Abstract:
A copy safe binder is disclosed. The binder includes a cover member including a coupling flap and a cover panel linked by a first fold line. The binder further includes a coupling member associated with the coupling flap for attaching loose sheets thereto. The cover panel is provided with a security strip secured to the cover panel adjacent to the fold line for preventing access to the coupling member for the removal of loose sheets from the binder without destroying a fully assembled binder.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The invention relates to a binder for loose sheets of paper. More particularly, the invention relates to a binder designed to prevent the removal and unauthorized copying of bound documents. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     Unauthorized copying of documents is a problem which costs those in the document preparation business great sums of money. For example, stenography services are often used to transcribe legal proceedings, for example, depositions, court room arguments, meetings, etc. In addition to charging for the service of simply transcribing the proceedings, stenography services are also in the business of providing transcripts of the transcribed proceedings. In fact, most stenography services retain the rights to the transcribed materials and require that the customer purchase additional copies from the service. 
     While such an arrangement allows the stenography services to make additional money, it also helps those involved with the legal proceeding to maintain the integrity of the voluminous records developed during a legal proceeding. Specifically, when copies of transcripts are purchased directly from the stenography service, these copies are certified as true and accurate recordings of the original proceedings. When these transcripts are unbound and copied, papers are often lost and the integrity of the file is destroyed. 
     Unfortunately, many individuals involved with legal proceedings simply order a single copy of the transcript, copy it, and retain the original copy for court submission purposes. As discussed above, this often leads to inaccuracies and lost integrity of the files relating to the legal action, as well as lost income to the service that created the transcript. The cost for recreating such files greatly surpasses the simple cost of maintaining an integrally bound transcript and purchasing additional copies from the stenography service. 
     As such, a need exists for a binding system which allows simple binding of loose papers while also ensuring the integrity of the transcript by preventing the unauthorized removal and copying of the bound transcript. The present invention provides such a binding system. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a copy safe binder. The binder includes a cover member including a coupling flap and a cover panel linked by a first fold line. The binder further includes a coupling member associated with the coupling flap for attaching loose sheets thereto. The cover panel is provided with a security strip secured to the cover panel adjacent to the fold line for preventing access to the coupling member for the removal of loose sheets from the binder without destroying a fully assembled binder. 
     It is also an object of the present invention to provide a binder wherein the cover member is a rear cover member, the coupling flap is a rear coupling flap and the cover panel is a rear cover panel. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a binder including a front cover member having a front coupling flap and a front cover panel linked by a second fold line, wherein the coupling member binds loose sheets between the front cover member and the rear cover member. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to provide a binder wherein the coupling member includes a first coupling member associated with the front coupling flap and a second coupling member associated with the rear coupling flap. 
     It is also an object of the present invention to provide a binder wherein the first coupling member is at least one prong extending from the front coupling member and the second coupling member is at least one aperture formed in the rear coupling flap for receipt of the at least one prong. The at least one prong and the at least one aperture cooperate to secure loose sheets between the front cover member and the rear cover member. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a binder wherein the security strip is an adhesive strip adapted for attachment to the coupling flap for preventing access to the coupling member for the removal of loose sheets from the binder without destroying a fully assembled binder. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to provide a binder wherein the coupling member includes a first coupling member associated with the front coupling flap and a second coupling member associated with the rear coupling flap, and the adhesive strip secures the rear coupling flap to the rear cover panel for preventing access to the first coupling member for the removal of loose sheets from the binder without destroying a fully assembled binder. 
     It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a binder wherein the cover member, coupling flap and cover panel each include an interior surface and an exterior surface, and the adhesive strip is attached to the interior surface of the cover panel. 
     It is also an object of the present invention to provide a method for binding loose sheets within a binder. The method comprises the steps of binding loose sheets within the binder and bonding the cover panel to the coupling flap to prevent access to the coupling member for preventing the removal of loose sheets from the binder without destroying a fully assembled binder. 
     Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description when viewed in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which set forth certain embodiments of the invention. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the assembled binder in accordance with the present invention. 
     FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the present binder. 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the binder partially assembled with the adhesive strip unattached. 
     FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of the binder partially assembled with the adhesive strip unattached. 
     FIG. 5 is a cross sectional view of the fully assembled binder. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     The detailed embodiment of the present invention is disclosed herein. It should be understood, however, that the disclosed embodiment is merely exemplary of the invention, which may be embodied in various forms. Therefore, the details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limited, but merely as the basis for the claims and as a basis for teaching one skilled in the art how to make and/or use the invention. 
     With reference to FIGS. 1 to  5 , a copy safe binder  10  in accordance with the present invention is disclosed. The binder  10  is substantially similar to traditional prong/tab binding systems. As such, the binder  10  includes a front cover member  12  and a rear cover member  14 . The front cover member  12  is provided with a front panel  16  and an integral front coupling flap  18 . The rear cover member  14  is similar provided with a rear panel  20  and an integral rear coupling flap  22 . For reasons that will be better appreciated from the following disclosure, the front and rear cover members  12 ,  14  are substantially the same size, although variations in their size and shape may be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. 
     The front cover member  12  includes an exterior surface  24  and an interior surface  26 . The rear cover member  14  also includes an exterior surface  28  and an interior surface  30 . In practice, the front coupling flap  18  and the rear coupling flap  22  are folded along respective fold lines  32 ,  34  on the front and rear cover members  12 ,  14  such that their exterior surfaces  24   f ,  28   f  meet to form a standard binder in which loose sheets  36  may be placed. When the binder  10  is coupled in this manner, the front panel  16  and the rear panel  20  cover the bound loosed sheets  36 , while the front coupling flap  18  and the rear coupling flap  22  bind the loose sheets within the binder. 
     With this in mind, the front coupling flap  18  is shaped and dimensioned for attachment with the rear coupling flap  22 . The front coupling flap  18  includes a plurality of prongs  38  spaced for receipt within apertures  40  formed in the rear coupling flap  22 . In accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the front coupling flap  18  is provided with three equally spaced prongs  38  and the rear coupling flap  22  is provided with three similarly spaced apertures  40 . However, other binding arrangements may be employed without departing from the spirit of the present invention. 
     In use, the prongs  38  are passed through the apertures found in the loose sheets  36  to be bound. The exterior surface  24   f  of the front coupling flap  18  and the exterior surface  28   f  of the rear coupling flap  22  are then brought together with the loose sheets  36  therebetween. As the front coupling flap  18  and the rear coupling flap  22  are brought together, the prongs  38  of the front coupling flap  18  are passed through the apertures  40  in the rear coupling flap  22 , and the exterior surfaces  24   f ,  28   f  of the front and rear coupling flaps  18 ,  22  are pushed together to secure the loose sheets  36  therebetween. Once the loose sheets  36  are properly aligned, the prongs  38  may be bent over to securely coupled the front coupling flap  18 , and the front cover member  12 , to the rear coupling flap  22 , and the rear cover member  14  (see FIGS.  3  and  4 ). 
     Prevention of the unauthorized removal and copying of the bound loose sheets is achieved by the inclusion of an adhesive strip  42 , or security strip, on the rear cover member  14 . A release strip  44  covers the adhesive strip  42  until it is desired to secure the interior surface  30   f  of the rear coupling flap  22  to the adhesive strip  42 . When it is desired to seal the binder  10 , the release strip  44  is removed and the adhesive strip  42  is brought in contact with rear coupling flap  22  (see FIG.  5 ). 
     Specifically, and with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3, the adhesive strip  42  is positioned along the interior surface  30   p  of the rear cover panel  20  adjacent the fold line  34  for the rear coupling flap  22 . As such, the adhesive strip  42  is positioned to engage the interior surface  30   f  of the rear coupling flap  22  and the prongs  38  when the rear coupling flap  22  is folded down after attachment of the loose sheets  36  between the front and rear cover members  12 ,  14 . Once the adhesive strip  42  securely engages the interior surface  30   f  of the rear coupling flap  22 , ready access to the prongs  38  is prevented and it is impossible to remove the bound loose sheets  36  without destroying the fully assembled binder  10 . 
     With reference to FIGS. 2 to  5 , a stack of loose sheets  36  is bound in the following manner. First, and as discussed above, the prongs  38  of the front coupling flap  18  are passed through apertures found in the loose sheets  36  to be bound. The exterior surface  24   f  of the front coupling flap  18  and the exterior surface  28   f  of the rear coupling flap  22  are then brought together with the loose sheets  36  therebetween, and the prongs  38  of the front coupling flap  18  are passed through the apertures  40  in the rear coupling flap  22 . The prongs  38  are then bent over to securely coupled the front coupling flap  18  to the rear coupling flap  22 . The release strip  44  is then removed to expose the adhesive strip  42 . The binder  10  is then folded along the front fold line  32  and the rear fold line  34 , bringing the adhesive strip  42  into contact with the interior surface  30   f  of the rear coupling flap  22 . 
     Attachment of the adhesive strip  42  to the interior surface  30   f  of the rear coupling flap  22  binds the interior surface  30   f  of the rear coupling flap  22  to the interior surface  30   p  of the rear cover panel  20 . In this way, the prongs  38  are covered between the rear coupling flap  22  and the rear cover panel  20 . As such, the bound loose sheets  36  may not be removed without destroying the fully assembled binder  10 . This arrangement prevents individuals from removing loose sheets  36  from a bound transcript for copying, and ultimately ensures the integrity of the bound transcript, or other document. 
     With this in mind, the binder  10  is preferably provided with a notice  46  indicating that the binder  10  has been tampered with if the seal between the interior surface  30   f  of the rear coupling flap  22  and the interior surface  30   p  of the cover panel  20  is broken in anyway. For example, the notice  46  might state “This transcript cover has been sealed to protect the transcript&#39;s integrity. Breaking the seal will void the reporter&#39;s certification page. To purchase a copy of this transcript, please call the phone number listed on the bottom of the transcript page” . While such a notice is employed with the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the notice may be varied, or no notice may be included, without departing from the spirit of the present invention. 
     While the preferred embodiment has been shown and described, it will be understood that there is no intent to limit the invention by such disclosure, but rather, is intended to cover all modifications and alternate constructions falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.