A case storing therein a commodity is made to be only difficultly opened, so that a theft of only the commodity inside the case is prevented. Around a case storing therein a commodity, a blocking member for preventing the case from being opened is slidably fitted thereon. The case is provided with a locking pawl that is caught by the blocking member and is able to be thrust inward, so that the blocking member is mounted to the case while being unable to slide by an engagement between the blocking member and the locking pawl of the case. With this arrangement, the case is made to be only difficultly opened so as to prevent the occurrence of a theft unless the blocking member is removed.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
The present invention relates to a commodity antitheft implement for 
preventing a commodity stored in a case from being taken out of the case 
and individually stolen from rental shops of video cassettes, compact 
discs and the like, shops having a variety of commodities, and so forth. 
2. Description of the Prior Art 
In rental shops for video cassettes, compact discs and the like, each 
commodity is displayed as stored in a case on which its title and so forth 
are shown. 
In such rental shops, the displayed commodities are possibly stolen. 
Therefore, lately, many shops adopt an antitheft system that is effected 
by attaching a sensing material such as a magnetic tape to each case, and 
when a person brings a commodity to the counter pretending to rent it but 
tries to carry away the commodity including the case without going through 
the regular rental procedure, the antitheft sensor operates at the exit. 
However, despite the provision of such an antitheft system, there are still 
misdirected persons, who have an eye on the fact that no sensing material 
such as the magnetic tape is attached to the commodity itself stored in 
the case, who then takes the commodity out of the case and makes off with 
it in a pocket or the like. 
If a long time or much labor is required for taking the commodity out of 
the case, even such a misdirected person will give up taking the commodity 
out of the case, according to the mentality of the misdirected person, 
because there is a great probability that the person will be noticed by a 
clerk. 
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION 
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a 
commodity antitheft implement which requires a long time or much labor for 
opening a case in order to prevent a commodity stored in the case from 
being stolen. 
A further object of the present invention is to provide a commodity 
antitheft implement capable of confirming without hindrance the title and 
the like shown on the case with the commodity put in the case. 
Another object of the present invention is to provide a commodity antitheft 
implement capable of being opened without hindrance when renting the 
commodity and assuring repetitive use thereof. 
The above and other objects of the present invention will be understood 
more in detail from the following description with reference to the 
accompanying drawings showing illustrative examples.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
A commodity antitheft implement according to a first embodiment as shown in 
FIGS. 1 through 5 has a construction in which a case 1 is enclosed by a 
blocking member 2 which prevents the case 1 from being opened as slidably 
fitted onto the case 1. It is provided with a locking pawl 3 which is 
caught by the blocking member 2 and is able to be thrust inwardly of the 
blocking member 2, thereby allowing the blocking member 2 to be mounted to 
the case 1 while being unable to slide in the sliding direction. 
The blocking member 2 constituting the commodity antitheft implement of the 
first embodiment is, as shown in an expanded plan view of FIG. 1, formed 
into a sectionally rectangular flat pipe shape by an upper wall 4, a lower 
wall 5, and side or end walls 6 and 7, and is opened at both its ends. A 
plurality of through holes 8 are formed at regular intervals at upper 
edges of both the end walls 6 and 7. The blocking member 2 is fitted onto 
the case 1 so that both the side walls 6 and 7 are superposed on both end 
walls 9 and 10 of the case 1, the end walls being able to be opened and 
closed. The lower wall 5 and a side wall 7 are connected with each other 
via an overlap width. 
On the other hand, the case 1 is constructed as shown in FIG. 2, where both 
the end walls 9 and 10 are provided while being able to be opened and 
closed at both ends of its barrel portion, having a sectionally 
rectangular pipe shape constituted by an upper wall 11, a lower wall 12 
and side walls 13 and 14. At both edges of the upper wall 11, there are 
provided a plurality of locking pawls 3 which are to be caught in the 
through holes 8 of the blocking member 2 from the inside and protrude 
outwardly at their tip ends in correspondence with the through holes 8 of 
the blocking member 2. 
It is to be noted that a reference numeral 19 denotes an engagement tab to 
be engaged with an engagement hole 20 provided at the end wall 10, while a 
reference numeral 21 denotes a fold flap to be folded inwardly on an 
internal surface of the upper wall 11. 
The locking pawls 3 are formed so that they can be thrust inwardly of the 
blocking member 2. As a means for enabling the locking pawls 3 to be 
thrust inwardly of the blocking member 2, there can be adopted a method of 
forming the case 1 with an elastic material, a method of forming a 
U-shaped slit on the inner side of each locking pawl 3 of the upper wall 
11 of the case 1, thereby allowing each locking pawl 3 to easily bend 
inward, or a method of forming a plurality of parallel bending lines or an 
elongated hole in a center portion of the upper wall 11 in the lengthwise 
direction of the case 1, thereby allowing the upper wall 11 itself to bend 
when the locking pawls 3 are inserted. 
One of both side edges of each locking pawl 3 to be caught in each through 
hole 8 of the blocking member 2 is formed into an inclined edge 15 so that 
the blocking member 2 can be slid onto the case 1 in one direction, while 
the other side edge is formed into a perpendicular edge 16 so as to 
prevent the blocking member 2 from sliding in the opposite direction. 
Further, at both side edges of the upper wall 11 of the case 1 is formed a 
stopper 17 which stops the slide of the blocking member 2, arranged 
adjacent to the locking pawl 3 located at the end position in the sliding 
direction of the blocking member 2. 
The through holes 8 and the locking pawls 3 may be formed on only one side 
of the blocking member 2 and the case 1. 
Furthermore, it is preferable to form the blocking member 2 with a 
transparent synthetic resin material so that a title and the like on the 
case 1 can be seen with the blocking member 2 mounted on the case 1. 
When using the blocking member 2 of the first embodiment, the blocking 
member 2 is mounted onto the case 1 in a manner as follows. 
When sliding the blocking member 2 on the case 1 until the end portion of 
the blocking member 2 abuts against the stopper 17 of the case 1, the 
locking pawls 3 of the case 1 are caught in the through holes 8 of the 
blocking member 2 in a manner as shown in FIG. 4, where the blocking 
member 2 does not slide in either direction. 
Therefore, when taking the commodity out of the case 1, it is required to 
firstly thrust the locking pawls 3 of the case 1 inwardly of the blocking 
member 2 and then slide the blocking member 2. Thus the blocking member 2 
cannot be easily removed. 
Furthermore, according to the first embodiment, at both side edges of the 
upper wall 4 of the blocking member 2, there are formed thrust preventing 
flaps 18 which protrude outwardly over the locking pawls 3 in a state in 
which the blocking member 2 is mounted on the case 1 with the locking 
pawls 3 of the case 1 caught in the through holes 8 of the blocking member 
2. 
When the thrust preventing flaps 18 are formed, if it is tried to thrust 
the locking pawls 3 inward by pushing them against a table or the like 
with the locking pawls 3 of the case 1 caught in the through holes 8 of 
the blocking member 2, the thrust preventing flaps 18 stretch against the 
table or the like to prevent the locking pawls 3 from being thrust 
inwardly of the blocking member 2, thereby assuring a further improved 
antitheft effect. 
When removing the blocking member 2 from the case 1, as shown in the order 
of FIGS. 5(a), (b) and (c), it is proper to insert an unlocking tool A 
having a bracket-like sectional shape between the case 1 and the blocking 
member 2 to thrust the locking pawl 3 of the case 1 inwardly of the 
blocking member 2, and pull out the blocking member 2 together with the 
unlocking tool A. 
Next, a commodity antitheft implement according to a second embodiment is 
shown in FIGS. 6 through 13. A blocking member 2 encloses a case 1 for 
storing a commodity so as to prevent the case 1 from being opened as 
slidably fitted on the case 1. A slide preventing member 21 has a locking 
pawl 3 to be caught by the blocking member 2 and is mounted to the case 1 
while being unable to slide in the sliding direction of the blocking 
member 2 with respect to the case 1. 
The blocking member 2 of the second embodiment is formed into a sectionally 
rectangular pipe shape whose both ends are opened, while a plurality of 
through holes 8 are formed at one side surface. 
On the other hand, the slide preventing member 21 is constituted by a 
plate-shaped body to be inserted into the sectionally rectangular flat 
pipe-shaped blocking member 2. Its one side is formed with a plurality of 
locking pawls 3 which are to be caught in the through holes 8 of the 
blocking member 2 from the inside and protrude outwardly at their tip ends 
in correspondence with the through holes 8 of the blocking member 2. 
The locking pawls 3 are formed so that they can be thrust into the blocking 
member 2. As means for enabling the locking pawls 3 to enter into the 
blocking member 2, there is a method of forming a U-shaped slit 22 on the 
inner side of each locking pawl 3 in the plate body that constitutes the 
slide preventing member 21, thereby allowing each locking pawl 3 to easily 
bend inward as shown in FIG. 7, a method of forming a plurality of 
parallel bending lines 23 (FIG. 8), an elongated hole 24 in a center 
portion of the plate body in its lengthwise direction thereby allowing the 
plate body itself to bend when the locking pawls 3 are inserted (FIG.9), 
and a method of forming the plate body constituting the locking pawl 3 
with a material which has an elasticity and is able to be thrust inward. 
One of both side edges of each locking pawl 3 to be caught in each through 
hole 8 of the blocking member 2 is formed into an inclined edge 25 so that 
the blocking member 2 can be slid onto the slide preventing member 21 in 
one direction. The other side edge is formed into a perpendicular edge 26 
so as to prevent the blocking member 2 from sliding in the opposite 
direction. Further, the slide preventing member 21 is formed with a 
stopper 27 which stops the slide of the blocking member 2 as arranged 
adjacent to the locking pawl 3 located at the end position in the sliding 
direction of the blocking member 2. 
The through holes 8 and the locking pawls 3 may be formed on both sides of 
the blocking member 2 and the slide preventing member 21. 
Furthermore, it is preferable to form the blocking member 2 and the slide 
preventing member 21 with a transparent synthetic resin material so that a 
title and the like on the case 1 can be seen with the members mounted on 
the case 1. 
When using the blocking member 2 and the slide preventing member 21 of the 
second embodiment, the slide preventing member 21 is mounted onto the case 
1 in a manner as follows. 
In an example as shown in FIG. 10, the slide preventing member 21 is 
superposed on the outer surface of the case 1, and a sheet 28 is mounted 
onto the case 1, wrapped around the case 1 in a state in which the locking 
pawls 3 of the slide preventing member 21 protrude sideward. Overlapped 
portions of the sheet 28 are connected with each other by an adhesive 29 
coated on a rear surface of its end portion. Further, the overlapped 
portions of the sheet 28 are located inside the blocking member 2 when the 
blocking member 2 is fit thereon. 
After the slide preventing member 21 is thus mounted to the case 1, by 
fitting the blocking member 2 onto the case 1 in a sliding manner until 
the end portion of the blocking member 2 abuts against the stopper 27 of 
the slide preventing member 21, the locking pawls 3 of the slide 
preventing member 21 are caught in the through holes 8 of the blocking 
member 2. Thus the blocking member 2 does not slide in either direction, 
as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12. 
Therefore, when taking out the commodity inside the case 1, it is required 
to thrust the locking pawls 3 of the slide preventing member 21 inwardly 
of the blocking member 2 and then slide the blocking member 2. Thus the 
blocking member 2 cannot be easily removed. 
FIG. 13 shows another example of mounting the slide preventing member 21 of 
the second embodiment to the case 1. In this example, the case 1 is 
comprised of a case body 30 having a commodity storing section on its 
upper surface and a paper cover 31 for covering the case body 30. The 
paper cover 31 is formed of a front paper cover and a rear paper cover. 
The case body 30 is bonded to an inner surface of one rear paper cover 
constituting the cover 31. Then, the case 1 is covered with a cover 32 
that is formed with pocket portions 33 and 34 provided on both sides. The 
slide preventing member 21 has its one end portion inserted into the 
pocket portion 33 of the cover 32 into which the front paper cover is 
inserted so that it is superposed on an inner surface of the other front 
paper cover of the paper cover 31. 
A third embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 14(a) and (b), is an example to be 
used when the case 1 is stored in a pocket cover 36 which has a closing 
flap 35 at its opening portion as shown in FIG. 15. The slide preventing 
member 21 of this example is provided continuously with an insert member 
38 via two parallel bending lines 37 at its one end. The slide preventing 
member 21 is mounted to the case 1 in a manner as shown in FIG. 15 by 
opening the closing flap 35, inserting the insert member 38 between the 
pocket cover 36 and the case 1, superposing the slide preventing member 21 
on the outer surface of the pocket cover 36, and then superposing the 
closing flap 35 of the pocket cover 36 on the outer surface of the slide 
preventing member 21. It is to be noted that an inner surface of the 
closing flap 35 is coated with an adhesive 39. 
Next, FIGS. 16(a) and (b) show a fourth embodiment having a varied way of 
mounting the slide preventing member 21 to the case 1. According to the 
present embodiment, the slide preventing member 21 is comprised of a rear 
plate 40 to be superposed on the rear surface of the case 1, and a front 
plate 42 which is provided continuously therefrom at both ends of the rear 
plate each via respective two bending lines 41 and has an overlapped 
portion on the front side of the case 1, while locking pawls 3 are formed 
at one side edge of the front plate 42. The blocking member 2 is the same 
as that of the third embodiment, and it is fitted on an assembly formed by 
mounting the slide preventing member 21 to the case 1 as shown in FIG. 17. 
Next, FIGS. 18 and 19 show a fifth embodiment, which is similar to the 
fourth embodiment in terms of the way of mounting the slide preventing 
member 21 to the case 1. 
The slide preventing member 21 of the present embodiment is comprised of a 
rear plate 43 to be superposed on the rear surface of the case 1 and a 
front plate 45 which is provided continuously therefrom at both ends of 
the rear plate via two respective bending lines 44 and superposed on the 
front surface of the case 1 similarly to the fourth embodiment. Both ends 
of the front plate 45 are formed so that they do not overlap each other, 
with no specified interval provided between them. Then, two belt-shaped 
blocking members 2 are used so that they wrap end portions of the front 
plate 45 at both the ends. It is to be noted that the locking pawls 3 can 
be thrust inward by virtue of three parallel bending lines 46 formed in a 
center portion of the front plate 45. 
Next, FIG. 20 shows a sixth embodiment of the blocking member 2 and the 
slide preventing member 21 appropriate for use in a case 1 which can store 
therein a commodity such as a video cassette while allowing the commodity 
to be put in and out through an opening 47 formed at its one face plane. 
According to the present example, a plate-shaped slide preventing member 21 
is stored in the case 1 together with the commodity, and a pair of locking 
pawls 3 of the slide preventing member 21 are formed so that they are 
protruding from the opening 47, thereby allowing a blocking member 2 that 
is fitted in between the pair of protruding locking pawls 3 to be caught 
therein while traversing the opening 47. 
Next, a seventh embodiment as shown in FIGS. 21 and 22 is comprised of a 
blocking member 2 and a case 1 which concurrently serves as a slide 
preventing member 21. The blocking member 2 is formed into a sectionally 
rectangular pipe shape so that it is slidably fitted onto the case 1, 
where a plurality of through holes 8 are provided at an upper edge portion 
of both side walls 6 and 7, and protruding portions 18 are provided 
outside the through holes 8. 
The case 1 is formed into a closed-end shape having its upper portion 
opened so as to allow a commodity to be stored inside. A plurality of 
locking pawls 3 which protrude above the upper ends of both side walls 13 
and 14 are provided in correspondence with the through holes 8 of the 
blocking member 2, while stoppers 17 which stop the slide of the blocking 
member 2 as provided adjacent to the locking pawls 3 at the end positions 
in the sliding direction are provided. 
According to the seventh embodiment, by inserting the case 1 which stores 
therein a commodity into the blocking member 2 until the stoppers 17 abut 
against the blocking member 2, the locking pawls 3 are caught in the 
through holes 8, and the blocking member 2 does not slide in either 
direction with the opening of the case 1 closed. 
In this state, the blocking member 2 is provided with the protruding 
portions 18 formed in the direction in which the locking pawls 3 protrude. 
Therefore, if it is tried to thrust the locking pawls 3 against a flat 
surface such as a shelf, the protruding portions 18 abut against the 
surface, thereby preventing the locking pawls 3 from being thrust inwardly 
of the blocking member 2. With this arrangement, a special thrusting tool 
or the like to be abutted against the locking pawls 3 must be used in 
order to thrust the locking pawls 3, and this does not allow any person 
except for a clerk to easily remove the blocking member 2. 
An eighth embodiment as shown in FIGS. 23 and 24 is a modified example of 
the aforementioned seventh embodiment, where the blocking member 2 has the 
same structure as that of the seventh embodiment, and the slide preventing 
member 21 is provided separately from the case 1. A side wall 21b to be 
inserted into the case 1 and a side wall 21c to be superposed on the outer 
surface of the case 1 are provided on both sides of an upper wall portion 
21a. A plurality of locking pawls 3 and stoppers 17 are provided at upper 
end portions of both the side walls 21b and 21c. 
According to the eighth embodiment, by mounting the slide preventing member 
21 to an upper portion of the case 1 in which a commodity is stored by 
inserting the side wall 21b into the case 1, and inserting the case 1 into 
the blocking member 2, the blocking member 2 does not slide in the same 
manner as in the seventh embodiment. 
Effect of the Invention 
As described above, according to each of the commodity antitheft implements 
shown in the embodiments, the case in which the commodity is stored can be 
only difficultly opened unless the locking pawls are thrust inward to 
remove the blocking member. Therefore, possible theft in which only the 
commodity is taken away by opening the case can be prevented.