Patent ID: 8186899

Claim:
A ring mechanism for retaining loose leaf pages, the mechanism comprising: an elongate housing; first and second hinge plates supported by the housing for pivoting motion relative to the housing; rings for holding the loose-leaf pages, each ring including a first ring member and a second ring member, the first ring member moveable with the pivoting motion of the first hinge plate relative to the second ring member between a closed position and an open position, in the closed position the two ring members forming a substantially continuous, closed loop for allowing loose-leaf pages retained by the rings to be moved along the rings from one ring member to the other, and in the open position the two ring members forming a discontinuous, open loop for adding or removing loose-leaf pages from the rings; an actuator mounted on the housing for movement relative to the housing for causing pivoting motion of the hinge plates to open the rings; a travel bar and intermediate connector connecting the travel bar to the actuator so movement of the actuator to pivot the hinge plates causes longitudinal movement of the travel bar in the housing, the intermediate connector and travel bar being formed as one piece of material, said one piece of material including a living hinge adapted to allow the intermediate connector to pivot relative to the travel bar; and a locking element moveable with the travel bar between a locking position in which the locking element blocks movement of the hinge plates to open the rings and non-locking position in which the locking element does not block pivoting movement of the hinge plates to open the rings, wherein the living hinge is constructed to maintain a substantially constant spacing between the intermediate connector and the travel bar at points of connection of the living hinge to the intermediate connector and travel bar.