Sticker clip

Abstract

The sticker clip is a clip for keeping a roll of sheet material such as a sheet of scrapbook stickers displayed in an orderly fashion for dispensing to consumers. The clip is provided in the form of a pair of identical transparent rod-like rollers each having annular recesses adjacent both ends of each roller. The distance between the recesses on each roller is selected to be greater than the width of sheet of stickers on the roll. One roller is placed on the inside of the independently supported roll of stickers. A rubber band is provided in the annular recess of adjacent ends of the rollers on both sides of the sheet of stickers to bias the rollers toward each other. A transparent tube, preferably having a length equal to the width of the sheet of stickers is mounted over the roller that extends across the face of the roll.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/511,657, filed Oct. 17, 2003.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to clips and more particularly to a clip for keeping a roll of sheet material such as a sheet of scrapbook stickers displayed in an orderly fashion for dispensing to consumers.

2. Description of the Related Art

A problem for the staff of scrapbook stores that sell scrapbook stickers provided on rolls is preventing customers from accidentally tearing some of the stickers as the roll is unwound. Another problem for the staff is keeping the display of rolls of stickers (which have a tendency to unwind themselves due to the weight of the unwound portion as stickers are dispensed or accidental contact) in a tidy appearance throughout the day. Staff members spend an extreme amount of time straightening the product display.

Devices are known in the prior art for holding the free end of material dispensed from a roll. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 329,191 issued Oct. 27, 1885 to J. E. McMurtrie teaches a ribbon reel having a frame with adjustable sidebars for accommodating rolls of various lengths. An adjustable ribbon-clamp bar is provided with reduced neck portions adjacent each end for movement within slots in the sidebars of the frame. The drum upon which the ribbon is rolled is supported for rotation on the ends of two elastic arms attached to the sidebars. Rubber bands cooperating with small grooved pulleys on the ends of the elastic arms clamp the roll of ribbon between the ribbon-clamp bar and the drum.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,167,348 issued Dec. 1, 1992 to Okami et al. teaches a tube squeezer clamping device comprising two cylindrical rods positioned in parallel that have notches to guide and hold two bands or O-rings at each end. The bands or O-rings secure the rods closely together so as to be able to sandwich the bottom flat end of a tube having a pasty content placed between the two rods and allow very little or no relative movement between the rods. Residual pasty content is forced to the top of the tube by moving the device up the length of the tube.

None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed. Thus a sticker clip solving the aforementioned problems is desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a clip for keeping a roll of sheet material such as a sheet of scrapbook stickers displayed in an orderly fashion for dispensing to consumers. The clip is provided in the form of a pair of identical transparent rod-like rollers each having annular recesses adjacent both ends of each roller. The distance between the recesses on each roller is selected to be greater than the width of the sheet of stickers on the roll. One roller is placed on the inside of the independently supported roll of stickers. A suitable pair of rubber bands holds the second roller in parallel alignment with the first roller across the face of the roll. A rubber band is provided in the annular recess at adjacent ends of the rollers on both sides of the sheet of stickers to bias the rollers toward each other clamping the rotatably mounted roll of stickers between the rollers. A transparent tube, preferably having a length equal to the width of the sheet of stickers and a diameter greater than the diameter of the rollers is mounted over the roller that extends across the face of the roll. As the sheet of stickers is dispensed from the roll through the rollers, the end of the remnant of the roll is maintained in a fashion suitable for further display and dispensing. The sticker clip also prevents the stickers from being torn or damaged, as the sheet of stickers is unwound during dispensing.

Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to provide a sticker clip for keeping a roll of sheet material such as a sheet of scrapbook stickers displayed in an orderly fashion for displaying and dispensing the sheet material to consumers.

It is another object of the invention to provide a sticker clip that also prevents the stickers on the sheet from being torn or damaged, as the sheet is unwound during dispensing.

It is an object of the invention to provide improved elements and arrangements thereof in an apparatus for the purposes described which is inexpensive, dependable and fully effective in accomplishing its intended purposes.

These and other objects of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an environmental, perspective view of the sticker clip according to the present invention in use on the rolls of stickers of a sticker display stand.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the sticker clip according to the present invention.

Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The present invention is a clip for keeping a roll of sheet material such as a sheet of scrapbook stickers displayed in an orderly fashion for dispensing to consumers. FIG. 1 shows a plurality of rolls of scrapbook stickers 60 rotatably mounted on the arms 51 of a scrapbook sticker display rack. While the preferred use of the clip is on sticker rolls, it is readily apparent that the clip is suitable for use on any sheet material displayed and dispensed in similar fashion.

As best shown in FIG. 2, the sticker clip 20 is preferably provided in the form of a pair of identical rod-like rollers 33, 34 formed from a suitable rigid transparent plastic material. A preferred material for the rollers 33 and 34 is acrylic. An annular recess 36 is formed adjacent both ends of each roller. The distance between the recesses on each roller is selected to be greater than the width of the sheet of stickers on the roll. Each roller has a length at least one half inch greater than the width of the roll of stickers 60.

Roller 33 is placed on the inside of the rotatably supported roll of stickers 60. As best seen from FIG. 2, a first rubber band 40 is received in the groove 36 on the left side of both rollers 33 and 34 and a second rubber band 41 is received in the groove 36 on the right side of both rollers 33 and 34. Rubber bands 40 and 41 hold roller 34 in parallel alignment with roller 33 across the face of the roll of stickers 60 and bias the rollers toward each other. A transparent tube 35, preferably formed from any suitable rigid transparent plastic material, has an inner diameter greater than the outer diameter of rollers 33 and 34. Tube 35 preferably has a length equal to the width of the sheet of stickers and is mounted over roller 34 so that roller 34 and tube 35 both extend across the face of the roll as shown in FIG. 1.

As the sheet is dispensed from the roll 60, the rubber bands bias the rollers 33 and 34 toward each other to maintain contact with the top winding of the sheet of stickers on the roll 60 as the size of the roll 60 diminishes during dispensing of the sheet of stickers. The dispensing end of the remnant of the roll of stickers 60 that has passed beneath the tube 35 is maintained at a length suitable for further display and dispensing by sticker clip 20. This saves the time used by the staff of a scrapbook store rewinding the rolls of stickers to keep the scrapbook sticker display orderly. The sticker clip 20 also prevents the stickers from being torn or damaged, as the sheet of stickers is unwound during dispensing of the stickers.

It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.

Claims

1. A sticker clip, comprising:

first and second identical rod-like rollers formed from a suitable rigid material;

each roller including an annular recess formed adjacent both ends of each roller, wherein the distance between the recesses of each roller is selected to be greater than the width of a sheet of stickers in a roll, each roller has a length at least one half inch greater than the width of the sheet of stickers;

a tube formed from any suitable rigid material, said tube having an inner diameter greater than the outer diameter said rollers, said, a length equal to the width of the sheet of stickers and is mounted over said second roller; and

a first rubber band is looped over both rollers and rests in the grooves on the left side of said first and second rollers and a second rubber band is looped over and received in the grooves on the right side of said first and second rollers, wherein said rubber bands hold said rollers in parallel alignment on the roll of stickers with said second roller and said tube extending across the face of the roll and said first roller extending across the inside of the roll of stickers, and said free end of said sheet of stickers is passed under said tube during dispensing of said sheet of stickers;

wherein said rubber bands biasing said rollers toward each other to sandwich the windings of the roll of stickers between the rollers and maintain contact with the top winding of the sheet of stickers on the roll as the size of the roll diminishes during dispensing of the sheet of stickers.

2. The sticker clip according to claim 1, wherein said first and second rollers are formed from a transparent plastic material.

3. The sticker clip according to claim 2, wherein said tube is formed or a transparent plastic material.