Decorative Coin Bank

Abstract

A decorative coin bank for holding and displaying coins and paper currency. The coin bank has a decorative housing resembling any of various decorative figures, such as an animal, an automobile, sports equipment, among other ornamental objects. The exterior surface of the housing includes a plurality of recessed areas thereon in which coins can be positioned for display and storage. The recessed areas are shaped and sized so as to receive and secure a coin therein without the use of additional fasteners. Further, the housing has a hollow interior volume and includes a slot thereon for providing access to the interior volume. Thus, a user can insert coins and paper currency through the slot into the interior of the coin bank for storage.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/989,694 filed on May 7, 2014. The above identified patent application is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety to provide continuity of disclosure.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a coin bank. More specifically, the present invention provides a decorative coin bank comprising a housing adapted to store coins and paper currency. The housing is configured to resemble any of various decorative figurines or objects and comprises a plurality of recessed areas on the exterior surface thereof in which any of various coins can be positioned for storage and display. Further, the housing includes a slot providing access to a hollow interior volume in which coins and paper currency can be stored.

It is important to teach children to keep track of and save their money so that the children can learn to be responsible with their money. While many parents manage or take care of their children's money on their behalf, this prevents children from learning how to take care of and monitor their money. The child may not know how much money he or she has saved unless the parent tells the child, and as a result, the child may not have much interest in learning about saving money.

Some parents provide their children with piggy banks in which a child can deposit his or her coins and other money. However, once the child inserts the money into the piggy bank, the child has no way to keep track of how much money has been collected, and the child is unable to learn how much money he or she has collected without breaking or opening the piggy bank. Thus, a personal coin bank is desired that allows a user to more easily keep track of his or her money and that provides a decorative appearance.

Devices have been disclosed in the prior art that relate to coin holding and coin storing devices. These include devices that have been patented and published in patent application publications. U.S. Pat. No. 3,262,478 provides a purse having coin holders for providing easy access to coins. Further, U.S. Pat. No. 2,318,850, U.S. Design Pat. No. D450,346, and U.S. Pat. No. 2,998,126 provide coin holding sheets for storing and displaying coins. Additionally, some patents and publications provide coin banks resembling an animal or character, such as U.S. Published Patent Application Number 2006/0292956.

These prior art devices have several known drawbacks. The devices in the prior art fail to provide a coin bank that further includes means for displaying coins thereon. The devices in the prior art generally relate to storing coins within plastic or transparent sheets, and do not disclose a coin bank having recessed areas for receiving coins for storage and display thereof. Thus, such devices do not provide means for allowing a user to collect and store money, while also allowing the user to display his or her coins.

In light of the devices disclosed in the prior art, it is submitted that the present invention substantially diverges in design elements from the prior art and consequently it is clear that there is a need in the art for an improvement to existing coin bank devices. In this regard the instant invention substantially fulfills these needs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of coin banks now present in the prior art, the present invention provides a new decorative coin bank wherein the same can be utilized for providing convenience for the user when collecting and saving his or her money in a manner that allows the user to keep track of his or her savings.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved decorative coin bank device that has all of the advantages of the prior art and none of the disadvantages.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a decorative coin bank device comprising a housing having a decorative appearance, wherein the housing may resemble a figurine, an animal, or various other objects such as a sneaker, among others.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a decorative coin bank comprising a housing having a plurality of recessed areas on the exterior surface thereof, wherein the recessed areas are adapted to receive and hold coins therein.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a decorative coin bank comprising a hollow interior volume for storing coins and paper currency, wherein the interior volume is accessible via a slot on the housing.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a decorative coin bank that may be readily fabricated from materials that permit relative economy and are commensurate with durability.

Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF THE DRAWINGS

Although the characteristic features of this invention will be particularly pointed out in the claims, the invention itself and manner in which it may be made and used may be better understood after a review of the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein like numeral annotations are provided throughout.

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of an embodiment of the decorative coin bank of the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows a cross sectional view of an embodiment of the decorative coin bank of the present invention.

FIG. 3 shows a cross sectional view of the recessed areas on the decorative coin bank.

FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of another embodiment of the decorative coin bank of the present invention.

FIG. 5 shows a cross sectional view of another embodiment of the decorative coin bank of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Reference is made herein to the attached drawings. Like reference numerals are used throughout the drawings to depict like or similar elements of the decorative coin bank. For the purposes of presenting a brief and clear description of the present invention, the preferred embodiment will be discussed as used for storing and display coins and paper currency. The figures are intended for representative purposes only and should not be considered to be limiting in any respect.

Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 2, there are shown perspective and cross sectional views of an embodiment of the decorative coin bank, respectively. The decorative coin bank 11 comprises a housing 12 having a decorative appearance. In the illustrated embodiment, the housing 12 resembles a sneaker. However, in alternate embodiments, the housing 12 may be configured to resemble any of various ornamental figurines or objects, such as an animal, sports equipment, automobiles, and monuments, among others.

The housing 12 further comprises an exterior surface having a plurality of recessed areas 13, 14 thereon, wherein each of the recessed areas 13, 14 is adapted to receive and hold a coin therein. Each recessed area 13, 14 is circular in configuration and is sized substantially similarly to a particular coin, such as a penny, nickel, dime, or quarter, among others. In this way, each recessed area 13, 14 is adapted to receive and hold a single coin therein. The coin is held in the recessed area 13, 14 by a press fit or frictional fit, wherein the coin fits snugly within the recessed area 13, 14. Some recessed areas 13 may be sized to receive a first type of coin, such as a quarter, while other recessed areas 14 are sized so as to receive a second type of coin, such as a penny. Thus, the recessed areas 13, 14 may be provided in different sizes so as to fit various types of coins. In this way, the housing 12 can be used to store and display various coins.

The plurality of recessed areas 13, 14 are variously arranged on the exterior surface of the housing 12. The recessed areas 13, 14 may be arranged in one or more rows or columns, or may be arranged so as to create a pattern on the housing 12, such as a letter of the alphabet. Alternatively, the recessed areas 13, 14 may be provided such that when all of the recessed areas 13, 14 are filled with coins, a certain amount of money has been saved. Preferably, the coins stored in the recessed areas adds up to a round or whole number, such as one dollar or five dollars. For example, the housing 12 may include twenty recessed areas sized to receive quarters such that when the user fills all twenty recessed areas with quarters, the user has saved five dollars. In this way, a user can more easily keep track of how much money he or she has saved since the coins are displayed on the exterior of the housing 12 and the user can easily count the amount of money he or she has saved. Further, the user may be motivated to save his or her money in order to achieve the goal of filling all of the recessed areas on the housing. In this way, the coin bank 11 of the present invention helps motivate users to save their money by providing the user with a goal.

The housing 12 further comprises a hollow interior volume 16, wherein the interior volume 16 is accessed via a slot 15 disposed on the housing 12. In this way, the user can use the decorative coin bank 11 similarly to a traditional coin bank. Thus, the user can insert a plurality of coins and paper currency through the slot 15 into the interior volume 16 of the housing 12 for storage. The interior volume 16 is sized to receive a plurality of coins and paper currency. The housing 12 may be substantially hollow or only a portion of the housing 12 may be hollow for use in storing coins and other money therein.

Referring now to FIG. 3, there is shown a cross-sectional view of the recessed areas. The recessed areas 13 are sized and shaped so as to receive a specific type of coin 31, such as a penny. The recessed areas 13 are circular and are of sufficient depth so that a coin 31 can fit therein. Preferably, the recessed area 13 has a depth such that the surface of the coin 31 is flush with the exterior surface of the housing 12 when the coin 31 is inserted therein. The coin 31 is held securely within the recessed area 13 with frictional engagement therewith. The coin 31 can be inserted into the recessed area 13 for storage and display by pressing the coin 31 directly into the recessed area 13, and no fasteners are required.

Referring now to FIGS. 4 and 5, there is shown a perspective view and a cross sectional view of an alternate embodiment of the decorative coin bank. In the illustrated embodiment, the housing 22 resembles a horse. The exterior surface of the housing 22 comprises a plurality of recessed areas 23, 24 in which coins can be positioned for storage and display. The recessed areas 23, 24 may be variously positioned on the housing, such as along the areas of the housing 22 corresponding to the horse's legs, midsection, and head. The housing 22 comprises a hollow interior volume 26 that is accessible via a slot 25 disposed on the housing 22. Preferably, the slot 25 is disposed on the portion of the housing 22 corresponding to the midsection of the horse, wherein the hollow interior volume 26 is positioned within the midsection of the horse.

Thus, the present invention provides a decorative coin bank comprising a housing having a decorative appearance, wherein the housing can resemble an animal, sports equipment, an automobile, a monument, or any of various other ornamental objects or figures. The exterior surface of the housing comprises a plurality of recessed areas adapted to hold and display a coin therein. The recessed areas are circular and are shaped similarly to a specific coin. Further, the housing comprises a hollow interior volume and a slot that provides access thereto, such that coins and paper currency can be stored within the housing.

It is therefore submitted that the instant invention has been shown and described in what is considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments. It is recognized, however, that departures may be made within the scope of the invention and that obvious modifications will occur to a person skilled in the art. With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by the present invention.

Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention.

Claims

1) A decorative coin bank, comprising:

a housing resembling a decorative object and having a hollow interior volume, and an exterior surface;

a plurality of recessed areas disposed on said exterior surface and adapted to receive a coin therein;

a slot disposed on said housing that provides access to said hollow interior volume.

2) The decorative coin bank of claim 1, wherein said housing resembles an animal.

3) The decorative coin bank of claim 1, wherein said housing resembles a sneaker.

4) The decorative coin bank of claim 1, wherein said plurality of recessed areas are arranged in one or more columns or rows.

5) The decorative coin bank of claim 1, wherein said plurality of recessed areas are circular.

6) The decorative coin bank of claim 1, wherein said plurality of recessed areas are sized such that a coin is flush with said exterior surface of said housing when secured in one of said plurality of recessed areas.

7) The decorative coin bank of claim 1, wherein said plurality of recessed areas are adapted to frictionally secure a coin therein.

8) The decorative coin bank of claim 1, wherein said slot allows for passage of coins and or paper currency therethrough.

9) The decorative coin bank of claim 1, wherein one or more of said plurality of recessed areas are adapted to receive a first type of coin, and wherein one or more of said plurality of recessed areas are adapted to receive a second type of coin.

10) The decorative coin bank of claim 1, wherein said slot is positioned on an upper portion of said housing.

11) The decorative coin bank of claim 1, wherein said plurality of recessed areas are adapted to hold coins that add up to a whole number.