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Description  |
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FIELD OF INVENTION
This invention relates to a holder for disc-like objects, such as coins,
tokens and the like.
BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION
In the handling, distribution and banking of coins, coins are packaged
according to specific established numbers, depending on the denomination
of the coins. The most common means of packaging the coins is a paper
wrapper which is applied around a cylinder of the coins by hand or by
automatic machine, the ends of the wrapper being folded over to retain the
coins in place. Spiral-wound paper tubes also are used and provide a more
rigid carrier although the open ends of the tube require to be crimped or
beaded to retain the coins in place. Since the package provided in this
manner is opaque, external printing is required to identify the contents.
This prior art packaging procedure suffers from many disadvantages which
are currently tolerated for lack of viable and inexpensive alternative.
It is customary for the larger financial institutions to wrap coins
automatically with the traditional numbers of coins and distribute the
roll packages to retailers and other coin users. Retailers usually check
the count of the coins upon opening the roll to ensure the correct number
is present. Discrepancies of one or more coins short or over are often
found as a result of the ability of the paper wrapper readily to adjust to
incorrect numbers of coins and the only recourse is to double check the
numbers, a time consuming and tedious operation. Further, when the paper
tube type package is used, it is not uncommon for the tube to be disposed
of with a coin or coins still positioned in the tube, the lack of
detection of this coin arising from its light weight character.
Dexterity and skill are required to wrap coins manually in the paper
wrappers and many people find it impossible or extremely difficult to form
the wrapped cylinders of coins. This is especially true of older persons
and young people. When coins are not properly wrapped and the ends sealed,
coins can fall out, leading to considerable aggrevation, and time and
material wastage.
Hand counted coin packages often have improper numbers, especially where
higher number of coins are involved, leading to the necessity for a bank
receiving such rolls to double check the numbers before crediting the
customer.
Further, due to the opaque nature of the rolls and hence the lack of
ability to visually observe the contents without breaking open the roll,
there is a considerable opportunity to substitute worthless slugs, cheaper
coins or foreign coins in a roll of coins, which, if undetected, leads to
an appropriate loss for the bank or other recipient.
The rolls of coins, especially in the form of paper wrapped rolls, are not
resistant to rough handling and hence there is a tendency for such rolls
to split open or to become unrolled when bags containing them are dropped
or roughly handled, leading to the necessity of counting and wrapping the
coins anew.
The cylindrical nature of the coin rolls allows them to roll readily on
surfaces on which they are positioned, for example, a table, and such
rolling may result in the rolls falling onto the floor and breaking open,
with consequent problems of collection and reassembly.
When the roll packages are opened to remove the coins therefrom, it is
usual to split open the roll in the middle or some other location along
its length and then throw the wrapper away. Such wrappers thus are usually
used only once.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
The present invention provides a unique reusable coin holder which
overcomes all the prior art problems attendant the paper wrappers. The
reusable coin holder preferably is constructed of flexible polymeric
material, such as, polypropylene, and is capable of being manually or
machine loaded with coins, tokens or other disc-like objects.
The coin or other disc-like object holder of the present invention consists
of an elongate hollow cylindrical body having a generally circular cross
section of diameter substantially that of the disc-like objects to be
packaged therein and end openings dimensioned less than the dimension of
the disc-like objects to prevent passage of the same through the end
opening. The elongate body is formed of two semi-circularly
cross-sectioned portions hingedly joined together at one common edge and
releasably joined together at the other common edge. The releasable
joining of the two portions enables the body to be opened by release of
the join and access to the interior of the body to be attained by hinging
of the two portions relative to each other.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a closed holder containing coins in
accordance with one embodiment of the invention;
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the holder of figure in an open position
with coins removed;
FIG. 3 is an end view of the holder of FIG. 1 in a closed position;
FIG. 4 is an end view of the holder of FIG. 1 in an open position;
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a coin holder in accordance with a second
embodiment of the invention in a closed position; and
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the coin holder of FIG. 5 in an open
position.
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Referring first to the embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 4, a holder 10 for coins 12
or other disc-like objects has an enclosed hollow cylindrical body 14
comprised of two semi-circularly cross-sectioned halves 16 and 18 which
are hingedly joined to each other through a living hinge 20 formed at one
common edge thereof tending to spring open the halves 16 and 18.
The living hinge 20 is illustrated as extending continuously along a common
longitudinal edge of the two halves 16 and 18. This construction
represents a preferred embodiment of the invention and other constructions
may be provided.
For example, the hinge 20 may be provided by any desired hinging
arrangement, for example, at spaced longitudinal locations. Further, the
hinge may be formed laterally of one end wall of the coin holder rather
than the illustrated longitudinal relation so that the two halves open
about such an end wall. In the latter construction, the locking mechanism,
described below, are provided in the other end wall of the coin holder.
Elongate projections 21 are provided parallel to and on either side of the
hinge joint 20 to allow the holder 10 sit on a flat surface without
rolling.
Each of the body halves 16 and 18 has a plurality of parallel longitudinal
ribs 22 and a plurality of parallel arcuate ribs 24 located
perpendicularly to the longitudinal ribs 22 to define an open framework
through which the coins 12 may be seen.
The body halves 16 and 18 are releasably joined together at the common edge
opposite the hinge 20. The releasable join is achieved in the illustrated
embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 4, by the snap overlapping of the adjacent ends
of two upstanding elongate flanges 26 and 28 integrally formed one with
each of the body halves 16 and 18 and extending from opposite ends of the
holder 10 to an overlapping condition at their inboard ends.
It is possible to use any other desired releasable locking arrangement,
such as the one described below with respect to FIGS. 5 and 6. The
projecting flanges 26 and 28 also inhibit the holder 10 from rolling.
At the outboard end of each flange 26 and 28 there is formed an integral
projection 30, which extends in a circumferential direction away from the
one of the halves having the upstanding projection and into engagement
with a correspondingly shaped recess 32 formed in the other of the halves
when the holder is closed, as seen in FIG. 1. The interaction of the
projections 30 in the recesses 32 adds dimensional stability to the holder
10 in its closed position and also prevents the snap locking device from
accidentally disengaging due to lateral distortion of the two halves of
the holder.
The holder 10 is provided with end walls 32 of annular shape which define a
circular end opening 36 of diameter less than the diameter of the coins 12
to prevent passage of coins through the ends of the holder 10. The opening
36 is coaxial with the body of the holder 10. Each end wall 34 is formed
of two semi-circular portions each integrally formed with one of said
halves 16 and 18.
Access to the interior of the holder 10 for the insertion or removal of
coins may be had by release of the overlapping of the flanges 26 and 28.
The spring action of the hinge 20 assists in the opening operation.
Turning now to the embodiment of FIGS. 5 and 6, which represents the
current best mode of the invention, the coin holder 10 in this embodiment
is constructed in similar manner to the coin holder 10 illustrated in
FIGS. 1 to 4 and common elements will not be described.
In place of the elongate projections 21, in the embodiment of FIGS. 5 and 6
there are provided two wings 38 integrally formed one at each end of the
body half 18. Each wing 38 is provided with a lower edge 40 which act as
feet for the coin holder 10.
In place of the overlapping flanges in the embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 4 to
achieve the releasable join, there is utilized in the embodiment of FIGS.
5 and 6 a different releasable join structure which is more positive and
superior to that used in FIGS. 1 to 4.
A single elongate upstanding flange 42 is provided at the curvilinear
extremity of one body half 16 and an elongate slot 44 is formed at about
the midpoint along the length of the flange 42. The holder 10 is formed so
that the plane in which the flange 42 lies bisects the living hinge 20.
At the curvilinear extremity of the other body half 18 is formed a
resiliently flexible tongue member 46 which extends away from that
extremity generally tangentially with respect to the body half 14 and has
a lateral dimension slightly less than the length of the slot 44 to allow
passage therethrough. A pair of wedge-shaped projections 48 is formed at
the extremity of the tongue 46 remote from the body half 18.
As the tongue 46 is received in the slot 44, the tongue 46 is caused to
flex downwardly as the upper surface of the slot 44 rides up the
projections 48 until the projections 48 clear the slot 44 at which point
the tongue 46 snaps upward, so that the interference between the rear
faces of the projections 48 and the adjacent face of the flange 42
connects the two halves 16 and 18 together and retains the holder 10 in a
closed position. The tongue 46 is dimensioned so that the projections 48
clear the slot 44 just as the two halves 16 and 18 close, so that the
holder 10 snugly encloses coins positioned therein.
The holder 10 is opened by pressing down on the tongue 46 until the
projections 48 clear the top edge of the slot 44, and can be withdrawn
through the slot 44. The spring action of the living hinge 20 assists in
this opening of the holder 10.
Arcuate ribs 50 are positioned on opposite sides of the slot 44 to prevent
accidental depression of the tongue 46 when the holder 10 is closed and
thereby prevent accidental opening of the holder 10.
An opening 52 may be provided adjacent one end of the flange 42 to receive
a key ring attachment or the like, so that the holer 10 may be transported
and used in this manner.
While the structure of the embodiment of FIGS. 5 and 6 has been described
with reference to the flange 42 and associated slot 44 being
integrally-formed with the curvilinear extremity of the body half 16 and
the tongue 46 being integrally-formed with the curvilinear extremity of
the body half 18, the locations of the flange 42 and tongue 46 may be
reversed, if desired.
The holder 10 in the embodiments of FIGS. 1 to 6, may be constructed of any
suitable material, such as, a polymeric material. Where the latter
material is used, then the holder 10 may be readily formed by molding as a
single piece.
The coin holder 10 may be partially filled with coins and one or more coins
may be added to the holder from time to time, which is not possible with
conventional paper wrappers. This feature allows the coin holder to be
used as a savings bank for coins over a period of time, until the coin
holder has been completely filled up ready for bank deposit.
Suitable indicia may be provided, for example, on one of the longitudinal
ribs 22 to enable numbers of coins less than that filling the holder 10 to
be counted.
The coin holder 10, therefore, may replace loose saving of coins in a
receptacle, such as a piggy bank, and eliminates the necessity to sort and
count such coins prior to their bank deposit.
A number of such coin holders 10 may be provided for different denomination
coins in a storage device, so that saved coins are sorted and stored in a
single convenient device.
The holders 10 are constructed to receive only the exact number of coins of
the particular denomination. Even allowing for marginally different
thickness of coins due to wear, the holder 10 is incapable of packaging
more coins than intended and the absence of one or more coins is readily
detected visually by gaps and/or audibly by rattling of the coins in the
holder. The prior art problems associated with incorrect numbers being
packaged are thus overcome.
The holder 10 may be color-keyed for different denominations and/or
numbers, to assist in facilitating counting and sorting of large shipments
of stocks of coinage and to avoid confusion between coins of a similar
size.
The holder is rugged and capable of reuse many times before it becomes
unsuitable for continued use. This contrasts markedly with the one-time
use of paper wrappers.
The ready opening of the holder 10 into two convenient halves and the
simple closure operation allows easy filling of the holder 10 without the
manual dexterity required with the conventional paper wrappers. The open
nature of the body 12 allows ready detection of slugs, foreign coins or
improperly sized coins in the holder 10, and the consequent losses and
possibilities for fraudulent practices prevalent with the prior art are
avoided.
The exterior surface of the holder 10 may be provided with identifying
information, for example, the number and denomination of the coins, total
value of the coins and bank or other source identification. Suitable
locations for such information are the longitudinal ribs 22.
The present invention, therefore, provides a plastic coin holder of unique
design which is superior to conventional coin packaging operations.
Modifications are possible within the scope of the invention.
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