Granted Patent B2

US 7,823,857 · App. 11/943,439 · Granted Nov 2, 2010

Abstract

Claims (35)

1. A collapsible easel comprising:

a top assembly;

a base comprising a front leg assembly pivotally connected to said top assembly, and a rear leg pivotally connected to said top assembly;

said front leg assembly comprising two front legs, each leg independently pivotally connected to said top assembly;

a brace assembly pivotally attached at one end to a fixed point on said rear leg, said brace assembly also removably engaging each of said two front legs, said brace assembly permitting movement of said front legs away from each other and towards each other when said brace assembly is removed from engagement with said two front legs;

said brace assembly securing said front and rear legs in a tripod configuration when said brace assembly engages said two front legs; and

said brace assembly permitting said front and rear legs to be maintained in a collapsed position when said brace assembly is disengaged from said two front legs.

2. A collapsible easel comprising:

a top assembly;

a base comprising a front leg assembly pivotally connected to said top assembly, and a rear leg pivotally connected to said top assembly;

said front leg assembly comprising two front legs, each leg independently pivotally connected to said top assembly;

a brace assembly pivotally attached at one end to a fixed point on said rear leg, said brace assembly also moveably engaging each of said two front legs, said brace assembly permitting movement of said front legs away from each other in a first position of the brace assembly and towards each other in a second position of said brace assembly;

said brace assembly securing said front and rear legs in a tripod configuration when said brace assembly is in said first position;

said brace assembly permitting said front and rear legs to be maintained in a collapsed position when said brace assembly is in said second position;

said brace assembly comprising a V-shaped spring assembly adapted to removably connect said rear leg to said front leg assembly, said V-shaped spring assembly comprising a V-shaped spring having a first and a second end, each end removably attached to said first and second front leg respectively, said V-shaped spring including a bottom center portion, said bottom center portion pivotally attached to said fixed point on said rear leg.

3. The collapsible easel of claim 2 including an attachment bracket pivotally attached to said V-shaped spring at the bottom center portion of said V-shaped spring, said bracket pivotally mounting said V-shaped spring to said rear leg at said fixed point.

4. A collapsible easel comprising:

a top assembly;

a base comprising a front leg assembly pivotally connected to said top assembly and a rear leg pivotally connected to said top assembly;

said front leg assembly comprising two front legs, each leg independently pivotally connected to said top assembly;

a brace assembly pivotally attached at one end to said rear leg, said brace assembly also removably engaging each of said two front legs, said brace assembly permitting movement of said front legs away from each other in a first position of the brace assembly and towards each other in a second position of said brace assembly when said brace assembly is removed from engagement with said two front legs;

said brace assembly securing said front and rear legs in a tripod configuration when said brace assembly engages said two front legs;

said brace assembly permitting said front and rear legs to be maintained in a collapsed position when said brace assembly disengages from said two front legs;

the top assembly comprising a front support adapted to support the rear of an item to be displayed, and a connector assembly including a front connector and a back connector, the connector assembly pivotally connecting said base to said top assembly;

the front connector including a bracket assembly and a first cushion member, the back connector including a back plate and a second cushion member, said first cushion member being located between said bracket assembly and said base, and said second cushion member being located between said back plate and said base, said first and second cushion members applying a drag force on said two front legs as said two front legs pivot from said top assembly.

5. The collapsible easel of claim 4 , wherein the bracket assembly comprises a first and a second plate, said front leg assembly pivotally attached to said first plate, and said rear leg pivotally attached to said second plate.

6. The collapsible easel of claim 1 , wherein,

said top assembly includes a front support and a connector assembly, said connector assembly including at least one cushion member;

said at least one cushion member directly and continuously frictionally engaging said two front legs and applying a drag force resisting movement during movement of said two front legs.

7. The collapsible easel of claim 1 , wherein said brace assembly comprises a collapsible brace connecting said rear leg to said front leg assembly, said collapsible brace assembly comprising a pair of lateral struts extending between and engaging each of the front legs, and a bracket connecting the lateral struts, the bracket further engaging a rear extension assembly that extends to and is pivotally connected to said fixed point of the rear leg.

8. The collapsible easel of claim 7 wherein the rear extension assembly comprises at least two rear struts extending in parallel to the rear leg of the easel and pivotally connecting to the fixed point of the rear leg at diametrically opposed surfaces of the rear leg.

9. The collapsible easel of claim 7 having a first position wherein the front leg assembly and the rear leg generally form a triangle shape allowing said easel to be positioned in a first tripod position, and a second position wherein said front leg assembly and said rear leg are collapsed towards each other to a folded configuration.

10. The collapsible easel of claim 9 wherein the length of each of the pair of lateral struts and the rear extension assembly is determined by the first and second positions of the easel and to allow the easel to be folded with all legs closely adjacent to each other.

11. The collapsible easel of claim 7 wherein each lateral strut is pivotally connected to the bracket of the brace assembly, and each lateral strut is adapted to be rotated at said bracket in an upward direction for collapsing the easel to the second position and rotated in a downward direction for expanding the easel to the first open tripod position.

12. The collapsible easel of claim 7 wherein the rear extension assembly is pivotally connected to the bracket of the brace assembly, and the rear extension assembly is adapted to facilitate upward motion of the brace assembly for collapsing the easel to the second position and downward motion for expanding the easel to the first open tripod position.

Assignments (18)