product embodiments are set forth and described in the teachings such as the text (e.g., claims, drawings and/or the detailed description) and/or drawings of the present disclosure.
The foregoing is a summary and thus contains, by necessity, simplifications, generalizations and omissions of detail; consequently, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the summary is illustrative only and is NOT intended to be in any way limiting. Other aspects, embodiments, features and advantages of the device and/or processes and/or other subject matter described herein will become apparent in the teachings set forth herein.
Certain embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the following drawings:
This invention relates generally to displays, and, more specifically, to displays for figurines and ornaments.
Specific details of certain embodiments of the invention are set forth in the following description and in
Importantly, a grouping of inventive aspects in any particular “embodiment” within this detailed description, and/or a grouping of limitations in the claims presented herein, is not intended to be a limiting disclosure of those particular aspects and/or limitations to that particular embodiment and/or claim. The inventive entity presenting this disclosure fully intends that any disclosed aspect of any embodiment in the detailed description and/or any claim limitation ever presented relative to the instant disclosure and/or any continuing application claiming priority from the instant application (e.g. continuation, continuation-in-part, and/or divisional applications) may be practiced with any other disclosed aspect of any embodiment in the detailed description and/or any claim limitation. Claimed combinations which draw from different embodiments and/or originally-presented claims are fully within the possession of the inventive entity at the time the instant disclosure is being filed. Any future claim comprising any combination of limitations, each such limitation being herein disclosed and therefore having support in the original claims or in the specification as originally filed (or that of any continuing application claiming priority from the instant application), is possessed by the inventive entity at present irrespective of whether such combination is described in the instant specification because all such combinations are viewed by the inventive entity as currently operable without undue experimentation given the disclosure herein and therefore that any such future claim would not represent new matter.
In some embodiments, cover 101 may also include tabs 102, which are configured to hold backing 103. Backing 103 may be a thin sheet of paper, plastic, metal, wood, or some other decorative element, and it may be optionally inserted into the cover 101 to provide additional aesthetics to the display, to provide context for the ornament or figurine on display, or more. In some embodiments, backing 103 may be configured to protect the figurine from exposure to sunlight or other destructive elements. In other embodiments, backing 103 may include plastic or laminate coatings to prevent damage and wear to the backing. The backing may be configured to provide additional context or a scene relative to the ornament or figurine to be displayed. When assembled, backing 103 may either rest upon upper base 202, or, in some embodiments, the upper base may include a recess formed by extensions 204 on two sides of the upper base, the recess configured to permit the backing to slide into place and rest within the space formed by the tabs, the outer wall of the upper base, and the inner wall of lower base 201.
Cover 101 may also include an open end 104, configured to receive upper base 202. In preferred embodiments, the perimeter formed by open end 104 will be substantially the same size and shape as the perimeter formed by the walls of lower base 201. Upper base 202 is configured to fit within the lower base 201 and the cover 101, providing a secure but openable assembled unit. In some embodiments, one of cover 101, lower base 201, or upper base 202 may include security elements, such as a click tab or a press tab that automatically engages when the cover and the bases are assembled, and which can be depressed or otherwise disengaged by a user when the user wishes to access the interior of the case. In other embodiments, the cover 101 and bases 201 and 202 may be held together largely by frictional forces between the elements, such as a contact force between the interior of the cover and the exterior of the upper base. In some embodiments, lower base 201 may include a solid bottom, such that the lower base is essentially an open-top box.
In some embodiments, the display case may include a post 301, configured to be removably coupleable with the figurine 500. Post 301 may be configured to be inserted into a gap 203 in upper base 202. Additional detail on this function will be discussed with
In preferred embodiments, post 301 is configured to be removably coupleable with the FigPin™ ornament display. The FigPin™ ornament display is configured to allow a user to convert a figurine 500 into a standing display or a wearable ornament via post 501. This will also be discussed further with
Display post 301 may further include tabs 303 on either side of the post. Tabs 303 are configured to be inserted into gap 203 of upper base 202, the walls of the gap compressing the tabs inward to allow them to slip through the gap and into the base. In some embodiments, the walls of gap 203 may extend significantly below the top portion of upper base 202. In other embodiments, the walls may be only as thick as the top portion of upper base 202. Tabs 303 will be configured such that, when the upper edges 304 of tabs 303 reach the end of the walls of gap 203, the tabs return to their original position, extending back outward, and allowing the upper edges to contact or nearly contact the internal surface of the top portion or the ends of the walls, as applicable. Upper edges 304 prevent accidental displacement of post 301 by interfering with the lower edges of the walls of gap 203 or the underside of the top of upper base 202. If a user wishes to remove the post 301 from the upper base 202, the user may, in some embodiments, reach the tabs 303 via the open underside of upper base 202. In other embodiments, the underside of base 202 may be closed, preventing users, especially children, from accidentally removing the post 301 from the upper base 202.
While particular aspects of the present subject matter described herein have been shown and described, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that, based upon the teachings herein, changes and modifications may be made without departing from the subject matter described herein and its broader aspects and, therefore, the appended claims are to encompass within their scope all such changes and modifications as are within the true spirit and scope of this subject matter described herein. Furthermore, it is to be understood that the invention is defined by the appended claims. It will be understood by those within the art that, in general, terms used herein, and especially in the appended claims (e.g., bodies of the appended claims) are generally intended as “open” terms (e.g., the term “including” should be interpreted as “including but not limited to,” the term “having” should be interpreted as “having at least,” the term “includes” should be interpreted as “includes but is not limited to,” etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is intended, such an intent will be explicitly recited in the claim, and in the absence of such recitation no such intent is present. For example, as an aid to understanding, the following appended claims may contain usage of the introductory phrases “at least one” and “one or more” to introduce claim recitations. However, the use of such phrases should not be construed to imply that the introduction of a claim recitation by the indefinite articles “a” or “an” limits any particular claim containing such introduced claim recitation to inventions containing only one such recitation, even when the same claim includes the introductory phrases “one or more” or “at least one” and indefinite articles such as “a” or “an” (e.g., “a” and/or “an” should typically be interpreted to mean “at least one” or “one or more”); the same holds true for the use of definite articles used to introduce claim recitations. In addition, even if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is explicitly recited, those skilled in the art will recognize that such recitation should typically be interpreted to mean at least the recited number (e.g., the bare recitation of “two recitations,” without other modifiers, typically means at least two recitations, or two or more recitations). Furthermore, in those instances where a convention analogous to “at least one of A, B, and C, etc.” is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., “a system having at least one of A, B, and C” would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.).
While preferred and alternative embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, as noted above, many changes can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the scope of the invention is not limited by the disclosure of these preferred and alternate embodiments. Instead, the invention should be determined entirely by reference to the claims that follow.
