Patent Abstract:
An expandable folder ( 10 ) is disclosed for holding reports. The folder ( 10 ) is formed of a single sheet of material ( 12 ). The folder ( 10 ) includes a back ( 14 ), a front ( 20 ), two sides ( 16, 18 ) and a flap ( 22 ). The sides ( 16, 18 ) are folded inwardly and the front ( 20 ) is folded upwardly to form a pocket. Tabs ( 68, 70 ) on the front fit into slots ( 58, 60 ) in the sides ( 16, 18 ) to hold the folder together. Two label sections (label section ( 82 ) and back ( 14 )) are provided to allow the folder to be marked with identifying information.

Full Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
   This invention relates to a professional looking storage folder for filing important legal and professional work documents, such as wills, tax returns and quarterly financial statements and reports, and in particular to a folder that can expand to accommodate multiple documents, taxpayer records, etc. of archival importance. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   Tax preparers and accountants will often produce reports for a client to advise them of their current financial condition. It is important to present these reports to clients in a professional and elegant manner to comport with the significance of the financial information. Thus, an attractive and professional appearing report folder in which to present a report is desired. 
   Quite often, reports will be presented on a quarterly basis, summarizing financials for a given quarter of the year. It is desirable to collect the four quarterly reports for a given year in one folder to provide a complete record for the year. It is also desirable to provide identification on the folder&#39;s front and edge to note the year, assuming that it will be placed on a shelf or in a file drawer with previous years reports, in order to distinguish one year from another. 
   A need exists to provide an elegant, professional looking report folder, particularly one that can hold the four quarterly reports for a given year yet provide fast, easy retrieval of folder contents in future years. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, an expandable folder is provided, comprising a single, integral sheet of material including a back having a lower edge, an upper edge, and first and second side edges, a first side connected to the first side edge of said back by a first expanding side section having first, second and third side fold lines, a second side connected to the second side edge of said back by a second expanding side section having first, second and third side fold lines, a front connected to the lower edge of said back by a expanding lower section having first, second and third lower fold lines, the front having a cover portion and a fold over portion, a flap connected to said upper edge of said back by an expanding upper section having first, second, third and fourth upper fold lines, wherein the fold over portion of said front has a first tab and a second tab, the first side has a slot to receive said first tab, the second side has a slot to receive said second tab, and the cover portion of said front has a slot for receiving said flap. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     A more complete understanding of the invention and its advantages will be apparent from the following Detailed Description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying Drawings, in which: 
       FIG. 1  is a plan view of an expandable folder forming a first embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 2A  is a perspective view of the expandable folder partially assembled with the sides folded inward; 
       FIG. 2B  is a perspective view of the expandable folder assembled with the flap open to receive documents; 
       FIG. 2C  is a perspective view of the expandable folder assembled with the flap closed; and 
       FIG. 2D  is perspective view of the expandable folder assembled showing the labeling. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
   With reference now the Figures, wherein like reference characters designate like or corresponding parts throughout the several views, an expandable folder  10  forming a first embodiment of the present invention is disclosed. The expandable folder  10  is designed to contain reports, particularly quarterly reports, and can expand to accommodate an increasing thickness of the reports, as will be described here after. Further, the expandable folder  10  can be assembled without the use of glue, or other separate fasteners, and with no special tools. 
   With reference now to  FIG. 1 , the expandable folder  10  can be seen to be formed by a single integral sheet of material  12 . The material  12  is preferably heavy paper, such as  130  pounds stock. The material  12  is formed into a back  14 , a first side  16 , a second side  18 , a front  20  and a flap  22 . The front  20  is connected to a lower edge  24  of the back  14  by an expanding bottom section of the front  20  including three fold lines  26 ,  28  and  30 . The first side is connected to a first side edge  32  of the back  14  by an expanding side section including three side fold lines  34 ,  36  and  38 . The second side  18  is connected to a second side edge  40  of the back  14  by an expanding side section including three fold lines  42 ,  44  and  46 . The flap  22  is connected to a top edge  48  of the back  14  by an expanding top section including four fold lines  50 ,  52 ,  54  and  56 . 
   The first side  16  has a tab slot  58  formed therein. The second side  18  has a tab slot  60  formed therein. The front  20  is formed into two sections, a cover portion  62  and a fold over portion  64  separated by a fold line  76 . The cover portion  62  has a flap receiving slot  66  therein. The fold over portion  64  is defined by having tapered tabs  68  and  70 . 
   With reference to the Figures, the expandable folder  10  can be assembled by folding in the first and second sides  16  and  18 , as seen in  FIG. 2A , so that the surfaces  72  of the first and second sides  16  and  18  face away from the inner surface  74  of the back  14 . The front  20  is then folded about the fold lines  26 ,  28  and  30  so that the fold line  76  separating the cover portion  62  and fold over portion  64  is proximate the upper edges  78  of the first and second sides  16  and  18 . The fold over portion  64  is then folded about the fold line  76  so that the tabs  68  and  70  are positioned between the first and second sides  16  and  1  and the back  14 , as seen in  FIG. 2B . The tab  68  is slid into slot  58  and the tab  70  is slid into slot  60 . The tabs  68  and  70  wedge into slots  58  and  60  due to their tapered wedge shape. By using the tabs  68  and  70  and slots  58  and  60 , the first and second sides  16  and  18  are prevented from opening outward and the front  20  is held in position adjacent to the back  14  to form a pocket to receive the reports. 
   After the reports have been inserted within the expandable folder  10 , the flap  22  can be folded over the reports and the end  80  of the flap inserted into the flap slot  66  in the front  20  to close the folder  10  over the reports. One advantage of the design is the fact that the fold over portion  64  covers the flap slot  66  when the folder  10  is assembled such that when the end  80  of the flap is inserted into the flap slot  66 , the end  80  is sandwiched between the fold over portion  64  and cover portion  62  so that is does not catch on or interfere with the reports inside the folder  10 . The use of the fold lines  26 – 30 ,  34 – 38 ,  42 – 46  and  50 – 56  permits the front  20  and back  14  to be spaced apart the proper distance to hold the reports and allows the expandable folder  10  to expand to the thickness required. The use of fold lines  50 ,  52 ,  54  and  56  define a label section  82  between the fold lines  52  and  54  which can be marked with labels identifying the contents of the expandable folder  10 . By use of the four fold lines  50 ,  52 ,  54  and  56 , the label section  82  will remain generally parallel the end of the expandable folder  10  as the folder is expanded in thickness to allow the label section  82  to be viewed easily. 
   In one expandable folder constructed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention, the folder was designed to accommodate a total thickness of reports therein of 1¼ inches. The fold lines  26 ,  28  and  30 , fold lines  34 ,  36  and  38 , and fold lines  42 ,  44  and  46  were each separated by ⅝ inches. The fold lines  50  and  52  and fold lines  54  and  56  were separated by 5/16 inches. The fold lines  52  and  54  were separated by ⅝ inches. The back  14  and cover portion  62 (excluding the bottom section with fold lines  26 – 30 ) were 9⅝ inches high and 11⅝ inches wide. The flap  22  was four inches high (excluding the top section with fold lines  50 – 56 ). The flap slot  66  was 4¾ inches wide. The tab slots were 1¼ inches wide and the first and second sides  16  and  18  were 2½ inches wide (excluding the side sections with fold lines  34 – 38  and  42 – 46 ). The distance from fold line  76  to flap slot  66  is 2 13/16 inches. 
   As can be appreciated, the expandable folder  10  can be assembled without tools or equipment. No glue or other fasteners are required to assemble the folder  10 . In spite of the lack of glue or fasteners, the expandable folder  10  securely holds the reports in an attractive and presentable manner. The expandable folder  10  will readily fit on a shelf or in a drawer, with the label section  82  readily visible to indicate to the user the contents of the folder  10  and the firm name of the preparer. The exposed surface of the back  14  can also be imprinted with the preparer&#39;s firm name and personalized with an label adhered by adhesive to show the recipient&#39;s name, contents, year, etc. Preferably, the fold lines are knife cut and not scored. Clearly, if glue or other fasteners are desired, the expandable folder  10  can incorporate them. 
   While a single embodiment of the present invention has been illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described in the foregoing detailed description, it will be understood that the invention is not limited to the embodiment disclosed, but is capable of numerous rearrangements, modifications and substitutions of parts and elements without departing the scope and spirit of the invention.

Technology Classification (CPC): 8