Patent Publication Number: US-2007120360-A1

Title: Bound component with sticker sheets

Description:
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/740,719, filed on Nov. 30, 2005, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.  
      The present invention is directed to a bound component, and more particularly, to a bound component having bound pages and sticker sheets. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND  
      Bound components, such as notebooks, binders, books, address books, planners, diaries, journals and the like are used to record and store various information. In the use of these bound components, information is typically written on the inside of the bound components (i.e., on the bound pages). However, it may be desired to have a bound component with sticker sheets bound thereto such that a user can remove stickers from the sticker sheets and utilize them on the bound pages. There is also a need for such a bound component wherein the sticker sheets are readily available.  
     SUMMARY  
      In one embodiment, the present invention take the form of a bound component with sticker sheets that are readily available. More particularly, in one embodiment the invention is a bound component including a binding mechanism having a first and a second portion extending along a length thereof. The bound component further includes a plurality of pages directly bound only to the first portion of the binding mechanism, and a plurality of sticker sheets directly bound only to the second portion of the binding mechanism.  
      In another embodiment the present invention is a bound calendar or planner including a binding mechanism and a plurality of pages bound to the binding mechanism, wherein each page includes calendar indicia printed thereon. The bound calendar or planner further includes a plurality of stickers bound to the binding mechanism. Each sticker includes a pressure sensitive adhesive located thereon such that each sticker is adherable to one of the pages by the pressure sensitive adhesive, and usable in conjunction with the calendar indicia. The stickers and pages are simultaneously viewable.  
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       FIG. 1  is a front perspective view of one embodiment of the bound component of the present invention, shown in a closed position;  
       FIG. 2  is a front perspective view of the bound component of  FIG. 1 , shown in a partially opened position;  
       FIG. 3  is a front perspective view of the bound component of  FIG. 1 , shown in an opened position;  
       FIG. 4  is a front perspective view of the bound component of  FIG. 3 , with a sticker sheet exploded and a sticker being peeled/moved; and  
       FIG. 5  is a front perspective of the bound component of  FIG. 2 , with various inserts of the cover removed or exploded away. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
      As shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , in one embodiment the bound component  10  of the present invention includes a front cover  12 , rear cover  14  and supplemental cover  16  coupled together by a binding mechanism  18 . In the illustrated embodiment, the binding mechanism  18  takes the form of a continuous coil wire or spiral wire binding mechanism. However, the binding mechanism  18  may take any of a variety of forms including a three-ring binding mechanism, an adhesive binding mechanism, prongs, clips, etc. The covers  12 ,  14 ,  16  can be arranged in various manners, and one or more of the covers  12 ,  14 ,  16  may not necessarily be included in the bound component  10 .  
      The binding mechanism  18  binds a plurality of bound pages  20 , as well as the covers  12 ,  14 ,  16  together. Each bound page  20  may be made of a generally water absorbent material such as cellulose or pulp-based paper to allow a user to write information thereon with a wide variety of writing instruments or media including pens, pencils, markers and the like. In the illustrated embodiment, each of the bound pages  20  include calendar indicia  22  printed thereon and the bound pages  20  are arranged in chronological order. In this case, the bound component  10  may operate as a planner/date book, and the calendar indicia  22  includes a plurality of date boxes or templates printed thereon such that a user can write reminders, appointments, etc. thereon.  
      The front  12  and rear  14  covers, as well as the supplemental cover  16 , may each have a stiffness and/or thickness greater than each of the bound pages  20  to provide protection to the pages  20 . For example, the covers  12 ,  14 ,  16  can be made of cardboard, paperboard, plastic, a combination of these materials, or the like. The illustrated bound component  10  is configurable such that the pages  20  are positioned between the covers  12 ,  14  to protect the pages  20 .  
      As best shown in  FIG. 3 , each of the bound pages  20  has a height (i.e., extending generally parallel to the binding mechanism  18 ) that is less than the height of the covers  12 ,  14 ,  16  and binding mechanism  18 . Thus, the pages  20  are directly bound only to a lower portion  18   a  of the binding mechanism  18 . A plurality of sticker sheets  24  are directly bound only to the upper portion  18   b  of the binding mechanism  18  such that the combined height of the sticker sheets  24  and bound pages  20  is approximately equal to the height of the binding mechanism  18  and/or covers  12 ,  14 ,  16 . In other words, the combined heights of the pages  20  and sticker sheets  24  is about equal to the entire height/length of the binding mechanism  18 , or the height of the covers  12 ,  14 ,  16 .  
      Each of the pages  20  and the sticker sheets  24  are generally rectangular in top view in the illustrated embodiment. The pages  20  and sticker sheets  24  are also “nested” in the illustrated embodiment such that they are located immediately adjacent to each other to maximize the usable space in the bound component  10 . Thus, for example, each page  20  may include an outer edge  20   a  that is parallel with and located immediately adjacent to an adjacent outer edge  24   a  of one of the sticker sheets  24 . The pages  20  and sticker sheets  24 , when located adjacent to each other as shown in the figures, form a generally rectangular shape that generally matches the shape of the covers  12 ,  14 ,  16 .  
      Each sticker sheet  24  and each page  20  may include a pair of longitudinal edges and a pair of lateral edges that are shorter than the associated longitudinal edges. In the illustrated embodiment each page  20  is coupled to the binding mechanism  18  along a longitudinal edge and each sticker sheet  24  is coupled to the binding mechanism  18  along a lateral edge. In this arrangement, since each sticker sheet  24  and page  20  has the same width (i.e., in a direction perpendicular to the binding mechanism  18 ), each page  20  has a larger surface area than the sticker sheets  24 . Thus, the pages  20  provide a surface area for writing reminders which can take up a relatively large amount of space, whereas the sticker sheets  24  may only dispense stickers and can be smaller. For example, each page  20  may have a surface area that is at least about twice as large as the surface area of each sticker sheet  24 .  
      Each sticker sheet  24  may include an adhesive backed sheet  26  coupled to an underlying release liner  28  (see  FIG. 4 ). Each adhesive backed sheet  26  may be die-cut to form a plurality of removable stickers  30  therein. Each sticker  30  may be pre-printed with any of a variety of indicia (not shown), such as text, colors, designs, symbols or the like thereon. For example, the stickers  30  may include decorative or whimsical designs, or reminders (such as “study,” “test,” “quiz,” “doctor,” “orthodontist,” “dentist,” “after school,” “assembly,” “birthday,” special event or sports reminders, and the like). Each sticker sheet  24  may have the same stickers  30  carried thereon, or the various sticker sheets  24  may have differing stickers  30  located thereon.  
      The stickers  30  are removable from the associated sticker sheet  24  (see sticker  30 ′ of  FIG. 4 , which is in the process of being removed) and adhered to the bound pages  20 . The stickers  30  may be adhered on a particular date entry of a page  20  to serve as a reminder or to otherwise cooperate with the printed calendar  22 . Thus the stickers  30  may operate as reminders of upcoming events, appointments and the like, or may simply operate as decorative items. If desired the stickers  30  can be used on other components besides the bound pages  20  (i.e., on the covers  12 ,  14 ,  16  on other bound components  10  or on handouts, notes, etc.).  
      As noted above the stickers  30  may have a pressure sensitive adhesive on one side thereof to adhere the stickers  30  to the bound pages  20  or other components. The adhesive may be a relatively weak adhesive such that once the stickers  30  are adhered to a bound page  20  or other component, the sticker  30  can be removed without causing any damage or tearing of the stickers  30  and/or bound pages  20  or other underlying component. In this case the stickers  30  may be able to be reused and/or repositioned. Alternately, the adhesive may be relatively strong such that the stickers  30  cannot be removed from the bound pages  20  without causing any damage or tearing of the stickers  30  and/or bound pages  20  or other underlying component. In this case the stickers  30  may be securely positionable on the bound pages  20  and avoid accidentally removal or repositioning.  
      Each sticker sheet  24  may include stickers  30  on only one side thereof, or may include stickers  30  on both sides thereof. In the embodiment shown in  FIG. 4 , a single two-ply sheet (i.e., with an adhesive sheet ply  26  and release liner ply  28 ), with stickers  30  on an outer surface thereof, is folded in half about a laterally-extending central fold line  32  (to form a four-ply sheet  24 ). The inner edges of the folded sticker sheet  24  has openings formed therein, or other structure to cooperate with the binding mechanism  18 , such that the folded sticker sheet  24  can be bound to the binding mechanism  18 . In this arrangement a folded, double-sided sticker sheet  24  is provided. However, if desired, each sticker sheet  24  may have stickers  30  on only one side thereof, and the sticker sheets  24  may not be folded. Further alternately, each sticker sheet  24  may be a three-ply sticker sheet (not shown). In this case, the sticker sheet  24  includes a center release liner ply  28  with a pressure-sensitive adhesive backed sheet ply  26  (and associated die-cut stickers  30 ) located on either side thereof. In this three ply arrangement stickers  30  are provided on both sides of the sticker sheets  24 .  
      In the illustrated configuration the stickers  30 /sticker sheets  24  and pages  20  are presented for simultaneous viewing and use. Thus, whenever the bound component  10  is open to its center pages, the user is presented with one or two sticker sheets  24  from which stickers  30  can be selected and utilized. In addition, the sticker sheets  24  can be individually accessed and flipped about the binding mechanism  18  (i.e., independently of the sheets  20 ) until the user finds the desired sticker sheet  24 . For example, if a particular sticker  30  is desired, or all stickers of a displayed sticker sheet  24  are removed, a user can simply leaf through the sticker sheets  24  to find the desired sticker  30  while the pages  20  remain in place. Thus, the arrangement of the present invention provides access to a variety of stickers  30  without having to leaf through the bound pages  20 .  
      The stack of bound pages  20  and stack of sticker sheets  24  may have about the same thickness (i.e., in a direction generally perpendicular to the plane of each bound page  20 ) such that the covers  12 ,  14  can lay flat against the pages  20  and sticker sheets  24  when the covers  12 ,  14  are closed. Although the relative thickness of the various components may vary, in one embodiment each bound page  20  has about one-half the thickness of each sticker page  24  and in this case there may be about twice as many bound pages  20  as there are sticker pages  24  to provide a bound component  10  of uniform thickness.  
      In the illustrated embodiment, each sticker page  24  is located at a top of the bound component  10 /binding mechanism  18 . However, various other configurations may be utilized such as, for example, locating the sticker pages  24  at the bottom of the bound component  10 /binding mechanism  18 , or even in the center of the bound component  10  with pages  20  on either side thereof. In addition, the sticker sheets  24  and the pages  20  may have about the same width (i.e., in a direction extending perpendicular to the binding mechanism  18 ) as in the illustrated embodiment to maximize usable space. However, if desired, the sticker sheets  24  and/or bound pages  20  may have differing widths, including widths significantly less than the width of the covers  12 ,  14 ,  16 .  
      As can be best seen in  FIGS. 1, 2  and  5 , in one embodiment the bound component  10  may include the supplemental cover, generally designated  16 , bound to the binding mechanism  18 . In the illustrated embodiment the supplemental cover  16  has about the same size and shape as the covers  12 ,  14 , and has about the same shape and size as the combined pages  20 /sticker sheets  24 . The supplemental cover  16  includes a front panel  40 , and a set of retaining panels  42  coupled to an inner surface thereof. In the illustrated embodiment the supplemental cover  16  (that is, the front panel  40  and retaining panels  42 ) is made of a generally translucent or transparent material. Each retaining panel  42  is generally rectangular, and is coupled to the front panel along two edges thereof  44 ,  46 , thereby leaving two free edges  48 ,  50 . In this manner, each retaining panel  42  defines a pocket  52  between the retaining panel  42  and the front panel  40 , wherein each pocket  52  can be accessed along a free edge  48 ,  50 .  
      If desired each retaining panel  42  may be coupled to the front panel  40  along three edges thereof instead of two edges. In addition, in the illustrated embodiment, although the supplemental cover  16  includes five pockets  52 , the number of pockets  52  can be varied as desired.  
      A plurality of inserts  54  may be provided, and packaged and sold with the bound component  10 . Each insert  54  may be shaped and sized to be closely received in one of the pockets  52 . More particularly, each insert  54  may have a length and width that is at least about 90% of the length and width of each pocket  52  and/or no more than about 110% of the length and width of the pocket  52 . In the illustrated embodiment each insert  54  is slightly larger than the pockets  52  and protrude outwardly beyond the pockets  52 .  FIGS. 1 and 2  illustrate an insert  54  received in each pocket  52 ; and  FIG. 5  illustrates a bottom insert  54  completely removed and a top insert  54  exploded away.  
      Each insert  54  may have various indicia, such as text, designs, drawings, photographs, patterns, logos, phrases and the like pre-printed thereon. Such indicia may be printed on both sides thereof, or on only a single side thereof. In this manner a user can arrange the inserts  54  in various manners and arrangement in the pockets  52  to customize the cover/appearance of the bound component  10 . The pockets  52 /inserts  54  may cover the majority of the surface area of the supplemental cover  16 , or at least about 90% of the surface area of the supplemental cover  16 , so that the inserts  54  provide a decorative outer cover  16 . The user can change the arrangement and display of the inserts  54  to change the display of bound components  10  as the user&#39;s mood changes over the day, or from day-to-day, and can be used to convey messages to friends or the like.  
      As best shown in  FIGS. 2 and 5 , each retaining panel  42  may include a semi-circular notch  56  formed in the upper edge  48  thereof to allow ease of access thereto. A corresponding semi-circular retaining tab  58  may be positioned opposite the associated notch  56  and be coupled to the front panel  40  to retain each insert  54  therebelow and in the associated pocket  52 .  
      If desired, the retaining panels  42  and/or the front panels  10  may be made of generally opaque material to limit the ability to view certain sides of the inserts  54  positioned in the pockets  52 . In addition, the pockets  52  may be able to be accessed from either the outer side or the inner side of the supplemental cover  16 . For example, in the illustrated embodiment the retaining panels  42  are coupled to an inner surface of the supplemental cover  16  such that the retaining panels  42  are positioned between the front panel  40  and the front cover  12 /pages  20  when the bound component  10  is closed. However, if desired this configuration may be reversed such that the retaining panels  42  are coupled to an outer surface of the supplemental cover  16  such that the front panel  40  is positioned between the retaining panels  42  and the front cover  18 /pages  20  when the bound component  10  is closed. In this manner, it can be seen that the bound component  10  can take a wide variety of configurations and be used in various manners to provide the advantages described herein.  
      Having described the invention in detail and by reference to the preferred embodiments, it will be apparent that modifications and variations thereof are possible without departing from the scope of the invention.