US2981030A

US2981030A - Easels

Info

Publication number: US2981030A
Application number: US745606A
Authority: US
Inventors: Victor R Knop
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1958-06-30
Filing date: 1958-06-30
Publication date: 1961-04-25
Anticipated expiration: 1978-04-25

Description

April 25, 1961 v, KNQP 2,981,030

EASELS Filed June 30, 1958 INVENTOR. VICTOR R. KNOP ATTORNEY nits States This invention relates to improvements in easels, and more particularly to an improved easel especially designed for use by artists and by students of drawing and painting employing chalk, crayons and paints as their media.

While it is well known to provide easels intended for such use with trays (sometimes called troughs) disposed immediately below the board portion of the easel and serving as a retaining receptacle for the chalk and crayons being used as drawing media, and to hold the brushes and provide for the retention in orderly array of the jars of paint used in painting, such tray also serving as a catch troug for an excess of paint sometimes applied by the young or mischievous student, the prior easel tray construction has not given optimum satisfaction to art teachers and/or school authorities for various reasons. For example, the prior built-in trays could not be fully opened up and hence were difficult to clean. On the other hand, the prior detachable trays, especially after prolonged use, were diflicult to detach and equally difficult to apply, and also were susceptible to being intentionally or unintentionally detached by the mischievous child-student.

Stated broadly, an object of the invention is the provision of an easel especially suited to use by artists and by students of drawing and/or painting and incorporating a tray for holding the chalk, crayons, brushes and jars of paint constituting the drawing and painting media, the construction and arrangement of said tray being such that it can be fully opened up for cleaning, inspection, etc.

More particularly, an object of the invention is the provision of an easel tray for artists and students easels as aforesaid having simple, inexpensive and fool-proof construction and which is moreover readily cleanable.

Another object of the invention is the provision of an easel tray for easels of the type designed for use by schools in teaching drawing and painting, wherein the tray is formed in part of walls or sides which are movable from normally active or use positions to inactive positions, as results in the tray being fully opened for inspection, cleaning, etc.

A more particular object of the invention is the provision of a so-called tray construction for artists and students easels having front and top walls which are removable from the back, bottom and end walls of the tray, bot-h independently of and together with one another, whereby the same basic tray may be employed either as an open-top chalk and crayon receptacle, or as an open-front paint-jar retainer.

Yet another object of the invention is the provision of a tray construction as last above stated, wherein storage means are provided for the one of said front and top walls which is removed independently of the other of such tray walls.

-,;.The above and other objects and features of advantage of an easel tray construction according to the invention will appear from the following detailed description thereof, taken with the accompanying drawing illustrating two different forms of openable tray as herein proposed, wherein:

Fig. l is a perspective view of an easel whose tray is set up for use as an open-top chalk and/or crayon receptacle;

Fig. 2 is a similar view but illustrating the tray set up as an open-front paint jar retainer;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 but with the removable front wall in place to close the front side of the tray when used as a paint-jar retainer;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged broken-away view detailing the tray-end construction of the tray form illustrated in Figs. 1-3, inclusive; and

Fig. 5 is a similarly enlarged and broken-away view illustrating a second form of fully openable easel tray according to the invention.

Referring to the drawing, the easel shown for purpose of illustration in Figs. 1-3, inclusive, is of the so-called drawing-board type for use in classrooms and comprises a pair of

identical sections

10, 12 hingedly connected at their top edges by hinges 14a, 14b, with each such section mounting a drawing board 16 supported in elevated position on legs 18a, 18b. It will of course be understood that the easel may be of the type having but one of its sections supporting a drawing board, in which case the other section serves only as an inclined brace for the drawing-board section. In the easel shown, the

sections

10, 12 are adapted to be held in oppositely inclined, non-collapsing relation by pivoted straps or arms 20 which are prefer-ably of the type that permit the easel to be collapsed for storage.

Built into each

easel section

10, 12 is a so-called tray generally designated 22 serving to hold chalk, crayons, brushes, jars of paint, etc., conventionally employed as drawing or artists media in the classroom teaching of drawing and painting subjects. Such a tray structure is of course horizontally disposed, and it may be secured to its easel-section legs 18a, 18b at a level immediately below the drawing board 16. According to the form of tray structure illustrated in Figs. 1-4, the tray comprises a fixed back wall 24, a fixed bottom wall 26, fixed

end walls

30, 32, a removable front wall 34 and a removable top wall 36, of which said top wall is provided with a longitudinal series of holes 38 forming socket openings for the reception of a plurality of paint jars containing paints of different color.

To insure the aforesaid front and top walls being removab'ly held in place, with respect to the basic tray structure, preferably the

tray end walls

30, 32 are provided with means forming both a retaining slideway for the front wall 34 and a support or rest for the to all 36. More particularly, and as best seen in Fig. 4, each end wall mounts a flange-like retaining strip 40, which extends vertically along the front edge of said end wall and projects a small distance laterally toward the companion end wall, a rectangular end block 42 of lesser height and width than the end wall secured flush against the inner face of said end wall, and a horizontal top rail I 44 also secured to the inner face of said end wall sub stantially above the end block 42 and at a somewhat higher level than said retaining strip 40. It will be noted that the forward side edge of the aforesaid endblock 42 is spaced rearwardly from the rear side of the associated vertical retaining strip 40 a distance slightly greater than the thickness of the tray front wall 34, and that the forward end of the top rail 44 is also spaced a corresponding distance from the rear side of said vertical retaining strip 40, thus to form an open mouth 46 which is disposed above the channel-section slideway extending between the vertical retaining strip 40 and the end-block 42. Accordingly, there is provided a vertical, open-top slideway for retaining 'the front wall' 34 in'place and through which said front wall may be removed from the tray proper when desired,thus to open up the front of the tray; and there are also provided msuppareyreg the top horizontal edges of the end blocks 42, renter;

mally' supporting the top wall 36 in place, andlfrofn which the top wall may beremoved by guiding the satire through the aforesaid slideway mouth 46, the stop rails 44 of course serving to prevent uncontrolled removal of said top wall 36. a

According to a further feature of the invention, the tray ends 39, 32 are extended downwardly'a limited dis tance below the/level of the fixed bottom wall 26 6f the tray, and to said extended ends are secured angle strips 48 which extend inwardly toward one another at a level such that they are spacedfrom the under face of the fixed bottom wall 26 a distance slightly greater than the thickness of said

removable walls

34, 36, thus to form with said extended ends a pair' of supporting brackets serving to support the one or the other of the

removable tray walls

34, 36 which is removed in'st'orage position.

In use of an easel provided with a tray structure as described, the removable top wall 36 of the tray may be completely removed and held in storage position by the aforesaid supporting brackets 48, as shown in Fig. 1,

in which case the front wall 34 forms with the fixed rear, bottom and end walls of the tray structure a trough-like receptacle for receiving and holding chalk, crayons and the like being used as the drawing media. On the other hand, when using paint as the artists or drawing media, the front and

top walls

34, 36 of the tray structure may be transposed as is shown in Fig. 2; that is, the top or paint-jar retaining wall 36 is placed in its active position in which it forms a support and retainer for the plurality of paint jars used in painting, and the front wall 34 is removed and placed in the storage position wherein it is held by the brackets 48. It will'be observed that, when such transposition of the removable tray walls'34, 36 is elfected, the front side of the tray is completely open, so that the space within the tray interior not taken up by the paint jars may be used for the storage of paint brushes, cleaning cloths, etc. On the other hand, and referring to Fig. 3 should the student or artist using the easel prefer that the tray be closed at its front side while painting, the tray front wall 34 may be taken from its storage position and slid into place in the slideway provided by the vertical retaining strips 40 and the end-blocks 42 which support the top wall in place.

In addition to the improved functioning of the tray construction of the invention resulting from the aforesaid alternate positioning of the removable top and front walls as explained, even more important advantages results from the fact that both the front and top walls of the tray may be together removed. In explanation, when both said front and top walls are removed, the fixed bottom and end walls of the tray construction form of themselves a convenient, highly accessible, permanent shelf closed at its ends, disposed directly beneath the drawing board 16, on which paint jars, brushes, crayons, erasers, etc. may be temporarily placed, and which further may even serve to catch paint drippings from said drawing board. Another important advantage of the herein proposed tray construction is that the remov ability of said front and top walls thereof enables one to completely open up the tray for inspection and clean ing of the interior thereof. Thus, the teacher of the art and painting class is in the favorable position of seeing to it that the trays of all easels used in her classroom are maintained clean and also free of extraneous or distracting articles not intended or desired for use in drawingor painting classes. a

Referring to Fig. 5, such illustrates an alternate tray inspection and cleaning. In this modified form" of tray,

the tray front wall 54 and the tray top wall 56 (which latter serves as a paint-jar retainer wall), rather than being completely removable from the fixed part of the tray, i.e. the back, bottom and end walls thereof, are instead hinged to said fixed part so that they may be swung to an inactive position as effects full opening-up of the tray interior. That is to say, the tray front wall 54 is hingedly connected along its bottom edge to the front edge of the aforesaid fixed tray bottom wall 26 as by hinges 58, so as to be swingable outwardly and downwardly therefrom; and the top wall 56, whose ends normally rest on the top edges of the aforesaid end blocks 42 as previously described, is hingedly connected to the rear wall 24 of the tray as by hinges 60 so as to swing upwardly and rearwardly against said rear wall. Preferably, the hinged front wall 54 is held in its active or raised position, and the hinged top wall 56 is held in its inactive or raised position, by means of spring latches (not shown). Thus, the Fig. 5 form of tray structure, as with the first described form, provides for the-tray being open at its top or at its front as desired and, more important, for the tray being opened up both top and front, as is desirable to facilitate its inspection and cleaning.

Without further analysis, it will be appreciated that an easel tray construction as described and illustrated achieves the objectives therefor as herein previously set forthin simple yet dependable and highly effective manner. However, as many changes could be made in carrying out the above constructions without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or' shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

I claim 2 1. In a drawing-board type easel for classroom use having a drawing board and spaced supporting legs, a tray structure afiixed to and extending horizontally between the legs at a level below the drawing board, said structure comprising fixed back, bottom and end walls which together and of themselves are adapted to form an article receiving and/or drip catching shelf disposed beneath said board, and top and front walls coacting in an active position thereof with the aforesaid fixed walls to form a tray closed top and front but being movable individually of and together with one another to an inactive position in which the tray is open at the top or at its front or is fully open top and front, said top wall being provided with a longitudinal series of holes for the reception of paint jars.

2. In a drawing-board type easel for classroom use having a drawing board and spaced supporting legs. a tray structure affixed to and extending horizontally between the legs at a level immediately below the drawing board, said tray structure comprising fixed back, bottom and end walls which together and of themselves are adapted to form an article receiving and/or drip catching shelf disposed beneath said board, bodily removable top and front walls, the top wall having a longitudinal series of holes for the reception of paint jars, and means forming slideways for guiding said top and front walls to and from their respective active positions and for normally maintaining them in such positions, the construction and arrangement being such that with the top wall removed the removable front wall forms with the fixed walls an open-top trough-like receptacle, and that with the front wall removed the top wall forms with saidfixed walls an open-front retainer for paint jars, and that when both top and front walls are removed the tray is fully open top and front for ready cleaning.

3. A tray structure substantially as set forth in claim 2, wherein the tray end-walls are provided with means providing a vertical slideway for said removable front wall and a combined horizontal slideway and rest for said removable top wall, of the tray structure.

4. A tray structure substantially as set forth in claim 2, wherein the tray end-walls are provided with means providing a vertical slideway for said removable front wall and a combined horizontal slideway and rest for said removable top wall, and with a pair of cooperating de pendable brackets for supporting the one or the other of the removable top and front walls in storage position upon its removal as aforesaid.

5. In a drawing-board type easel for classroom use having a drawing board and spaced supporting legs, a tray structure aflixed to and extending horizontally be tween the legs at a level immediately below the drawing board, said tray structure comprising fixed back, bottom and end walls which together and of themselves are adapted to form an article receiving and/or drip catching shelf disposed beneath said board, and top and front walls mounted to swing independently of and together with one another from an active position in which they 2 inspective and cleaning, that upon the top wall only being swung to its inactive position the tray is open on top, and that upon the front wall only being swung to its inactive position the tray is open in front.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,348,262 Brockway Aug. 3, 1920 1,680,056 Mathias Aug. 7, 1928 2,215,881 Levensten Sept. 24, 1940 2,405,668 Paxton Aug. 13, 1946