The present invention refers to an adjustable anti-theft case, in particular for containers for shaving blades, perfumes, compact discs, videocassettes, books or the like, and of the type comprising means for preventing the removal of such items from inside the case, that can be activated and/or only deactivated by means of key-type devices that are available only for service personnel, while inside the case, together with such items, anti-theft means are housed, in an inaccessible position, such as magnetic labels, radiofrequency-emitting labels or the like, cooperating with detecting barriers.

Cases of this type are known. They are composed of boxes of a shape that is complementary to the packaging shapes of the items that are inserted in the cases, generally through an open head side, while they are blocked inside the case by means of locking pins that can be actuated through key-type devices and cooperating with notches on the item-packaging boxes. Examples of such cases are disclosed in FR-A-2 914 938, EP-A-1 087 083 and FR-A-2 862 999.

Such cases have proven reliable to avoid the theft of the items. However, they must be provided in a wide variety of types of sizes, depending on the different size characteristics of the items. This is not economical for the reseller, that must purchase a great number of cases, which are mutually different only regarding their sizes, and requires to have to temporarily store the cases that are not dimensionally suitable for the item being sold.

Therefore, object of the present invention is making a case of the type described at the beginning that, without limiting the efficiency of its anti-theft action, is able to be dimensionally adapted to the dimensional characteristics of sales containers of the above items, thereby allowing to use a single case for different formats.

The above and other objects and advantages of the invention, as will appear from the following description, are obtained with an adjustable anti- theft case as claimed in claim 1. Preferred embodiments and non-trivial variations of the present invention are the subject matter of the dependent claims.

The present invention will be better described by some preferred embodiments thereof, provided as a non-limiting example, with reference to the enclosed drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a preferred embodiment of a component of the anti- theft case according to the present invention;

- FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of a preferred embodiment of another component of the anti-theft case according to the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a front perspective view of a preferred embodiment of another component of the anti-theft case according to the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a front perspective view of the case according to the present invention in an operating use position thereof;

FIG. 5 is a rear perspective view of the case of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a front perspective view of the case according to the present invention in another operating use position thereof;

FIG. 7 is a rear perspective view of the case of FIG. 6; FIG. 8 is a rear perspective view of the case according to the present invention in another operating use position thereof;

FIG. 9 is a rear perspective view of the case according to the present invention in another operating use position thereof;

FIG. 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 are detailed side sectional views of the means for preventing the removal of the case according to the present invention in various operating use positions thereof;

FIG. 15 is an enlarged view of FIG. 14; and FIG. 16 and 17 are detailed perspective and cross sectional views of the means for preventing the removal of the case according to the present invention in two respective operating use positions thereof .

With reference to the Figures, a preferred embodiment of the adjustable anti-theft case of the present invention is shown and described. It will be immediately obvious that numerous variations and modifications (for example related to shape, sizes, arrangements and parts with equivalent functionality) can be made to what is described, without departing from the scope of the invention as appears from the enclosed claims.

With reference to the Figures, the case 1 according to the present invention is composed of a first case sector 3 that extends next to a lower angular zone of the item to be contained, whose packaging is composed of a box substantially shaped as a rectangular parallelepiped, and of a second case sector 5 that extends next to an upper angular zone of the item to be contained and is capable of being at least partially inserted inside such first case sector 3, such first and second case sectors, 3, 5 being operatively connected by at least one blocking rail .7 cooperating with means for preventing the removal 9, both to perform the locking or unlocking when opening such case, and to perform a height adjustment of such second case sector 5 with respect to such first case sector 3.

In particular, the item can be a package of shaving blades, a perfume, a videocassette, a compact disc, a book or like items.

The second case sector 5 has two opposite faces, respectively a front face 11 and a rear face 13, along such rear face 13 at least one row di first engaging teeth 15 being arranged: in the preferred and example embodiment of the case 1 according to the present invention, like the one shown in the Figures, the rear face 13 is equipped with two rows of first engaging teeth 15 arranged mutually parallel.

The blocking rail 7 is slidingly engaged with the second case sector 5, for example inside a sliding seat 8 next to the rows of first engaging teeth 15, thereby sliding along a direction parallel to such rows 15 in case the second case sector 5 approaches or moves away from the first case sector 3. Moreover, the blocking rail 7 is longitudinally equipped with through-slots 20, each one of which is arranged next to a respective row of first engaging teeth 15, and the first engaging teeth 15 of each row are mutually at the same distance and are aligned in the sliding direction of the blocking rail 7. Moreover, such first teeth 15 are oriented in a complementary way to second engaging teeth 25 (better described below) that are part of. the means for preventing the removal 9 of the case 1 to allow the height adjustment of the case 1 itself.

In its upper free end, the blocking rail 7 has a first end-of-stroke element cooperating with suitable fastening means arranged below the rows of first engaging teeth 15, in order to keep the connection between the blocking rail 7 and the second case sector 5 also when the maximum sliding extension position has been reached with respect to the first case sector 3 (as shown, for example, in FIG. 4 and 5) .

Moreover, the blocking rail 7 is equipped with at least one (preferably two) locking seat 27 adapted to be engaged by at least one respective locking tooth 29 (preferably two) that are part of the means for preventing the removal 9 of the case 1 to allow locking when opening and unlocking the case 1 itself.

In parallel, the first case sector 3 has two opposite faces, respectively a front face 19 and a rear face 21, the blocking rail 7 slidingly engaging a sliding seat 23, for example shaped as a dovetail and complementary with an outline of the rail 7 to prevent this latter one from going out of such seat 23, arranged along such rear face 21: moreover, such rear face 21 is equipped with the intrusion-preventing means 9 cooperating with the blocking rail 7 and with the rows of first engaging teeth 15.

In order to guarantee locking and unlocking of the case 1, the means for preventing the removal 9 comprise at least one transverse pin 31 made of ferromagnetic material, that is housed in an external appendix 33 of the rear face 21 of the first case sector 3, such transverse pin 31 being integral with at least one slider 34 equipped with the locking teeth 29 adapted to engage the respective locking seats 27 of the blocking rail 7. Moreover, the slider 34 is laterally equipped with at least two appendixes 35, each one of such appendixes being equipped with the second engaging teeth 25 adapted to engage the respective first engaging teeth 15 arranged along the rear face 13 of the second case sector 5 through the through- slots 20 of the blocking rail 7. Advantageously, the first engaging teeth 15 and the second engaging teeth 25 are made as a saw-teeth outline arranged with opposite orientations: in particular, the slanted side of the saw-teeth outline of the first engaging teeth 15 is oriented towards the angle enclosed by the first case sector 3, this making it easier to possibly move, when approaching, the second case sector 5 with respect to the first case sector 5, efficientley preventing their movement along the opposite, moving away direction, due to the action of the second engaging teeth 25, unless one suitably operates on the means for preventing the removal 9 in the modes described below.

The transverse pin 31 is always urged towards the first engaging teeth 15 and the blocking rail 7 by a spring (not shown) that, by pushing the pin 31 itself, puts in a mutual engagement both the first 15 and the second 25 engaging teeth, as can be actually seen in FIG. 11 and 17, and the locking teeth 29 and the locking seats 27 of the blocking rail 7 in the locking position of the case 1 according to the present invention.

In order to unlock the first engaging teeth 15 from the second engaging teeth 25 and the locking teeth 29 from the locking seats 27 (as shown, for example, in FIG. 10, 12, 13, 15 and 16), it is enough to subject the pin 31 to a magnetic attraction force along its extraction direction through _, the action of a magnet (not shown) , that is placed in operating contact with the appendix 33 and that exerts the necessary attraction force.

As shown in particular in FIG. 15, in its lower free end, the blocking rail 7 has a second end-of-stroke element 37 adapted to go and interfere with a locking tooth 29 once having reached the maximum extension position inside the seat 23, and prevent the rail 7 from going out of such seat 23.

With particular reference to Figures 4 to 17, it is possible to note how the case 1 according to the invention can be very accurately suited to the sizes of an item to be housed. In fact, in order to enclosed therein the above item, it is enough to proceed as follows:

starting from the maximum opening position of the case 1 (FIG. 4, 5 14 and 15), inserting the product to be housed inside the first case sector 3: in such maximum extension position, the blocking rail 7 is kept connected to the first case sector 3 inside · the respective seat 23 due to the interference between the second end-of-stroke element 37 and the locking tooth 29, and is kept connected to the second case sector 5 through the first end-of-stroke element cooperating with the fastening means;

downwards pressing (FIG. 8 and 9) the blocking rail 7, making it slide inside the seat 23 till the locking seats 27 are taken next to the locking teeth 29 that, under the pushing action of the spring of the transverse pin 31, engage such seats 27, preventing any other sliding movement of the rail 7;

pressing (FIG. 9) the second case sector 5 towards the first case sector 3 till a desired height is reached, depending on the height of the item placed inside the case 1: in this case, due to the orientation of the first engaging teeth 15 with respect to the second engaging teeth 25, to the respective saw-teeth outline and to the action of the spring of the transverse pin 31, only a relative approaching movement is allowed between the case sectors 3, 5, while their mutual away movement is prevented. Moreover, by suitably minimising the pitch of the engaging teeth 15, 25, it is possible to obtain a more and more accurate adjustment of the height of the case 1 according to the present invention.

Instead, in order to allow opening the case 1 according to the present invention and removing the item from inside it, it is enough to act on the means for preventing the removal 9 by applying a magnet in operating contact with the appendix 33 in order to attract the transverse pin 31 against the action of the spring in order to unlock the first engaging teeth 15 from the second engaging teeth 25 and the locking teeth 29 from the locking seats 27 (FIG. 10, 12, 13 and 16) : it is then enough to mutually move away the first case sector 3 from the second case sector, till possibly the previosuly- described maximum extension position is again reached, as shown, in particular, in FIG. 4, 5, 14 and 15.

In order to make it more comfortable to perform the operation of inserting and removing an item into/from the case 1, the magnet can be a fixed basement, with a housing hole (not shown) for the appendix 33. Therefore, it takes care of even more easily keep the case 1 in position, allowing an easier handling, with the two hands substantially free, in particular for moving the blocking rail 7.

It must be further noted that the first case sector 3 is deep enough to guarantee the application, inside it, of a magnet or radiofrequency label (not shown) , without the label being able to be grasped from outside with the item is housed in the case 1.