US2652299A - Crossed leg folding table or tray - Google Patents

Description

EIJE-E 4 7 0 p 5, 1953 J. w. BRYAN 2,652,299

CROSSED LEG FOLDING TABLE 0R TRAY Filed Sept. 9, 1949 2 Sheets-She8t 2 by J 3 a J3 I 94 4 A 7/ INVENTOR JOHN W. BRYAN Patented Sept. 15, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,652,299 CROSSED LEG FOLDING TABLE R TRAY John W., Bryan, Traphill, N. C. Application September 9, 1949, Serial No. 114,817

2 Claims.

This invention relates to an improved serving tray having folding legs.

It is an object of this invention to provide an improved serving tray of the kind described in my copending application Serial No. 86,977, filed April 12, 1949, for a Folding-Leg Serving Tray, now Patent No. 2,557,594, issued June 19, 1951. Ihe supporting legs of this invention are secured on the tray in a manner to substantially bias the legs from a folded position to an extended position, and also from the extended position to the folded position. In this manner the present tray arrangement provides an improvement over my copending application in that the folding and extension of the legs is greatly facilitated and the legs may be unlocked from either extreme position by the operation of the same fingerlatch-control means.

Another object of this invention is to provide a folding table and tray of this kind having finger-actuated control means for latching the legs in the folded and extended positions and having a slidable pivot connection between the legs substantially concealed in certain ones 01' the legs. The latch-control means and members, together with the connections between the movingand movable parts of this table, are substantially concealed in the table top and legs in all positions of the legs, thereby providing a very pleasing and attractive appearance with smoothoperating operational parts.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a folding-table of this kind having a novel latch means for securing the pivoted legs in their selected folded and extended positions.

A further object of this invention is to provide a novel latch structure for a folding table or the like having substantially reversible elements secured together in such a manner that by a simple rearrangement of the elements the latch may be converted for use on the left and right sides of the confronting channel members in which oppositely-extending latch bolts are adapted to be engaged;

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a smooth-operating folding table having relatively sensitive latch means for securing the legs in their folded or extended positions. The use of folding legs biased: from both the extended and folded positions provides for a tray-table which may be readily folded orextended even while articles, as water glasses and the like, are supported on the table as the operator may readily maintain the tray or table top horizontal while the legs are being folded and extended.

. formed with a table top I With the above and other objects in view, my invention consists in the arrangement, combination and details of construction disclosed in the drawings and specification, and then more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a serving tray and table constructed according to an embodiment of this invention, showing the legs in full lines in their extended position, and, in dotted lines, the legs in their partially-folded position;

Figure 2 is a bottom plan view, partly broken away and partly in section, of the table with the legs extended;

Figure 3 is an end elevation of the the legs extended;

Figure 4 is a longitudinal line 4-4 of Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary detail section taken on the line 5-5 of Figure 3;

Figure 6 is a transverse section taken on the line 6-6 of Figure 5;

Figure '7 is a longitudinal section of this folding table and serving tray with the legs folded in their extreme retracted positions.

Referring to the drawings, the numeral ['0 designates generally a folding-leg table and serving table constructed according to an embodiment of my invention, which is foldable from an extended condition providing a serving table to a collapsed position forming a serving tray. The table II! is I having a flat. horizontal sheet of wood l2, or other suitably light and strong material, bounded by a table top frame l4. The frame I4 is formed with end frame members table with section taken on the secured to the longitudinal side end edges of the panel l2 and abut at their opposite ends, the opposite ends of the side frame members IS.

A pair of supporting legs 11 are pivotally mounted" on one transverse or end frame member.

15, and extend downwardly below the panel l2. A pair of pivot pins, I 8 are carried by the end frame member l5 and engage through the legs ll adjacent the upper or outer ends thereof A transverse bar 19 is fixed to the upper or outer ends of the legs I1 beyond the, pivots 18 for securing the legs I! together and constitutes a carrying handle at one end of the table I0. handle I9 is spaced outwardly from the end frame member I5 and will an upwardly and outwardly-extending position to a downwardly and outwardly-extending horizontal folded position. The depending portions l5 which are secured to the end. edges of the panel l2 and side frame members 16.

normally swing from 3 of the legs I! are swingable from an inwardly declining position below the panel [2 to a horizontal folded position closely underlying the panel 12.

A second pair of supporting legs 20 are pivotally mounted on the other end frame member 15 and extend below the panel l2 for intersecting the other legs I! in crossing relation in the extended position of all of the legs. The legs 20 are pivoted on hinge pins 2! secured to the other end member IS. A transverse bar or handle 22 is fixed between the upper outer ends of the legs 20 forming a second handle at the other end of the table top I I.

The legs I! are hinged adjacent the extreme outer ends of one end frame member I; while the legs 23 are hinged inwardly from the extreme outer ends of the other end frame member l5 in such a manner that the inner legs 20 substantially slidably overlie the inner side surfaces of the outer legs H in all positions of both pairs of legs.

. A transverse connecting bar 24 is fixed between the legs 25 and spaced upwardly from the lower or inner ends thereof. The transverse lower connecting bar 24, with the handle 22, rigidly secures the legs 20 together for operative sliding movement in engagement with the legs [1.

Each of the supporting legs I! is formed in its laterally inward side with an elongated T-slot 25 intermediate the length thereof. A circular opening 25 is formed in each of the legs ll at the upper end of the slot 25 for receiving the head 21 of a pivot bolt 28. A pivot bolt 28 is fixed on each of the inner legs 20 in alignment with the cross-bar 24 and extends laterally outwardly beyond the outer side surfaces of the legs 20. The cross-portion 29 of the T-slot 25 is slightly larger in diameter than the bolt head 21 and the narrow slot portion 35 is slightly greater in width than the diameter of the shank 3|, of the bolt 28, to provide for the free sliding movement of the bolts 28 along the length of the slots 25 while restraining the legs I? against outward separation from each other and from the inner legs 20. The enlarged circular opening 26 at the upper end of each slot 25 provides for the initia1 engagement of the bolts 23 into the slots 25 in the assembly of the table l0.

A latch 32 is carried by each of the legs I! at the lower end of the slot 25 for releasably latching together the adjacent inner legs 26 and outer legs H. The latches 32 are each formed with a base plate 34, for fixed attachment to the legs I! and a hook member 35 rockably mounted thereon. A pair of transversely-spaced-apart screws 36 are engaged through the plate 34 midway the length thereof for rigidly securing the plate to the respective outer leg l'l. The hook 35 is L-shaped in configuration, having a hook arm 31 and a right angular lever arm 48 formed integrally on one end thereof. A headed pivot pin 39 traverses the hook 35 at the juncture of the arms and is secured to the plate 34 at a point about midway between and at one side of the screws 36. The transverse disposition of the pin 39 midway between the screws 36 provides for the reverse use of the plate 34 on either the left or right side of the table 10.

A longitudinally-extending fiat spring 40 is secured on the inner surface of each plate 34 and extends upwardly between the leg I! on which the plate 34 is mounted, and the adjacent leg 20. The flat spring 40 engages along the arm 31 of the hook 35 and biases the arm 31 into parallel relation with the leg l1 and slot 25. The saixi portion of the spring 40 will overlie the same portion of the horizontal arm 31, irrespective of the left or right hand disposition of the hooks 35, thus adapting each hook for left and right-hand use. A separate base plate 34 will be used for the opposed latch dispositions, but the hook 35 is formed in exactly the same manner for use on either side of the table.

The bill 4| of the hook 35 will normally be disposed in looking engagement with the bolt 28, and is formed with an upwardly-inclined upper edge forming a cam to displace the hook as the bolt slides downwardly along the length of the slot 25.

The extreme lower ends of each of the other pair of legs 25 are each formed with a shoulder or ledge 42 for securing the legs in their folded or retracted positions. A cross-bar 44 is carried by the table top H, on the lower side thereof, for engagement with the shoulders 42. A finger grip or trigger 45 is secured to the latch bar 44 and extends outwardly through a notch 46 in one of the transverse frame members l5 between that frame member and the adjacent handle bar IS.

A pair of rods 4'? are fixedly connected to the opposite ends of the latch bar 44 and extend downwardly along the length of the outer legs H for pivoted connection to the outer ends of the lever arms 48 of the hooks 35. The latch bar 44 is positioned in closely-spaced relation to the transverse frame member l5 and will be supported for sliding movement lengthwise of the legs I! by the engagement of the opposite ends thereof in elongated, longitudinal slots 49 in the upper ends of the legs l1.

With the legs in the folded or extended position, a slight outward pull on of the trigger 45 by th fingers of a user will disengage either the hooks from their latch bolts 28, or the latch bar 44 from the shoulders 42, Whichever latch means was in securing condition at the time.

A pair of coil springs 50 are supported on the inner side of the frame member E5 on which the legs 25 are pivotally mounted. A substantially L- shaped bar 5|, having one arm 52 penetrating the frame member I5, is loosely engaged through the coils of the springs 55 for supporting the springs in position. The other arm 54 of the bar 5| is secured at its end to the inner surface of the transverse frame member to hold the springs 50 from sliding transversely, while the arm 52 holds the springs from longitudinal movement on the table top I l.

One end of the coil spring 50 bears against the frame member and the other end is connected to the leg 20 below the pivot 2] thereof. The springs 50 are tensioned to sharply bias the legs to a folded position from the extreme extended position and the spring bias is counterbalanced by the weight of the legs, whereby the weight of the legs will bias the legs from the latched folded position when the cross-bar 44 is released from the shoulders 42. Although the spring tension and weight of the legs would be balanced somewhere near the mid-point of the swinging travel of the pivoted legs, the legs may be readily moved to the other latched position upon application of a slight force on the handles 19 and 22 in the direction opposite from the desired travel of the legs.

For moving the legs from the folded, retracted position forming a portable serving tray, clearly shown in Figure 7 of the drawings, the trigger 45 is moved outwardly by a finger of the person holding the tray l by the handles I 9 and 22. When the latch bar 44 is disengaged from the legs and shoulders 42, the weight of the legs l1 and 20, together with the upward force exerted on the handles outwardly from the frame, will pivot the legs downwardly and inwardly to the latched, extended and crossing table-forming position shown in Figure 1.

For retracting the legs, the trigger 45 is moved again outwardly from the frame member l5, thereby releasing the hooks 35 from the bolts 28 and the springs will bias the legs upwardly, sliding the bolts 28 upwardly in the slots 25, and a slight downward pressure on the handles will complete the swinging to a folded latched position. From this operation it is clear that the release of the legs from their latched folded and extended positions is accomplished by the same release member, the trigger 45.

Felt pads are secured, as by glue, on the lower side of the panel I2 to cushion the engagement of the legs l1 and 20 with the panel I 2 as they move into folded position.

I do not mean to confine myself to the exact details of construction herein disclosed, but claim all variations falling within the purview of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a table tray, a table top, a first pair of inner and outer legs, a second pair of inner and outer legs, said first and second pairs of legs being laterally spaced from each other and positioned along opposite sides of said table top, means pivoting the legs of said pairs to spaced points of said table top at points spaced near a one end of the legs, the legs of each pair being crossed at points intermediate said one end of the legs and the other ends thereof, pin-and-slot means connecting together the legs of said pairs, crossbar means extending between and connected to the first and second pairs of legs whereby the pairs of legs are connected for pivotal and sliding movement between retracted positions close to the table top to extended positions remote from the table top, said pin-andslot means comprising a pin fixed on the inner leg of a pair of inner and outer legs and a longitudinal slot formed in the other leg in which the pin is slidably confined, latch means comprising a, releasable L-shaped hook rockably mounted on said other leg and retainably engageable with the pin only in the extended positions of the legs, spring means acting between the table top and the said one end of the legs of one of the pairs and biasing the pairs of legs toward retracted position, and trigger means mounted on the table top and operatively connected to said latch means for releasing the latch means.

2. In a table tray. a table top, a first pair of inner and outer legs, a second pair of inner and outer legs, said first and second pairs of legs being laterally spaced from each other and positioned along opposite sides of said table top, means pivoting the legs of said pairs to spaced points of said table top at points spaced near one end of the legs, the legs of each pair being crossed at points intermediate said one end of the legs and the other ends thereof, pin-and-slot means connecting together the legs of said pairs, crossbar means extending between and connected to the first and second pairs of legs whereby the pairs of legs are connected for pivotal and sliding movement between retracted positions close to the table top to extended positions remote from the table top, said pin-andslot means comprising a pin fixed on the inner leg of a pair of inner and outer legs and a longitudinal slot formed in the other leg in which the pin is slidably confined, latch means comprising a releasable L-shaped hook rockably mounted on said other leg retainably engageable with the pin only in the extended positions of the legs, spring means acting between the table top and the said one end of the legs of one of the pairs and biasing the pairs of legs toward retracted position, and trigger means mounted on the table top and operatively connected to said latch means for releasing the latch means, a releasable latch bar mounted on the table top with which the said other ends of legs are retainably engageable in the retracted positions of the legs, said trigger means being connected to said latch bar.

JOHN W. BRYAN.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 468,791 Crane Feb. 16, 1892 1,034,885 Defatsch Aug. 6, 1912 1,237,269 Abraham Aug. 21, 1917 1,583,999 Scheibe May 11, 1926 2,178,172 Johnson Oct. 31, 1939 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 49,484 Norway Oct. 19, 1931

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