Patent Document

FIELD 
       [0001]    This disclosure relates to bookmarks. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    Keeping track of a place in a book may be done in many ways. Bending corners of pages, placing slips of paper or cardboard between pages, and ribbons attached to covers have all been used to remember a reader&#39;s position. 
         [0003]    But it is easy to lose paper or cardboard bookmarks, and they sometimes slip out causing a reader to lose the place of interest in a book. Most books do not have attached ribbons, and many people do not like bending pages, especially if books are borrowed. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0004]    The instant application discloses, among other things, a bookmark that allows a reader to securely fasten a bookmark to a book, while easily removing it to use in another book. 
         [0005]    In one embodiment, a band may have adjustable beads at one end. The band may be placed with one side on the edge of the book and another side somewhere near the middle of the book. The beads may then be used to tighten the band so that it may not easily fall from the book. A crimped bead may provide extra tension to prevent the beads from moving loosely on the band. A charm or similar marker may be attached via a thread to the loop near the top of the book, and the marker may be used as a page marker. This may prevent the bookmark from getting lost, and may allow for a reader to have flexibility in a selection of colors, materials, and size and shape of the marker. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0006]      FIG. 1  is a drawing of one embodiment of a Bookmark. 
           [0007]      FIG. 2  illustrates one embodiment of a Bookmark as it may be used. 
           [0008]      FIG. 3  illustrates another embodiment of a Bookmark as it may be used. 
       
    
    
       [0009]    Like reference numerals indicate like elements in the drawings. Elements in the drawings are not drawn to scale unless otherwise indicated. 
       DESCRIPTION 
       [0010]    A more particular description of certain embodiments of a Bookmark may be had by references to the embodiments shown in the drawings which form a part of this specification, in which like numerals represent like objects. 
         [0011]      FIG. 1  is a drawing of one embodiment of a Bookmark. In this embodiment, Band  110  may be a ribbon, tied with Knot  140  to form a loop. In this embodiment, a ribbon may be a flat or tubular narrow fabric (as of silk, rayon, nylon, or cotton), and may be closely woven in various constructions (as in velvet, satin, taffeta, or grosgrain). 
         [0012]    In another embodiment Band  110  may be replaced by a steel loop with an adjusting nut, slider, or other device to enable a snug fit. In yet another embodiment, Band  110  may be made of leather. In yet another embodiment, Band  110  may be made from plastic. In yet another embodiment, Band  110  may be made of a combination of materials, twisted around one another. In yet another embodiment, Band  110  may be made of a plurality of materials connected end to end. One having skill in the art will recognize that Band  110  may be made from a number of different materials, or combinations of materials. 
         [0013]    Band  110  may be placed over a book, and Crimped Bead  130  may be moved against Bead  120 , which may hold Band  110  snugly against the book. Knot  140  may prevent Crimped Bead  130  from slipping off Band  110 . In other embodiments other ways of tightening Band  110  to a book may be used. In one embodiment, a drawstring clip may be used to tighten Band  110 . In another embodiment, a nut may be screwed on an end of a metal or plastic band to allow for tightening. 
         [0014]    Bead  120 ,  125  may comprise one or more beads, which may be decorative in addition to providing a way to tighten Band  110 . One having skill in the art will recognize that various sizes, colors, materials, and quantities may be used for Bead  120 ,  125 , which may allow for aesthetic enhancement. 
         [0015]    Marker  150  may be a piece of material, such as metal, plastic, carbon fiber, wood, or other material that may be placed between pages of a book to mark a location. 
         [0016]    Marker  150  may be attached to Band  110  by Thread  160 . One skilled in the art will recognize many different means may be used to attach Marker  150  to a Band  110 , including but not limited to thread, ribbon, string, leather, plastic, wire, a pivoting device, a ball joint, or other materials or devices. 
         [0017]      FIG. 2  illustrates one embodiment of a Bookmark as it may be used. Band  110  may be placed over a book, forming a loop over a cover or one or more pages. Bead  120  and Crimped Bead  130  may be adjusted to provide a snug fit over the book, which may hold Band  110  in place. Thread  160  may attach Marker  150  to Band  110  so that Marker  150  may be kept with Book  210  and may not fall when Book  210  is opened to a page marked by Marker  150 . In this example, Marker  150  is shown on the same page as Band  110 , but it may be used to mark any page in Book  210 . Marker  150  may be thin and approximately flat, which may prevent damage to Book  210 , such as damage to a binding or pages in the Book  210 . 
         [0018]    In another embodiment, Thread  160  may extend past the bottom of Book  210 , which may allow Marker  150  to be held outside the Book  210 , which may allow Marker  150  to be thicker than if it is held in Book  210 . 
         [0019]      FIG. 3  illustrates another embodiment of a Bookmark as it may be used. In this embodiment, Band  240  may be made of plastic or metal, and may be configured as two strips coupled at the top; for example it may comprise a small tube with a slit running from a bottom for most of the length toward a top, or it may comprise two flat strips with a hinge at a top. It may have a small rubber band encircling the two strips near the bottom, or there may be a Nut  220  which fits Thread  230  which may hold both strips together on the bottom and may allow for an adjustment to keep Band  240  snug on Book  210 . Beads or other decorative means may be placed on Band  240  or Band  240  may be colored, textured, or otherwise customized for aesthetic enhancement. 
         [0020]    One having skill in the art will recognize that many different types of material and designs may be used for Band  240 , and many different types of fasteners and adjustment means may be used for coupling Band  240  on the bottom. 
         [0021]    While the detailed description above has been expressed in terms of specific examples, those skilled in the art will appreciate that many other configurations could be used. Accordingly, it will be appreciated that various equivalent modifications of the above-described embodiments may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. 
         [0022]    The foregoing description of various embodiments of the invention has been presented for the purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. It is intended that the scope of the invention be limited not by this detailed description, but rather by the claims appended hereto. The above specification, examples and data provide a complete description of the manufacture and use of the invention. Since many embodiments of the invention can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, the invention resides in the claims hereinafter appended.

Technology Category: 7