Supports – Easel; book – copy or music score holder
Reexamination Certificate
1999-05-07
2001-08-07
Braun, Leslie A. (Department: 3632)
Supports
Easel; book, copy or music score holder
C248S444000, C248S445000, C248S447000, C248S454000, C248S457000, C248S460000, C248S461000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06270049
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
For many generations now is has been customary during lectures and presentations to resort to the use of books, booklets, posters and the like in order to explain to a classroom or to an audience, certain diagrams, pictures, graphs, charts or other devices serving to make the presentation more easily understood, or to help hold the attention of the audience. In many instances of this type, it has been customary to utilize an easel, made up of a slightly inclined front surface, at the bottom of which is a small ledge or shelf upon which the book, booklet, poster or other item can be held in a slightly rearwardly inclined attitude.
Most unfortunately, when a book or booklet is resting against the front surface of the typical easel, the pages of the book tend to sag or droop in such a manner as not to be easily read by the persons in the audience. Consequently, it has been customary to utilize certain means for holding the pages in a relatively flat condition, which means can take the form of a small clip or clamp utilized on the right and left edges of the book in order to keep the pages in a readily readable attitude. Another option may include the use of a fairly long elastic strap used to encircle the easel and the book, with such strap serving to hold the pages flat.
As a consequence of the use of devices of this type, it becomes fairly burdensome for the teacher or lecturer to turn the pages of the book for as is obvious, it is necessary to remove the clips or clamps, or the encircling strap before the page can be turned, after which the clips, clamps or encircling strap must be restored to the page-retaining positions.
The Bloom U.S. Pat. No. 3,981,522 entitled “Book Holder” exemplifies the type of device requiring the use of an encircling band in holding the pages of a book in an open position.
The Cummins U.S. Pat. No. 4,044,980 entitled “Collapsible Desktop Stand for Portable Electronic Calculator” represents a device that could be used for holding a book as well as a calculator, but this patent contains no teaching of an arrangement for holding the pages of a book or booklet in an open, easily read position.
The Aquino U.S. Pat. No. 4,607,817 entitled “Collapsible Podium” involves a display device having front and rear panels in a hinged relationship to a floor panel, with a lip structure provided for supporting a book adjacent the front panel. However, this patent is entirely silent as to any capability of such lip structure providing an automatically functioning bias arrangement for holding the pages of the book in a flattened, easy to read position.
The MacEwan U.S. Pat. No. 5,080,316 entitled “Portable Viewing Stand” pertains to a device involving several multifolded components, requiring careful assembly and entirely failing to teach a book-supporting component biased automatically into a relationship in which the pages of the book are held in an easily read position.
The Leeb U.S. Pat. No. 5,413,305 entitled “Lightweight Collapsible Book Stand” teaches the use of a device having a relatively strong cellophane or transparent plastic strip secured to the front panel of the device. This patentee specifies that if his book stand is used with a thin book or magazine, the book or magazine may be read through the transparent means. This, however, is a far cry from a retaining lip automatically biased into a position in which the pages of a book are maintained flat for easy reading.
The Menaged U.S. Pat. No. 5,722,628 entitled “Collapsible Variable Position Reading Stand” teaches a device involving a frontal panel and a rear panel, with it being readily possible to alter the angular positions of the frontal panel with respect to a book-engaging support lip. Although this patent permits a range of adjusted positions for the convenience of the reader, this patent, also, is silent as to any capability of the support lip utilizing an automatically functioning bias arrangement for holding the pages of a book in a flattened, easily read position.
The Michela U.S. Pat. No. 5,755,423 entitled “Folding Portable Support Stand” requires a substantial amount of assembly time, and quite importantly, this patentee provides no teaching of an arrangement for reliably holding the pages of a book in an open, easily read position, and thereafter readily permitting the user to turn the page of the displayed book or booklet without having to remove an encircling band or release a clip.
Although it is obviously well known to provide a ledge or shoulder on an easel or support stand, the prior art has not taught an arrangement for keeping the pages from turning unintentionally, due for example to a draft. Furthermore, the prior art has not taught an arrangement for permitting the teacher or lecturer to deliberately and easily turn the page of the displayed book without first having to remove a clip, clamp or encircling band, and to thereafter avoid having to reapply such device when the page turning has been completed.
It was in an effort to overcome the distinct disadvantages of prior art devices of these and other types that the present invention was evolved.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with this invention I have provided a novel easel or reading stand primarily for tabletop use, which utilizes front and rear panels whose upper edges are joined together in the manner of a flexible hinge. In the primary embodiment, each of these front and rear panels extends the full length or lateral dimension of the easel and are readily movable from a folded condition into a relationship in which the lower edges of the front and rear panels assume a spread apart, outward position.
The lower edges of the front and rear panels are interconnected by multiple, folded base members, with the base member attached to the front panel being constituted by hingedly interconnected, multiple elongate components, each of which extends substantially the full length of the easel. In the primary embodiment the first elongate component is of flexible construction, whereas the second elongate component is of relatively stiff construction, and is deliberately of a somewhat greater width than the first elongate component. The front panel, when its lower edge is moved a bit rearwardly from its most outward position, causes the first and second elongate components to move into an adjacent, substantially coplanar relationship, such that the first elongate component is located above the second elongate component and positioned along the lower edge of the front panel. In this instance the first and second elongate components are in an outwardly-extending, book-receiving position forming a ledge for receiving the lower edge of a book, booklet or poster to be placed against the front panel of the easel.
The first and second elongate components are rotatable between the outwardly-extending, book-receiving position, and an upward position in which the elongate components are automatically biased into essential parallelism with the front panel. The first elongate component, by being of lesser width than the second elongate component, serves as some support for the lower edge of the front panel during such upward rotation of the elongate components, with the portion of the weight of the front panel borne by the first elongate component developing the bias tending to hold the second elongate component in a firm restraining contact with the lower edge of a book, booklet or poster residing adjacent the front panel.
Inasmuch as the first elongate component in the primary embodiment is of flexible construction and subject to being deflected somewhat downwardly by the weight of a book or poster placed thereon at such time as the book, booklet or poster is in contact with the front panel, it plays a role in causing the pages of a book or booklet to be firmly retained in a position such that they are easily read by an audience or the students in a classroom. Because of the inherent novel construction of my easel, the first and second elongate components thus serve in a highly advantageous and unobvious mann
Braun Leslie A.
Renfro, Esq. Julian C.
Wujciak A. Joseph
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