Abstract:
A book support is mounted to a vertical upright assembly affixed to a weighted base. The book support is selectively positionable in various horizontal positions by swinging a horizontal swing arm articulated with a pivot connection to a one end of a horizontally extending segment of an upper member of the upright assembly. The swing arm is also rotatable about its own axis longitudinal by a pivot connection with the horizontal segment of an upper member of the upright assembly. An adjustable pivot connection also mounts the book support to a free end of the swing arm allowing reorientation of the book support about an axis normal to the longitudinal axis of the swing arm. A book shelf-rack support structure is fitted over the upright and has book shelves, racks mounted thereto. A cast iron platform weights the base and has a molded plastic cover.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
   This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional Ser. No. 60/531,115, filed Dec. 20, 2003. 

   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   This invention concerns floor supported book holders of the type described in applicant&#39;s earlier published application WO99/09859. In this type of book holder a book, magazine, etc., is releasably held on a support piece so as to allow pages of an opened book, magazine, etc., to be conveniently turned and held. 
   The support piece is itself supported so as to be positioned in various adjusted positions to be viewable when a user is in different positions. For example, the user may be reclining on a bed or sofa and the support is swung over the user and tilted downwardly to various angles as desired. Or, the user may be seated with the holder on one side, the support then positioned tilted upwardly at various angles. 
   It would be desirable to allow even greater versatility in adjustably positioning the book, magazine, etc., as there are a number of positions into which a user may wish to place the held document that heretofore has not been able to be done by such book holders. 
   Another consideration is the desirability of minimizing bulk of the holder so as to not be overly obtrusive in the home or office setting. 
   An attractive appearance is also desirable, as with any other home or office furnishing. 
   Furthermore, it would be advantageous if the holder assembly could provide additional capabilities for the user. 
   It is an object of the present invention to provide a floor supported book holder assembly of the type described of improved versatility and utility and having enhanced aesthetic appeal. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   The above objects and other objects which will become apparent upon a reading of the following specification and claims are achieved by a book holder assembly in which a book support is mounted to a swing arm extending from a horizontally extending reversely curved segment of an upper member of an upright assembly. The upright assembly is secured to a weighted base having casters supporting the same on a floor surface. A swing arm pivot connection to a free end of the upper member horizontally extending segment allows tilting of the book support about a horizontal axis. The upper member is rotatable in a lower member to allow the book support to be moved closer or further away to the upright assembly by folding or unfolding the swing arm and horizontally extending segment together or apart. 
   In addition, the book support is rotationally mounted to the outboard end of the swing arm for adjustable pivoting adjustment about an axis transverse to the longitudinal axis of the swing arm. This mounting may comprise a disc mounted to the swing arm end and urged towards the center of the book support by compression of a spring against an interposed bearing disc by a headed fastener. This arrangement creates a frictional holding force enabling the book support to be secured in any selected pivoted position about the transverse pivot axis. 
   The book support can thus be pivoted about the axis of the fastener by overcoming the frictional resistance generated by the disc pressed against the rear surface of the support. 
   This pivoting enables selective positional adjustment of the book support about the transverse axis to an infinite extent, allowing the book holder to be adjusted to be in a horizontal position even if the swing arm sags from horizontal due to heavy weight of the held book. Also, it allows sideways positioning of the book support which may be desired if the user is reclined alongside the book holder assembly to position the held book or magazine sideways. 
   In addition, by pivoting the book support upside down and then flipping it over about its horizontal axis, the book support can be optionally positioned to the left or the right of the upright without any disassembly. 
   A separate friction adjustment knob is also provided to enable convenient setting of the friction level stabilizing the upper upright member in any selected position through its swinging range of motion. 
   The upper member of the upright assembly has a reversely curved segment connected to the vertical straight portion which increases the range of vertical adjustment of the book support position. 
   Another improvement is the provision of a cast iron platform with a cover placed thereover together forming a weighted base for the book holder assembly which is substantially trimmer and less bulky than the prior design using water filled bags inside the base. At the same time, the cast iron platform allows a more rigid support for the upright assembly. 
   An optional book shelf-rack support structure is provided slidably emplaceable over the upright assembly to enhance the aesthetic appeal as well as the usefulness of the book holder assembly. 

   
     DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is a pictorial view of the adjustable book holder assembly according to the present invention. 
       FIG. 2  is an enlarged exploded pictorial view of the upright assembly clamping connection incorporated in the book holder assembly shown in  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 3  is an enlarged exploded pictorial view of the pivot fitting mounted to the swing arm and a horizontal segment of the upper member of the upright assembly included in the book holder shown assembly in  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 3A  is a fragmented view of one end of a swing arm and on an exploded retention pin used to engage a slot therein. 
       FIG. 4A  is an enlarged pictorial view of the rotatable connection between the book support and swing arm end included in the book holder assembly shown in  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 4B  is a view of the section  4 B— 4 B taken in  FIG. 4A . 
       FIG. 5  is an exploded pictorial view of the base components included in the book holder assembly shown in  FIG. 1 , with a fragmentary portion of the lower member of the upright assembly also included. 
       FIG. 6  is a pictorial view of a book holder assembly according to the present invention, showing the book support adjusted into a sideways position. 
       FIG. 7  is a pictorial view of a book holder assembly according to the present invention with an optional book shelf-rack support structure installed thereon. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
   In the following detailed description, certain specific terminology will be employed for the sake of clarity and a particular embodiment described in accordance with the requirements of 35 USC 112, but it is to be understood that the same is not intended to be limiting and should not be so construed inasmuch as the invention is capable of taking many forms and variations within the scope of the appended claims. 
   Referring to  FIG. 1 , an adjustable book holder assembly  10  according to the present invention has a two part telescoped upright assembly  18  including a lower tubular member  12  secured to a base assembly  14  to be held in an upright vertical position and an upper upright member  20 . Four casters  16  on the base assembly  14  rest on a floor surface. 
   An upper member  20  of the upright assembly  18  includes a vertically extending bottom segment  21  inserted into the lower member  12  and clamped at one end to the upper end of the lower tube member  12  with a clamping assembly  22 . 
   The upper member  20  also includes reversely curved upper segment  24  extending out horizontally from the bottom segment  21 , and a straight horizontal end segment  26 . A horizontal swing arm  30  is also connected to the straight end  26  by a pivot connection  28  to create an articulation joint allowing the swing arm  30  and segment  26  to be folded towards or away from each other to vary the distance a book support  44  is from the upright assembly  18 . For this purpose, the swing arm  30  is of a substantial length, so that the book support  44  is spaced a substantial distance from the pivot connector  28  so as to be able to substantially vary the distance the book support  44  is from the vertical  12  lower member by articulation of swing arm  30  and segment  26 . However, this articulation also allows rotation about a horizontal axis by the nature of the pivot connection  28  as described below. The reverse curvature of the segment  24  allows a greater range of height adjustment by the telescoping of the portion  21  into lower member  12 , as the book support  44  can be lowered beneath the upper end of the lower upright member  12  as the straight portion  21  is telescoped into the lower upright member  12 . 
   The pivot connection  28  includes a receptacle pivot fitting  32  having a tubular collar  34  attaching it to the straight end segment  26 , and a vertical axis seat  36  integral therewith ( FIG. 3 ). 
   A pivot pin fitting  38  includes a tubular socket  40  rotatably mounting an enlarged end  31  of the swing arm  30  which has a groove  33  receiving a retention screw  35  threaded into the bottom of a hollow vertical axis pivot pin  42  ( FIGS. 3 and 3A ). The pivot pin  42  is removably received in the pivot seat  36  and fit to be held rotatable therein to create an articulation allowing the swing arm  30  to be swingable relative segment  26  about a vertical axis defined by the hollow pin  42 . The swing arm  30  and attached book support  44  to be lifted out without requiring any disassembly. This allows ready removal of one book support and replacement with another having another book held thereon. 
   The swing arm  30  is also rotatable in the socket  40  about its own longitudinal axis to allow tilt adjustment of the book support  44  about a horizontal axis. 
   Referring to  FIG. 1 , the straight horizontal segment  26  of the upper member  18  can be rotated horizontally about a vertical axis defined by the lower upright member  12  and clamp assembly  22 . This creates an articulation capability of the swing arm  30  and segment  20  allowing them to be folded together or apart, in turn enabling an adjustment of the horizontal position of the book support  44  mounted to the free end of the swing arm  30 . Thus, the book support  44  can be drawn horizontally closer or further away from the vertical axis defined by the lower tube member  12  as desired to decrease or increase the distance from the upright to the book support  44 . 
   The book support  44  in the example shown comprises a roughly rectangular generally planar stiff support piece  46  made of plastic, wood, metal or other rigid material and having a pair of plates  48  each held with an encircling strap  50  threaded through a respective set of slots in the piece  46  and the plates  48  as shown. Other configurations may be used, such as a V-shaped support piece. 
   The plates  48  each hold a front or back cover as well as some of the pages of a book, magazine, or other document to hold the book, magazine, etc., on the book support  44 . 
   The term “book” is here used in its broadest sense to refer to books, magazines, and other multi-page documents or even a single page document, such as a chart, etc. 
   A pair of angled page wires  52  have one end of a first segment  53  attached to the piece  46  with a second segment  54  extending over one end of the front surface thereof. A ball tip  56  is affixed to the free end of each page holder second segment  54 . The page wires  52  may be made of music wire and heat treated to have memory like a spring. 
   As described in WO 99/09859, successive book pages can be conveniently turned and secured beneath a ball tip  56  by resilient deflectability of the second segment  54  allowing the same to be pulled out to turn pages and then upon release urging a ball tip  56  back into contact therewith. The friction is set to blow a single page to be slipped out from under a ball tip  56 , but prevents the page from turning on its own. 
   Support piece  46  of the book support  44  may be made sufficiently large (approximately 16×20 inches) to accommodate most sizes of documents desired to be held such as books, magazines, brochures, catalogs, etc., in the opened condition. Smaller sized pieces  46  may be provided as for use with paperbacks only. 
   A series of integral protrusions  45  are arranged along and cantilevered out from the bottom of the book support piece  44 . 
   The outboard free end  58  of the swing arm  30  is flattened and welded or otherwise affixed to a disc  60  ( FIGS. 4 ,  4 A). 
   The disc  60  is in turn urged towards the support piece  46  and against an interposed bearing disc  62  by a spring  64  compressed beneath the head  65  of a retention pin  66  passing through a centrally located hole in the piece  46 . A second head  67  retains the pin  66 . The bearing disc  62  is also in turn urged against the rear surface of the piece  46  to create a frictional engagement resisting rotation of the support piece  46  about the pin  66 . 
   However, a user can adjust the orientation of the book support  44  by exerting sufficient turning force thereon to overcome the friction and turn the support  44  to another adjusted position. The axis of adjustment is defined by the pin  66  and thus extends normally to the plane of the book support  44  and transversely to the longitudinal axis of the swing arm  30 . The book support  44  can only be rotated with respect to the swing arm on the pin  66  in the plane of the book support  44  as the tilt adjustment is accomplished by rotation of the swing arm  30  itself about its longitudinal axis. 
   Thus, the book support  44  can be turned sideways, as seen in  FIG. 6 , to any desired angle. This allows the book support  44  to be repositioned to be horizontal if the swing arm  30  sags from the weight of a held book or if the base assembly  14  is resting on an uneven floor. Also, it enables sideways positioning of an opened book so that a person can read a book, magazine, etc., while reclining and facing one side of the bed, couch, etc. 
   This point connection also allows repositioning the book support  44  to the right or left of the lower upright member  12  without disassembly. This is done by pivoting the book support  44  upside down, swinging the same to the other side of the member  12 , and then flipping the book support  44  to reverse its position to be forward of the swing arm  30 . 
   This pivot capability also allows reorienting the support piece  46  to enable viewing of documents which are larger in the vertical direction than usual (such as newspapers) or are bound at the top or bottom and thus further enhances the utility of the book holder assembly  10 . 
   As shown in  FIG. 2 , the clamp assembly  22  includes a split sleeve, with two half moon pieces  68  held together with members  20 ,  12  of the upright assembly  18  clamped therebetween by screws  70  and nuts  72  and threaded rods  74  affixed to knobs  76 A,  76 B. Curved pieces  73 A,  73 B are sized to fit to the upper member  20  and lower member  12 , respectively. By loosening rotation of the lower knob  76 B, the upright member  20  can turn to swing the horizontal segment  20  of the upper member  20  to position the book support piece  44  with respect to the base  14  as desired. Also any degree of friction grip can be selectively set by turning the lower knob  76 B to make it harder or easier to swing the book support about the vertical axis defined by the lower member  12 . 
   Loosening the upper knob  76 A, frees the upper member  20  of the upright to be raised (or lowered) within the lower member  12 . 
   The base assembly  14  includes a mounting platform  78  of cast iron having molded bores  82  into which are fit a pivot pin mount  80  of each caster  16  ( FIG. 5 ). 
   Integral stiffening ribs  84  converge at the center, with a boss  86  formed with a bore  88  receiving a threaded end  90  of the lower upright member bottom end  12 B, retained by a nut  92  and washer  94 . The ribs  84  keeps the platform  78  from deforming during cooling of the casting to insure a flat surface. 
   A molded plastic cover  96  is configured to be received atop the platform  78 , a bore  98  thereby aligned with bore  86  to allow passage of the threaded end  90 . The cover  96  can also be made of wood, metal, etc. 
     FIG. 7  shows a book rack-shelf support structure  100  having upper and lower pieces  102 A,  102 B having aligned bores receiving the lower upright member  12 . The book rack-shelf structure  100  rests atop the platform  78  base assembly  14 , and two or more shelves  104 ,  106 , and a magazine rack  108  are affixed to side rails  110 . 
   The book holder assembly  10  described above is very convenient in use, freely allowing many positional and orientation adjustments to be made to the book support to accommodate any conceivable desired of the user without requiring disassembly or the manipulation of knobs, etc., other than the loosening of the knob  76 A for height adjustment. Also, the book support  44  can be simply swung out of the way to enable the user to move past the same without disturbing most of the adjustments, nor moving the book holder assembly itself.