Patent Publication Number: US-6981813-B1

Title: Notepen

Description:
I. CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
   This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/477,596, filed Jun. 10, 2003. 

   II. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention relates to pens and pencils and more particularly pertains to a new pen and rolled note paper system for providing notepaper and a pen in a single units. 
   III. DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART 
   The use of pens and pencil with paper is known in the prior art. More specifically, pens and pencils heretofore devised and utilized are known to consist basically of familiar, expected and obvious structural configurations, notwithstanding the myriad of designs encompassed by the crowded prior art which have been developed for the fulfillment of countless objectives and requirements. 
   Illustrative examples include U.S. Pat. No. 4,872,775; U.S. Pat. No. 6,135,661; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,247,864. 
   In these respects, the pen and rolled note paper system according to the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and in so doing provides an apparatus primarily developed for the purpose of for providing notepaper and a pen in a single units. 
   IV. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of pens and pencils with writing pads now present in the prior art, the present invention provides a new pen and rolled note paper system construction wherein the same can be utilized for providing notepaper and a pen in a single units. 
   To attain this, the present invention generally comprises a roller assembly, a pen member, a paper roll, a housing, and a cap. The paper roll is positionable on the roller assembly and is accessible by the user through a slot in the housing. The paper roll is moved forward to be written on and torn off or moved backwards to manually store the written information for the user to review and use later. The pen member is slideably received in the roller assembly which in turn is positioned within the housing. The pen member may be removed from the roller assembly for use, or used while still received by the roller assembly as the user desires. The cap member protects the pen member and the knob member when the system is not in use. 
   There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of a pen and rolled note paper system in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the pen and rolled note paper system that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto. 
   In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the pen and rolled note paper system in detail, it is to be understood that the pen and rolled note paper system is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The pen and rolled note paper system is capable of other embodiments and being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of descriptions and should not be regarded as limiting. 
   As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present pen and rolled note paper system. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention. 
   It is an object of the present invention to provide a pen and rolled note paper system which has all of the advantages of the prior art and none of the disadvantages. 
   It is another object of the present invention to provide a pen and rolled note paper system which may be easily and efficiently manufactured and marketed. 
   It is another object of the present invention to provide a pen and rolled note paper system which is of durable and reliable construction. 
   It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a pen and rolled note paper system which is economically affordable and available for relevant market segment of the purchasing public. 
   Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more readily apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment when considered with the attached drawings and appended claims. 

   
     V. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is a schematic exploded front perspective view of a new pen and rolled note paper system according to the present invention. 
       FIG. 2  is a schematic perspective view of the present invention. 
       FIG. 3  is a schematic perspective view of the present invention. 
   

   VI. DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
   With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to  FIGS. 1 through 3  thereof, a new pen and rolled note paper system embodying the principles and concepts of the present invention and generally designated by the reference numeral  10  will be described. 
   As best illustrated in  FIGS. 1 through 3 , the pen and rolled note paper system  10  generally comprises a roller assembly  20 , a pen member  30 , a paper roll  40 , a housing  50 , and a cap. 
   The roller assembly  20  preferably further comprises a elongate tube member  22  and a knob member  24 . The elongate tube member  22  is hollow and substantially cylindrical. The elongate tube member  22  has a first end and a second end. The knob member  24  is preferably operationally coupled to the first end of the elongate tube member  22 . The knob member  24  has a bore extending therethrough which is aligned with the hollow center of the elongate tube member  22 . Preferably the knob member  24  has a knurled or ridged perimeter wall to facilitate being grasped by a human hand. The knob  24  moves forward to allow the paper to be written on and backwards to manually store the written information. 
   The pen member  30  is slideably receivable in the knob member  24  and the elongate tube member  22  with a writing tip  32  extended from the bore of the knob member  24 . The pen member  30  may be removed from the roller assembly  20  for use, or used while still received by the roller assembly  20  as the user desires. 
   The paper roll  40  is positionable on the roller assembly  20 . Preferably the paper roll  40  has an overall length of approximately 72 inches. Most preferably, the paper roll  40  has a plurality of perforations  42  to facilitate tearing the paper to a desired length prior to use. 
   In a preferred embodiment, the paper roll  40  has a width of 4 inches and is perforated every three inches. Thus the user may utilize 4 inch by 3 inch notes dispensed from the paper roll  40 . 
   The housing  50  is generally cylindrical with an open first end and a closed second end. The housing  50  is generally hollow and has a slot  56  through a perimeter wall. The slot  56  is used to feed paper from the paper roll  40  to the user as desired. The rolling assembly, pen member  30 , and paper roll  40  are positionable within the housing  50 . The knob member  24  extends from the open end  52  of the housing  50  to facilitate access by the user. 
   In an embodiment, the housing  50  further comprises a clip member  58  adjacent to the closed end  54 . The clip member  58  is adapted for coupling the system  10  to clothing of the user. 
   The cap member  60  is removably couplable to the housing  50  adjacent to the open end  52 . The cap member  60  protects the pen member  30  and the knob member  24  when the system is not in use. 
   In a further embodiment, the cap member  60  is transparent. 
   In yet a further embodiment, the system  10  has an overall length of 5½ inches and a circumference of 2½ inches. 
   In use, the user removes the cap from the housing, unrolls the desired length of paper from the paper roll through the slot and tears off the paper at a perforation. The user may then write with the pen member while the pen member is within the roller assembly, or the user may remove the pen member from the roller assembly prior to use. Alternately, the user may write on the paper and roll the paper back into the housing to manually store and keep the written information inside the pen for reviewing and later use. 
   With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by the present invention. 
   Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention.