WO2002086221A1

WO2002086221A1 - Ironing board

Info

Publication number: WO2002086221A1
Application number: PCT/EP2002/003508
Authority: WO
Inventors: Fulvio Falappi
Original assignee: Alfred Kärcher Gmbh & Co. Kg
Priority date: 2001-04-03
Filing date: 2002-03-28
Publication date: 2002-10-31
Also published as: WO2002086221A8

Abstract

The invention relates to an ironing board with a board top and a folding height-adjustable support frame, comprising two support legs, connected to each other by means of a joint. A first support leg is fixed to the underside of the board top in such a manner as to pivot and not be displaced, the second support leg is fixed to at least one guide element (40, 42) such as to pivot, said guide element (40, 42) being retained in a guide track (26, 28), fixed to the underside of the board top, such as to be displaced. The guide element is connected to at least one retainer (50, 52), which may be fixed in various positions in the longitudinal direction of the board top, by means of an operating locking device (56, 60, 62). According to the invention, the ironing board may be further developed such as to be more easily manipulated and to prevent the risk of injury on folding the support frame, whereby the retainer (50, 52) is displaceably retained in the guide track (26, 28).

Description

ironing board

The invention relates to an ironing board with a table top and a collapsible, height-adjustable stand frame, which comprises two legs connected to one another by a joint, a first leg being held pivotably and immovably on the underside of the table top and the second leg being held pivotably on at least one guide element which is slidably held on a guide rail arranged on the underside of the table top, the guide element being connected to at least one holding element which can be locked in various positions in the longitudinal direction of the table top by means of an actuatable locking device in the longitudinal direction of the table top.

Ironing tables of this type are known from international laid-open specification WO99 / 41443. They enable the table top to be adjusted in height so that the user can assume a comfortable working position when ironing. In the known ironing board, the height is adjusted by means of a holding rod, which interacts with a clamping device and pivots out of the plane of the guide rail when the stand frame is folded out. This complicates the handling of the ironing board when adjusting the height and results in a risk of injury, especially when the stand frame is folded.

The object of the invention is to develop an ironing table of the type mentioned in the introduction in such a way that it has easier handling and that the risk of injury when collapsing the stand frame is reduced.

This object is achieved according to the invention in an ironing board of the generic type in that the holding element is held displaceably in the guide rail. The guide rail therefore has a double function. On the one hand, it serves for the displaceable mounting of the guide element, to which the second main leg is articulated, and on the other hand, it receives the holding element, which cooperates with the locking device. The holding element is thus reliably held in the plane of the guide rail irrespective of the height of the stand frame set in each case. This leads to easier handling and the risk of injury when folding and / or unfolding the stand frame is considerably reduced.

To ensure that the ironing board maintains a height setting once it has been used even under mechanical load, it is advantageous if the holding element and the locking device form a releasable latching connection. The holding element can thereby be locked in several positions with respect to the longitudinal direction of the table top, so that the height setting selected by the user cannot be changed unintentionally. Rather, the locking device must be actuated manually to release the latching connection, for example with the aid of a pivoting lever.

To form a releasable latching connection, it can be provided that the holding element is rod-shaped and a plurality of locking openings, and that the locking device comprises at least one movably held locking projection which cooperates with the locking openings. The locking projection can be inserted into a desired locking opening by actuating the locking device. In a particularly simple construction, it is provided that the holding element is designed as a toothed rack. Alternatively, it can be provided that the holding element comprises a plurality of locking projections which cooperate with a locking opening of the locking device.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention it is provided that the guide element is designed as a sliding shoe which forms a positive connection with the guide rail. The slide shoe is held in a form-fitting and longitudinally displaceable manner in the guide rail. This ensures particularly smooth guidance.

It is advantageous if the slide shoe is made of plastic, preferably using polyamide. The use of polyamide has proven to be particularly favorable, since the frictional forces that occur between the sliding shoe and the guide rail are thereby kept low.

In order to keep the manufacturing costs low, it has proven to be advantageous if the holding element is positively connected to the associated slide shoe. This enables simple assembly, the slide shoe being able to be made of plastic, while the associated holding element is preferably of metallic construction. In a preferred embodiment of the invention it is provided that the at least one guide rail is designed as a C-profile. Here it has proven to be advantageous if the C-profile overlaps the holding element. This has the consequence that the holding element is covered by one leg of the C-profile, so that access to the holding element which is held in a displaceable manner is made more difficult. This significantly reduces the risk of injury.

A particularly resilient and smooth-running guide can be ensured in that the ironing board has two guide elements, each of which is slidably held in a guide rail arranged on the underside of the table top. The guide elements, which are preferably in the form of sliding shoes, can be connected to one another via a pivot axis to which the second supporting leg is fixed and which is rotatably held on the two guide elements.

The two guide rails are preferably connected to one another via cross struts and form with them a rigid guide frame which is fixed on the underside of the table top.

The risk of injury when adjusting the height of the stand frame can also be reduced in that the locking device comprises a pivotable bolt which interacts with the holding element, the guide rail engaging over the bolt. The bolt is therefore not directly accessible and consequently poses practically no risk of injury to the user. In an embodiment which can be produced at low cost, it is provided that the bolt is held in a rotationally fixed manner on a pivotable pivoting lever. It is advantageous if the pivot lever is rotatably held on the guide rail. This makes it possible to design the guide rail with an inserted guide and holding element and a non-rotatable swivel lever with an assigned latch as a prefabricated structural unit, which can then be fixed on the underside of the ironing board. The assembly of the ironing board is considerably simplified.

In order to prevent inadvertent opening of the stand frame during transport, it is provided in a preferred embodiment that a securing element is arranged in a rotationally fixed manner on the pivoting lever, which in the folded state of the stand frame cooperates with the articulation of the legs to secure the stand frame against unintentional opening. With the help of the swivel lever, not only can the height of the stand frame be adjusted, but in combination with the non-rotatably arranged securing element, it also serves to hold the folded stand frame together.

It can be provided that the securing element is designed as a securing hook which, when the stand frame is folded, grips the joint. It can be provided that the safety hook engages around the entire joint, via which the two legs are connected to each other, when the stand frame is folded. The following description of a preferred embodiment of the invention serves in conjunction with the drawing for a more detailed explanation. Show it:

Figure 1 is a partially sectioned side view of an ironing board according to the invention with a folded stand;

Figure 2 is a sectional view taken along line 2-2 in Figure 1;

Figure 3: a side view of the ironing board according to the invention according to Figure 1 with the stand and

Figure 4 is a graphical representation of a guide frame of the ironing board according to the invention for height adjustment of the stand frame.

In the drawing, an ironing table, generally designated by reference numeral 10, is shown with a table top 12, the upper side of which forms an ironing surface 13. The underside of the table top 12 is designed as a suction pan 14, which receives at least one fan, not shown in the drawing, so that the ironing surface 13 can be sucked through the air-permeable table top 12 to facilitate ironing of the clothes.

The ironing board 10 also includes a stand frame 16 with two legs 21, 22 which are connected to one another via a joint 18 and which are used for height adjustment of the stand frame 12 on the underside 15 of the Suction pan 14 are held in a guide frame 24. The guide frame 24 comprises two guide rails 26, 28 which are fixed in parallel and at a distance from one another on the underside 15 and which are each designed as a C-profile with two free legs 29, 30 which are connected to one another via a web 31. The two guide rails 26, 28 are rigidly connected to one another at the ends via a front and a rear cross strut 32 and 34, respectively.

In its end region adjacent to the front cross strut 32, the two guide rails 26 and 28 serve to rotatably support a first pivot axis 38 which passes through the webs 31 of the two guide rails 26 and 28 and is oriented perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the guide rails 26, 28. The end of the first supporting leg 21 facing the table top 12 is fixed on the first pivot axis 38 and is thus held on the underside 15 so as to be pivotable and immovable.

The two guide rails 26 and 28 each receive a slide shoe 40 or 42, which is made of polyamide and forms a positive connection with the associated guide rail 26 or 28. The sliding shoes 40, 42 are connected to one another via a second pivot axis 44 which is rotatably mounted on the sliding shoes 40 and 42 and on which the end of the second supporting leg 22 facing the table top 12 is fixed. The second supporting leg 22 can consequently be pivoted on the underside 12 via the second pivot axis 44 and the two sliding shoes 40, 42 and is held displaceably in the longitudinal direction of the table top 12. The stand frame 16 thus forms with the two legs 21, 22 a scissor frame, which is between a folded position, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, and an extended position, as can be seen from Figure 3, can be moved back and forth.

In order to facilitate the unfolding of the stand frame 16, a tension spring 46 or 48 is clamped between the front cross strut 32 of the guide frame 24 and the slide shoes 40 and 42, through which the slide shoes 40, 42 and the second pivot axis 44 with a spring force in Direction of the front cross strut 32 are loaded.

In the guide rails 26 and 28 a rigidly connected to a sliding block 40 or 42 holding rod 50 or 52 is slidably supported, which has a toothing 54 on its upper side facing the table top 12 and non-rotatably via a positive connection with the corresponding sliding block 40 or 42 is connected. The C-shaped guide rails 26 and 28 each overlap the associated holding rods 50 and 52.

In the longitudinal direction approximately centrally, the guide rails 26 and 28 are penetrated in the region of their cross strut 31 by a pivot lever 56 which projects laterally beyond the guide frame 24 and forms a handle 58 in this projecting region. Associated with the respective toothing 54 of the two support rods 50 and 52, two cam-like bolts 60 and 62 are held on the pivot lever 56 in a rotationally fixed manner. The latches 60 and 62 each form a latching projection which, in order to lock the holding rods 50 and 52 and the associated sliding shoes 40, 42 in a desired position in relation to the Longitudinal direction of the table top 12 can engage in one of the locking receptacles, which are defined by the teeth 54. By pivoting the pivot lever 56 by means of the handle 58, the latching connection achieved can be released by the user of the ironing board.

The tension springs 56 and 58 only serve to make it easier to open the stand frame 16. For this purpose, they exert such a limited spring force on the respective sliding shoes 40 and 42 that when the stand frame 16 is loaded with the weight of the table top 12, the latching connection between the holding rods 50 and 52 and the latches 60, 62 can only be achieved by manually actuating the pivot lever 56 can be solved.

Between the latches 60 and 62, a securing hook 64 is held in a rotationally fixed manner on the swivel lever 56, which in the folded state of the stand frame 16 engages around the free end of the joint 18 and thus forms a safeguard against inadvertent opening of the stand frame 16.

To fold out the stand frame, the pivot lever 56 must be pivoted by means of the handle 58, so that the securing hook 64 releases the joint 18. Under the action of the tension springs 56 and 58, the sliding shoes 40 and 42 are then moved in the longitudinal direction of the table top 12 in the guide rails 26 and 28, respectively, so that the stand frame 16 folds out. By means of the holding rods 50 and 52 and the associated latches 60 and 62, the sliding shoes 40 and 42 can be locked in a desired position for the height adjustment of the stand frame 16. If the stand frame 16 is folded again , the locking connection between the bolts 60 and 62 and the support rods 50 and 52 must be released by means of the pivot lever 56, so that the support rods 50 and 52 and the sliding shoes 40 and 42 are displaced in the guide rails 26 and 28 can.

Claims

PATENT CLAIMS

1. Ironing board with a table top and a collapsible, height-adjustable stand frame, which comprises two legs connected to one another by a joint, a first leg being held pivotably and immovably on the underside of the table top and the second leg being held pivotably on at least one guide element is which is slidably held on a guide rail arranged on the underside of the table top, the guide element being connected to at least one holding element which can be locked in various positions in the longitudinal direction of the table top in the longitudinal direction of the table top by means of an actuatable locking device, characterized in that the Holding element (50, 52) is slidably held in the guide rail (26, 28).

2. Ironing board according to claim 1, characterized in that the holding element (50, 52) and the locking device (56, 60, 62) form a releasable latching connection.

3. Ironing board according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the holding element (50, 52) is designed as a rack.

4. Ironing board according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the guide element as a sliding shoe (40, 42) is designed, which forms a positive connection with the guide rail (26, 28).

5. Ironing board according to claim 4, characterized in that the sliding shoe (40, 42) is made of plastic.

6. Ironing board according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that the slide shoe (40, 42) is made using polyamide.

7. Ironing board according to claim 4, 5 or 6, characterized in that the holding element (50, 52) is positively connected to the associated slide shoe (40, 42).

8. Ironing board according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the ironing board (10) has two guide elements (40, 42), each in a on the underside (15) of the table top (12) arranged guide rail (26, 28) slidably are held.

9. Ironing board according to claim 8, characterized in that the two guide rails (26, 28) are connected to one another via cross struts (32, 34) and form a guide frame (24) with them.

10. Ironing board according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the at least one guide rail (26, 28) is designed as a C-profile.

11. Ironing board according to claim 10, characterized in that the C-profile engages over the holding element (50, 52).

12. Ironing board according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the locking device comprises at least one pivotable bolt (60, 62) which cooperates with a holding element (50, 52), the guide rail (26, 28) the bolt (60, 62) overlaps.

13. Ironing board according to claim 12, characterized in that the bolt (60, 62) is rotatably held on a pivotable pivot lever (56).

14. Ironing board according to claim 13, characterized in that the pivot lever (56) is rotatably held on at least one guide rail (26, 28).

15. Ironing board according to claim 13 or 14, characterized in that on the pivot lever (56) a securing element (64) is arranged in a rotationally fixed manner, which cooperates with the joint (18) of the legs (21, 22) in the folded state of the stand frame (16) to secure the stand frame (16) against unintentional opening.

16. Ironing board according to claim 15, characterized in that the securing element is designed as a securing hook (64) which, in the folded state of the stand frame (16), detects the joint (18).