The present invention relates to a container particularly for sheets and the like.
As is known, drawing sheets and the like are currently contained by using envelopes inside which there is a stack of sheets which, in order to be used, have to be removed from the envelope and placed on a suitable supporting surface.
In this embodiment, therefore, the envelope cannot be used for example when one is drawing on the sheet.
Other known solutions provide a container, such as an album, which is provided with a back element that has corner portions that detachably retain a stack of sheets; there is also a cover element that is associated with the back and can be placed on top of the stack of sheets when said sheets do not need to be used.
This kind of solution allows to have a sheet retention element, but during the use of a sheet it is necessary to place the sheet on top of the stack of the remaining sheets, with obvious mutual damage problems.
Another problem is that usually these kinds of album do not allow to provide a good closure.
The aim of the present invention is to solve the above cited problems, by providing a container particularly for sheets and the like that allows to accommodate the stack of sheets correctly inside it and can also be used as an accessory when drawing on a sheet, without however producing mutual damage of the various sheets.
Within this aim, a particular object of the invention is to provide a container that allows to provide tidy containment of the various sheets, with the possibility for example to separate the drawn sheets from the unused ones.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a container particularly for sheets and the like that by way of its particular constructive characteristics is capable of giving the greatest assurances of reliability and safety in use.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a container that can be easily obtained starting from commonly commercially available elements and materials and is further competitive from a merely economical standpoint.
This aim and these and other objects that will become better apparent hereinafter are achieved by a container particularly for sheets and the like, as defined in claim 1.
Further characteristics and advantages will become better apparent from the description of a preferred but not exclusive embodiment of a container particularly for sheets and the like, illustrated only by way of non-limitative example in the accompanying drawings, wherein:
With reference to the figures, the container particularly for sheets and the like, according to the invention, generally designated by the reference numeral 1, comprises an envelope-like containment body 2, which in a per se conventional manner has a front face 3 and has, on the opposite face, folded flaps with a closure flap 4 that can be inserted, in the closure position, under the fixed flap 5.
Inside the containment body 2 it is possible to insert a stack of sheets 6, whose dimensions preferably match the dimensions of the containment body.
A first particularity of the invention is that on the outer surface of the front face 3 there are means for detachably retaining a sheet 6; in a preferred but not exclusive embodiment, such means are provided by way of slits 10, which are arranged at the corners and allow to insert the corners of the sheet 6, which is retained detachably.
Another particularity of the invention is that inside the containment body 2 it is possible to detachably insert a substantially rigid plate-like element 20, which is advantageously provided by means of a cardboard with a grammage of substantially 600 g/m2 and performs a dual function.
The plate-like element 20, which has substantially the same dimensions as the sheets 6, constitutes a stiffening element, which allows optimum support for the sheet 6 that is placed on the outer surface of the front face 3, so as to provide in practice an efficient supporting surface that allows easy use of the sheet, which can be constituted by a drawing sheet, a sheet of graph paper, or any other kind of sheet.
It should be noted that with this embodiment the sheet on which one works is separated from the remaining stack of sheets, which is arranged inside the envelope-like containment body which, by way of the presence of the plate-like element 20 inside it, constitutes a substantially rigid support.
Moreover, the plate-like element 20 can constitute a separator which forms, inside the envelope-like containment body, two separate regions that can be used for example to accommodate the sheets that have already been used and to accommodate the unused sheets 6.
With the above described arrangement, one thus obtains a container element which, while using particularly simple structural means, provides considerable functionality, because it allows to offer both an optimum element for accommodating sheets that are adequately protected, since they can be inserted in an envelope-like containment body, and because said envelope-like containment body allows to constitute a supporting tablet for the sheet on which one works, without said sheet being directly superimposed on the other sheets.
Another important aspect is that the substantially rigid plate-like element, in addition to acting as a supporting element, provides an efficient and low-cost separator inside the envelope-like containment body.
The invention thus conceived is susceptible of numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the inventive concept as defined by the claims.
All the details may further be replaced with other technically equivalent elements which fall within the scope of the claims.
In practice, the materials employed, so long as they are compatible with the specific use, as well as the contingent shapes and dimensions, may be any according to requirements.
This list of references cited by the applicant is for the reader's convenience only. It does not form part of the European patent document. Even though great care has been taken in compiling the references, errors or omissions cannot be excluded and the EPO disclaims all liability in this regard.