Manually operable and self erecting foldable planar image board and easel composite display device

[0002] This invention relates to an easel adaptable to the rear surface of a relatively large display image board to support the latter in an upstanding position on a floor. The display image board and the easel are foldable at a plurality of scored transverse fold lines to form a compact and relatively small package for ease in shipping and storage. It may also be self-erecting.

[0003] Large image display planar boards are used for exhibiting advertisement signs, or for exhibiting life images of movie actors, fashion models, popular musicians, scientific or similar novelty objects for decorative purposes. The large image planar board may be over five feet by two feet in size, and they are commonly made of corrugated board material. In order to support such large image planar board in an upstanding position on a floor, an easel is adapted to its rear surface to form an integral composite device. The easel is commonly also made of corrugated board material which has component parts for forming a rigid support stand. The composite device may be double folded into a collapsed condition for shipping or storage. However, a common drawback in such device is that after it has been double folded into the collapsed condition, it still has a relatively large size. For a life size planar display, the composite device, in the collapsed condition may be over two feet by two feet by two inches in size which would be regarded as an oversize by postal and shipping services, and it is particularly not conducive for shipping through the postal service due to the high postal surcharge imposed on an “oversize” package. The main difficulty with such known display devices is that thick corrugated board material must also be used for making the easel in order to provide the necessary strength for supporting the image board in the upstanding position. Furthermore, the dimensions of the easel must be compatibly large in order to provide the requisite support for the large image corrugated board. Commonly, the easel has one or more vertical support panels having a vertically tapering shape, narrow at the top and tapering to a large bottom base portion. Folding such thick material in more than a double folded manner to a collapsed condition would inherently destroy its strength such that it would lose the necessary strength when it is later unfolded to the erected position from the collapsed condition.

[0004] It is a principal object of the present invention to provide a combined planar large image board and easel device which is foldable in a plurality of transverse lines to a compact size.

[0005] It is another object of the present invention to provide an easel which does not lose its strength after subjected to multiple folds along predetermined transverse scored lines.

[0006] It is another object of the present invention to provide an image and easel composite device in which the easel may be fabricated with any planar board material and yet would provide a strong support for the display image board in a secure upright erected position.

[0007] It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a combined easel and image board composite device which is self-erecting.

[0008] The composite device of the present invention has an easel attached to rear surface of an image board and operative to support the latter in an upstanding manner on a floor, the easel comprises a planar board having a design pattern of the easel stamped therein. The design pattern has component parts which are unfoldable to form the easel in an erected condition. The component parts include two elongated substantially rectangular side panels extending the entire longitudinal length of the planar board. A middle body portion extends between the side panels. The middle body portion is attached to the rear surface of the image board. Two parallel vertical scored lines are located between the middle body portion and the side panels such that these side panels are unfoldable along these vertical scored lines to form the right side panel and the left side panel of the easel positioned substantially perpendicular to the image board. A plurality of horizontal brace members are formed in the middle body portion and are located between the side panels. Each brace member is unfoldable along a transverse scored line to a substantially horizontal position extending between the side panels. The brace members are cooperative with the side panels to maintain the easel in an erected condition. A plurality of transverse fold lines are formed in the planar board and are located between the brace members whereby the composite device is foldable at these transverse fold lines to a compact collapsed condition.

[0009] FIG. 1 is a rear elevation view of the easel design stamped on a planar cardboard material. The easel is attached to the rear surface of an image board.

[0010] FIG. 2 is a rear perspective elevation view of the composite easel and image board in the erected position.

[0011] FIG. 3 is a rear elevation view of FIG. 2.

[0012] FIG. 4 is a side elevation view of that of FIG. 3.

[0013] FIG. 5 is a rear perspective view of the composite easel and image board in a partially folded condition.

[0014] FIG. 6 is a rear elevation view of a alternative embodiment of the composite easel and image board adapted for manual erection.

[0015] FIG. 7 is a rear elevation of the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, in the erected condition.

[0016] FIG. 8 is a top sectional view along line VIII—VIII of FIG. 7.

[0017] FIG. 9 is a side elevation of that of FIG. 8.

[0018] With reference to the drawings wherein like reference numerals designate corresponding parts in the several views, the easel 10 of the present invention is formed by a designed pattern stamped in an easel board made of cardboard, corrugated board or similar planar board material. The easel 10 is attached to the rear surface 11 of a planar display image board 12. The image board 12 is commonly a large corrugated board having a life size image provided on its front surface. The image board 12 may also have the actual shape of the image. A rectangular board is shown for ease of illustration. The easel design has a generally rectangular shape with two truncated triangular side extensions 13 and 14 formed at its lower portion. The bottom edges 15 and 16 of the side extensions 13 and 14 respectively preferably slope slightly upwardly and outwardly for about 5 degrees relative to the horizontal plane as best shown in FIG. 1. A vertical rectangular pattern is formed at the center of the easel design. The pattern is formed by two mutually parallel vertical scored lines 17 and 18 extending throughout its entire longitudinal vertical length, thus forming two generally L-shaped side panels 19 and 20 with the side extensions 13 and 14 respectively located at their lower portion.

[0019] The side panels 19 and 20 are not affixed to the rear surface 11 of the image board 10, and they may be folded or flipped outwards relative to the rear surface 11 of the image board 12 at the vertical scored lines 17 and 18 respectively to a position substantially perpendicular to the rear surface of the image board to provide the required vertical supporting side panels of the easel. The easel 10 is divided into three equal length portions, namely a lower portion 21, a lower middle portion 22, an upper middle portion 23 , and an equal or smaller upper portion 24. The upper portion 24 is smaller because the image to be supported by this portion of the easel normally has a smaller size than the main middle portion of the image. A horizontal scored fold line 25 separates the lower portion 21 and the lower middle portion 22; a second horizontal scored fold line 26 separates the lower middle portion 22 and the upper middle portion 23; and a third horizontal scored fold line 27 separates the upper middle portion 23 and the upper portion 24. The horizontal scored fold lines 25, 26, and 27 are aligned with horizontal scored associated fold lines 28, 29 and 30 respectively formed in the image board 12 such that the composite display device comprising both the easel 10 and the image board 12 together may be folded into a collapsed condition along these horizontal scored fold lines and associated fold lines. Double scored fold lines 25 and 27 may be provided to enhance the foldability of the easel.

[0020] The rectangular center body portion 31 of the easel 10 is attached to the rear surface of the image board by glue or other conventional means. A horizontal slot 32 extending over the entire width of the center portion 31 is formed along the scored fold line 25; a second horizontal slot 33 extending over the entire width of the center portion 31 is formed along the scored fold line 26; and a third horizontal slot 34 extending over the entire width of the center portion 31 is formed along the scored fold line 27. The horizontal slots 32, 33, and 34 enhance the foldability of the easel along the horizontal scored fold lines due to the reduction of material to be bent.

[0021] A generally rectangular shaped horizontal cross brace 35 is formed in the upper middle portion 23 of the center body portion 31. The cross brace 35 has a horizontal scored line 36 such that it can be flipped outwards relative to the center portion 31 at the scored line 36 to form a brace extending in a horizontal position between the vertical side panels 19 and 20 and perpendicular to the rear surface of the image board. A second similar generally rectangular horizontal cross brace 37 is formed in the lower middle portion 22. The cross brace 37 has a horizontal scored line 38 such that it can be flipped outwards relative to the center body portion 31 at the scored line 38 to form a second brace extending in a horizontal position between the vertical side panels 19 and 20 and perpendicular to the rear surface of the image board. Two similar rectangular cross braces 40 and 41are formed in the lower portion of the center body portion 31. The cross braces 40 and 41 have horizontal scored lines 42 and 43 such that they can be flipped outwards relative to the center body portion 31 to form cross braces extending in a horizontal position between the vertical side panels 19 and 20 and perpendicular to the rear surface of the image board. It can be appreciated by those skilled in the art that although two cross braces are preferably formed in the lower portion 21 to provide a strong base support for the easel, one cross brace may suffice for the purpose.

[0022] Two openings 44 and 45 are formed in the vertical side panel 19 and located one above and the other below the horizontal scored line 36 of the cross brace 35. Similarly two openings 46 and 47 are formed in the vertical side panel 20 and located one above and the other below the horizontal scored line 36. Similarly, two openings 48 and 49 are formed in the vertical side panel 19 and located one above and the other below the horizontal scored line 38 of the cross brace 37; and two openings 50 and 51 are formed in the vertical side panel 20 and located one above and the other below the horizontal scored line 38. Two openings 52 and 53 are formed in the vertical side panel 19 and located one above and the other below the horizontal scored line 42 of the cross brace 40; and also similarly two openings 54 and 55 are formed in the vertical side panel 20 and located one above and the other below the horizontal scored line 42. Two openings 56 and 57 are formed in the horizontal manner adjacent to the lower edge of the vertical side panel 19; and similarly two openings 58 and 59 are formed in the horizontal manner adjacent to the lower edge of the vertical side panel 20.

[0023] Two openings 60 and 61 are formed adjacent to the free edge of the cross brace 35. Similarly two openings 62 and 63 are formed adjacent to the free edge of the cross brace 37; two openings 64 and 65 are formed adjacent to the free edge of the cross brace 40; and two openings 66 and 67 are formed adjacent to the free edge of the cross brace 41. The easel 10 may be erected by first unfolding the vertical side panels 19 and 20 at the vertical scored lines 17 and 18 until they are positioned generally perpendicular to the rear surface 11 of the image board 12. The cross braces 35, 37, 40 and 41 are then flipped outwards to a horizontal position extending between the vertical panels 19 and 20. Elongated tie members 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74 and 75 are then threaded through the openings 44 through 67 to retain the cross braces in the unfolded horizontal position to maintain the easel in the erected condition. The tie members are strings of a predetermined length with a cross abutment bar 76 provided at their two ends such that they may be easily threaded through the various openings in the vertical panels 19 and 20 and the cross braces 35, 37, 40 and 41. After threaded through the openings, the cross abutment bars 76 will position crosswise abutting the openings of the vertical side panels 19 and 20 to retain the easel in the erected condition. The composite easel and image board display device may be folded into a collapse condition by removing the tie members, returning the side panels and cross braces to the flat fold down condition and folding the four portions of the composite display device along the horizontal scored lines.

[0024] Elastic tie members may be provided such that the resilient force of the elasticity of the tie members would normally maintain the cross braces and the vertical panels in a securely erected condition. The composite easel and image board display device would lean rearward at the top due to the sloping lower edges 15 and 16 of the vertical panels resting on the floor to provide a more stable upstanding manner. The composite easel and image board display device may be folded to the collapse condition without removing the elastic tie members. This may be achieved by first depressing the middle portion of side panels 19 and 20 in the vicinity of the scored fold line 26 to a fold down position, against the resilient force of the tie members, to lie flat against the rear surface 11 of the image board 10 , and while holding them in such depressed fold down position, fold the lower middle portion 22 and upper middle portion 23 towards each other along the scored fold lines 26 and 29 as shown by the arrows 77, 77A, 78 and 79 in FIG. 5. The upper portion 24 may then fold towards the upper middle portion 23 along the scored fold lines 27 and 30 as shown by the arrows 80 and 81, and similarly the lower portion 21 may be folded towards the lower middle portion 22 along the scored fold lines 25 and 28 as shown by arrows 82 and 83. The entire composite display device may thus be folded into a compact collapsed condition having an acceptable size for shipping through regular postal or delivery services. The composite display device in the collapsed condition is self erectable by merely holding the top edge of the image board 10 and raising it upwards; the elasticity of the tie members would automatically pull the side panels and the cross braces to flip to the position perpendicular to the rear surface of the image board to place the easel in the erected condition.

[0025] Due to the unique construction, the easel of the present invention may be made with any planar board or sheet material and yet it provides a strong support for the image board.

[0026] An alternative manually operative embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIGS. 6 through 9. In this embodiment, the cross braces 84, 85 and 86 are longer than the width of the center body portion 31 of the easel. Thus, when the cross braces 84, 85 and 86 are flipped to the erected position, openings 87 having a quarter circular shaped are formed in the side panels 19 and 20. Two opened slots 88 and 89 are formed in the free outer edge 90 of the cross braces. The opened slots 88 and 89 are in alignment with scored lines 17 and 18 respectively. These opened slots 88 and 89 will engage with the inner edge of the quarter circular shaped opening 87 of the vertical panels 19 and 20 to retain the cross braces and the vertical side panels 19 and 20 in the erected position. The easel may be easily collapsed by flipping the cross braces back to the flat fold down position flat against the rear surface of the image board, and the entire composite easel and image board display device may be folded along the horizontal scored fold lines in the same manner as above.

[0027] While the preferred embodiments of the invention have been described above. It will be recognized and understood that various modifications may be made therein and the appended claims are intended to cover all such modifications which may fall within the spirit and scope of the invention.