FINANCIAL AND IDENTIFICATION CARD HOLDER

Abstract

A financial and identification card holder comprises a generally planar back portion, a generally planar front portion, and a connecting portion connecting the back portion and the front portion. The back portion and the front portion are substantially parallel to and spaced from one another, and the base portion extends between the back portion and the front portion. The inner surfaces of the back portion, connecting portion, front portion and base portion define a partial enclosure for receiving financial and identification cards. The partial enclosure is open opposite the connecting portion and the base portion. A band mounting is secured to at least one of the back portion, front portion and connecting portion, and a resilient band may be mounted to the band mounting to retain the cards in the holder.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO THE RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Design patent application Ser. No. 29/344570 filed on Sep. 30, 2009, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Design patent application Ser. No. 29/330190 filed on Dec. 30, 2008, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Design patent application Ser. No. 29/300292 filed on Mar. 10, 2008 and which issued as U.S. Design Pat. No. D584049 on Jan. 6, 2009, the teachings of all of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates to apparatus for carrying personal items, and in particular to a financial and identification card holder.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Many people routinely carry financial and identification cards, such as a driver's license and credit and debit cards, in a wallet or in one's pockets or purse. Given the myriad special offers often associated with credit cards, consumers will often use different credit cards for different types of purchases. For example, a consumer may use one particular credit card to purchase fuel, another particular credit card to purchase groceries, and still another particular credit card to purchase electronics. To find a particular credit card, or other financial or identification card, may require looking through numerous cards with two hands or one by one.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Financial and identification card holders according to aspects of the present invention can conveniently provide access to any of the cards used most frequently on a day to day basis, and can also hold temporary paper items such as cash, checks, receipts, and parking stubs.

In one aspect, the present invention is directed to a financial and identification card holder. The financial and identification holder comprises a generally planar back portion, a generally planar front portion and a connecting portion connecting the back portion and the front portion. The back portion and the front portion are substantially parallel to and spaced from one another, and a base portion extends between the back portion and the front portion. The inner surfaces of the back portion, connecting portion, front portion and base portion define a partial enclosure that is open opposite the connecting portion and the base portion. A band mounting is secured to at least one of the back portion, the front portion and the connecting portion.

In one embodiment, the back portion, connecting portion and front portion comprise a single piece of material, and the connecting portion may be a curved reverse bend. In such an embodiment, the base portion preferably extends less than 2.125 inches (53.98 millimeters) from the inner vertex of the curved reverse bend, more preferably about 1.378 inches (35.00 millimeters) therefrom, and the distance from the inner vertex of the curved reverse bend to the distal edge of the back portion is less than 2.125 inches (53.98 millimeters). Preferably, the back portion extends further from the inner vertex of the curved reverse bend than the front portion. In a particular embodiment, the distance from the inner surface of the base portion to the upper edge of the back portion is less than 3.370 inches (85.60 millimeters).

The financial and identification card holder preferably further comprises a resilient band mounted to the financial and identification card holder by the band mounting and surrounding the back portion, the connecting portion and the front portion. In a particularly preferred embodiment, the band mounting is on the back portion.

In a particular embodiment, the front portion exposes a larger portion of the inner surface of the back portion toward an upper edge thereof than toward a lower edge thereof. The back portion may extend further from the connecting portion than the front portion.

In another aspect, the present invention is directed to a method for managing financial and identification cards. The method comprises providing a financial and identification card holder as described above, placing a plurality of ISO/IEC 7810 ID-1 compliant cards in the financial and identification card holder by placing the cards between the back portion and the front portion so that the cards are surrounded by the resilient band, and spreading the cards so that the cards partially overlap, each card exposing the card beneath, while the cards remain surrounded by the resilient band with at least a portion of each card remaining between the back portion and the front portion. The method may further comprise removing a selected card from the financial and identification card holder.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features of the invention will become more apparent from the following description in which reference is made to the appended drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 shows a front perspective view of a first embodiment of a financial and identification card holder, according to an aspect of the present invention;

FIG. 1A shows a front perspective view of the credit card holder of FIG. 1, with financial and identification cards shown in dotted lines;

FIG. 2 shows a rear perspective view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 shows a first side view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 shows a front view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 shows a second side view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 shows a rear view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 shows a top view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 shows a bottom view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 shows a front view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 1, with financial and identification cards shown in dotted lines in a fanned configuration;

FIG. 10 shows a front perspective view of a second embodiment of a financial and identification card holder according to an aspect of the present invention;

FIG. 10A shows a front perspective view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 10, with financial and identification cards shown in dotted lines;

FIG. 10B shows a front view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 10, with financial and identification cards shown in dotted lines in a fanned configuration;

FIG. 11 shows a rear perspective view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 10;

FIG. 12 shows a first side view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 10;

FIG. 13 shows a front view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 10;

FIG. 14 shows a second side view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 10;

FIG. 15 shows a rear view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 10;

FIG. 16 shows a top view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 10;

FIG. 17 shows a bottom view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 10;

FIG. 18 shows a front perspective view of a third embodiment of a financial and identification card holder according to an aspect of the present invention;

FIG. 19A shows a front perspective view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 18, with financial and identification cards shown in dotted lines;

FIG. 19B shows a front view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 18, with financial and identification cards shown in dotted lines in a fanned configuration;

FIG. 20 shows a rear perspective view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 18;

FIG. 21 shows a first side view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 18;

FIG. 22 shows a front view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 18;

FIG. 23 shows a second side view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 18;

FIG. 24 shows a rear view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 18;

FIG. 25 shows a top view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 18; and

FIG. 26 shows a bottom view of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 18; and

FIGS. 27 and 28 are dimension drawings of the financial and identification card holder of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Financial and identification cards in the Canadian and U.S. marketplace generally have a standard size, in accordance with the ID-1 standard under ISO/IEC 7810, published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), having an address at 1, ch. de la Voie-Creuse, Case postale 56, CH-1211 Geneva 20, Switzerland. The ISO/IEC 7810 ID-1 standard specifies a size of 3.370 inches by 2.125 inches (85.60 millimeters by 53.98 millimeters). In addition, the ISO/IEC 7813 standard, which applies to financial transaction cards and which is also published by the ISO, specifies the thickness of such cards as 0.040 inches (0.76 millimeters), with rounded corners having a radius of 0.125 inches (3.18 millimeters). Both the ISO/IEC 7810 and ISO/IEC 7813 standards are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

Preferred embodiments of financial and identification card holders according to an aspect of the present invention are sized for use with cards meeting the ID-1 standard under ISO/IEC 7810, including not only credit cards but also debit cards, identification cards, and the like.

FIGS. 1 to 9 show a first embodiment of a financial and identification card holder according to an aspect of the present invention, indicated generally by the reference numeral 10. The financial and identification card holder 10 is sized to receive cards meeting the ID-1 standard under ISO/IEC 7810.

The financial and identification card holder 10 comprises a generally planar back portion 12, a connecting portion 14 and a generally planar front portion 16, with the connecting portion 14 connecting the back portion 12 and the front portion 16. The back portion 12 and the front portion 16 are substantially parallel to and spaced from one another, and each have respective inner surfaces 12A, 16A that face one another and respective outer surfaces 12A, 16A. The connecting portion 14 also has an inner surface 14A and an outer surface 14B. The back portion 12, connecting portion 14 and front portion 16 may comprise a single piece of material, such as plastic or sheet metal, and in the illustrated embodiments the connecting portion 14 is a curved reverse bend. Transparent, translucent or opaque materials may be used. In other embodiments, the connecting portion may be planar, or may have other shapes.

A base portion 18, having an inner surface 18A and an outer surface 18B, extends between the back portion 12 and the front portion 18 to define a partial enclosure 20 (see FIGS. 4 and 5) bounded by the inner surfaces 12A, 14A, 16A and 18A of the back portion 12, connecting portion 14, front portion 16 and base portion 18, respectively. In the first embodiment 10, the base portion 18 is planar; in other embodiments the base portion 18 may have other shapes. The partial enclosure 20 is open opposite the inner surfaces 14A, 18A, respectively, of the connecting portion 14 and base portion 18 so that financial and identification cards may be inserted into the partial enclosure 20. In the first embodiment 10, the back portion 12 and front portion 16 are spaced from one another by a distance slightly greater than the thickness of five financial and/or identification cards 60, including the embossed printing thereon. In this way the partial enclosure 20 can hold five financial and/or identification cards 60 (see FIG. 1A) having embossed printing. Moreover, depending on whether each card has embossed printing, and the actual thickness of the particular cards, more or fewer cards can be held. For example, up to eight thin cards with no embossed characters would fit a partial enclosure 20 designed for five cards having embossed printing, and up to seven cards can be accommodated where the cards include some cards that are embossed and some thin cards that are not embossed. The partial enclosure 20 may be sized to hold more than five embossed financial and/or identification cards, or fewer than five embossed financial and/or identification cards.

In the first embodiment 10 the respective lower edges 22, 24, 26 of the back portion 12, connecting portion 14 and front portion 16 are coplanar with one another and the base portion 18 is flush with these lower edges 22, 24, 26; in other embodiments one or more of the back portion, connecting portion and front portion may extend past the base portion. Furthermore, in the first embodiment 10, the base portion 18 engages the connecting portion 14 and is secured thereto; in other embodiments the base portion may be spaced from the connecting portion. In the first embodiment 10, the lowermost part of the lower edge 22 of the back portion 12, the lower edge 26 of the front portion 16, and the base portion 18 are substantially coterminous, and each extend about 1.378 inches (35.00 millimeters) from the vertex of the connecting portion 14, measured from the inner surface 14A thereof. The distal part of the lower edge 22 of the back portion 12 (i.e. adjacent to the distal edge 28 thereof, distal from the connecting portion 14) jogs upwardly, toward the upper edge 32 of the back portion 12, to define a recess 31. Thus, the lower edge 22 of the back portion 12 extends further than the lower edge 26 of the front portion and further than the base portion 18.

The distal edge 30 of the front portion 16, that is, the edge 30 opposite and distal from the connecting portion 14, slopes generally away from the connecting portion 14 from the upper edge 36 of the front portion 16 (adjacent the upper edge 34 of the connecting portion 14) toward the lower edge 26 thereof. Although a small portion of the distal edge 30 of the front portion 16, immediately adjacent the lower edge 26 of the front portion 16, slopes back toward the connecting portion 14, the overall shape of the distal edge 30 of the front portion 16 still slopes generally away from the connecting portion 14. As a result, the front portion 16 exposes a larger portion of the inner surface 12A of the back portion 12 toward the upper edge 32 thereof than toward the lower edge 22 thereof.

The distal edge 28 of the back portion 12 is generally linear, and extends substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the connecting portion 14. As can be seen in FIGS. 1 and 4, in the first embodiment 10, the back portion 12 extends substantially further from the connecting portion 14 than does the front portion 16. The back portion 12 preferably extends less than the width of an ISO/IEC 7810 ID-1 compliant card, that is, less than 2.125 inches (53.98 millimeters), from the vertex of the connecting portion 14, measured from the inner surface 14A thereof. At least the part of the back portion 12 aligned with the band mounting 40 and resilient band 50 (described in greater detail below) preferably extends less than 2.125 inches (53.98 millimeters) from the vertex of the connecting portion. For example, in an alternative embodiment (not shown), the back portion 12 may generally extend further than than 2.125 inches (53.98 millimeters) from the vertex of the connecting portion, but may include a recess in alignment with the band mounting where the distal edge of the back portion is less than 2.125 inches (53.98 millimeters) from the vertex of the connecting portion.

As best seen in FIGS. 2, 3, 5 and 6, a band mounting 40 is secured to the back portion 12, toward the upper edge 32 thereof. In other embodiments, the band mounting may be disposed at alternative positions on the back portion, or on the front portion or the connecting portion, or on more than one of them. In addition, other embodiments may have a plurality of band mountings.

In the first embodiment 10, the band mounting 40 comprises a pair of opposed L-shaped arms 42 each having a first portion 44 extending perpendicularly from the outer surface 12A of the back portion 12, and a second portion 46 extending from the first portion 44 substantially parallel to the outer surface 12A. The second portions 46 extend toward one another, thereby defining an enclosure bounded by the outer surface 12A of the back portion 12, the first portions 44 of the arms 42, and the second portions 46 of the arms 42, with a gap 48 between the second portions of the arms 42, through which a resilient band 50 can be inserted into the enclosure and thereby secured to the first embodiment 10 of a financial and identification card holder. The arms 42 of the band mounting 40 may be integral with the back portion 12 or alternatively, the arms 42 of the band mounting 40 may be secured to the outer surface 12A of the back portion 12 by welding, adhesive or other suitable attachment technique.

Once the resilient band 50 is secured to the band mounting 40, the resilient band 50 may be positioned to surround the back portion 12, connecting portion 14 and front portion 16, in stretched engagement with the respective outer surfaces 12A, 14A, 16A thereof. As best seen in FIG. 7, when so positioned the resilient band 50 slopes inwardly from the outer surface 16A of the front portion toward the distal edge 28 of the back portion 12.

A plurality of financial and/or identification cards 60 may be inserted into the partial enclosure 20 defined by the back portion 12, connecting portion 14, front portion 16 and base portion 18 by sliding the cards 60 downwardly from the upper edge 32 of the back portion 12, between the back portion 12 and front portion 16 and through the inside of the loop of the resilient band 50. Once inserted, as shown in FIG. 1A, the proximal long edges 62p of the cards 60 abut the inner surface 14A of the connecting portion 14 and the proximal short edges 64p of the cards 60 abut the inner surface 18A of the base portion 18. Because the back portion 12 extends less than the width of an ISO/IEC 7810 ID-1 compliant card from the vertex of the connecting portion 14, the resilient band 50 is slightly stretched and engages the distal long edges 62d of the cards 60 (i.e. the long edges opposite and distal from the connecting portion 14) thereby applying force biasing the cards 60 toward the connecting portion 14 and resisting by friction sliding of the cards 60 away from the base portion 18. Thus, the cards 60 are positioned between the back portion 12 and the front portion 16 and are surrounded by the resilient band 50, which cooperates with the back portion 12, connecting portion 14, front portion 16 and base portion 18 to retain the cards 60 within the partial enclosure 20. Optionally, temporary paper items such as cash, checks, receipts, and parking stubs (not shown) can be retained between the cards 60 and the back portion 12.

When the cards 60 are secured in the first embodiment 10 of a financial and identification card holder, the cards 60 can be spread out so that a user (not shown) can see the different cards 60, without needing to remove the cards 60 from the first embodiment 10 of a financial and identification card holder. To spread the cards, a user would grip the first embodiment 10 of a financial and identification card holder in one hand, and use their other hand to pull the cards 60 away from the connecting portion 14 and spread them apart. Spreading the cards 60 apart can be done by pulling the cards 60 substantially linearly away from the connecting portion 14, each card 60 by a different distance so as to expose part of the card 60 beneath, or by fanning the cards 60 so that the short edges 64p that are proximal to the base portion 18 pivot against the distal edge 66 of the base portion 18, as shown in FIG. 9, with a different pivot amount for each card 60 so as to expose part of the card 60 beneath. In each case, at least a portion of each card 60 remains between the front portion 16 and the back portion 12. The user applies the necessary force to stretch the resilient band 50, which continues to surround the now partially overlapping cards 60. For example, a user could with one hand place his or her thumb on the front portion 16 and one or more fingers on the back portion 12, and use the thumb, and possibly the fingers, of the other hand to spread the cards 60.

Once the cards 60 have been spread, a user can select and remove one or more of the cards 60, for example to make a purchase, and then release the remaining cards 60, whereupon the resilient band 50 will return to its original length, moving the cards 60 back toward the connecting portion 14 until the long edges 62d, 62p of the cards 60 are substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the connecting portion 14, with the long edges 62p that are proximal to the connecting portion 14 being in engagement therewith. Some of the cards 60 may be longitudinally displaced, that is, spaced from the inner surface 18A of the base portion 18, and the user can push the cards 60 back toward the inner surface 18A of the base portion 18 by applying pressure to the short edges 64d that are distal from the base portion 18.

Alternatively, a user could spread the cards 60 by sliding them generally parallel to the longitudinal direction of the connecting portion 14, away from the base portion 18, each card 60 by a different distance so as to expose part of the card 60 beneath, and then return the cards 60 to their original position by applying pressure to the short edges 64d that are distal from the base portion 18. With this alternate form of spreading, at least a portion of each financial and identification card 60 remains between the front portion 16 and the back portion 12 and the resilient band 50 continues to surround the partially overlapping cards 60.

FIGS. 27 and 28 are dimension drawings for the first embodiment 10 of a financial and identification card holder, with reference letters used to denote various dimensions. The chart below sets out the corresponding approximate numerical dimensions of the first embodiment 10 of a financial and identification card holder, in inches.

Reference Dimension (inches)
A         2.540
B         0.5100
C         0.4500
D         0.8030
E         2.1530
F         0.0750
G         0.3870
H         2.7370
I         1.4452
J         0.4690
K         0.1000
L         0.0600

Referring now to FIGS. 10 to 17, a second exemplary embodiment of a financial and identification card holder is shown generally at 210. The second embodiment 210 is similar to the first embodiment 10, and accordingly corresponding reference numerals are used to denote corresponding features, except beginning with the prefix “2”. Thus, in the second embodiment the back portion is denoted by the reference numeral 212, the connecting portion is denoted by the reference numeral 214, and so on.

In the second embodiment 210, the front portion 216 and the base portion 218 do not extend as far from the connecting portion 214 as the front portion 16 and the base portion 18 extend from the connecting portion 14 in the first embodiment 10. The base portion 218 is shorter on the side adjacent the front portion 216 than on the side adjacent the back portion 212, and the distal edge 266 of the base portion 218 runs diagonally from the front portion 216 to the back portion 212. In addition, in the second embodiment 210 the first portions 244 of the arms 242 are opposed semi-circular members.

With reference now to FIGS. 18 to 25, reference numeral 310 denotes generally a third exemplary embodiment of a financial and identification card holder. The third embodiment 310 is similar to the first embodiment 10, and as such corresponding reference numerals are used to denote corresponding features, except beginning with the prefix “3”. Accordingly, the back portion of the third embodiment is denoted by the reference numeral 312, the connecting portion of the third embodiment is denoted by the reference numeral 314, and so forth.

As with the second embodiment 210, in the third embodiment 310 the front portion 316 does not extend as far from the connecting portion 314 as the front portion 16 in the first embodiment 10, and the base portion 318 is shorter adjacent the front portion 316 than adjacent the back portion 312, running diagonally at its distal end from the front portion 316 to the back portion 312. Moreover, in the third embodiment 310, the base portion 318, in particular the part of the base portion 318 adjacent the front portion 316, extends substantially further from the connecting portion 314 than does the lower edge 326 of the front portion 316. The lower edge 322 of the back portion 312 does not include any recess.

In addition, in the third embodiment 310 the band mounting comprises an annular rivet 340 which permanently secures the resilient band 350 to the back portion 312.

As with the first embodiment 10, ISO/IEC 7810 ID-1 compliant cards 60 can be inserted into and retained within the second and third embodiments 210, 310 of a financial and identification card holder, and can be spread once inserted. This is shown in FIGS. 10A and 10B for the second embodiment 210 and in FIGS. 19A and 19B for the third embodiment 310.

The exemplary financial and identification card holders illustrated herein are intended for right-handed users; financial and identification card holders intended for left-handed users may be constructed, for example, according to a mirror image of the exemplary financial and identification card holders illustrated herein.

One or more currently preferred embodiments have been described by way of example. It will be apparent to persons skilled in the art that a number of variations and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the claims.

Claims

1. A financial and identification card holder, comprising:

a generally planar back portion;

a generally planar front portion;

a connecting portion connecting the back portion and the front portion;

the back portion and the front portion being substantially parallel to and spaced from one another;

a base portion extending between the back portion and the front portion;

inner surfaces of the back portion, connecting portion, front portion and base portion defining a partial enclosure that is open opposite the connecting portion and the base portion; and

a band mounting secured to at least one of the back portion, the front portion and the connecting portion.

2. The financial and identification card holder of claim 1, wherein the back portion, connecting portion and front portion comprise a single piece of material.

3. The financial and identification card holder of claim 2, wherein the connecting portion is a curved reverse bend.

4. The financial and identification card holder of claim 3, wherein the base portion extends less than 2.125 inches from an inner vertex of the curved reverse bend.

5. The financial and identification card holder of claim 3, wherein a distance from an inner vertex of the curved reverse bend to a distal edge of the back portion is less than 2.125 inches.

6. The financial and identification card holder of claim 4, wherein the base portion extends approximately 1.378 inches from the inner vertex of the curved reverse bend.

7. The financial and identification card holder of claim 4, wherein the back portion extends further from the inner vertex of the curved reverse bend than the front portion.

8. The financial and identification card holder of claim 1, wherein the base portion extends less than 2.125 inches from the inner surface of the connecting portion.

9. The financial and identification card holder of claim 1, wherein a distance from the inner surface of the base portion to an upper edge of the back portion is less than 3.370 inches.

10. The financial and identification card holder of claim 1, further comprising a resilient band mounted to the financial and identification card holder by the band mounting.

11. The financial and identification card holder of claim 10 wherein the resilient band surrounds the back portion, the connecting portion and the front portion.

12. The financial and identification card holder of claim 1, wherein the band mounting is on the back portion.

13. The financial and identification card holder of claim 1, further comprising a resilient band.

14. The financial and identification card holder of claim 1, wherein the front portion exposes a larger portion of the inner surface of the back portion toward an upper edge thereof than toward a lower edge thereof.

15. The financial and identification card holder of claim 1, wherein the back portion extends further from the connecting portion than the front portion.

16. A method for managing financial and identification cards, comprising:

providing a financial and identification card holder, the financial and identification card holder comprising: a generally planar back portion; a generally planar front portion; a connecting portion connecting the back portion and the front portion; the back portion and the front portion being substantially parallel to and spaced from one another; a base portion extending between the back portion and the front portion; inner surfaces of the back portion, connecting portion, front portion and base portion defining a partial enclosure that is open opposite the connecting portion and the base portion; a band mounting secured to at least one of the back portion, the front portion and the connecting portion; and a resilient band positioned to surround the back portion, connecting portion and front portion 16 in stretched engagement with respective outer surfaces thereof;

placing a plurality of ISO/IEC 7810 ID-1 compliant cards in the financial and identification card holder by placing the cards between the back portion and the front portion so that the cards are surrounded by the resilient band; and

spreading the cards so that the cards partially overlap, each card exposing the card beneath, while the cards remain surrounded by the resilient band with at least a portion of each card remaining between the back portion and the front portion.

17. The method of claim 15 further comprising:

removing a selected card from the financial and identification card holder.