Abstract:
A folder which can be converted into an adjustable book-rest, characterized in that it is constituted by an articulated assembly which comprises a prism-like box which has an overturning cover (B,E,H,M) and a prop (C,F,I,O) which is connected between said cover and the bottom (A,D,G,L) of the box, at least one of said cover and of said bottom being provided with raised portions, to give a desired inclination to said cover with respect to the bottom, said cover supporting a document and retaining it at an edge thereof with a support.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation of application number PCT/EP98/07719 filed on Nov. 30, 1998. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a folder allowing conversion into an adjustable book-rest. 
     One of the most widespread deformities acquired by the spinal column is idiopathic primary essential scoliosis. This is a permanent lateral deviation of the spine and is better known as adolescents&#39; scoliosis since it is caused, especially in the school age, by incorrect scoliotic postures associated with general hypotonia of the muscles and ligaments. In practice, it is a deformation caused by alterations in the load due to an imbalance between static demands and the resistance of the spine in delicate, long-limbed, asthenic individuals. 
     However, since there is a lack of adequate preventive information, all this is almost always ignored until the disorder occurs, and the bad habit of reading in strange positions is widespread especially among younger people. Such positions are almost always assumed in order to improve visual perception but are unadvisable for anyone and especially for individuals who are already predisposed to deformation of the spinal column. 
     The present invention cannot of course correct congenital or already-acquired deformations, since altogether different solutions are required for these problems, but it can avoid the onset of alterations which are mainly due to prolonged scoliotic postures such as those assumed by children while reading books or newspapers which are perhaps large and are rested on the horizontal surface of a table or of a desk for adults. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 3,311,202 discloses a folder as defined in the preamble of claim 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The aim of the present invention is to overcome the above-mentioned drawbacks. 
     In order to obviate the above-cited problems, the present invention proposes to use an original folder which is made of plastics or other suitable material and whose dimensions are chosen so as to allow to store therein a copybook and a few pens. It can, if necessary, assume a book-rest configuration in order to tilt a document enough to allow its optimum viewing and reading while assuming spontaneously, i.e., in a natural manner and without impositions, a posture in which one stands up straight or in any case without imbalances for the spinal column. 
     On a general level, it is an articulated assembly which comprises a prism-like box with an overturning cover and a prop which is pivoted to one of the two parts of the box (cover or bottom) and can be coupled to the other, which is provided with notches or other suitable means, according to the configuration to be given to the cover with respect to the bottom when, by using the invention as a desktop book-rest, it supports the document in an inclined position and retains it at the base with a fixed or retractable support. 
     The above aim and other objects which will become apparent hereinafter are achieved by a folder as claimed in the appended claims. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Four of the possible embodiments of the present invention are illustrated, merely by way of non-limitative examples, in the accompanying drawings, in which: 
     FIGS. 1 to  8  are views of an embodiment which can be produced by monolithic molding, respectively a top view, a side view, a front view, a rear view, sectional views taken along the planes X—X and Y—Y in the folder configuration and a sectional view, taken along the plane Z—Z, in the folder and book-rest configurations; 
     FIGS. 9 to  13  are views of another embodiment which can be produced by monolithic molding, respectively a top view, a side view, a sectional view taken along the plane X—X in the folder configuration, and a sectional view, taken along the plane Y—Y, in the folder configuration and in the book-rest configuration; 
     FIGS. 14 to  21  are views of an embodiment obtained by means of the articulated connection of three parts, respectively a top view, a side view, a front view, a rear view, sectional views taken along the planes X—X and Y—Y in the folder configuration, and a sectional view, taken along the plane Z—Z, in the folder configuration and in the book-rest configuration; 
     FIGS. 22 to  27  are views of an embodiment obtained by means of the articulated connection of four parts, respectively a top view, a side view, sectional views taken along the planes X—X and Y—Y in the folder configuration, and a sectional view taken along the plane Z—Z in the folder configuration and in the book-rest configuration. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     With reference to the accompanying drawings, and starting from the figures related to the first embodiment, shown in FIGS. 1-8, the combined folder and book-rest, which can be made of plastics and as a single folding part, has three rigid portions (A-B-C) which are articulated in connecting regions  1  and  2 , which are termed folds by convention and can be obtained by means of scoring or by two-component molding, i.e., by means of the injection of two thermoplastic materials having a different degree of rigidity. 
     The portion A, i.e., the bottom of the box, is delimited at one side by the fold  1  and at the other three sides by a raised portion on which the: cover B and the portion C rest so as to be co-planar when closed (FIG.  5 ). The portion C is meant to act as a prop, because it is joined to the cover in the two folds  2  which are mutually aligned and parallel to the fold  1  and allow it to rotate downward and to engage in notches  4  of the bottom in order to support the cover B when, lifted in the book-rest configuration as in FIG. 8, it provides an inclined support for a document, which is retained at the base by means of a raised portion  3  of the cover B. 
     In the bottom A, particularly in the raised portion that is parallel to the fold  1 , there are provided female parts for a press-fit engagement of male elements  6  and  7  that protrude from a lower face of the cover B and of the prop C in order to fix them to the bottom when the assembly is in the folder configuration shown in FIGS. 1 and 5. 
     These are two press-studs which can be disengaged by lifting with one finger the prop C from an appropriately provided front recess  8  of the bottom A. Especially in order to prevent the yielding of the material in the folds  2 , on a lower face of the prop C there are plates  5  which, by protruding below the cover B, cause the prop and the cover, when the prop is lifted, to rotate about the fold  1 , while the plates  5  instead have no effect on the cover B when the prop C rotates downward about the folds  2 . 
     The combined folder and book-rest of FIGS. 9-13 also can be made of plastics and of a single folding part and has three rigid portions (D-E-F) which are articulated in folds  9  and  10  by virtue of suitable scoring or two-component molding. 
     The folds  9  and  10  form the two parallel sides of the bottom D, to which the cover E is connected at one side and the prop F is connected at the other side. In the book-rest configuration (FIG.  11 ), the prop F is superimposed on the cover E and inserts, with a push-fit coupling, its male part  13  in a suitably provided female part. Otherwise, in the book-rest configuration, the prop F lies below the cover B and its very edge is engaged in notches  12  of lateral shoulders that protrude from a lower part of the cover, which is also provided with a raised portion  11  protruding from an upper part of the cover in order to retain a document on the book-rest. 
     The combined folder and book-rest of FIGS. 14-21 is constituted by three parts (G-H-I) which can be made of plastics or other suitable material and are hinged at hinges  15  and  16 . While the hinge  15  is constituted by raised portions, pivots, rivets or other equivalent means which allow the rotary connection of the sides of the cover H to the sides of the bottom G, the hinge  16  is formed by gluing or otherwise fixing a small strip of soft or flexible material so that it straddles the cover G and the prop I in the lower face of both, i.e., inside the only fold allowed to said parts. 
     The cover H and the prop I, both of which rest when closed on the perimetric raised portion of the bottom G, are in fact shaped so that the former surmounts the latter and indeed engages its snap-acting tooth  19  therein (FIGS.  14  and  18 ). Another snap-acting tooth  18 , provided in the prop I, engages the bottom G at the front recess  20 , which can be accessed with a finger for release, which allows to lift the assembly constituted by the prop and the cover, which rotates about  15 . 
     In order to obtain the book-rest configuration of FIG. 21, the prop I, which is first released from the bottom G and then from the snap-acting tooth  19  of the cover H, is rotated about the hinge  16  until its front edge engages the notches  17  formed in the perimetric raised portion of the bottom G. 
     In this embodiment too, the cover H has a fixed raised portion  14  whereby the document that it supports in an inclined position can be retained at the base. 
     At the raised portion  14 , on the lower side of the cover H, there is a tab  21  (FIGS. 17 and 18) which descends centrally and enters a corresponding notch (also designated by the reference numeral  21  in FIG. 14) which is provided in the perimetric raised portion of the bottom G. 
     By ensuring the constant centering of the cover H on the bottom G, this refinement prevents axial stresses on the hinge  15 , which can therefore be provided by means of simple cylindrical raised portions protruding from the sides of the cover or bottom and inserted by snap action in corresponding seats formed in the sides of the other part. 
     The combined folder and book-rest of FIGS. 22-27 is constituted by four parts (L-M-N-O), which can be made of plastics or other suitable material and are connected by hinges  22 ,  23  and  24 , all of which are related to the cover M. The bottom L, the bracket N and the prop  0  are rotatably connected to the sides of the cover M at  22 ,  23 , and  24  respectively. 
     As already described for the preceding embodiment, a tab  28  (FIGS. 22 and 24) descends centrally from a rear region of the cover M and, by entering the corresponding notch formed in a raised hinge portion of the bottom L, prevents axial stresses on the hinge  22 . Such hinge can accordingly be provided by means of two simple cylindrical raised portions protruding on the two sides of the bottom L and meant to be engaged with a snap action in the appropriately provided holes formed in the sides of the cover M together with the holes for the similar hinging of the bracket N at hinge  23  and of the prop O at hinge  24 , both of which have the necessary cylindrical raised portions. 
     However, all or some of the three hinges might also be provided by means of applied pivots, rivets or other means. 
     Regardless of its hinging method, the bracket N is meant to rotate through 90° about hinge  23  in order to move from the recessed seat of the cover M to the configuration for its use, shown in FIG. 27, where it is supported, at suitable openings of the cover, by tabs with which it is provided and which are arranged at right angles and rest against the lower surface of said cover. 
     The tabs, when the assembly is in the collapsed condition, lie at right angles proximate to the bottom L, from which one or more stop teeth  29 ) protrude which prevent the tabs from rotating about hinge  23  but not from following the cover as it rotates about hinge  22 . 
     The hole  25 , which is provided in the recessed seat of the cover M that accommodates the bracket N, allows to extract the bracket by acting with one finger from the rear of the raised cover. 
     The prop O, which supports the cover M in the book-rest configuration by engaging its end in the notches  27  of two lateral ribs of the bottom L, in the folder configuration rests flat on the ribs and on the raised portion that connects them, along the front side of the bottom L, so as to be able to engage therewith the snap-acting tooth  26  of the cover M which rests on the prop O. 
     It should be noted that in this embodiment as in the preceding one, the sides of the cover M, which are conveniently rounded in the rear end, discharge the weight of the book directly onto the table that supports the book-rest and accordingly do not bear onto the means for hinging the cover M to the bottom  2 . 
     It is evident that without altering the general characteristics that have been illustrated and described, the practical embodiment of the invention might entail additional modifications or variations chosen as a function of the materials used or of the production methods. Accordingly, although solutions which are particularly unexpensive because they can be mass-manufactured industrially have been shown by way of non-limitative examples, the scope of the present invention also includes any industrial or handicraft embodiments based on the use of fabrics or hides which, reinforced by rigid or flexible inserts where necessary, would directly provide the articulations required to open and close the folder and to orientate and fold the prop. 
     The disclosures in Italian Patent Application No. FO97A000027 from which this application claims priority are incorporated herein by reference.