Abstract:
A unitary metal candle holder including a base and a plurality of panels integrally hinged to the base by a plurality of straps. The panels, which are shaped to simulate thematic scenes, may be folded by hand and remain upright without additional reinforcement. A retail consumer may purchase the candle holder in its flat, unfolded state, and mail it in a flat envelope to, for example, a gift recipient who, as the end user, folds the panels and uses the product.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of The Invention 
     The present invention relates to a candle holder, and more particularly, to a candle holder formed from a stamped metal blank. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     Candle holders of all shapes and sizes are known in the art. By definition, candle holders are designed to perform a function—to hold one or more candles. In addition, most candle holders are also designed to be decorative. As a result, candle holders are very popular household items and have long been favorites of gift givers. Unfortunately, many of the candle holders of the prior art are often bulky and difficult to store or ship. 
     Attempts have been made to provide candle holders or lanterns that can be disassembled or collapsed to allow for easier storage and transport. A description of a representative sample of the prior art follows. 
     The patent to Morley, U.S. Pat. No. 27,924 discloses a lantern having a top, hinged sides, and a bottom portion. The bottom is designed to be removed and the sides spread outwardly, allowing the lantern to be stored and shipped in a flattened position. The lantern taught in Morely is deficient because it is complex and expensive to produce. In addition, collapsing the lantern requires removal of several retaining rods, which could easily be lost. 
     Atkinson, U.S. Pat. No. 277,401, stamps a metal blank to form a box comprising a base and four connected sides, each of which has side flanges. When bent along fold lines, the four sides extend upwardly from the base, where their flanges are secured together by means of clips. The box taught by Atkinson requires extensive bending of sides and flanges and includes the ever-present possibility of losing the clips. 
     Ronner, U.S. Pat. No. 314,725, discloses a lantern having a base, sides, and top hinged together by a disparate material, e.g., metal, leather, muslin, etc., to allow folding it “flat.” The lantern is held in its opened shape by means of interlocking recessed edges. The assembly time for this lantern is exorbitant, and “flat” means three sides thick, hardly facilitating shipping and storing. 
     Gardner, U.S. Pat. No. 383,175, provides a box having mortise and tenon joints on the confronting edges of the sides which are folded upwardly from a flat configuration to form the box. Gardner requires compressing and/or welding the joints together, an obviously labor-intensive construction process. 
     The patents to Overstreet, U.S. Pat. No. 4,907,140, and Bele, Jr. et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,264,996, show collapsible lanterns made of stiff paperboard or cardboard. The lanterns in both Overstreet and Bele, Jr, et al. include side panels that are joined to one another along their entire height by a fold line or crease. The lanterns are formed by inwardly folding four side panels, along the fold lines or creases, and engaging at least one tab-and-slot combination. The lanterns taught in Overstreet and Bele, Jr. et al. are deficient because they must be formed of stiff paperboard or cardboard in order to enable the side panels to be inwardly folded. Use of paperboard or cardboard is complex and expensive because such materials must be coated with a flame retardant substance. In addition, such designs are relatively difficult to assemble. 
     OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is an object of the present invention to provide a candle holder that can be shipped and stored in a substantially flat position. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to provide a candle holder that is simple and inexpensive to manufacture. 
     It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a candle holder that can be easily erected and collapsed. 
     It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a candle holder that includes side panels which do not require additional members, such as interacting tabs and slots or wires or pins, in order to be self-supporting. 
     The foregoing and other objects are achieved in accordance with the present invention through the provision of a candle holder formed from a unitary stamped metal blank. The candle holder includes side panels and end panels, each panel being connected to a centrally located base by a plurality of tabs or straps. The candle holder is erected by upwardly folding the panels, each panel being maintained in a substantially upright position by the resistance of the metal straps to being bent, i.e., the bending memory of the straps. The base is adapted to receive a tea-light candle thereon. Each panel preferably has a decorative shape and includes one or more cutouts therein which simulate the appearance of a building, trees or the like, and allow light from the candle to shine therearound and therethrough. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The present invention will be more fully appreciated as the same becomes better understood from the following detailed description of the present invention when viewed in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: 
     FIG. 1 is a top view of a first embodiment of the candle holder of the present invention, showing the candle holder in an unfolded state; 
     FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the first embodiment showing one end panel of the candle holder upwardly folded; 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the first embodiment shown in a completely folded state with a candle resting therein; 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the candle holder of the present invention showing one panel upwardly folded; and 
     FIG. 5 is a top view of the second embodiment showing the candle holder completely folded. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring now to FIG. 1, reference numeral  10  generally refers to a preferred embodiment of a foldable candle holder of the present invention. Candle holder  10  is made from a stamped metal blank  12 , and includes base  14 , two side panels  16  and  18 , and two end panels  20  and  22 . 
     Blank  12 , the original form of which is indicated by dashed lines, comprises an integral, thin sheet of metal which has a rectangular dimension large enough to encompass the design of the candle holder intended to be made. Blank  12  is thin, having a preselected gauge; any desired thickness may be used, consonant with the function, design, and intended environment of use for the candle holder. In the best mode presently contemplated for the present invention, the thickness of metal blank  12  is approximately 0.30 mm±0.02 mm. Blank  12  is stamped by a conventional stamping process to remove selected portions of the metal sheet. The remaining portions provide the outlines and details of whatever scene is created by the designer. Where desired, blank  12  may be coated with a suitable material, such as an electrostatically applied powdercoat of epoxy, colored to fit the scene depicted. In the preferred form, the scene stamped from blank  12  is approximately 6″ by 6″ for a purpose which will become clear hereinafter. 
     Base  14  is preferably square, as shown, since that configuration best fits tea candles most attractively. However, a rectangular base, sized to receive candle arrangements having an elongated support, or a plurality of tea candles linearly aligned, staggered, or arranged in a matrix, is within the purview of the present invention. 
     Panels  16 ,  18 ,  20 , and  22  are located adjacent to base  14 , each being positioned on a different side of base  14 . Side panel  16  is located opposite side panel  18  and end panel  20  is located opposite end panel  22 . (The modifiers “side” and “end” are a convenient artifice based upon the scene depicted. For example, the scene represented in FIGS. 1-3 is of a building having “side” walls and front and back “ends”. The forest scene represented in FIGS. 4-5 has no such identifiable characteristics.) Each of the panels  16 - 22  are connected to base  14  by integral metal tabs or straps  24 , shown as two per panel but obviously could be any number which does not impair the functioning of the straps, to be explained shortly. Straps  24  are delineated by stamping out corner cut-outs, which can be of any desired shape, two such forms  26  and  28  being shown diagrammatically, and by stamping out slots  30 , which also define the edges of base  14 . Straps  24  facilitate the bending of the panels from their flat position to their upright position. If desired, straps  24  may be creased collinearly with edges  30  to further aid in bending the panels. 
     Base  14 , panels  16 - 22 , and straps  24  are integral with each other, the rest of blank  12  having been removed by the stamping of the original sheet metal blank  12 . They are recognizable as separate identities, due to their shapes and orientations relative to the remaining structures. Because they are separately named in this description, based on their individual shapes and functions, it should not be assumed that they are in fact separate items which are brought together by assembly. Being a unitary structure, no assembly is required nor desired. 
     The exposed three sides of panels  16 - 22  are preferably shaped according to the part they play in the final scene. In the example shown in FIG. 1, the side edges  32  and  34  of panels  16  and  18 , respectively, are rectilinear, inasmuch as they form the walls of a cathedral. Side edges  36  and  38  of panels  20  and  22 , however, appear as the outline of the front and back of the cathedral, including twin spires  40  and an intermediate gable  42 . 
     Interior of the side edges, panels  16 ,  18 ,  20 , and  22  preferably include cutouts  44 , referenced only generally, to create the appearance of, for example, windows and doors opening into the cathedral. When a candle is placed behind cutouts  44 , the light will shine therethrough. 
     One of the benefits of candle holder  10  is that in the unfolded state shown in FIG. 1 wherein it is flat, thin, and of relatively small dimensions, it can be stored and shipped easily to wholesalers, retailers, and, importantly, the ultimate consumer. For example, a large number of them can be shipped to wholesalers and retailers at a low cost. 
     It will be recalled that the preferred dimensions of the flat scene is approximately six inches square, designed so as to fit in greeting card-sized envelopes. This is an important marketing feature, for each flat candle holder can serve as a gift item to be sold individually and unassembled to a retail consumer and which is sized so as to be sent by such consumer to a recipient in a flat envelope as, or with, a greeting card. Thus, the person who assembles the candle holder by folding up the sides thereof is the ultimate user, typically a gift recipient. 
     The scene stamped onto blank  12  can, of course, be designed to find correspondence with the theme or event being celebrated, whether it be a birthday, no graduation, or a religious holiday. The cathedral seen in FIGS. 1-3, for example, may symbolize a wedding, a first communion, a christening, or a baptism, to name just a few. Other thematic scenes will suggest themselves to a person of ordinary skill in the art. 
     FIG. 2 shows the first step of turning stamped blank  12 , as shown in FIG. 1, into a full-fledged candle holder  10 . Blank  12  is made of a relatively heavy gauge metal. As a consequence, each portion thereof, including straps  24 , tend to retain their shapes. When flat, candle holder  10  naturally resists bending. When bent upright, a panel tends to stay in the position to which it was bent, due to the memory retention characteristics of straps  24 . In FIG. 2, end panel  22  is shown folded into a substantially upright position, a position in which it will remain until forcibly moved to another position. There is no need for any of the additional members required by the prior art, such as wire rods and loops (Morley, Branscum et al.), separate clips (Atkinson), welded mortice and tenon joints (Gardner), or tabs and slots (Overstreet, Bele, Jr. et al.). This is an advance in the art over prior stamped candle holders and boxes, such as those discussed above. The instant candle holder does not require additional material nor additional assembly time since the metal of straps  24  is sufficient to maintain panels such as end panel  22  in a substantially upright position without further reinforcement. 
     FIG. 3 shows candle holder  10  in a fully assembled and folded position, with panels  16 ,  18 ,  20 , and  22  being substantially upright. A tea candle  46  has been placed on base  14 . When wick  48  is lit, the light generated thereby will shine through cutouts  44  producing a decorative light display. 
     FIG. 4 illustrates the versatility of candle holder  10 . A woodland scene is formed by the selected outline and cutouts of base  50  and side panels  52 ,  54 ,  56 , and  58 . Each of the side panels is stamped with the outlines  60  of pine trees with cutouts  62  delineating straps  64 . Vertical cutouts  66  are suggestive of the trunks of the trees, and also provide a means for allowing the branches  68  outboard of side  52  to be bent outwardly using cutouts  66  as an axis. The upper left tree  69  in FIG. 4 has had its branches bent outwardly for additional decorative effect. 
     FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic top view of candle holder  10  of FIG. 4 which has all four panels folded upwardly. Outboard branches  68  are schematically shown bent away from the periphery  70  of base  50 .