Patent Publication Number: US-6699100-B1

Title: Stuffed toy for holding greeting card or gift items

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a stuffed toy incorporating a display mechanism for holding a greeting card or gift items. 
     2. Brief Description of the Prior Art 
     Greeting cards are commonly given on special occasions such as birthdays, graduation and so forth, frequently accompanied by a small gift. Cards are not inexpensive and it is difficult to find a small gift that is not likely to be immediately discarded or regifted. 
     Stuffed toys, more particularly stuffed bears, have enjoyed a tremendous popularity and are frequently combined by florists and retailers of novelties with flowers, balloons, cups of candy or the like to form a gift. A stuffed bear, not being too feminine, is an acceptable gift for most men as well as women. 
     Greeting cards are typically selected because they are beautiful or because they have a clever message which is targeted at the recipient. Rather than discarding the greeting card, it would be desirable to have a way for the recipient to display the card such that both the inside of the card with the giver&#39;s name and the outside are visible in connection with the gift. 
     The present invention provides a stuffed toy incorporating a display mechanism for holding a greeting card. The stuffed toy with card may be given alone as an attractive, relatively inexpensive small gift or combined with flowers, etc. to make a more elaborate display. 
     The following U.S. Patents are incorporated by reference herein: U.S. Pat. Nos. 440,986, 3,071,893, 3,693,288, 3,696,553, 3,928,933, 4,057,612, 4,095,367, 4,152,865, 4,407,090, 4,590,196, 4,725,257, 4,729,751 and 5,762,569. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In view of the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide a stuffed toy that is capable of holding and displaying a card such as a greeting card. It is another object to provide a stuffed toy for holding a card in a manner such that the inside of the card with the giver&#39;s name and the outside of the card are visible in connection with the gift. Other objects and features of the invention will be in part apparent and in part pointed out hereinafter. 
     The device of the invention is a stuffed toy in the form of an animal such as a bear, rabbit, chick, seal or the like with movable upper limbs in which are incorporated a display mechanism for gripping a card such as a greeting card by opposite side edges or for holding other gift items. The device of the invention permits the displayed material to be readily visible to anyone viewing the toy. In particular, the device of the invention permits opposite side edges of a card to be gripped by the animal&#39;s paws and displayed frontally transverse the animal&#39;s midsagittal plane such that the front and back of the card can be read. The device of the invention may also be used to grip other gift items such as a balloon on a stick, lollypop, etc., along with or in place of a card. 
     The invention summarized above comprises the constructions hereinafter described, the scope of the invention being indicated by the subjoined claims. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING 
     In the accompanying drawings, in which several of various possible embodiments of the invention are illustrated, corresponding reference characters refer to corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings in which: 
     FIG. 1 is a front view of a stuffed toy shown displaying a card such that the front and back are visible to a viewer in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a partial front view of a stuffed toy showing the toy holding a greeting card; 
     FIG. 3 is a right side view of the stuffed toy of FIGS. 1 and 2; 
     FIG. 4 is a front view of a stuffed toy shown displaying a roll of paper simulating a diploma in one hand and a folded greeting card in the other hand; 
     FIG. 5 is a partial front view of the stuffed toy of the invention detailing a display mechanism in combination with FIG. 6; 
     FIG. 6 is a partial cross-sectional view of the display mechanism of FIG. 5, and is taken along the plane VI—VI in FIG. 5; 
     FIG. 7 is a partial front view of a stuffed toy of the invention detailing the display mechanism in combination with FIG. 8 with a card held in the display mechanism; and, 
     FIG. 8 is a partial cross-sectional view of the display mechanism and card of FIG. 7, taken along the plane VIII—VIII, and is similar to the view of FIG.  6 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Referring to FIG. 1, a stuffed toy  10  incorporating a display mechanism  12  in accordance with the present invention is shown as a stuffed animal, i.e., a toy bear  10  with movable upper right and left limbs  14 ,  16 , respectively. When stuffed toy is in the form of a bear, rabbit, dog, deer or the like, upper limbs are legs and terminate at  18 ,  20  in paws or hooves. With other animals, e.g., chicks, ducks, seals, etc., upper limbs  14 ,  16  are wings or flippers, while the upper limbs of human-like dolls or monkeys are arms terminating in hands  18 ,  20 . As shown in FIGS. 6 and 8 a pliable covering  22  on stuffed toy  10  is made of plush, fabric, plastic cloth or the like, as appropriate to the animal, and the toy is stuffed  24  with a fiber or sponge filling. 
     With continuing reference to FIG. 1, toy bear  10  is dressed as it might be for a graduation gift with an academic gown  26  and a mortar board  28 . Toy bear  10  is shown holding a card  30  which may be a greeting card containing a message of congratulations. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 4, toy bear  10  may hold a rolled paper  32  simulating a diploma in its right hand  18  and card  30  in its left hand  20 . 
     As shown in FIGS. 1-3, card  30  has an inside  34  and an outside  36  and is folded at  38  to form an outside front panel  40  and an inside rear panel  42 . Usually a salutation appropriate to the occasion is printed on front panel  40  and rear panel  42  is signed by the giver. As shown, toy bear  10  holds a card  30  along opposite side edges with the card gripped between right and left hands  18 ,  20 . In this position, card is displayed frontally transverse the animal&#39;s midsagittal plane (see phantom line  44  in FIG. 2) with front and rear panels  40 ,  42  visible to a person examining the gift. 
     Display mechanism  12  is best understood with reference to FIGS. 5-8. A spring biased means  46  for gripping and holding is incorporated into right and left hands  18 ,  20  of toy bear  10 . As illustrated, spring biased means  46  includes two clamping jaws  48   a ,  48   b , two lever arms  50   a ,  50   b  and a spiral spring  52 . Clamping jaws  48   a ,  48   b  are biased to the holding position shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 by spiral spring  52  and spread into receiving position as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 when lever arms  50   a ,  50   b  are pinched together. Spring biased means  46  may be asymmetrically embedded in right and left hands  18 ,  20  with stuffing  24  molded around clamping jaws  48   a ,  48   b  such that the hand is bifurcated with a grouping of fingers  54  and an opposable thumb  56 . 
     The operation of the device of the invention may be further understood by referring to FIGS. 5 through 8. As shown, toy bear  10  has arms  14 ,  16  which are flexible. As shown for left arm  16 , the arms terminate in hands  18 ,  20  which incorporate a display mechanism  12 , as described above. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the display mechanism may be operated by a user  58  manually compressing the lever arms  50   a ,  50   b  of spring biased means  46 . Clamping jaws  48   a ,  48   b  are opened to the receiving position shown in FIG. 6 with thumb  56  separated from fingers  54 . 
     As shown in FIG. 7, a side edge  60  of card  30  may be inserted between thumb  56  and fingers  54  of display mechanism  12 . The manual pressure on lever arms  50   a ,  50   b  of spring biased means  46  of display mechanism  12  is released, allowing clamping jaws  48   a ,  48   b  to close. Closed clamping jaws  48   a ,  48   b  close the bifurcated fingers  54  and opposable thumb  56  of the display mechanism  12  onto a side edge of card  30  and hold the card, as shown in FIG.  8 . It will be appreciated that a similar operation allows right hand  18  of toy bear  10  to grip and hold an opposite side edge  62  of card  30 , as shown in FIGS.  1 — 3 . The grip of the spring biased means  46  is sufficiently secure that card  30  does not slip from bifurcated gripping fingers  54  and opposable thumb  56 . Flexible arms  14 ,  16  of toy bear  10  permit hands  18 ,  20  to hold card  30  transversely across the body of toy bear  10 , for example as shown in FIGS.  1 — 3 , and allow any information on card  30  to be readily seen. 
     It will be appreciated that the device of the invention also permits a plurality of objects to be held, as shown in FIG.  4 . As shown, diploma  32  is held in right hand  18  of toy bear  10  and folded card  30  is held in left hand  20  of toy bear  10 . Many other objects, and combinations of objects such as a balloon on a stick, lollypop, etc., may be held and displayed by the device of the invention, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art. 
     In view of the above, it will be seen that the several objects of the invention are achieved and other advantageous results attained. As various changes could be made in the above constructions without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.