Patent ID: 7527449

Claim:
A binder mechanism for binding articles, the binder mechanism comprising: a base having a mounting surface; an elongate ring support rotatably mounted to the base, the elongate ring support comprising a plurality of ring members adapted to receive the article, the elongate ring support having an open configuration and a closed configuration; an opening mechanism mounted to the base and cooperating with the elongate ring support and constructed and arranged to move the elongate ring support to the open configuration, the opening mechanism comprising a button having a generally horizontal surface that, when the opening mechanism is in a rest position, the horizontal surface is generally parallel to the mounting surface of the base; wherein the base comprises a plurality of fixed ring members corresponding to and cooperating with the plurality of ring members of the elongate ring support; and an over-center spring and lever arrangement cooperating between the base and the elongate ring support and constructed and arranged to bias the elongate ring support toward a closed direction when the elongate ring support is at least partially in the closed configuration and to bias the elongate ring support toward an open direction when the elongate ring support is at least partially in the opened configuration.