Abstract:
An organizer product comprising front and rear covers each having inwardly and outwardly facing surfaces and being joined to define an open space therebetween; a recess formed in the outwardly facing surface of the front cover; and a recess cover mounted to the front cover for movement between covering and non-covering relation relative to the recess.

Description:
CLAIM OF PRIORITY 
       [0001]    The present application is a continuation-in-part of and claims priority to Applicant&#39;s co-pending U.S. Design patent application Ser. No. 29/277,891, the entirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention relates generally to organizer type products, and more specifically to a zippered ring binder having an exterior window in which items can be stored and viewed. 
         [0003]    Personal and professional organizers and planners typically comprise a variety of information recording pages stored in a binder or other containment device. The types of pages included in these products include, for example, calendars and agenda pages (e.g., daily, weekly, monthly sheets), to do list pages, shopping list pages, telephone directories, and the like, all of which is well understood in the art. Throughout the period of time for which the planner/organizer is intended to be used, the binder often becomes bulky and inundated with several loose sheets of paper. When the binder becomes encumbered with vast amounts of information, quickly finding an item of interest becomes more difficult. For instance, turning quickly to a daily agenda may take more time than desired, or locating directions to a destination written on a memo pad may not be able to be retrieved too quickly. 
         [0004]    To provide for quicker retrieval of information, most binders/organizers include tabs and/or “bookmarks” that permit the desired pages to be located without having to flip through the many pages. However, even tabbed or marked pages can take time to locate. Furthermore, when the binder is enclosed with a clasp, zipper, or other conventional fastening means, having to open, locate, and then close the binder may take more time than desired to locate the information. 
         [0005]    It is therefore a principal object and advantage of the present invention to provide an organizer binder that facilitates quick retrieval of desired information. 
         [0006]    It is another object and advantage of the present invention to provide an organizer binder that maintains a conventional profile while improving upon conventional like products in its ability to provide quick retrieval/review of desired information. 
         [0007]    It is a further object and advantage of the present invention to provide an organizer binder that provides for secure storage of information recorded on the pages stored in the binder. 
         [0008]    Other objects and advantages of the present invention will in part be obvious, and in part appear hereinafter. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0009]    In accordance with the foregoing objects and advantages, the present invention provides an organizer product, comprising front and rear covers each having inwardly and outwardly facing surfaces and being joined to define an open space therebetween; a recess formed in the outwardly facing surface of the front cover; and a recess cover mounted to the front cover for movement between covering and non-covering relation relative to the recess. The first and rear covers are joined along a binding, and collectively define an enclosed space in which informational pages may be stored. The enclosed space in accessible by a closing means, preferably a zipper that extends along the top, bottom, and front edges of the front and rear covers, though other conventional fastening means could be used (e.g., clasp, buckles, magnetic closure, VELCRO® fasteners, and the like all of which are well known to those of ordinary skill in the art). 
         [0010]    The recess cover (or door/flap) is mounted to the front cover and is movable between covered and uncovered relation to the recess. In its neutral state, the recess cover is positioned in covering relation to the recess. The recess cover is preferably non-transparent so as to provide a level of privacy/security to the contents/information contained on the memo pad positioned within the recess such that it is not open for viewing absent manually moving the recess cover away from the recess. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0011]    The present invention will be more fully understood and appreciated by reading the following Detailed Description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: 
           [0012]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a binder having a flap formed on the front surface of the binder; 
           [0013]      FIG. 2  is a front elevation view thereof; 
           [0014]      FIG. 3  is a right side elevation view thereof; 
           [0015]      FIG. 4  is a left side elevation view thereof; 
           [0016]      FIG. 5  is top plan view thereof; 
           [0017]      FIG. 6  is a bottom plan view thereof; 
           [0018]      FIG. 7  is a rear elevation view thereof; 
           [0019]      FIG. 8  is a perspective view of thereof with the front flap formed on the front surface shown in its open position; 
           [0020]      FIG. 9  is a top plan view of the binder with the flap in its open position and the memo pad removed from the recess; and 
           [0021]      FIG. 10  is a top plan view of the binder with the flap in its open position and the memo pad positioned within the recess. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0022]    Referring now to the drawings, in which like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout, there is seen an organizer binder, designated generally by reference numeral  10 , comprising front and rear covers  12  and  14 , respectively, that are joined along a binding/spine  16 . A zipper  18  provides a closure means for closing and opening first and rear covers  12 ,  14  relative to one another. It is understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that other conventional closure means, such as buckles, clasps, VELCRO® fasteners, magnetic closures, and the like could be substituted for zipper  18 . 
         [0023]    Front cover  12  includes outwardly and inwardly facing surfaces  12   a ,  12   b , respectively (and rear cover includes corresponding inwardly and outwardly facing surfaces), and a recess  20  is formed in outwardly facing surface  12   a . A flange  20   a  is formed about and defines the periphery of recess  20 . In addition, a pocket  20   b  is formed in recess  20   a  to permit the secure, but removable placement of a memo pad  22  therein (with memo pad  24  preferably lying in a plane that extends no more than co-planar with flange  20   a  for reasons that will be apparent hereinafter). 
         [0024]    A recess cover (or door/flap)  24  is also affixed along one of its side edges  24   a  to front cover  12  and, more precisely, along one edge of recess  20 . Recess cover  24  is adapted for movement between covered and uncovered relation relative to recess  20  (and memo pad  22  stored therein), and is preferably in complete covering relation when in its neutral condition (i.e., absent any external force being applied, recess cover  24  will come to rest in covered relation to recess  20 /memo pad  22 ). Recess cover  24  preferably lies in contacting relation to flange  20   a  when in its covered relation to recess  20 . As one of its purposes is to conceal memo pad  22  (and any information contained on the memo pad  22 ), recess cover  24  is of about the same dimensions as recess  20  and is composed of non-transparent material, and may for aesthetic reasons be of the same material and pattern as the remainder of outwardly facing surface  12   a . Recess cover  24  also includes an inwardly facing surface in which are formed a compartment  26  and slots  28  in which content, such as business cards, may be stored. 
         [0025]    To ensure closure of recess cover  24  relative to recess  20 , a ferrous material may be embedded in front cover  12 , preferably in flange  20   a , and magnet(s) may be embedded in recess cover  24  (or vice-versa) such that the magnetic force pulls recess cover  24  into closed relation to recess  20  absent an external force being applied to overcome the magnetic force. By lifting recess cover  24  away from recess  20 , the user can quickly and easily view whatever information is contained on memo pad  22 , or can access memo pad  22  to write something thereon, or can access whatever content is contained in compartment  26  formed on the inwardly facing surface of recess cover  24 . It is understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that other types of closure mechanisms could be employed as well, such as snaps or clips. 
         [0026]    To maintain a relatively thin profile for organizer binder  10  (or at least a profile that is not significantly thicker than a conventional organizer without a recess and recess cover as provided for with the present invention), recess cover  24  is adapted to sit within recess  20  and on flange  20   a  such that its outwardly facing surface is about co-planar with exterior surface  12   a  of front cover  12 ; recess cover  24  may extend a slight distance above exterior surface  12   a  to permit a user&#39;s finger to access and pull outwardly on recess cover  24 , but the distance is not significant to affect the aesthetics or profile of the organizer binder  10 . 
         [0027]    Organizer binder  10  includes conventional rings  26  affixed within the interior thereof along binding  16 , which are adapted to retain pages, such as calendar pages, agenda pages, to do list pages, telephone directory pages, shopping list pages, any combination of the foregoing, and any other pages common to planners and organizer products, all of which are known to those of ordinary skill in the art.