Abstract:
A stabilization device comprising of two identical pieces is disclosed. The pieces can be used individually as stabilizing shims, or it can be interlocked with one another such that it creates an adjustable stabilizer that can be reused again. The piece comprises of an external surface, an internal surface, an interlocking channel within the internal surface, and an interlocking guide that can be inserted into said interlocking channel.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This Application claims priority to the U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/979,859, filed on Apr. 15, 2014, and non-provisional application Ser. No. 14/685, 935 filed on Apr. 14, 2015. Both applications are hereby incorporated by reference. 
     
    
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT 
       [0002]    None. 
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    The field of the present invention is directed to the leveling and stabilizing of articles, such as furniture and the like, which rest on a support surface, such as a floor, in order to prevent wobbling, tipping, or vibration during use on mostly even and on somewhat uneven surfaces. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0004]    Most articles of furniture are constructed to have a lower support structure, which defines a support plane at its lower most point. The operative or working areas of the article of furniture are then oriented in a desired manner with respect to that support plane by the support structure. For example, a typical table has a surface to support objects, which is oriented parallel to the floor and supported by a plurality of legs perpendicular to the table surface. Thus, the support plane of this table is defined by the free ends of the legs. However, planar geometry dictates that only three operative support points define a plane. Thus, it is necessary that the table legs be sized with great care in order to ensure that all four free ends terminate in a common plane; otherwise, the table will be unstable. When this happens, the article does not have a single stable support plane but rather is subject to unwanted wobbling, tipping, or as in the case of machinery—vibrating. Even articles, which have only three support points, such as a three-legged table, that automatically define a stable support plane, can still have the problem that the working surface may not be in the desired orientation due to any error in the intended length of any support. It is also important to consider surfaces that are uneven. Even with the legs sized appropriately, the article may still rock. 
         [0005]    Other articles that have rotating components, such as pumps, air-conditioners, fans, and the like, can vibrate if not properly leveled and stabilized. For example, an air-handling unit might include a fan. If the fan is not perfectly balanced, then any instability in the support of the air-handling unit on its support surface might allow the unit to vibrate. In some cases, this vibration can be sufficient to cause damage to the unit, and often times produce unwanted noise. 
         [0006]    Another common scenario for unstable pieces of furniture occurs in the food service setting, especially in locations where restaurants often move around chairs and table to accommodate various number of guests on a given table. In situations where dining table settings get moved around on a daily basis, such as garden or side of the street establishments, it is very common to encounter different sized gaps that a single sized stabilizer will not be enough to fully stabilize the piece of the furniture with the uneven ground. Even if a table theoretically can be stabilized on a particular location, the stability might easily be lost if the table were moved to a different location because the host requires a larger seating for a party, or the tables are removed from the spot for cleaning purposes on both even and uneven surfaces. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0007]    The present invention is directed to a stabilizing device comprising of two identical pieces that can either be used individually or interlocked with one another in order to achieve a stable position on a given surface and an article that needs to be supported. 
         [0008]    Each individual piece comprises of an external gripping surface, an internal surface, where said internal surface further comprise of at least one interlocking channel, at least one interlocking guide, and an interlocking height adjustment steps that becomes substantially more rigid or locked as weight is applied to the device Thus reducing slippage both between the interlocking devices and the surface and the furniture. A user simply inserts the interlocking guide into the opening on the opposing piece&#39;s interlocking channel(s), and by doing so the external surfaces of the pieces will respectively grip the bottom surface of the article that needs to be supported and the surface of the ground without slipping. 
         [0009]    To adjust the height of the stabilizer, the user can simply pinch the pieces together. As the user applies force to the pieces, both pieces move along the interlocking channel(s), one step at a time along the height adjustable step until the desired height is achieved. 
         [0010]    The stabilizer is designed to be reusable, and the shape of the stabilizing pieces allow commercial logos to be adorned on said pieces. The stabilizer can then in turn be distributed to the patrons of a commercial food establishment, either as a practical stabilizing tool or as a souvenir that has advertising purposes for the business owner or both. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
         [0011]    These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with regard to the following descriptions, appended claims and accompanying drawings where: 
           [0012]      FIG. 1  shows a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the stabilization piece, showing the internal surface of the stabilization piece; 
           [0013]      FIG. 2  shows a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the stabilization piece, showing the external surface of the stabilization piece; 
           [0014]      FIG. 3  shows an alternate perspective view of the internal surface of the device, showing the shape of the interlocking channel; 
           [0015]      FIG. 4  shows another view of the external surface of the device, showing the grooves to improve traction and flexibility of the device; 
           [0016]      FIGS. 5 and 6  show side profiles of the preferred embodiment of the stabilization device, showing the tapered design of the external surface as opposed to a flat external surface. 
           [0017]      FIGS. 7A, 7B, 71C, 7D, 7E  show a series of views of the preferred embodiment of the interlocking stabilization device in different height settings; 
           [0018]      FIG. 8A  shows a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the stabilization device supporting a furniture leg. 
           [0019]      FIG. 8B  shows the close up view of the preferred embodiment of the stabilization device supporting a furniture leg. 
       
    
    
     REFERENCE NUMBER INDEX 
       [0020]      100  Stabilization Device 
         [0021]      101  Stabilization Piece 
         [0022]      102  External Gripping Surface 
         [0023]      103  Internal Surface 
         [0024]      104  Interlocking Channel(s) 
         [0025]      105  Interlocking Channel(s) insertion point 
         [0026]      106  Interlocking Channel(s) exit point 
         [0027]      107  Interlocking Guide(s) 
         [0028]      108  Stepped Ramp 
         [0029]      109  Commercial Logo Placement 
         [0030]      110  Furniture Leg 
         [0031]      111  External Groove 
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
       [0032]      FIG. 1  shows an embodiment of the stabilization piece: a stabilization device comprised of two identical pieces, wherein a single piece is depicted in  FIG. 1 . The stabilization piece comprises of an external surface shown on  FIG. 2  and  FIG. 4 , and an internal surface shown on  FIGS. 1 and 3  in greater detail. 
         [0033]    The external surface  102  of the piece is ideally made of a grip texture to prevent the pieces from slipping during use. In the preferred embodiment, the grip texture is achieved by having a plurality of raised nubs with the tip of the nubs creating a flat plane to grip the surface it is pressing or supporting against. In  FIG. 8A , the external surface holds the piece of the article and grips the surface of the ground so that complete stability is achieved. When weight is applied to the two devices fitted together, the interlocking channel on the stepped ramps, the platform becomes substantially more rigid due to the interlocking nature of the interlocking channels. 
         [0034]    The internal surface  103  is comprised of at least one interlocking channel  104 , at least one interlocking guide  107 , and a stepped ramp  108 . The interlocking channel is further comprised of an insertion point  105  and an exit point  106  for the interlocking guide. 
         [0035]    The symmetrical nature of the interlocking guide  107 , interlocking channel  104 , and height adjustment steps  108  that lock down and become substantially more rigid when placed under weight and pressure, which minimizes the risk of the pieces from slipping out of position during use. 
         [0036]    The pieces can be assembled together by inserting the interlocking guide  107  of the first piece into the insertion point  105  of the second piece, and by doing so the interlocking guide of the second piece is inserted to the first piece&#39;s insertion point as seen in  FIG. 7A , with  FIG. 7B  showing the pieces locked together. 
         [0037]    To adjust the height of the stabilizer, the user can simply press the pieces together. As the user applies force to the pieces along the axis of the interlocking guides, both pieces move along the interlocking channel(s), one step at a time along the stepped ramp  108  until the desired height is achieved, as seen in  FIGS. 7A through 7E . Once the adjustable height is achieved, the user can then insert the assembled stabilization device between the ground and the article that needs supporting  110  once the weight is applied the interlocking channels and the height adjustment steps lock down as to form a more rigid platform, as shown in  FIG. 8B . 
         [0038]    If the space that needs to be adjusted is narrower than the height of the two pieces assembled, the user can simply separate the pieces, and insert an individual piece between the ground and the article that needs supporting. It should be noted that interlocking guide  107  can be detached or broken off should a user needs to use a single piece of the stabilization device in order to achieve better stability. 
         [0039]    To disassemble the stabilization device, the user can press both pieces together along the interlocking channel(s), pushing both guides along the channel(s) into the respective exit points of both pieces. As the interlocking guides  107  exit the interlocking channel(s)  106 , the pieces are disassembled from one another, and can be reused or stored for future use, as seen in  FIGS. 7C through 7E . 
         [0040]    Furthermore, when assembled; there is approximately a platform in a configuration as shown in  FIG. 7A  enabling the leveler “at its lowest setting” to slide in a portion of the overall distance of the channel(s) to accommodate various sizes of furniture legs, for example. The devices can be scaled accordingly to different sizes to accommodate heavier pieces of furniture or appliance units. 
         [0041]    In the single-interlocking guide version hereby incorporated by reference, the single channel and single guide provides for quick assembly only having to align one track. However, this embodiment with a dual-interlocking guide is strengthened in shear factor and stability; the one side of the interlocking guide is designed to be flat against the internal center wall of the groove ( FIG. 7B ), and the same interlocking guide&#39;s arm interacts with the rail on the opposite side of the same groove guiding both interlocking pins up the groove in unison, further restricting the movement in one direction about the axis of the internal grooves. 
         [0042]    The receded position of the interlocking guide(s) permits the leveler to be engaged at the highest setting without disengaging. There is a concave area  102  on the platform for the bottom of the furniture leg to sit on, once the platform is engaged with the ramp; adding a “scooping” function while being elevated up the platform, until the space is filled between the elevated leg and the floor. The first about one-third of the dual-interlocking guide version allows sliding with the other dual-interlocking guide for about one-third the amount of travel before the leveler starts gaining considerable incremental (with respect to the height adjustment steps  108 ) height allowing for the sizability of the leveler around the leg of the furniture or table leg, for example. The concentric design and the added pins on their ribs help the leveler grip the floor and the bottom of the furniture leg. 
         [0043]    In the preferred embodiment, the stabilization piece&#39;s external surface is tapered slightly as seen in  FIGS. 5 and 6  to assist users when setting the two pieces together prior to use. In the prior art, the stabilization pieces were designed in a way that it can only move in one direction, such that if a user were to miss the desired height, the pieces needed to be slid through the groove and detached rather than simply pulling the pieces back to the desired height. This issue is solved by introducing the tapered design that allows wiggle room during the setup phase. 
         [0044]    It should be noted that once the device is set in place, and the weight of the furniture is placed on top of the device as seen in  FIG. 8B , the device should be secured and will stay in place due to the weight of the furniture, and any further adjustment to the height of the device would not be possible unless the furniture piece is moved away to free the device. 
         [0045]    The stabilizing device can be adorned with commercial logo placements  109  for advertising purposes. A possible use scenario is for business owners to hand these stabilizers to their customers and let the customers adjust and stabilize their seating during busy hours; not only the customers have souvenir that act as advertising material, but the users can practically stabilize their own seating without involving the staff during peak hours allowing the patrons to be a little bit more self-sufficient. 
         [0046]    In the Summary above and in the Detailed Description, and the claims below, and in the accompanying drawings, reference is made to particular features (including method steps) of the invention. It is to be understood that the disclosure of the invention in this specification includes all possible combinations of such particular features. For example, where a particular feature is disclosed in the context of a particular aspect or embodiment of the invention, or a particular claim, that feature can also be used, to the extent possible, in combination with and/or in the context of other particular aspects and embodiments of the invention, and in the invention generally. 
         [0047]    Although the present invention has been described in considerable detail with reference to certain preferred versions thereof, other versions are possible. Therefore, the spirit and scope of the appended claims should not be limited to the description of the preferred version contained herein.