Buckles – buttons – clasps – etc. – Paper fastener – Resiliently biased
Reexamination Certificate
2000-05-19
2001-12-11
Sandy, Robert J. (Department: 3626)
Buckles, buttons, clasps, etc.
Paper fastener
Resiliently biased
C024S067900, C024S067500, C024S067300
Reexamination Certificate
active
06327749
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to clips for holding a bundle of paper currency.
2. Description of Prior Art
Products for carrying personal money include wallets, purses, bags, and clips. These are often designed to hold paper currency in an organized folded condition, with quick access. It addition, they may hold credit cards, business cards, and sometimes coins. Some people prefer money clips for holding a small amount of paper money in a clothes pocket, since other money holders, including wallets, bulge the pocket. A money clip should clamp the bills tightly enough to hold them securely, yet open easily for insertion and removal of the bills.
Prior money clips are designed using plain spring clamps, torsion springs, or other springs and clamps. These include simple spring clips as exemplified in U.S. design Pat. No. 283,844 (Sand et al., 1986). However, such simple clips must be pried open with the fingers using both hands, and held open awkwardly for insertion of bills, requiring dexterity. They are not highly secure, since the clamping force must be light in order to make opening practical.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,249,437 (Cole Jr., 1993) has a special locking arm
26
and a pressure arm
36
that provides a stable closed pressure against a bundle of bills. This should provide improved holding power and convenience of operation over simple spring clips. However, it has a pressure foot
36
that slides across the bills as it clamps them, which may cause damage to the bills or to a credit card clamped within the bills. Also, this device is completely custom made, requiring special tooling for manufacture.
Other prior money clips have disadvantages similar to one or both of the above two examples. Most of them require the fingers of two hands to open the jaws; many of them cannot provide strong clamping force because they would be too hard to open; most of them do not have a soft, attractive cover with a large front and back surface for logos or other decoration, and most of them require custom clamping hardware. All of these disadvantages are solved in the present invention
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The objectives of the present invention are provision of an attractive, convenient, compact, soft, and secure money clip that safely holds paper money, business cards, and a credit card, is easy to open yet clamps tightly, and is inexpensive to manufacture.
These objectives are achieved by providing an attractive cover on a conventional paper binder clip of the type having a spring steel clamp and two pivoting arms made of wire loops that fold back against the clamp for opening the clamp. This type of binder clip is ideal for a money clip, providing both strong clamping force and easy opening. It holds paper money, business cards, and a credit card safely and securely. The cover presents a professional appearance for the clip, and a two external surfaces for logos. By using a conventional binder clip as the basis for the money clip, manufacturing cost is low, since only the cover is custom made.
REFERENCES:
patent: D. 283844 (1986-05-01), Saad et al.
patent: D. 372498 (1996-08-01), Sato
patent: 1150073 (1915-08-01), Spengler
patent: 4332060 (1982-06-01), Sato
patent: 4402530 (1983-09-01), Daguerre
patent: 4532680 (1985-08-01), Hashimoto
patent: 4675953 (1987-06-01), Higgs
patent: 4761862 (1988-08-01), Hiromori
patent: 4802263 (1989-02-01), Lorber
patent: 5103884 (1992-04-01), Roman
patent: 5249336 (1993-10-01), Miller
patent: 5249437 (1993-10-01), Cole, Jr.
patent: 5653276 (1997-08-01), Niernberger
patent: 5870802 (1999-02-01), Goldman
A page from an on-line catalog titled “United States Ski Team” at http:store.yahoo.com/ . . . Feb. 23, 2000.
A page from an on-line catalog titled “Deep Sea Leather and Gifts” at htt;:store.yahoo.com/ . . . May 15, 2000.
Sandy Robert J.
Stewart John V.
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