US2458711A - Wallet with auxiliary or secret billfold - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 11, 1949. s. KNEE 2,458,711

WALLET WITH AUXILIARY OR SECRET BILLFOLD 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fiied Jan. 5, 1946 INVENTOR.

.A ORNEY I WALLET wzm AUXILIARY on swam mmmoma Fil'e'd Jan. 5, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet 2' V [NVEN TOR.

ATTORNEY Patented Jan. 11, 1949 WALLET WITH AUXILIARY on SECRET BILLFOLD Simon Knee, Newark, N. J.

Application January 5, 1946, Serial No. 639,168

This invention relates to wallets and similar or other-pocket-containers.

The primary object of the present invention is the provision of a wallet or other container having a pocket in which a holder for paper money or other papers is removably positioned, and said holder, when positioned in the wallet pocket, being in folded condition and when removed from said pocket being unfoldable to a fiat condition or to the full length of the holder. Further in accordance with the present invention, the holder, when positioned in the wallet pocket, serves as dividing or partitioning means to form a plurality of compartments in the pocket in such relation to the pocket opening that access may be had to any of said compartments through the pocket opening. Further, in accordance with this invention, the pocket and the holder are preferably provided with a slide fastener which, in the closed condition thereof, closes certain of said compartments at the pocket opening, and which, in the released or open condition thereof affords access to said compartments through the pocket opening.

The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be fully understood from the following description considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, it being understood that said drawings are to be taken as illustrative of the invention and not in limitation thereof.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side View of a wallet embodying the present invention, the wallet being illustrated as of the foldable type and shown in its unfolded or flat condition, and the foldable holder being shown partly removed from the companion wallet pocket;

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 showing the foldable holder removed from the companion wallet pocket and unfolded for access to the contents of said holder;

- Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 1 showingthe foldable holder completely within the companion wallet pocket;

Fig. 4 is a side view of the holder separated from the wallet;

Fig. 5 is an end view of the holder;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view on the line 6+6 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 7 is a sectional view on the line I'I of Fi 3;

Fig. 8 is a top edge view of the wallet in the folded condition thereof.

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary end perspective view of the wallet as seen from the left of Fig. .2.

2 Claims. (Cl. 150-36) Referring now to the drawings in detail, the present invention is illustrated as embodied in a container here shown as a foldable wallet, said wallet being of the type which comprises the opposed walls I0 and I2 stitched or otherwise secured to each other at a transverse edge as indicated at I4 and at their longitudinal edges as indicated at I6, defining a pocket having a top opening as indicated at I8 (Fig. 6) and an end opening as indicated at 20 (Fig. 7) Wall II) has an integral flap or extension 22 for securing the wallet in its folded condition as illustrated in Fig. 8, said flap 22 having as here shown a snap fastener member 24 releasably engageable with a companion snap fastener member 26 which is carried by wall I8 near the stitched edge I4. The wallet is also provided with the pockets 28 and 38 at opposite sides, respectively, of the transverse median line of fold of the wallet. As here shown, wall I2 is common to the pockets 28 and 30 and provides an inner wall of each of said pockets, the outer'walls of said pockets being provided by pieces of material stitched to said wall I2. Pocket 28 is provided at one end thereof with an inwardly folded or gusset portion 32, as clearly illustrated in Fig. '7, to increase the expansibility or capacity of said pocket in a direction normal to the plane of wall I2. Pocket 28 is provided with an opening 34 (Fig. 6) which may be closed by a flap 36 which as here shown is attached to wall I2 and is releasably secured to the outer wall of pocket 28 by a snap fastener comprising the companion snap fastener members 38 and 40.

In accordance with the present invention, a holder 42 for paper money or other papers is provided in association with the pocket 28. By comparing Figs. 1, 2 and 3 with each other, it will be seen that holder 42 is movable from a position within pocket 28 as illustrated in Fig. 3 to a posi tion outside of said pocket, as illustrated in Fig. 2, that when holder 42 is in pocket 28, said holder is folded and thereby reduced in size to fit within said pocket, and that when said holder is removed from said pocket, it may be unfolded to its flat or full-length condition and inverted for convenience of accessto the contents of said holder. As here shown the fold line of holder 42 is the transverse'median line of the holder as indicated at 44 in Fig. 1, but it will be understood that it is Within the scope of the present invention to provide the fold line at a different point in the longitudinal extent of said holder.

Holder 42 comprises two parts 46 and 48 which, as here shown, are stitched to each other at their adjacent longitudinal edges 50 by stitching 5|,

but which are otherwise separable from each other being in non-secured relation at their adjacent edges 52 and 54, at both ends of the holder as well as at their adjacent longitudinal edges 58 and 58. While parts 46 and 4B are shown joined to each other by stitching 5| at their longitudinal edges 50, it will be understood that said parts may be in one piece and folded at their edges 50. Holder 42, and more particularly part 45 of said holder is provided with an integral lateral tab 60 which is secured, as by stitching, to and under the strip 62 of the outer wall of pocket 28, said strip being integral with said wall and joined thereto by the lateral end portion 63. It will be noted that tab 60 of the holder is positioned laterally of and adjacent to said portion 63.

Thus, while holder 42 is removable from pocket 28, it is preferably permanently attached to said pocket by the tab fill which is secured to the tapers in length when folded since the opposite end edges, which converge towardeacn other, in the unfolded condition of the holder as shown in Fig. 4, are at the same end of the holder when the latter is folded as shown in Figs. '1, 3 and 7.

Thus pocket 28 need be only slightly larger than the folded holder and in such case, as shown, the folded edge 44 is adjacent one end of the pocket opening and the free edges of the holder, opposite said folded edge, are adjacent the oppositeend of the pocket opening. a

It will be noted that when holder 42 is within pocket 28, said holder divides pocket 28 into a plurality of compartments, one of said compartments, indicated at 52, being between wall l2 and the confronting part of holder 42, another of said compartments, indicated at B4,'being'between the confronting-folded portions of holder 42, and yet another of said compartments, indicatedat 66, being between theouter wall of pocket v flap 36 of the pocket 28 is closed. However, flap B S-may be omitted, within the scope of the present invention, and yet the openings to compartments 62 and 64 may be closed. For this purpose a suitable closure device, here shown as a slide fas tener S (Fig, 3), is provided. More specifically a slide fastener stringer 68 is secured by stitching 5| to a portion of the longitudinal edge 50 of holder 42 and extends to the line of fold indicated by the line 44a in Fig. 4. A companion slide fastener stringer ID-is secured by stitching between the strip 62 of pocket 28 and the adjacent portion of wall 2. The slider for the slide fastener S is indicated at 74. Thus, when the slide fastener S is closed, the slider 14 being at the left of the stringers 68 and i5, viewing Fig. 3, the openings to compartments 62 and 54, through the pocket opening 34, are closed. On the other hand, when the slide fastener is open, the slider 14 being at the right of the stringers 68 ,and 10,-vrew-- ing Fig.3, the openings to said compartments 62 and 64, through pocket opening 34, are open so that access may be had to either of said compartments. Also it will be noted that when holder 42 is positioned within pocket 28, the existence of the compartment within the holder itself is not apparent to one unfamiliar with the construction of the wallet, said holder having the appearance of a partitioning means between the outer wall of pocket 28 and the confronting portion of wall I2 which as previously described provides the inner wall of said pocket. As indicated,

" the auxiliary billfold or holder 42 when unfolded of the pocket, the insertion and removal ofthe money is easily accomplished. On the other hand since the holder or auxiliary billfold 42 must be in its folded condition when it is in the pocket 28 and when it is being inserted in or removed from said pocket, the bills are automatically folded when the holder is folded and cannot be easily removed, if at all, unless the holder is removed from the pocket and opened out to its fiat condition, thus preventing theft or accidental loss unless the entire article is stolen or lost. Moreover, even if the wallet is stolen, the thief or finder is not likely to be aware of-the true nature of holder 42 since to one unfamiliar with the construction of the wallet holder 42 appears tobe a partitioning means; so that in such circumstances the recovery of the wallet would result in the recovery of the contents of said holder or secret billfold.

The holder 42 is preferably provided as here shown with a strap 16 which is positioned between parts 46 and 48 of said holder. Strip -16 is secured to one of said parts, here shown as-the part 46, only at the opposite ends of said strap as indicated at l8. As illustrated in Fig. 6, paper money or other papers may be placed within holder 42 in position between-partsdtiand 48"0f the holder so as to be covered by said parts,"an'd more specifically, said paper money or: other papers are preferably positioned between part 46 of the holder and strap 16 and folded over said strap, preferably over the upper edge 86 thereof. In Fig. 6, the longitudinal fold of the paper money or other papers is indicated at 82, while in Fig, 7, the transverse fold of the paper money or other papers is indicated at 84. It will be understood that parts 46 and 48 of holder 42 are long'enough to cover the paper money or papers of about the same length and may also be wide enough to cover the paper money or papers of about the same width as paper money without requiring folding of "the paper money or other papers along a longiout substantial risk of the paper money accidentally falling out of the holder 42 when the lat- .ter is removed from pocket 28.

It will be understood that thewalletmay'be made wholly or partly of leather,in1itation leather, fabric, or combinations of such materials,

or of any other suitable materials or combinations of materials. Also, it will be understood that it is within the scope of the invention to apply the holder 42 in a pocket which need not be a pocket forming the part of a larger wallet, but which can be a pocket complete in itself. Also it will be understood that the holder 42 can be embodied in the pocket of a fiat or non-foldable wallet or other container. Further, it will be understood that various other changes in the details of construction and in the arrangement of parts may be made without departing from the underlying idea Or principles of my invention within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a container having a pocket provided with an opening, a foldable holder for paper money or other papers movably positioned in said pocket and removable therefrom through said opening thereof, said holder being foldable along a transverse line and being in folded condition when positioned in said pocket and while being removed therefrom, said holder when removed from said pocket being unfoldable to a flat condition, said holder comprising two parts joined at a longitudinally extending edge of the holder, said pocket and its opening being shorter than said holder when the latter is unfolded so that said holder must be folded in order to be inserted in said pocket and can be unfolded only when removed from said pocket, said fold line being transverse to said pocket opening and said longitudinally extending edge of the holder, said holder when unfolded being at least as long as paper money but narrower than the latter, and means in said holder between said parts thereof for retainin paper money in the holder with such money folded longitudinally about said means as well as transversely at said fold line of said holder.

2. In a wallet having a pocket provided with an opening, a foldable holder for paper money or other papers movably positioned in said pocket and removable therefrom through said opening thereof, said holder being foldable along a transverse line and being in folded condition when positioned in said pocket and While being removed therefrom, said holder when removed from said pocket being unfoldable to a flat condition, said holder when folded and positioned in said pocket having its line of fold or folded edge disposed adjacent one end of said opening transversely thereof and having its free ends disposed adjacent the opposite end of said opening transversely thereto, said pocket and its opening being shorter than said holder when the latter is unfolded so that said holder must be folded in order to be inserted in said pocket and can be unfolded only when removed from said pocket, said fold line being transverse to said pocket opening and said longitudinally extending edge of the holder, said holder comprising two walls joined at a longitudinal edge of the holder which is adjacent to and extends longitudinally of said opening when the holder is positioned in said pocket, said walls being unattached to each other at the opposite longitudinal edge of the holder thereby providing access to the contents of the holder when the latter is removed from said pocket, and means including a slide fastener stringer attached to said pocket at said opening and a companion slide fastener stringer attached to said holder only at the part of said joined edge at one side of said fold line for releasably securing said holder in said pocket and for releasably closing said pocket opening at one side of said holder when the latter is in said pocket, said holder when unfolded being at least as long as paper money but shorter than paper money when the holder is folded.

SIMON KNEE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS

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