US20050022702A1

US20050022702A1 - Swing away table

Info

Publication number: US20050022702A1
Application number: US10/629,057
Authority: US
Inventors: Clay Hunter
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2003-07-28
Filing date: 2003-07-28
Publication date: 2005-02-03

Abstract

The invention is a swing away table, which has a planar tabletop which swings from an open position to a closed position. This allows the swing away table to be used adjacent to a sitting position. A user can swing the tabletop to an open position in order to enter or leave the seated position. He can then swing it to a closed position when he is seated, so that he may have access to items which are on the tabletop while he is seated.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to tables, and more particularly relates to tables which swing away from the user to allow a person to move past them.
2. Background Information
There is often a need for a table which is placed adjacent to a chair or other seated position. Such a table may be used to hold reading material, food, craft supplies, or other items which the user who is seated in the chair desires to have close to him. This presents a problem when the user wants to get up from the chair, or other sitting device. This situation can occur when a person is at a picnic, is eating food from the table, is seated at the table watching television, or other situations where a seated person needs to have a table nearby and occasionally needs to get up. When the person needs to get up, the table is in his/her way. The typical solution to this is to lift or move the table to one side, thus allowing the person to get up. This can be a problematic solution if material on the table is heavy, or may be tipped over and spilled. A better solution to allowing access to the chair past the table adjacent to the chair is needed.
The swing away table of the invention solves this problem by having a table in which the top of the table is designed to swing from one position to another. In a closed position, the table is adjacent the chair and the user. In the open position, the table is rotated from the closed position and allows the user to leave the chair without obstruction.
For these reasons, the swing away table of the present invention has several objects. One object is to provide a table that can be placed adjacent to a chair and yet allow for easy access to the chair by a user. Another object of the preset invention is to provide a tabletop that swings from a closed position to an open position thus allowing access to a chair. Another object of the present invention is to provide a swing away table that has a secure base that prevents the table from tipping over when the tabletop is swung from one position to another.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Further, the purpose of the foregoing abstract is to enable the United States Patent and Trademark Office and the public generally, and especially the scientists, engineers, and practitioners in the art who are not familiar with patent or legal terms or phraseology, to determine quickly from a cursory inspection the nature and essence of the technical disclosure of the application. The abstract is neither intended to define the invention of the application, which is measure by the claims, nor is it intended to be limiting as to the scope of the invention in any way.
These and other objects are accomplished by the swing away table of the present invention. The swing away table of the invention is designed to be used typically in conjunction with a chair. The tabletop of the swing away table swings away from the chair so that a person can sit in the chair, and then the tabletop swings closer to the chair, so the person in the chair can be closer to the tabletop. The swing away table includes a base unit, a pole, and a tabletop. The base unit is a weighted base which can take any number of forms. It basically provides a weighted attachment point for the pole and the tabletop. The base unit can include a portion which is designed to be placed under a chair or table leg, which would add stability to the swing away table. The base unit can be generally flat, or have some height, as shown in the drawings. The base unit includes a pole attachment means, by which a pole is attached to the base unit. The pole attachment means can be a threaded connection, a friction fit, a quick release fitting of various configurations, or any other conventional means of attachment.
Attached to the base unit is a pole which is generally vertical, and attaches to the pole attachment means of the base unit. The pole includes a base unit attachment means, at a first end, and a tabletop attachment means at a second end. The base unit attachment means and the tabletop attachment means can be threaded connections, either male or female, or friction fit connections, a number of quick disconnect connections or other conventional means of connecting pieces.
One way to connect the tabletop to the pole is by the use of an attachment pin, the attachment pin passes through a hole in the tabletop, and screws or attaches to the top of the pole. The attachment pin can have a portion which extends above the tabletop which forms a gripping handle, which is available for the user to move the swing away table from place to place. The gripping handle can be in the form of a circle, ellipse, or a T or D or other conventional handle shape.
A significant feature of the swing away table is that the tabletop is configured to swing away relative to the base unit. This allows the tabletop to be swung away when a person sits in a chair adjacent to the swing away table. Once seated, the tabletop can be manually swung towards the user seated in the chair. In order to allow the tabletop to swing away in relation to the base unit, the tabletop may be configured to rotate in relation to the pole. In another configuration, both the pole and tabletop could rotate in relation to the base unit. In either configuration, the tabletop is rotatable in relation to the base unit.
Still other objects and advantages of the present invention will become readily apparent to those skilled in this art from the following detailed description wherein I have shown and described only the preferred embodiment of the invention, simply by way of illustration of the best mode contemplated by carrying out my invention. As will be realized, the invention is capable of modification in various obvious respects all without departing from the invention. Accordingly, the drawings and description of the preferred embodiment are to be regarded as illustrative in nature, and not as restrictive in nature.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the swing away table.
FIG. 2 is an exploded cross-sectional view of the swing away table.
FIG. 3 is a front view of the swing away table in use with a chair.
FIG. 4 is a planar view of the swing away table showing the closed and open positions.
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the swing away table.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

While the invention is susceptible of various modifications and alternative constructions, certain illustrated embodiments thereof have been shown in the drawings and will be described below in detail. It should be understood, however, that there is no intention to limit the invention to the specific form disclosed, but, on the contrary, the invention is to cover all modifications, alternative constructions, and equivalents falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the claims.
Several preferred embodiments of the invention are shown in FIGS. 1-5. FIG. 1 shows one embodiment of the swing away table of the invention. It includes a base unit 12, a pole 14, and a tabletop 16. The preferred embodiment shown in FIG. 1 also includes an attachment pin 18. The attachment pin 18 includes a portion that extends through the tabletop 16 and into the pole 14. It also includes a gripping handle 20. Although FIG. 1 shows an attachment pin 18 which passes through the tabletop 16 to attach to the pole 14, the tabletop 16 could attach to the pole 14 in a number of different ways, which are well known to workers in the furniture field.
FIG. 2 shows an exploded cross-sectional view of this embodiment of the swingaway table. The components of the device can be made of various materials and in various sizes and configurations. All such variations would still be within the concept of the swing away table as defined by the claims. For instance, the base unit 12 could be as shown in FIG. 1, but it could also include a planar extension that can extend under a table. The planar extension 22 is shown in FIG. 3, and would provide additional stability to a swing away table of the invention.
FIG. 4 shows an essential function of the swing away table 10. The swing away table 10, in all of its various embodiments of tabletop shape and base unit configuration, each have the characteristic of being moveable from a closed position 24 to an open position 26 to allow the table to be swung away from a chair to allow a user to enter or exit the chair. Various shapes and sizes of tabletop 16 could be utilized with the invention, and still fall within the claims of the invention. For instance, a generally rectangular tabletop 16 would function as well as those shapes shown, as would a generally ellipsoid shape, or a generally triangular shape. FIGS. 3 and 4 show a feature of one embodiment of the invention, which is a planar extension 22, which would be placed under the leg of the table, couch, or chair, and would add additional stability to the swing away table of the invention.
FIG. 5 shows a different configuration of the base unit 12, which provides more stability. Obviously, various shapes and configurations of the base unit could be utilized, and all would be within the claims of the invention.
While there is shown and described the present preferred embodiment of the invention, it is to be distinctly understood that this invention is not limited thereto but may be variously embodied to practice within the scope of the following claims.
From the foregoing description, it will be apparent that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the following claims.

Claims

1. A swing away table for use by a user in conjunction with a chair, comprising:

a base unit, for providing a stable support for the components of the swing away table, said base unit comprising a pole attachment means;

a pole, for generally normal and generally vertical attachment to said base unit and said pole attachment means, with said pole further including a base unit attachment means, and a tabletop attachment means;

a tabletop, for generally normal and generally horizontal and rotatable attachment to said pole, which includes a pole securing means; and

wherein said tabletop is configured to rotate on said pole so that if said tabletop is positioned adjacent said chair, said tabletop may be swung away from said chair to improve access by said user to said chair, and may be swing toward said chair when said user is seated in said chair.

2. The swing away table of claim 1 which further includes an attachment pin, which is configured to attach to said pole through said tabletop, and when so attached, to partially extend above said tabletop to provide a gripping handle for use by said user to move said swing away table.

3. The swing away table of claim 1 in which said base unit serves as a counterweight to said tabletop.

4. The swing away table of claim 1 in which said base unit further comprises a an extension plate which is configured to be placed under a weight such as a chair, to provide additional stability to said swing away table.

5. The swing away table of claim 1 in which said base unit and said pole remain stationary and said tabletop is rotatable around said pole.

6. The swing away table of claim 1 in which said base unit remains stationary, and said pole and said tabletop are rotatable around said base unit.

7. The swing away table of claim 1 in which said tabletop is a polyhedral.

8. The swing away table of claim 1 in which said tabletop is ellipsoidal.

9. The swing away table of claim 1 in which said base is generally planar and ellipsoidal.

10. The swing away table of claim 1 in which said base is a generally planar polyhedral.

11. The swing away table of claim 1 which further includes a gusset between said base and said pole.

12. The swing away table of claim 1 in which said gripping handle is generally ellipsoidal.

14. The swing away table of claim 1 in which said pole attachment means is a threaded recess defined by said base.

15. The swing away table of claim 1 in which said pole attachment means is a threaded projection from said base.

16. The swing away table of claim 1 in which said base unit is oriented generally horizontally.

17. The swing away table of claim 1 in which said base unit attachment means is a threaded projection from said pole.

18. The swing away table of claim 1 in which said base unit attachment means is a threaded recess defined in said pole.

19. The swing away table of claim 1 in which said tabletop attachment means is a threaded projection from said pole.

20. The swing away table of claim 1 in which said tabletop attachment means is a threaded recess defined in said pole.