Patent Publication Number: US-4650113-A

Title: Mailbox

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates in general to mailboxes and deals more particularly with a mailbox which is constructed to permit mail recipients to visually detect the presence of mail from a distance. The mailbox of the present invention also provides easier access to mail which is deposited in the box. 
     Roadside mailboxes typically include a single door which faces the roadway and is used both to deposit mail and to remove mail from the box. The mailbox is often located a considerable distance from the house, and it is necessary for the recipient to walk out to the mailbox and check to determine whether the mail has arrived. Although many mailboxes are equipped with signal flags, they are not used consistently and do not detract appreciably from the number of trips that must be made to and from the mailbox. 
     Mailboxes that are wholly or partially transparent have been proposed so that the contents of the box are visible from a considerable distance. However, if a single envelope or several envelopes or other flat pieces of mail are present in the mailbox, they are difficult to see from a distance because of their horizontal position on the floor of the mailbox. Another drawback associated with transparent mailboxes is that persons passing by on the road can see that mail is present and possibly tamper with it. 
     The retrieval of mail from conventional mailboxes is especially difficult for the elderly. It is necessary to walk around to the roadside of the mailbox and open the door, to stoop down to see if any mail is present, and to reach into the mailbox to remove the mail. The need to stand on the roadside of the mailbox can be dangerous, and the need to stoop down and reach into the box is especially difficult for elderly persons. Mailboxes having doors on both ends have been proposed so that the mail can be deposited from the road side of the mailbox and removed from the house side. However, the house side access opening is located in the end of the box, and it is still necessary for the recipient to stoop down to check for the presence of mail and to reach into the end of the mailbox to remove it. In addition, if the mail carrier is careless in depositing the mail in the box, it can slide through the box and fall completely or partially out through the back or house side door. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention is directed to a mailbox which is specially constructed and arranged such that mail that is present in the box is displayed to the recipient but not to passers-by. The construction of the mailbox also makes access to the mail more convenient than is the case with conventional mailboxes. 
     It is an important object of the invention to provide a mailbox in which it is possible to determine from a distance whether or not mail is present in the box. This is accomplished by using a tilting floor panel which receives the mail and which is maintained at an inclined orientation in order to conspicuously display even a single flat envelope present in the mailbox. 
     An important related feature of the invention is the provision of a transparent panel on the end of the mailbox which faces the house and another transparent panel on the top of the mailbox adjacent the end which faces the house. The transparent panels permit any mail which is present in the mailbox to be clearly visible from the house or yard of the recipient. At the same time, persons passing by on the road are not able to view the contents of the mailbox. 
     Another object of the invention is to provide a mailbox in which the floor panel is horizontal when the front or road side door is open. Consequently, the mail carrier can deposit mail in the box in the usual manner on top of the panel. When the door is thereafter closed, the tilting panel automatically assumes an inclined orientation to make the mail visible from the house side of the mailbox at a considerable distance. 
     A further object of the invention is to provide a mailbox wherein the tilting floor panel is transparent so that any pieces of mail that may inadvertently become lodged beneath it are readily visible. 
     Yet another object of the invention is to provide a mailbox having a back access opening which extends through the top and sides of the mailbox adjacent the end which faces the house. This makes access to the mail more convenient, particularly for the elderly, because the contents of the mailbox can be both viewed and reached from the top without the need to stoop. The mail can also be reached through the back access opening from either side of the mailbox to make access to the mail even more convenient, particularly if adjacent shrubbery or support posts make rear retrieval of the mail difficult. 
     An additional object of the invention is to provide a mailbox having a cover for the back access opening which can be quickly and easily opened and closed. 
     A still further object of the invention is to provide a mailbox of the character described which is constructed to prevent mail deposited through the front opening from falling out through the back opening. The back opening has an upstanding barrier which projects upwardly well above the floor panel to intercept the mail so that it is unable to fall out through the mailbox. 
     Other and further objects of the invention, together with the features of novelty appurtenant thereto, will appear in the course of the following description. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     In the accompanying drawings which form a part of the specification and are to be read in conjunction therewith and in which like reference numerals are used to indicate like parts in the various views: 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a mailbox constructed according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, taken from one side of the mailbox and showing the front door in an open position with an envelope deposited on the tilting floor of the mailbox; 
     FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the mailbox taken from the side opposite that shown in FIG. 1, with the front door in the closed position and a portion of the back cover broken away for illustrative purposes; 
     FIG. 3 is an end elevational view of the mailbox taken from the end which faces the house, with the back cover closed and portions broken away for illustrative purposes; and 
     FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken generally along line 4--4 of FIG. 1 in the direction of the arrows, with the broken lines illustrating the open position of the front door and the closed position of the back cover. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Referring now to the drawings in more detail, numeral 10 generally designates a mailbox constructed in accordance with the present invention. The mailbox 10 is a rectangular, box-like container having a pair of opposite side walls 12, a top panel 14 and a bottom panel 16 which cooperate to provide a generally rectangular compartment 18 (FIG. 2) for receiving and holding mail. One or both side walls 12 can include a transparent panel which displays on a card the name and/or address of the house occupant. The end of the mailbox 10 which faces the road is open to provide a front access opening 20 (FIG. 1) through which the mail carrier can deposit mail. The front access opening 20 is normally closed by a hinged door 22 which is connected with the bottom of the mailbox by a piano type hinge 24. Door 22 can be pivoted about the horizontal axis provided by hinge 24 between the open position shown in FIG. 1 and in broken lines in FIG. 4 and the closed position shown in solid lines in FIG. 4. In the open position, door 22 is generally horizontal to expose the opening 20. In the closed position, door 22 is vertical to close opening 20. A catch 26 on the inside surface of door 22 holds the door closed. The outside surface of door 22 is provided with a handle 28 which facilitates opening and closing of the door. Walls 12, panels 14 and 16 and the door 22 may be constructed from sheet metal or another suitable material. 
     In accordance with the present invention, the mail which is deposited in the mailbox 10 is received and held on a flat rectangular floor panel 30 which is slightly smaller than the bottom panel 16 of the mailbox. The front edge of panel 30 is connected with the inside surface of door 22 by a pair of hinges 32 which cooperate to provide a horizontal hinge axis about which panel 30 can pivot relative to door 22. The hinges 32 are offset from hinge 24 and are located well above hinge 24 when door 22 is in the closed position shown in solid lines in FIG. 4. When door 22 is in its open position, panel 30 has a generally horizontal orientation and lies on the floor panel 16 in a position to receive the mail deposited into the mailbox through the front opening 20. When door 22 is raised from the open position toward the closed position, hinges 32 are gradually raised to elevate the front edge of panel 30. The back edge of panel 30 remains on bottom panel 16 at all times and is thus disposed well below the front edge of panel 30 when door 22 is closed. In the fully closed position of door 22, panel 30 has an inclined orientation and angles downwardly from its front edge toward its rear edge. Panel 30 is transparent so that any small pieces of mail which may become accidentally lodged between panels 16 and 30 will be visible through the transparent panel 30. 
     The mailbox 10 has a back access opening 34 through which the mail can be removed from the mailbox. Opening 34 extends through the top panel 14 as indicated at 36 in FIG. 4, through both side walls 12 as indicated at 38 in FIG. 4, and through the end of the mailbox opposite the front access opening 20 as indicated at 40 in FIG. 4. Consequently, the contents of compartment 18 are accessible from the top through opening 36, from either side of the mailbox through openings 38, and from the back or house facing side of the mailbox through opening 40. Opening 36 extends through the top panel 14 on the portion thereof adjacent opening 40, while the side openings 38 are likewise located adjacent to opening 40. Below the side openings 38, the side walls of the mailbox project well above the bottom panel 16. 
     Below the end opening 40, an end barrier 42 extends upwardly well above the bottom panel 16 and the back edge of panel 30. As shown in FIG. 2, the barrier 42 is secured by rivets 44 or other fasteners to flanges 46 which are turned inwardly from the back edges of the side walls 12. The barrier 42 is preferably transparent. 
     The back access opening 34 is normally closed by a cover which is generally designated by numeral 48. The cover 48 includes parallel opposite sides 50 which cover the side openings 38 when the cover is closed. The top of cover 48 includes a transparent panel 52 which is secured by rivets 54 to flanges 56 which are turned inwardly from the upper edges of the side 50. The top panel 52 covers the top opening 36 when cover 48 is closed. The back of cover 48 includes a transparent end panel 58 which is secured by rivets 60 to flanges 62 which are turned inwardly from the back edges of the sides 50. Panel 58 overlaps barrier 42 to cover the back opening 40 when cover 48 is closed. The components of the mailbox are opaque except for panels 30, 52 and 58 and barrier 42. 
     Cover 48 is connected to the top panel 14 of the mailbox for opening and closing movement about the horizontal axis established by a hinge 63. In the open position of cover 48 shown in solid lines in FIG. 4, the entirety of the back access opening 34 is exposed, and panel 52 lies on panel 14. In the closed position of cover 48, opening 34 is closed by the cover. A handle 64 is provided on panel 58 to facilitate opening and closing of the cover. A gasket 65 (see FIG. 4) seals against cover 48 in its closed position. If desired, the hinge 63 may be spring loaded in the manner of the trunk lid of an automobile so that the cover can be lifted slightly and will then spring open and remain open. This permits one hand only to be used to open the cover, retrieve the mail and then close the cover. 
     One of the side walls 12 may be provided with a signal flag 66. The signal flag 66 may be pivoted between the horizontal position shown in FIG. 2 and a vertical position in which the signal flag indicates the presence of mail within the mailbox 10. 
     In use of the mailbox 10, the mail carrier opens door 22 and deposits mail into the mailbox through the front access opening 20. Mail such as the envelope 68 is received on panel 30 which is in its horizontal mail receiving position when door 22 is open. When the mail carrier has completed depositing the mail into the compartment 18, he closes door 22, and panel 30 then assumes the inclined mail displaying position shown in solid lines in FIG. 4. 
     Because of the incline of panel 30, the mail which is present within compartment 18 is visible through the transparent panels 52 and 58 from a considerable distance. Thus, the mail recipient can see from his house or yard whether or not mail is present in the mailbox. However, persons passing by on the road are able to see only the opaque front portions of the mailbox and are not able to view the contents through the panels 52 and 58 located on the back portion of the mailbox. In this manner, the mailbox conspicuously displays mail to the recipient from a considerable distance while shielding it from passers-by. 
     Mail is normally removed from the mailbox through the back opening 34, although it can also be removed through the front opening 20 if desired. In order to gain access to the mail through the back opening 34, cover 48 is raised to its open position, and the mail can be reached through the back opening 34. It is noted that there is no need to stoop because the mail can be viewed through the top panel 52, and it can likewise be reached through the top opening 36. Consequently, access to the mail is relatively easy even for elderly persons who have difficulty in stooping. The mail can also be removed from either side of the mailbox, by reaching through either of the side openings 38, and it can also be removed by reaching through the back opening 40. After the mail has been removed from compartment 18, the cover 48 is swung downwardly to the closed position. 
     The barrier 42 projects well above the bottom panel 16 to prevent mail from inadvertently passing out through the back opening 40. In addition, because the cover 48 must be swung upwardly to its open position, the cover assists in preventing mail from falling out through the back of the mailbox. The barrier 42 is preferably transparent so that it cooperates with panel 58 to permit viewing of the contents of the mailbox from a distance. 
     It should be understood that the back opening 34 can have configurations other than the configuration shown in the drawings, and that the cover 48 can also vary in its configuration. The cover can also be mounted to slide between its open and closed positions rather than being hinged. A sliding drawer-type structure can also be used. 
     From the foregoing, it will be seen that this invention is one well adapted to attain all the ends and objects hereinabove set forth together with other advantages which are obvious and which are inherent to the structure. 
     It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features and subcombinations. This is contemplated by and is within the scope of the claims. 
     Since many possible embodiments may be made of the invention without departing from the scope thereof, it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.