Transparent pouch for carrying travel documents

Abstract

The invention is directed to a transparent document pouch for carrying travel documents. The document pouch has a first pocket sized to receive an article of identification and a second pocket sized to receive larger travel documents such as an airline ticket or a boarding pass. In one embodiment, the document pouch is formed from a single sheet of transparent material folded substantially in half. The sheet of material is heat sealed along sides of the sheet and by a cross seal in a portion of the sheet to form the first and the second pocket. A slit is formed in the sheet of material to provide access to the second pocket. The document pouch is suspended from a lanyard wrapped around a neck of a traveler.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A document pouch for carrying travel documents, comprising: 
 at least one sheet of material characterized as having an upper end and a lower end;    a first open ended pocket sized to receive an article of photo identification, the first pocket formed on the sheet of material near the upper end thereof and having at least one transparent side; and    a second open ended pocket sized to receive a travel document, the second pocket formed on the sheet of material below the first pocket and having at least one transparent side.    
     
     
         2 . The document pouch of  claim 1  wherein the first and second pockets are entirely transparent.  
     
     
         3 . The document pouch of  claim 2  wherein the document pouch is formed from a single sheet of transparent material.  
     
     
         4 . The document pouch of  claim 1  further comprising a third open ended pocket formed on the sheet of material near the lower end thereof.  
     
     
         5 . The document pouch of  claim 1  wherein the sheet of material is made of polypropylene.  
     
     
         6 . The document pouch of  claim 1  wherein the sheet of material is made of vinyl.  
     
     
         7 . The document pouch of  claim 1  further comprising a laynard connected to the upper end of the sheet of material to permit the document pouch to be suspended about the neck of a traveler.  
     
     
         8 . The document pouch of  claim 7  wherein the document pouch is rotatable on the lanyard to selectively conceal and reveal information on the front of the article of identification and the front of the travel document.  
     
     
         9 . The document pouch of  claim 1  wherein the document pouch has a front face and a back face and wherein the back face is constructed from a material chosen from a group of materials consisting transparent material, translucent material, and opaque material.  
     
     
         10 . The document pouch of  claim 2  wherein the first pocket and the second pocket are formed by: 
 (a) folding the sheet of material to form a crease, wherein a portion of the sheet of material on a first side of the crease comprises a front face and a portion of the sheet of material on a second side of the crease comprises a back face, wherein the front face and the back face have substantially a same length;  
 (b) forming a seal between the front face and the back face along opposing sides of the sheet of material thereby forming a partially enclosed space between the front face and the back face;  
 (c) forming a cross seal to separate the partially enclosed space into a first receiving space and a second receiving space, wherein the first receiving space comprises the first pocket with an open top and the second receiving space comprises the second pocket; and  
 (d) forming a slit in the front face to provide access to the second pocket.  
 
     
     
         11 . A method for making a transparent document pouch to be worn by a traveler, the document pouch having a first pocket and a second pocket, the method comprising the steps of: 
 (a) providing a transparent sheet of material;    (b) folding the sheet of material to form a crease, wherein a portion of the sheet of material on a first side of the crease comprises a front face and a portion of the sheet of material on a second side of the crease comprises a back face, wherein the front face and the back face have substantially a same length;    (c) forming a seal between the front face and the back face along opposing sides of the sheet of material thereby forming a partially enclosed space between the front face and the back face;    (d) forming a cross seal to separate the partially enclosed space into a first receiving space and a second receiving space, wherein the first receiving space comprises the first pocket with an open top and the second receiving space comprises the second pocket; and    (e) forming a slit in the front face to provide access to the second pocket.    
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11  further comprising the steps of: 
 (f) forming an aperture through the front face and the back face; and  
 (g) disposing a lanyard through the aperture, wherein the lanyard is positionable about a neck of the traveler.  
 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 11  wherein, in step (c), the seal between the front face and the back face is a continuous heat seal.  
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 11  wherein, in step (c), the seal between the front face and the back face is an embossed heat seal.  
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 11  wherein, in step (c), the seal between the front face and the back face is formed by sewing.  
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 11  wherein, in step (c), the seal between the front face and the back face is formed by adhering the front face to the back face with an adhesive.  
     
     
         17 . A method for forming a document pouch for easily and conveniently storing an article of identification and a travel document, the document pouch having a first pocket sized two to three inches in length and three to four inches in width, the document pouch further having a second pocket sized four to five inches in width and nine to ten inches in length, the method comprising the steps of: 
 (a) providing a first, second and third sheet of material, wherein the first sheet of material has a length between two and three inches and a width between three and four inches, wherein the third sheet of material has a width between four and five inches and a length between nine and ten inches, wherein the second sheet of material has a width greater than or equal to the width of the first sheet of material or the third sheet of material, wherein the second sheet of material has a length greater than the sum of the length of the first sheet of material and the third sheet of material, and wherein each of the first, second, and third sheets have a bottom, a top, and two sides;    (b) attaching the bottom and the two sides of the first sheet of material to the second sheet of material to form the first pocket, such that the first pocket has an open top; and    (c) attaching the bottom and the two sides of the third sheet of material to the second sheet of material to form the second pocket, such that the second pocket has an open top.    
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17  wherein the first sheet of material is attached to the second sheet of material by a heat seal.  
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 17  wherein the third sheet of material is attached to the second sheet of material by a heat seal.  
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 17  wherein the first sheet of material is transparent.  
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 17  wherein the second sheet of material is transparent.  
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 17  wherein the third sheet of material is transparent.  
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 17  further comprising the steps: 
 (e) forming an aperture in the second sheet of material; and  
 (f) suspending the document pouch from a neck of a traveler by a lanyard.  
 
     
     
         24 . The method of  claim 17  further comprising a step of attaching the document pouch to the lanyard by a sliding clasp clip.  
     
     
         25 . A method for a traveler to selectively reveal and conceal a front side of an article of identification and a front side of a travel document, the method comprising the steps: 
 (a) providing a document pouch that has a first pocket and a second pocket, wherein the first pocket is sized between two and three inches long and between three and four inches wide to receive the article of identification and wherein the second pocket is sized between nine and ten inches long and between four and five inches wide to receive the travel document, and wherein the document pouch has an aperture near an upper end of the document pouch;    (b) positioning a lanyard through the aperture and securing the lanyard around a neck of the traveler;    (c) displaying a transparent front face of the document pouch outwardly to reveal the front side of the article of identification and the front side of the travel document; and    (d) rotating the document pouch on the lanyard so that a back face of the document pouch is displayed outwardly to conceal the front side of the article of identification and the front side of the travel document.    
     
     
         26 . The method of  claim 25  wherein the back face of the document pouch is made of a material chosen from a group of materials consisting of transparent materials, translucent materials, and opaque materials.  
     
     
         27 . A method for a traveler to selectively reveal a front side and a back side of an article of identification and a front side and a back side of a travel document, the method comprising the steps: 
 (a) providing a transparent document pouch that has a first pocket and a second pocket, wherein the first pocket is sized between two and three inches long and between three and four inches wide to receive an article of identification and wherein the second pocket is sized between nine and ten inches long and between four and five inches wide to receive a travel document, and wherein the document pouch has an aperture near an upper end of the document pouch;    (b) positioning a lanyard through the aperture and securing the lanyard around a neck of the traveler;    (c) displaying a transparent front face of the document pouch outwardly to reveal the front side of the article of identification and the front side of the travel document; and    (d) rotating the document pouch on the lanyard so that a transparent back face of the document pouch is displayed outwardly to reveal the back side of the article of identification and the back side of the travel document.