Note : Les descriptions sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.
CA 02792194 2012-10-09
SECURITY PROTECTED CREDIT CARDS CONTAINER AND BILLFOLD
This invention relates to a security protected billfold container for credit
cards, debit
cards, identity cards and the like and paper currency. More particularly, it
relates to a wallet size
billfold having protection against surreptitious remote retrieval of the
information stored on the
cards with electromagnetic scanning device such as RFID ( Radio Frequency
Identification
Device) and similar electronic means.
Credit cards, smart cards, and debit cards which are commonly referred to as
charge cards
for payment of commercial transactions, and personal identity cards, are
provided with magnetic
means such as a magnet strip or a magnetic chip for storing on the cards the
details of account
and/or personal information of the card owner. The information is retrieved
during use by
scanning or inserting the card into a card reader for payment of a variety of
services or for
identification purposes. The information recorded on the card may however also
be accessed
remotely with an RFID or similar electronic means located in the close
vicinity or proximity of the
card. Since the cards are always carried by the owner in the owner's wallet or
purse, it is
invariably freely exposed to illegal or surreptitious access of the
information by some one carrying
a portable RFID or similar electronic scanning device by positioning the
scanning device near or
in close proximity of the card owner to retrieve the information from the
cards for illegal purposes
such as recreating duplicate cards for illegal uses or payments. Many methods
have been
employed to prevent such illegal remote surreptitious retrieval of the card
information. Since
RFID signals can not penetrate through a shielding plate such as a metal plate
or alloy plate, one
method is to locate one or two shielding plates on the outer or both sides of
the outermost part of
the container of the cards in a wallet or purse. The shielding plate or plates
would block the RFID
signal from reaching the cards to access the information. However, the
inclusion of shielding
plates invariably renders the card container rather bulky or the physical
access of the cards during
use by the owner difficult.
Moreover, charge cards and identity cards are commonly contained in pockets or
plastic
sleeve envelopes provided in a wallet. In the case of plastic sleeve
envelopes, they are clear plastic
sleeve envelopes bound in a bundle or a stack manner in the wallet. One or
more cards may be
inserted into each sleeve envelope. In use, a required card can be removed
from the particular
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sleeve envelope containing it. As the sleeve envelope are of the same size of
the card, it is
awkward and frustrating to remove the card out of the sleeve envelope or to
insert it into the
sleeve envelope, particularly when two or more cards are necessarily contained
in each single
sleeve envelope for accommodating a plurality of cards. Same problems exist
when the cards are
stored in pockets provided on the side panels in the wallet or inside the
wallet.
Furthermore, due to the stacking or bundling of the sleeve envelopes,
particularly when
two or more cards are contained in each sleeve envelope or pocket, some of the
cards in the stack
are not readily visible since they would be sandwiched or covered completely
by other cards
positioned in front, behind, or on top so that often it is difficult to locate
a particular card from the
stack or bundle.
Hard plastic cases have also been employed for carrying the cards in a stacked
manner.
The cards must all be removed simultaneously from such a hard case for
selecting a particular
card required during use and that the simultaneous removal of all the cards
are susceptible to
accidental misplacement and loss of the removed cards. Moreover, most such
plastic cases are
provided with a cover which is held in the closed position with a latch, or
the case consists of two
half cases held together with a latch. Such cases are difficult or unwieldy to
operate requiring the
user to operate it with both hands.
It is a principal object of the present invention to provide a billfold
container for carrying
and protecting the charge and identity cards contained therein from
surreptitious access of the
card information with a remote RF1D or similar device.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a billfold container
in which the
cards can be easily placed therein or removed therefrom.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a billfold
container in which all
the cards stored therein are readily identifiable for selection of any card
during use.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a billfold
container for carrying
charge and identity cards which is convenience to operate and can be operated
with one hand.
It is still yet another object of the present invention to provide a billfold
container
including means for carrying paper currency.
Other objects of this invention will appear in the following description and
appended
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claims reference being made to the accompanying drawings forming a part of the
specification
wherein like reference numerals designate corresponding parts in the several
views.
Figure 1 is a front top and side perspective elevation view of the billfold
container of the
present invention in the closed condition..
Figure 2 is a back bottom and side perspective elevation view thereof.
Figure 3 is a side perspective elevation view thereof.
Figure 4 is a side perspective elevation view of the billfold container in an
opened
condition.
Figure 5 is a top and side perspective elevation view of the billfold
container in the opened
condition showing its interior construction.
Figure 6 is an upside down top and side perspective elevation view thereof
showing the
interior construction.
Figure 7 is an exploded top and side perspective elevation view thereof
showing the
various components of the top halve of the billfold container.
Figure 8 is an exploded bottom and side perspective elevation view of thereof
showing the
various components of the lower panel frame of the bifold container.
Figure 9 is a perspective rear end elevation view of the hinge side of the
billfold container
according to the present invention.
Figure 10 is a partial cross sectional rear end elevation view along cross
sectional line X-X
of Figure 1 showing the construction of the hinge construction of the billfold
container according
to the present invention.
With reference to the drawings, the billfold container 10 of the present
invention consists
of a top housing 11 and a lower housing 12 mounted together with a hinge 13 so
that the
container can be opened and closed easily during use. The billfold container
10 may be made of a
plastic material, metal or similar material, and may have convenient overall
dimensions of 7.5 cm
by 11 cm by 1 cm similar to a common small wallet.
As best shown in Figure 5 and 7, the top housing 11 has a rectangular main
frame 14 with
an inner rectangular surrounding rim 15 formed on the outer side of the top
housing 11. The inner
edges of the inner rectangular surrounding rim 15 defines a rectangular outer
frame opening 16 of
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the top housing 11. A top enclosure panel 17 is located in the rectangular
frame 14 with its edge
portions abutting the rectangular shoulder 15 and enclosing the rectangular
outer frame opening
16 to form the enclosure top panel of the top housing 11. A shielding plate 18
made of a material
such as metal, metal alloy, or plastic impregnated with metal, having the
property of shielding
RFID or similar electronic transmission signals, is located on the top
enclosure panel 17. A top
mounting frame 19 having outer dimensions equal to the inner dimensions of the
inner dimensions
of the top housing 11, is located and secured to the inside of the top housing
11 for mounting the
top enclosure panel 17 and the top shielding plate 18 securely in the top
housing 11 such as by
screws 20, 21, 22, 23, 24 and 25 to the inner side wall of the top housing 14.
The top mounting
frame 19 preferably has an inner width of 5.3 cm which is equal to the width
of a conventional
charge card, a height of about 8.5cm, and a depth of about 0.3 cm such that a
stack of a plurality
of charge cards may be placed inside the top mounting frame 19 as best shown
in Figure 6..
The lower inner side wall 26 of the top mounting frame 19 slopes downwardly
and
outwardly from the shielding plate 18 towards the inner rim surface of the top
mounting frame 19
as best shown in Figure 7. Also, the upper inner side wall 27 of the top
mounting frame 19
preferably slopes upwardly and outwardly from the shielding plate 18 towards
the inner rim
surface of the top mounting frame 19. A plurality of transverse steps 28 are
formed on the sloping
lower inner side wall 26.
Two retaining arms 29 and 30 having a transverse L shape are provided on
opposite sides
and are located about the middle portion of the inner rim of the top mounting
frame 19. The
retaining arms 29 and 30 have an inner free edge extending in an overhanging
manner towards
one another so that charge cards may be inserted into the top mounting frame
19 under the
retaining arms 29 and 30 in a stack manner. When the lower edges of the charge
cards inserted
into the top mounting frame 19 would invariably abut separate transverse steps
28 in the
downwardly sloping inner side wall 26 so that the top edge portions of the
charge cards in the
stack would also invariably be exposed in a staggered manner to provide ready
identification of
the cards in the stack to facilitate easy selection of a particular charge
card in the stack. The
sloping upper inner side wall 27 of the top mounting frame 19 also facilitates
the card stack in the
top mounting frame 19 to be pushed forward in order that a selected charge
card may be removed
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easily from the stack.
Two torsion springs 31 and 32, which may have a generally C shape, are mounted
on the
opposite inner side walls of the top mounting frame 19 and preferably located
beneath the two
retaining arms 29 and 30 respectively. The springs 31 and 32 press against the
opposite sides of
the stack of charge cards in the top mounting frame 19 to maintain the stack
securely and neatly in
place.
The lower housing 12 has similar construction as the top housing 11. As best
shown in
Figure 8, it consists of a rectangular main frame 33 having a surrounding
inner rim 34 formed on
the outer side of the lower housing 12. The inner edges of the inner
rectangular surrounding rim
34 defines a rectangular bottom frame opening 35 of the lower housing 12. A
lower enclosure
panel 36 is located in the rectangular frame 33 with its outer edge portions
abutting the
rectangular rim 34 and enclosing the rectangular bottom frame opening 35 to
form the enclosure
bottom panel of the lower housing 12. A shielding plate 37 having the property
of shielding
electronic scanning waves such as RFLD is located on top of the lower
enclosure panel 36. A
lower mounting frame 38 having outer dimensions equal to the inner dimensions
of the lower
housing 12, is located and secured to the lower housing 12 for mounting the
lower enclosure
panel 36 and the shielding plate 37 in the lower housing 12. Screws 39, 40,
41, 42, 43 and 44 may
be employed for securing the lower mounting frame 38 to the rectangular frame
33 of the lower
housing 12. The opening of the lower mounting frame 38 also preferably has an
inner width of
5.3cm which is equal to the width of the conventional charge card, a height of
about 8.5cm, and a
depth of about 0.3cm such that a stack of a plurality of charge cards may be
placed inside the
opening of the lower mounting frame 33 as best shown in Figures 6 and 7. The
lower inner side
wall 45 of the lower mounting frame 33 slopes outwards and upwards from the
shielding plate 37
and the inner upper inner side wall 46 also slopes outwards and upwards from
the shielding plate
37, and a plurality of transverse steps 47 are formed on the inner lower side
wall. Therefore the
lower edges of cards placed in the lower mounting frame 38 will abut separate
transverse steps 47
in the lower inner side wall 45 such that an upper edge portion of the cards
will be exposed to
facilitate identification, selection and removal of a particular card during
use. The sloping upper
inner wall 46 also facilitates the easy removal of the card.
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Two retaining arms 48 and 49, preferably having a cross sectional L-shaped,
are provided
on the inner surface of the opposite sides of the lower mounting frame 38 and
are located
preferably just below the middle portion of the sides of the lower mounting
frame 38. The
retaining arms 48 and 49 have an inner free edge located in an overhanging
manner over the
opening of the lower mounting frame 38 for retaining the stack of charge cards
located within the
lower mounting frame 38.
Two torsion springs 50 and 51, which may have a C shape as shown, are mounted
on the
opposite side walls of the lower mounting frame 38 and preferably located
beneath the retaining
arms 48 and 49. The torsion springs 50 and 51 press against the opposite sides
of the stack of
charge cards in the lower mounting frame 33 to maintain the stack in a secure
and neat manner
within the lower mounting frame 33.
As best shown in Figure 10, the hinge construction of the billfold container
10 consists of
two upstanding extension base portions 52 and 53 formed at the two end
portions of the lower
housing 12. The extension base portions 52 and 53 are spaced from one another
by a space 54. A
through opening 55 is formed in the extension base portion 52 and a through
opening 56 is
formed in the extension base portion 53. A rear extension end portion 57 is
formed at the lower
middle portion of the top housing 11. A through opening 58 is formed in the
rear extension end
portion 54 of the top housing 11. A spring-loaded shaft 59 is located in the
through opening 58 of
the top housing 11. The shaft 59 has one enlarged end portion 60 at one end
and another enlarged
end portion 61 at the opposite end. The enlarged end portion 60 has a
rectangular end portion 62
and the enlarged end portion 61 has a similar rectangular end portion 63. An
adjusting pin 64 is
located in the through opening 55 of the extension base portion 52, and a
similar adjusting pin 65
is located in the through opening 58 of the extension base portion 53. The
adjusting pins 64 and
65 have a slot formed on their outer end surface and a bifurcated inner end
having two arms
spaced from one another in a distance equal to the width of the rectangular
end portions at the
ends of the shaft 59. The top housing 11 and the lower housing 12 are mounted
together with the
rear extension end portion 57 engaged with the middle portion of the space 54
of the lower
housing 12. The adjusting pins 64 and 65 are then inserted into the through
openings 55 and 56
respectively with their bifurcated inner ends engaged with the rectangular end
portions 62 and 63
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respectively. Thus, the top housing 10 and the lower housing 12 may be
pivotable with respect to
one another relative to the shaft 59 to an opened condition with the top
housing 10 located at an
obtuse angle position slightly larger than 90 degrees relative to the lower
housing 12. The spring
tension in the shaft 59 enables the top housing 10 and the lower housing 12 to
be pivoted with a
snap action to such opened condition with ease with a single hand operation.
The spring tension
also facilitates the top housing 10 and the lower housing 12 to be pivoted to
the close condition
juxtaposed to one another with a snap action. The angle of the opened
condition of the billfold
container 10 may be varied selectively by turning the adjusting pins 64 and 65
with a slot screw
driver engaging with the slots formed on their end surface portion. Once the
desired opening
position of the billfold container 10 has been adjusted, the opening position
may be fixed by
securing the adjusting pins 64 and 65 in place with set screws 66 and 67
provided at the extension
base portions 52 and 53 respectively of the lower housing 12.
A currency clip 68 may be mounted to the adjusting pins 64 and 65 exposed
through the
two spaces located between the end extension portion 57 of the top housing 11
and the extension
base portions 52 and 53 of the lower housing 12 such that the currency clip 68
will be positioned
in a raised angle position as best shown in Figures 4 and 5. The currency clip
68 may be generally
triangular in shape as shown and has a center pivotable spring arm 69 such
that a small amount of
paper currency in the folded condition may be held in the spring arm 69. The
raised angle position
of the currency clip 68 when the billfold is in the opened condition,
facilitates the easy removal of
the paper currency therefrom or placement of the paper currency thereto.
While the preferred embodiments of the invention have been described above. It
will be
recognized and understood that various modifications may be made therein and
the appended
claims are intended to cover all such modifications which may fall within the
spirit and scope of
the invention.
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