The present disclosure generally relates to an apparatus for organizing and indexing documents wherein the apparatus includes a divider or tabbed dividers that are usable with a variety of bound documents. More particularly, the disclosure relates to embodiments of dividers compatible with documents bound with ring or wire bindings.
Dividers for organizing sheets of paper or display elements can include tabs that extend beyond the perimeter of the paper. The tabs may include label indicia thereon to identify the divided section of the sheets of paper or display elements. Known tabs may be formed out of generally clear or transparent material and formed into pockets to insert a label having indicia thereon. Other known dividers have tabs made of clear or transparent material that include labels that may be attached by a pressure sensitive adhesive directly to the tab.
Dividers are often utilized in binders such as three ring binders or spiral binders and other types of folders or media assemblies. The dividers separate and visually label various sections of the sheets of paper or display elements to permit prompt access to any one of these sections.
However, the known divider systems have inherent deficiencies as there may be a limited available location for the dividers. Further, different dividers may be needed for differently sized three ring binders, spiral note books, papers, and the like. Therefore, there is a need for increased adjustability and versatility associated with dividers to allow for greater customization and user satisfaction. There is also a need for an improved divider system that increases the usability of tabbed dividers.
A divider system is shown and described herein. The divider system may include a divider assembly for dividing a stack of sheets. A divider assembly may include a tab extending from an edge of a body of the divider assembly. At least one arm may extend from the body and define an elongated slot with the body that is configured for connecting to a document binding system. At least one protrusion may be configured to selectively abut against bindings of the document binding system to retain the divider assembly thereon.
The at least one protrusion may extend from the arm towards the body of the divider or may extend from the body towards the arm. There may be at least one protrusion or a plurality of protrusions. In one embodiment there are at least four protrusions. Further, the arm may extends from a side of the body wherein the arm having a length that may be less than a length of the side of the body. Alternatively, the arm length may be greater than a length of the side of the body. In one embodiment, the at least one protrusion is a clasp and extends from the body. Alternatively, the at least one protrusion may have a tapered profile and extend from the body.
The divider may be inserted and attached to a binder. The binder may be a ringed binder having a set of rings to which the stack of sheets and the divider may attach. The divider may attach to the binder at any appropriate edge of the divider, such as the first edge, the second edge, or the third edge. A position of the tab may be altered based on which of the arms are utilized for connection of the divider to the binder. The divider may be made of a rigid or semi-rigid material, such as a plastic material. The rigidity of the material may prevent the divider from accidently disengaging from the bindings.
In another embodiment, the divider assembly may include a first arm that extends from a first side of the body and a second arm that extends from a second side of the body, wherein the tab of the divider assembly may be selectively configured to at least partially extend passed a top portion of pages within the binder when the first arm is attached to the bindings of the binder, and wherein the tab of the divider is selectively configured to at least partially extend passed a side portion of the pages within the binder when the second arm is attached to the bindings of the binder.
The following description and the drawings set forth certain illustrative aspects of the specification. The drawings indicate a few of various embodiments that may utilize certain aspects of this disclosure. While some improvements and novel aspects may be specifically identified, others will be apparent from the detailed description.
The accompanying drawings illustrate various systems, apparatuses, devices and methods, in which like reference characters refer to like parts throughout, and in which:
Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural and functional changes may be made without departing from the respective scope of the invention. Moreover, features of the various embodiments may be combined or altered without departing from the scope of the invention. As such, the following description is presented by way of illustration only and should not limit in any way the various alternatives and modifications that may be made to the illustrated embodiments and still be within the spirit and scope of the invention.
As used herein, the term “tab” may refer to an element that may extend from an edge of a divider. Such elements may be of various shapes. The shapes may be generally rectangular, generally elliptical, generally triangular, irregular in shape, and the like. Accordingly, it is noted that embodiments referencing a tab are not limited by a particular type or design of the tab. As such, it is noted that appropriate modifications may be made based on a desired tab. Tabs herein are designed to extend passed an edge of sheets of paper that are arranged within a notebook or binder.
Further, unless context suggest otherwise, descriptions of shapes (e.g., circular, rectangular, triangular, etc.) refer to shapes meeting the definition of such shapes and general representation of such shapes. For instance, a triangular shape or generally triangular shape may include a shape that has three sides and three vertices or a shape that generally represents a triangle, such as a shape having three major sides that may or may not have straight edges, triangular like shapes with rounded vertices, and the like.
It is noted that while various embodiments refer to a divider or a divider assembly, various other assemblies may be utilized in the scope and spirit of embodiments described herein. As such, references to dividers and the like are understood to include various assemblies that may be inserted into a binder. Such assemblies may include, but are not limited to, folders, cover sheets, pouches (e.g., pencil cases, etc.), sleeves (e.g., plastic sleeves to which papers or other materials may be inserted), and the like. Furthermore, while dividers are described as organizing notebooks, spiral notebooks, binders, three ring binders, or the like, it is noted that the described divider assemblies may be applied to organize or otherwise affect location and placement of materials in various other objects or devices. For instance, dividers of this disclosure may be utilized in such items as a spiral note book, filing cabinet, ROLODEX, pronged folders, N-ring binders (where N is a number), index card boxes, and the like.
Divider assemblies of this disclosure may be of any appropriate configuration and are not limited to those shown and described herein. It should be noted that the divider systems may be adapted to divide a plurality of sheets or other display elements of any appropriate size, including, without limitation, 8.5 inches by 11 inches, A4 size, legal size or any other applicable size. Furthermore, the divider systems may be configured to be utilized with a binder of any appropriate size and construction.
It is noted that the various embodiments described herein may include other components and/or functionality. However, some components or functionality that may be apparent may not be explicitly described for the sake of brevity. Such components and functionality are considered within the scope and spirit of the various embodiments described herein.
Aspects of devices described herein generally relate to a divider device. In one embodiment, the divider device may include a divider body including first, second, third, and fourth sides. The various sides may include one or more tabs that extend from the divider body. At least one arm extends from the divider body, a portion of the arm is spaced from the body forming a slot. The slot may be configured to receive bindings from a notebook or binder to position the divider in place on the binder such that at least a portion of a tab extends from a periphery of at least one sheet within the binder. The divider may be configured to be attached in a desired position of the tab and/or orientation of the divider.
In an example, a user may select a desired position of a tab relative to a spiral bound binder having materials (e.g., paper) retained thereon. The user may then select an appropriate configuration of the divider assembly for connection to bindings of the binder. Once connected, the placement of the tab at least partially extends past the perimeter/periphery of the bound materials such as paper. Further, a plurality of divider assemblies described herein may be positioned in an overlapping or sequential manner. For example, a user may have several dividers and/or tabs aligned in a single binder.
The tab 105 may have a width that is defined by a first edge 105A and an opposite second edge 105B. The width of the tab 105 may be less than a width of the body portion 120 defined by the second side 140 and the fourth side 160. The tab 105 may also include a top edge 105C that extends between the first edge 105A and the second edge 105B. The top edge 105C may be generally parallel with the first side 130 of the body portion 120. Further, the first edge 105A and the second edge 105B may have a generally tapered orientation. In particular, the first edge 105A may extend from the first side 130 of the body portion at an angle tapered towards the second edge 105B while the second edge 105B may extend from the first side 130 of the body portion 120 at an angle tapered towards the first edge 105A. The first edge 105A and second edge 105B may intersect with the top edge 105C and include generally rounded corners. However, the shape and orientation of the tab 105 relative to the body portion 120 is not limited as the tab 105 may be configured to extend passed a periphery of the paper sheets organized within the binder while an arm 110 and body portion 120 are attached thereto.
In one or more embodiments, divider 100 may be made of any appropriate material, including, without limitation a plastic or polymer material (e.g., a polypropylene material, acrylics, etc.), paper products (e.g., cardboard, coated or uncoated paper), leather, metal, fabric (e.g., felt) a composite material, or the like. In many embodiments, divider 100 is made of a material having a greater thickness, stiffness, and/or durability than typical paper sheets. Divider 100 may include clear or opaque, colored or colorless, transparent, translucent or semi-translucent material and include various combinations of the above aspects. In one non-limiting embodiment, the divider 100 may be formed from a monolithic piece. Divider 100 may at least partially include translucent or semi-translucent materials. Further, divider 100 may include printed and/or monolithically formed ornamental designs (e.g., floral patterns, geometric patterns, etc.), indicia, measuring markings (e.g., such as ruler markings), printed information (e.g., charts, graphs, product information, etc.), and the like.
The tab 105 may have a generally monolithic continuous configuration with the body portion 120 of the divider 100 and may be formed on the divider 100 by a die-cutting machine, mold, or other cutting apparatus generally known in the art. In other embodiments, the tab 105 may be of a separate construct that is attached (e.g., removably or irremovably) to divider 100 by an adhesive or other method. The tab 105 made of any appropriate material, including, without limitation, paper products (coated or un-coated), a polymer material such as a polypropylene material, fabric, metal, leather, and the like. The tab 105 may be clear or opaque, colored or colorless, transparent, translucent or semi-translucent material and include various combinations of colors or printed information/designs. The tab 105 may be a flat or substantially flat configuration or may comprise tactile indicia (e.g., Braille). In at least one embodiment, the tab 105 may comprise a pocket or slot that may receive an insert or label. Furthermore, the tab 105 may be configured for receiving an adhesive label, writing (e.g., ink, led, graphite, etc.).
The divider 100 may also include at least one arm 110 that extends from the body portion 120. The arm 110 may comprise various configurations that generally forms an elongated slot 170 with a side of the body portion 120. As illustrated by
To selectively attach the divider 110, a user may bias the arm 110 relative to the body portion 120 thereby creating at least a slight space between the protrusion 174 and the perimeter of the body 120 to allow the bindings 102 to be received within the elongated slot 170.
Moreover, various embodiments of the divider are contemplated by this disclosure. These embodiments allow a user to selectively attach the divider assembly to the binder without having to open the binding mechanism for insertion, removal. In this regard, the divider may have various geometrical arrangements that allow a particular divider to be adaptable to a particular binder. For example,
The divider 200 may also include at least one arm 210 that extends from the body portion 220. The arm 210 may comprise various configurations that may generally form an elongated slot 270 with a side of the body portion 220. As illustrated by
To selectively attach the divider 210, a user may bias the arm 210 relative to the body 220 thereby creating at least a slight space between the protrusions 274 and the body 220 to allow the bindings 202 to be received within the elongated slot 270.
The remaining embodiments to be described may have similar features to dividers 100 and 200 and will be described in accordance therewith. The various embodiments may have various shapes and numbers of arms and protrusions. The arms and protrusions of the dividers may comprise different shapes, sizes, positioning, and the likes. For instances, one divider 300 may have an arm 310 that extends from a shoulder 315 of the divider 300 that is generally spaced from a first side 330 to allow the divider 300 to selectively attach with a three ring binder as illustrated by
In a further embodiment, divider 400 as illustrated by
As illustrated by
As illustrated by
As illustrated by
In embodiments, one protrusion may have a different shape or profile than another protrusion located along the same divider. Furthermore, the protrusions may be generally circular, generally rectangular, a polygon, irregular in shape, or any other desired shape. Additionally, protrusions may be aligned along either the arm or the body, according to the spaces of the bindings of the binder. For example, the protrusions may be aligned such that a center or near center of the protrusions are aligned between individual spiral wires of the binder. It is noted that other alignments may be utilized based on a desired configuration. It is noted that other configurations may be utilized. For instance, one or more of the dividers having a plurality of arms and protrusions extending therefrom may be rotated and/or flipped such that a tab extends from a different side, such as described with reference to
Although the embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described in the foregoing detailed description, it is to be understood that the present invention is not to be limited to just the embodiments disclosed, but that the invention described herein is capable of numerous rearrangements, modifications and substitutions without departing from the scope of the claims hereafter. The features of each embodiment described and shown herein may be combined with the features of the other embodiments described herein. The claims as follows are intended to include all modifications and alterations insofar as they come within the scope of the claims or the equivalent thereof.
This application claims the benefit from Provisional Patent Application No. 62/159,455 titled “SLIDE IN DIVIDERS” filed on May 11, 2015 which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
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D211924 | Margeson | Aug 1968 | S |
5398384 | Rinard | Mar 1995 | A |
5597256 | Burton | Jan 1997 | A |
6015166 | May | Jan 2000 | A |
20030223804 | Roca | Dec 2003 | A1 |
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20160332478 A1 | Nov 2016 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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62159455 | May 2015 | US |