STORAGE CONTAINER FOR CARDS

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 to German Patent Application No.: 10 2024 107 331.4, filed Mar. 14, 2024, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

FIELD

The invention relates to a storage container for cards, such as credit cards, identity cards or the like, having a first, outer container part and a second, inner container part.

BACKGROUND

The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and several definitions for terms used in the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.

The expression “have a cuboidal basic shape” means that the first and the second container part are each in the form of a hexahedron having in each case a rectangular top face and a rectangular bottom face (main faces), with two rectangular long side faces and with two rectangular short side faces. Of the faces that are present, one or more may also be entirely or partially (in certain regions) missing, without this having a negative effect on the cuboidal basic shape. Rounded portions of faces are according to the invention also not considered to have a negative effect with regard to the cuboidal basic shape.

Such a storage container for cards is known from the German utility model DE 94 058 87 U1. That document describes a two-part container in particular for cards, IDs or the like in credit-card format, having a first cuboidal container part which has two main faces that are connected together at three sides by side faces, and which is open on the fourth side, and a second container part, assembled together with the first container part, which has two main faces that match the main faces of the first container and are connected together at two mutually adjacent sides by side faces, and which is open on the remaining two sides, wherein the one container part is formed with mutually aligned protrusions on its two main faces and the other container part is formed with mutually aligned recesses in its two main faces, into which the protrusions are engaged and thus locked in the assembled state of the two container parts in order to form a pivot axis about which the two container parts are pivotable with respect to one another between a closure position and an open position of the container.

Accordingly, the container has a first container part and a second container part which are each made of plastic. The two housing parts are connected in a corner region by means of a catch spring connection that forms a pivot axis from the mutually aligned recesses and the protrusions engaging therein, wherein the second part is pivotable via the first part. The first container part has, in one end side, an opening for the cards, i.e. these are insertable with their short edge first. Otherwise, the first container part is closed. The two main faces have a stepped peripheral contour. In addition, the main faces have, in the corner region, a resilient tongue with an outwardly directed protrusion. The second container part has an opening, which extends along an upper side face and an end side. The second container part is thus closed on its second end side in order to cover the opening in the first part. The main faces have a recess, in which the protrusions engage to form the pivot axis.

Other card storage containers of different types are known from the documents US 2021/0251354 A1, WO 2011/067981 A1 and EP 2 756 774 B1.

SUMMARY

An objective of the present disclosure is to address the problem of providing a secure card storage container of the type mentioned at the beginning with little technical effort and at low cost, which is also distinguished by ergonomically simple usability.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, this problem is solved firstly by a storage container having a first, outer container part and a second, inner container part, wherein the two housing parts have a cuboidal basic shape and are connected in a corner region to a bearing forming a pivot axis, such that the second container part is pivotable between an open position and a closed position with respect to the first container part. The second container part is lockable with respect to the first container part respectively in the open position and/or in the closed position. In order to connect the first, outer container part to the second, inner container part in the corner region, a contoured assembly pin passes through respectively corresponding, coaxially arranged contoured passage openings in the first container part and the second container part. The maximum pivoting of the second container part into the first container part and out of the latter is limited by a geometric contour of the assembly pin cooperating with the contours of the passage openings in the first container part and the second container part.

Further areas of applicability will become apparent from the description provided herein. It should be understood that the description and specific examples are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order that the disclosure may be well understood, there will now be described various forms thereof, given by way of example, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a front view of a preferred embodiment of a claimed storage container for cards in an open position;

FIG. 2 shows a sectional view along the plane II-II in FIG. 1, but in the closed position of the claimed storage container;

FIG. 3 shows a sectional view along the plane III-III in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 shows a perspective exploded illustration of the preferred embodiment of the claimed storage container;

FIG. 5 shows a perspective exploded illustration of a second, inner container part of the preferred embodiment of the claimed storage container, looking toward its base;

FIG. 6 shows a sectional view along the plane VI-VI in FIG. 1, but showing in an enlarged manner only the subregion of an assembly pin which passes through the respectively corresponding passage openings in the first container part and in the second container part; and

FIG. 7 shows a perspective exploded illustration of the assembly pin of the preferred embodiment of the claimed storage container and of a container part with its corresponding passage opening.

The drawings are provided herewith for purely illustrative purposes and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following description is merely exemplary in nature and is in no way intended to limit the present disclosure or its application or uses. It should be understood that throughout the description, corresponding reference numerals indicate like or corresponding parts and features.

The present disclosure generally provides a storage container having a first, outer container part and a second, inner container part, wherein the two housing parts have a cuboidal basic shape and are connected in a corner region to a bearing forming a pivot axis, such that the second container part is pivotable between an open position and a closed position with respect to the first container part. The second container part is lockable with respect to the first container part respectively in the open position and/or in the closed position. In order to connect the first, outer container part to the second, inner container part in the corner region, a contoured assembly pin passes through respectively corresponding, coaxially arranged contoured passage openings in the first container part and the second container part. The maximum pivoting of the second container part into the first container part and out of the latter is limited by a geometric contour of the assembly pin cooperating with the contours of the passage openings in top shell and bottom shell. The assembly pin may in particular be in the form of a double hollow rivet.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, the problem with conventional art is additionally or alternatively solved secondly by a storage container in which balls are arranged rotatably in the inner, second container part, said balls bearing against an inner side wall of the first, outer container part both in the open position and in the closed position. The balls in the second container part may be mounted in a spring-loaded manner in, in particular hollow-cylindrical, receiving parts which for their part are fastened in a wall of the second, inner container part. Advantageously, as a result, only rolling friction arises between the walls of the container parts, this facilitating use and minimizing wear.

The first, outer container part may have, on its inner side, at least one bearing slot for the engagement of the rotatably mounted balls, wherein, following the engagement of the rotatably mounted balls, pivoting of the inner, second container part from the closed position into the open position and back again relative to the first, outer container part is limited and fixed in a force-fitting manner.

As a result of the maximum pivoting of the second container part with respect to the first container part being limited, it is advantageously possible—both by way of the cooperation according to the invention of the geometric contour of the assembly pin with the contours of the passage openings in the top shell and bottom shell, and by way of the engagement according to the invention of the rotatably mounted balls in the bearing slot in the first housing part—to establish stable positioning of the housing parts with respect to one another, in which in particular the long sides of the respective rectangles of the top faces and bottom faces of the first container part and of the second container part are at an angle of 90° to one another, and in the closed position they are at an angle of 0° to one another. In this case, provision may be made in particular for the main faces of the second housing part to be connected by a side face extending along one long side of the rectangles and by two side faces extending along the short sides of the rectangles, such that the second housing part is closed on three sides and is in the form of a receiving pocket for the card(s). Faces that are present form in this case container walls with a thickness to be defined by a person skilled in the art, and so, in this case, according to the invention, the terms “face” and “wall” are used synonymously. The second container part thus has—in contrast to the prior art—an opening for the cards in one long side such that, in the open position, the cards are insertable with their long edges first in an ergonomically improved manner.

Furthermore, according to another aspect of the present disclosure, the problem with conventional art may be additionally or alternatively solved by a storage container wherein the second, inner container part has, on one of its inner sides, at least one, in particular cylindrical or prismatic, positioning aid for the card(s), said positioning aid projecting into the interior of the container part, acting in particular in a clamping manner on the card(s), and consisting preferably of an elastomer material, wherein the positioning aid—like the receiving parts for the balls—is retained in a receiving opening in the second container part, which is located in particular on or in a side wall of the second container part and is laterally open such that it allows the positioning aid to project into the interior of the second container part. The positioning aid may advantageously be covered by a cap made of a material with a low coefficient of friction, such as a silicone or PTFE strip. The positioning aid is thus advantageously designed with minimum technical effect such that the cards are easily insertable, wherein the positioning aid yields during insertion and does not afford significant resistance, but then, following insertion, presses the card, by spring action on the edge of the latter, against the opposite short side face of the second container part such that the card is clamped in place and-even when at least one of the main faces, preferably both main faces, of the inner, second container part have a relatively large recess to make it easier to access the card—is securely prevented from falling out.

Further advantageous embodiments of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following description of the figures. In the various figures of the drawing, identical parts are always provided with the same reference signs and so, as a rule, they are also only described once in the following text.

With regard to the following description, it is asserted that the present disclosure is not limited to the exemplary embodiment and, in this case, not to all or several features of described combinations of features, but rather each individual sub-feature of the exemplary embodiment is also meaningful to the subject matter of the invention separately from all the other sub-features described in conjunction with it.

As is apparent first of all from FIG. 1 to FIG. 4, a claimed storage container 1 for cards 2, such as credit cards, identity cards or the like, has a first, outer container part 3 and a second, inner container part 4, wherein the two housing parts 3, 4 have a cuboidal basic shape and are connected in a corner region via a bearing forming a pivot axis S-S (FIG. 3, FIG. 6) such that the second container part 4 is pivotable between an open position (FIGS. 1, 3) and a closed position (FIG. 2) with respect to the first container part 3, wherein the second container part 4 is lockable with respect to the first container part 3 respectively in the open position and/or in the closed position. In particular, over-pivoting of the second container part 4 through an angle greater than the angle (or preferably 90°) provided in the open position (FIGS. 1, 3) is reliably prevented as a result.

In this case, the invention provides that to connect the first, outer container part 3 to the second, inner container part 4 in the corner region of the pivot axis S-S, a contoured assembly pin 5 passes through respectively corresponding, coaxially arranged contoured passage openings 6 in the first container part 3 and the second container part 4, wherein maximum pivoting of the second container part 4 into the first container part 3 and out of the latter is limited by a geometric contour K5 of the assembly pin 5 cooperating with the corresponding contours K6 of the passage openings 6 in the first container part 3 and/or the second container part 4. The assembly pin 5 may be in the form of a double hollow rivet (individual parts 5a, 5b, in FIG. 4—illustrated separately—and in FIG. 6—illustrated in an assembled form) and preferably be manufactured from metal, in particular from a stainless steel. Its assembly is advantageously comparatively easier, and the connection is able to be loaded to a greater extent and is more robust than the resilient tongues used according to the abovementioned conventional art.

The first, outer container part 3 and/or the second, inner container part 4 may consist of metal or of a thermoplastic material, for example polyamide (PA) or polyoxymethylene (POM).

As already mentioned at the beginning, the cuboidal basic shape of the two housing parts 3, 4 means that the first container part 3 and the second container part 4 are each in the form of a hexahedron having in each case a rectangular top face S31, S41 and a rectangular bottom face S32, S42 (main faces), with two rectangular long side faces S33, S34, S43, S44 and with two rectangular short side faces S35, S36, S45, S46. The two housing parts 3, 4 thus each have, with regard to their basic shape, a rectangular top face S31, S41 and a rectangular bottom face S32, S42 as main faces, which are not entirely congruent but, as the drawing shows, match one another in terms of size and are each larger than the area A2 of the card(s) 2 to be received in the storage container 1.

Of the abovementioned faces S31 to S36 and S41 to S46, one or more may also be entirely or partially (in certain regions) missing without this having a negative effect on the cuboidal basic shape. Thus, the faces S34 to S36 are not present and not illustrated in the figures because the main faces S31, S32 of the first housing part 3 are connected only by a side face S33 extending alone one long side of the rectangles, and so the first housing part 3 is open on three sides and is C-shaped in cross section in order to receive the second housing part 4 in an unimpeded manner. The single present long side face S33 of the first housing part 3 is rounded in an ergonomically advantageous manner (see FIG. 2, FIG. 3).

In the case of the second housing part 4, the long side face S43 is missing because the main faces S41, S42 of the second housing part 4 are connected only by the side face S44 extending along one long side of the rectangles, and by the two side faces S45, S46 extending along the short sides of the rectangles S41, S42, such that the second housing part 4 is closed on three sides S44, S45, S46 and is this in the form of a receiving pocket for the card(s) 2.

Furthermore, the invention provides that balls 7a, 7b are arranged rotatably in the inner, second container part 4, said balls bearing against a side wall S31 of the first, outer container part 3 from the inside. These balls 7a, 7b in the second container part 4 are mounted in a spring-loaded manner in, in particular hollow-cylindrical, receiving parts 8a, 8b which for their part are fastened in receiving openings 9a, 9b in walls S44/S45, S46 of the second, inner container part 4. In this case, one receiving opening 9a is located approximately in the middle of a short side S46 of the second container part 4, and the other receiving opening 9b is located in a corner region of the side walls S44/S45, which is located opposite the corner region S44/S46 with the pivot axis S on the long side S44. In the illustration according to FIG. 5, which clarifies this, the inner, second container part 4 has been rotated through 180° compared with its illustration in FIG. 4.

The first, outer container part 3 has, on an inner side S31, at least one bearing slot 10—readily apparent in particular in FIG. 4—for the engagement of the rotatably mounted balls 7a, 7b, with the result that, following the engagement of the rotatably mounted balls 7a, 7b in the bearing slot 10, pivoting of the inner, second container part 4 from the closed position (FIG. 2) into the open position (FIGS. 1, 3) and back again relative to the first, outer container part 3 is limited and fixed in a force-fitting manner. The bearing slot 10 extends, in particular internally, parallel to a longitudinal wall S33, in the present case the only longitudinal wall that is present, in a peripheral region of the side wall (base S31) of the outer container part 3. In the closed position (FIG. 2), one ball 7a engages in the bearing slot 10 and in the open position (FIG. 3) the other ball 7b engages therein-in each case under the action of a spring (not illustrated) that is mounted inside the respective receiving part 8a, 8b.

The claimed card storage container 1 is also characterized in that the second, inner container part 4 has, on one of its inner sides (side wall S46), at least one, in particular cylindrical or prismatic, positioning aid 11 for the card(s) 2, said positioning aid projecting into the interior of the container part 4, acting in particular in a clamping manner on the card(s) 2, and consisting preferably of an elastomer material. In order not to impede the pivoting movement of the inner container part 4 in the outer container part 3, the positioning aid 11 may be covered with a cap 12 made of a material with a low coefficient of friction, such as a silicone or PTFE strip.

Like the receiving parts 8a, 8b for the balls 7a, 7b, the positioning aid 11 can be retained in a receiving opening 9c in the second container part 4, which is located on or in a side wall S46 of the second container part 4, wherein the receiving opening 9c for the positioning aid 11 is laterally open such that it allows the positioning aid 11 to project into the interior of the second container part 4. When the card(s) 2 is/are introduced into the second container part 4, the positioning aid 11 is elastically deformed slightly and then clamps the narrow side(s) of the card(s) 2 with the opposite side wall S45 of the second container part 4.

In a preferred expedient refinement, the present disclosure may provide that at least one of the main faces S41, S42, preferably both main faces S41, S42, of the inner, second container part 4 have a recess 13 that favors the introduction and removal of the card(s) 2 in one long side of the rectangle(s), wherein the recess 13, as shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, may start in each case in particular from the two peripheral regions located on the short side S45, S46 of the rectangle of the main face(s) S41, S42, and wherein preferably the recess 13 increases in size toward the middle of the main face(s) S41, S42. FIG. 1 shows, by contrast, as an alternative, a smaller rectangular recess 13 in the central region of the top face S41.

The invention is not limited to the exemplary embodiments that are illustrated and described, but also encompasses all equivalent embodiments within the meaning of the present disclosure. It is expressly noted that the exemplary embodiments are also not limited to all the features in combination, but rather each individual sub-feature may also have inventive meaning separately from all other sub-features. Furthermore, the invention has thus far also not yet been limited to any specific combination of features defined above, but may also be defined by any desired other combination of particular features of all individual features disclosed as a whole. This means that, in principle, virtually any individual feature can be omitted or replaced by at least one individual feature disclosed elsewhere in the application.

Furthermore, a person skilled in the art can, within the scope of the claims, realize additional expedient technical features that are known from the conventional art, without leaving the scope of the present disclosure.