AU8030587A

AU8030587A - Indicia reel system

Info

Publication number: AU8030587A
Application number: AU80305/87A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Hae-Ryong Jung
Original assignee: Jung H
Current assignee: Jung H
Priority date: 1986-09-04
Filing date: 1987-08-27
Publication date: 1988-03-24
Also published as: WO1988001574A1

Description

INDICIA REEL SYSTEM

Technical Field

This invention relates to an indicia reel system which comprises a spool with a connecting mechanism at each end, a flexible indicia tape and a longitudinally splitted tubing shielding over the tape. A combination of these parts forms an independent indicia unit with connecting mechanism which can be held by hand and the indicia tape can be wound or unwound on the spool so that the tape can be pulled out of the store chamber for consulting information thereon.

As this unit has a connecting mechanism at each end of the spool, it can be connected to a writing instrument as an indicia unit without interrupting any fundamental functions of the writing instrument and yet providing a better appearance by combining different colors for the spool and designs shown on the tape.

Furthermore, this indicia reel system can be made in such a way that it can be used as a bottle or small container. This can be achieved by providing substantial space inside of the spool and closures for both end. However, there are no specific limitations in the combination of articles. Backqround of Art

There had been many similar attempts of winding an indicia tape somewhere in writing instruments by adding winding mechanism in association with inside or outside of cap or barrel of writing instruments as in; U.S. Patents #4,030,842; #3,963,358;

#2,931,952; #2,301,354; #2,224,470; #2,171,188; #1,769,321; #1,759,596; #1,545,399; #1,262,972; #700,803; #640,543; #555,752 and #489,959 and French Patents #1,406,712 and #66,881 and European Patent #57,554 etc. However, none of these prior art has an independent indicia unit that can be operated by itself without being attached to the writing instrument and designed to be connected to any kind of articles by means of threaded or bushing mechanism. Moreover, many of the prior art provide a closed contour slot to pull the tape out of the barrel part or cap part of writing instrument, whereas disclosed invention has a longitudinally splitted tight fit tubing that generates some friction in between the spool and splitted tubing. The tight fit tubing results from designing the splitted tubing to have a smaller inside diameter compared to the diameter of the inner shoulder where the splitted tubing is to be mounted. This also is not found in any of foregoing prior arts. Disclosure of Invention

In accordance with the present invention, I provide a spool having connecting mechanisms at both ends, and a pair of shoulders to rest a splitted tubing which is either transpare or opaque, where the opaque tubing has a number of designed perforations on the wall to see through some parts of the indicia wherein a flexible indicia tape is stored.

When the spool is rotated by turning the connecting mechanism while the other hand is holding the outer surface of the splitted tubing, the free end of the tape will pop out of the opening because of elasticity of the tape material. The user can then easily grasp the end of the tape to pull it out of the storing chamber.

Since the inside diameter of the splitted tubing is smaller than the diameter of the shoulder before fitting, pressure is generated between the splitted tubing and the sylindrical surface of the inner shoulder when the splitted tubing is mounted on the shoulder. This pressure prevents any free movement of the splitted tubing over the shoulder due to the friction.

The connecting mechanism at the end of the spool can be a male or female threaded or bushing mechanism.

As this indicia reel system is an independent system with connecting mechnism at both ends, the application is not limited only to the writing instruments. It can be an indicia unit part of any kind of small article frequently carried and used by users. Brief Description of Drawings

The detail of my invention will be described in connection with the accompanying drawings in which;

Fig. 1 is a plane view of the indicia reel system connected to a writing instrument - a retractable ball point pen.

Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the writing instrument before loading the indicia tape and longitudinally splitted tubing.

Fig. 3 is an exploded perspective view of an embodiment of the indicia reel system showing the loaded indicia on the spool and the longitudinally splitted tubing before being fit onto the inner shoulder of the spool.

Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the indicia reel mechanism showing a tape unwound from an axial tubing of the spool.

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the indicia reel mechanism showing the popping up mechanism resulting from the elasticity of the indicia tape when the end of the tape arrives at the opening. Fig. 6 is a plane view of the indicia reel system connected to an end closure cap and a threaded cap member at each end of the spool to form a small container.

Fig. 7 is an exploded perspective view of the indicia reel system forming a small container. Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

Referring to the drawing, an indicia reel system 10 constructed in accordance with my invention comprises an axial tubing 46 with two pairs of shoulders which are inner shoulders 63 and 65, and outer shoulers 62 and 64 fixedly mounted on the cylindrical surface of said axial tubing, a longitudinally splitted transparent tubing 38 which is mounted on the cylindrical surface of said inner shoulders, and an indicia tape 18 which is wound on the axial tubing. Both ends of the axial tubing is extended by connecting members 42 and 44 which may be a male or female threaded or bushing mechanism dependding on the convenience of connection of the other parts.

Fig. 2 shows the axial tubing 46 extended by the male thread 66 and 68 which fit into the female threads provided on the inside wall 30 of the cap member 12 and barrel member 14 respectively. This combination provides open passage 32 in the barrel for the writing element 16 to be positioned in the longitudinal direction 28 in association with a spring 36 to perform retractable cap action by pushing plunger 34. The writing element 16 can be an ink cartridge or a refill. One end of the indicia tape 18 which has a certain degree of elasticity is fixedly attached to the outer surface of said axial tubing so that the flexible indicia tape can be wound over said axial tubing. The transparent splitted tubing 38 is splitted in the axial direction 28 in Fig. 3 or 76 in Fig. 7. The inside diameter of said splitted tubing is smaller than the outside diameter of the inner shoulder 63 and 65 when it is not mounted. The splitted tubing is substantially transparent and rigid, and has a certain amount of flexibility which allows the tubing to pass over the outer shoulder 62 and 64 in the axial direction 28 to rest on the cylindrical surface of said inner shoulders as shown in the Fig. 1 and Fig. 6.

Because of the difference in the diameters, a certain amount of physical pressure is generated on the cylindrical surface of said inner shoulder and it prevents free moving of said splitted tubing over the surface of said inner shoulders by friction generated thereon. Furthermore, this friction gives a stabilized motion in the winding and unwinding of the tape.

The splitted tubing 38 does not necessarily have to be transparent eventhough transparent material would make an excellent see-through tubing. To provide a less expensive volume production or to create a better appearance of the indicia reel system, it may be necessary to adopt a metallic or opaque plastic splitted tubing with some perforations on the wall. When the indicia reel system is rotated in the direction of the arrows as shown in Fig. 4 by turning either one of the barrel member 14 or cap member 12 with clip 24 in the Fig. 1, or end closure cap 72 or cap member 74 in Fig. 6, while the splitted tubing 38 is held by the other hand, the end of the tape 19 will arrive at the open contoure line 22' Then the end of the tape 19 is released by the contour edge line 22' and the end of the indicia tape 19 is popped up as shown in the Fig. 5 due to the elasticity of the indicia tape material. This enables the user to grasp the end of the tape to pull the tape out of the splitted opening area.

When the end of the tape is pulled out while the outer surface of the splitted tubing 38 is held by the other hand, the whole indicia reel system including extended parts connected to the connecting mechanism will be rotated in the direction of arrow indicated in the Fig. 5 until the fixed end stops the rotation. In the meantime, the user can read the indicia on both surface of said tape, or write memos on the tape by using the connected writing instrument or another writing instrument.

To provide a better writability on the indicia tape 18, a matte finished tape could be used to bear enough amount of friction to roll the ball point or to grind the core of the pencil. Further, said tape material should have a certain degree of flexual modulus to bear reasonable amount of elasticity so that the end of the tape 19 can pop up when the end of tape arrives at the opening as discussed earlier. For example, polyester film has a reasonable physical property in this respect in general.

If the indicia reel system is rotated in the direction of arrow shown in the Fig. 6 while holding the cylindrical surface of the split tubing 38, the indicia tape 18 will be wound over the axial tubing 46 until the end of the tape 19 retracts into the splitted opening.

In this operation, the tape is kept within open oblong shape contoured slot area which guides the position of the tape preventing any possible jamming of the indicia tape 18 between the cylindrical surface of the inner shoulders and inside wall of said splitted tubing 40.

Because the free end of the tape 19 has a width narrower than the longitudinal length of the open oblong slot as shown in the Fig. 1, the indicia tape 18 is stopped by the contour line 22 when the end of the indicia tape 19 is released by the contour line 22' because of the elasticity of the tape material.

This is how the user can grasp the end of the tape 19 to pull the indicia tape 18 out of the chamber. And also, this is why the indicia tape 18 must start winding and unwinding within the limited area which is the open oblong shape guide, and it will prevent any possible tape jamming when it is wound back to the storage chamber as discussed above. In the application of the invention, there is no limitation in connecting the indicia reel system to other articles as long as suitable connecting mechanism is provided. A small container with indicia reel system as shown in the Fig. 6 and Fig. 7 is an example.

An axial tubing 46 having the same structure as the previous application but with larger inside diameter is provided to utilize inside space. This hollow interior has closed bottom blocked by the end closure cap 72 connected to the bushing mechanism 42. The other end of said tubing has a threaded connecting mechanism to fit with cap member 74 to form a containe. As in the previous application, longitudinally splitted tubing 38 is mounted on the inner shoulder 63 and 65 in the same axial direction 76 while a flexible indicia tape 18 is fixedly attached to the cylindrical surface of said axial tubing 46.

Purpose of this application is to add one more function to the conventional bottle or small container with the function being an indicia reel. This combination of two different functions in one article gives a convenience to users.

Another example of an application would be an indicia reel system attached to the surface of a gas reservoir of a lighter. Although this invention has been described in connection with specific forms and embodiments thereof, it will be appreciated that various modifications other than those discussed above may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention.

For example, equivalent elements may be substituted for those specifically shown and described, and certain features may be used independently apart from the other features. In certain cases, a particular location of an element may be reversed or interposed, all without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

1. An indicia reel system comprising:

(a) a longitudinally splitted tubing having a longitudin open oblong contour slot; (b) a pair of inner and outer shoulders fixedly mounted on the outer surface of axial tubing;

(c) an axial tubing being rotatably displaceable with respect to said splitted tubing and fixedly secured to said pair of inner and outer shoulders for reversibly winding and fixedly attaching indicia tape thereon; and,

(d) an indicia tape fixedly attached at one end to the outer surface of said axial tubing.

2. The indicia reel system as recited in Claim 1 further comprising a longitudinally extended cap and barrel members defining internal chambers within which a longitudinally extended ink cartridge or refill is positionally located to form a writing instrument.

3. The indicia reel system as recited in Claim 1 further comprising a longitudinally and threadedly extended cap member and a fixedly extended end closure cap defining internal chamber as a storage space as a container.

4. The indicia reel system as recited in Claim 1 where said longitudinally splitted tubing has a smaller inside diameter compared to the outside diameter of inner shoulders whereon the splitted tubing is slidingly displaceable.

5. The indicia reel system as recited in Claim 4 where said longitudinally splitted tubing is a plastic composition material.

6. The indicia reel system as recited in Claim 5 where said plastic composition material is substantially transparent.

7. The indicia reel system as recited in Claim 1 where said indicia tape is made from opaque plastic film.

8. The indicia reel system as recited in Claim 7 where said plastic film is polyester film.

9. The indicia reel system as recited in Claim 7 where said plastic film has matte finished surface to improve pen writing.

10. The indicia reel system as recited in Claim 1 where said axial tubing is longitudinally extended by connecting mechanism at both end.

11. The indicia reel system as recited in Claim 4 where said longitudinally splitted tubing is made from a metallic composition material.

12. The indicia reel system as recited in Claim 11 where said metallic splitted tubing has graphically designed perforated slots to have improved appearance or to expose a part of indicia thereon.