Abstract:
A picture frame adapted to hold pictures in a stored position and with minimal effort and time convert the pictures in the stored position to a presentation position for viewing.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    The invention relates to picture frames, specifically frames that are adapted to store photos internally while displaying other photos where the photos in the stored position can be displayed with little time or effort.  
         BACKGROUND  
         [0002]    The invention relates to picture display frames namely for photographs and more particularly a method of displaying and storing pictures in a single piece unit. Personal photographs are often desired to be displayed in homes and establishments. Normally people have more photographs in their possession than room for displaying them or only a few are desired to be displayed at a given time. Thus, it is necessary to store photographs in a manner that people can easily retrieve them and display them with ease.  
           [0003]    For example, oftentimes people have seasonal pictures corresponding to four sets of pictures of spring summer, fall and winter. The set of pictures that is displayed must be changed four times a year to correspond to the present season. Oftentimes people find perfect locations in a house for particular pictures. Then at the end of the season the pictures must be removed from the conventional frame, transported to a storage location, a new seasonal picture is retrieved, the new picture is loaded into the conventional frame and finally the conventional frame is mounted back onto the wall. The replace picture now must be stored at a presumably distant location. Furthermore there is no indexing system to know the previous location of the picture that is now in storage.  
           [0004]    The invention is an improved picture frame that stores pictures not in use and is easy to manufacture and simple to use. The picture frame in the preferred form, comprises two leafs and a base. On each side of the leaf is photo holding portion that comprises a transparent sheet and an opening. Each side of a leaf has a photo holding portion where there is a total of four photo holding portions. The invention is designed to display one photo at a time. The other three photos are concealed within the frame itself.  
           [0005]    The present invention removes the need of removing a picture from a conventional frame and storing it at a somewhat distant location. But rather, employing the present invention a person can change the presently displayed picture and simultaneously store the previously displayed picture all within the same unit.  
           [0006]    Therefore it is an object of the invention to provide a picture frame that discretely stores pictures while displaying only one and where the frame is relatively thin and remains attractive and aesthetically pleasing  
           [0007]    It is further an object of the current invention to provide a picture frame that can conveniently change its currently displayed picture. Where the picture to be displayed is stored within the frame and the currently displayed picture is stored within the display.  
           [0008]    It is still further an object of the present invention to provide a design that is inexpensive to manufacture and aesthetically pleasing to the eye.  
           [0009]    Other advantages to the present invention will become apparent in the detailed description below.  
         BACKGROUND ART  
         [0010]    A search of the patent literature has a number of patents directed toward these problems, these being the following:  
           [0011]    The prior designs of picture frames are geared to display multiple pictures at a time. Further, the prior art discloses multiple discrete piece designs to manufacture the picture frames.  
           [0012]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,887,373 Byers shows a card display frame that is assembled from multiple pieces. There is no teaching of using the display to store pictures. Further the frame in Byers is not adapted to be mounted on a wall with an attachment system to hold the frame assemblies together.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0013]    The invention is a frame that is adapted to house more than one picture where the frame has a first leaf member that has a first lateral region in a second lateral region. The first leaf has a connection region that is located in the first lateral region. The first leaf also has a first and second side positioned on opposite sides of one another on the first leaf and each side is adapted to mount a picture.  
           [0014]    The frame further has a second leaf that has a first lateral region in a second lateral region. The second leaf is pivotally connected at a connection region located in the first lateral region to the first leaf about a transverse axis. The second leaf further has a third and fourth sides that are located on opposite sides of the second leaf and are each adapted to mount pictures thereon. The frame has a first position where the first and third sides of the first and second leafs are positioned in a face to face engagement and the second lateral regions of the first and second leafs are positioned in proximity to one another. The second or fourth pictures on either the second or fourth sides are adapted to be presented. The first and third pictures are in a stored position. The frame further having a second position where the second and fourth sides of the first and second leafs are positioned in a face to face engagement and the second lateral members of the first and second leafs are positioned in proximity to one another and the first or third pictures are adapted to be presented and the second and fourth pictures are in a stored position.  
         BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 1 shows an oblique view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention;  
           [0016]    [0016]FIG. 2 is a front view of the construction process of the present invention;  
           [0017]    [0017]FIG. 3 is a front view of the construction process of the present invention;  
           [0018]    [0018]FIG. 4 is plan view of one possible configuration of the present invention;  
           [0019]    [0019]FIG. 5 is plan view of another possible configuration of the present invention;  
           [0020]    [0020]FIG. 6 is plan view of the reconfiguration process of the present invention;  
           [0021]    [0021]FIG. 7 is plan view of yet another possible configuration of the present invention;  
           [0022]    [0022]FIG. 8 is plan view of the final possible configuration of the present invention;  
           [0023]    [0023]FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention;  
           [0024]    [0024]FIG. 10 is another embodiment of the present invention;  
           [0025]    [0025]FIG. 11 is an isometric view of the second embodiment of the frame;  
           [0026]    [0026]FIG. 12 is an isometric view of the frame where the attachment mechanism comprising a flexible and elastic member extends around the laterally outward and corner portions of the second leaf;  
           [0027]    [0027]FIG. 13 is a front view of the frame illustrating how the flexible member is used to hang the frame;  
           [0028]    [0028]FIG. 14 is a rearview of the frame;  
           [0029]    [0029]FIG. 15 is isometric view of a modification of the second embodiment where transverse members are employed extending laterally and located on the transverse ends of the first leaf;  
           [0030]    [0030]FIG. 16 is a front view illustrating how the transverse member is used to hang the apparatus;  
           [0031]    [0031]FIG. 17 is an isometric view of a third variation that the second embodiment where a continuous loop a flexible and elastic material comprises the connector mechanism;  
           [0032]    [0032]FIG. 18 is a front view of the frame illustrating how the elastic and flexible member extends around the corners to keep the two leaf members in a face to face engagement;  
           [0033]    [0033]FIG. 19 is an isometric view of a fourth embodiment of the present invention;  
           [0034]    [0034]FIG. 20 is a top view of a first configuration where side six is exposed and the remaining sides are in the stored position;  
           [0035]    [0035]FIG. 21 is a top view of a second possible configuration where the third side is exposed and the remaining sides are in a stored configuration. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0036]    Throughout this description reference is made to top and bottom, front and rear. The device of the present invention can, and will in practice, be in numerous positions and orientations. These orientation terms, such as top and bottom, are obviously used for aiding the description and are not meant to limit the invention to any specific orientation.  
         [0037]    To aid the description, an axis system is defined whereas shown in FIG. 1, the arrow indicated at  12  indicates a lateral axis and points in an outward direction. Each leaf  22  and  24  has its own lateral axis that extends substantially in the plane of the material comprising each leaf. The axis indicated at  14  indicates a transverse direction which extends along the base  26  and the direction outward or transversely outward is referred to as a location up or down with respects to the transverse center of the frame  20  in the transverse direction.  
         [0038]    The term “picture” is herein defined as any visual item and that a user would wish to display and includes but is not limited to photographs, drawings, or any other viewable item.  
         [0039]    As seen in FIG. 1, the frame  20  comprises a first leaf  22 , a second leaf  24 , a core  26 , an attachment system  28 , and a hanging system  30 . Each leaf comprises a first side and a second side. The core  26  runs perpendicular in a transverse axis and the leafs  22  and  24  extend outwardly in a radial axis. Leaf  22  comprises a first side  32  and a second side  34 . Leaf  24  comprises a third side  36  and a fourth side  38 .  
         [0040]    Each side comprises a top portion  40 , an inner portion  42 , an outer portion  44 , a lower portion  46 , a perimeter edge  47 , a central portion  48  and a photo holding portion  49 . Located in the central portion is a pocket portion  50  which comprises a rim  52 , a transparent sheet  54  and an open slit portion  56 . The rim  52  is attached to the leaf  22  and the transparent sheet  54  is attached to the inner portion of the rim. The open slit portion  56  allows communication to the tight chamber defined by the inner surface of the transparent sheet  54  and the surface of the first leaf  22 . A picture can pass through the open slit portion and be viewable through the transparent sheet  54 .  
         [0041]    The attachment system  28  can be ribbons  58  attached to the outer portion  44  of the leafs  22  and  24 . The base of the ribbons  58  are positioned on the outer portion  44  in about the same vertical distance so the ribbon  58   a  can be tied to ribbon  58   b , thereby fastening first leaf  22  to second leaf  24 . Of course in the broader scope, other attachment system could be employed for instance magnets can be embedded in the outer portion  44  of the leafs  22  and  24 . Alternatively, a discrete Velcro trim could be placed on the perimeter edge  47  of the first leaf  22  and an opposing Velcro trim could be placed on the perimeter edge  47  of the second leaf  24 . When the perimeter edges  47  of the leafs  22  and  24  are pressed together the velcro portions will adhere to each other hold the leafs  22  and  24  together.  
         [0042]    The hanging system  30  comprises ribbons  60 . The ribbons comprise a base portion  62  and an end portion  64 . End portion  64   a  is tied to end portion  64   b  in a manner to leave sufficient slack in the ribbons  60   a  and  60   b  so the frame  20  can be hung from a wall. The base portion  62   b  is fixedly positioned near the inner portion of the leaf  24 . The base portion  62   a  is fixedly positioned near the end portion  44 . When the leafs  22  and  24  are fastened together the base portions  62   a  and  62   b  are separated by a distance so the frame  20  can be leveled more easily.  
         [0043]    In the preferred embodiment the leafs  22  and  24 , the core  26  and the rims  52  are tightly covered with a fabric. As seen in FIG. 2, the construction of the core  26  and the leafs  22  and  24  can be accomplished by taking a flat piece of material  66  and running two slits  68  and  70  parallel to the transverse axis at points indicated at  70  and  74 . The slits only partially cut the material  66 . The vertical slits  68  and  70  act as hinge points so the leafs  22  and  24  can rotate with respects to the core  26 . The material  66  can be cardboard, plastic or other material that is semi pliable. An alternative to slits, is to create a vertical indentation at points  72  and  74 . This too has the effect of reducing the mass moment of inertia about the transverse axis which results in a bending action at the slits  68  and  70  when a moment about the transverse axis is applied.  
         [0044]    Next a fabric or coating is applied around the material  66 . The fabric can be glued on to the material  66 . Alternatively, the material can be painted or dipped in a coloring agent substance.  
         [0045]    As seen in FIG. 3, a rectangular frame  76  is cut to the shape shown where the center is removed. The rectangular frame  76  has a front side  78 , a backside  80  and a top portion  82 , side portions  84  and  86 , and bottom portion  88 . The rectangular frame  76  is covered in a similar manner as the material  66  and a transparent sheet  54  is attached to the backside  80 . Now the rectangular frame  76  is attached to the first side  32  of leaf  22  in a manner so the side and bottom portion  88  and side portions  84  and  86  are fixed to the first side  32  of leaf  22 . The top portion  82  is not attached thereby allowing access to the chamber between the transparent sheet  54  and the surface of the first side  32  of leaf  22  in order to transport a picture therein. This process is repeated for the other three sides of the frame  20 .  
         [0046]    The attachment of the ribbons  58  and  60  can be integrated into the construction process before the application of the fabric to the material  66 .  
         [0047]    The operation of the frame  20  is illustrated in FIGS.  4 - 8  which shows a plan view of the frame  20  as it would be positioned hanging from a wall  90 . As seen in FIG. 4, the frame  20  is positioned in a manner such that leaf  24  is positioned near the wall herein referred to as the near position and leaf  22  is located further from the wall herein referred to as the far position. The first side  32  of first leaf  22  is visible to an observer  92 ; this is referred to as the visible position. So, presently the picture on the first side  32  of the first leaf  22  is in the visible position and the second side  34  of the first leaf  22 , the fourth side  38  of the second leaf  24 , and the third side  36  of the second leaf  24  are all in the stored positions.  
         [0048]    It may be necessary to change the presently displayed picture. Perhaps the owner of the frame wishes to show a different picture for each of the four seasons. If the picture desired to be shown is located on the first side of the second leaf. To place this picture in the visible position the owner will rotate the frame 180 degrees about the transverse axis to the position shown in FIG. 5. Now the first side  36  of the second leaf  24  is in the visible position and the other three sides  32 ,  34  and  38  are in the stored position.  
         [0049]    If the picture desired to be displayed is on either the second side  34  or the fourth side  38 , the owner will unfasten the attachment system  28  and rotate the leafs  22  and  24  about points  72  and  74  180 degrees with respects to the core  26  as shown in FIG. 6. The frame  20  is now in a position shown in FIG. 7 which looks similar to FIG. 4 except the fourth side  38  of the second leaf  24  is now in the visible position and the other three sides  32 ,  34  and  36  are in the stored position.  
         [0050]    A further configuration of the frame  20  is shown in FIG. 8. This configuration can be obtained from the configuration in FIG. 7 by rotating the frame  20  180 degrees about the vertical axis. Now side  34  of the first leaf  22  is in the visible position.  
         [0051]    Note that the observed thickness of the frame  20  in FIGS.  4 - 8  is for illustrative purposes only. The thickness of the frame  20  is relatively thin and is determined by the thickness of the material  66  and the thickness of the rectangular frames  76 . The thinness of the frame  20  provides a discrete method to store pictures near the vicinity where they are to be eventually displayed.  
         [0052]    [0052]FIG. 9 shows the frame  20  hanging on a wall. The ribbons  60  serve as a hanging system  30  and are decorative. Likewise the ribbons  58  are decorative and further serve as an attachment system to hold leafs  22  and  24  together.  
         [0053]    [0053]FIG. 10 shows another embodiment of the present invention where the attachment system  28  comprises two sets of ribbons  94  and  96 . By placing the sets of ribbons  94  and  96  closer to the corners the a more uniform tension can be applied to the leafs  22  and  24  when each set of ribbons  94  and  96  are bound together; where ribbon  94   a  tied to ribbon  94   b  and the ribbon  96   a  is tied to ribbon  96   b . Additionally ribbon bows  98  and  100  can be attached to the core  26  to give the frame  20  a symmetrical look where ribbon bow  98  will substantially lie in the horizontal plane with the base of ribbons  94 .  
         [0054]    As shown in FIG. 11, there is another embodiment of the present invention where the frame  120  comprises a first leaf  122  a second leaf  124  and attachment system  128 . The first leaf  122  comprises a first side  132  and a second side  134  and the second leaf  124  comprises a third side  136  and a fourth side  138 . The first leaf  122  further has a first corner region  140  and a second corner region  142 . Likewise, the second leaf  124  has a first corner region  146  and a second corner region  148 . Consistent with the previous embodiments, each side is adapted to mount a picture thereon. FIGS.  11 - 18  are schematic figures to primarily illustrate the attachment system  128 .  
         [0055]    The attachment system  128  comprises a piece of flexible material  150  that has a first end portion  152  that is connected to the second side  134  and the flexible material further has a second end portion  154  also connected to the second side  134 . The flexible material  150  further has regions that are defined as follows. A first region is indicated at  156  and is defined as the length of material  150  between the connection portion  152  and the passageway  158 . A central region is indicated at  160  and is defined as the portion of flexible material  150  between the opening  158  and the opening  162 . Finally, a second region indicated at  164  is defined as the length of material between the first opening  162  and the connection region  154 .  
         [0056]    As shown in FIG. 12, the frame  120  is in a closed position where the first region  156  extends around the first corner portion  146  of the second leaf  124  and the second region  164  extends around the corner portion of the fourth side  138  and the second corner region  148  to fasten the first leaf  122  to the second leaf  124 .  
         [0057]    As shown in FIG. 13, the frame  120  can now be hung in a horizontal position where the central region  160  provides a mounting region in the center portion  161  which is adapted to extend around a stationary mounting structure such as a nail or a tack. If the user desires to display the image on the second side  134 , she merely turns the frame  120  one hundred eighty degrees about a transverse axis to the position as indicated in FIG. 14. Further, if the user desires to display other side  132  or  136 , she merely removes the first and second regions  156  and  164  of the flexible material  150  and rotates the second leaf  124  one hundred eighty degrees about the fold region  126  so the second and fourth sides  134  and  138  are adjacent to one another in a face to face engagement. The user then extends the first and second regions  156  and  164  around the first and second corners  146  and  148  respectively.  
         [0058]    [0058]FIGS. 15 and 16 show a modification to the embodiment shown in FIGS.  11 - 14  where a first and second lateral member  170  and  172  is employed. The first attachment region  152  is replaced with an opening  152   a  and the flexible member extends therethrough to a connection portion  174 . The first lateral member is defined as the portion of flexible material  150  between connection region  174  and opening  152   a . Likewise, the flexible member  150  extends to the opening  154   a  to the front face portion  132  and extends to the connection region  176  and the second lateral portion  172  is defined as the portion of flexible material  150  therein between. This embodiment is advantageous because the frame member  120  as shown in FIG. 16, can be hung in a vertical alignment position where the first lateral region  170  provide support on a support (e.g. a nail).  
         [0059]    FIGS.  17 - 18  show a final embodiment where the flexible member  150   a  is a continuous loop. In this embodiment the first leaf  122   a  further comprises openings  180  and  182 . A base central region  184  is defined as a portion of the flexible material  150   a  between the openings  180  and  182 . Third and fourth regions  186  and  188  are defined as the portions of the flexible member  150   a  between openings  180  and  174   a  and further  182  and  176   a . The core  126   a  extends longitudinally a distance less than that of the longitudinal length of the second leaf  124  to allow the third and fourth sections  186  and  188  to extend around the first and second interior corner portions  190  and  192 . The second leaf  124  further has a third and fourth interior corner portions  194  and  196  respectively.  
         [0060]    Therefore, as shown in FIGS.  17 - 18 , when the faces  132  and  136  are adjacent to one another the regions  156 ,  164 ,  186  and  188  extend around all of the corner portions of the first and second leaf  122   a  and  124  in a manner as shown in FIG. 18. Thereafter, the frame  120   a  can be hung by either sections  160 ,  170 , or  172  and either faces  138  or  134  can be displayed. Alternatively, consistent with the foregoing, the sections  156 ,  164 ,  186 , and  188  are removed from the respective corners of the base portion of the second leaf  124  and the leaf  124  is rotated one hundred eighty degrees about the core  126   a  with respects to the first leaf  122 . Thereafter, the sections  156 ,  164 ,  186 , and  188  extend around the corners  146 ,  148 ,  194 , and  196  of the face  136  to hold the leafs when  122   a  and  124  are adjacent to one another. Thereafter, faces  132  and  136  are in the open position or display position and faces  134  and  138  are in the stored position. In this configuration, the base central region  184  can be used to hang the frame  120   a.    
         [0061]    It should be noted that the frame  120  does not have to be mounted on a wall, but rather can further be supported by its transverse outward edges on the first and second leafs  122  and  124 . Alternatively, the frame  120  can rest upon the laterally outward edges of the leaf members  122  and  124 .  
         [0062]    As shown in FIGS.  19 - 21 , a third embodiment of the present invention is disclosed. The frame  220  comprises a first leaf  222 , a second leaf  224  and a third leaf  226 . The first leaf  222  comprises a first side  228  and a second side  230 . The second leaf  224  comprises a third side  232  and a fourth side  234 . Finally, the third leaf  226  comprises a fifth side  236  and a six side  238 . There will now be a discussion of how the embodiment to  20  can be arranged in various configurations to store up to five pictures and display a single picture.  
         [0063]    As shown in FIG. 20, the first leaf  222  has the first side  228  in a displayed position whereas the photos on the leafs  224  and  226  are all in a stored position. Now as shown in FIG. 21, the first leaf  222  has the photos contained thereon in a stored position and the third side  232  is in a displayed position. Finally, the fifth and six sides  236  and  238  of the third leaf  226  are in the stored position. With the foregoing in mind, it can be appreciated that any one of the sides of the leafs can be displayed while the remaining six are in stored positions. In the broader scope of the present invention a plurality of leafs can be employed that are consecutively connected at lateral regions and folded about substantially collinear axes to store photos therein.  
         [0064]    Of course, a connection system and a hanging system can be employed with the frame  220  to keep the leaf sections adjacent to one another. The foregoing examples are illustrative where the broader scope of the invention is a frame that has the ability to store photos therein and easily change the displayed photo with little time or effort.  
         [0065]    While the invention is susceptible of various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will herein be described in detail. It should be understood, however, that it is not intended to limit the invention to the particular forms disclosed, but, on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as expressed in the appended claims.