Abstract:
The invention is a fabric pouch device, and is the first device created specifically to facilitate the storing, transporting, presenting and displaying of lapel pins (also sometimes known as pins, trading pins, collectible pins, souvenir pins, hat pins, and by other names) in collecting and trading environments such as conventions, conferences, sporting venues (commercial and recreational), amusement parks, and other public and private places. The invention incorporates a variety of features making it desirable for these purposes, including convenience, expandability, and protection from loss and theft of pins.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    The inventor claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/253,288 filed Oct. 20, 2009 using the same title as above. 
     
    
     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]    The invention is a consumer product and relates to a device referred to herein as a “Pin Pal” by way of example. Please note “Pin Pal” or “Pin Pals” is claimed as a trademark by the inventor for embodiments of the invention. A Pin Pal device may be used by a consumer in a variety of ways. For example, a Pin Pal device may be used for storing, transporting, presenting and displaying lapel pins (also sometimes known as pins, trading pins, collectible pins, souvenir pins, hat pins, and by other names). 
         [0005]    People who collect, display and trade pins seek a way to share them with others in a variety of venues, including amusement parks, sporting events (commercial and recreational), conventions, conferences and the like. They also seek a way to display their collections at home, while keeping them readily transportable to the next event. Such collectors currently employ a variety of devices for this purpose, including lanyards, backpacks, hats, cork boards or other items originally intended for other purposes. The Pin Pal is the first device designed specifically for the purpose of facilitating the storing, transporting, presenting and displaying of lapel pins in venues like those mentioned above. 
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0006]    An example of a Pin Pal is a pouch device on which the user can mount or attach pins so they can be easily carried from place to place, shared with and viewed by interested others (such as fellow traders and collectors), or into which pins can be placed for storage. In addition to this function, a Pin Pal device also helps protect pins from accidental loss or theft, in several ways. First, pins can be secured completely inside the zippered section of the Pin Pal. Also, when pins are attached to the outside of the Pin Pal device for display, the back that holds each pin in place is within the zippered section, protecting the back from accidental disengagement from the pin, and making it more difficult for a thief to remove a pin from the Pin Pal. To completely steal a pin that is fastened in a Pin Pal device, a thief would have to open the zippered section of the device and reach inside to manually disengage the back of the pin. Then the thief would have to remove the back of the pin from the inside of the Pin Pal device and also pull the pin from the outside the Pin Pal device to dislodge it and steal it. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0007]      FIG. 1  is a view of the front of an exemplary Pin Pal, showing the fabric body, the zipper, and the grommet. 
           [0008]      FIG. 2  is a view of the back of an exemplary Pin Pal, showing the fabric body, the zipper, and the grommet. 
           [0009]      FIG. 3  is a view from the side of the Pin Pal where the zipper is open. 
           [0010]      FIG. 4  is a view from the side of the Pin Pal where the zipper is closed. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0011]    Exemplary Pin Pal devices may be designed to be attached to a sports bag, backpack, purse or other such personal storage and carrying unit. An exemplary Pin Pal device may be attached to a belt loop or other garment worn by the user. An exemplary Pin Pal device may be attached by means of a closure such as a carabiner, j-hook, split-ring, or other similar closure/attachment. Customized Pin Pal Closures can be purchased together with or separate from an exemplary Pin Pal device. Of course, a Pin Pal device may be displayed on its own, framed, pinned to a corkboard or other display, attached to a bulletin board, etc. (alone or in combination with other Pin Pal devices and/or with other materials or things). 
         [0012]    An example of a Pin Pal device is a generally small pouch, comprised of fabric material sewn together on all sides except one, and typically selectively closeable by a zipper on the remaining side. Another example of a Pin Pal device is a pouch as described in the previous sentence but where at least part(s) of the remaining side is also sewn together and the remainder of the remaining side may be selectively closeable with a zipper. In other words, the zipper does not necessarily have to extend the entire length of a side of the pouch on which it is placed. In the exemplary Pin Pal devices shown in the attached drawings, the zipper is placed on one of the long sides of the Pin Pal device, but a zipper may be placed along one of the short sides of a device. In another alternative, a zipper may be placed so that it “rounds a corner” of a Pin Pal device by being placed partially on parts of two sides of a device. In Pin Pal devices shaped other than a rectangle or square, a zipper may be used on the periphery of such devices. 
         [0013]    Another possibility is that a zipper may be placed other than on a side of an exemplary Pin Pal device. For example, a zipper may be placed into the front or back sides of the exemplary device. Placement and size of a zipper may depend on the ability of a person to selectively open and close the zipper so as to access the inside of the Pin Pal device for the fastening of a pin (as described below). A zipper that is too small may not provide access to allow fastening of a pin anywhere on the front side of the Pin Pal device. A zipper that is too big may be awkward to use and expensive to install. 
         [0014]    Further, a zipper is preferably used for selective closure of the device, but other selective closing mechanisms may be used. For example, hook and loop closures (trademark VELCRO™) may be used, buttons may be used, snaps, hooks, snaps, laces, etc. 
         [0015]    A Pin Pal device may be of almost any appropriate size or shape. Typically, a Pin Pal device is a long rectangle of approximately 9″×2″. A Pin Pal device can be other shapes, such as a diamond, star, or circle, and those can be decorated to resemble a baseball diamond, a sports ball, a mascot, etc. The material can be cotton, polyester, nylon, polypropylene, or a blend, and/or other appropriate material (in whole or in part). The particular material of a Pin Pal device may be chosen to match or coordinate with the straps of a sports bag, backpack or lanyard or with its other intended use(s). A Pin Pal device can be any color(s) (to match a favorite team, for example), solid color, mix and match colors (in whole or in part), any pattern (in whole or in part), and/or can be decorated with patterned or colored ribbon(s) and/or other decorating materials. 
         [0016]    An exemplary Pin Pal device may have one or more grommets and/or loops at one or more places to accommodate the various closure/attachment devices available, and/or for other reasons. 
         [0017]    The attached four drawings show an example of a Pin Pal device, depicting a typical example of the front, the back, the side with the zipper open, and the same side with the zipper closed. 
         [0018]    In shape, this Pin Pal device is a generally flat rectangle with its length being about four times as long as its width. This Pin Pal device may be made from a single piece of fabric that is folded over to form the rectangle, or this Pin Pal device may be made from two or more separate pieces of material. The material parts of the Pin Pal device do not have to be the same, but may be. 
         [0019]    In this embodiment, the user may selectively place a pin on the Pin Pal device generally anywhere where the user chooses so long as there is space to accommodate the pin. In this exemplary embodiment, the user presses the protruding pin part of the pin through the material of the front of the Pin Pal device from the outside to the inside. Typically, pins have a sharpened protruding pin to facilitate the piercing of material to position the pins. 
         [0020]    In alternative embodiments, a Pin Pal device may provide designations for placement of a pin(s) on a device. For example, designations may be placed on a Pin Pal device so that the positioned pins form a pattern on the Pin Pal device. 
         [0021]    In yet another alternative embodiment, a Pin Pal device may have designated locations for the placement of a pin(s) that include an aperture (or hole) or weakened spot of material to facilitate the insertion of the protruding pin of the front part of a pin into the selected side of the Pin Pal device. 
         [0022]    The reader is asked to refer to  FIG. 3 , showing the zippered side of the Pin Pal in an open position. In this example, the pin has a protruding pin or back protrusion (needle, point, pin) that may be inserted from the front of the front of the Pin Pal device (to the right in this depiction) so that the back protrusion penetrates the front into the interior of the Pin Pal device. The user may insert his or her hand into the interior of the Pin Pal device to attach the back of the pin to the back protrusion of the pin. Once the user removes his or her hand, the Pin Pal device may be completely (or partially) closed by closing the zipper. The pin is then displayed on the front of the Pin Pal device and is relatively fixed in place by the insertion of the back protrusion into the front material of the device and attachment of the back of the pin to the back protrusion as it sticks into the interior of the device. 
         [0023]    An advantage of this Pin Pal device is that it may protect the wearer. The back of the Pin Pal device may cover or cushion the back of the displayed pin so that if the pin is inadvertently pushed into the wearer, the back of the pin would not injure or hurt the wearer (at least not as much as without the back of the Pin Pal device as a cushion). To facilitate the cover or cushioning of a Pin Pal device, the back material may be thicker or otherwise more “cushioning” than the front material. Alternatively, the back material may have a separate cushioning material attached so the cushioning material is disposed on the interior of the device and/or the back outside of the device. 
         [0024]    Another advantage of a Pin Pal device is that a thief would have to take the time to open the zipper of the Pin Pal device to gain entry to steal the displayed pin. Further, an advantage of the Pin Pal device is that the back of the displayed pin may not come loose or undone as readily because it is protected by the back of the Pin Pal device from inadvertent loosening. If the back gets loose from the body of the pin, the back remains in the zipped Pin Pal device and so is not as readily lost. In addition, a user may carry lapel pins (as well as other items) inside the Pin Pal device. 
         [0025]    The exemplary Pin Pal device also includes a grommet for use in attaching the Pin Pal device to other objects. Other embodiments do not have to have a grommet, but may be made without an attachment feature or may use a different type attachment feature such as a fabric loop. 
         [0026]    The grommet allows this Pin Pal device to be conveniently attached to an appropriately sized item. By attaching a carabiner, j-hook, split-ring, or other similar closure/attachment to the grommet, the Pin Pal can then be attached to the wearer&#39;s clothing by way of a belt loop for example, or to a sports bag, back pack, purse or other personal storage and carrying unit. As noted above, other devices according to the invention may be sized and shaped differently. Other devices may have one or more attachment units or combinations other than the grommet. An easy modification of an exemplary Pin Pal device is the addition of a second grommet to a device. For example, a second grommet may be added to an end of the device opposite to the end on which the first grommet is included. A user could then clip another Pin Pal device to the one already hanging from the bag so that the user would have two Pin Pal devices in series connected by the grommet/carabiner/grommet combination. Alternatively, with two connection points, the user could clip both ends of the Pin Pal to a bag or belt loop to reduce movement of the Pin Pal device while it is being carried. 
         [0027]    Another aspect of the invention that may be included is differently shaped fasteners such as carabiners as may be selected by a user. For example, assume a Pin Pal device features a tiger as a mascot. A selectable carabiner for such a Pin Pal device may be shaped generally in outline as a tiger or a tiger paw. The user alternatively may select a carabiner of conventional shape, heart shape, or other shape. The carabiners may vary in other ways than shape. For example, the carabiners may vary in color, pattern, size, and/or other feature. Similarly, if a fastener other than a carabiner is used, there may be variations among the fasteners available for use with Pin Pal devices. Thus, the invention should not be limited to what is only disclosed herein.