IE47567B1 - Picture carriers - Google Patents

Description

This invention relates to picture carriers.

The present invention provides a picture carrier having a frame that defines a viewing aperture for the picture, and having a rear wall that has a support face for the rear side of the picture, wherein there is formed between the rear wall and the frame joined therewith, a gap which extends at least partially round the frame, and on one side of the picture carrier extends through to the outside thereof, wherein, in the vicinity of the gap there is proviso ded a transport roll or roller or a transport slider member which can be trough into engagsnent with tns rear side of the picture over ar, area cf the picture a which the front side of the picture is supported, the transport roll or roller or transport slider member comprises means to make frictional engagement with the rear of the picture so that movement of the picture by the said roll, roller or slider member is facilitated.

Preferably the gap extends completely round the frame.

The lateral edge of the rear wall can be set back along the gap extending as far as the outer side of the picture carrier with respect to the lateral edge of the frame of the picture carrier so that one wall of the continuous gap is shortened on the cuter side of the picture carrier with respect to the other wall.

The transport roll or roller or the transport slider member can be attached to a prop provided on the rear wall so that the picture carrier may be placed upright.

The arrangement can be such that the prop can be sunk flush in the rear wall and is pivotable out of the plane of the rear wall.

The transport roll or roller or the transport slider member can be provided in the vicinity of the free end of the prop.

The prop can be locked in all or any predetermined angular position by a squeeze fit or in some other manner. Preferably, the prop can be locked as a result of the fact that there are provided on the prop pins, for example, spherical pins, which extend in the direction of the pivot axis and can be resiliently inserted into recesses in the rear wall, or vice versa, wherein one or more annular friction and/or locking areas, which extend transversely or perpendicularly to the pivot axis, are provided on the prop, which areas engage in each case with a counter area on the rear wall, and wherein the locking area and optionally the counter area are serrated areas which are provided with teeth extending radially with respect to the pivot axis, wherein furthermore the friction and/or locking area and optionally the counter area are provided around the pins and/or the recesses associated therewith.

There can be provided in the region of a recess, which is arranged in the rear wall for counter-sinking the prop, an opaque cover plate, which is displaceable at least between a first position, in which it leaves open a portion of the rear side of the picture so that the picture can be gripped directly or by means of a roll or roller, and a second position, in which it covers completely the portion of the rear side of the picture, which is left free by the recess, and extends beyond the rear side of the frame, wherein the opaque cover plate is arranged in a depression in the front side of the rear wall.

A transport slider member can be provided which is constructed as an opaque cover plate in the vicinity of a recess for the prop and at least in its one position completely covers the portion of the rear side of the picture that is left free by the recess and extends beyond the rear side of the frame.

On the rear side of the picture carrier there can be a compartment for other pictures or the rear side of the picture carrier can be constructed as a container for other pictures.

The entire rear wall of the picture carrier can be constructed as a transport slider member.

Guide means for the rear wall can be constructed in the frame.

By way of example only, certain illustrative embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figures 1 and 2 show a picture carrier embodying the invention standing horizontally on a surface; Figures 3 to 5 show a picture carrier embo’dying the invention having a rectangular recess in its rear wall in which a prop can be recessed.

Figures 6 and 7 show a picture carrier embodying the invention in which a gap is provided not only to accommodate a picture but also to accommodate a transparent cover plate; Figure 8 illustrates an opaque cover plate constructed as a transparent slider member; ana Figure 9 shows a picture carrier on the rear side of which there is provided a compartment in the interior of which pictures may be kept. - 5 Figs. 1 and 2 will now be referred to in detail,in these drawings the picture carrier, indicated as a whole by 301, is shown standing horizontally on a surface. This picture carrier consists essentially of a frame 302, a rear wall 303 joined thereto and preferably integrally formed therewith, and a prop 304, which, since it serves to support the picture carrier, may also be referred to as a stand.

The prop 304 is pivotally mounted in the rear wall 303 in such a manner that when the picture carrier 301 is not standing up the prop can be pivoted into the rear wall so that its rear side 305 is flush with the rear side 306 of the rear wall 303 and/or its front side 307 is flush with the front side 308 of the rear wall 303. A transport roll or roller 342 is mounted in the prop 304 and is described in detail further below.

The picture carrier 301 furthermore has two holes 309 and 310, of which one hole 309 is provided in the rear wall 303 halfway along the length of the picture carrier 301 and in the vicinity of one of its longer edges and the other hole 310 is provided halfway across the width of the picture carrier and in the vicinity of one of its shorter edges.

These holes enable the picture carrier to be hung from an appropriate projection on the wall, for example, a nail head, a screw head or the like.

The picture carrier 301 can be stood or suspended either in the upright and in the horizontal position. The picture, which is not shown in Fig. 1 and 2, is located in a gap, matching its thickness, which extends between the front side 308 of the rear wall 303 and the rear side (not shown) of the frame 302 in the region extending between the broken line 311 shown in Fig. 1 and the inner edge 312 of the frame 302. In the region of one edge, which is in fact a lateral edge 317 of the picture carrier 301, this gap - 6 313 extends right through to the outside, so that the picture can be inserted into the picture carrier 301 at this edge and in the inserted position is supported by the front side 308 of the rear wall 303 and is displayed over the area surrounded by the inner edge 312 of the frame 302.

The thickness of the gap 313 is chosen in accordance with the thickness of the picture and where applicable, especially in the case of very large formats, in accordance with the thickness of a transparent cover plate and/or a rear backing plate or foil. For normal purposes, the thickness of the gap is between 0.1 and 1 mm, preferably, between 0.25 and 0.75 mm, especially preferably between 0.4 and 0.6 mm.

In the region at which it joins the outer side of the picture carrier the gap 313 may be widened in cross-sec15 tion in the shape of a funnel over the entire gap length to facilitate the insertion of a picture. It is especially preferred, however, so to design the gap 313 at this region that the lateral edge 314 (indicated in Fig. 1 hy a dot-dash line) of the rear wall 303 is set back along the opening area of the gap 313 with respect to the lateral edge 315 of the frame 302 of the picture carrier so that the wall 316 (not directly visible in Figs. 1 and 2, but see Figures 6 and 9) of the continuous gap 313 is shortened on the outer side of the picture carrier with respect to the other wall 318. The part of the wall 318 which projects beyond the wall 316 thus forms a lateral stop for a picture to he inserted into the gap 313, whereby the insertion operation is facilitated. A funnel-shaped widening 319 may additionally he provided by a chamfer 321 of the wall 316 extending over the entire width of the gap 313, as shown in Fig. 9.

The rear wall 303 furthermore has a preferably rectangular recess 329 in which prop 304, which is explained in greater detail in an embodiment shown in Figs. 3 to 5, can be recessed. For this purpose the prop 304 may be pivotally mounted on the rear wall 303 in such a manner that it can be pivoted backwards out of the rear wall 303 at one of its lateral edges, preferably at the lateral edge 330 perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, for which purpose, in the embodiment according to Figs. 3 to 5, the ends of the lateral edge 330 take the form of preferably spherically-shaped pins 331, which project beyond the lateral edges 332 that extend in the longitudinal direction of the prop 304, and which engage in complementary depressions which are provided in the lateral edges of the recess 329, and into which they may be resiliently inserted.

So that the prop 304 remains or can be locked in a wide variety of inclined positions, although in certain circumstances jamming the prop in the rear wall in the region of the pin 331 may be adequate, there is provided around one of the pins 331, or, as shown in Fig. 3, around both pins 331, a so-called friction and/or locking area 334, which in the present case is a serrated area and is shown on an enlarged scale in Fig. 5. The teeth 335 of this area extend radially with respect to the pivot axis 336 of the prop 304 and likewise project slightly beyond the lateral edges 332 of the prop 304, as shown in Fig. 3. Although it is in principle possible to provide corresponding teeth 335 on the face of the rear wall to which the locking area 334 is adjacent, in the present embodiment this is not absolutely necessary because the edges of the rear wall that contact the locking area 334 may in any case act to a certain degree as counter detents in conjunction with the jamming action exerted by the rear wall.

Although the prop 304 may for the remainder be a - 8 flat, especially rectangular member matching the recess 329, which is provided with a recess 337 for the purpose of taking hold of it and pivoting it away from the rear wall 303, to save material it may instead have two longitudinal bars 338, which extend radially from the pivot axis 336 and are preferably tapered at their ends 339 remote from the pivot axis (see Figs. 1, 2, 4 and 6) and which are joined to one another by one or more transverse bars 340, which in the present case are planar. The thickness of the or each transverse bar 340 is smaller than that of the longitudinal bars 338, and in this case too a recess 337 is provided for taking hold of the prop and pivoting it out from the rear wall 303 and for accommodating a transport roll or roller 342.

For the latter purpose, in the region of the end of the prop 304 remote from the pivot axis 336, in the present case on the corresponding end of the longitudinal bars 338, a hole 341 is provided in each case. These holes act as a bearing for the axle 320 of a transport roller 342.

The recess 329 extends to the edge of the picture carrier a little beyond the inner edge 312 of the frame 302, (see Fig. 2). In this manner the rear side of the frame 302 forms a stop for the transport roll or roller. When the picture carrier 301 is empty this is a direct stop, whereas it is an indirect stop when a picture is inserted because then the edge of the picture is disposed between the stop and the lower end 339 of the prop. As a result of this stop, if no transparent cover plate is provided for the front side of the picture, the picture disposed in the picture carrier cannot be damaged by the prop 304 being pivoted into the rear wall because the latter is prevented from pressing the picture out or even piercing it, and.above all, this stop then forms a support for the front side of the picture in the region in which it engages with the transport roll or roller 342.

In the embodiment of a picture carrier shown in Figs. 6 and 7 there is a freely rotatably mounted transport roll or roller 342, which is arranged in the region of the gap 313, which extends through to the outside of the lateral edge 317 of the picture carrier, opposite a support face for the front side or a part of the front side of the picture. This support face is formed in the present embodiment by the rear side, facing the picture,of a transparent cover plate 343.

The roll or roller 342 is arranged in the region of that end of the prop 304 which is remote from the pivot axis 336 of this prop, either in the general recess 337 (see Figs 1 to 3) or in a special recess 344, shown in Fig. 6. The roll or roller 342, consists of material, especially rubber, that is preferably grooved, fluted, knurled or roughened in some other manner, so that there results a good frictional engagement of the circumference of this roll or roller with the rear side of the picture, not shown in Figs. 6, 7 and 9, the picture being disposed between the transparent cover plate 343 and the rear wall 303.

The roll or roller 342 makes it possible in a very simple manner for the particular picture to be conveyed into the picture carrier easily and without the risk of creased areas forming, by taking hold of that circumferential side of the roll or roller 342 which is accessible from the outside in order to rotate the roll or roller. In the same manner the picture can thereby be effortlessly removed from the picture carrier. Since the roll or roller is always pushed onto the rear side of the picture when operated, because it is attached to the free end of the pivotable prop 30.4, and can thus be moved onto the picture, good engagement between the circumference of the roll or roller and the rear side of the picture is always guaranteed.

The transparent cover plate 343, with which the front side of the picture is covered, is so attached that its lateral edges 345 are accommodated and held in the gap 313 between the rear wall 303 and the frame 302. In the picture carrier according to Figs. 6 and 7 the gap 313 serves not only (as with the picture carrier shown in Fig. 9 and described hereinafter) to accommodate the picture but al10 so to accommodate the transparent cover plate 343. So that this cover plate remains in the picture carrier when the picture is changed, the thickness of the gap 313 extending to the outside is smaller than the thickness of the cover plate. The transparent cover plate 343 can be changed in a simple manner by taking apart the frame 302 and the rear wall 303, if these are joined together, for example, by a plug joint which may consist of cylindrical projections and holes complementary thereto.

The transparent cover plate 343 preferably consists of mineral glass, but may equally consist of a transparent plastics material, and it may furthermore be tinted, especially blue, pink, gold, or silver, or may be smoked. Furthermore this cover plate may consist of material that is dazzle-free and non-Ef lective or of material that has been made dazzle25 free and non-reflective.

An opague cover plate 346 is arranged in the region of the recess 329 provided for countersinking the prop 304 in the rear wall 303. This cover plate is displaceable between at least one first and at least one second position, of which the first position is shown in Fig, 6, In this position the opaque cover plate 346 leaves open a portion of the rear side of the picture so that the latter can be taken hold directly or, as shown in Fig. 6, so that the picture can be taken hold of by means of the roll or roller 342, that is to say, the cover plate 346 leaves free a portion of the recess 329 in the region of the recess 337 or 344, so that the picture disposed in the picture carrier is taken hold of by the roller or roll 342 or by hand through the recess 329 and can be removed laterally from the picture carrier or, when it is to be introduced, fully inserted into the picture carrier.

In the second position, which is not shown, the cover plate 346 has been moved so far to the right in Fig. 6 that its right-hand end comes to rest under the frame 302, so that as a result it completely covers that portion of the rear side of the picture which is left open by the recess 329 and is not disposed under the rear side of the frame.

By this means, a picture disposed in the picture carrier, especially when the prop 304 is pivoted out from the rear side 303, is prevented from showing light patches which would otherwise occur if the picture carrier received stronger light from behind than from in front, which may he the case, for example when it is stood on a desk with its hack to a window.

For the slidable guidance and accommodation of the opaque cover plate 346, a depression 347 is provided in the front side of the rear wall facing the picture. The depth of this depression is preferably the same as the thickness of the opaque cover plate 346. This depression 347 extends, as shown partially in Fig. 7, preferably at all sides beyond the edges of the recess 329, so that the cover plate 346, the breadth of which is equal to the breadth of the depression 347 in Fig. 7 and the length of which is equal or preferably slightly larger than the length L of the recess 229, in the second position reliably blocks any light from the rear side of the picture.

The opaque cover plate 346 may also be constructed as a transport slider member 322 (see Fig. 8), in which case, of course, the roll or roller 342 is omitted since the transport slider member 322 has the same task. It consists essentially of a plate 323, a lug or any other member mounted so as to be displaceable in the direction of insertion of the picture, on which member there are provided for mounting it, for example, guide means 324 that engage in complementary guide means (not shown) that are provided in the rear wall 303 or the prop 304 or, provided that the entire rear wall is constructed as a transport slider member, in the frame 302. The transport slider member 322 has on its side facing the rear side of the picture a retentive element 325, for example a small rubber patch, which carries the picture along. For clarity the thickness has been considerably enlarged in Fig. 8, for the retentive element 325 may, of course, be very thin, for example a thinly applied layer of rubber or plastics material.

So that the retentive element 325 does not carry with it a picture in the direction that is not desired, the transport slider member is so constructed or displaceably mounted that a certain minimum pressure is required to bring the retentive element 325 into firm engagement with the rear side of the picture, so that by alternately exerting in each case a relatively heavy and a fairly light pressure on the transport slider member 322, the user is able to transport the picture in the desired direction.

In the embodiment of Fig. S, on the rear side 303 of the picture carrier 301 there is provided a compartment 326 which may be integral with the rear wall 303 and in the interior 327 of which other pictures may be kept. The recess 47S67 - 13 329 has in this case remained in the rear wall 303, whereas the prop 304 together with the transport roll or roller 342 are provided in a recess 329 in the lid 333 pivotally mounted at 328. This lid, which now forms the actual rear wall of the picture carrier 301 is normally held closed by a locking joint 348. To operate the roll 342 the additional pictures are removed from the compartment 326 and, after closing the lid 333, the prop 304 is then pivoted towards the rear wall 303 until the roller 342 engages on the pic10 ture. In this manner the user is able to replace a picture inserted in the gap 313 by another picture from the compartment 326.

The picture carrier according to the invention, depending on the embodiment, has some or all of the follow15 ing advantages: (a) The picture carrier is simply designed and has an aesthetic appearance, the slot in the preferred embodiment enabling a picture to be effortlessly and especially easily inserted into the picture carrier. (b) The picture carrier is operationally safe and reliable: in particular the picture is arranged self-mounted in the picture carrier, and may easily be inserted and removed by the transport roll or roller or the transport slider member. (c) The picture carrier is light and simple to handle, for the picture simply has to be introduced through a slot at the side and can easily be changed by anyone. (d) The picture carrier is versatile, for it makes it possible for a picture to be displayed either in the up30 right or horizontal position and in the suspended or standup position. For the latter purpose, it has a self-locking prop which can be fully countersunk in the rear wall, so that hanging on the wall is facilitated. For the purpose of hanging the carrier on the wall, holes are provided into which either when hanging horizontally or hanging upright the head of a nail can engage. Furthermore the picture carrier is versatile in its use in so far as it can advantageously be produced for all sizes of picture. (e) The picture carrier can be produced at a favourable price; in particular it requires no glass cover, may be made in one piece or, when the prop is produced as a separate part, may be cheaply produced in two parts and requires very little material. Also expenditure on time is low and, on assembly, the prop with its pins snaps easily into the corresponding recesses in the rear wall. The frame may be completely or partially printed so as to achieve an ornamental effect. (f) Finally, the picture carrier is simple to transport and especially in its embodiment for normal photographs can be sent in the form of a letter or in a letter, as there is no risk to the glass cover breaking because a glass cover is not used, and the fact that the prop can be completely countersunk in the rear wall favours dispatch in a letter.

Claims (18)

1. A picture carrier having a frame that defines a viewing aperture for the picture, and having a rear wall that has a support face for the rear side of the picture, wherein there is formed between the rear wall and the frame joined therewith, a gap which extends at least partially round the frame, and on one side of the picture carrier extends through to the outside thereof, wherein, in the vicinity of the gap there is provided a transport roll or roller or a transport slider member which can be brought into engagement with the rear side of the picture over an area of the picture at which the front side of the picture is supported, the transport roll or roller or transport slider member comprises means to make frictional engagement with the rear of the picture so that movement of the picture by said roll, roller or slider member is facilitated.

2. A picture carrier as claimed in claim 1, wherein the gap extends completely round the frame.

3. A picture carrier according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the lateral edge of the rear wall is set back along the gap extending as far as the outer side of the picture carrier with respect to the lateral edge of the frame of the picture carrier so that one wall of the continuous gap is shortened on the outer side of the picture carrier with respect to the other wall.

4. A picture carrier as claimed in claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the transport roll or roller or the transport slider member is attached to a prop provided on the rear wall so that the picture carrier may be placed upright. 5. Prop.

5. A picture carrier as claimed in claim 4, wherein the arrangement is such that the prop can be sunk flush in the rear wall and is pivotable out of the plane of the rear wall.

6. A picture carrier as claimed in claim 4 or 5, wherein the transport roll or roller or the transport slider member is provided in the vicinity of the free end of the

7. A picture carrier according to claim 4, 5 or 6, wherein the prop can be locked in all or any predetermined angular position by a squeeze fit or in some other manner.

8. A picture carrier according to claim 7, wherein the 10 prop can be locked as a result of the fact that there are provided on the prop pins, for example, spherical pins, which extend in the direction of the pivot axis and can be resiliently inserted into recesses in the rear wall, or vice versa, wherein one or more annular friction and/or locking

9. A picture carrier according to claim 4, wherein 25 there is provided in the region of a recess, which is arranged in the rear wall for counter-sinking the prop, an opaque cover plate, which is displaceable at least between a first position, in which it leaves open a portion of the rear side of the picture so that the picture can be gripped directly or 30 by means of a roll or roller, and a second position, in which it covers completely the portion of the rear side of the picture, which is left free by the recess, and extends ’ - 17 beyond the rear side of the frame, wherein the opaque cover plate is arranged in a depression in the front side of the rear wall.

10. A picture carrier according to claim 4, wherein a transport slider member is provided which is constructed as an opaque cover plate in the vicinity of a recess for the prop and at least in its one position completely covers the portion of the rear side of the picture that is left free by the recess and extends beyond the rear side of the frame.

11. A picture carrier according to any preceding claim, wherein on the rear side of the picture carrier there is a compartment for other pictures or the rear side of the picture carrier is constructed as a container for other pictures.

12. A picture carrier according to claim 1, wherein the entire rear wall of the picture carrier is constructed as a transport slider member.

13. A picture carrier according to claim 12, wherein guide means for the rear wall are constructed in the frame.

14. A picture carrier substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated by Figures 1 and 2 of the accompanying drawings.

15. A picture carrier substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated by Figures 3 to 5 of the accompanying drawings. 15 areas, which extend transversely or perpendicularly to the pivot axis, are provided on the prop, which areas engage in each case with a counter area on the rear wall,and wherein the locking area and optionally the counter area are serrated areas which are provided with teeth extending radially with 20 respect to the pivot axis, wherein furthermore the friction and/or locking area and optionally the counter area are provided around the pins and/or the recesses associated therewith.

16. A picture carrier substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated by Figures 6 and 7 of the accompanying drawings.

17. A picture carrier substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated by Figure 8 of the accompanying drawings.

18. - 18 18. A picture carrier substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated by Figure 9 of the accompanying drawings.