Abstract:
A self-supporting, folding closet liner assembly for a closet that is both functional and decorative. The assembly is made up of two sets of hinged folding panel assemblies; a wall panel assembly to form the self-supporting, finished, vertical surfaces of the closet and door jamb, and a top panel assembly to form the ceiling, the horizontal upper portion of the door jamb, and the section of vertical wall between the ceiling and the horizontal upper portion of the door jamb. The folding closet liner assembles fold flat for shipping and unfold in the closet for easy assembly.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to finishing the interior of a room (such as a closet) along with said room&#39;s door jamb, and more particularly, to finishing a room and door jamb by unfolding a self-supporting panel assembly. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Finishing the interior and door jamb surfaces of a room within a building typically involves considerable labor. Small rooms, in particular, have a disproportionately large amount of labor per square foot compared to larger rooms because they typically have the same number of corners and other labor intensive aspects as a large room, without the square footage of a large room. Finally, small rooms such as a closet, unlike larger rooms such as a bedroom, often have additional labor-intensive finishing requirements like the installation of shelves, hanger rods, and bi-fold doors. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a self-supporting, folding room finishing assembly that is both functional and decorative. The assembly is made up of two sets of hinged folding panels; one set of hinged panels forms the self-supporting, finished, vertical surfaces of the room and door jamb, and the other set of hinged folding panels forms the ceiling, the horizontal upper portion of the door jamb, and the section of vertical wall between the ceiling and the horizontal upper portion of the door jamb. 
     Each of the two sets of panels contains multiple panels which are joined to each other by hinges which allow the panels to fold flat, so that the planar surfaces of each panel are touching when folded flat. 
     The two sets of hinged folding panels are designed to fit together in an interlocking fashion, and the two sets of hinged panels are joined to each other through a simple locking mechanism, thus forming a complete inner lining of a room and door jamb, which will firmly stand upright and maintain overall shape when fully unfolded and joined. 
     OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION 
     It is an object of the invention to provide a labor-saving assembly for finishing the interior surfaces of a room and door jamb. 
     It is an object of the invention to provide a room finishing assembly that is self-supporting. 
     It is an object of the invention to provide a room finishing assembly that folds flat for shipping. 
     It is an object of the invention to provide a room finishing assembly that includes mechanisms to attach shelves and hanger bars. 
     It is an object of the invention to provide a room finishing assembly that includes a door jamb. 
     It is an object of the invention to provide a room finishing assembly that includes a self-supporting door jamb. 
     Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a front perspective view of the fully installed room finishing assembly; 
         FIG. 2  is a front perspective view of the two main components of the device, with the top panel assembly exploded from the main vertical panel assembly; 
         FIG. 3  is a top view of the main vertical panel assembly in a fully folded and ready-for-shipment position; 
         FIG. 4  is a top view of the main vertical panel assembly in a partially unfolded position; 
         FIG. 5  is a front perspective view of the fully unfolded top panel assembly; 
         FIG. 6A  is a right side view of the top panel assembly in fully unfolded position; 
         FIG. 6B  is a right side view of the top panel assembly in fully folded, position; and 
         FIG. 6C  is a right side view of the top panel assembly in partially folded position. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
       FIG. 1  is a front perspective view of the fully assembled Closet Liner  1 , in accordance with the invention. The Closet Liner  1  may be fabricated of wood, plastic, metal, or any other suitable material. The hinges and locking mechanisms shown can be of any design which allows for the functions described in accordance with the invention. The vertical wall panel hinge  48  shown in  FIG. 1  is a barrel style hinge which is installed into the edges of the vertical wall panels. The accessory mounting point  60  modifications shown can be of any form that facilitates the attachment of accessories such as shelves or hanger rods without impinging on the functions described in accordance with the invention. In this embodiment, the accessory mounting point  60 , shown in  FIG. 2 , is a simple pre-drilled hole which can be used to attach shelf support pins. Other accessory mounting point  60  usage examples include, but are not limited to, hanger rod attachments. 
       FIG. 2  is a front perspective view of the two main components of the Closet Liner  1 , with the top panel assembly  2  shown detached from and above the wall panel assembly  3 . In this view the left-front locking mechanism receiver  54  is exposed near the top of the left front vertical side wall panel  46 . This locking mechanism receiver  54  provides a secure attachment point for the rotating latch portion of the left-front locking mechanism  14  on the top panel assembly  2 . Similarly, the left-rear locking mechanism receiver  52  and right-rear locking mechanism receiver  50  are shown at the top of rear vertical wall panel  36  and rear vertical wall panel  42 , respectively. This view also shows the right vertical jamb hinge  62  in a fully unfolded 90 degree position. The right vertical jamb hinge  62  as shown is a standard piano hinge style and provides a simple surface mount hinge that allows for a 90 degree rotation of the right vertical jamb  30  with respect to the right-front vertical wall panel  44  The left vertical jamb hinge  64  is obscured but can be seen in a fully folded position in  FIG. 3  and a partially folded position in  FIG. 4 . 
       FIG. 3  is a top view of the wall panel assembly  3  in a fully folded and ready-for-shipment position. This is the position used for shipping the wall panel assembly  3  as well as the position used for positioning the wall panel assembly  3  inside the closet for deployment. The number of panels and the thickness of the panels are such that when the wall panel assembly  3  is fully folded for shipping, there are no gaps between planar surfaces of the panels, including the inner planar surfaces of the left vertical jamb panel  28  and the right vertical jamb panel  30 . The rear vertical wall panels (rear vertical wall panel  36 , rear vertical wall panel  38 , rear vertical wall panel  40 , and rear vertical wall panel  42 ) do not need to be the same width from left to right, but they must be so wide that they can be folded flat without overlapping on the left vertical wall panel  34 , the right vertical wall panel  32 , the left vertical jamb panel  28  or the right vertical jamb panel  30  as any such overlap would prevent the wall panel assembly  3  from folding flat for shipping. The wall panel assembly  3  must be maneuvered through the door opening of the closet by tilting the top of the folded wall panel assembly  3  under the top edge of the door opening, and then sliding the base of the wall panel assembly  3  into the closet. The wall panel assembly  3  will be ready for unfolding once it is fully vertical inside the closet and perpendicular to the floor. The width, height, and depth of the fully assembled Closet Liner  1  must be slightly less than the respective dimensions of the interior surfaces of the closet in which the Closet Liner  1  will be unfolded and assembled in order to allow the device to be fully unfolded as well as to allow room for the top panel assembly  2  to be maneuvered into position above the wall panel assembly  3 . 
       FIG. 4  is a top view of the wall panel assembly  3  in a partially unfolded position. By sliding the left vertical wall panel  34  toward the left side of the closet, and the right vertical wall panel  32  toward the right side of the closet, the wall panel assembly  3  can be fully unfolded and positioned within the closet and door jamb interior until it has reached the fully unfolded position as shown in the fully unfolded view of the wall panel assembly  3  in  FIG. 2 . 
       FIG. 5  is a front perspective view of the fully unfolded top panel assembly  2 . This view highlights the ceiling panel hinge  12  which holds the vertical top panel  26  to the ceiling panel  24 . This hinge also allows the vertical top panel  26  to fold flat against the ceiling panel  24  for shipping as shown in the fully folded view of the top panel assembly  2  in  FIG. 6B . Similarly, the horizontal jamb hinge  16  holds the horizontal jamb panel  22  to the vertical top panel  26  and allows the horizontal jamb panel  22  to fold flat against the vertical top panel  26  for shipping. These two hinges are the same piano style and function as used for the right vertical jamb hinge  62  and left vertical jamb hinge  64 . Also shown in this view are the 4 locking mechanisms  10 ,  14 ,  70 ,  72  used for securing the top panel assembly  2  to the wall panel assembly  3  once the top panel assembly  2  is fully unfolded and securely resting in position with the left end of the ceiling panel  24  resting squarely in the left vertical wall top notch  56  and the right end of the ceiling panel  24  resting squarely in the right vertical wall top notch  58  as seen with the fully assembled Closet Liner  1  shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 . The locking mechanisms are a means of securing and drawing tight the top panel assembly  2  to the wall panel assembly  3 . In this embodiment, the locking mechanisms are of the rotating draw latch style and are rotated using a standard hex screwdriver inserted into the right-front locking mechanism access hole  66 , the left-front locking mechanism access hole  68 , the right-rear locking mechanism access hole  18 , and the left-rear locking mechanism access hole  20 . In this embodiment of the device, the right-front locking mechanism  10  and left-front locking mechanism  14  are used to secure the vertical top panel  26  to the right-front vertical wall panel  44  and the left-front vertical wall panel  46 , respectively. Also in this embodiment of device, the right-rear locking mechanism  72  and left-rear locking mechanism  70  are used to secure the ceiling panel  24  to the left-rear locking mechanism receiver  52  in the rear vertical wall panel  42  and the right-rear locking mechanism receiver  50  in the rear vertical wall panel  36 , respectively. 
       FIG. 6A  is a right side view of the top panel assembly  2  in the fully unfolded position.  FIG. 6B  is a right side view of the top panel assembly  2  in the fully folded position.  FIG. 6C  is a right side view of the top panel assembly  2  in a partially unfolded position. These views illustrate how the top panel assembly  2  can be unfolded once it is securely resting in position with the left end of the ceiling panel  24  resting squarely in the left vertical wall top notch  56  and the right end of the ceiling panel  24  resting squarely in the right vertical wall top notch  58 , as shown in the fully assembled Closet Liner  1  shown in  FIG. 1 .