Apparatus for storing and dispensing paper

Abstract

An apparatus for storing and dispensing paper with A container to hold bills under slight lateral compression, Flanges on sides of container opening to retain bills and shape them upon exit, and An opening in the container through which the spines of the folded bills can be accessed for bulk load and unloading.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable

DESCRIPTION OF ATTACHED APPENDIX

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to the field of personal storage devices and more specifically to an apparatus for storing and dispensing paper.

Since the inception of paper money, there has been a need to carry and access a plurality of bills. The various means of bill transport can be described by the number of folds and the method of retention of the plurality.

Unfolded bills can be carried banded together by a strip of paper usually issued as a unit from an institution. These units are typically beyond the size one would consider carrying in a pocket and normally are retained in a box or bag instead of on the person of the transporter. Portfolio wallets of the size to transport unfolded bills are not common though some designs for these do exist and typically use a lengthwise sleeve method of retention.

Billfolds are the most common wallet design and typically fold their contents in halves using a sleeve method of retention. A smaller portion of billfolds fold their contents in thirds and also use the lengthwise sleeve method of retention.

Money clips typically fold bills in halves and use tension of an opposing member to grasp bills either on their faces, or at the hinge of the fold for the plurality.

Minimalist wallets seeking to conserve space often require bills to be folded in thirds or fourths to fit into the small form factor designated for bill storage. The method of retention is typically a sleeve or slot into which the folded bills are placed. Minimalist wallet designs have also employed the money clip functionality to hold folded bills.

The following designs employ various means of securing bills.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,938,010 Multipurpose holder device, Osterbye Aug. 17, 1999

This design uses the money clip design for bill storage

US Pat. No. D538,704, Combined card holding and money clip device, Kaminski Mar. 20, 2007

This design uses the money clip design for bill storage

U.S. Pat No. 5,718,329 Combination credit card holder and Money Clip, Ippolito et al. Feb. 18, 1998

This design uses the money clip design for bill storage

US Pat No. 20120261042 A1 Wallet Case, Khubani, Oct. 18, 2012 Aluma Wallet uses the sleeve method of retention

US Pat No. 20130056119 A1 Slim Wallet with Attached Elastic Band, Yannick, Mar. 7, 2013

This design uses an elastic band as the money clip folding bills in half

Current wallet designs are not optimized for rapid search and retrieval of bills, and usually require a series of manual operations prior to accessing the bills. For example for a given series of bills held in a wallet, the steps required to identify and remove specific bills call for the release of the retention method be it the opening of the sleeve, the removing the compressive forces applied by clips/bands, or complete removal from the storage area in the case of stacked bills folded together for storage. After the proper bills have been located, further releasing efforts such as prying open a sleeve or clip may be necessary to fully release the bills. These steps require time and attention to complete without loss of bills or wallet.

The proposed design takes a different approach to bill retention and removal. This design mimics the natural movement of holding and searching folded bills manually as if without a wallet in hand using the thumb or index finger to leaf through the bills until the desired bill is located, and simply plucking it from the stack as if nothing other than the hand were holding the bills. By using bulk motor skills instead of fine motor skills, the process of storing and retrieving bills has been greatly simplified.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The primary object of the invention is Provides for rapid selection of specific bills without removal from wallet unlike traditional designs.

Another object of the invention is Easy and fast load and unload of bills unlike traditional designs.

Another object of the invention is can be operated with one hand while still in pocket unlike traditional designs.

A further object of the invention is No moving parts to operate, wear out or damage.

Yet another object of the invention is relatively high capacity for its size compared to other designs.

Still yet another object of the invention is Small form factor.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following descriptions, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein, by way of illustration and example, an embodiment of the present invention is disclosed.

In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention, there is disclosed an apparatus for storing and dispensing paper comprising: A container to hold bills under slight lateral compression, Flanges on sides of container opening to retain bills and shape them upon exit, and An opening in the container through which the spines of the folded bills can be accessed for bulk load and unloading.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The drawings constitute apart of this specification and include exemplary embodiments to the invention, which may be embodied in various forms. It is to be understood that in some instances various aspects of the invention may be shown exaggerated or enlarged to facilitate an understanding of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the invention.

FIG. 2 is an elevational view of the invention.

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of the invention through section A-A.

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of the invention through section B-B from the reverse side.

FIG. 5 is a cross sectional view of the invention also through section B-B from the reverse side.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the invention with cargo depicted.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Detailed descriptions of the preferred embodiment are provided herein. It is to be understood, however, that the present invention may be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but rather as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately detailed system, structure or manner.

In accordance with an important feature of the present invention, there is shown in

FIG. 1 an apparatus for storing and dispensing paper comprising: a container (10) of sufficient size to hold bills under slight lateral compression. Flanges (11) on sides of container opening to retain bills and shape them upon exit; from container (10). An opening (12) in the container of sufficient size through which the spines of the folded bills can be accessed for bulk load and unloading.

FIG. 2 a container (20) shown with bills (21) loaded and without bills loaded in the diagram below. The opening (22) through which the bills may be accessed en masse is shown on both diagrams. Cross sections A-A and B-B are indicated for future reference.

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of section A-A indicating (30) the container, the (31) recessed wall to contain folded bills, and (32) the flange to contain the bills and to direct the path of their unfolding during retrieval.

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of section B-B container (40) viewed bottom up to reveal the details of the interior of the cargo container sculpted walls (41) and the underside of the flanges that retain bills (42).

FIG. 5 is a cross sectional view of section B-B container (50) viewed bottom up to show the shape detail of the flanges on the sides (51) as viewed from the interior

FIG. 6 is a perspective drawing of the container (60), with folded bills in the cargo area (61), with an affordance (62) for a digit to reach under all bills for mass loading and unloading.

Loading process: Container (10,20,30,40,50,60) held in one hand, bills (61) folded in half with bill edges facing away from the user in the same direction as their fingertips. Impart a slight convex shape to the folded stack such that the bill edges are lower than the axis of this slight bend. A gentle curve in the shape of upside down ‘U’ will suffice. Without releasing this curving, place the stack of bills inside the case such that all bill edges are beneath the level of the side flanges (32,42,51). Release the curving pressure on the bills and they will hold themselves in place in the area cut out of the container wall (31)

Selective unloading process: Holding container (60) in one hand, use the thumb of same hand or a digit from the opposing hand to deflect bills toward one of the flanges (32,42) moving laterally across the bill faces. This sweeping motion will cause the top half of the bill to snap free of the flange and present itself for search/selection while the bottom half of the bill remains held in the container. Repeat this process until the desired bill is located. Pulling the desired bills from the stack will not dislodge the undesired bills, which can be readily tucked back under the flange (32 42) for full retention.

Bulk unloading process: Holding container (60) in one hand, place a digit underneath the arch of the bills through the opening (62) and lift upward grasping all the bills. The bills will clear the flanges (32,42) en masse.

While the invention has been described in connection with a preferred embodiment, it is not intended to limit the scope of the invention to the particular form set forth, but on the contrary, it is intended to cover such alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. An apparatus for storing and dispensing paper comprising:

A container to hold bills under slight lateral compression;

Flanges on sides of container opening to retain bills and shape them upon exit; and

An opening in the container through which the spines of the folded bills can be accessed for bulk load and unloading.