AU699976B2 - Super holder paper holder - Google Patents

Description

AUSTRALIA

PATENTS ACT 1990 COMPLETE

SPECIFICATION

FOR A STANDARD

PATENT

(Original) APPLICATION

NO:

LODGED:

61989/96 August 7, 1996 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION

LODGED:

ACCEPTED:

PUBLISHED:

RELATED ART: 1 rr r r r NAME OF APPLICANT: ACTUAL INVENTOR(S): ADDRESS FOR SERVICE: INVENTION TITLE: BARRY BRIAN JOHN BARRETT BARRY BRIAN JOHN BARRETT LORD COMPANY, Patent Trade Mark Attorneys, of 4 Douro Place, West Perth, Western Australia, 6005, AUSTRALIA.

"SHEET MATERIAL

HOLDER"

DETAILS OF ASSOCIATED PROVISIONAL APPLICATION

NO'S:

APPLICATION

NO:

LODGED:

PN4864 August 8, 1995 The following Statement is a full description of this invention including the best method of performing it known to me/us:

I

The present invention relates to a sheet material holder.

In many fields such as education, business and medicine, it is required to hold various types of sheet material for display purposes. This sheet material may be, for example, in the form of paper sheets, posters, maps or photographs.

Previously known devices for this purpose have used a length of dowel or plurality of marbles contained in the cavity of a wall mounted member. An edge of the sheet material to be held, is passed up through an opening in this member. On release, the sheet material is held by friction between the dowel or marbles and the wall mounted member.

These type of devices have generally only been able to provide a limited amount of grip to the inserted sheet material due to the nature of the dowel/marbles and the cavity. They have also had limitations on the size of sheet material that can be held.

This has resulted in problems when attempting to hold heavy, large or shiny surfaced sheets.

15 The present invention attempts to solve at least some of the known problems with :previously existing devices for holding sheet material.

0According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a sheet material holder having a body and a gripping means, the body being an elongate member having a cavity and a downwardly facing opening throughout its length, and 20 the gripping means being located in the cavity and being in the form of one or more cylindrical rollers with a tread on an outer surface thereof in order that sheet material e:"inserted into the opening will be gripped between the gripping means and the body.

The present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying representations, in which:- 3 Figure 1 represents a perspective view of the body of a sheet material holder in accordance with the present invention; Figure 2 represents a perspective view of the sheet material holder of Figure 1 in use; Figure 3 represents an exploded perspective view of the sheet material holder of Figure 1.

Referring to the drawings, there is shown a paper holder 10 including a body 12, a plurality of gripping means 14 and a stopper member 16. The body 12 includes a first and second vertically extending side wall 18 and 20, and a horizontally extending top wall 22, interconnecting the side wall 18 and 20. The first and second side walls 18 and 20, and the top wall 22 define a longitudinally extending cavity 24, the cavity 24 having a downwardly facing opening 26.

The first side wall 18 has an inwardly extending flange 28 depending therefrom. The flange 28 gives the cavity 24 a downwardly tapered shape at its lower end in crosssection.

o O 15 Each gripping means 14 is in the form of a cylindrical roller arranged to slide 'longitudinally into cavity 24. The diameter of each cylinder is larger than the width of l the downwardly facing opening 26. Each gripping means 14 rests between the second side wall 20 and the inwardly extending flange 28, on insertion into the cavity 24.

Further, each gripping means 14 includes a tread 30 on its outer surface. The tread go 20 may take the form of a plurality of parallel splines as shown in figure 3.

The stopper member 16 has a cross-sectional shape such that it is receivable in an end of the cavity 24, to secure the gripping means 14 inside the cavity 24. The stopper member 16 includes a recess 32 arranged to align with the downwardly facing opening 26. The recess 32 allows sheet material which is longer than the body 12 to be inserted into the opening 26 without being obstructed by the stopper members 16.

In use, the body 12 of the sheet material holder 10 is mounted on a surface so that the opening 26 extends generally downward. A plurality of gripping means 14 are inserted into the cavity 24. Preferably the gripping means 14 extend substantially throughout the whole length of the cavity 24. A stopper member 16 is placed into the cavity 24 at each end of the body 12, to secure the gripping means 14 inside the cavity 24.

An upper edge of the sheet material to be held is inserted into opening 26 between the gripping means 14 and the second side wall 20. The gripping means 14 will move upward inside the cavity 24 due to the frictional force between the sheet material and the gripping means 14. On release of the sheet material, the gripping means 14 will descend to rest across the opening 26. The sheet material will then be secured between the gripping means 14 and the second side wall 20. The tread 30 on the 0 00 15 gripping means 14 provides a secure grip on the sheet material.

Multiple sheets may be inserted into the sheet material holder 10 simultaneously.

Each sheet will be held only by the gripping means 14 which it comes into contact with.

To remove the sheet material from the sheet material holder, the sheet material is 20 pulled from the bottom, in a direction generally perpendicular to its surface. This forces the gripping means 14 to move upward in the cavity and away from the second side wall 20. This releases the grip on the sheet material and it is able to fall freely from the sheet material holder

I

Modifications and variations such as would be apparent to a skilled addressee are considered within the scope of the present invention

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Claims (6)

1. A sheet material holder having a body and a gripping means, the body being an elongate member having a cavity and a downwardly facing opening throughout its length and the gripping means being located in the cavity and being in the form of one or more cylindrical rollers with a tread on an outer surface thereof in order that sheet material inserted into the opening will be gripped between the gripping means and the body.

2. A sheet material holder in accordance with claim 1, including at least one stopper member, the stopper member having a cross-section allowing it to be inserted into an end of the cavity of the body to secure the gripping means inside the cavity.

3. A sheet material holder in accordance with claim 2, wherein the stopper member has a recess in alignment with the downwardly facing opening of the body which allows sheet material which is longer than the body to be inserted into the downwardly facing opening of the body. 15 4. A sheet material holder according to any one of the preceding claims wherein .i. the cavity has a lower end with a downwardly tapered shape in cross-section. go

5. A sheet material holder according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the tread is in the form of a plurality of parallel splines.

6. A sheet material holder in accordance with any of the preceding claims 20 wherein the gripping means comprises a plurality of cylindrical rollers. :oo 97. A sheet material holder in accordance with claim 6 wherein the cylindrical rollers extend substantially throughout the length of the cavity.

8. A sheet material holder substantially as hereinbefore described with reference ito the accompanying drawings. DATED THIS 19 TH DAY OF OCTOBER 1998 BARRY BRIAN JOHN BARRETT By his Patent Attorneys LORD COMPANY PERTHI, WESTERN AUSTRALIA a a a. a. a. 9@ a a a *n. a a. S S a S. a a a, a a a 9* 5**e a a a a a a air.. a. S S. *a a a. a. a S