U.S. patent application number 10/079924 was filed with the patent office on 2002-09-12 for bookend with slider/joiner.
Invention is credited to Lamming, Michael W..
Application Number | 20020125201 10/079924 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 26762572 |
Filed Date | 2002-09-12 |
United States Patent
Application |
20020125201 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Lamming, Michael W. |
September 12, 2002 |
Bookend with slider/joiner
Abstract
A bookend system that has first and second relatively moveable
members. Each moveable member has a substantially planar vertical
surface for engaging objects to be held therebetween and a
horizontal leg. The horizontal leg of the first member has a
central open are with opposed parallel interior edges which
receives the horizontal leg of the second member, which has
interfitting opposed parallel edges. The adjacent edges of the
first member and the second member are connected by at least one
joiner that slidably captures the parallel edges. The joiner may
take the configuration of an I-beam, having upper and lower flanges
joined together by a central web. In such an embodiment, the
opposed parallel edges of the first and second members are captured
in a slot formed between the flanges of the joiner.
Inventors: |
Lamming, Michael W.; (St.
Louis, MO) |
Correspondence
Address: |
COOK, ALEX, MCFARRON, MANZO, CUMMINGS & MEHLER LTD
SUITE 2850
200 WEST ADAMS STREET
CHICAGO
IL
60606
US
|
Family ID: |
26762572 |
Appl. No.: |
10/079924 |
Filed: |
February 20, 2002 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
|
|
|
|
|
|
Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
60269396 |
Feb 20, 2001 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
211/43 ;
211/184 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47B 65/20 20141201;
A47B 17/036 20130101; A47B 65/10 20141201 |
Class at
Publication: |
211/43 ;
211/184 |
International
Class: |
A47F 005/00 |
Claims
What is claimed:
1. A bookend having first and second relatively moveable members,
each moveable member having a substantially planar vertical surface
for engaging objects to be held therebetween, and a horizontal leg,
the horizontal leg of the first member having a central open area
with opposed parallel interior edges and the horizontal leg of the
second member having opposed parallel edges and sized to fit within
the open area in the leg of the first member, and at least one
joiner for slidably capturing the parallel edges of the horizontal
legs of the first and second members.
2. The bookend of claim 1 wherein the vertical leg of the first
member has an open central area and the vertical leg of the second
member has a shape complimentary to that of the open area in the
vertical leg of the first member so that the first and second
members may nest with their vertical legs being substantially
co-planar.
3. The bookend of claim 1 wherein the joiner has upper and lower
flanges joined together by a web, the opposed parallel edges of the
first and second members being captured in a slot defined by the
flanges of the joiner.
4. The bookend of claim 3 wherein the spacing between the flanges
causes the flanges to grip the horizontal legs of the first and
second members so as to provide resistance to the movement of the
first member with respect to the second member.
5. The bookend of claim 4 wherein the slot defined by the upper and
lower flanges is narrower at an entrance to the slot than at the
web.
6. The bookend of claim 4 wherein the joiners have a low
profile.
7. The bookend system of claim 1 wherein one joiner slidably
captures each of the opposed parallel edges of the horizontal leg
of the first and second members.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims the benefit of the filing date of
Provisional Application Serial No. 60/269,396, filed Feb. 20,
2001.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention relates to a bookend and, more
particularly, a multi-part bookend with an extendable portion to
allow for e.g., note or envelope retention.
[0003] It is well known to provide bookends comprising a pair of
generally-L-shaped members made of a sheet metal material. One leg
of the L is placed under the books or the other materials that are
to be held between the bookends, and the space between the two
bookends can be varied to accommodate different volumes of material
to be held therebetween.
[0004] Bookends of this type are advantageous because they are
lightweight, take up little shelf or desk-top space, and are
relatively inexpensive to make. However, such bookholders or
bookends are frequently used in areas with limited space. In
particular, when used on a desktop, the user may have other notes,
envelopes, or the like that also need to be neatly stored. While a
separate letter rack could be used, this takes up additional
desktop space and can quickly lead to overcrowding of the desk.
Additionally, most envelope or letter holders are of a fixed size,
thus limiting their versatility.
[0005] Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to
provide a bookend that provides for both holding books or similar
materials, and as a holder for miscellaneous notes or
envelopes.
[0006] It is a further object of the present invention to provide
such a bookend system that is economical and simple in its
manufacture.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0007] These objects, as well as others that will become apparent
upon reference to the following detailed description and
accompanying drawings, are accomplished by a bookend system that
has first and second relatively moveable members. Each moveable
member has a substantially planar vertical surface for engaging
objects to be held therebetween and a horizontal leg. The
horizontal leg of the first member has a central open are with
opposed parallel interior edges which receive the horizontal leg of
the second member, which has interfitting opposed parallel edges.
The adjacent edges of the first member and the second member are
connected by at least one joiner that slidably captures the
parallel edges.
[0008] The joiner may take the configuration of an I-beam, having
upper and lower flanges joined together by a central web. In such
an embodiment, the opposed parallel edges of the first and second
members are captured in a slot formed between the flanges of the
joiner.
[0009] In addition, the vertical leg of the first member can have a
central open area which receives the vertical leg of the second
member, thus allowing the first and second members to nest with
their vertical legs being substantially co-planar.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES OF THE DRAWING
[0010] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a bookend system according
to the present invention.
[0011] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the bookend of
FIG. 1.
[0012] FIG. 3 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view of the bookend
taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 1.
[0013] FIG. 4 is an end view of the bookend of FIG. 1 with the
pieces nested together.
[0014] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a joiner/slider for use in
connection with the present invention.
[0015] FIG. 6 is a side view of the joiner/slider of FIG. 5.
[0016] FIG. 7 is an end view of the joiner/slider of FIG. 5.
[0017] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of a
bookend according to the present invention in which the vertical
portions have decorative cutouts.
[0018] FIG. 9 is an end view of the bookend of FIG. 8, with the
sliders/joiners omitted to show detail.
[0019] FIG. 10 is a top view of the bookend of FIG. 8, with the
sliders/joiners omitted to show detail.
[0020] FIG. 11 is a side view of the bookend of FIG. 8.
[0021] FIG. 12 is a bottom view of the bookend of FIG. 8.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0022] Turning to the drawings, there is seen in FIG. 1 a
perspective view of a bookend 10 in accordance with the present
invention. A pair of such bookends 10 would typically go together
to form a complete bookholding system. It should be appreciated
that while the invention is described as a "bookend," other objects
such as record albums, compact discs, file folders, etc., could be
held between a pair of such bookends 10.
[0023] The bookend 10 includes a first member 12 and a second
member 14, each having, when viewed in profile, a generally
L-shaped appearance (best seen in FIG. 11). Specifically, the first
member 12 has a generally vertically extending leg 16 that presents
a substantially planar surface for engaging the object or objects
to be held between a pair of bookends 10. The first member 12 also
includes a horizontal leg 18 that at least partially underlies the
objects to be held between a pair of bookends 10. The second member
14 is generally similar in appearance to the first member 12 and
includes a vertical leg 20 and a horizontal leg 22.
[0024] In keeping with one aspect of the invention, the first and
second members 12, 14 are capable of nesting together so that both
their vertical legs 16, 20 and horizontal legs 18, 22 are generally
co-planar (see e.g., FIGS. 8 and 11). To this end, the vertical and
horizontal legs 16, 18, of the first member 12 each have a central
open area 24, 26. The central open areas 24, 26 are sized to
receive the vertical leg 20 and horizontal leg 22, respectively, of
the second member 14 as seen in FIGS. 4 and 8-12. As can be
appreciated, the first and second members 12, 14 can be stamped
from a single piece of sheet metal having its dimensions defined by
the first member 12, with the second member 14 being punched out of
the central or interior portion of the first member.
[0025] In keeping with another aspect of the present invention, the
first and second members 12, 14 are moveable relative to each other
so that the second member 14 can be moved out of its nesting
relationship with the first member 12 to create an area 28 (FIG. 1)
separate from the book storage area for the storage of smaller
items. To this end, the central open area 26 of the horizontal leg
18 of the first member 12 have opposed, substantially parallel
edges 30, while the horizontal leg 22 on the second member 14 has
similar substantially parallel edges 32. Thus, the second member 14
can slide with respect to the first member 12, the parallel edges
26 acting as a track for the opposed edges 32 to guide the movement
of the second member 14 with respect to the first member 12.
[0026] To more securely maintain the proper relationship between
the first member 12 and the second member 14 (and more particularly
the relationship between the parallel edges 30, 32), two
sliders/joiners 34 are employed. Each slider/joiner 34 has the
general appearance of a I-beam with an upper flange 36 and a lower
flange 38 joined together by a central web 40.
[0027] The space 42 between the flanges 36, 38 is sized so that the
flanges will grip the horizontal legs 18, 22. This holds the first
and second members 12, 14 during shipping and use, and provides
some resistance to the second member 14 sliding outwardly with
respect to the first member 12. As best seen in FIG. 7, the upper
flange 36 may be formed at a slight angle .alpha. off of
perpendicular with respect to the web 40 so that the first and
second flanges are not parallel. This results in the space 42
between the flanges being slightly smaller at the outer edges of
the flanges than adjacent to the web 40, thus helping the flanges
to better clamp onto the opposed edges 30, 32 of the horizontal
legs 18, 22.
[0028] The sliders/joiners 34 are preferably placed on the opposed
parallel edges 30 as close to the vertical leg 16 as possible in
order to provide for the maximum range of relative movement between
the first and second members 12, 14. Then, the horizontal leg 22 of
the second member 14 can be slid into the open slots formed by the
flanges to form a complete bookend 10.
[0029] The sliders/joiners 34 may be made by extrusion of e.g., a
polymeric material (such as polyethylene or polypropylene) or a
metallic material. The flanges 36, 38 of the slider/joiner should
be as thin as possible so that the bookend assembly 10, and any
books supported thereon, sit generally flat.
[0030] Thus, the inventive bookend provides for at least three
specific use configurations. First, the bookend 10 can be used as a
conventional bookend with the first and second members 12, 14
having their vertical legs 16, 20 respectively aligned, as seen in
FIG. 8. The two members 12, 14 are held in place by means of
sliders/joiners 34 to form one bookend.
[0031] Second, the first member 12 and the second member 14 can be
used as separate, stand-alone units when the smaller second unit 14
is removed from the larger member 12, as seen in FIG. 2.
[0032] Third, the second member 14 can be pulled outwards from the
first member 12 to form an additional storage area beyond the
bounds of the first member 12, as seen in FIG. 1. The
joiners/sliders 34 maintain the proper relationship between the
first and second members 12, 14, while allowing variations in the
amount of space 28 selected.
[0033] Thus, a bookend has been provided that meets all of the
objects of the present invention. Though the invention has been
described in terms of a preferred embodiment, there is no intent to
limit it to the same, instead, the invention is defined by the
following claims.
* * * * *