Abstract:
A portable jigsaw puzzle storage case and workstation is provided generally comprising an outer cover which encloses a sorting tray and a workstation therein. The workstation generally includes an assembly tray having an assembly board and a frame. The frame extends around at least part of the outer periphery of the assembly board, and is joined thereto by an integral hinge. Preferably, the assembly tray is formed of corrugated fiberboard. Further, a method of producing an assembly tray is provided. The method generally comprises the steps of providing an assembly board having a first half and a second half, cutting out an inner section of the first half to define an outer peripheral strip, scoring the assembly board at a boundary line where the first and second half meet, and attaching the outer peripheral strip to the second half to form a frame on the second half of the assembly board. The cutting step may further include the step of cutting the inner section to form a sorting tray.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates generally to storage cases for puzzles, and more particularly relates to portable cases also serving as puzzle workstations. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a puzzle caddy for facilitating assembly of the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle and for enabling the assembled or partially assembled puzzle to be stored and/or transported from place to place. One such exemplary device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,436,307. 
     While many puzzle caddies have enjoyed much commercial success, they are not without their drawbacks. For example, many puzzle caddies have complicated structures for protecting the puzzle. Such puzzle caddies require significant amounts of manual labor to construct, resulting in lower productivity and higher cost. Similarly, components selected for constructing these devices often increase costs even further, and may require the manual installation of that component. Accordingly, there exists a need for a sturdy yet easily formed puzzle caddy having a low cost of production. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In light of the above, it is a general aim of the present invention to provide an improved portable puzzle storage case that allows assembled and unassembled pieces to be stored or transported from place-to-place without disturbing the position of the pieces, and that is simple and cost effective to produce. 
     In that regard, it is a further object of the present invention to provide such a portable puzzle storage case that can be produced inexpensively and with minimal waste. 
     In accordance with these objects, the present invention provides a portable jigsaw puzzle storage board generally comprising an outer cover which encloses a sorting tray and a workstation therein. The workstation generally includes an assembly tray having an assembly board and a frame. The frame extends around at least part of the outer periphery of the assembly board, and is joined thereto by an integral hinge. 
     According towards more detailed aspects of the puzzle storage board, the assembly board has four sides, the frame extending around three of the four sides. Preferably, the hinge joins the assembly board and frame along the fourth, unframed, side of the assembly board. The frame includes a first strip connecting opposing second and third strips, the second and third strips being joined to the assembly board by integral hinges. A bottom surface of the frame is integrally joined to a top surface of the assembly board to form the integral hinge. Additionally, the workstation may further include a second assembly tray identical to the first assembly tray, each of the tray sized to hold a first standard size puzzle. The first and second assembly trays are positionable proximate each other along the unframed sides to form a combined assembly tray sized for a second standard size puzzle larger than the first standard size puzzle. Preferably, the assembly tray is formed of corrugated fiberboard. 
     In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, a method of producing an assembly tray is provided. The method generally comprises the steps of providing an assembly board having a first half and a second half, cutting out an inner section of the first half to define an outer peripheral strip, scoring the assembly board at a boundary line where the first and second half meet, and attaching the outer peripheral strip to the second half to form a frame on the second half of the assembly board. 
     According to more detailed aspects of this embodiment, the attaching step includes folding the outer peripheral strip about the boundary line and toward the second half, and also includes applying an adhesive to one of the outer peripheral strip and the second half. Preferably, the cutting step and scoring step are performed substantially simultaneously. The scoring step defines integral hinges linking the second half of the assembly board to the outer peripheral strip. The cutting step may further include the step of cutting the inner section to form a sorting tray. 
     Other objectives and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The accompanying drawings incorporated in and forming a part of the specification illustrate several aspects of the present invention, and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the invention. In the drawings: 
     FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective view of a portable jigsaw puzzle storage board constructed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 illustrates a perspective view of the storage board of FIG. 1 in a partially open position; 
     FIG. 3 illustrates the storage board at FIG. 1 in an open and active position; 
     FIG. 4 illustrates an exploded view of the storage board of FIG. 1 depicting the assembly of the storage board; 
     FIG. 5 illustrates a cross-sectional end view of the storage board of FIG. 1; and 
     FIGS. 6-8 illustrate the construction of an assembly tray of the storage board depicted in FIG.  1 . 
    
    
     While the invention will be described in connection with certain preferred embodiments, there is no intent to limit it to those embodiments. On the contrary, the intent is to cover all alternatives, modifications and equivalents as included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Referring now to the drawings, FIGS. 1-3 illustrate an embodiment of the portable jigsaw puzzle storage board  20  constructed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention. FIG. 1 depicts the puzzle storage board  20  in a stored or closed position while FIG. 2 represents the puzzle storage board  20  having the cover  30  opened. FIG. 3 illustrates the puzzle storage board  20  in an active position wherein puzzles may be assembled. The puzzle storage board  20  generally comprises a cover  30 , a workstation  40 , and at least one sorting tray  50 . In the illustrated embodiment, the sorting tray comprises a first sorting tray  51  and a second sorting tray  52 . 
     The cover  30  generally comprises a top wall  31  and a bottom wall  33  which are connected by a side wall  32 . A second side wall  34  connects the bottom wall  33  to a flap  35  which selectively engages the top wall  31  to close or open the puzzle storage board  20 . The flap  35  generally includes at least one fastener  36 , which in the preferred embodiment comprises a pair of Velcro® tabs  36 . The fastener  36  allows the flap  35  to be selectively connected to the top wall  31 . Preferably, a second fastener  37  is employed to mechanically link the bottom wall  33  to the top wall  31 . In the illustrated embodiment, the bottom wall  33  has two opposing Velcro® strips  37  attached thereto which selectively engage corresponding strips on the top wall  31 . The first and second fasteners allow the top and bottom walls  31 ,  33  of the cover  30  to supply a compressive force to the work station  40  and sorting tray  50  held therebetween. Preferably, the case  30 , workstation  40 , and sorting tray  50  are constructed of corrugated fiberboard which is sturdy, enough to transmit the compressive force, yet has sufficient ductility to prevent damage to puzzle pieces. The side walls are sized to be slighter smaller than the combined thickness of the stacked work station  40  and sorting tray  50 , including puzzle pieces, to assist inducing the above-noted compressive force. 
     As shown in FIG. 3, the workstation  40  generally comprises an assembly tray, and in the illustrated embodiment comprises a first assembly tray  41  and a second assembly tray  42 . Each of the first and second assembly trays  41  and  42  are generally identical, and their construction will be discussed in more detail herein with reference to FIGS. 5-7. Each tray  41 ,  42  includes an assembly board  43  having a frame  44  extending a portion, preferably around three sides, of the periphery of the assembly board  43 . The working surface given by the assembly board  43 , for each of the first and second assembly trays  41 ,  42 , is preferably sized at 19″×24½″, sized for a standard 500 piece puzzle. The trays  41 ,  42  are framed only on three sides such that the open side of one tray may be placed adjacent the open side of the other tray to form a large work station  40 . The working surface of the combined assembly boards is 24¼″×38″, sized for a large puzzle containing 1,000 pieces. 
     FIG. 4 depicts an exploded view of the storage board of FIG. 1 to reveal the assembly of the storage board, which will be described from bottom to top. The cover  30  is shown, partially cut away, and is opened to reveal the contents of the puzzle storage case  20 . The bottom wall  33  of the cover  30  is sized to correspond with the assembly trays  41 ,  42 , and in the preferred embodiment has one storage tray  42  permanently affixed thereto, preferably by applying an adhesive to a bottom surface of the assembly tray  42  or the top surface of the bottom wall  33 . Within the frame  44  the assembly board  43  will carry assembled or partially assembled pieces  10 . To hold these pieces  10  in place, a sheet of anti-skid material  62 , such as a foam based material, is sized to fit within the unframed or working surface of the assembly board  43 , i.e., within the frame  44 , to engage the puzzle pieces  10  and hold them in place. The sorting tray  50 , which preferably comprises two flat boards or assembly trays  51 ,  52  are preferably placed on top of the assembly  42  and the anti-skid sheet  62 , and are sized to be placed side by side and cover the same square area as the assembly tray  42 . The sorting trays  51 ,  52  typically will hold the unassembled pieces  10  of the puzzle. Next, the other assembly tray  41  is placed on top of the sorting trays  51 ,  52 , and more specifically directly on top of the unassembled puzzle pieces  10 . The assembly tray  41  will also typically included assembled puzzle pieces  10 , and thus another sheet of anti-skid material  61  is placed on the assembly board  43  within the frame  44  to hold the pieces  10  in place. Finally, in order to transport the entire puzzle storage case and workstation  20 , the top wall  31  will be folded over and placed on top of assembly tray  41  and its sheet of anti-skid material  61 . The flap  35  is then folded over to engage the top wall  31  and is held in place by fasteners  36 . As previously noted, the side walls  32 ,  34  are sized such that when the cover  30  is closed, a compressive force is induced on the contents of the container to assist in holding the puzzle pieces  10  in place. Additionally, the second set of fasteners  37  may be engaged to temporarily fasten the bottom wall  33  to the top wall  31 . It will be noted that even though the puzzle pieces  10  on the sorting trays  51 ,  52  are not in contact with any anti-skid material, the compressive force is sufficient to hold them in place without the need for such material. 
     Turning to FIG. 5, a cross-sectional end view of the puzzle storage board  20  is depicted. When in the closed position, the storage board  20  generally forms five layers. A first layer  71  comprises the bottom wall  33  of the cover  30 . The second layer  72  generally comprises a first assembly tray  41  which includes an assembly board  43  and frame  44 . The second layer  72  further includes a first sheet of anti-skid material, such as a foam-based material, which is sized to fit in the unframed area of the first assembly tray  41 . The first sheet  61  is generally thicker than the thickness of the frame  44 , although in a closed position the sheet  61  is compressed to hold the puzzle pieces in place and become generally flush with the top surface of the frame  44 . A third layer  73  generally comprises the at least one sorting tray  50 , and in the preferred embodiment comprises the first and second sorting trays  51 ,  52  which are sized to both fit side by side such that their combined width match the width of the cover  30  and the puzzle storage board  20 . A fourth layer  74  comprises the second assembly tray  42  and a second sheet of anti-skid material  62 , which is sized and constructed identically to the second layer. A final fifth layer generally comprises the top wall  31  of the cover  30 . When in the closed position, the puzzle storage board  20  securely holds puzzle pieces therein, by virtue of the top and bottom wall applying a compressing force to the second, third and fourth layers contained between the walls. The sheets of anti-skid material  61 ,  62  are slightly compressed to securely hold puzzle pieces within the assembly trays  41 ,  42 . The loose pieces on sorting trays  51 ,  52  are securely held in place by the clamping or compressive force between the sorting trays  51 ,  52  and the bottom surface of the second assembly tray  42 . It has been found that enough compressive force is present and evenly distributed throughout the entire puzzle storage board  20  that a sheet of anti-skid material is not necessary to securely hold puzzle pieces in place on the sorting trays  51 ,  52 . 
     In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, the frame  44  of the assembly trays  41 ,  42  is also comprised of corrugated fiberboard and is integrally linked to the assembly board  43 . The frame  44  is generally rather wide, preferably in the range of 1 to 2 inches. It has been found that such a wide frame provides added security to the puzzle within the assembly board area  43  of the assembly trays  41 ,  42 , 
     As will be described with reference to FIGS. 6-8, each of the assembly trays  41 ,  42  is constructed in a novel manner. A starting board  45  comprises a first half  145  and a second half  245  divided by a boundary line BL. A first cut shown by dotted lines  46  is made in the first half  145  of the starting board  45  to leave an outer peripheral portion  146 . A second cut  47  is made to the cut out portion  150  (FIG. 6) to form a sorting tray  50 . Finally, a third score  48  is made on one side, the bottom side as shown in the figures, of the starting board  45  at the boundary line BL where the second half meets the outer peripheral portion. The outer peripheral strip  146  is then folded about the boundary line BL towards the second half  245 , the top side of the starting board  45  above the scores  48  forming an integral hinge  49 . Hence a bottom surface of the frame  44  and the top surface of the assembly board  43  define a hinge  49  integral to both structures. The outer peripheral strip  146  is then affixed to the second half  245  to form the frame  44  of the assembly tray  41 ,  42 . Preferably, the outer peripheral strip  146  is adhesively attached, typically by glue, to the second half  245  of the starting board  45 , to form the assembly board  43  having a frame  44 , representing one of the assembly trays  41 ,  42 . 
     The assembly trays  41 ,  42 , and hence the sorting tray  50 , are thus formed in a single operation with a single sheet of material, and minimal waste is produced. The cuts and scores  46 ,  47  and  48  may be formed by any well known means, although it has been found preferable to die cut the starting board  45 . By die cutting, a one time operation is made to make all the necessary cuts and scores. Therefore, the cutting steps and scoring steps are performed substantially simultaneously. Alternately, the cuts  46 ,  47  can be made, and then the score  48  may be made to form the integral hinge  49 . Once the cutting and scoring steps are performed, the outer peripheral portion  146  may be attached to the second half  245  by applying an adhesive to one of the top surface of the outer peripheral portion  146  and the top surface of the outer edge of the second half  245 , and then the outer peripheral portion  146  is folded about the boundary line BL and score  48 . These steps of gluing and folding may also be performed substantially simultaneously. Importantly, by utilizing this method, there is no need to measure the outer peripheral portion  146  which forms the frame  144 , as it has been formed from a first half  145  that is substantially identical in size to a second half  245  as divided by the boundary line BL. Furthermore, the amount of glue needed, and the placement thereof, is easily determined and preprogrammed. 
     All of the references cited herein, including patents, patent applications, and publications, are hereby incorporated in their entireties by reference. 
     The foregoing description of various embodiments of the invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise embodiments disclosed. Numerous modifications or variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The embodiments discussed were chosen and described to provide the best illustration of the principles of the invention and its practical application to thereby enable one of ordinary skill in the art to utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. All such modifications and variations are within the scope of the invention as determined by the appended claims when interpreted in accordance with the breadth to which they are fairly, legally, and equitably entitled.