US1907242A - Table - Google Patents

Description

May 2, 1933. F R CHESTER 1,907,242

TABLE Filed June 11. 1950 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN VEN TOR.

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ATTORNEYS.

y 1933. F. R. CHESTER 1,907,242

TABLE Filed June 11, 1930 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 F Fi 2.

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May 1933. F. R. CHESTER 1,907,242

TABLE I Filed June 11. '1950 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Fig. 5.

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ATTORNEYS.

y 2, 1933. F. R. CHESTER 1,907,242

TABLE Filed June 11, 1930 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 IN VEN TOR.

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Patented May 2, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT: OF'FIGE.

FRANK' R. CHESTER, OF NEW'YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR T CHESTERFIELD CONTROL COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A GORPORATIONOF DELAWARE TABLE Application filed J-une 1:1, 1930. Serial -No..460,315

This invention relates to an article of furniture, and specifically, a support such as a table, and aims to provide a functionally and structurally improved article of this naturewhich, when extended, will provide an extremely rigid support and which, when collapsed, will occupy a. minimum amount of space. It is an object of the invention to. furnish a support, and particularly a table, which will embody relatively few' parts, each individually simple and rugged in construction, these parts being capable of ready manipulation, by a relatively inexperienced person, to permit of the provision of a smallor extended table, as maybe desired, and in which, moreover, this article will embody, in so far as feasible, an; extremely artistic and pleasing appearance-in its several conditions.

A further object of the invention. is that of furnishing an article of this nature which may beset upor reduced to occupy a mini.- mum amount of space with the least possible effort, and in which, in any of its conditions,

i a perfect deck surface will be presented so that while the table may be employed to advantage in any number of different associations, it will always present a surface capable of use, for'exa-mple, in connection with table tennis and ping pong. Moreover, the structure will be so rigid as to be capable of withstanding the severe strains: imposed on its deck and associated parts without there being anydanger of the several table units becoming relatively displaced.

WVith these, and further, objects in min-d, reference is bad to the attached sheets of drawings illustrating one practical embodiment of the invention, and in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the table partially set up; i

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the main portion of the table; 7

Figs. 3 and 4 are enlarged sectional views taken along the lines 3-3 and 4-4 in the direction of the arrows indicated in Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional view showing the disposition of one of the supporting legs, when. in extended condition and.

Fig. 7 is a sectional side view of one. of the deck panels.

In the'seviews, the numeral 10 indicates. a

example, by bolts 15.. These arms may each be formed of metal and are conveniently U- shaped in cross-section, it being noted that adjacent their inner ends a plate, or cooperating strip portion, 16 is conveniently furnished for the purpose of reinforcingthem adjacent the point of contact of the bolt. Also, bearing plates 17 may be disposed in association. with the inner facesofthepanels with a view to providing a rigid, unitary structure which will be free, to amaximum extent, from any tendency of the parts to bind. a

In the embodiment illustrated, the arms 14 support, adjacent their outer ends, legs 18. These may be of any desired construction, but preferably, are of such area. that they may be accommodated within the panels existing along the under faces of the arms. A convenient formof attaching these legs to: the arms is, according to the present invention, by means of transversely extending bolts 19, it being noted that the: upper ends of the legs are carried, if desired, blocks 20,. the upper faces of which are beveled, as has been indicated at 21, and that the pivot points 19 are so-located with reference to the side portions of the arms 14 that the inner face 21 will clear the inner face of the base portions of these arms.

1 The purpose of this construction is to be found in that a wedge structure is presented by preferably utilizing a spring strip 22'bent ig. 6 shows this part in housedcondition,

upon itself to furnish a resilient portion lyingin line with the inner face 21 of the block, when the leg is in vertical position. Accordingly, with the parts in this position, it will be appreciated that the strip will act to prevent their displacement. The wedge unit thus furnished is rendered retractable by means of an actuating portion 23 extending conveniently beyond the arm with which the strip is associated, and this strip is normally projected by means of a spring 24, it being noted that a stop pin 25 is utilized, if desired, to prevent any possibility of the strip, under the influence of the spring, being projected to too great an extent. Moreover, the wedge structure furnished by the strip is adjustable to meet variations in manufacture and also to compensate for wear, as, for example, by employing a bolt or set screw 26 which passes through the outer leg of the strip and bears against the inner face of its body. g V

As a resultof this construction it will be readily appreciated that, with the parts in the position shown in Fig. 6, the contact between the side face of the block and the outer arm of the strip will be such that the leg 18 will remain in housed condition within the body of the arm. However, by simply retracting the wedge unit by means of the actuating portion 23, the leg will automatically, under the influence of gravity, swing downwardly until it occupies the position shown in Fig. 5. Of course, the operator might manually swing the leg, if he so desires, but in any event, upon nowreleasing the actuating portion 23, the wedge structure furnished will yieldingly bear-against the upper end of the leg to prevent any movement ofthe same around its pivot 19. The purpose of'preferably having the upper edges of the block extend at an angle will now be obvious, in that the under surface of the wedge unit preferably extends at such an angle, and thus a proper co-operation of the parts will be assured.

It-will, moreover, be observed that the upper faces of the arms 14 may each be providedwith openings 26. Panels 27 may be'disposed in line with the panel. 12 and upon the arms 14, and further panels, up to any desired numberand according to the length of the arms-may, in turn, be arranged beyond the panels 27. Of course. if merely a small table is desired, the latter panels might provide the end portions of the table, with consequent reduction in the length of the arms 14. However, conceding that a table exactly of the type shown is to be assembled, panels 28 are disposed beyond the panels 27 and, as shown in Fig. 7, these panels are each preferably formed with a bore within which a screw-threaded shaft 29 is disposed. A traveler 30 is bound within a recess of the panel 28 and upon the shaft, and

is formed with a hook-shaped extension 31 of sufficient depth to pass through the opening 26 of the arm. It will be observed that the end of the shaft is square, as has been indicated at 32, so as to mount a suitable key or crank, and accordingly, with the parts disposed in this manner, the shaft may be turned in order to draw the traveler along its body and correspondingly shift the panel 28 toward the panel 27 This latter panel will thus be pressed against the panel 12, and under suitable pressure, all of these panels may be brought to acondition where their upper faces form one continuous surface, with their edge ortions practically invisibly merged in the eck.

In so far as structural details are concerned, it will, of course, be understood that much latitude may be had. It is preferred, according to the present invention, to have the panels embodying a tongue and groove construction, as has been indicated at 33. Moreover, with reference to the blocks 20, these may conveniently include a jacketing portion enclosing the upper ends of the legs 18, and within which a block 3 1is disposed, this block firmly engaging the threads of a member 35 which has its upper end rotatively encircling the bolt 19, furnishing the pivot for the leg. M

The set-screw 26 may be provided with a locking nut 36, and a brace 37 may be provided below the panel, or plate, 13 for the purpose of reinforcing the center part of the table. Finally, according to this invention, strips or apron portions 38 may close the space between the panels 12 and 13, and they may be extended below the latter to conceal the housed structure, while strips 39 are pivotally mounted between the aprons 38 thus to provide a completely housed structure which, however, is instantly available upon the strips 39 being swung downwardly, as shown in Fig. 3, movement beyond a predetermined point in this connection being prevented by 7 stops 40.

Reviewing briefly the operation of the structure, it will be understood that, with the parts completely housed, an extremely attractive article is-presented which may be.

utilized for any desired purpose and will appear, for example, as a relatively small, or walltype, table. The operator, by simply swinging the strips 39 down, exposes the two pairs ofarms 14, and the latter may be swung outwardly around their pivotal bolts 15 to extend in the manner shown in Fig. 1. Thereupon, by simply manipulating the actuating portions 23, the legs 18 may be brought to proper supporting condition, and now the I 125 panels 27 and-28 may be placed in position, whereupon, by tightening, these panels, a completeunitary structure will be furnished which will withstand the heaviest usage withits parts. By simply reversing the foregoing out in any way disturbing the relationship of procedure, the parts may again be neatly and compactly housed and, to all intents and purposes, an ordinary piece of furniture will be presented.

From the foregoing it will be appreciated that, among others, the several objects of the invention as specifically afore referred to are achieved. It will, moreover, be understood that numerous changes in construction, and rearrangements of the parts, might be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined by the claims.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A table including a panel, means for supporting the same, an arm pivotally associated with said panel, said arm being substantially U-shaped in cross-section and with its legs extending downwardly, and a table leg pivotally supported between the legs of said arm.

2. A table including a panel, means for supporting the same, arms movable outwardly from said table, legs pivotally carried by said arms and adapted to be swung in substantially vertical planes, and means for locking such legs against movements with respect to said arms, said means comprising a wedge structure sliding contact with said legs adjacent their upper ends.

3. A table including a panel, a plate spaced from the same, supporting means for said panel and plate, arms disposed between said panels and plates, means cooperating with the inner ends ofsaid arms pivotally to support the same, whereby the latter may be swung outwardly in a substantially horizontal plane and beyond said panel, and means for normally closing the space between the edges of said plate and panel to provide a housing structure for said arms.

4. A table including a panel, a plate spaced from the same, supporting means for said panel and plate, arms disposed between said panels and plates, means cooperating with the inner ends of said arms pivotally to support the same, whereby the latter may be swung outwardly in a substantially horizontal plane and beyond said panel, strips pivotally supported by said table, and said strips being disposed beyond the outer edges of said plate, whereby they may close the space between said plate and panel.

5. A table including a supporting structure, arms extendible therefrom and U- shaped in cross-section, legs normally housed within said arms and extending between the sides thereof, and means for pivotally supporting the upper ends of the legs in such position.

6. A table including a supporting structure, arms extendible therefrom and U- shaped in cross-section, legs normally housed within said arms and extending between the sides thereof, and quick, releasable means for normally locking the legs in such position.

7. A table including a supporting structure, arms extendible therefrom and 'U- shaped in cross-section, legs normally housed within said arms and extending between the sides thereof, and spring-projected wedging means for normally bearing against said legs to prevent movement thereof with respect to said arms.

8. A table including a supporting structure, arms extendible therefrom and U- shaped in cross-section, legs normally housed within said arms and extending between the sides thereof, said legs being swingable to extend at substantially right angles to the arms with which they are associated, and means for locking said legs into such latter position.

9. A table including a supporting structure, arms extendible therefrom and U shaped in cross-section, legs normally housed within said arms and extending between the sides thereof, said legs being swingable to extend at substantially right angles to the arms with which they are associated, and a single means for each of said legs and cooperating therewith to lock the same against movement in both housed and extended conditions.

10. A table including a supporting structure, arms extendible therefrom and U- shaped in cross-section, legs normally housed within said arms and extending between the sides thereof, said legs being swingable to extend at substantially right angles to the arms with which they are associated, and spring strips disposed between the base portions of said arms and the inner ends of said legs and wedging against the latter normally to prevent movement thereof with respect to said arms.

11. A table'including a panel, supportin means therefor, an arm extendible beyond said panel and formed with an opening, a second panel tobe disposed upon said arm, and means cooperating With said arm opening and said second panel for forcing the latter along said arm and into intimate contact with said first named panel.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

FRANK R. CHESTER.

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