Office Supply Case

Abstract

The present invention is a case for the organization, storage, and transportation of a wide variety of writing materials, that includes means for temporarily fixing and supporting said case on a smooth surface such as a wall, a table or such in a way that the writing instruments are found to be perfectly located for the user during a work session and that the case can be removed from said surface for its storage and transportation.

Description

CLAIM OF PRIORITY

This application claims priority from Mexican patent application MX/u/2009/000157, “Estuche Para Articulos de Papeleria” filed May 14, 2008.

TECHNICAL NOTE

The present invention refers to a case that allows many writing instruments to be stored and carried. This case is provided with the necessary means to temporarily secure each instrument to a surface and keep it handy, and it is also provided with fastening means to keep the writing instruments inside.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

As everybody knows, due to the nature of writing instruments, such as pens, markers, crayons, pencils and permanent markers and especially when you have a lot of them, for use in the graphic arts or just to draw as a hobby, it is necessary to keep them together and organized to allow the user easy access to them.

A simple solution for the mentioned situation is the usage of a case that is provided with fastening means of each writing instrument, allowing a perfect organization according to the user's needs. There are a lot of types of cases like this. Some examples such as the ones described as follows can be mentioned:

The U.S. Pat. No. 4,815,622 (Cramer, 1989) describes a sectional container which has at least one front section and one rear section that close together to form a closed package; the back wall of the front section is used to close the front of the rear section and vice versa. As an option, this sectional container can have one or more intermediate sections that match to the rear section or between the front and rear section to enlarge the container's capacity; the intermediate sections are identical and interchangeable. This alternative offers several advantages due to its multi assembly and the matching designs between the instruments, however these advantages make the whole container voluminous and make hard to have access to writing material when the intermediate parts are misaligned and have to be organized.

The proposed alternative is the U.S. Pat. No. D315,446 (Dietterich et al, 1991) which solves the difficulties of mentioned sectional container in some aspects, because it describes a box to keep markers, where they are set in several supports arranged in a parallel arrangement located on the box's body, which has a transparent lid that opens and closes when it turns on a hinge, and the container is installed directly on to a wall by screws; with that design, it is guaranteed that the material will be organized and always handy, however due to its installation on the wall by screws it will be hard to transport since this operation will require the usage of special tools (screwdrivers) in order to separate the box from the wall.

On the contrary, the design of the U.S. Pat. No. D390,357 (Rosen, 1998) shows a portable case made with a transparent material which has a hinged lid, that allows portability and easy handling of the whole case and its contents, but it is the user's responsibility to know location of the case in every moment to avoid its loss.

Similar to the mentioned model, the design of the U.S. Pat. No. D392,463 (Grey, 1998) offers a container with different spaces designated for storage and retention of writing instruments. That container has two sections, front and rear, joined by hinges along one of their edges. It is also provided with the means for closing between both sections, as well as a handle for its transportation. On the other hand, the U.S. Pat. No. 6,680,933 (Demisien et al, 2004) describes a container that offers the same advantages and disadvantages as the one described before, with some changes to the way the writing instruments are held in place in its interior, associated to the shape of the walls of the container; additionally this design includes the means to hang the container when it is closed.

Finally, two alternatives for the usage of the lid of the container for writing instrument from the ones considered here, are shown on U.S. Pat. No. 6,913,143 (Yang, 2005) and the design on patent D538,032S (Rosen et al, 2007). The first one offers a container in which the lid can be detached, different from the hinged joint of the previous models in which said joint is formed by the same material as the sections to be joined, in this case the assembly is done by using pivots (threaded screws) that join the front section (of the lid) and the rear section of the container in two collinear points; the separation of the lid can be achieved by taking out the pivots. In Rosen's design, the lid, which is hinged to the container's body in a similar manner as Yang's patent, can be pivoted in order to provide a support for the entire container. However, in both cases the possibility of the pieces getting loose is still present and there is a risk of contents of the case can get out if the container is thrown by accident.

INVENTION OBJECTIVES

Considering the limitations present in the different alternatives developed until now and as described before, the objective of the present invention is to provide a case that allows the user to keep several writing instruments simultaneously, and that said case offers the means to enable its temporary installation, on a location determined by the user, while it content is used.

Another goal for the present invention is to provide a case that allows the transportation of many office supplies, organized on its interior.

Another objective of this invention is to provide a container that provides easy access, including the insertion and withdrawal of the different writing instruments on its interior.

Another purpose of this invention is to provide a case that can be easily set up in within the user's work area.

One more objective of this invention is to offer a case that can be attached in an easy-to-remove way within the user's working area.

These and other objectives and advantages of the present invention will become evident during the description that follows, which is accompanied by a group of figures for the preferred modals of the invention, that are included just for illustrative purposes and are not to be considered as limiting to the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention refers to a case useful for the conservation and transportation of several writing instruments, and it is also convenient to keep writing articles handy or to transport them when and where the user needs, it also includes means to enable its easy-to-remove installation within the user's working area allowing easy and quick access to the writing instruments, and the removal the case when it is not needed anymore.

The container of this invention includes means for fastening a wide range of writing instruments, which keep all of them secured on its base; providing an easy release of the instruments from the means of attachment.

The case body is formed by two sections or parts: a base and a lid, joined by a hinge to allow opening and closure; this container is characterized by a pair of holes located on the walls of the base of the container with dimensions such that allow the passage and retention its interior as means of support for the case to be set on a flat surface.

The preferred means of support are suction cups, that can be installed on any smooth flat surface, such as a wall, a table, or a blackboard, in order to keep the case of this invention in a stable place during the time that user requires the usage of the writing instruments, as well as its easy removal for storage once the usage of the writing instruments is finished.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

In order to have a better comprehension of the advantages of the system of the invention, a group of figures is included to show the characteristics of some of the preferred models of this case; these models are not to be limited to the configuration of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a top view, from the side that has the lid of the invention case (it is shown without the means of securing the writing instruments).

FIG. 2 is a simple perspective view of the interior of the lid of the invention case.

FIG. 3 is a frontal view, from the side that includes the handle of the lid of the invention case.

FIG. 4 is a rear view, of the lid of the case invented, showing its interior.

The FIG. 5 is a top view of the lid of the case invented, showing its exterior.

FIG. 6 is a side view of the lid of the case invented.

FIG. 7 is a simple perspective view of the interior body of the case of the invention. (It is shown without the means of attaching the writing instruments.)

FIG. 8 a is a partial sectional view showing in detail the joint hinged element of the case invented that corresponds to the body section.

FIG. 8 b is a partial sectional view showing the details of the joint hinged element of this invention case that corresponds to lid section.

FIG. 9 a is a partial sectional view showing the details of the hinged element between the body and the lid of the case invented, in an open position.

FIG. 9 b is a partial sectional view showing the details of the hinged element between the body and the lid of the case invented, in its closed position.

FIG. 10 is an interior view of the case body with the first model of the means of attaching the writing instruments.

FIG. 11 is a simple perspective view of the body of the invented case with the first modal of the means of attaching the writing instruments.

FIG. 12 is a simple perspective view of the body of the invented case with the first modal of the means of attaching the writing instruments, and with means attaching the invented container to a surface in a working position.

FIG. 13 is a lateral view of preferred means of attachment of this container to a surface, with conventional suction cup.

FIG. 14 is a simple perspective view of preferred means of attachment of the container to a surface, with a conventional suction cup.

FIG. 15 is a simple perspective view of the interior of the body of the invented container with the second modal of the means for attaching the writing instruments.

FIG. 16 is a top view of the interior of the body of the invented container with a second modal of the means for attaching the writing instruments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THIS INVENTION

The following description will be referring to the attached drawings mentioned before, that have to be understood as just reference for the preferred modals of the invention, and not limiting in the invention concept. The common elements of the figures have the same numeric references in all of them

The present invention refers to a case used for organizing, storing and transporting a wide variety of writing instruments that includes temporary and removable means of attaching to a flat surface such as a wall, a table and similar objects, in such way that writing instruments can be perfectly located by the end user during a working session.

This invention case, denoted with number (100) on FIG. 1 is shown basically as a container consisting of a base section where writing instruments are organized and a lid section (front view in FIG. 1), preferably made with a transparent or translucent material. The base and lid sections are joined by two hinged bodies (110)

In FIGS. 2 and 6 the lid section (200) is shown, and it is formed by several characteristic elements:

• • i) One cover (280) preferably smooth and of a transparent or translucent material, with a configuration and dimensions enough to cover the base section (300) (shown on FIG. 7), surrounded by a vertical bearing wall (215);
  • ii) One frame (210) to join together the lid (200) and the outline of vertical bearing wall (315) of the base section (300), with a height determined by a lateral edge (220) that is rests on the vertical bearing wall rim (315) of base section (300) when the lid and the base are in a closed position; the lateral rim (220) is located all along the interior surface of the vertical bearing wall (215) of the lid section (200) and it is equidistant to the edge of the frame (210); the frame inhibits the access of solid or liquid materials to the case's interior;
  • iii) One pair of grooves (230) located outside of the base of the lid, that forms the female part of the hinged coupling (110) between the lid section (200) and base section (300), these grooves have a transversal section in a U shape with their ends (231), (232) being closed by a wall of the same material, these grooves (230) are located near the extreme sides of lid section of the base (200), in the interior zone that is defined by two projections (270) that works as support to keep the case (100) in a vertical position when it is closed;
  • iv) Means for closure (240) between the lid section (200) and the base section (300), that fit on the reception means located in the zone that corresponds to the base section (300);
  • v) Reinforcement elements (250) to avoid the deformation of the lid section (200), that match with their corresponding elements of the base section (300) to achieve a good fit between both sections;
  • vi) One handle (260) that consists of two corresponding and complementary sections formed in a comprehensive way on the lid (200) and base (300) sections,
  • vii) One hole (265) to allow the entrance of the user's hand, set up by a bearing wall (266) that match up with their corresponding base section (300); the joints between the bearing wall (266) and the cover of lid section (200) preferably should be round;

Additionally, the handle (260) can include a perforation (290) to allow the passage of the materials used to hang and or exhibit it, such as hooks or supports that correspond to the corresponding holes in the section of the container (300). This allows for the exhibition of the case at the so called point of sale.

As can be seen in FIG. 5, the exterior surface of the cover (280) of the section of the lid (200) can be used for the application of publicity, as it is a broad, smooth surface.

The section of the container (300) that is illustrated in perspective in FIG. 7 shows the elements of being joined, as much the hinge (330) as the closure (340) that corresponds with that section of the lid (200) and other characteristic elements that will be described here as follows:

• • i. A cover (380) with dimensions and interior configuration that includes elements for fixing a multitude of writing utensils adapted to the shape and the quantity of utensils that is will contain.
  • ii. A perimeter border (310) to join the section of the container (300) to the outline section of the lid (200), with a lateral perimetral rim (320) where the edge (210) of the section of the lid (200) rests, projecting outwards toward the exterior wall.
  • iii. A pair of projections (330) that make up the pin section of the tongue and groove joint of the hinge (110) between the sections of the lid (200) and the base (300), said projections (330) are located in a manner that corresponds to the socket (230) of lid section (200), in the inferior zone defined by the two projections (370) as a means of support that also corresponds to the projections (270)
  • iv. Means of attachment (240) of the lid section (200) to the base section (300), made up of two projections that are joined to the corresponding elements (240) located in the corresponding zone on the lid section (200)
  • v. Elements of reinforcement (350) to avoid the deformation of the section of the container (300) that corresponds to those in the lid sections (200) for the joining of both sections.
  • vi. A handle (360) integrally formed in the body section of the base (300), including a perimetral wall (366) that defines an empty space (365) to allow the passage of the hand of the user, corresponding to that (265) in the section of the lid (200) and where the edges of said wall (366) are designed to coincide with those that correspond to the wall (266) in the lid section (200); the union between the walls (366) and the cover (380) of the section of the base (300) are to preferably be rounded

As is the case with the section of the lid (200), the handle on the section of the base (300) can additionally include a perforation (390) to allow the passage of hanging elements in order to exhibit the case; they correspond with the perforation (290) comparable to those in the section of the lid (200).

The lid (380) presents a pair of perforations (400) characteristic of the case (100) of the invention, that have the purpose of securing and maintaining on the interior as a means of support (500) to temporarily hold, support or fix the case (100) of the invention, to a smooth surface such as a wall, a table, or the board.

These perforations (400) are located close to the upper corners of the base section (300), taking as a reference the case (600) (the lid is not illustrated, for better clarity of the drawing) in a vertical position with the handle upwards; the perforations (400) have the approximate shape of a figure “8”. They have the “lower” section of the hole with dimensions large enough to permit the passage of the body of attachment (510) of the suction cup (500) that represents the means of preferred attachment; the “upper” section of each hole (400) has a size such that allow for the neck (520) of the suction cup (500) to pass through it and maintain it stable, as is illustrated schematically in FIG. 12, in such a way that the structure of the case (600) can remain “hanging” in an open position on a wall or other smooth vertical surface, and remaining in place sustained by the effect of the suction between the cups and said surface.

As has been indicated above, the preferred modal for the means of support of the article of the invention are conventional suction cups, such as those that are schematically illustrated in FIGS. 13 and 14, referred to by the number (500): these suction cups (500) are composed of a body of the cup (530), and a body of attachment (510) united by the neck (520), formed all from the same material, usually of flexible plastic.

The usage of the means of support in combination with the article of invention, is illustrated in FIG. 12, in which it appears that the lid will remain “hanging” from the bottom of the base of the case, allowing easy and quick access for the user to any one of the articles on the interior section of the container; the suction cups (500) allow for the fixation of the section of the illustrated container (600) in a smooth vertical surface, such as a wall, board, or including a horizontal surface such as a table.

Once the use of the writing instruments has been concluded, they can be placed in their place inside the case, and it can be closed and eventually be removed from the wall or the surface to which it was temporarily fixed.

With reference now to FIGS. 8a, 8b, 9a, and 9b, they are schematically representing a detail of one of the preferred modals that has joint hinges (110), it corresponds to a cross cut along the line A-A as shown in FIG. 1.

The joint hinge (110) shown in the FIG. 9b is composed of two sections.

One section as a socket designated by the number (140) associated with the lid (200) of the case (100) and integrally formed with it, that contains the form of a canal with a transversal “U” section, located close to the edge of the vertical border wall (215) that surrounds the cover (280) of the lid (200), and

One section as a peg designated by number (330) associated with the base (300) of the case (100) and integrally formed with it, being at the same time formed by a set element (150) that is a flat projection from the edge of the vertical wall (315) that surrounds and defines the cover (380) and a moving element with a profile shaped in a ninety degree angle “L” (120), joined all along a edge (130) over which the movement of the hinge can be realized, as is illustrated by the arrow in FIG. 9b. The free end of the movable element (120) is placed into the canal (140), maintaining in its place by means of pressure, an adhesive or other adequate means of fixation, to permit the hinged movement of the sections of the lid (200) and the base (300) of the case of the invention (100).

The configuration of the means of the hinge or of the joint hinge recently described, has the particularity to allow for the total extension of the lid in a way that the plane formed by the perimeter edge is aligned with the plane formed by the perimeter edge of the base, that is, it forms an angle of 180°, allowing complete access to the contents of the case when it is found to be completely open, as is the case when the case is found attached to a smooth vertical surface as is illustrated in the FIG. 12.

Considering the previous description, it is evident for the person with knowledge in the field that some modifications to the basic configuration of the illustrated model could be necessary in order to satisfy particular requirements but it should be considered that these modifications will not take the invention thus far described further than the reach of the following claims.

Examples of the modifications that are considered within the reach of the invention are presented in FIGS. 8, 9, 10, 13, and 14 in which the first 3 represent the first model (600) of the invention in that the unit with a variety of means for the fixation of writing instruments with a specific order that has been included. FIGS. 13 and 14 illustrate a second model (700) in that the unit (420) offers an order and a different quantity of means for the fixation of the writing instruments. It can be appreciated that the modification of the location, number and nature of said means of fixation do not affect to the function or the utility of the article as it has been described and they obey in a large part the esthetic effect that is desired to grant to the case and the articles contained that are visible through the transparent or translucent lid. In any case, it is recommendable that it be considered to maintain a balanced distribution in the weight of the instruments, through the means of fixation, in order that the suction cups receive similar loads and can maintain the case in a secure place on a smooth surface.

Claims

1. A case for storage and transportation of a plurality of writing instruments, comprised of a base and a lid united by means of a hinge in order to open and close and that is held closed by means of fastening the lid and the base, in a way that is similar to conventional briefcases, said case is characterized because it includes means of support that permits the user to adhere it in an easy-to-remove way to a smooth surface within the work area of a user so that said user will have easy and quick access to the writing instruments, and said case can be removed when it is no longer necessary to maintain it on said surface.

2. The case according to claim 1, in which the means of attachment of the case to a smooth surface are conventional suction cups.

3. The case according to claim 2, in which the means of support or the suction cups on the base of the case are connected by means of a pair of holes located on the wall of the base of the case, close to the upper corners of the same (taking into reference the case in a vertical position with the handle upwards).

4. The case according to claim 3, in which the holes that are located on the wall of the case have the form of a skinny “8” where the bottom hole allows for the passage of the means of attachment of one of said suction cups, and the upper hole retains the neck that matches the means of suction of each of the cups with the body of the cup.

5. The case according to claim 1, in which the lid has a frame that surrounds the perimeter for closure and an adjustment of the border of the base, forming a seal that prevents the passage of solid or liquid material to the interior of the case.

6. The case, according to claim 1, in which the hinges are integrally formed with each one of the sections of the base and the lid.

7. The case according to claim 1, in which the hinges allow the complete closure of the lid in a way that the plane that is over the edge can form an angle of 180° in relation to the plane that is over the edge of the base.

8. The case according to claim 1, further comprising a handle that is integrally formed with the sections of the lid and the base, presenting each one of them in the middle of said handle and therefore being complimentary among themselves.

9. The case according to claim 1, in which the handle contains holes to allow the passage of conventional means of exhibition (hoods and supports) for the exhibition of the case in situations of sales presentations.

10. The case according to claim 1, in which the lid is fabricated from a transparent or translucent material to permit the contents of the case to be seen.

11. The case according to claim 1, in which both the base and the lid include in the wall opposite of the handle, on the exterior facet, projections along the lines of feet or supports to support the case in a vertical position with the handle in an upward position, and to provide protection to the hinges.

12. The case according to claim 1, in which the base includes interior means for fastening a wide variety of writing instruments, said means for fastening allow for the easy release of the writing instrument when it is required.