PATENT ABSTRACT
A device to hold an open book at an open page is disclosed in which the page is clamped between a lip ( 1, 21 ) and a resilient book cover support ( 3, 23 ). Two embodiments of the device ( 10, 20 ) are disclosed, the former being fabricated as a single piece, the latter being able to be folded for compact packaging. In either case pages of the open book can be turned at will.

PATENT DESCRIPTION
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The present invention relates to book holders and, in particular, to an opened book holding device which permits a book to be held open at a selected pair of adjacent pages. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    Reading a book usually requires the use of at least one of the hands of the reader. Generally both hands are required. This requirement arises because of the tendency of some books to self close either due to the resilience of the spine of the book, or for some external reason such as a breeze turning a page. Often the reader&#39;s hands are required simply because there are no other means to support the book at a convenient reading angle and reading distance. 
         [0003]    Manually holding a book open for an extended period can be tiring, particularly for the elderly and infirm. Holding a book open is also inconvenient, for example, where a student requires their hands to make notes. Holding a book open can also cause discomfort, for example, on a cold winter&#39;s night. 
         [0004]    In the past various ways and means have been devised to support books at a convenient angle. The simplest of these is a lectern or other inclined surface. Some of these devices go further and hold the pages of the book open as well. Yet other known devices also extend to turning pages of a book. 
         [0005]    However, many of these devices are complicated to both manufacture and to use. The known devices can be arduous to use, especially where turning a page is involved. Other devices suffer from various disadvantages. 
         [0006]    For example, clear plastic cook book covers are known to hold cooking or recipe books open at the page displaying a recipe, and also inclined at a convenient reading angle. However, such devices often cause distracting reflections and are very inconvenient for page turning. 
       OBJECT OF THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    It is an object of the present invention is to provide an opened book holding device to permit an open book to be held open at a selected pair of adjacent pages with the book being held at a convenient angle and distance from the reader. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0008]    According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided an opened book holding device to permit an opened book to be held open at a selected pair of adjacent pages, said device including: 
         [0009]    a base; 
         [0010]    a lip extending upwardly from said base and dimensioned to abut with a lower edge of said book; 
         [0011]    at least one cover support mounted on said base and dimensioned to support a corresponding outer cover of said book; and 
         [0012]    biasing means to resiliently bias the or each said cover support towards said lip; 
         [0013]    wherein said lip and said cover support(s) are dimensioned to resiliently clamp said opened book therebetween. 
         [0014]    In preferred embodiments, the device includes a pair of said cover supports each of which is independently resiliently biased. More preferably, the cover support(s) are adjustably mounted on said base to alter the degree of inclination thereof relative to said base. 
         [0015]    Preferably, the cover support(s) are selectively inclinable relative to said base into any one of a plurality of pre-selected positions, and the cover support(s) are hingedly mounted to said base. 
         [0016]    In preferred embodiments, said cover support(s) are formed as a cantilever which constitutes said biasing means. 
         [0017]    According to another aspect of the invention there is provided a method of holding open a selected pair of adjacent pages of a book having a front cover, a back cover, and a plurality of pages, said method including the steps of: 
         [0000]    (i) opening said book at said selected pair of adjacent pages;
 
(ii) placing said front cover and said back cover on a cover support means; and
 
(iii) resiliently urging said cover support means towards a lip to abut said book with said lip to thereby clamp said book between said lip and said cover support means.
 
         [0018]    In preferred embodiments, the method includes the step of adjustably mounting said cover supports to a base such that said cover supports inclination angle can be altered. 
         [0019]    It can therefore be seen that there is provided an opened book holding device that permits an open book to be held open at a selected pair of adjacent pages while the book is held at a convenient angle and distance from the reader. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
         [0020]    Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the drawings in which: 
           [0021]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an opened book holding device according to a first preferred embodiment; 
           [0022]      FIG. 2  is a view similar to  FIG. 1  but showing a book held in the device; 
           [0023]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view from above of an opened book holding device according to another preferred embodiment; 
           [0024]      FIG. 4  is a rear perspective view of the embodiment of  FIG. 3 ; 
           [0025]      FIG. 5  is an exploded rear perspective view of the embodiment of  FIG. 3 ; 
           [0026]      FIG. 6  is a side elevation of the device of  FIG. 5  in an inclined configuration; 
           [0027]      FIG. 7  is a side elevation of the device of  FIG. 5  in another inclined configuration; and 
           [0028]      FIG. 8  is a rear elevation about a centre line of the device of  FIGS. 5 to 7 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0029]    As seen in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the device  10  of the first preferred embodiment is formed from a base  7 , a rear wall  8  and front wall  2 . The front wall  2  is provided with a pair of lips  1  which each extends approximately half way across the width of the device  10  and is preferably divided in two by a bight  6 . The blight  6  extends through the lip  1  and part way through the front wall  2 . 
         [0030]    Extending from the rear wall  8  in cantilever fashion are two cover supports  3  which are separated by a gap  5  which terminates in a bight  9  in the rear wall  8 . 
         [0031]    The length of the cover supports  3  is preferably selected so as to enable the free ends of the cover supports  3  to engage the lips  1  as illustrated in  FIG. 1 . The natural resilience of the plastics material ensures that the cover supports  3  are urged upwardly in the direction of arrows  4  as seen in  FIG. 1 . 
         [0032]    In use, as illustrated in  FIG. 2 , the spine  12  of a book  13  is aligned with, and protrudes into, the gap  5 . The cover supports  3  are depressed by engaging them with the front and rear covers (obscured in  FIG. 2 ) of the book  13 . The book  13  is held open at the two adjacent pages which the reader wishes to read and the lower edge of each of these pages is located under the lip  1  so as not to in any way obscure the text printed on the pages. 
         [0033]    In the configuration illustrated in  FIG. 2  the natural resilience of the cover support  3  means that the book  13  is effectively clamped between the cover supports  3  and lips  1 . The front wall  2  prevents the book from moving further under the lips  1  than the intended overlap. 
         [0034]    If the reader wishes to turn the page, two possible mechanisms are able to be used. In the first, the book  13  is pushed away from the reader, lifted clear of lip  1 , the page turned, and the book replaced by reversing the sequence. Alternatively, one side (eg the right side) of the book  13  can be depressed and the corresponding (right) page turned by being slid out from underneath the corresponding (right) lip  1 . The right page is then turned over so as to lie above the other (left) side of the book which is in turn depressed so as to permit the turned page to be located under the corresponding (left) lip  1 . 
         [0035]    It will be appreciated by those skilled in the mechanical arts that the height of the book is not restricted by the length of the cover supports  3 . Also, that the width of the pages is not restricted by the width of the lips  1 . 
         [0036]    Furthermore, it is not necessary for the free ends of the cover supports  3  to engage with the lips  1 , it is only necessary for the cover supports  3  to be of a length sufficient to clamp the book  13  between the cover supports  3  and the lips  1 . If the cover supports  3  are made too short, the book  13  will develop a tendency to be rotated about the upper edges of the lips  1  into a more upright position than is desired. 
         [0037]    In an alternative arrangement to that illustrated in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , only the covers of the book  13  are clamped between the lips  1  and cover supports  3  (not illustrated) so that all the pages may be turned freely if desired. 
         [0038]    An advantage of having two cover supports  3  is that a thick book  13  can be clamped with vastly different numbers of pages clamped between each pair of lips  1  and the corresponding cover support  3 . The gap  5  accommodates the spine  12  of the book  13 . 
         [0039]    Turning now to  FIGS. 3 to 8 , there is shown another preferred embodiment of a book holding device  20 . A rear wall  28 , front wall  22  and lips  21  are substantially as before. However, in this embodiment these members are rotatably mounted from a base  27  and are able to be supported in a number of positions by means of a C-shaped wire brace  24 . 
         [0040]    As best shown in  FIG. 8 , the base  27  preferably includes four rubber feet  29  extending from an underside of the base  27  which ensure good frictional engagement between the base  27  and a supporting table, for example. The brace  24  is rotatably mounted adjacent the mid point of the rear wall  28  and is engagable with any one of a number of anchor points  30  formed in the base  27  to selectively incline the front and rear walls  23  and  28 . The cover supports  23  are cantilevered as before and are again preferably dimensioned so as to be engagable with the lips  21  as indicated in  FIG. 4 . 
         [0041]    The foregoing describes only two embodiments of the present invention and modifications, obvious to those skilled in the art, can be made thereto without departing from the scope of the present invention. For example, it is possible for the bight  6 , gap  5  and bight  9  of  FIG. 1  not to be utilized so that only a single lip and a single cover support are created. This is less advantageous, however. Furthermore, rather than rely on the natural resilience of the material from which the rear wall  8 ,  28  and cover supports  3 ,  23  are fabricated, the necessary resilience can be provided by a block of rubber or other elastomer wedged into the nip between the cover supports  3 ,  23  and real wall  8 ,  28 . 
         [0042]    Also the base  7 ,  27  or real wall  8 ,  28  can include clamps for attachment to table edges, chair arms (including wheel chairs), and the like. The base or real wall can also be mounted on an upstand extending from a floor thereby permitting use alongside a bed or lounge chair. 
         [0043]    Similarly, the base  27  can be dispensed with and the brace  24  used in the manner of a support for a photographic frame. In a further modification, the page engaging surfaces of the lip(s)  1  can be friction enhanced by, for example, knurling or adhering a frictional material thereon.