Beds – Bedsteads – Having bottom
Reexamination Certificate
2000-03-25
2002-07-16
Grosz, Alexander (Department: 3628)
Beds
Bedsteads
Having bottom
C005S663000, C016S0180CG, C248S345100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06418578
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a protective device for use with a leg assembly of a piece of furniture and, more particularly, to a protective and decorative guard that can readily be installed to enclose the leg of a bed frame and protect all sharp edges. The ultimate goal is to fully protect and encapsulate all exposed metal edges of the entire frame.
In general, bed frames are well known and are comprised of a pair of side rails and various cross members that interconnect the side rails and prove a relatively rigid structure of predetermined dimensions in order to support a box spring and a mattress. The common rail structure is an L-shaped steel member and various manners of connecting the individual components together are available.
The various components, that is, the side rails and the cross members are also generally provided with legs or supports that extend downwardly from the side rail or cross member and are supported by a planar surface such as a floor. Such legs can include casters so that the components of the bed frame are elevated from the floor and to allow the bed frame and completed bed to be moved to differing locations in the room.
Accordingly, the legs normally have casters to facilitate the movement of the bed from one location to another and, in general, support the bed frame which, in turn, provides support for the box spring and mattress. As is known, the bed frame leg, along with the caster, is generally visible and can be seen by persons in the vicinity of the bed unless the bed coverings are such that they extend downwardly sufficiently to hide the leg and caster.
In the absence of the bed covers that hide the legs of the bed frame, however the legs themselves are generally constructed of one or more steel stampings and are not particularly attractive components of the overall bed. It would, therefore, be advantageous to somehow cover up the legs of the bed frame in a more permanent fashion and, at the same time, provide some attractive decoration to the leg and the bed so that it actually enhances the overall appearance of the bed rather than detract from that appearance.
In addition, the normal legs of such bed frames are located at the outer perimeter of the bed frame and are thus susceptible of being kicked or generally run into by persons walking near the bed. Since the typical leg of a bed frame is composed of steel members that may have relatively sharp protrusions, it can be quite painful for a person to encounter and bump into a portion of the bed frame leg. Again, therefore, it would be advantageous if the bed frame legs could have some protective means to prevent injury to persons that hit the assembly with their feet, ankles or shins in walking near the bed or attending to making or changing the bed.
One prior art protector for bed supports and casters is disclosed in Owen, U.S. Pat. No. 5,173,990 where the protector device is comprised of a generally resilient material and which has a radially disposed cut that enables the device to circumvallate the entire bed leg, including the caster, so that the caster is enclosed within the sleeve-like protector and, as such, impedes the mobility of the bed. That mobility is impeded, in part, since bed frame casters typically have an offset that requires the caster to swivel in order to move the bed and thus anything that affects the swiveling action impedes the overall mobility of the bed.
Too, in the Owen device, the protector is retained on the bed support and caster by its own resiliency, and in time, can lose its resiliency and the device would become loose and require replacing. In particular, the Owen protector is held in place longitudinally by compressing the elastic material between the floor and the bed same side rail. Therefore, aside from a loss of resilience and durability factors over time, the Owen device inherently seems to impede the movement of the caster, especially on a carpeted floor.
It would be advantageous if the protector would not only provide protection from inadvertent encounters with the lower portion of the users leg, be decorative, but at the same time be useable with the stamped metal bed frame legs and additionally be compatible with the normal casters or glide assemblies, that is, to be usable without sacrificing any of the full use of the caster itself or be specially designed to be used with a particular caster that is itself an improvement on current casters and glide assemblies.
In addition, since the typical bed frame caster itself has exposed metal edges that can be a hazard if kicked or otherwise contacted, it would be advantages to have a caster incorporated into a leg guard that would provide the mobility of a caster but additionally provide protection to a user from encountering the caster itself, as well as the leg of the bed frame.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Now, in accordance with the present invention, an improved guard or protective device is shown that is usable with furniture and particularly to a bed frame such that the device is easily interfitted to the bed frame leg itself and which provides both a decorative addition to the overall bed assembly as well as provides protection against harm due to inadvertent contact with the leg of a person.
In the construction of an embodiment of the present device, a guard is comprised of an upper component and a lower component. The upper component has a recess that is specially formed so as to interfit with the downwardly projecting leg of the bed frame so as to encase that leg within the guard. The cross member itself is in the configuration of an L-shaped angle iron having a horizontal plane and a vertical plane that depends downwardly toward the floor from the horizontal plane. In one embodiment, an elongated slot is formed in the upper surface of the guard that receives the downward vertical plane of the cross member to align the guard and to hold it in the desired position. As such, therefore, in that embodiment, the upper surface of the guard fits against the underside of the bed frame cross member so that all of the bed frame leg, as well as part of the cross member angle iron is enclosed within the guard. The lower component of the guard, in this embodiment, has an opening into which fits the normal caster or other support so that the caster can be fitted into the bed frame leg in its normal manner to hold the guard in position enclosing the leg of the bed frame.
Thus, in the aforedescribed embodiment, the guard is held in position by the interfitting of the vertical plane of the cross member into the slot formed in the guard as well as the addition of the caster that engages the guard and also interfits to the bed leg that extends down from the cross member.
Accordingly, in a method of installing that embodiment, the standard caster is simply removed from the existing leg, fitting the guard of the present invention to the bottom surface of the bed frame member to cover the leg and receive the downward vertical plane of the cross member and then replacing the caster back into its original position. When the caster is again reattached to the bed frame, the guard is dimensioned such that the same caster can be replaced it its original position and the guard is held in position by the caster itself. As such, therefore, no special tools are required, the caster is still usable and the owner can easily change the guard whenever desired, even to simply affix a different guard for decorative purposes whenever the decor of the room is changed.
Thus, in such embodiment, the guard is dimensioned so as to be fitted over a standard leg of a bed frame and no additional modifications are needed by the user for its installation and, when desired, to replace the guard in the home from time to time as the decorative effect is desired to be varied. The guard can be provided to owners of present bed frames and can be installed without the need for modifications, alterations or the like in order to benefit from the enhanced safety as well as the decorative appeal of the guard of the pres
Carlson Paul Eric
Polevoy Richard
Ryan Howard Scott
Finger Lakes Intellectual Property LLC
Grosz Alexander
Klauber & Jackson
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