Abstract:
A guide assembly useful in restraining the vertical writing excursions of those with impaired muscular control includes a generally orthogonal frame supporting one or more stretched elastic bands spaced adjacent the horizontal leg of the frame. The vertical leg is then used for alignment along the edge of the writing surface.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to writing templates and guides, and more particularly to resilient guides useful in constraining the writing strokes of those having imperfect control over their writing musculature. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     Templates that guide the hand of those attempting to write are well known in the art. Most frequently such templates provide a correctly formed edge along which the writing instrument is drawn in order to produce a properly formed letter or number. Examples of such templates can be found in the teachings of U.S. Pat. No. 5,027,523 to MacLeod; U.S. Pat. No. 5,516,152 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,707,081 to Luna; U.S. Pat. No. 4,470,197 to Pagalies; and others. While suitable for the purposes intended, each of the foregoing is focused on defining the graphic form of the alphanumeric character and not at assisting in the muscular movements in the course of writing. 
     The course of training undeveloped writing musculature, and/or the course of assisting those suffering from muscular infirmity or disease like muscular dystrophy entails different notions than those entailed in the proper graphic form of a character. Typically those suffering from imperfect muscular control because of lack of sufficient development or disease lack the necessary muscular responses associated with the larger movements of a well behaved servo-mechanism and therefore need mechanical assistance in maintaining the writing instrument position relative the lines on a page. Once this is attained sufficient small movement control exists to produce a readable character. In such instances training and assistance are better achieved by devices that urge or prefer one or another direction of movement in order to position the writing hand, leaving the remainder of the writing movement essentially unconstrained. The preferred training and assistance mechanism is one that directs the larger muscular movements and it is one such mechanism that is disclosed herein. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Accordingly, it is the general purpose and object of the present invention to provide a writing guide that aligns an elastic member along the writing line to resiliently guide the writer&#39;s musculature. 
     Other objects of the invention are to provide a writing guide that defines a resilient boundary along the preferred positions of the handwritten text. 
     Yet further objects of the invention are to provide a resilient line guide useful in assisting those with imperfect or undeveloped writing musculature. 
     Briefly, these and other objects are accomplished within the present invention by providing a rectilinear frame defined by a vertical piece joined to a horizontal piece, where the edge of the vertical piece is also useful to guide the frame along the paper. The free end of the horizontal piece, moreover, is provided with an offset attachment to which one end of an elastic band is secured with the other end stretched to engage the edge of the vertical piece in a generally spaced relationship adjacent the horizontal piece. In this form the elastic band or strip is stretched over the paper, providing a restraint or guide to the vertical excursions of any writing instrument and thereby assisting those with less than precise control over small movement of their musculature. 
     In an alternative implementation several elastic strips can be thus stretched in parallel, between several points of engagement, to provide such elastic restraint on both extremes of vertical excursion as may be desired. Moreover, the frame pieces may be releasably secured to each other for convenient collapse and storage. Thus a widely adaptable structure is devised which is simple in assembly, convenient in use and inexpensively produced. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective illustration, separated by parts, of one implementation of the inventive writing aid; 
     FIG. 2 is yet another perspective illustration of the first implementation in its assembled form and aligned for use; and 
     FIG. 3 is a plan view of a further implementation of the inventive writing aid, conformed for various modes of use. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     As shown in FIGS. 1-3, the inventive writing aid, in its first implementation generally designated by the numeral  10 , includes a horizontal piece  11  securable by a fastener assembly  12  to a vertical piece  14 . Preferably each of the pieces  11  and  14  are formed as generally flat planar surfaces including at least one straight edge respectively shown as edges  11   a  and  14   a . Moreover, the respective pieces  11  and  14  may be provided with detents  11   b  and  14   b  proximate the overlapping segments thereof by which a defined angular alignment is insured once the pieces are connected to each other by the fastener  12 . In this manner the edge  14   a  is useful as a guide along one edge of a writing page P. 
     The free end of piece  11 , furthermore, may be provided with a vertical extension  15  perforated or notched at its end for providing an attachment  16  engaging one end of an elastic strip  18  and with an offset spacer  13  lifting the surface of the piece and the band  18  tied thereto off the writing surface. The other end of the band or strip  18  may then be stretched to a slot  17  along the edge  14   a . Thus the band  18  is stretched in a spaced alignment relative edge  11   a , providing a resilient barrier to any vertical excursion of a writing instrument WI, thereby assisting those with less than perfect muscular control. This resilient barrier may be variously tensioned by the expedience of the stretching tension of the band  18 , achieved conveniently by a knot or loop  19  selectively effected along the stretched length of the band. 
     In a further alternative, shown in FIG. 3, vertical excursion restraint may be effected at both the upper and lower ranges of vertical motion by providing two elastic bands stretched in parallel alignment. Like numbered parts functioning in a like manner to that previously described, in this configuration the horizontal piece  11  is provided with an enlarged extension  15 - 1  projecting orthogonally from edge  11   a  in the plane of piece  11  including two spaced slots  16 - 1  and  16 - 2  formed therein. Openings  16 - 1  and  16 - 2  are spaced from each other by the vertical increment of normal writing and are therefore useful to engage the ends of two elastic bands  18 - 1  and  18 - 2  which are then stretched to a set of equally spaced tie down slot openings  17 - 1  and  17 - 2  formed in the vertical piece  14  adjacent its edge  14   a . Again, by selecting the location of knots  19 - 1  and  19 - 2  tied in bands  18 - 1  and  18 - 2  a desired tension level can be achieved in each of the bands to provide such resilient restoring force as may be needed in effecting control over unwanted excursions of the writing instrument WI. 
     In this manner an inexpensive, easily assembled guide is obtained that is useful in restraining imperfect muscular control by selectively stretched elastic bands that are lifted off the writing surface at both ends. 
     Obviously many modifications and variations can be effected without departing from the spirit of the invention instantly disclosed. It is therefore intended that the scope of the invention be determined solely by the scope of the claims appended hereto.