Article storage system

A system for storing articles, particularly children's playthings, includes a substantially solid, substantially planar base sheet and one or more packets for holding articles detachably secured to the base sheet by Velcro fasteners. The base sheet has a plurality of grommets adjacent an upper edge for allowing the sheet and thereby the system to be mounted to another object. The base sheet may also be folded into a carrying case for transporting articles.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to a device for storing articles, 
particularly children playthings. The device of the present invention is 
portable, capable of being mounted to a house fixture or an object of 
furniture, and may be easily used by both adults and children. 
Systems for storing articles that can be mounted to wall, doors and the 
like are well known in the art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,918,670 to 
Doherty illustrates a rack for storing shoes which may be suspended from 
the upper edge of a door by hooks. U.S. Pat. No. 3,063,570 to Krener 
illustrates a holder for storing handbags. The holder comprises two 
parallel strips of tape fixed to a means for suspending the holder from a 
rod and a number of pockets extending between the tapes. The pockets are 
used to store individual handbags. 
U.S. Pat. No. 3,327,419 to Stanos illustrates a card display device having 
Velcro pieces for mounting a plurality of cards to a support strip. 
U.S. Pat. No. 3,116,773 to Kikas exemplifies a storage system in which two 
straps, each including a row of snap fasteners, are mounted to a planar 
surface such as a door. The storage system further includes a number of 
fabric bag compartments detachably mounted to the strips by the snap 
fasteners. Each of the compartments has a pocket open at one end and 
trimmed with elastic. 
None of the foregoing storage devices are designed either for children's 
playthings or for use by children. Many of these storage devices are also 
not designed to be transported while articles are stored in them. The use 
of open-ended pockets allows the contents to spill out--something which is 
undesirable when transporting articles such as crayons or building blocks. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a device 
for storing children's playthings. 
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a device as 
above which may be easily used by adults and children. 
It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a device 
as above which is portable and easily mountable to surfaces or objects. 
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a device as 
above which can be easily transported with articles stored therein. 
These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become 
clearer from the following description and drawings in which like 
reference numerals depict like elements. 
The storage device of the present invention is specifically designed for 
the storage of children's playthings, although it may also be used to 
store other articles. The device has a substantially solid, substantially 
planar base sheet formed from a flexible material, preferably clear vinyl 
plastic. The base sheet has a number of Velcro strips extending in a 
longitudinal direction to which a series of packets for storing articles 
can be attached. The base sheet also has a number of grommets at one end 
which allow the storage device to be suspended from hooks. 
Each of the packets for storing the articles is formed from the same 
material as the base sheet. The packets have a strip of Velcro material 
extending across a back surface for allowing the packet to be detachably 
mounted to the base sheet at any desired location. In a preferred 
embodiment, the packet includes a sealing flap for closing the packet and 
means for securing the flap in a closed position. 
The base sheet further includes a Velcro strip adjacent its lower edge. The 
Velcro strip allows the base sheet with one or more packets mounted 
thereto to be folded into a carrying case. The base sheet also has a 
handle attached to it for facilitating transport of the storage device 
when it is formed into a carrying case.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
The article storage device of the present invention will now be discussed 
with reference to the figures. While the invention will be discussed in 
the context of a device for storing children's playthings, it should be 
recognized that it may in actuality be used to store other articles such 
as clothing, books, etc. 
The storage device 10 includes a substantially solid, substantially planar 
base sheet 12 formed from a flexible material such as canvas, cloth or 
plastic. In a preferred embodiment, the sheet 12 is formed from a clear, 
see through vinyl plastic. 
The sheet 12 may have any desired shape, any desired length L and any 
desired width. Preferably, the sheet has a substantially rectangular shape 
as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. 
A series of brass grommets 14 are positioned in the base sheet 12 adjacent 
an upper edge 16. In this area, the material forming the base sheet is 
folded over and stitched together for increased strength. If desired, a 
strip of vinyl reinforcement material may be provided for added strength 
to hold the grommets 14. 
The grommets 14 allow the base sheet to be suspended from hooks mounted to 
a support such as a wall or a door. The grommets also allow other types of 
mounting arrangements to be used with the storage device 10. For example, 
a hook or hanger (not shown) joined to a piece of cloth, a chain, or a 
ribbon may be secured to the base sheet by passing an end of the cloth or 
ribbon through one or more of the grommets 14 and forming a suitable knot 
in the end. Alternatively, a mounting device such as a hanger may be 
connected by a hook which engages the eye of the grommet and a length of 
chain. If desired, the central grommet may be replaced by a dowel support. 
The base sheet 12 further includes a number of longitudinally extending 
strips 18 attached to a first or front surface 20 of the sheet 12. The 
strips 18 substantially extend from the upper edge 16 to the lower edge 22 
of the sheet 12. They may be mounted to the sheet material in any suitable 
manner. For example, each strip 18 may be stitched to the sheet material. 
Alternatively, each strip 18 may be glued to the sheet material. 
The strips 18, as will be discussed in more detail hereinafter, serve to 
secure one or more packets 24 to the base sheet 12. Preferably, each of 
the strips 18 has an adhesive surface 26 formed by Velcro fasteners. While 
the base sheet 12 has been illustrated as having four longitudinally 
extending strips 18, it should be recognized that any number of strips can 
be provided. For example, the sheet 12 may have only two longitudinally 
extending strips 18. 
The sheet 12 further has adhesive strip 30 attached to it adjacent a lower 
portion. The strip 30 extends substantially perpendicular to the strips 18 
and is secured to a rear face of the sheet, at a desired distance from the 
upper edge 16. When the sheet 12 is folded to form the carrying case shown 
in FIG. 7, the adhesive surface of an upper portion of each strip 18 
contacts the adhesive surface of strip 30 and holds the base sheet in a 
closed and folded position. 
In a preferred embodiment, strip 30 is a Velcro strip. As before, strip 30 
may be secured to the base sheet in any suitable manner known in the art, 
i.e., gluing, stitching, etc. 
A handle 32 can also be provided on the rear face of the sheet 12 to 
facilitate carrying the device when it is in a folded position. The handle 
32 may comprise a fabric strip affixed to the sheet 12 and positioned 
approximately 2" from the upper edge 16. 
A binding 34 may be provided around the periphery of the base sheet 12. The 
binding 34 may comprise a piece of material such as canvas stitched to the 
periphery of the sheet. The binding 34 serves to reinforce the edges of 
the base sheet and improve the aesthetic appearance of the device 10. 
As previously mentioned the sheet 12 may come in a variety of sizes. For 
example, the sheet 12 may be 15" in length.times.18" in width; or 30" in 
length.times.18" in width; or 45" in length.times.18" in width; or 60" in 
length .times.18" in width. 
The packets 24 each comprise a detachable envelope for storing children's 
playthings and the like. Each packet 24 comprises a storage compartment 
defined by the inner surface of a rear wall 42 and a front wall 40. The 
packet has an access opening adjacent an upper edge of the front wall 40. 
Each packet further has an integral flap 44 for sealing the opening and 
the envelope. The flap 44 is formed integrally with the rear wall. 
A strip 46 of adhesive material, e.g., a Velcro strip, is affixed to the 
outer surface of the rear wall 42. The strip 46 runs substantially the 
entire width of the packet 24 and is used to secure the packet to the base 
sheet 12 via the strips 18. Preferably, the strip 46 extends in a 
direction substantially perpendicular to the strips 18 when the packet is 
affixed to the sheet and is positioned in an upper portion of the packet 
24. 
The packet 24 further includes strips 48 of adhesive material for sealing 
the flap 44 against the exterior surface of the front wall 42. The strips 
48 are preferably positioned adjacent each side edge of the envelope and 
on mating portions of the flap 44. The strips 48 may also be formed from 
Velcro material. 
The packets may have any desired width, length and shape. For example, the 
packets 24 may take the form of the envelope shown in FIG. 4 or may be 
square in shape. The packets 24 may have a width which is just less than 
the width of the sheet 12 or may have a width which is a fraction of the 
sheet width, e.g., 1/2 width. 
A binding 50 is placed along edge portions of the packet 24. The binding 
may be formed from a cloth fabric or canvas and stitched to the packet 24. 
The binding 50 serves to strengthen the edges of the packet 50 as well as 
improve its aesthetic appearance. 
The packet 24 itself may be formed from a wide range of materials. 
Preferably, it is formed from the same material as the sheet 12. Thus, in 
a preferred embodiment, each packet 24 is formed from a clear, see-through 
vinyl. 
Two or more packets 24 of identical sizes may be mounted to the base sheet 
12 as shown in FIG. 1 to form an article storage device. If desired, the 
packets 24 may be mounted to the base sheet so that one packet overlaps an 
adjacent packet. 
Alternatively, packets of different sizes may be mounted to the sheet. For 
example, the storage device may have a full size packet 24 and two 
half-size packets 24' mounted to the base sheet 12 as shown in FIG. 8. In 
another arrangement, the storage device may have a full size packet 24 and 
a centrally positioned half-size 24' packet as shown in FIG. 9. 
The packet 24 may be used to store any number of objects. For example, the 
packets may be used to store crayons, animal figures, puzzles, books, toy 
blocks, etc. They can be easily removed from the base sheet merely by 
pulling the packet with sufficient force to release the Velcro fasteners. 
This allows children to take playthings in individual packets with them 
without taking the remaining packets and/or the base sheet. 
While the packets 24 has been shown having Velcro fasteners to seal the 
flap 44, it should be recognized that the Velcro fasteners could be 
replaced by other fasteners such as snaps, zippers, or the like. 
It can be seen from the foregoing discussion that a novel and unique 
article storage device has been described. The device can be used by 
either adults or children. It is portable and yet able to be easily 
mounted to a support structure. Still further, the device may be folded 
into a case for carrying the stored articles. 
The device has the further advantage that the packets may be individually 
removed from the storage system, used separately, and later replaced. 
Still further, different dimensioned and different color accent packets 
can be used with a single base sheet. 
While each packet 24 is mounted to the longitudinally extending strips 18 
by a single substantially horizontally extending strip 46, it should be 
recognized that more than one strip 46 may be employed if desired. 
In a variation of the present invention, the system may include more than 
one base sheet. The base sheets may be joined together in any desirable 
manner. For example, one base sheet may be joined to another base sheet by 
strips of Velcro affixed to each sheet adjacent upper and lower edges 
thereof. Similarly, two base sheets may be joined together side by side by 
strips of Velcro affixed to the side edges of each sheet. 
It is apparent that there has been provided in accordance with this 
invention an article storage system which fully satisfies the objects, 
means, and advantages set forth hereinbefore. While the invention has been 
described in combination with specific embodiments thereof, it is evident 
that many alternatives, modifications, and variations will be apparent to 
those skilled in the art in light of the foregoing description. 
Accordingly, it is intended to embrace all such alternatives, 
modifications, and variations as fall within the spirit and broad scope of 
the appended claims.