WO2009157619A1

WO2009157619A1 - Foldable panel emitting fragrance

Info

Publication number: WO2009157619A1
Application number: PCT/KR2008/005347
Authority: WO
Inventors: Seong-Jung Kim
Original assignee: Seong-Jung Kim
Priority date: 2008-06-27
Filing date: 2008-09-10
Publication date: 2009-12-30
Also published as: KR100964033B1; KR20100001801A

Abstract

Provided is a foldable panel that emits a fragrance when cover panels are unfolded in an open position while holding a book, a planner or an office work document. The foldable panel includes a fragrance dispenser installed on the first cover panel in an area out of a space in which the content items are housed; and a dispensing controller controlling fragrance emission by disabling the fragrance dispenser to emit the fragrance in a folded position of the second cover panel with respect to the first cover panel and by allowing the fragrance dispenser to emit the fragrance in an unfolded position of the second cover panel with respect to the first cover panel.

Description

Description FOLDABLE PANEL EMITTING FRAGRANCE

Technical Field

[1] The present invention relates to a foldable panel emitting a fragrance, and more particularly to a foldable panel that emits a fragrance when cover panels are unfolded in an open position while housing a book, a planner or an office work document. Background Art

[2] An office work file generally includes a cover that forms a front cover panel and a back cover panel to be used to hold various kinds of office work files or documents for storage or obtaining an superior's approval thereof. In order to protect the cover panels against external shocks or force, the cover panels are usually made of a soft or hard material.

[3] In addition to the office work file, a book, such as an ordinary book, a bible, a diary or a planner, may also include a cover that wraps multiple inside pages stacked to a predetermined thickness. The office work file or the book is not equipped with any particular functions but is simply constructed for deliverying office work files or book contents.

[4] As the technique of adding functionality to ordinary books, Korean Laid-Open

Utility Model No. 2007-0000481 discloses a fragrance emanating book containing a fragrant in the form of a gel.

[5] In the disclosed book, since a fragrance is continuously emitted through an orifice provided in a fragrance dispenser even when the book is not in use, the fragrance may be unnecessarily consumed.

[6] In addition, since it is necessary to separately provide a space for insertion of inside pages having a predetermined thickness within the book in order to install the fragrance dispenser, the disclosed book is vulnerable to breakage and has poor practicality because it is quite difficult to be applied in practice. Further, it is difficult to flip over inside pages when the book is read. In a case of a book having a few or few inside pages, the practicability is further limited.

[7] Since a fragrant agent contained in a fragrance dispenser cannot be refilled even when the fragrant agent is used up, the fragrance dispenser is not reusable and may flow out through holes of the fragrance dispenser due to a temperature increase even if the fragrant agent is in the type of a gel. Disclosure of Invention Technical Problem

[8] To solve the above problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide a foldable panel that is constructed to hold content items between a front cover panel and a back cover panel that can be folded or unfolded, and to emit a fragrance only when the front and back cover panels are unfolded in an open position.

[9] It is another object of the present invention to provide a foldable panel that emits a fragrance without meddling in intrinsic functions of a book or an office work document held within a space between a front cover panel and a back cover panel. Technical Solution

[10] According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a foldable panel emitting a fragrance, the foldable panel including a fragrance dispenser installed on the first cover panel in an area out of a space in which the content items are housed; and a dispensing controller controlling fragrance emission by disabling the fragrance dispenser to emit the fragrance in a folded position of the second cover panel with respect to the first cover panel and by allowing the fragrance dispenser to emit the fragrance in an unfolded position of the second cover panel with respect to the first cover panel.

[11] The fragrance dispenser includes a housing attached to an internal surface of the first cover panel and having an outflow hole to allow the fragrance generated from a fragrant agent contained therein to be emitted, and the dispensing controller is formed to open or close the outflow holes as the second cover panel foldably moves.

[12] The dispensing controller includes a door slidably coupled to an upper side of the housing so as to open or close the outflow holes, a connecting member that moves the door in an open direction of the outflow hole when the second cover panel is unfolded, and a resilent member that elastically biases the door in a close direction of the outflow hole when the door is moved.

[13] A plurality of outflow holes may be formed as the outflow hole so as to be spaced apart from each other on the housing, and the door may include a plurality of emission holes corresponding to the outflow holes are formed when the second cover panel is unfolded.

[14] The fragrance dispenser may include an inlet vent coupled to a throughhole formed on a wall of the housing to hermetically close an internal space of the housing and refilling the fragrant agent, and so that the fragrant agent is injected into a housing portion provided in the housing, the inlet vent being elastically deformable so as to allow the inlet vent to be elastically injected.

[15] The foldable panel may further comprise an absorbent member for occluding the fragrant agent refilling the housing.

Advantageous Effects

[16] As described above, according to the foldable panel of the present invention, since the housing is installed in an area out of a space in which the content items are housed, a user can read a book or use a document without any inconvenience. [17] In addition, since a fragrance is emitted when the cover panels are unfolded, the user can become more attentive, the user's working efficiency improved and the user's fatigue can be relieved. [18] Further, unnecessary fragrance emission can be prevented by blocking fragrance emission in a state in which the cover panels are folded, thereby utilizing the fragrant agent for a long time. When the fragrant agent is used up, a sol type fragrant agent may be refilled, and leakage of the fragrant agent can be effectively prevented when injecting the fragrant agent.

Brief Description of Drawings [19] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a foldable fragrance emitting panel according to an embodiment of the present invention in a folded position; [20] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the foldable fragrance emitting panel shown in FIG. 1 in an unfolded position; [21] FIG. 3 is a partly cut-away exploded perspective view of the foldable fragrance emitting panel shown in FIG. 1 ; [22] FIGS. 4 and 5 are partly cut-away exploded perspective views showing that a door is in an open or closed position in the foldable fragrance emitting panel shown in FIG. 1 ; [23] FIGS. 6 and 7 are perspective views of a foldable fragrance emitting panel according to another embodiment of the present invention; and [24] FIG. 8 is a plan view of a foldable fragrance emitting panel according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

Best Mode for Carrying out the Invention [25] Hereinafter, a foldable panel emitting a fragrance according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 through 5. [26] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a foldable fragrance emitting panel according to an embodiment of the present invention in a folded position, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the foldable fragrance emitting panel shown in FIG. 1 in an unfolded position, FIG.

3 is a partly cut-away exploded perspective view of the foldable fragrance emitting panel shown in FIG. 1, and FIGS. 4 and 5 are partly cut-away exploded perspective views showing that a door is in an open or closed position in the foldable fragrance emitting panel shown in FIG. 1. [27] Referring to FIGS. 1 through 5, the foldable panel 10 largely consists of first and second cover panels 11 and 15, a fragrance dispenser, and a dispensing controller. [28] The first and second cover panels 11 and 15 are integrally formed and are defined in view of a folding portion 17. Content items are acccommodated between the first and second cover panels 11 and 15. Examples of the content items include a book, a planner, a notebook, a diary, a document, and so on.

[29] In the exemplary embodiment, the first cover panel 11 forms a back cover of an ordinary office work file, the second cover panel 15 forms a front cover of the ordinary office work file, and a document 5 is housed between the first and second cover panels 11 and 15.

[30] A breadth of the folding portion 17 may vary depending upon a thickness of the document 5 housed between the first and second cover panels 11 and 15. That is to say, if the document 5 has a small thickness, the folding portion 17 may be narrow, and if the document 5 has a large thickness, the folding portion 17 may be wide.

[31] Unlike in the illustrated exemplary embodiment, the first and second cover panels 11 and 15 may not be integrally formed, but are independently formed to then be interconnected using a binder. Examples of the binder may include an ordinary binder, a binding strip, and the like.

[32] The first and second cover panels 11 and 15 are made of soft or hard materials, and useful examples thereof may include thick paper, synthetic resin, metal, and the like.

[33] The fragrance dispenser for dispensing a fragrance includes a housing 21 installed within the first cover panel 11. The housing 21 is shaped of a rectangle having a predetermined height and contains a fragrant agent filled therein. The housing 21 is installed at an upper end of the first cover panel 11. Specifically, the housing 21 is installed in an area out of a space in which the content items are housed, which is for holding the document 5 without being interfered. The housing 21 may be adhered to the first cover panel 1 using an adhesive agent or fixed to the first cover panel 1 using a screw.

[34] In the illustrated exemplary embodiment, considering that a thickness of the document 5 is generally smaller than a height of the housing 21, the second cover panel 15 is formed by cutting an area 19 corresponding to the housing 21. That is to say, the second cover panel 15 formed in such a manner can prevent a gap from being created in a case where the second cover panel 15 is in a folded position with respect to the first cover panel 11.

[35] In cases where thicknesses of content items 67, 89 and 79 are the same as or greater than the height of the housing 21, as shown in FIGS. 6 through 8, the cut area 19 shown in FIG. 2 may not be needed. While the housing 21 is installled in the first cover panel 11 in the illustrated exemplary embodiment, it is to be understood that the housing 21 may also be installed in the second cover panel 15.

[36] A housing portion 23 having a space filled with a fragrant agent is provided in the housing 21. The housing 21 includes a plurality of hours ing portions 23 spaced apart from each other. A general fragrant agent such as a sol, gel, or other solid type fragrant agent can be used as the fragrant agent. When the fragrant agent is used up, a sol type fragrant agent is preferably used to refill the housing portion 23. In this case, an absorbent member 25 for occluding the fragrant agent is included in the housing portion 23 in order to prevent fill the fragrant agent from moving in the housing portion 23. Non-woven fabric or cotton may be used as the absorbent member 25. Since the fragrant agent is fed into the absorbent member 25, it is possible to prevent the fragrant agent from leaking outside the housing 21.

[37] Outflow holes 27 are formed on a top surface of the housing portion 23 to allow the fragrance generated from the fragrant agent to be emitted.

[38] The foldable panal according to the present invention includes a dispensing controller that controls fragrance emission through the outflow holes 27. The dispensing controller disables the fragrance to be emitted the fragrance in a folded position of the second cover panel 15 with respect to the first cover panel 11 and allows the fragrance to be emitted in an unfolded position of the second cover panel 15 with respect to the first cover panel 11.

[39] In the illustrated exemplary embodiment, the dispensing controller includes a plate- type door 31 slidably coupled to an upper side of the housing 21 so as to open or close the outflow holes 27, a connecting member 41 that moves the door 31 in an open direction of the outflow holes 27 when the second cover panel 15 is unfolded, and a resilent member 45 that elastically biases the door 31 in a close direction of the outflow holes 27 when the door 31 is moved.

[40] The housing 21 has guide grooves 35 formed at both sides of an upper portion of the housing 21 in a lengthwise direction of the housing 21 so as to allow the door 31 to slidably move. The guide grooves 35 are formed so as not extend the right end of the upper portion of the housing 21 (that is, a portion of the housing 21 corresponding to a leading edge of the slidably moving door 31) in order to prevent the door 31 from deviating the housing 21 past the right end of the housing 21. Both edges of the door 31 are fitted into the guide grooves 35 and moves left and right along the guide grooves 35 as the second cover panel 15 foldably moves.

[41] A plurality of emission holes 33 corresponding to the outflow holes 27 are formed in a state in which the second cover panel 15 is unfolded, that is, the door 31 is moved leftward. In this state, the door 31 and the second cover panel 15 are connected to each other by means of the connecting member 41 so as to be linked to the door 31 as the second cover panel 15 foldably moves. Examples of the connecting member 41 may include a string, a thread, an iron strip, and other various tools. One end of the connecting member 41 may be connected to the second cover panel 15 by punching the second cover panel 15 or by coupling to a protrusion formed on an inner surface of the second cover panel 15. The connecting member 41 may have an appropriate length so as to allow the outflow holes 27 and the emission holes 33 to coincide with and to be linked to each other when the second cover panel 15 is completely unfolded.

[42] The resilient member 45 moves the door 31 using a resilient force to close the outflow holes 27 in a state in which the first and second cover panels 11 and 15 are folded. A spring may be used as the resilient member 45. In this case, one end of the spring is fixed to the right perimeter edge of the door 31 and the other end thereof is fixed to the housing 21. Alternatively, a leaf spring or an elastic string may be used as the resilient member 45.

[43] An inlet vent 51 for refilling the fragrant agent is preferably provided in the housing

21. Here, in order to prevent the fragrant agent from leaking outside, the inlet vent 51 may be made of rubber coupled to a throughhole formed on a rear surface of the housing 21. For example, in a case of using a general syringe, the fragrant agent is injected into the housing portion 23 of the housing 21 by pricking the inlet vent 51 with a needle of the syringe. Once the fragrant agent is injected, a hole penetrated by the needle is hermetically closed by the elastically deformable rubber even if the needle is taken out. Accordingly, it is possible to effectively prevent the fragrant agent from leaking outside.

[44] The operation of the dispersing controller having the aforementioned configuration will now be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. When the first and second cover panels 11 and 15 are folded, as shown in FIG. 4, the door 31 moves rightward to the maximum using a resilient force of the resilient member 45 so that the outflow holes 27 are closed. Accordingly, a fragrance is not emitted from the fragrant agent contained in the housing portion 23 of the housing 21.

[45] When the second cover panel 15 is in an unfold position, as shown in FIG. 5, the door 31 slidably moves leftward as the connecting member 41 connected to the second cover panel 15 is moved leftward. Finally, when the second cover panel 15 is completely unfolded, the emission holes 33 coincide with the outflow holes 27. Accordingly, the fragrance generated from the fragrant agent filling the housing portion 23 is emitted. If the second cover panel 15 is folded, an external force applied to the connecting member 41 is removed. As the external force is removed, the door 31 slidably moves rightward by the resilient force of the resilient member 45 to then close the outflow holes 27.

[46] In alternative embodiments, the outflow holes 27 may be formed on a front surface of the housing 21, and the door 31 may also be formed on the front surface of the housing 21.

[47] In another exemplary embodiment of the dispersing controller, although not shown, outflow holes may be formed on an upper surface of a housing and a lid having protrusions for opening and closing the outflow holes may also be formed on the upper surface of the housing. Here, one end of the lid is fixed to the upper surface of the housing and the other end thereof is folded upwardly. Therefore, the other end of the lid is spaced a predetermined distance apart from the outflow holes and protrusions made of silicon are formed on a bottom surface of the lid at the other end to be inserted into the outflow holes. The lid is formed of a thin metal plate so as to be eastically de- formable.

[48] The operation of the dispersing controller having the aforementioned configuration will briefly be described. When the second cover panel is folded, the second cover panel downwardly presses the lid having the protrusions. Then, as the lid moves downwardly, the protrusions provided in the lid are fitted into the outflow holes of the housing, thereby preventing a fragrance from being emitted. When the second cover panel is unfolded, an external force applied to the protrusions is removed so that the the protrusions are separated from the outflow holes by a resilient force of the lid, thereby allowing the fragrance generated from a fragrant agent to be emitted.

[49] FIG. 6 illustrates another embodiment of the present invention, in which a foldable fragrance emitting panel according to the present invention is used as a notebook cover panel by way of example.

[50] Referring to FIG. 6, a notebook 67 bound by means of a spring binder 69 is housed between a first cover panel 61 and a second cover panel 65, and a housing 21 is installed on an inner surface of the first cover panel 61 out of an area where the notebook 67 is placed. In such a state, in order to use the notebook 67, a front cover page of the notebook 67 is inserted into a pocket 63 formed in an inner surface of the second cover panel 65, and a rear cover page of the notebook 67 is inserted into a pocket 63 formed in an inner surface of the first cover panel 61.

[51] FIG. 7 illustrates still another embodiment of the present invention, in which a foldable fragrance emitting panel according to the present invention is used as a book cover panel by way of example.

[52] Referring to FIG. 7, a book 89 is housed between a first cover panel 81 and a second cover panel 85, and a housing 21 is installed on an inner surface of the first cover panel 81 out of an area where the book 89 is placed. The aforementioned foldable fragrance emitting panel can also be applied to a cover panel of a notebook, a planner, a notebook or a diary as well as the book 89.

[53] As shown in FIG. 6 or 7, if the second cover panel is unfolded to use the notebook or the book, a fragrance is generated from a fragrant agent. According to the present invention, a learner can become more attentive, learning efficiency can be improved and the learner's fatigue can be relieved.

[54] FIG. 8 illustrates a foldable fragrance emitting panel according to still another embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 8, the foldable fragrance emitting panel according to still another embodiment of the present invention includes a first cover panel 71 and a second cover panel 75 each made of leader and having a zipper 77. A book 79 having a predetermined thickness, e.g., a bible, is housed between the first cover panel 71 and the second cover panel 75. The foldable fragrance emitting panel according to the illustrated embodiment can also be applied to a general leather cover with a zipper. In addition, the foldable fragrance emitting panel according to the illustrated embodiment can also be used to hold a book, a notebook or a planner as well as the thick book such as the bible 79.

[55] While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the following claims.

[56] It is therefore desired that the present embodiments be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, reference being made to the appended claims rather than the foregoing description to indicate the scope of the invention. Industrial Applicability

[57] As described above, the foldable fragrance emitting panel according to the present invention can function as a cover of a book, a planner, or an office work document by holding these content items between first and second cover panels. Accordingly, when the foldable panel is in an open position to use the book, the planner or the office work document held therein, a fragrance is emitted, thereby making a user more attentive, improving the user's working efficiency and relieving the user's fatigue.

Claims

[1] A foldable panel emitting a fragrance, which has foldably interconnected first and second cover panels and is configured to hold content items between the first and second cover panels, the foldable panel comprising: a fragrance dispenser installed on the first cover panel in an area out of a space in which the content items are housed; and a dispensing controller controlling fragrance emission by disabling the fragrance dispenser to emit the fragrance in a folded position of the second cover panel with respect to the first cover panel and by allowing the fragrance dispenser to emit the fragrance in an unfolded position of the second cover panel with respect to the first cover panel.

[2] The foldable panel of claim 1, wherein the fragrance dispenser includes a housing attached to an internal surface of the first cover panel and having an outflow hole to allow the fragrance generated from a fragrant agent contained therein to be emitted, and the dispensing controller is formed to open or close the outflow holes as the second cover panel foldably moves.

[3] The foldable panel of claim 2, wherein the dispensing controller includes a door slidably coupled to an upper side of the housing so as to open or close the outflow holes, a connecting member that moves the door in an open direction of the outflow hole when the second cover panel is unfolded, and a resilent member that elastically biases the door in a close direction of the outflow hole when the door is moved.

[4] The foldable panel of claim 3, wherein a plurality of outflow holes are formed as the outflow hole so as to be spaced apart from each other on the housing, and the door includes a plurality of emission holes corresponding to the outflow holes are formed when the second cover panel is unfolded.

[5] The foldable panel of claim 2, wherein the fragrance dispenser includes an inlet vent coupled to a throughhole formed on a wall of the housing to hermetically close an internal space of the housing and refilling the fragrant agent, and so that the fragrant agent is injected into a housing portion provided in the housing, the inlet vent being elastically deformable so as to allow the inlet vent to be elastically injected.

[6] The foldable panel of claim 5, further comprising an absorbent member for occluding the fragrant agent refilling the housing.