FR2845871A1 - Coin purse with aid to identification of Euro coins and to extraction of coins, uses magnetized inlay in base of coin purse with varied magnetization to cause coins with different magnetic properties to cluster together - Google Patents

Abstract

The coin purse makes use of a magnetized region (102) in the walls of the purse to spatially separate coins (120,121) having different magnetic properties, causing coins of similar value to cluster together inside the purse. A plate which has been magnetized in the same way can be fitted inside an existing coin purse to separate the coins.

Description

I The invention relates generally to the field of articles and

  accessories for the general public for personal use, and in particular the field of leather goods. More specifically, the invention relates to a wallet allowing easy identification and extraction of coins. The invention also relates to an article intended to be used in combination with a conventional purse in order to obtain a purse according to the invention. In the usual purses, the coins are collected in bulk in a single receptacle. To retrieve coins of determined values from this receptacle, the user works laboriously by shaking the wallet, or by moving the coins with his fingers, in order to make hidden coins visible and identify their values before using them 15 extract from the wallet. The recent introduction of the Euro has accentuated this problem, due to the ignorance by the general

audience of this new currency.

  Two models of so-called Euro wallets are known from

  inventor and were marketed to facilitate 20 transactions, particularly between individuals and traders.

  These Euro wallets use the same principle which consists of storing the coins according to their value in different respective compartments, so that the user no longer has any difficulty in locating a coin of determined value when he has to 25 extract this coin from the wallet. In a first model

  known, the user is called upon to sort the pieces and place them in the appropriate compartments. In the other known model, the user subjects the wallet to a repeated movement to bring the coins into respective housings 30 dimensionally adapted.

  The Euro wallets described above have a

  first drawback which is to require manual intervention by the user. Another drawback of these purses lies in their bulk which is the direct consequence of the numerous compartments used.

  The primary object of the present invention is to provide a purse which does not have the above-mentioned drawbacks.

of the prior art.

  A purse according to the invention for the storage of 5 coins of different values divided into a first category of coins having magnetic properties and a second category of coins without magnetic properties, including at least one container wherein said coins are deposited in bulk by a user 10 of said purse, is characterized in that it comprises a magnetized part for spatially separating said coins in said at least one container in said first and second categories of so as to facilitate identification and gripping of said coins by said user when the latter wishes to extract specific coins from said user

at least one container.

  The invention is based on the observation made by the inventor that certain coins are made of a metal or ferrous alloy having magnetic properties. It is thus possible to separate the pieces into two categories which

  correspond to categories of values.

  According to a preferred characteristic, said at least one container comprises first and second compartments provided for receiving respectively said coins of said first and second categories, and said magnetic part is arranged in said purse so as to retain in said first compartment said coins of said

first category.

  According to another characteristic, said magnetized part 30 comprises a magnet or a plurality of magnets of the rigid, semi-rigid or flexible type.

  Preferably, the user prints on the wallet according to the invention a movement of agitation so as to cause a displacement of said coins and to bring said coins of said first category near said magnetized part in order to favor thus a better spatial separation of said coins into said first and

second categories.

  The wallet according to the invention is applicable to the Euro currency in which the coins having magnetic properties are the coins of a penny, two

  cents and five cents from Euro.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide an article for use in combination with a conventional purse in order to transform it into a purse according to the invention. An article according to the invention intended to be used in combination with a standard wallet including at least one container in which coins of different values are divided into a first category of coins having magnetic properties and a second category of coins without magnetic properties are deposited in bulk by a user of said usual purse, is characterized in that it comprises a magnetized part for spatially separating

  said coins in said usual wallet in said first and second categories so as to facilitate identification and gripping of said coins by said user when the latter wishes to extract specific coins from said purse.

  According to a preferred characteristic, the article according to the invention

  comes in the form of a key ring.

  According to another preferred characteristic, the article according to

  the invention also fulfills an advertising support function.

  The article according to the invention is applicable to the Euro currency in which the coins having magnetic properties are the coins of a penny, two cents and

five euro cents.

  Other characteristics and advantages of the invention

  will appear on reading the following description of several preferred embodiments of the wallet and associated article

according to the invention.

  This description is made with reference to the drawings it

  comprises, in which: FIG. 1 is a perspective view from above of a first preferred embodiment of the purse according to the invention; Fig.2 is a side sectional view of the purse according to the first embodiment of Fig.1, in an open / closed position; and Fig. 3 is a side view in section showing the combination of an article according to the invention with a usual purse so as to obtain a second preferred embodiment

of the purse according to the invention.

  The purses and associated article of the invention were

  designed in the context of the new Euro currency and the description above considers the coins of this currency. It should nevertheless be clear to those skilled in the art that the wallet and the associated article according to the invention are applicable to other currencies, current or future, insofar as these include coins having properties magnetic allowing their discrimination. These magnetic properties are used to achieve a spatial separation of the coins in

  two categories of values. A first category includes the coins of a penny, two cents and five cents of Euro said here "small change" for convenience of language. A second category includes the coins of ten cents, twenty cents, 30 fifty cents, one Euro and two Euros called here "big money". With reference to Figs. 1 and 2, a first preferred embodiment 1 of the purse according to the invention is now described. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the wallet 1 according to the invention essentially consists of two coin compartments 10 and 11. The coin compartment 10 is magnetized and is designed to receive and hold the small coins 120. The

  coin compartment It has no special magnetic properties and is designed to receive coins 121. The compartments 10 and 11 jointly form a container in which the coins 120 and 121 are deposited in bulk by the user .

  As shown in Fig.2, the parts compartment includes a magnetized part or magnet 102 which, in this embodiment, is integrated into the bottom of the compartment. According to a variant, the magnet 102 is replaced by several magnets of smaller size. The magnet 102 is for example of the rigid, semi-rigid or flexible type and is chosen in particular so as to generate a magnetic field sufficient to retain the small coins against the bottom of the compartment 10. The person skilled in the art will preferably select magnet 102 among catalog models 20 widely marketed, in order to maintain a low cost of

  returns for the purse of the invention.

  As shown in Fig. 2, compartment 11 according to this

  first preferred embodiment comprises a pocket 111.

  A few banknotes can for example be inserted into the pocket 111. Another function of the pocket 111 in this embodiment is to identify the non-magnetized compartment 11 when the wallet 1 is closed. The advantage of this function

  will appear clearly in the following description.

  In order to obtain the spatial separation of coins 120 and 121, the user can proceed in different ways, described below, depending on whether the purse 1 is initially closed or is

already open.

  To have a correct spatial separation of the parts 120 and 121 as soon as the purse 1 is opened, the user will proceed to

  preferably as shown below.

  The wallet 1 being closed, with the compartments 1 0 and 11 folded against each other, the user prints with his hand a movement of agitation to the wallet 1, possibly turning it over 5, so to cause a displacement of the coins and to bring the small coins 120 near the magnet 102. Once the coins 120 close to the magnet 102, they undergo the magnetic attraction of this and are retained against the bottom of the compartment 10. The user then opens the wallet 1 in the manner shown in FIG. 2, having previously oriented the compartment 11 downward and by rotating the compartment 10 in the direction of the arrow 13. Given from the downward orientation of compartment 11, the coarse coins 121 remain in compartment 1 1, and the small coins 120, which are held against the bottom of the

  compartment 10 by the magnet 102, are thus separated from the coins 121 during the operation of opening the purse 1. By doing so, the coins 120 and 121 are separated as soon as the compartments 10 and 11 are opened, without the need for any additional operation.

  The manner of proceeding presented above is possible insofar as the user is able to differentiate the compartments 11 and 12 when the purse 1 is closed. In this preferred embodiment 1 of the purse according to the invention, the pocket 111 allows such differentiation. Many other differentiation solutions are obviously available, such as, for example, the incorporation of a printed logo or a relief pattern on an external part of one of the compartments. The relief pattern has the advantage of early tactile perception, from the moment the user grasps the wallet, for example, in a pocket where the perception

visual is impossible.

  Fig. 1 shows a generally horizontal maximum opening position of the purse 1. In this position, correct separation of the coins 120 and 121 has been obtained, for example, by means of the actions indicated above. For better separation, it is possible to move the parts 121 further from the parts 120, by tilting the compartment 11 downwards and thereby causing the parts 121 to slide towards an edge 110 of the compartment 11. A partial opening of the holder currency 1 will probably satisfy the user to the extent that the spatial separation of coins 120 and 121 is considered sufficient to identify the coins

  and allow them to be grasped.

  In the case where the user opens the wallet 1 without having taken care to proceed in accordance with the operations indicated above, the separation of the parts 120 and 121 may be incomplete, or even completely ineffective. This occurs for example when the wallet 1 has been opened with the compartment 11 facing upwards and the coins 120 and 121 are then entirely in the compartment 10. To obtain a separation of the coins 120 and 121, the user can then carry out a first action which consists in tilting the purse 1 so as to produce a downward slope from the compartment 10 towards the compartment 20 11, for example, from the generally horizontal position shown in FIG. 1. It is also possible for him to perform another action which consists in agitating the purse 1 in the position of FIG. 1, in a reciprocating movement from compartment 10 towards compartment 11 and in a plane 25 overall. horizontal. Both actions are possibly

  combined to achieve the desired result.

  In order to prevent coins 121 from escaping from the wallet 1 when it is closed, the wallet 1 should preferably be closed in the manner shown in FIG. 2, 30 with the compartment 11 generally oriented towards the bottom and folding compartment 10 over it, as indicated by the

arrow 14.

  Referring to Fig. 3, a second preferred embodiment 2 of the purse according to the invention is now described. This second embodiment of the invention corresponds to a case in which an added element operates in cooperation with a usual wallet, of a type

  marketed, in order to produce a purse according to the invention.

  As shown in Fig.3, the wallet 2 is formed by 5 the combination of a usual wallet 20 and a magnetic article

  21 forming means for separating parts.

  The usual wallet 20 is shown in Fig.3 in the form of a purse. Exhibits 120 and 121 are contained in

loose in the purse 20.

  The magnetic article 21 is represented in FIG. 3 in the form

  a key ring to which the purse is possibly attached 20.

  The magnetized article 21 essentially comprises a magnetized part 210 which, as shown in FIG. 3, is for example connected to a ring 211 of the key holder by means of a chain 212, a cord or the like.

  Advantageously, the magnetized part 210 can serve as an advertising medium, for example, by taking the form of a logo. The magnetized part 210 consists of a magnet of suitable shape optionally comprising a coating, such as a paint or a plastic material, or of an assembly part, preferably of metal or ferrous alloy, including a magnet or a plurality of magnets. To retrieve coins 120 from the purse 20, the user first introduces the magnetized part 210 into the purse 20. Preferably, the user will then shake the purse 20

  in order to bring the pieces 120 close to the magnetized part 210 and to cause an agglomeration of these around the magnetized part 210. Finally, the user only has to extract from the purse 20 the parts 120 retained by the magnetized part 210, and 30 by pulling on the chain 212.

  The principles of the invention being disclosed here, many other embodiments and variants are within the reach of those skilled in the art. These embodiments and variants should be considered as included in the scope of the invention, which is in no way limited to

  exemplary embodiments described in the present description.

  Thus, the magnet used in the purse according to the invention may have very varied shapes and take very different locations, depending on the model of the purse. Furthermore, in the case of an embodiment of the type described with reference to FIG. 3, the magnetized article cooperating with a usual wallet can take a multitude of forms, including that of an attached leather item including one or more magnets and which is associated with the usual purse using for example a clamp, a Velcro strip (registered trademark), by gluing or others. According to yet other embodiments, the purse of the invention is incorporated or associated, as a constituent element, in a more complete article such as a

wallet or purse.

Claims (11)

  1. Wallet for storing coins of different values divided into a first category of coins having magnetic properties (120) and a second category of coins without magnetic properties (121), including at least one container (10, 11; 20) in which said coins (120, 121) are deposited in bulk by a user of said wallet (1, 2), characterized in that it comprises a magnetized part (102, 210) to spatially separate said coins (120, 121) in said at least one container (10, 11; 20) into said first and second categories so as to facilitate identification and gripping of said coins (120, 121) by said user when the user wishes to extract specific coins (120, 121) from said at less one container (10, 11; 20).   2. Wallet according to claim 1, characterized in that said at least one container comprises first and second compartments (10, 11) provided for receiving respectively said coins (120, 121) of said first and second categories, and in that said magnetic part (102) is arranged in said purse (1) so as to retain in said first compartment (10) said   coins (120) of said first category.   3. Wallet according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said magnetized portion (102, 210) comprises a magnet or a plurality of magnets of rigid, semi-rigid or flexible type.   4. Wallet according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that said user prints   to said purse (1, 2) a movement of agitation so as to cause a displacement of said coins (120, 121) and to bring said coins (120) of said first category near said magnetic part ( 102, 210) so as to thereby promote better spatial separation of said coins (120, 121) into said first and second categories. 5. Wallet according to any one of   Claims 1 to 4, characterized in that said coins (120, 121) are coins of Euro currency.   6. Wallet according to claim 5, characterized in that said coins having magnetic properties (120) are coins of one penny, two cents   and five cents of Euro currency.   7. Article intended to be used in combination with a conventional purse (20) including at least one container in which coins of different values are divided into a first category of coins having magnetic properties (120) and a second category of coins without magnetic properties (121) are deposited in bulk by a user of said wallet (20), characterized in that it comprises a magnetic part (210) for spatially separating said coins (120, 121) in said usual wallet (20) in said first and second categories in such a way as to facilitate identification and gripping of said coins (120, 121) by said user when the latter wishes to extract specific coins ( 120, 121) of the said wallet (20).   8. Article according to claim 7, characterized in that it   is in the form of a key ring (21).   9. Article according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that   that it also fulfills an advertising support function.   10. Article according to any one of claims 7 to   9, characterized in that said coins (120, 121) are coins of the Euro currency. 11. Article according to claim 10, characterized in that said coins having magnetic properties (120) are one-cent, two-cent coins   and five cents of Euro currency.