GB2525764A

GB2525764A - Book and tablet stand

Info

Publication number: GB2525764A
Application number: GB1507168.1A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Alan Rupert Welch; Iain Paul Debretton-Gordon; Kit Debretton-Gordon
Original assignee: Welch Robert Designs Ltd
Current assignee: Welch Robert Designs Ltd
Priority date: 2014-04-29
Filing date: 2015-04-28
Publication date: 2015-11-04
Anticipated expiration: 2035-04-28
Also published as: GB2525764B; GB201407536D0; GB201507168D0

Abstract

A book and tablet stand comprising support means with a first surface 6 on which the underside of a book can be rested and a second surface 8 on which the spine of a book can be rested and an arm member 10 moveable between a first position in which it is positioned to rest against open pages of a book and a second position where it rests against the first surface 6 wherein the arm has a recess 12 formed by a raised lip which creates a groove which can receive the edge of a tablet computer such that it can rest against the second surface 8 when the arm 10 rests against the first surface 6. The arm 10 may be pivotally attached using an axle 24 and may have means to resist pivoting in the form of an elastomeric silicone sleeve 28 which provides friction.

Description

Book and Tablet Stand The present invention relates to a book stand, and relates particularly, but not exclusively, to a book stand adapted to both hold the pages of a book open and hold a tablet computer in a safe and reliable manner.

Bookstands generally comprise an L-shaped support for holding a book, the support being mounted to a base having one or more legs. A drawback of some book stands is that many books are resistant to staying open and generally require the hands of a user to hold the book open. This is particularly true of music stands. Many books are therefore prone to closing themselves if placed on a book stand.

This is undesirable for example if the reader is playing a musical instrument and following musical notation in the book. Alternatively, if the book stand is being used in a kitchen to display a recipe from a recipe book, a user's hands in this situation might be soiled from handling ingredients used in food preparation and it is undesirable for the user to then have to wash their hands to reopen the book at the correct page without soiling the book.

Also, because of the drawbacks of this type of book stand, it may be undesirable to place higher value items such as tablet computers on a book stand for the risk that they may fall off and become damaged.

ES2355221 describes a foldable stand for books or magazines.

The stand has a spring-loaded retaining member which pushes against the open pages of a book or magazine to hold the book or magazine against the support in an open condition.

This stand suffers from the drawback that it is not specifically designed to retain a tablet computer. The retaining member can only retain a tablet computer of limited size and might partially obscure or even scratch the screen of the tablet computer placed on the stand.

A preferred embodiment of the present invention seeks to

overcome the above disadvantages of the prior art.

According to the present invention, there is provided a book and tablet stand comprising: support means for supporting a book in an open position to display the contents of a book to a user, the support means comprising a first surface on which the underside of a book can be rested and a second surface on which the spine of a book can be rested; an arm member moveable between a first position in which the arm member is positionable to rest against open pages of a book supported by the support means to hold the book open and a second position wherein the arm member is positionable to rest against the first surface of the support means; and a recess formed in the arm member such that when the arm member is in the second position, an edge of a tablet computer is positionable in the recess such that the back of the tablet computer rests on the second surface of the support means, wherein the recess is defined by a forward raised lip portion forming a first side of an elongate channel, the forward raised lip portion arranged to prevent a tablet computer placed in said elongate channel from moving away from said second surface of the support means.

This provides the advantage of a book and tablet stand that is able to both retain the pages of a book held on the stand open and also hold a tablet computer in a manner that is secure and prevents the tablet computer and book from falling off. Furthermore, the recess formed in the arm member enables the stand to hold other reading material such as single sheets of paper as well as pictures in a more secure manner.

This is advantageous because book stands may be used to hold tablet computers to display for example recipes or musical notation accessible from the Internet rather than from traditional books. Also, this enables the tablet computer to be supported to view and listen to media recordings or video and music streamed from the internet without the need to purchase a separate dedicated tablet stand.

By providing a forward raised lip portion forming a first side of an elongate channel, this provides the advantage of the stand being able to retain a tablet computer placed in the elongate channel in a particularly safe and secure manner without any risk of screen damage because the forward lip prevents the tablet computer from slipping off the stand without substantially touching the screen.

The first and second surfaces may be substantially perpendicular.

The book and tablet stand may further comprise a base member on which the support means is mounted, the base member comprising a plurality of foot portions to contact a surface on which the book stand is placed.

The arm member may be pivotable about a longitudinal axis between said first and second positions.

The book and tablet stand may further comprise an at least partially circular recess defining said longitudinal axis; and at least one leg portion extending between said arm member and an axle disposed in said at least partially circular recess.

This provides the advantage of a sturdy and reliable mechanism for enabling movement of the arm portion.

In a preferred embodiment, the book and tablet stand further comprises first and second leg portions disposed on opposite ends of said arm member, wherein the axle extends between said first and second leg portions.

In a preferred embodiment, the book and tablet stand further comprises resistance means arranged to provide resistance to the pivoting of said arm member.

This provides the advantage of assisting in holding the pages of a book open, and also provides the advantage of enabling the book stand to reliably hold the pages of books of different thicknesses open.

In a preferred embodiment, the resistance means comprises a sleeve member mounted around said axle to provide friction between the axle and the at least partially circular recess.

Said sleeve member may be formed from an elastomeric material.

This provides the advantage of a group of materials that has been found to provide a desirable level of friction to provide resistance to the movement of the arm member.

In a preferred embodiment, said sleeve member is formed from silicone.

This provides the advantage of a material that has been found to provide a desirable level of friction to provide resistance to the movement of the arm member.

The at least partially circular recess may be formed in said base member.

The book and tablet stand may further comprise a rear raised lip portion forming a second side of said elongate channel.

In a preferred embodiment, the elongate channel is open ended.

This provides the advantage of enabling a tablet computer of any size to be held in the elongate channel.

A preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described by way of example only, and not in any limitative sense, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of a book and tablet stand embodying the present invention; and Figure 2 is a perspective view of the book and tablet stand of Figure 1.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, a book and tablet stand 2 comprises support means 4 for supporting a book (not shown) in an open position to display the contents of the book to a user. The support means 4 comprising a first surface 6 on which the underside of a book can be rested and a second surface 8 on which the spine of a book can be rested.

An arm member 10 is movable between a first position in which the arm member is positionable to rest against the open pages of a book supported by the support means 4 to hold the book open and a second position wherein the arm member 10 is positionable to rest against the first surface 6 of the support means. It can be seen that the first position of arm member 10 is shown in Figure 1 and the second position of arm member 10 is shown in Figure 2.

A recess 12 is formed in the arm member 10 such that when the arm member is in the second position as shown in Figure 2, an edge of a tablet computer (not shown) is positionable in the recess such that the back of the tablet computer rests on the second surface 8 of the support means 4. Alternatively, the recess 12 can be used to securely hold other reading material such as single sheets of paper as well as pictures.

The recess 12 is defined by a forward raised lip portion 9 forming a first side of an elongate channel 13. The forward raised lip portion 9 is arranged to prevent a tablet computer placed in elongate channel 13 from moving away from the second surface 8 of the support means 4. A rear raised lip portion 15 forms a second side of the elongate channel 13.

The forward and rear raised lip portions 9 and 15 do not have to run along the entire length of elongate channel 13. The elongate channel is sized to receive an edge of a tablet computer and the raised lip portions prevent any sliding movement of the tablet computer. Elongate channel 13 is also open ended such that no limit is placed on the size of tablet computer that can be held by the stand 2.

The first and second surfaces 6 and 8 are substantially perpendicular. However, other configurations are possible such as the angle between the first and second surfaces 6 and 8 being an acute angle. The support means 4 is formed from a single piece of metal, but could also be formed from other material such as plastics material and could be formed from one or more parts in an assembly. The support means 4 is mounted to a base member 14 using a stud 16 in an interference fit. Alternatively, other means of connection such as a screw and screw thread or an adhesive may be used.

The base member 14 comprises a plurality of feet 18 to contact a surface 20 on which the book stand is placed. The base member 14 is configured such that the support means 4 is held with the second surface 8 tilted backwardly to assist in the holding of a book.

Arm member 10 comprises at least one leg portion 22 extending between the arm member 10 and an axle 24. Axle 24 is disposed in.an at least partially circular recess 26 which defines a longitudinal axis about which the arm member 10 is pivotable along the directions of arrows A and B between the first and second positions. Preferably, arm member 10 is mounted between first and second leg portions 22 as shown in Figure 2. The axle 24 runs along the whole length of the at least partially circular recess 26. Alternatively, the axle 24 may only partially extend through recess 26. For example, in place of the axle 24, a pair of studs (not shown) formed on the end of each leg portion 22 could be mounted in opposite ends of the recess 26.

Resistance means 28 is provided to cause resistance to the movement of the arm member 10 between the first and second positions. In the embodiment shown, the resistance means 28 comprises a silicone sleeve disposed around axle 24, the silicone sleeve 28 and inner surface of recess 26 having a coefficient of friction sufficient to cause resistance to the pivoting of the arm member 10 about arrows A and B. This enables a user to rest the arm member 10 in an intermediate position along arrow B against the open pages of books of different thicknesses to hold the book open.

Instead of a silicone sleeve 28, the axle 24 could be circular and the friction could be between the outer surface of the axle 24 and the inner surface of recess 26. Although silicone has been found to provide a desirable level of friction for the resistance means 28, sleeves formed from other elastomers or rubber-like materials could also be used.

Alternatively, arm member 10 could be spring biased to the second position of Figure 2.

The operation of the book and tablet stand 2 will now be described. In order to use the book and tablet stand 2 to view the pages of a book, the user pivots the arm member 10 anti-clockwise in the direction of arrow A from the position shown in Figure 2 to that shown in Figure 1. An open book can then be placed in the support means 4 with the underside of the book placed on first surface 6 and the spine of the book and open covers on second surface 8. A user then pivots arm member 10 colckwise in the direction of arrow B to rest the rear surface 11 of arm member 10 against the open pages of the book. The resistance to rotation provided by the resistance means 28 holds the book open and the arm member in place.

To use the book and tablet stand 2 to hold and display the screen of a tablet computer (not shown), the arm member 10 is pivoted clockwise in the direction of arrow B to the position shown in Figure 2 in which the arm member 10 rests against the first surface 6 of support means 4. The edge of a tablet computer can then be placed in recess 12 such that the back of the tablet rests against second surface 8. This holds the tablet computer in a secure fashion to display the screen.

It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that the above embodiment has been described by way of example only and not in any limitative sense, and that various alterations and modifications are possible without departure from the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A book and tablet stand comprising: support means for supporting a book in an open position to display the contents of a book to a user, the support means comprising a first surface on which the underside of a book can be rested and a second surface on which the spine of a book can be rested; an arm member moveable between a first position in which the arm member is positionable to rest against open pages of a book supported by the support means to hold the book open and a second position wherein the arm member is positionable to rest against the first surface of the support means; and a recess formed in the arm member such that when the arm member is in the second position, an edge of a tablet computer is positionable in the recess such that the back of the tablet computer rests on the second surface of the support means, wherein the recess is defined by a forward raised lip portion forming a first side of an elongate channel, the forward raised lip portion arranged to prevent a tablet computer placed in said elongate channel from moving away from said second surface of the support means.
2. A book and tablet stand according to claim 1, wherein the first and second surfaces are substantially perpendicular.
3. A book and tablet stand according to claim 1, further comprising a base member on which the support means is mounted, the base member comprising a plurality of foot portions to contact a surface on which the book stand is placed.
4. A book and tablet stand according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the arm member is pivotable about a longitudinal axis between said first and second positions.
5. A book and tablet stand according to claim 4, further comprising an at least partially circular recess defining said longitudinal axis; and at least one leg portion extending between said arm member and an axle disposed in said at least partially circular recess.
6. A book and tablet stand according to claim 5, further comprising first and second leg portions disposed on opposite ends of said arm member, wherein the axle extends between said first and second leg portions.
7. A book and tablet stand according to any one of claims 4 to 6, further comprising resistance means arranged to provide resistance to the pivoting of said arm member.
8. A bock and tablet stand according to claim 7, wherein said resistance means comprises a sleeve member mounted around said axle to provide friction between the axle and the at least partially circular recess.
9. A book and tablet stand according to claim 8, wherein said sleeve member is formed from an elastomeric material.
10. A book and tablet stand according to claim 8, wherein said sleeve member is formed from silicone.
11. A book and tablet stand according to claim 5, wherein the at least partially circular recess is formed in said base member -
12. A book and tablet stand according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising a rear raised lip portion forming a second side of said elongate channel.
13. A book and tablet stand according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said elongate channel is open ended.
14. A book and tablet stand substantially as hereinbefore disclosed with reference to the accompanying drawings.