WO1995001263A1

WO1995001263A1 - Assembly of instruction or reference sheets

Info

Publication number: WO1995001263A1
Application number: PCT/GB1994/001401
Authority: WO
Inventors: Gerald Wortman
Original assignee: Oliver Books Limited
Priority date: 1993-07-01
Filing date: 1994-06-28
Publication date: 1995-01-12
Also published as: GB9313596D0

Abstract

Shallow rectangular tray (1) holds a plurality of stiff sheets (3) having information printed thereon, e.g. as cookery recipes, each sheet having a cleanable outward-facing surface. Tray (1) has a base (5) with upstanding walls e.g. (6, 7) around three edges and a protruding margin (8) along the other to carry a ring binder (2). Support flap (9) is connected at margin (10) to the ring binder, and supports the similar bound sheet (3). It is moreover foldably secured at opposite margin (11) to a connecting base wall (12) formed in two mutually folding parts (12a and 12b). Support flap (9) also carries a convenient manipulating tab (14). In use the device is stood upon a flat surface by un-folded base portions (12a and 12b). Sheets (3) are folded back as desired around the ring binder (2) to lie upon the back of the assembly. In storage sheets (3) fit easily within the upstanding tray rim edges e.g. (6, 7) and the base flap portions (12a, 12b) of the assembly hinge upwards (see figure 3) to locate beneath the stack within the tray. The tab (14) projects to assist subsequent opening.

Description

ASSEMBLY OF INSTRUCTION OR REFERENCE SHEETS

This invention relates to an assembly of instruction and reference sheets, more especially to such an assembly resembling a book or booklet in which a single page contains a unified body of instructional or reference material. Although the invention is of general applicability to assembled instructional material for a wide range of activities, it is particularly valuable applied to cookery books, and the invention will accordingly be predominantly described with reference to cookery books, for convenience of description.

It is known to format a cookery book in the same style as a conventional book, between hard or soft covers, to be opened at a given page and consulted before or during the preparation and cooking of the meal or other foodstuff. This has disadvantages since a book of manageable size tends not to lie flat and accordingly needs to be held open at the relevant page. Devices exist for doing this, consisting essentially of clear rigid polymeric supports into which the open book is placed and which retain, behind a transparent lower edge, pages of the opened book. However, such arrangements still permit the book to become splashed or marked with the usual movements of preparation and cooking, and once so marked or disfigured the book remains disfigured. Moreover, the bending back of the pages to restrain the book eventually causes a number of pages to work loose so that the whole arrangement is not fully satisfactory.

On the other hand, it is not satisfactory to have a book which is laid flat on the worktop. The problem of contamination and splashing becomes more marked, and a suitably legible book, for easy consultation, is so large as to take up valuable space which can otherwise be utilized for the preparation of the meal.

The present invention sets out to provide an assembly including instruction or reference sheets, which can be readily stored, take up a minimum amount of working surface for use, and which typically comprises sheets having cleanable instruction surfaces.

The invention consists in an assembly of instruction or reference sheets with storage and support means, comprising:

(a) a shallow rectangular containing tray with upstanding walls along three sides and a projecting margin along the fourth; (b) a support flap dimensioned to fit within the tray, having a margin extending over the tray margin;

(c) a stack of stiff sheets of material each having a body of instructions or reference material printed on one face, capable of lying against the support flap within the tray walls and with respective margins also extending over the tray and flap margins;

(d) a ring binder or the like extending through the tray, flap and sheet margins and

(e) a base wall foldably attached at a first edge thereof within the tray along the base of that tray wall opposite the tray margin and foldably attached at a second, opposite, edge thereof to that edge of the support flap opposite its ring-bound margin, the said base wall also being foldable along a line, preferably central, parallel to the said first and second edges;

so that the base wall, support flap and sheets can all be folded into the tray when not in use, and so that the base wall and support flap can in use be (i) folded out to support the stack of sheets, (ii) permit any desired number of sheets to be folded back around the ring binder or the like to lie on the back of the tray member and (iii) display a desired sheet and its instructions or reference data.

Preferably, a tab is attached at or near the base wall, to protrude on storage as a suitable manipulating means.

Typically, the sheets are covered with a transparent stain-resistant cleanable surface.

A particular valuable form of the invention is that of an assembly of sheets carrying recipe and cooking instructions, as a cookery book.

The invention will be further described with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which: -

Figure 1 is a perspective sketch of an assembly of sheets of instruction or reference material in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;

Figure 2 is a partial medial section of the assembly as shown in Figure 1, and Figure 3 is a section as in Figure 2 but with the device almost closed to its box form.

The assembly in accordance with the invention comprises a shallow rectangular box-like tray 1 of cardboard ring-bound at 2 along one edge to hold a plurality of stiff sheets 3 having printed thereon in each case a body of information concerned with cooking or other desired activity, such as car maintenance, crafts, do-it-yourself, home repairs, etc.

The box-like tray consists of a base 5 with upstanding walls 6, 7 (and one not shown) around three edges and a protruding margin 8 along the other to carry the ring binder 2. It further possesses a support flap 9, connected at one margin 10 to the ring binder, and foldably secured at the opposite margin 11 to a connecting base wall 12 formed in two mutually folding parts 12a and 12b.

An adherent polymer layer covers the edge 11 and extends over portions 12a and 12b, so that these features are essentially hinged along their lengths. At approximately the mid point of the support flap 9 is a convenient manipulating tab 14.

In the configuration as shown, the stack or pack of instruction sheets 3 dimensioned to be supported against flap 9 and to fit on the base 5, have a cleanable surface at least on the outward-facing surface, and have descriptions 4 of a desired dish and its method of preparation on this surface. The device can be stood upon the flat surface of a worktop, taking up only the space of the folded base portions 12a and 12b. The stiff sheets 3 can be folded back around the ring binder 2 to lie upon the back of the assembly. Preferably the back faces of the sheets 3 are plain and preferably moreover both the front and back faces of the sheets are covered with a heat and contamination resistant surface so that they may be wiped clean.

The stack of sheets 3 is of such a size and shape as to fit easily and at a small clearance within the three upstanding rim edges e. g. 6, 7 of the assembly, when folded back (see figure 3). Moreover, the base flap portions of the assembly hinge upwards (see Figure 3) to locate beneath the stack within the tray. The tab 14 is long enough to project for subsequent opening of the assembly.

Claims

CLAI MS:

1. An assembly of instruction or reference sheets with storage and support means, comprising:

(a) a shallow rectangular containing tray (1) with upstanding walls (6,7) along three sides and a projecting margin (8) along the fourth;

(b) a support flap (9) dimensioned to fit within the tray, having a margin (10) extending over the tray margin;

(c) a stack of stiff sheets (3) of material each having a body of instructions or reference material printed on one face, capable of lying against the support flap (9) within the tray walls (6,7) and with respective margins also extending over the tray and flap margins;

(d) a ring binder or the like (2) extending through the tray, flap and sheet margins and

(e) a base wall (12) foldably attached at a first edge * thereof within the tray along the base of that tray wall (7) opposite the tray margin and foldably attached at a second, opposite, edge thereof to that edge (11) of the support flap opposite its ring-bound margin, the said base wall (12) also being foldable along a line, preferably central, parallel to the said first and second edges;

so that the base wall (12), support flap (9) and sheets (3) can all be folded into the tray (1) when not in use, and so that the base wall (12) and support flap (9) can in use be (i) folded out to support the stack (3) of sheets, (ii) permit any desired number of sheets to be folded back around the ring binder or the like (2) to lie on the back (5) of the tray member and (iii) display a desired sheet and its instructions or reference data.

2. An assembly as claimed in claim 1 in which a tab (14) is attached at or near the base wall, to protrude on storage as a suitable manipulating means.

3. An assembly as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2 in which the sheets are covered with a transparent stain-resistant cleanable surface.

4. An assembly as claimed in claim 1, 2 or 3 in the form of an assembly of sheets carrying recipe and cooking instructions, as a cookery book.