Injection-molded One-piece Plastic Carrying Case With Integral Hinge And Dust Seal

Abstract

A plastic carrying case for magnetic tape reels made in one integral injection molded structure is described. The base and cover sections of the case are coupled by a flexible strip which serves as a hinge. The base is provided with a lip around its edge which mates with a recess around the edge of the cover to form a dust seal, the hinge strip overlapping the ends of the dust seal for additional sealing. Matching handle sections provide an extended surface area to accommodate printed matter. Internal ridges serve to prevent tape reels in the case from abrading the inner surfaces of the case and generating debris which might contaminate the tape. Flexible plastic straps extending from the base mate with lugs extending from the cover to latch the cover closed on the base.

Description

The present invention relates in general to a carrying case for magnetic tape reels and more particularly to a novel integral, homogeneous, injection-molded plastic carrying case.

Magnetic tapes of considerable length, for example, 3,000 feet, useful in video tape recorders, are wound on reels generally made of plastic, the tape being unwound from and rewound on such reels in use. Because of its susceptibility to injury and the precision requirements of video recording, the tape must be protected from dirt and dust as well as shocks and other abuses encountered in frequent handling.

The carrying case f the present invention is especially useful in storing, carrying and shipping such a reel of tape. It is a lightweight and inexpensive one-piece case of rigid plastic formed by injection-molding in two sections, a base section and a cover section, coupled together by a relatively thin, flexible strip which serves to hinge the cover section on the base section. A lip formed on the edge of the base section nests into a recess formed in the edge of the cover section, the lip and recess serving to form an effective seal against dust and dirt when the case is closed. The lip and recess terminate within the ends of the hinge strip so that the strip, when the cover is closed on the base, overlaps the ends of the dust seal to enhance the sealing effect.

In carrying, shipping or otherwise moving the carrying case with the reel therein, relative movement of the reel in the case produces an abrasion between the contact surfaces, resulting in a wearing of the surfaces and the production of minute particles or powder within the case. Since this powder has an undesired and deleterious effect on the tape and recording and play back operations performed with the tape, periodic cleaning of both the case and the tape is necessary. To reduce the surface contact area that the reel has with the cover and base section and thereby reduce the amount of powder that may be produced due to the abrasion, a plurality of small ridges are located at selected, spaced-apart locations on both the base and cover inner surfaces, these ridges contacting and holding the reel away from the major portion of the surface of the case.

Mating handle sections are provided on the base and cover sections for use in carrying the case, the handle sections having an overlapping portion which provides an enlarged surface area for carrying printed matter such as titles for the contents, addresses, etc.

Integral, flexible straps on the base section cooperate with latch lugs on the cover section to provide a catch mechanism to latch the cover on the base in the closed position.

These and other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from a perusal of the following specification taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the novel carrying case showing it in the closed position and standing up on one of its ends;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the case showing the cover section raised up from the base section;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view showing the novel latch mechanism, and;

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal cross section view, partly broken away, of the closed and latched carrying case.

Referring now to the drawings, the carrying case comprises a base section 11 and a cover section 12, the base section having a bottom wall 13 and sidewalls 14, 15, 16 and 17 and the cover section having a top wall 18 and sidewalls 19, 20, 21 and 22. A relatively thin and flexible strip of plastic 23 extends between sidewalls 15 and 20 along a central portion thereof and serves to hinge the cover 12 on the base 11.

A lip 24 extends from the upper edge of the base walls 14, 16 and 17 and also from the end segments of the wall 15. A recess 25 is formed in the inner surface of the cover walls 19, 21 and 22 and also in the end segments of the wall 20. Both ends of the lip 24 in the base wall 15 and the ends of the recess 25 in the cover wall 20 extend into the central portions of the walls from the corners and past the outer ends or boundaries of the flexible hinge strip 23. The lip 24 nests within the recess 25 when the cover 12 is closed upon the base 11 and forms a seal against dirt and dust. This seal extends along sidewalls 15 and 20 beyond the ends of the hinge 23, the hinge strip overlapping and additionally sealing the ends of the lip and recess seal when the cover is closed on the base.

The discontinuity in the central area of wall 15 in the seal provided by the lip 24 and recess 25 facilitates closure of the case and strengthens the wall 15 in the area of the hinge 23.

The base section is provided with a spindle ring 25' adapted to fit within the center opening in the tape reel and hold the reel centered in the case. A short annular ridge 26 is located around the spindle ring 25'. Four elongated ridges 27 extend inwardly from the corners of the bottom wall 13; four similar ridges 28 are located in the surface of the top wall 18. An additional elongated ridge 29 is centered in the top wall 18 of the cover. These ridges 26, 27, 28 and 29 in the base and cover section are so arranged and dimensioned to contact the two side surfaces of the magnetic tape reel when it is placed within the container and hold the surfaces of the reel away from large area contact with the major surface area of the base wall 13 and top wall 18. By limiting the contact between the surfaces of the reel and the surfaces of the container to the small surface area of the ridges, the extent of abrasive contact is substantially reduced thus limiting the amount of abrasion dust and the like which will be created by friction between the reel and the container surfaces.

An integral handle section 31 extends from the sidewall 22 of the cover section, the handle section comprising a pair of double-walled leg portions 32 and 33 and a lateral or bridge portion 34 extending between the two leg portions. The bridge portion is provided with a recess or ledge 34' running the length of the bridge. The base section 11 is provided with a handle section extending from the sidewall 17, this handle section conforming substantially to the size and shape of the handle section extending from the cover section 12. The bridge portion 35 extending between the two leg portions 36 and 37 is provided with an extended or cantilever region 38 adapted to fit within the recess or ledge 34' in the bridge of the cover handle when the cover is closed on the base. This extension 38 provides the bridge of the handle section with an extended surface area to accommodate enlarged printed matter serving to classify the contents of the container or to carry an address, designation or the like.

A pair of flexible straps 41 extend from the sidewall 17 of the base section, these straps having protruding knob portions 42 near their outer ends. The end wall 22 of the cover section is provided with two pairs of spaced-apart lugs 43 which serve as catches, the lugs having recesses 44 therein into which the knob projections 42 of the strap members 41 may fit when the cover section 12 is closed on the base section 11 and the straps 41 bent over into contact with the latching lugs 43.

It should be noted that the plastic container of the present invention is so designed and dimensioned that it can be manufactured as an integral, homogeneous structure in a one-shot injection-molding process. Where flexibility is required, as in the hinge 23 and the latch straps, the members are made substantially thinner than the remainder of the carrying case. The thinner plastic gives flexibility to those members whereas the thicker plastic walls and surfaces provide rigidity to the main body of the container.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A carrying case formed in an integral structure of injection-molded plastic comprising a base section including a bottom wall and a plurality of sidewalls, a cover section including a top wall and a plurality of sidewalls, a flexible strip extending between one sidewall of the cover secton and one sidewall of the base section and joining the cover section to the base section, said flexible strip serving as a hinge to permit said cover section to close over said base section to form a closed container, and a lip extending from the edge of the sidewalls of said base section the edge of the sidewalls of said cover section having a recess formed therein, the lip on the sidewalls of said base section nesting within the recess of the sidewalls of said cover section when the cover section is closed on the base section and forming a dust seal between the cover and base sections said carrying case further including a handle section extending outwardly from one sidewall of said base section and a second handle section extending out from an associated sidewall of said cover section, each handle section including two leg portions and a lateral portion bridging across the outer ends of the leg portions, the lateral portions of one handle section having a recess therein and the lateral portions of the other handle section having a cantilever extension thereon, the handle secton being brought into abutting relationship when the cover section is closed on the base section, the cantilever extension of the one handle section nesting within the recess in the other handle section.

2. A carrying case as claimed in claim 1 wherein said flexible strip extends along a central portion of said one sidewall of the base section and a central portion of said one sidewall of the cover section the lip on said one sidewall of the base section and the recess on said one sidewall of the cover section extending continuously around the sidewalls of the base and cover sections and having a gap within and only within the two outer boundaries of said flexible strip whereby the flexible hinge overlaps the terminating ends of the seal between the lip and recess when the cover section is closed on the base section.