EP1348577A2

EP1348577A2 - Improvements in or relating to a file

Info

Publication number: EP1348577A2
Application number: EP03002216A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Jeremy Gardner; Glen Smith; Jonathan Hodges; Mark Twitchett
Original assignee: Acco UK Ltd
Current assignee: Acco UK Ltd
Priority date: 2002-01-31
Filing date: 2003-01-31
Publication date: 2003-10-01
Also published as: GB2384749A; GB0202295D0; EP1348577A3

Abstract

The file for holding paper has a front cover and a rear cover. A mounting unit disconnected to the rear cover adjacent the spine, The mounting unit has two spaced-apart arms (8, 9) which define a gap (11) between them. One of the arms (9) is of tapering form being thin at one end and thick at the other. A slider (13) engages these arms and is slidable relative to the arms. As the slider slides so the arms move towards one another, thus reducing the width of the slot to effect a clamping action.

Description

THE PRESENT INVENTION relates to a file, and more particularly relates to a file of the type adapted releasably to retain papers.
Many types of file have been proposed before, including lever-arch files and other files which are used to retain appropriately punched sheets of paper.
The present invention seeks to provide a file which can retain sheets of paper which have not necessarily been punched.
According to this invention there is provided a file for holding paper, the file comprising a rear cover and a front cover inter-connected by a spine, there being a mounting unit connected to the cover at a position adjacent the spine, the mounting unit having two spaced-apart arms, the arms defining between them a slot to receive an edge part of paper to be retained within the file, at least one of the arms being of tapering form, being relatively thin at one end and relatively thick at the other end, there being a slider engaging the arms and slidable relative to the arms, the arrangement being such that the slider may move from an initial position in which the slot has a predetermined width to move the arms toward one another to reduce the width of the slot to effect a clamping action.
Preferably one said arm is of substantially uniform cross-section throughout its length, and the other arm is of tapering form.
Conveniently the slider defines a passage to receive the arms, the passage being defined between two opposing side faces which are inclined relative to one another.
Preferably the camping unit has an integrally formed moulding comprising two mounting plates which mount the unit to the spine of the file, the mounting plates supporting the two arms.
Advantageously the clamping unit is mounted in a cut-out formed in at least the front cover of the file.
In order that the invention may be more readily understood, and so that further features thereof may be appreciated, the invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a file in accordance with the invention,
FIGURE 2 is a view of part of the spine of the file of Figure 1, and
FIGURE 3 is a sectional view taken on the line III-III of Figure 1.
Referring initially to Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings, a file 1 in accordance with the invention is provided with a rear cover 2 connected, by means of a spine 3, to a front cover 4. The covers and spine may be formed of any appropriate material, and may, for example, be formed of a rigid plastics material sheet.
A rectangular cut-out 5 is provided which is centrally located, as regards the overall height of the file, the cut-out comprising cut-away regions of the rear cover 2, the spine 3, and the front cover 4. Received within the cut-out 5 is a paper clamping unit 6. The paper clamping unit 6 is shown most clearly in Figures 1 and 2. Because the clamping unit 6 is in a cut-out it is accessible even if the file is closed.
The paper clamping unit 6 comprises two spaced-apart mounting plates 7, 8, each of elongate form, the mounting plates being mounted, by means of rivets 9, 10 to parts of the spine 3 located on either side of the cut-out 5. Extending between the mounting plates are two parallel arms 8, 9, one arm, 8, being substantially aligned with the rear cover 2, and the other arm being substantially aligned with the front cover 4 of the file 1. A slot 11 is defined between the parallel arms 8, 9. The arm 8 is of uniform cross-section along its length. The arm 9, in contrast, is not of uniform cross-section along its length and has a tapering configuration so that the arm 9 is relatively thin at one end adjacent the first mounting plate 7, and is relatively thick at the other end thereof adjacent the second mounting plate 8.
The slot 11 defined between the two arms is of uniform width throughout its length.
A slider 13 is provided which is mounted on the arms 8, 9 for sliding movement along the arms.
Referring now to Figure 3, it can be seen that the slider 13 defines a through-passage 14 which accommodates the arms 8 and 9. The opposed side walls of the passage 14 are not parallel, with one side wall 15, of the passage being aligned with the outer face of the arm 8, and the other face, 16, defining the passage being inclined relative to the first face 15 so that the face 16 is co-aligned with the adjacent outer face of the second arm 9.
The connection between the arms 8 and 9 and the mounting plates 7 and 8 is such that the arms have a first natural position relative to each other, in which the slot 11 between the arms is at a maximum width, this condition being achieved when the slider 13 is in a position adjacent the first mounting plate 7, that is to say adjacent the position where the arm 9 has a minimum thickness.
With the slider in this condition, the front cover of the file 4 may be opened, and paper may be located in the file with a central edge region of the paper being received within the slot 11 defined between the arms 8 and 9. A single sheet of paper may be located in position in this way, or a stack of sheets of paper. The only limiting factor is how many sheets of paper may be introduced into the gap.
When the desired number of sheets of paper have been located in position, the slider 13 may be slid towards the other end of the mounting unit 6, that is to say towards the other mounting plate 8. The movement of the slider will, as a consequence of the increasing thickness of the arm 9, tend to move the upper arm 9 towards the lower arm 8, thus reducing the width of the slot 11 in the region where the slider is located. Thus a clamping action is effected. The slider is moved until the arms 9 and 10 have moved to a relative position in which the paper is firmly gripped.
If desired, the inner faces of the arms 9 and 10, that is to say the faces of the arms 9 and 10 that face each other, may be provided with some sort of roughening or ribbing to ensure that the arms firmly grip the paper.
The file may then be used in the manner of a book. When the front cover 4 is opened, the paper retained within the file is accessible, and the individual leaves of paper may be turned over, without any leaves of paper becoming separated from the file.
Of course, the paper may be removed from the file simply by sliding the slider back to the initial position adjacent the first mounting plate 7, since this movement of the slider will enable the arms 9 and 10 to reassume their initial position in which the arms do not grip the paper.
The mounting unit 6 may comprise an integral moulding of an appropriate plastics material which defines the mounting plates and arms, the moulding being provided with a separate slider which may be of plastics material or metal.
In the present Specification "comprises" means "includes or consists of and "comprising" means "including or consisting of".
The features disclosed in the foregoing description, or the following Claims, or the accompanying drawings, expressed in their specific forms or in terms of a means for performing the disclosed function, or a method or process for attaining the disclosed result, as appropriate, may, separately, or in any combination of such features, be utilised for realising the invention in diverse forms thereof.

Claims

A file for holding paper, the file comprising a rear cover and a front cover inter-connected by a spine, there being a mounting unit connected to the cover at a position adjacent the spine, the mounting unit having two spaced-apart arms, the arms defining between them a slot to receive an edge part of paper to be retained within the file, at least one of the arms being of tapering form, being relatively thin at one end and relatively thick at the other end, there being a slider engaging the arms and slidable relative to the arms, the arrangement being such that the slider may move from an initial position in which the slot has a predetermined width to move the arms toward one another to reduce the width of the slot to effect a clamping action.
A file according to Claim 1 wherein one said arm is of substantially uniform cross-section throughout its length, and the other arm is of tapering form.
A file according to Claim 1 or Claim 2 wherein the slider defines a passage to receive the arms, the passage being defined between two opposing side faces which are inclined relative to one another.
A file according to any one of the preceding Claims wherein the clamping unit has an integrally formed moulding comprising two mounting plates which mount the unit to the spine of the file, the mounting plates supporting the two arms.
A file according to any one of the preceding Claims wherein the clamping unit is mounted in a cut-out formed in at least the front cover of the file.