GB2249475A

GB2249475A - Envelope for containing a card

Info

Publication number: GB2249475A
Application number: GB9021064A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Roy Gilbert Talbot; Brigid Talbot
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1990-09-27
Filing date: 1990-09-27
Publication date: 1992-05-13
Also published as: GB9021064D0

Abstract

A card 13 e.g. a telephone card, is housed in an envelope made of two side walls 1,2 sealed together at all but one edge, a side wall of the envelope having a window 10 through which a portion 14 of the card is exposed, a push on the exposed portion 14 being arranged to urge the card to slide out of the pouch. The pouch may have a tamper-evident tear strip 11 which is removed before use. There may be an additional protective member (110, fig 3) in the envelope, which is folded round the card. Stops may be provided to limit the range of movement of the additional member, and these stops may be additional flaps of the envelope which trap the additional member between them and the side walls (figs 4,5). <IMAGE>

Description

POUCH FOR A PLANAR CARD The invention relates to a pouch for a rectangular planar card examples of such cards being telephone cards, credit cards, travel cards and the like.

It is one object of the invention to provide a protective pouch for a planar card which will reduce flexure of the card and scratching of a face thereof and which is attractive to possess and easy to use.

In one aspect, the invention provides a pouch containing a planar card, the pouch comprising a rectangular envelope comprising two relatively stiff walls sealed together along three edges, the card being present between the walls, an open window being present in one of the walls overlying the card and arranged to allow acccess to the card within, whereby the card may be removed by engaging a finger or thumb with the card through the window and sliding the card outwardly beyond the unsealed edge.

In one embodiment, the pouch is arranged so that a surface of the card is directly exposed through the window so that the user may touch the card surface through the window in order to slide the card outwardly.

In another embodiment the card is present within an intermediate member which is exposed through the window, whereby the user -touches the intermediate member in order to slide the card outwardly.

Preferably the intermediate member defines two walls and a portion of the card is received between the walls, the member being shorter than the length of the pouch measured at right angles to the unsealed edge, stop means being present to limit movement of the intermediate member beyond the unsealed edge of the pouch.

Preferably the envelope includes two flaps which are hinged about the unsealed edge of the envelope and received back within the envelope, the intermediate member comprising a v-shaped piece of plastics, cardboard or the like folded over about an edge opposite the unsealed edge of the envelope to define the two walls, each of the walls of the intermediate member being sandwiched between a flap and the adjacent wall of the envelope and being of a length selected so that the intermediate member is movable between an advanced condition in which the walls of the intermediate member touch the inside of the fold defined between a flap and the adjacent wall of the envelope thereby stopping the movement of the intermediate member beyond the unsealed edge, and a retracted condition in which the fold line of the intermediate member lies adjacent that sealed edge of the pouch opposite the unsealed edge and the free ends of the walls of the intermediate member remain sandwiched between the respective flap and wall of the envelope.

In another aspect the devise provides a pouch as defined herein for use with a planar card.

In order that the invention may be better understood, various embodiments thereof will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings in which, Figure 1 is a plan view of a blank for use in making a pouch; Figure 2 is perspective exploded view of the pouch of Figure 1 in an assembled but opened condition; Figure 3 is a plan vie of a blank and an intermediate member for use in making a pouch according to another embodiment of the invention; Figure 4 is a longitudinal sectional view to an enlarged scale through an assembled pouch made from the blank of Figure 3, with the intermediate member in a retracted condition; and Figure 5 is the same as Figure 4, but with the intermediate member in an advanced condition.

The blank shown in Figure 1 comprises a sheet of card having a rectangular front wall 1, and a back wall 2 separated by a fold line 3. An end flap 4 is present at one end, the top as shown, of the front wall 1, and separated by a fold line 5. A side flap 6 extends to one side, the left hand side as shown, of the front wall 1 and is separated by a fold line 7. Beyond the side flap 6, and optionally, a further flap 8 is present which as shown has the words phone notes" printed thereon and a space for writing notes. Alternatively, or in addition, advertising matter may be present. The further flap 8 is separated by a fold line 9.

An open window or cut out 10 is present in the front wall 1. As shown the window is of elongate oval shape having a direction of elongation parallel to the direction of intended travel of the card. A tearstrip 11 is defined by an extension extending from one edge, the bottom as shown, of the front and back walls 1,2 and the further flap 8, and is separated by a perforated or score line 12. As shown the portion of the perforated line 12 on the front wall 1 is stepped with respect to the remainder of the line 12. In this way, once the tearstrip has been detached the open edge of the front wall 1 is retracted with respect to the edge of the back wall which means that the card is easier to replace in the opened pouch.

The pouch is assembled by firstly placing the card 13 (as shown in Figure 2) on the front wall 1. Adhesive is then placed on the uppermost faces, as shown in Figure 1, of the tearstrip 11, end flap 4 and side flap 6. The back wall 2 is then folded, upwardly as shown, so that it lies above the front wall 1, with the two right hand portions of the tearstrip 11 adhered together. The end flap 4 and side flap 6 are then folded over and adhered to the outermost face of the back wall 2, together with the portion of the tearstrip 11 at the end of the further flap 8. The pouch is now sealed and any purchaser or intended user of the card therein will be confident that, unless the tearstrip 11 has been removed, the card 13 has not been tampered with prior to his use.

To open the pouch, the tearstrip 11 is detached by tearing along the perforated line 12. The card 13 may then be removed by touching the portion 14 of the card exposed through the window 10 and sliding the card outwards through the open edge 15. While the card is stored within the pouch, any flexure is resisted, while surface damage is also substantially resisted. Preferably the card is inserted in such a way that any, e.g. magnetic tracks on the card are disposed on the side remote from the window 10, i.e. adjacent the back wall 2.

In other similar embodiments the tearstrip 11 and further flap 8 may be omitted and, e.g. the entire pouch sealed within a plastics wrapping which must be removed for use.

The blank used to make the embodiment shown in Figures 3 to 5 is shown in Figure 3 and comprises a front wall 100 and a back wall 101. A further inner wall 102 is attached via a fold line 103 to one side, the right hand side as shown, of the front wall 100. A fold line 104 separates the back wall 101 from the front wall 100. An elongate open window 105 is present in the front wall ~100. An end flap 106 is attached by a fold line 107 to one edge, the shorter bottom edge as shown, of the front wall 100. The front wall 100 and inner wall 102 include an elongate flap extension 108 separated from the respective walls by fold lines 109.

An intermediate member 110, separate to the blank, comprises a rectangular piece of cardboard, plastics or the like having a central transverse fold line 111. In the assembled condition the intermediate member is folded about the fold line 111 to define a v-shape having two walls 112 which have a length selected to be greater than the distance between the fold line 106 and the topmost edge of flap 108, when that flap is folded back onto the front wall 100, as will be explained later on.

The pouch is assembled by firstly placing the folded intermediate member 12 onto the front wall 100 with the fold line 111 adjacent t'ne fold line 107 on the blank. The flap extension 108 on the front wall 100 is then folded over to overlie an end portion of one arm 112 of the intermediate member, as shown in Figure 4.

The inner wall 102 is then folded over on top of the intermediate member, and the respective flap 108 folded inwardly to the pouch to trap the end of the other arm 112 of the intermediate member 110. Adhesive is then placed on the uppermost face, as shown in Figure 1, of the end flap 106 and back wall 101. The end flap ,106 is then folded over and adhered to the outermost face of the inner wall 102, and the back wall 101 is then folded over on top of the flap 106 and inner wall 102. The pouch is then sealed along three edges and the card 113 may then be slid into the remaining open edge defined in between the fold lines 109, at the top short edge as shown in Figures 4 and 5.While the card is retained within the pouch, it will be protected both against flexure and substantially any surface damage because the intermediate member always provides a barrier between the open window 105 and the underlying face of the card. A further protective wrapping, e.g. of plastics film may be wrapped around the assembled pouch and card.

When it is required to remove the card, the user puts, e.g. his thumb on the exposed part of the intermediate member 110 through the window and slides the intermediate member 110 and card 113 towards the open edge until the ends of the walls 112 of the intermediate member hit the blind end of the opening defined by flap extension 108 and the respective adjacent front or inner wall 100,102, as shown in Figure 5. The card may then be withdrawn from the pouch. Because of the selection of the length of the walls 112, the intermediate member will always be retained within the pouch, unless the adhesive is broken.

Although, as shown in both embodiments the card is removed from one of the shorter edges, the open edge may be present along a longer edge of the envelope.

Claims

1. A pouch containing a planar card, the pouch comprising a generally rectangular envelope comprising two relatively stiff walls sealed together along three edges, leaving one side open, the card being present between the walls, an open window being present in one of the walls overlying the card and arranged to allow access to the card within, whereby the card may be removed by engaging a finger or thumb with the card through the window and sliding the card outwardly beyond the unsealed edge.

2. A pouch according to Claim 1, wherein a surface of the card is directly exposed through the window so that the user may touch the card surface through the window.

3. A pouch according to Claim i, wherein the card is present within an intermediate member which is exposed through the window, whereby the user touches the intermediate member in order to slide the card outwardly.

4. A pouch according to Claim 3, wherein the intermediate member defines two walls, a portion of the card is received between the walls, the member being shorter than the length of the pouch measured at right angles to the unsealed edge, stop means being present to limit movement of the intermediate member beyond the unsealed edge of the pouch.

5. A pouch according to any preceding Claim, wherein the envelope includes two flaps which are hinged about the unsealed edge of the envelope and received back within the envelope, the intermediate member comprising a V-shaped piece of plastics, cardboard or the like folded over about an edge opposite the unsealed edge of the envelope to define the two walls, each of the walls of the intermediate member being sandwiched between a flap and the adjacent wall of the envelope and being of a length selected so that the intermediate member is movable between an advanced condition in which the walls of the intermediate member touch the inside of the fold defined between a flap and the adjacent wall of the envelope thereby stopping the movement of the intermediate member beyond the unsealed edge, and a retracted condition in which the fold line of the intermediate member lies adjacent that sealed edge of the pouch opposite the unsealed edge and the free ends of the walls of the intermediate member remain sandwiched between the respective flap and wall of the envelope.

6. A pouch according to any preceding Claim, not containing a planar card.

7. A pouch to contain a planar card, substantially as described with reference to the diagrammatic drawings.