Abstract:
The present invention relates to wrapping materials. More specifically, the invention discloses a wrapping material produced in a cruciform shape as well as a method for using this cruciform shaped wrapping material. WRAPPING PAPER

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]    This application claims priority from application Ser. No. 29/132,346, filed Nov. 7, 2000, pending. 
     
    
     
       TECHNICAL FIELD  
         [0002]    The invention relates to the field of gift wrapping, more particularly to the production of wrapping materials and a method of using the wrapping materials to wrap an object.  
         BACKGROUND  
         [0003]    Gift wrapping is generally done with wrapping paper that is wrapped around a box or other container containing an object. Gift wrapping can achieve either one or both of the following two goals: (1) to wrap and secure the box in its closed position for the protection of the gift item; (2) to provide a decorative covering of the box for enhancing the cheerful atmosphere during the gift giving.  
           [0004]    On special occasions, such as parties, holidays, and the like, it is common for people to exchange gifts that are wrapped in brightly-colored paper and ribbons that hide the gift and add a festive and attractive appearance to the gift so wrapped. Christmas and birthday presents are but two kinds of presents that are generally so wrapped. The wrapping of a gift provides an element of surprise for the person to whom the gift is given, as the contents of the gift are not known until the wrapping paper and ribbons are removed.  
           [0005]    However, the art of wrapping a gift can be quite difficult and require a lot of dexterity. A typical effort to wrap a present requires the following:  
           [0006]    First, a person has to set up a work space, i. e., find a clean table—or any large flat area where one can lay out the package or object and where the recipient of the gift is not likely to walk in unexpectedly. In a cramped space, creased and wrinkled wrapping paper often occurs.  
           [0007]    The next step is generally to cut three one-or-two inch long pieces of transparent tape and sticking them lightly to the comer of the table, or a person&#39;s arm, or wherever the person wrapping can get to them easily. Then the wrapping (e.g., paper) is laid out. The wrapping is rolled out to approximately fit the perimeter of the gift. The gift is then placed in the center of the wrapping and the two edges (the already-cut edge and the roll edge) are folded toward the center to ensure that the gift will be covered fully once the wrapping is folded over and secured.  
           [0008]    Once the distance is judged to be correct, one cuts the roll of wrapping along the edge by the roll. Often, one leaves a little extra wrapping to make sure there is enough. The edge of the wrapping to be cut is folded so that there is a straight line for cutting. The wrapping is cut from the inside out in one long motion. Often the wrapping gets caught or snagged. One way to prevent this error is to crease the fold and make sure the crease is straight and sharp. If a sharper crease is needed, the wrapping may be folded backwards on exactly the same crease, then again the other way. This breaks down the threads in the wrapping so that it will tear more easily.  
           [0009]    The gift is then placed in the middle of the cut-out section so that the “top” (the side one wants up when it is opened) is on the bottom touching the wrapping. The gift has to be lined up so that the wrapping measured for the ends runs along the ends, not along the sides. That is, the package must be correctly oriented on the wrapping. The wrapping that goes along one of the sides is then folded over that side into the middle of the face-up “bottom” of the gift. Often, one has to pull up on the wrapping just enough to make sure the sides are smooth, tight, and unwrinkled. Then one of the pre-cut pieces of tape is taken and stuck to the edge of the wrapping onto the gift so that it will stay in place.  
           [0010]    Next, the other side of the wrapping is folded up over the side and covering the unpapered portion of the “bottom”. It overlaps the edge that was just taped down. The wrapping is then pulled so that all four sides are smooth and tight. Another piece of tape is needed to hold this edge in place. Then, the gift is turned, so that the length of wrapping can be folded on one end. The top side of this end is then folded down toward the edge and generally creased with a finger. One of the side edges of the end of the wrapping is then folded in toward the center, making a creased triangular comer. The folding and creasing occurs in a similar manner on the other side of the end. Finally, the bottom edge is folded toward the top covering over the rest of the paper. This fold is then taped to the gift.  
           [0011]    Hopefully, the end piece is either be a trapezoid (a rectangle with two sides caved in) or a triangle. If the end piece hangs up over the side, one can fold it back in on itself so that a trapezoid is formed which fits along the end. The next step is to turn the gift 180° and fold and tape the other end in the same manner. Thus, both end pieces are taped and the package is wrapped.  
           [0012]    Due to the difficulty of this process, others have attempted to come up with better ideas for wrapping packages. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,100,051, issued to Triglia et al., a pre-formed gift wrapper is disclosed, which includes a bag-like sleeve into which a box can be inserted into the open end. The wrapping includes cardboard guide and support members to reinforce and support the wrapper. Problems have arisen with using these type of packages, as they may only be used for a specifically sized article. Additionally, if one slides the package in too quickly or if the package catches an edge, the wrapping may rip. This type of gift wrapping is also expensive to manufacture.  
           [0013]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,337,943, issued to Hendren, discloses a pre-formed gift wrap with pre-scribed fold lines sequentially folded about a carton. The problem with this wrapping is that it only provides an exact fitting of a preformed gift wrap for a specific carton. It also is difficult to follow the large number of steps required to place the wrap over the carton.  
           [0014]    Thus what is needed in the art is a quick, inexpensive, and easy way to wrap packages.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0015]    The present invention includes a preformed piece of wrapping generally in a cruciform shape of certain dimensions. The wrapping includes two latitudinal axes extending from a center portion and two longitudinal axes extending from the center portion in an opposite direction. The preformed cruciform shaped wrapping paper may come in various sizes to cover a broad range of boxes and objects. The present invention also includes a method for wrapping an object using wrapping paper in a cruciform shape.  
           [0016]    These and other objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the following description made in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0017]    [0017]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a wrapping.  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the wrapping shown in FIG. 1, the bottom plan view being a mirror image thereof.  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 3 is a right side elevational view of the wrapping shown in FIG. 1, the left side elevational view being a mirror image thereof.  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 4 is a front elevational view of the wrapping shown in FIG. 1, the rear elevational view being a mirror image thereof.  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the wrapping shown in FIG. 1 partially wrapped about an article.  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the wrapping shown in FIG. 1 shown in a wrapped condition about an article.  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the wrapping of the invention.  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 8 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the wrapping of the invention.  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the wrapping shown in FIG. 1 showing various dimensions of the wrapping paper. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS  
       [0026]    The present invention is a wrapping (e.g., paper) in a cruciform shape created for ease of wrapping. The term “cruciform” means a central portion with four outwardly extending “wing-like” portions. The wrapping may be made of metallized film, cloth, plastic, foil, paper or other articles of material known in the art. Additionally, the wrapping may have any type of design on its cover, backside, edges and sides, such as balloons, Santa Claus, Chanukah candles, etc.  
         [0027]    A preferred wrapping is depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2 and illustrates a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The cruciform shaped wrapped  10  contains a center portion wherein a first and second portion  12   a  and  12   b  extend away from a center portion in one direction and a third and fourth portion  14   a  and  14   b  extend from the center portion perpendicular to the first and second portion  12   a  and  12   b.  Thus, the first and second portions of the wrapping  12   a  and  12   b  form what can be referred to as latitudinal axes while the third and fourth portions  14   a  and  14   b  form longitudinal axes.  
         [0028]    The latitudinal and longitudinal axes are of different dimensions in length and width. FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate that a latitudinal axis  12   a  may be of a different width than the longitudinal axis  14   a.  Both the length and width of the latitudinal and longitudinal axes of the present invention may be set depending on the size of the object being wrapped. The surface area of the package is used to determine the length and width of the portions extending away from the central portion of the cruciform shaped gift wrap. The length and width can be predetermined depending on the size of the package. The dimensions of the latitudinal and longitudinal axes will be dependent on the size and shape of the object to be wrapped. Thus, everything from a cassette tape to a DVD to a standard 9½″ to  15 ″ box for holding clothes, etc. is easily wrapped by using the cruciform shaped wrapping paper. FIGS. 7 and 8 show other possible sizes of the cruciform shaped wrapping paper.  
         [0029]    The wrapping discussed herein may be made by any of the manufacturing processes known in the art. Thus, a computer system could derive standard measurements for different sizes of objects and assemble the cruciform shaped wrapping depending on the surface area of the object to be wrapped. The manufacturer could then roll out the wrapping material in numerous sizes and shapes depending on the size and shape of the object to be wrapped. Thus, the prefabricated wrapping would be, for various objects, of varying dimensions.  
         [0030]    The present invention also includes a method for wrapping an object using the cruciform shaped gift wrap. FIG. 5 illustrates a partially wrapped package. The two latitudinal axes have been folded over to cover an object  35 . Tape  25  has been used to secure the latitudinal axes. An adhesive may be placed on the latitudinal axes in place of tape.  
         [0031]    [0031]FIG. 6 illustrates a fully wrapped package. The object has been wrapped by first folding in the two latitudinal axes  12   a  and  12   b.  These axes  12   a  and  12   b  may be taped to the package or may include an adhesive of the back side of the edges of the wrapping so that they will stick to the package or subsequently stick on top of one another. Then, one of the longitudinal axes is folded ( 14   b  in FIG. 6) and either taped or adhered to the last latitudinal axis folded. Next, the second longitudinal axis  14   a  is folded and taped or adhered to the other longitudinal portion. The package is thus wrapped and may be adorned with other decorations such as bows, confetti, etc.  
         [0032]    [0032]FIG. 9 also illustrates potential dimensions of the wrapping paper. Generally, the center sheet  45  of the wrapping is the exact dimensions of the product being wrapped. The latitudinal and longitudinal axes  12   a,    12   b,    14   a  and  14   b  are sized accordingly in order to cover the product being wrapped in a clean fashion. In FIG.9, X represents the width of the longitudinal axes  14   a  and  14   b.  Y represents the width of the latitudinal axes  12   a  and  12   b.  Z represents the overall length of the center sheet plus the two latitudinal axes. Q represents the overall length of the center sheet plus the two longitudinal axes. Thus, for a standard CD case, the center sheet&#39;s dimensions would approximately be 5½″×5″. The width of the latitudinal axes would approximately be 5″, while the width of the longitudinal axes would approximately be 5½″. The over length of the center sheet plus the longitudinal axes would approximately be 13″, while the length of the longitudinal axes plus the center sheet would approximately be 13½″. Other products can include DVDs, cassette tapes, VHS tapes, records and the like.  
         [0033]    While certain representative embodiments and details have been shown for purposes of illustrating the invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes in the invention as disclosed herein may be made without departing from the scope of the invention, which is defined in the appended claims.