US2708508A

US2708508A - Display box

Info

Publication number: US2708508A
Application number: US241190A
Authority: US
Inventors: Francis E Marsh
Original assignee: WARNER JEWELRY CASE Co
Current assignee: WARNER JEWELRY CASE Co
Priority date: 1951-08-10
Filing date: 1951-08-10
Publication date: 1955-05-17
Anticipated expiration: 1972-05-17

Description

y 7, 1955 F. E. MARSH 2,708,508

DISPLAY BOX Filed Aug. 10, 1951 11W 'EN TOR. fia zc/s 5 Mme? BY Q QWAZZZM DISPLAY BOX Francis E. Marsh, Lockport, N. Y., assignor to Warner Jewelry Case Company Application August 10, 1951, Serial No. 241,190 9 Claims. (Cl. 20645.13)

This invention relates to a display box and more particularly to one which will lend itself to the plastic molding art which is much used today in the manufacture of jewelry display boxes because of their economy in manufacture and their value in display.

An object of the invention is to provide an improved jewelry box which is compact when closed and yet will effectively display its contents prominently and without having the box cover, when opened, extend too high above the display.

It is another object of the invention to provide a display case having improved means for disposing the contents advantageously for display purposes in conjunction with the opening movement of its lid or cover.

it is still another object of the invention to provide a display case having improved means of maintaining the lid in open and closed positions and, further, to provide a display case of practical and simple construction, the parts of which may be manufactured and assembled expeditiously and with ease.

Other objects of the invention will be apparent from the following specification and claims.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a sectional bodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a partially sectioned plan view of the jewel box taken about on line ll-Ii of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a detail perspective view of part of the snap action mechanism of Figs. 1 and 2.

The invention is illustrated as embodied in a jewelry display box having a body portion 1 of generally rectangular box form supported by corner legs 2. The body 1 is formed with a rectangular well 3 which occupies most of its top side except for a shelf portion 3a that borders the forward edge of the well. A cover 4 is provided for the body 1 and is hinged thereto along the back edge as by means of a pair of short trunnions 5, and a tiltable display tray 6 is provided to be ested in the well 3. The body portion 1, the cover 4, and the display tray 6 of the illustrated jewelry box may be advantageously molded from plastic material. The tray may be hinged to the front portion of the body 1, as by means of a decorative finishing fabric or lining 7 which is glued to the shelf 30 and to the adjacent areas of the tray. Thus the lining 7 serves as a fabric hinge 7a and may be continued across the tray 6 to a rear shelf 6a thereof to provide a finishing cover for the jewelry receiving cushion. If desired, the lining may be slotted as at 7b to hold and display an article of jewelry such as the ring R.

According to the invention, the cover 4 is interconnected with the tilta'ole dispiay tray 6 by means of a lever or crank arm 8 which extends from the cover 4 to be actuated thereby, and a transversely arranged spring member 9 carried by its free end. The spring preferably consists of a straight length of wire. The cover actuated arm 8 may be anchored in the cover by being molded in view of a jewelry display box emarticle storing positions.

place; however, in the illustrated embodiment the cover is molded with a slot 10 in its back wall, and thereafter the arm 8 is fitted therein. The side walls 11 of the display tray 6 extend rearwardly beyond the cushion-con- 12 thereof and are formed with a pair of rearwardly opening slots 13 which loosely receive and journal the opposite ends of the spring member 9.

The cover 4 is movable from the closed position shown in full line in Fig. 1 to an open position shown in phantom, further opening movement being prevented by a stop shoulder 14 on the rear wall of the body member 1 adjacent the cover hinge 5. The shape and size of the cover actuated arm 8 relative to the locations of the spring receiving slots 13 and the hinging axes of the display tray the spring wire are held in their respec- The spring therefore serves a dual purpose in both positions of the cover, first, to resiliently support the tray in its tilted displaying position and, second, to yield ably hold the cover in its open position. Likewise, when the cover is closed the spring By being so elevated, the display tray is so related to the raised cover as to cause the latter to afiord a framed appearance for the display.

It will be observed that the display case can be made with very few parts and that these parts are of such mechanical simplicity that they may be readily stamped, molded, methods.

contents of the case upon and for secure retention of both the tiltable tray and the cover in their article presenting and The invention is well adapted to a dealers display case for jewelry since when in its open position it presents the displayed article at a prorninent and advantageously light reflecting position. It is also well adapted to all mannerpf other ornamental and utilitarian cases and containers. Thus it will be appreciated that while only one embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described in detail, it may readily assume other forms within the scope of the appended Claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A display box having an open top body having a well, a lid hinged to said body, a display member within the well hinged to said body for being raised therefrom to a tilted displaying position, a spring wire supported at spaced points on the display member in opposition to the l lid hinge, and a crank arm fixed to the lid for swinging arcuately therewith and connected to the spring wire at a point intermediate said points of support, said arm and said wire being adapted to move the display member to a tilted position by force transmission from the arm through the wire as the lid is being opened, said crank arm having an arcuate path located for laterally stressing the spring wire as the parts so move, said stress being maximum intermediate the opened and closed positions of the lid.

2. A display box having an open top body having a well, a lid hinged to said body, a display member within the well hinged to said body for being raised therefrom to a tilted displaying position, a pair of slots at spaced points on the display member in opposition to the lid hinge opening generally toward the lid hinge, a spring wire journaled in the slots, said wire having a straight normal set, a third slot in the lid intermediate said pair of slots on the display member and opening generally toward the display member, a crank arm carried in said third slot for swinging arcuately with the lid and connected to the spring wire at a point intermediate said journal points for moving the display member to its tilted position when the lid is being opened, and stop means adapted to define the fully opened position of the lid, said crank arm having an arcuate path located for stressing said spring wire toward the display member into bow shaped deformation curving beyond said journal points throughout all positions of the lid and for imparting a maximum lateral stressing to the spring wire intermediate said fully opened and fully closed positions of the lid.

3. A display box having an open top body having a well, a lid hinged to said body, a display member within the well hinged to said body for being raised therefrom to a tilted displaying position, a pair of slots at spaced points on the display member in opposition to the lid hinge opening generally toward the lid hinge, a length of spring wire journaled in the slots, a third slot in the lid intermediate said pair of slots on the display member and I opening generally toward the display member, and a crank arm carried in said third slot for swinging arcuately with the lid and connected to the spring wire at a point intermediate said journal points for moving the display member to its tilted position when the lid is being opened, said crank arm having an arcuate path located for stressing said spring wire toward the display member into bow shaped deformation curving beyond said journal points throughout all positions of the lid and f r imparting a maximum lateral stressing to the spring wire intermediate the opened and closed positions of the lid.

4. A jewelry box comprising a body, a cover hinged thereto for swinging backwardly to an open position, a display tray hingedly mounted in the body for tilting forwardly to a display position, drive means interconnecting the cover and the tray and adapted to coordinate the swinging of the cover with the tilting of the tray, said drive means comprising an elongate spring supported at its opposite ends on the rear portion of the tray, and a lever arm cantilever fixed to the cover and connected to the intermediate portion of the spring and adapted to flex such portion laterally through a position of maximum spring distortion as the cover is opened or closed.

5. A display box having an open top body having a well, a lid hinged to said body, a display member within the well hinged to said body for being raised therefrom to a tilted displaying position, a pair of slots at spaced points on the display member in opposition to the lid hinge opening generally toward the lid hinge, a spring wire having a normally straight set journaled in the slots, at third slot in the lid intermediate said pair of slots and opening generally toward the display member, and a crank arm carried in said third slot for swinging areuately with the lid and connected to the spring wire at a point intermediate the journal points of said wire in said pair of slots for moving the display member to a tilted position when the lid is being opened, said crank arm having an arcuate path located for stressing said spring wire toward the display member into bow shaped deformation curving beyond said journal points throughout all positions of the lid.

6. A display box comprising a body, a cover hinged thereto, a display member hinged in said body for tilting on an axis substantially parallel to the hinge axis of the cover, an elongate flexible beam shaped spring supported at its opposite ends on said display member intermediate said axes and generally parallel thereto, and a lever arm fixed to the cover for angular movement therewith and extending into connection with an intermediate portion of the spring.

7. A jewelry display box comprising a body, a cover clement hinged to one side thereof, a tray element hinged to the opposite side thereof, the two hinge axes lying substantially parallel, a spring extending substantially parallel to the axes and having its opposite ends supported on the tray element to one side of the plane of the axes, and a lever arm carried by the cover element and connected at its outer end to the medial portion of the spring at said side of the plane for resiliently flexing it laterally as the cover element is opened, the outer end of the arm together with the connected medial portion of the spring moving through the plane to the opposite side thereof during opening movement of the cover element to yieldably hold the latter open and to react upon the tray ele ment for yieldably supporting it tilted.

8. A jewelry display box comprising a body, a cover element hinged to one side thereof, a tray element hinged to the opposite side thereof, the two hinge axes lying substantially parallel, and a combined snap action and tray tilting unit connecting the two elements and including a spring extending substantially parallel to the axes and having its opposite ends supported on one of the elements to one side of the plane of the axes and suspending a laterally flexible and resilient medial portion, and a lever arm fixed on the other of said elements and having its outer end disposed to said side of the plane and con nected to the medial portion for effecting a maximum distortion of the latter when the cover is moved between its opened and closed positions, said medial portion resiliently acting normally on the lever arm in both the opened and closed positions of the cover to yieldably react on both the cover element and the tray element.

9. A jewelry display box comprising a body, a cover element hinged to one side thereof, a tray element hinged to the opposite side thereof, the two hinge axes lying substantially parallel, and a combined snap action and tray tilting unit connecting the two elements and including a spring extending substantially parallel to the axes and having its opposite ends supported on the tray element to one side of the plane of the axes and suspending a laterally flexible and resilient medial portion, and a lever arm fixed on the cover element and having its outer end disposed to said side of the plane and connected to the medial portion for effecting a maximum distortion of the latter when the cover is moved between its opened and closed positions, said medial portion resiliently acting normally on the lever arm in both the opened and closed positions of the cover to yieldably react on both the cover element and the tray element, said lever arm extending underneath a portion of the tray when the cover is closed to lift upwardly thereon as the cover is opened.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Segal Apr. 5, 1938 Warner et a1 Apr. 9, 1940 6 Lebus Mar. 9, 1943 Larson Sept. 25, 1945 Byrd Aug. 2, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS Great Britain Jan. 12, 1928 France Feb. 25, 1946