Abstract:
A guitar stand having supports for holding a plurality of guitars in an upright position. The stand also has a lid secured to the top of the stand which will pivot from an open to a closed position. The stand can also have a second lid above the first lid secured to the top of the stand which will pivot from an open to a closed position.

Description:
Applicant claims priority for Provisional application Ser. No. 61/209,967, filed Mar. 13, 2009. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates, in general, to stands, and, in particular, to a multifunction stand for guitars 
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART 
     In the prior art various types of devices have been proposed. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,462,260 to Fedinkov discloses a guitar case with a folding top that can be moved into two positions. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,381,717 to Brokaw discloses a table with a foam cushion for receiving a guitar. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 2,058,184 to Sherrard discloses a guitar stand with supports for holding a plurality of guitars. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention is directed to a guitar stand having supports for holding a plurality of guitars and/or guitar cases in an upright position. The stand also has a lid secured to the top of the stand which will pivot from an open to a closed position. The stand can also have a second lid above the first lid secured to the top of the stand which will pivot from an open to a closed position. 
     It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved guitar stand which will hold guitars and/or guitar cases in a vertical position. 
     It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved guitar stand which has a surface for supporting a guitar in a horizontal position. 
     It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved guitar stand which has a pivoting work surface so a guitar can be worked on and in addition to the ability to support guitars and/or guitar cases. 
     These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be fully apparent from the following description, when taken in connection with the annexed drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the present invention showing it holding a guitar and a guitar case. 
         FIG. 3  is a back view of the present invention showing the hinge for holding the upper lid. 
         FIG. 4  is a front view of the present invention showing the hinge for holding the lower lid. 
         FIG. 5  is a side view of the present invention showing the upper lid opened and the lower lid closed. 
         FIG. 6  is a side view of the present invention showing the upper lid and the lower lid closed. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     The preferred embodiment herein described is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. It is chosen and described to best explain the invention so that others, skilled in the art to which the invention pertains, might utilize its teachings. 
     Referring now to the drawings in greater detail,  FIGS. 1 and 2  show a perspective view of the present invention  1 . The stand has a pair of side supports  2 . The side supports have a plurality of apertures  5  placed vertically along the length of the side supports which can be used as handles to move the stand if so desired. A plurality of stabilizer bars  6 ,  7 ,  10  and  11  are positioned between and secured to the two side supports  2  by any conventional means. The bars  6 ,  7 ,  10  and  11  support and stabilize the two sides as well as provide support for contained guitars  12  and/or cases  13  (see  FIG. 2 ). Bars  7 ,  10  and  11  are positioned appropriately and cushioned in order to safely and properly support the contours of the case or guitar. This will also help the guitar or case remain secure in the stand. 
     The stabilizer bar  7  has a plurality of apertures  8  therein. Pegs  9  are removably supported in the apertures  8 . The pegs can be moved to various apertures  8  to accommodate different widths of guitars or guitar cases (See  FIG. 2 ). The number of apertures  8  and pegs  9  are not critical and can be varied at the whim of the user. A removable accessory bin  17  is secured to the inside of at least one of the sides  2 , by any conventional means, to hold various guitar supplies (such as cleaning supplies, guitar strings, picks, etc, or to hold tools that can be used to repair and maintain the guitars). A pair of lids  3 ,  4  are pivotably secured to the upper portions of the sides  2 . 
       FIG. 3  shows the upper lid  3  secured to the lid support  14  (See also  FIG. 2 ) by a conventional piano hinge  15  and can be locked in an upright position by a conventional locking lid stay  18 . The stay will be secured to the underside of lid  3  and to the upright  2  as shown in dotted lines in  FIG. 1 . The lid support  14  extends between the two sides  2  and can be attached to the sides in any conventional manner. The hinge  15  is attached to the back of the lid  3  and to the back of the lid support  14 . Lid  3  can be moved from a first or closed position (shown in  FIG. 6 ) to a second or opened position (shown in  FIG. 5 ). 
       FIG. 4  shows the lower lid  4  secured to the lid support  14  by a conventional piano hinge  16  as seen from the front of the stand. The hinge  16  is attached to the underside of the lid  4  and to the front of the lid support  14 .  FIG. 5  shows the lids of the present invention from the side with a portion of the side support  2  removed for clarity. The lid  3  is shown in the up or opened and locked position and the lower lid  4  is shown in the down or closed position.  FIG. 6  shows the lids in the down position and, also shows the relative positions of the hinges  15 ,  16  with respect to the lids and the lid support  14 . The side support  2  has been removed from  FIG. 6  for clarity. The lower lid  4  can also be moved from a first or down position (shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6 ) to a second or up position (shown in  FIG. 4 ). A user could move the lids to their up positions to more easily get at the guitars or cases in the stand. 
     The upper lid  3  is preferably made from a hard material to protect any guitars or guitar cases which may be stored in the stand. The lower lid  4  is preferably made with a soft material or a soft cover for the top of the lid. This will allow a user to raise the upper lid  3  to the up position (see  FIG. 5 ) place a guitar on the soft lower lid  4  to work on the guitar. The soft surface of the lower lid will protect the guitar while it is being worked on. As an alternative, the stand can be made with only one lid either a hard lid with a soft surface added such as lid  3  or a soft lid such as lid  4 . 
     Although the Multifunction Guitar Stand and the method of using the same according to the present invention has been described in the foregoing specification with considerable details, it is to be understood that modifications may be made to the invention which do not exceed the scope of the appended claims and modified forms of the present invention done by others skilled in the art to which the invention pertains will be considered infringements of this invention when those modified forms fall within the claimed scope of this invention.