Patent Publication Number: US-7896176-B2

Title: Convertible back bar

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     Back bars are typically used behind a bar and often contain a mirror, a stemware rack, and a shelf for storing bottles. Back bars are often decorative and may complement or match the finish and design of a bar. Back bars can be used in residential and commercial settings. 
     SUMMARY 
     The present invention is defined by the claims, and nothing in this section should be taken as a limitation on those claims. 
     By way of introduction, the embodiments described below provide a convertible back bar. In one embodiment, a convertible back bar is provided comprising a mirror, a body configured to support the mirror, a shelf, and a billiard ball storage tray. The shelf and the billiard ball storage tray are interchangibly attachable to upper and lower ends of the body. Other embodiments are disclosed, and each of the embodiments can be used alone or together in combination. 
     The embodiments will now be described with reference to the attached drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is an exploded view of a convertible back bar of an embodiment. 
         FIG. 2  is an illustration of a convertible back bar of an embodiment in which a billiard ball storage tray is attached to an upper end of the body and a shelf is attached to a lower end of the body. 
         FIG. 3  is an illustration of a convertible back bar of an embodiment with billiard balls stored in the billiard ball storage tray. 
         FIG. 4  is an illustration of a convertible back bar of an embodiment in which a shelf is attached to an upper end of the body and a billiard ball storage tray is attached to a lower end of the body. 
         FIG. 5  is an illustration of a convertible back bar of an embodiment in which a decorative trim is used instead of a stemware rack. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENTLY PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Turning now to the drawings,  FIG. 1  is an exploded view of a convertible back bar  10  of an embodiment. As shown in  FIG. 1 , the convertible back bar  10  of this embodiment comprises a body  20  configured to support a mirror  30 , a shelf  40 , a billiard ball storage tray  50 , a stemware rack  60 , decorative trim  70 , and a plurality of attachments elements  80 . In this embodiment, the shelf  40  is preferably flat and laminated, making it suitable to hold bottles. However, the shelf  40  does not have to be entirely flat (or laminated). For example, the shelf  40  can contain a raised storage compartment or other structure. Also in this embodiment, the billiard ball storage tray comprises an upper surface  52  with at least one recess  55  sized to hold at least one billiard ball. In this embodiment, the at least one recess  55  takes the form of a groove that is sized to hold a plurality of billiard balls. However, in other embodiments, the at least one recess  55  can take other forms, such as a dimple or depression in an otherwise generally flat surface. Still in other embodiments, the billiard ball storage tray  50  can comprise raised portion(s) that are used to hold billiard ball(s). In this embodiment, the lower surface of the billiard ball storage tray  50  comprises at least one billiard accessory holder (not shown in  FIG. 1 ). Further, the stemware rack  60  comprises a plurality of protruding components  65  shaped to hold the bases of stemware. 
     In this embodiment, the shelf  40  and the billiard ball storage tray  50  are interchangibly attachable to upper and lower ends  22 ,  24  of the body  20 . By being interchangible, the convertible back bar  10  easily converts between a configuration having the shelf  40  at the lower end  24  and a configuration having the billiard ball storage tray  50  at the lower end  24 . Further, in this embodiment, the front surfaces  49 ,  59  of the shelf  40  and the billiard ball storage tray  50  that are exposed when the shelf  40  and the billiard ball storage tray  50  are attached to the upper end  22  of the body  20  look substantially similar to one another. (However, the top surfaces  42 ,  52  of the shelf  40  and the billiard ball storage tray  50  do not necessarily look similar, such as in this embodiment where the shelf  40  is generally flat and the billiard ball storage tray  50  comprises at least one recess  55 .) As mentioned above, in some embodiments, the lower surface of the billiard ball storage tray  50  can have at least one billiard accessory holder, such as a hook, a peg, a formed recess or protraction, etc. To accommodate the billiard accessory holder, the body  20  can be formed with a recess  26  under the upper end  22  that is shaped to receive the billiard accessory holder when the billiard ball storage tray  50  is attached to the upper end  22  of the body  20 . 
     In this embodiment, the stemware rack  60  and the decorative trim  70  are interchangibly attachable to the body  20 . As such, the convertible back bar  10  easily converts between configurations with and without the stemware rack  60 . In this embodiment, the recess  26  under the upper end  22  of the body  20  is shaped to store whichever one of the stemware rack  60  and decorative trim  70  is not attached to the body  20 . 
     The plurality of attachments elements  80  are used to attach the shelf  40  and the billiard ball storage tray  50  to the upper and lower ends  22 ,  24 , as well as to attach the stemware rack  60  or the decorative trim  70  to the body  20 . In this embodiment, the plurality of attachments elements  80  take the form of screws but other suitable types of attachments elements can be used, such as, but not limited to, nails, tacks, hooks, latches, etc. Also, while all of the plurality of attachments elements  80  are shown as being the same in  FIG. 1 , in other embodiments, a variety of attachments elements  80  are used. Further, although not shown in  FIG. 1 , the convertible bar back  10  can contain a rear attachment mechanism to mount the convertible bar back  10  to a wall or other component. 
     Returning to the drawings  FIGS. 2-5  illustrate various configurations of the convertible back bar  10 . It should be noted that these are merely examples and that other configurations can be used. Turning now to  FIG. 2 , in this illustration, the convertible back bar  10  has the shelf  40  attached to the lower end of the body  20 , the billiard ball storage tray  50  attached to the upper end of the body  20 , and the stemware rack  60  attached to the body  20 . This configuration is particularly useful if the convertible back bar  10  is being used behind a bar, as the shelf  40  can be used to hold bottles  110  (and/or glassware), and the stemware rack  60  can be used to hold stemmed glasses  120 . Note that in this illustration, the billiard ball storage tray  50  is merely being used as a decorative top cap to the convertible back bar  10 . However, as shown in  FIG. 3 , in other uses, the billiard ball storage tray  50  is used not merely as a top cap but also to store billiard balls  130 . When the convertible back bar  10  is used is such a manner, it may be positioned behind a bar or in another location, such as on a wall near a billiard table. 
     In  FIG. 4 , the convertible back bar  10  is used in a different configuration. Specifically, the convertible back bar  10  has the billiard ball storage tray  50  attached to the lower end of the body  20 , the shelf  40  attached to the upper end of the body  20  (the stemware rack  60  is still attached to the body  20  in this configuration). As shown in  FIG. 4 , the billiard ball storage tray  50  stores a plurality of billiard balls  130 . Also, the lower surface of the billiard ball storage tray  50  comprises at least one billiard accessory holder, which, in this embodiment, takes the form of hooks  145  used to hold billiard ball racks (here, 8-ball and 9-ball racks)  147 ,  149 . As noted above, the body  20  can be formed with a recess under its upper end to receive the billiard accessory holder  140  when the billiard ball storage tray  50  is attached to the upper end of the body  20 , as in  FIGS. 2 and 3 . Because the stemware rack  60  is still attached to the body  20  in the configuration shown in  FIG. 4 , this configuration may still be useful if the convertible back bar  10  is being used behind a bar, as the stemware rack  60  can hold glasses  120 . While this configuration can still be used near a billiard table as a wall mirror instead of behind a bar, if the convertible back bar  10  is being used near a billiard table and glasses storage is not needed, the stemware rack  60  can be interchanged with the decorative trim  70 , as shown in  FIG. 5 . 
     It should be noted by a comparison to the configurations shown in  FIGS. 4 and 5  with the configurations shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3  that the front surfaces  49 ,  59  of the shelf  40  and the billiard ball storage tray  50  that are exposed when the shelf  40  and the billiard ball storage tray  50  are attached to the upper end of the body  20  look substantially similar to one another. This provides a flexible two-in-one design. To convert between a configuration mostly likely to be used behind a bar to a configuration most likely to be used as a wall mirror, or vice versa, a user merely needs to remove the attachments elements (e.g., using an Allen wrench or a screwdriver) and swap the shelf  40  and the billiard ball storage tray  50 . In embodiments where the stemware rack  60  and decorative trim  70  are interchangible, these components could be swapped as well, with the unused component fitting in the recess at the upper end of the body  20 . 
     Many alternatives can be used with these embodiments. For example, while the above embodiments have an interchangible stemware rack and decorative trim, in an alternate embodiment, only the shelf and billiard ball storage tray are interchangible. In such as alternate embodiment, the convertible back bar may or may not have a stemware rack. Also, while the billiard ball storage tray in the above embodiments contained a lower surface comprising at least one billiard accessory holder, in other embodiments, the billiard ball storage tray does not have a billiard accessory holder. Further, as noted above, the convertible back bar can be, but does not necessarily need to be, used behind a bar. Accordingly, the convertible back bar of these embodiments can be used behind a bar, as a wall mirror near a billiard table, or in any other desired location. 
     While any desired implementation can be used, in a presently preferred embodiment, the convertible back bar is dimensioned at 50″ wide by 32″ high by 6¼ deep. This size may provide more flexibility in fitting the convertible back bar in a variety of home settings and game rooms as compared to conventional back bars. Also, to provide an upscale look, it is presently preferred that the mirror be a beveled mirror and that the wood components be finished in chestnut, cherry, or mahogany. 
     It is intended that the foregoing detailed description be understood as an illustration of selected forms that the invention can take and not as a definition of the invention. It is only the following claims, including all equivalents, that are intended to define the scope of this invention. Finally, it should be noted that any aspect of any of the preferred embodiments described herein can be used alone or in combination with one another.