Protective portable information-bearing card sleeve

Abstract

A protective portable information-bearing card sleeve used to prevent fraud and credit card theft even while using the card. First and second planar walls disposed in spaced relationship to each other and each having a first edge connected to the first edge of the other wall; said walls being sized and connected so as to form a housing that removably retains the card; wherein the first wall includes a flexible upper portion that permits visible exposure of a first surface of the card by bending the flexible portion outwardly away from the second wall so as to expose the first surface of the card. The case consists essentially of polymer, plastic, and at least one metal, and wherein one of the walls have at least one rectangular cut out to permit visible exposure of a second surface of the card.

1 . A sleeve configured to hold a portable information-bearing card, the sleeve comprising:
 a first planar wall member having a central body region defining an outwardly oriented face and an inwardly oriented face, the inwardly oriented face opposed to the outwardly oriented face, the first planar wall member further having a first planar wall member peripheral edge;   a second planar wall member, the second planar wall member disposed in spaced relationship with the first planar wall member, the second planar member having a central body region defining an outwardly oriented face and an inwardly oriented face, the second planar wall member further having a second planar wall member peripheral edge;   wherein the first planar wall member and the second planar wall member are connected to each other along a portion of the respective first planar wall member and second planar wall member peripheral edges, and wherein at least one of the first and second planar wall members has a detent defined in the outwardly oriented face of the associated central body.   
     
     
         2 . The sleeve as defined in  claim 1  wherein the respective central body members of the first planar wall member and the second planar member are rectilinear, the respective central bodies each having an upper edge and a lower edge, the upper edge opposed to the lower edge, the respective central bodies further having a first side edge and a second side edge, the first side edge opposed to the second side edge, wherein the at least one detent extends from the first side edge to the second side edge of the associated central body. 
     
     
         3 . The sleeve as defined in  claim 2 , wherein the at least one detent present in the at least one central body member defines an upper planar wall member region and a lower planar wall member region in the associated central body member, the upper planar wall member region flexibly moveable relative to the lower planar
 wall member region between an orientation coplanar to the lower planar wall member region and an orientation projecting angularly outward from the lower planar wall member.   
     
     
         4 . The sleeve as defined in  claim 2  further comprising a bottom edge wall member, the bottom edge wall member extending between the lower edge of the first planar wall member and the lower edge of the second planar wall member. 
     
     
         5 . The sleeve as defined in  claim 4  further comprising a side wall member, the side wall member extending between the first side edge of the first planar wall member and the first side edge of the second planar wall member, the side wall member connected to the bottom edge wall member and terminating at a location before the respective upper side edges of first side wall and the second side wall, the sleeve defining a slot-like opening defined between the respective second side edges of the first planar wall member and the second planar wall member and an upper opening defined by the first planar wall member and the second planar wall member. 
     
     
         6 . The sleeve as defined in  claim 4  further comprising:
 a portable information-bearing card releasably contained in the sleeve, the portable information-bearing card composed a planar member heaving a first card face and a card second, the first card face opposed to the second card face, the portable information-bearing card having at least one data storage media member located on at least one of the first card face or the second card face; wherein the at least one of the first planar wall member or second planar wall member are composed of a material that renders the respective planar wall member wall member visually opaque, transmissively opaque or both and is in overlying relationship with the at least one data storage media member when the portable information-bearing card is releasably contained in the sleeve. 
 
     
     
         7 . The sleeve as defined in  claim 6  wherein at least one data storage media is at least one of an RFID chip, data microchip, magnetic storage media swipe strip. 
     
     
         8 . The sleeve as defined in  claim 7  wherein at least one of the first planar wall member or the second planar member has at least one aperture defined in the central body thereof, the at least one aperture positioned to overly at least one indicia present on the portable information-bearing card. 
     
     
         9 . The sleeve as defined in  claim 1  wherein at least one of the first planar member and the second planar member is composed of a flexible polymeric material and is configured to frictionally contact a portable information-bearing card releasably contained in the sleeve and wherein at least one of the first planar member and the second planar member is configured to be visually opaque, transmissively opaque or both. 
     
     
         10 . The sleeve as defined in  claim 9  wherein the first planar wall ember and the second planar wall member are rectilinear. 
     
     
         11 . A sleeve configured to hold a portable information-bearing card, the sleeve comprising;
 a first planar wall member having a central body region defining an outwardly oriented face and an inwardly oriented face, the inwardly oriented face opposed to the outwardly oriented face, the first planar wall member further having a first planar wall member peripheral edge, wherein the first planar wall member has an upper planar wall member region and a lower planar wall member region; a second planar wall member, the second planar wall member disposed in spaced relationship with the first planar wall member, the second planar member having a central body region defining an outwardly oriented face and an inwardly oriented face, the second planar wall member further having a second planar wall member peripheral edges, wherein the second planar wall member has an upper planar wall member region and a lower planar wall member region;   a lower edge wall, the lower edge wall connected to the first wall member peripheral edge and the second wall member peripheral edge at a location proximate to the respective lower regions and extending perpendicularly there between such that the lower region of the first wall member is in spaced parallel relationship to the lower region of the second wall member and defined a slot there between configured to releasably receive a a portable information-bearing card therein; wherein the upper planar wall member region of at least one of the first planar member and second planar member is flexibly moveable relative to the associated lower planar wall member region between an orientation coplanar to the lower planar wall member region and an orientation projecting angularly outward from the lower planar wall member.   
     
     
         12 . The sleeve as defined in  claim 11  wherein the respective central body members of the first planar wall member and the second planar member are rectilinear, the respective central bodies each having an upper edge and a lower edge, the upper edge opposed to the lower edge, the respective central bodies further having a first side edge and a second side edge, the first side edge opposed to the second side edge, wherein the at least one detent extends from the first side edge to the second side edge of the associated central body. 
     
     
         13 . The sleeve as defined in  claim 12  further comprising a side wall, the side wall angularly connected to the edges of the respective power wall and to regions of the first planar wall member peripheral edge proximate to the lower first planar wall member region and the lower second planar wall member region, the sleeve defining a slot-like opening between the first planar member and the second planar member and an upper opening defined by the first planar wall member and the second planar wall member. 
     
     
         14 . The sleeve as defined in  claim 13  further comprising:
 a portable information-bearing card releasably contained in the sleeve, the portable information-bearing card composed a planar member heaving a first card face and a card second, the first card face opposed to the second card face, the portable information-bearing card having at least one data storage media member located on at least one of the first card face or the second card face; 
 wherein the at least one of the first planar wall member or second planar wall member are composed of a material that renders the respective wall member visually opaque, transmissively opaque or both and is in overlying relationship with the at least one data storage media member when the portable information bearing card is releasably contained in the sleeve. 
 
     
     
         15 . The sleeve as defined in  claim 1  wherein at least one data storage media member is at least one of an RFID chip, data microchip, magnetic storage media swipe strip. 
     
     
         16 . The sleeve as defined in  claim 15  wherein at least one of the first planar wall member or the second planar member has at least one aperture defined in the central body thereof, the at least one aperture positioned to overly at least one indicia present on the portable information-bearing card. 
     
     
         17 . The sleeve as defined in  claim 16 , wherein at least one of the first planar member or the second planar member comprises at least one detent defined in the associated central body at a location between the upper planar wall member region and the lower planar wall member region.