Abstract:
Disclosed is a decorative clip that firmly holds a greeting card with ease of removal and replacement. The clip is attached to a ribbon or elongated band by a connector that provides angular, vertical and lateral positioning of the top of the clip with respect to the package to adapt to the shape and size of the package. The present invention also includes a kit of components that can be sold as a unit as well as a method of assembling the components in three ways to provide the optimum versatility of the packaging to fit the size and shape of the package. One such kit is specifically disclosed for wrapping one of the most common gifts of a bottle of wine.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    Priority is claimed for U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/693,809 filed Aug. 28, 2012. 
     
    
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
       [0002]    Not Applicable 
       REFERENCE TO SEQUENCE LISTING, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING COMPACT DISC APPENDIX 
       [0003]    Not Applicable 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0004]    Good with odd shaped packages like wine bottles 
         [0005]    The most prevalent approach to gift wrapping today still utilizes a tag attached with a saliva wetted, one time sticker, a folded, pleated and wrinkled sheet of wrapping paper, shabbily torn transparent adhesive tape, corrugated ribbon and a little mound of ribbon loops with peel off adhesive that resembles a bow. This approach yields a gift with a tag that gets detached and separated from the package accompanied by a wrapper, ribbon and bow that are not reusable. The overall end result is generally unattractive, amateurish and cheap looking. Therefore, a need currently exists for a card holding device that is attractive, allows the greeting card to be easily removed, read and replaced and that is both professional looking and reusable. The needed packaging also stays professional looking and reusable because it is adaptable to the size and shape of the article. The present invention fulfills this need with a decoratively shaped card clip that allows the user to easily remove, read and replace the card and provides the wrapping materials that deliver a professional looking package that is well fitted to the object inside and is especially well suited for wrapping odd shapes and sizes. 
       PRIOR ART 
       [0006]    The following prior art exemplifies inventor&#39;s attempts to improve the state of the art outlined in the background section above and reveals how the prior art falls far short of the improvements of the present invention. 
         [0007]    U.S. Pat. No. 1,456,551 to Skapyak shows a card clip with a loop at the top that pivots providing flexible angular position of the card clip. However, Skapyak lacks a package wrapper, lacks a decorative card clip, has no connector, no elongated band, no bow, lacks a card clip with a vertically moveable pivot position and lacks choice of lateral clip movement, stationery clip position or clip removability with respect to the package. 
         [0008]    U.S. Pat. No. 2,455,399 to Botts shows a card clip with a loop at the top providing angular positioning of the card clip. However, Botts lacks a package wrapper, lacks a decorative card clip, has no connector, no elongated band, no bow, lacks a card clip with a vertically moveable pivot position and lacks choice of lateral clip movement, stationery clip position or clip removability with respect to the package. 
         [0009]    U.S. Pat No. D668,550 to Roumell shows a package wrapper and bow. However, Roumell lacks a decorative card clip with a loop at the top, has no connector, no elongated band, lacks card clip with vertically and angular moveable pivot position and lacks choice of lateral clip movement, stationery clip position or clip removability with respect to the package. 
         [0010]    U.S. Pat. No. D441,279 to Remar shows a package wrapper and bow. However, Remar lacks a decorative card clip with a loop at the top, has no connector, no elongated band, lacks a card clip with an angular and vertically moveable pivot position and lacks choice of lateral clip movement, stationery clip position or clip removability with respect to the package. 
         [0011]    U.S. Pat. No. 1,451,777 to Jobst shows a decorative spiral clip. However, Jobst lacks a package wrapper, lacks a loop at the top of the card clip, has no connector, no elongated band, and no bow, lacks angular and vertically moveable clip pivot position and lacks choice of lateral clip movement, stationery clip position or clip removability of the card clip with respect to the package. 
         [0012]    U.S. Pat. No. 3,633,253 to Ellis shows a clip connected to a connector and the connector attached to a tag. However, Ellis lacks a package wrapper, lacks a loop at the top of the card clip, has no elongated band, and no bow, lacks vertically moveable clip pivot position and lacks choice of lateral clip movement, stationery clip position or clip removability of the card clip with respect to the package. 
         [0013]    U.S. Pat. No. 7,509,765 to Flores shows a clip connected to a label. However, Flores lacks a package wrapper, lacks a loop at the top of a decorative card clip, has no elongated band, and no bow, lacks vertically moveable clip pivot position and lacks choice of lateral clip movement, stationery clip position or clip removability of the card clip with respect to the package. 
         [0000]    None of the prior art summarized above neither separately nor in combination teach any of the claimed combinations of the present invention. 
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0014]    The present invention includes a clip that attractively and gracefully holds the greeting card with ease of removal and replacement. The clip is attached to a ribbon or elongated band by a connector that provides both angular and vertical movement of the loop at the top of the clip as well as lateral clip movement, clip removability or stationary clip positioning with respect to the package. These features allow the present invention to adapt to the shape and size of the package and allows all of the components to lay flat for shipping. These features, also, make the present invention ideally suited for wrapping the odd shape of a wine bottle and the more conventional shape of a jewelry box. The present invention also includes a kit of components that can be sold as a unit as well as a method of assembling the components in three ways to provide the optimum versatility of the packaging to fit the size and shape of the package. 
         [0015]    The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a device, method and kit that provide a user with everything needed for an attractive, practical, versatile and reusable gift wrapping; 
         [0016]    A second primary objective of the present invention is to provide a greeting card clip that is both attractive, allows for easy removal and replacement of the card and is versatile to adapt to fastening to a variety of package sizes and shapes especially the more prestigious gifts of wine, jewelry and fragrance; 
         [0017]    Another objective of the present invention is to provide a ribbon and bow that play a part in the versatility of the device, method and kit; 
         [0018]    Still another objective of the invention is to provide a preformed wrapper that insures consistent visual effect and serviceability for the most inexperienced and uncoordinated user; 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING 
         [0019]      FIG. 1A  is an assembly drawing of a wine bottle wrapped and identified with the present invention; 
           [0020]      FIG. 1B  is a front view of the spiral card clip design of  FIG. 1A ; 
           [0021]      FIG. 1C  is a front view of an alternative triangular card clip design; 
           [0022]      FIG. 1D  is a front view of an alternative heart shaped card clip design; 
           [0023]      FIG. 2A  is a side view of a connector; 
           [0024]      FIG. 2B  is a side view of a first method of assembling the connector to the elongated band; 
           [0025]      FIG. 2C  is a side view of a second method of assembling the connector to the elongated band; 
           [0026]      FIG. 2D  is a side view of a third method of assembling the connector to the elongated band; 
           [0027]      FIGS. 2E and 2F  are front views of the first method of assembly of  FIG. 2B  with elongated bands of two widths; 
           [0028]      FIG. 2G  is a front view of the second method of assembly of  FIG. 2C ; 
           [0029]      FIG. 2H  is a front view of the third method of assembly of  FIG. 2D ; 
           [0030]      FIG. 2J  is a side view of the first method of assembly of  FIG. 2B  showing freedom of motion of the clip; 
           [0031]      FIG. 2K  is an assembly drawing of a small cubical package wrapped using the present invention; 
           [0032]      FIG. 2L  is an assembly drawing of a tall wine bottle wrapped using the present invention; 
           [0033]      FIG. 2M  is an assembly drawing of a large irregular shaped package wrapped using the present invention; 
           [0034]      FIG. 3A  is an illustration of the steps of method one of the present invention; 
           [0035]      FIG. 3B  is a block diagram of the steps of method one of the present invention: 
           [0036]      FIG. 4A  is an illustration of the steps of method two of the present invention; 
           [0037]      FIG. 4B  is a block diagram of the steps of method two of the present invention: 
           [0038]      FIG. 5A  is an illustration of the steps of method three of the present invention; 
           [0039]      FIG. 5B  is a block diagram of the steps of method three of the present invention 
           [0040]      FIG. 6  is a chart showing the degrees of freedom of positioning between the clip, connector and elongated band afforded by the three methods of assembly of  FIGS. 2B ,  2 C and  2 D; 
           [0041]      FIG. 7  is an exploded view of the kit of the present invention; 
           [0042]      FIG. 8  is a drawing of the instruction card of the kit of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0043]      FIG. 1A  shows an assembly of a wine bottle wrapped and identified using the present invention. The wine bottle  10  is shown in dotted lines and can include bottles with round bottoms and necks, square bottoms and round necks, rectangular bottoms and round necks or any other shape bottle that is on the market. The wrapper  11  is preferably a decorative bag however it can be a sheet, cylinder or any other preformed shape and can be opaque, transparent, glow in the dark or of any other optical quality. The bow is preferably a traditional shoe lace bow but may be of any material, size or shape. The elongate band  13  is preferably a cloth ribbon but may be of any material that is either just flexible but may be elastic or shrink with applied heat or any other material that is capable of being wrapped around the package. The decorative clip  14  at least requires sufficient winds of a thin resilient material to be deformed when a card is placed between the winds resulting in a card being held in place. The card  15  is there to identify the recipient and sender of a gift and convey a greeting requiring printing. The card  15  needs to be of sufficient stiffness that it will deform the thin resilient material of the clip resulting in the forces to hold the card in place. The card may be of any size, shape or number of plies. The connector  16  attaches the clip  14  to the elongated band  13 . Details of the connector  16  will be illustrated in  FIGS. 2A ,  2 B,  2 C and  2 D. The clip  14  may take many forms.  FIGS. 1A and 1B  show the clip  14  in a spiral form.  FIG. 1C  shows a triangular shaped clip  17  and  FIG. 1D  shows a heart shaped clip  18 . Clips of animals, holiday symbols, celestial objects, landmarks, vehicles, structures, signs and any number of other shapes are possible. All of the clips  14  have a loop at the top that interfaces with the connector  16  to attach the clip  14  to the elongated band  13 . 
         [0044]      FIG. 2A  shows a side view of a connector  16 . The connector  16  has a “D” shaped opening  21  with a single layer left side and two legs on the right hand side. The connector  16  is preferably made with height  23  of 0.5-1.0 inches and depth  22  of 0.38-0.5 inches.  FIG. 2B  is a side view of a first method of assembling the clip  14  with the top loop  19  to the connector  16  and subsequently inserting the elongated band  13  through the “D” shaped opening  21  of the connector  16 ;  FIG. 2C  is a side view of a second method of assembling the clip  14  with the top loop  19  to the connector  16  and subsequently inserting the elongated band  13  in between the two legs  20  of the connector  16 .  FIG. 2D  is a side view of a third method of assembling the clip  14  with the top loop  19  to the connector  16  and subsequently piercing the elongated band  13  with the tips of the two legs  20  of the connector  16 .  FIG. 2E  is a front view of the first method of assembling the clip  14  with the top loop  19  to the connector  16  and subsequently threading elongated band  13  through the “D” shaped opening  21  of the connector  16 .  FIG. 2F  is also a front view of the first method of assembling the clip  14  with the top loop  19  to the connector  16  and subsequently threading elongated band  13  through the “D” shaped opening  21  of the connector  16  except the elongated band  13  is narrower than the elongated band  13  of  FIG. 2E .  FIG. 2G  is a font view of a second method of assembling the clip  14  with the top loop  19  to the connector  16  and subsequently inserting the elongated band  13  in between the two legs  20  (un-shown) of the connector  16 .  FIG. 2H  is a front view of a third method of assembling the clip  14  with the top loop  19  to the connector  16  and subsequently piercing the elongated band  13  with the tips (un-shown) of the two legs  20  of the connector  16 .  FIG. 2J  is a side view of the connector  16  attached to the elongated band  13  and with the top loop  19  of the clip  14  inserted through the “D” shaped hole  21 . The four positions of clip  14  with respect to elongated band  13  exemplify the freedom of movement of the clip  14  that allows the present invention to lay flat on packages of various shapes and sizes. 
         [0045]      FIG. 2K  shows a cube shaped package in a wrapper  11  with a bow  12  card  15  and clip  18 . The clip takes a horizontal position when used under these circumstances.  FIG. 2L  shows a tall wine bottle shaped package in a wrapper  11  with a bow  12  card  15  and clip  14 . The clip takes a downward angled position when used under these circumstances.  FIG. 2M  shows a large irregularly shaped package with wrapper  11  with a bow  12  card  15  and clip  17 . The clip takes a close to horizontal position when used under these circumstances. 
         [0046]      FIG. 3A  is an illustration of the steps of the first method of assembling the present invention.  FIG. 3B  is a block diagram of the steps of the first method of assembling the present invention that start with step  301  where placing an object (bottle) to be wrapped in the wrapper (bag) to cover the object,  302  where scrunching the wrapper (bag) around object where elongated band will be placed (at neck of bottle),  303  where tying elongated band around object, now inside the bag, where it will be most advantageous to attach greeting card (at bottle neck),  304  where passing elongated band through center cavity of connector and sliding connector with its attached clip to front center of object thus locating it where it will be most advantageous to attach greeting card,  305  where tying elongated band into a decorative bow atop connector (clip dangles below bow), and  306  where sliding greeting card into clip so that front of card is displayed as part of overall gift wrapping asthetic. 
         [0047]      FIG. 4A  is an illustration of the steps of the second method of assembling the present invention.  FIG. 4B  is a block diagram of the steps of the second method of assembling the present invention that start with step  401  where tying elongated band around object, now inside wrapping paper, so that the object/gift is wrapped and secured with ribbon and a decorative bow is tied on top,  402  where sliding elongated band between two back legs of connector so that connector is securely clipped to elongated band,  403  where sliding connector (and clip) along elongated band to location best suited for greeting card display, and  404  where sliding greeting card into clip so that front of card is displayed as part of overall gift wrapping asthetic. 
         [0048]      FIG. 5A  is an illustration of the steps of the third method of assembling the present invention.  FIG. 5B  is a block diagram of the steps of the third method of assembling the present invention that start with step  501  where placing an object (bottle) to be wrapped in the wrapper (bag) to cover the object, and  502  where scrunching the wrapper (bag) around object where elongated band will be placed (at neck of bottle), and  503  where positioning elongated band with reattached connector and clip on object (now inside bag) where it will be most advantageous to attach greeting card (at bottle neck), and  504  where passing ends of elongated band to back of object/gift and bringing ends to front again while clip dangles in front prominent position on object, and  505  where tying elongated band into a decorative bow atop connector (clip dangles below bow), and  506  where sliding greeting card into clip so that front of card is displayed as part of overall gift wrapping asthetic. 
         [0049]      FIG. 6  is a summary chart that contrasts the capabilities of the three methods of assembling the components of the present invention. The three methods are represented in the columns of the chart and the packaging variables that are provided by the instant invention ore represented in the rows of the chart. 
         [0050]      FIG. 7  shows the components of the kit of the present invention with an example of the graphics that enhance the market appeal of the kit and attractiveness of the finished package. Shown is a wrapper  11  in the form of a bag for a bottle of wine, the elongate band is in the form of a lush ribbon  13 , the decorative clip  14  of  FIG. 1A  and  FIG. 1B  is fastened to elongated band  13  by connector  16  which has been preassembled to elongated band  13  using method three. An instruction card which is shown in detail in  FIG. 8  is the final component of the kit of  FIG. 7 . 
         [0051]      FIG. 8  is an example of an instruction card for wrapping a bottle of wine using the components of the kit shown in  FIG. 7 . Three easy steps and the bottle is fit for presentation to a special person.