US2736908A - Bolster - Google Patents

Description

E. D. SMITH March 6, 1956 BOLSTER Filed April 15, 1953 INVENTOR.

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United States Patent BOLSTER Earl D. Smith, Indianapolis, Ind. Application April-15, 1953",SerialNo. 348,980

2 Claims. (Cl. -340) This invention relates to a bolster of a character to provide a head or back rest for use in lounging upon a bed, couch or the like.

It is the purpose of the invention to provide such a bolster of fibre or corrugated board so constructed that it may be built up from a suitably cut blank or blanks. Thus, the bolster may be shipped or stored in the knockdown, and conveniently and economically assembled into a sturdy but light structure of the desired configuration. This is of an advantage both in respect to providing a light, rigid and economical structure, and particularly from a standpoint of shipping and storing, wherein a bolster of this character is ordinarily quite bulky when built up.

This invention, therefore, contemplates blanking out a back section and a front section of fibreboard, forming and assembling them, together with a series of interlocking struts and end panels such as to secure the formed up blanks into a strong, rigid bolster structure.

The full nature of the invention will be understood from the accompanying drawings and the following description and claims:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the formed up bolster.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the back section of the fibreboard blank.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the front section of the fibreboard blank.

Fig. 4 is a plan view of one of the fibreboard struts.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view showing an end portion of the bolster assembled with the end panel and flap in open position to show the interior structure.

In the drawings there is shown a bolster of fibreboard or like material having an inclined front panel 10, end panel 11 and mating top panels 12 and 13. Said bolster is formed from fibreboard blanks including that of a back section 14, as shown in Fig. 2, a front section 15, as shown in Fig. 3, and a series of blanked out struts 16, as shown in Fig. 4.

The back section includes an elongated rectangular back panel 17 terminating at its upper edge in a back section top panel 12 folded from the back panel with a fold line 19 and in turn terminating in a back section top web 20 folded therefrom along the fold line 21. Said top web is formed with a series of spaced slots 22 forming cars 23 each of a length approximately one-half of the width of the web. At the bottom of the back panel there is folded therefrom along the fold line 24 a back section bottom panel 25 from which in turn is folded a back section bottom web 26 similarly slotted at 27 to provide ears 28, said slots and ears being in alignment with the slots and ears 22, 23, respectively. Folded from the ends of the back panel 17 along the line 29 there are end locking flaps 30 provided with locking slots 31 adjacent the fold.

The front section 15, as shown in Fig. 3, includes a bottom panel 32 from which is folded along the fold line 33 the upwardly and rearwardly sloping front panel 10. The bottom panel 32 terminates in a front section bottom web 34 folded therefrom along the fold line 35 in which is provided a series of spaced slots 36 for providing the cars 37. The front panel terminates at its top in the front section'top panel 13 which is folded therefrom along the foldlin'e 38. Saidpanel is' in turn folded along the line 39providing a downwardly extending front section top web 40; Said web'is provided with a series of spaced'slots 4'1providi'ng ears 42 extending in alignment with the slots 36 and ears 37, respectively. Extending from opposite endso'f the front'panel 10 and folded therefrom along the fold line 43are'the'end panels 11, each end panel having a' lockingt'o'ngued l adapted" to extend into the slot 31 of theend 1ocking'flaps3'0 upon assembly.

As shown in Fig. 4 there is a series of struts 16 of a shape corresponding to the cross section of the bolster. Each strut is formed with a sloping front edge 45 corresponding to the sloping front panel 10. The upper edge of each strut is provided with a slot 46 and the bottom edge thereof with a slot 47.

In assembling and erecting the bolster from said sections and struts, each section is folded in the manner illustrated in Fig. 5 with the webs 20 and 40 extending downwardly in abutting relation and the webs 26 and 34 extending upwardly in abutting relation, the ears and slots of all four webs extending in alignment with each other. However, before the panels 12 and 13 with their webs 20 and 40, respectively, are folded over, the struts 16 are mounted in place with the slots 47 embracing the slot portion of the webs 26 and 34 and the slots 27 and 36 of the webs 26, 34 embracing the respective struts. Thus, said struts embrace and grip the abutting webs of the two sections, holding them together, while the webs in turn interlock with and support the struts in upright spaced relation. The top panels 12 and 13 are then bent over with their webs 20, 40 inserted in the slots 46 of the mounting struts, the upper portion of the struts embracing in turn said webs, whereby the webs and top panels will be locked in place and the upper portions of the struts interlocked therewith. The end locking flaps 30 are then folded into end closing position with the end panels 11 folded thereover and interlocked therewith in closed position through interengagement of the locking tongues 44 and slots 31.

With the portions of the blanked out fibreboard sections thus folded and related with the struts, and interlocked in place, the bolster is erected into a strong, rigid but light unit. Through the reverse procedure, the bolster may be knocked down into its component parts when desired for storage or shipment.

The invention claimed is:

l. A collapsible bolster of fibreboard adapted to b assembled from a pro-cut blank comprising a front section and a back section, said front section including a bottom panel, a front panel folded upwardly therefrom at a rearwardly inclined angle thereto and terminating in a top panel extending in parallel relation to said bottom panel, an upwardly extending bottom web folded from said bottom panel, a downwardly extending top web folded from said top panel to extend toward and in alignment with said bottom web, and end panels folded from said front panel at an angle thereto and terminating in looking tongues, said back section including a back panel coextensive with said front panel terminating in a top panel folded therefrom to extend flush with said front section top panel and a bottom panel folded therefrom to extend flush with said front section bottom panel, an upwardly extending bottom web folded from said back section bottom panel to abut the bottom web of said front section, a downwardly extending front Web folded from the top panel of said back section to abut the top web of said front section, an end locking flap folded from each end of said back panel to underlie corresponding end panels and provided with locking tongue receiving slots for locking said sections together, said respective webs having a series of spaced slots and ears extending in parallel alignment with each other, and a plurality of fibreboard struts formed to engage and support said panels internally and having' slots therein interengaging with the slots of said webs whereby said struts and Webs will be interlocked in bolster erected position.

2. A collapsible bolster of fibreboard comprising a precut fibreboard blank, said blank being cut and folded to form bottom, top and back panels and an inwardly and rearwardly sloping front panel, a pair of spaced and aligned internal webs folded inwardly toward each other from a pair of oppositely positioned panels, each web being provided with a series of spaced slots extending in alignment with corresponding slots of the other panel, a series of spaced fibreboard struts cut to conform with and abut the inner surfaces of said panels, said struts extending transversely of said panels within said slots and having coacting slots therein to embrace said panels whereby said panels and struts will be held in interlocking relation through said webs, and end loeking panels folded toward each other from said back and front panels in slot and tongue interlocking relation for providing end closures securing said formed up blanks in bolster erected relation.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,143,593 Degginger June 15, 1915 2,087,773 Levine July 20, 1937 2,141,399 Luhn Dec. 27, 1938 2,646,578 Evans July 28, 1953

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