BI-FOLD WALLET INCORPORATING ELECTROMAGNETIC SHIELDING

Abstract

A bi-fold wallet is provided for securely storing RFID contactless cards from RFID skimming by incorporating multiple sheets of a faraday fabric which are then layered, bound, and attached within the interior of the bi-fold wallet for enabling the blocking of all electromagnetic signals including Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth, Cellular 5G, Radio and RFID and others. Additionally, in the unfolded position the bi-fold wallet defines an interiorly defined faraday bag for housing a smartphone.

Claims

1. A bi-fold wallet incorporating electromagnetic shielding, comprising: A front portion attached to a back portion wherein said attachment forms one or more interiorly defined compartments and a side folding flap at one end wherein said one or more interiorly defined compartments are layered with an RF blocking material.

2. The bi-fold wallet according to claim 1, wherein said one or more interiorly defined compartments define a first interior compartment for interiorly housing credit cards and cash when the bi-fold wallet is in an unfolded position.

3. The bi-fold wallet according to claim 1, wherein said one or more interiorly defined compartments define a first interior compartment for housing cash and further defining pockets for interiorly housing credit cards when the bi-fold wallet is in a folded position.

4. The bi-fold wallet according to claim 1, wherein said one or more interiorly defined compartments define a first interior compartment for housing cash and further defining pockets for interiorly housing credit cards when the bi-fold wallet is in an unfolded position.

5. The bi-fold wallet according to claim 1, wherein said one or more interiorly defined compartments define a second interior compartment for interiorly and securely housing a smartphone when the bi-fold wallet is in an unfolded position and said side folding flap is in a closed position.

6. The bi-fold wallet according to claim 1, wherein said one or more interiorly defined compartments define a second interior Faraday bag for interiorly housing a smartphone when the bi-fold wallet is in an unfolded position.

7. The bi-fold wallet according to claim 1, wherein said RF blocking material is one or more layers of Faraday nickel copper alloy mesh.

8. The bi-fold wallet according to claim 1, wherein said RF blocking material is one or more layers of Faraday nickel copper alloy mesh covered with a thin sheet of diamond Faraday material.

9. The bi-fold wallet according to claim 1, wherein said attachment additionally forms an exterior pocket for storing frequently used credit and debit cards.

10. The bi-fold wallet according to claim 1, wherein said front portion and said back portion are water and dust proof nylon ripstop.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] A more detailed understanding may be had from the following description, given by way of example in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

[0008] FIG. 1 is a front view of the Bi-fold wallet defining a side folding flap in accordance with the present invention.

[0009] FIG. 2 is a back view of the Bi-fold wallet shown in FIG. 1 of the present invention.

[0010] FIG. 3 is a front view of the Bi-fold wallet in the unfolded position shown in FIG. 1 illustrating the wallet size when the side folding flap is in the closed position in accordance with the present invention.

[0011] FIG. 4 is a back view of the Bi-fold wallet shown in FIG. 3 illustrating the wallet size when the side folding flap is closed in accordance with the present invention.

[0012] FIG. 5 is a front view of the Bi-fold wallet in the folded position with the side folding flap in the closed position in accordance with the present invention.

[0013] FIG. 6 is a back view of the Bi-fold wallet shown in FIG. 5 in the folded position in accordance with the present invention.

[0014] FIG. 7 is a front view of the Bi-fold wallet in the unfolded position illustrating the insertion of a smartphone into a faraday bag portion of the bi-fold wallet for housing the smartphone in accordance with the present invention.

[0015] FIG. 8 is a front view of the Bi-fold wallet in the unfolded position illustrating a fully inserted smartphone housed within the faraday bag with the side folding flap in the closed position in accordance with the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0016] In today's high-tech environment, credit cards, debit cards, key fobs and other electronic devices transmit electronic signals containing personal information. Accordingly, the possibility of unauthorized collection of this information occurs. Electromagnetic (EM) shielding is the practice of surrounding electronics and cables with conductive or magnetic materials to guard against incoming or outgoing emissions of electromagnetic frequencies (EMF). This shielding practice involves surrounding electronics and cables with conductive or magnetic materials to prevent theft of electronic transmissions. Electromagnetic shielding that blocks radio frequency (RF) electromagnetic radiation is also known as RF shielding. Electromagnetic shielding also blocks magnetic frequency (MF) transmissions also known as MF shielding.

[0017] Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 2, there is shown and illustrated a bi-fold wallet 10 in the unfolded position used for carrying and housing items typically including personal identification, contactless credit cards 16 and/or currency 18. The bi-fold wallet 10 may be carried containing RF emitting debit/credit cards 16 while being protected against any RF hacking attempts. The bi-fold wallet 10 may be comprised of portions, such as a front portion 12 and a back portion 14. These portions 12 and 14, respectively may comprise an outer material on the exterior, an inner material on the interior containing an RF blocking technology that is layered between a soft filler material attached to the inner material, and the outer material as will be more fully described below.

[0018] Turning once again to FIGS. 1 and 2, the bi-fold wallet 10 is typically formed using the prior art technique of cutting two rectangular pieces a front portion 12 and back portion 14, respectively of material with equal dimensions. Next, one of the rectangular pieces of the material is folded in half (width-wise) to create the bi-fold wallet's 10 main body. In accordance with the present invention. These portions 12 and 14, respectively may comprise an outer material which in a preferred embodiment is a water and dust proof nylon ripstop. The interior of the bi-fold wallet 10 is formed using inner materials 26 which are layered, bind and attached to the interior of the back of each side of the front and back portions layers containing an RF blocking technology of a Faraday nickel copper alloy mesh that is layered and covered with a diamond Faraday material to the inner material to prevent abrasion.

[0019] The two rectangular pieces 12 and 14 with the layered Faraday nickel copper mesh and diamond Faraday material 26 are now all stitched together using a needle and thread (not shown). It should be noted that the stitching is evenly spaced and as close together as possible so that the stitching is tight. One or more interior slots are now added into the newly formed interior of the bi-fold wallet 10 for housing credit cards 16 wherein an exterior longitudinal pocket 24 is created along the front side of one of the rectangular pieces 12 such that the pocket 24 may be used for storing a frequently used credit or debit card. Lastly the assembly of the bi-fold wallet 10 forms a folding flap portion 20 at one end of the bi-fold wallet 10 as shown in FIGS. 12 and 14.

[0020] It should be understood that the size of the rectangular pieces 12 and 14 with the layered Faraday nickel copper mesh and diamond Faraday material 26 determines the size of the bi-fold wallet 10 created. By way of example but not of limitation, in one preferred embodiment a folded wallet 20 would define a length of 4.5 Inches, a width of 4 inches and a thickness of inch as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. Additionally, by way of example but not of limitation, in another preferred embodiment, an unfolded wallet 10 would define a length of 8 inches, a width of 4.5 inches, and a thickness of inch as illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2. The folding flap portion 20 folds along a folding line 22 as shown in FIG. 2.

[0021] When stitching the two rectangular pieces 12 and 14 with the layered Faraday nickel copper mesh and diamond Faraday material 26 together two interior compartments are formed. The first interior compartment defines a first longitudinal compartment 30 for housing cash 18 and credit cards 16 as shown in FIG. 1. The second interior compartment defines a second longitudinal compartment 28 for housing a smartphone with the bi-fold wallet 10 when it is in the unfolded position. More specifically, the second longitudinal compartment defines a faraday cage.

[0022] Referring now to FIGS. 3 and 4, there is shown and illustrated the bi-fold wallet 10A in the unfolded position with the front portion 12A and back portion 14A illustrating the wallet size when the folding flap 20 is in the closed or in the folded position interiorly housing the layered Faraday nickel copper mesh and diamond Faraday material 26 in accordance with the present invention. Referring now to FIGS. 5 and 6, there is shown and illustrated the front portion 12B and back portion 14B of the bi-fold wallet 10B when the side folding flap 20B is in the folded position.

[0023] Referring now to FIGS. 5 and 6, there is shown and illustrated the bi-fold wallet 10B in the folded position with the front portion 12B and back portion 14B illustrating the wallet size when the folding flap 20B is in the closed or in the folded position. Referring now to FIG. 7 there is shown and illustrated a front portion 12 of the Bi-fold wallet 10 in the unfolded position illustrating the insertion of a smartphone 34 into the faraday bag portion 28 of the bi-fold wallet 10 for housing the smartphone 34 in accordance with the present invention. Referring now to FIG. 8 there is shown and illustrated a front portion 12A of the Bi-fold wallet 10A in the unfolded position illustrating a fully inserted smartphone 34 housed within the faraday bag 28 with the side folding flap 20A in the closed position in accordance with the present invention.

[0024] In summary, different materials and techniques may be assembled and used interiorly within the interior compartments of a bi-fold wallet for EM shielding to block errant electromagnetic interference (EMI). It should be understood that it is not necessary to have a complete, continuous enclosure so long as any openings are smaller than the electromagnetic waves that are to be blocked which by way of example may be a layered Faraday nickel copper mesh. Additionally, magnetic materials may be used for EM shielding in environments where the magnetic fields are slowly varied below the 100 Khz range. The use of magnetic materials draws the EMI into the magnetic field of the shielding and blocks other transmission.

[0025] The bi-fold wallet of the present invention is used for carrying items typically including personal identification, credit cards and/or currency. The bi-fold wallet may be carried containing RF emitting debit/credit while being protected against any RF hacking attempts. The bi-fold wallet may be comprised of portions, such as a front portion and a rear portion. These portions may comprise an outer material on the exterior and one or more portions of inner material in a defined interior incorporating RF blocking technology that is layered between an inner soft filler material attached to the inside of the outer material.

[0026] The bi-fold wallets inner filler material may be a thin sheet of diamond Faraday material to prevent abrasion covering one or more layers of RF blocking material such as a Faraday nickel copper alloy mesh. This soft filler is typically not visible to the device user. In one embodiment, two soft filler sheets are used, one on either side of each RF blocking material. The bi-fold wallets outer material may be on its exterior portions, forming the front and back of the bi-fold wallet may be water and dust proof nylon ripstop. The RF blocking material may be cut to a size and shape to ensure a perfect fit cut for maximum RF Blocking.

[0027] It should be understood that many variations are possible based on the disclosure herein. Although features and elements are described above in particular combinations, each feature or element can be used alone without the other features and elements or in various combinations with or without other features and elements.