Patent ID: 8100697

Claim:
A portable writing device, comprising: a housing defining a slit; a handle; a flexible writing surface attached at a first edge thereof to the handle and configured for extension and refraction through the slit and to wind within the housing, when the writing surface is refracted into the housing; a first resilient member configured to alternatively extend from and retract into at least one of the housing and the handle, and to wind within at least one of the housing and the handle when the first resilient member is retracted; the first resilient member having a shape memory such that, when not wound, the first resilient member takes on a curved shape, as viewed in a cross section taken transverse to the direction in which the first resilient member extends from the housing, the first resilient member being attached substantially along its length to the writing surface, proximate a second edge thereof, and an exit ramp disposed within the housing, shaped to complement the curved shape of the first resilient member, and configured to support a portion of the first resilient member, whereby when the writing surface is extended, the writing surface is sufficiently rigid to avoid objectionable deflection in the course of handwriting on the writing surface.