GB2317376A

GB2317376A - Holder for flat articles, particularly compact discs or floppy discs.

Info

Publication number: GB2317376A
Application number: GB9619577A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Leslie Paine
Original assignee: Folders Galore Ltd
Current assignee: Folders Galore Ltd
Priority date: 1996-09-19
Filing date: 1996-09-19
Publication date: 1998-03-25
Anticipated expiration: 2016-09-19
Also published as: GB2317376B; GB9619577D0

Abstract

A holder for a compact disc (40, Fig. 1a), a floppy disc (Fig. 3) or other flat article comprises a single resilient sheet 10 having at least one flap 28 which, when in use, covers part of the article, and a retaining-edge 30 extending beyond each flap, whereby, when the article is inserted between the main body of the sheet and the flap and pushed fully home, the retaining-edge flips up slightly by virtue of the resilience of the sheet to abut an edge portion of the article to retain it against inertial and gravitational forces but not against intentional removal. The flap and retaining edge may be formed either by a cut 22, having both a flap defining section 26 and a retaining edge section 30 or they may be formed by injection moulding in which case the flap may be formed in a plane which is slightly displaced from the rest of the sheet. Preferably there are two such flaps and retaining-edges located so that when in use they abut generally opposite edges of the article. Further embodiments include providing a slot in the sheet for easy removal of the article 110, providing holes 12 in the sheet so that it can be filed in a ring binder and further providing a tab 20 so that when filed in a ring binder, one particular sheet out of many can be easily retrieved, each sheet having the tab in a slightly different position (20, Fig. 2).

Description

Retaining means The present invention relates to retaining means for retaining a compact disc, floppy disc cassette or other flat article. Hitherto, a compact disc has been held in what has been known as a jewel box, which is provided with resilient plastics portions which snap over an inner periphery of the disc.

Such a jewel box, however, is not always suited for use with presentation in connection with literature, and in any case is relatively cumbersome.

The present invention seeks to obviate one or more of these disadvantages.

Accordingly, the present invention is directed to retaining means for retaining a compact disc, a floppy disc cassette or other flat article, comprising a resilient sheet having at least one edge which defines (a) a flap of the sheet which covers part of the flat article when the retaining means are in use, and (b) a retaining-edge portion which extends from the flap, whereby, when such a flat article is inserted between the main body of the sheet and the flap and pushed fully home, the retaining-edge portion flips up slightly by virtue of the resilience of the sheet to abut an edge portion of the flat article, to retain it against inertial and gravitational forces but not against intentional removal.

Preferably, the edge has a transverse end portion at the end of the retaining-edge portion which is further from the flap, which transverse end portion extends away from that side of the retaining-edge portion on which it is intended that the flat article should be retained.

The edge may be provided by a cut in the resilient sheet or, alternatively, the retaining means may be injection moulded to have such an edge formed on it, in which case the retaining means may be moulded from the outset to have its flap in a plane which is slightly displaced from the rest of the sheet.

Preferably, there are two such cuts in the resilient sheet spaced apart from one another and so orientated relative to one another that their respective flaps are directed generally towards one another, and their retaining-edge portions abut edges of the flat article, when it is inserted in the retaining means, at positions of the flat article just beyond a maximum width thereof, the latter being located on the flap side of such abutment.

As a result, the compact disc or other flap article snaps into its retained position when it is pushed fully home in the retaining means.

Preferably, the periphery of the or each flap which is further from the retaining-edge portion is reversed so that it extends back towards the retaining-edge portion. This provides a further abutment against the edge of the compact disc or other flat article.

A slot in the resilient sheet may be provided which extends adjacent to the cut or between the two cuts as the case may be, to facilitate removal of such a compact disc, floppy disc cassette or other flat article from the retaining means.

The resilient sheet may itself be held in a ring binder or other carrier, and may have score marks or holes provided in it to enable it to be fixed into the carrier.

Examples of retaining means made in accordance with the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 shows a plan view of such retaining means; Figure la shows a perspective view from above and from one end of the retaining means shown in Figure 1, with a compact disc inserted therein; Figure 1 shows a wallet, in an opened-out condition, which incorporates retaining means embodying the present invention; Figure 2 shows retaining means shown in Figure 1 with a compact disc inserted therein and with further such retaining means positioned therebehind; and Figure 3 shows a plan view of a modified form of retaining means adapted to receive a floppy disc cassette.

With reference to Figure 1, a resilient sheet 10 of polypropylene plastics material is generally rectangular, having holes 12 punched through it adjacent to and along a straight edge 14 of the sheet 10 for receiving the rings of a ring binder, for example. The sheet 10 also has a convex curved edge 16 opposite the straight edge 14, and a concave edge portion 18 cut into the convex curved edge 16.

A portion 20 of the sheet 10 protrudes from the curved edge 16 to form a tab by which this sheet may readily be lifted.

Two cuts 22 and 24 are provided in the sheet 10. Each cut 22, 24 is the mirror image of the other, and the cuts are arranged symmetrically about an imaginary line which is perpendicular to the straight edge 14 and which passes through the centre of the concave edge portion 18.

The cut 22 is constituted by an S-shape portion 26, the upper portion of which, viewing the S-shape in its usual orientation as a letter, provides a flap portion 28 of the sheet 10 directed generally towards the other cut 24. The "lower" end of the S 26 extends into a retainingedge portion 30 of the cut 22. This portion 30 of the cut 22 is part of a circle having its centre lying on the said imaginary line, closer to the edge 14 than the mid-point of that portion 30. The end of the retaining-edge portion 30 which is further from the S-shape portion 26 is provided with a transverse end portion 32 which extends away from the other cut 24 and is generally at right angles to the retaining-edge portion 30. Thus, the transverse end portion of the cut 22 lies on an imaginary line which passes through the centre of curvature of the retainingedge portion 30.

The upper end of the S-shape portion terminates at a reversed portion 34 of the cut 22 which is directed back towards the retaining edge portion 30 of the cut 22. The reversed portion 34 lies on the same imaginary circle as the retaining-edge portion 30 of the cut 22. The cuts 22 and 24 are so spaced apart that those portions of the cut 24 which correspond to the portions 30 and 34 of the cut 22 lie on the same imaginary circle.

An oblong slot 38 extends along the imaginary line between the straight edge 14 and the concave edge portion 18, mid-way between the cuts 22 and 24.

The imaginary circle on which the portions 30 and 34 of the cut 22 and the corresponding portions of the cut 24 lie has a diameter which is substantially the same, or just slightly greater than the diameter of a standard compact disc. Therefore, when the sheet 10 is used to retain such a compact disc, the latter is inserted so that the flap 28 of the cut 22, and the corresponding flap of the cut 24, ride up over the compact disc 40 with portions of the sheet 10 which are between these cuts 22 and 24 being behind the compact disc 40. As the edge of the far side of the cut portion 34 abuts the periphery of the disc 40, the periphery of the disc 40 adjacent to the retaining edge portion 30 of the cut 22 just clears that portion, and the resilience of the sheet 10 causes that edge of the cut portion 30 which is further from the disc to snap up so that it also abuts the periphery of the disc 40, as shown in Figure la. A simultaneous action happens in regard to the cut 24. The disc is now retained by edge-abutments at four positions spaced apart around a greater part of its periphery, the retaining edges at the cut portions 30 being positioned just beyond a diameter of the disc which is parallel to an imaginary line passing through the centres of the reverse cut portions 34. In this way, the compact disc is held against accidental removal by inertial or gravitational forces, but is not retained against intentional removal. For these purposes the disc may be grasped by the index finger and thumb of the user on opposite sides of that part of its periphery which projects from the concave cut portion 18, or alternatively at the centre of the disc, making use of the oblong slot 38.

Figure 2 shows how more than one such sheet 10 can be lain one on top of another. The tabs 20 of each successive sheet are shifted, relative to the previous sheet, around the curved edge 16 so that any one of them may be easily selectively lifted by the user.

In the modified form shown in Figure 3, the cuts 22 and 24 are arranged symmetrically about a diagonal of the sheet 10 which is square in this case. The reverse cut portion 34 is straight and extends generally at 45 to the sheet diagonal. The flap-providing portion 26 of the cut 22 starts with a first curved portion 50 turning into a straight part 52 of the portion 26 which is parallel to the imaginary diagonal of the sheet 10, followed by a convex curved part 54 of the portion 26 and thence to a further straight portion 56 of the portion 26 in line with the reverse-cut portion 34. From here the retaining-edge portion 30 of the cut 22 extends at right angles to the part 56 of the portion 26, and from there extends in a convex curve 58 to the transverse end portion 60 of the cut 22 which is generally at right angles to the portion 30 extending away from the flap-providing portion 26.

The corner of the cut 22 where the part 56 meets the portion 30 of the cut may instead be provided by a short diagonal 62 since this modified form of the sheet is adapted to receive a 3M" floppy disc cassette with a diagonal of the cassette extending along a diagonal of the sheet 10, and the chamfered corner of the cassette resting against one edge of the portion 62 of the cut 22. In this respect the cut 22 differs slightly from the cut 24, which does not have a portion corresponding to this short diagonal 62.

Numerous variations and modifications to the sheet shown in the Figures will readily occur to a person of ordinary skill in the art without taking the resulting construction outside the scope of the present invention.

For example, the abutments at the portions 34 of the cut 22 and the corresponding portion of the cut 24 may instead be provided by a thickened lip of the sheet material 10.

Whereas the cuts 22 and 24 are symmetrical, they may be asymmetric. The concave edge portion 18 could be generally straight or even convex. The transverse end portion 32 of each cut 22, 24 can be omitted. It will be appreciated that there is not necessarily a central finger hole in a compact disc, and the slot 38 can be omitted. On the other hand, it can be shaped differently. For example, it may be oval in shape with its major axis extending generally transversely of both the cuts 22 and 24, as shown by the dotted line 110 in Figure 1.

The tabs 20 can be omitted and, instead, successive sheets may be of increasing height, as indicated by the broken lines 120 in Figure 2. The rear edges of even sheets may be curved, as indicated by the broken line 130 in Figure 2.

The sheet 10 may be one part of a folding wallet construction, as shown in Figure lb, in which a compact disc 40 retained in the sheet 10 can be enclosed with the further parts 140 and 150 of the wallet, and the wallet may be closed by the insertion of a tab 160 at the free end of the part 150 of the wallet into a slot 170 between the parts 10 and 140.

The sheet 10 shown in Figure 1 may be slightly deformed so that, even in the absence of a disc 40 within it, the flaps 28 may stand slightly proud of the rest of the sheet to facilitate insertion of the disc. One way of doing this is to bend the sheet material slightly along crease lines, shown as dotted straight lines 180 in Figure 1.

Claims

Claims:

1. Retaining means for retaining a compact disc, a floppy disc cassette or other flat article, comprising a resilient sheet having at least one edge which defines (a) a flap of the sheet which covers part of the flat article when the retaining means are in use, and (b) a retaining-edge portion which extends from the flap, whereby, when such a flat article is inserted between the main body of the sheet and the flap and pushed fully home, the retaining-edge portion flips up slightly by virtue of the resilience of the sheet to abut an edge portion of the flat article, to retain it against inertial and gravitational forces but not against intentional removal.

2. Retaining means according to claim 1, in which the edge has a transverse end portion at the end of the retaining-edge portion which is further from the flap, which transverse end portion extends away from that side of the retaining-edge portion on which it is intended that the flat article should be retained.

3. Retaining means according to claim 1 or claim 2, in which the edge is provided by a cut in the resilient sheet.

4. Retaining means according to claim 1 or claim 2, which are injection moulded to have such an edge formed on them.

5. Retaining means according to claim 4, which are moulded from the outset to have the flap in a plane which is slightly displaced from the rest of the sheet.

6. Retaining means according to any preceding claim, in which there are two such cuts in the resilient sheet spaced apart from one another and so orientated relative to one another that their respective flaps are directed generally towards one another, and their retaining-edge portions abut edges of the flat article, when it is inserted in the retaining means, at positions of the flat article just beyond a maximum width thereof, the latter being located on the flap side of such abutment, so that the compact disc or other flap article snaps into its retained position when it is pushed fully home in the retaining means.

7. Retaining means according to any preceding claim, in which the periphery of the or each flap which is further from the retaining-edge portion is reversed so that it extends back towards the retaining-edge portion, so as to provide a further abutment against the edge of the compact disc or other flat article.

8. Retaining means according to any preceding claim, in which a slot is provided in the resilient sheet which slot extends adjacent to the cut or between the two cuts as the case may be, to facilitate removal of such a compact disc, floppy disc cassette or other flat article from the retaining means.

9. Retaining means according to any preceding claim, having score marks or holes in it to enable it to be fixed into a ring binder or other carrier.

10. Retaining means according to claim 1 and substantially as described herein with reference to and as illustrated in Figure 3, or Figures 1 and la with or without the modification shown in Figure lb or 2 of the accompanying drawings.

11. A ring binder or other carrier, having retaining means as claimed in any preceding claim.