US20060131805A1

US20060131805A1 - Foldable casino table

Info

Publication number: US20060131805A1
Application number: US11/019,762
Authority: US
Inventors: Peter Tsai
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2004-12-21
Filing date: 2004-12-21
Publication date: 2006-06-22

Abstract

Disclosed is a foldable casino table composed of symmetrical first half and second half, together forming an octagonal table top with eight corners and a breadth of 48 inches, at least one pair of latch means being installed on the underside of the table, two pairs of transversal joists being fixed on the underside, and a pair of table stands, where the top ends of each table stand are pivotally jointed with a pair of transversal joists, and the two table stands are cross linked with each other through a pivot axis. The present design allows the casino table to be folded in half, and the casino table even folded in slim form can be free standing, which makes it convenient to transport and store the casino table.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a foldable casino table, and in particular to a sports casino table that can be folded for easy transport and storage.
2. The Related Art
The conventional family type casino table has eight corners, with a breadth of 48 inches and a height of 31 inches. The casino table is usually made of wood and constructed with bolts and nuts. Although this type of casino table is perfect for poker and other card games, it is usually not designed for knock down, so it will become a dust collector around the house in the end.
For the younger families that place strong emphasis on physical and economic efficiency, they prefer to create a home environment fit for modern living and with more efficient use of limited space, so they would enjoy poker or casino game at a friend's house or in a casino rather than putting one rigid casino table in their homes, but for more serious game lovers, perhaps, a foldable casino table could be a practical solution.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a foldable casino table composing of two symmetrical halves that can be quickly set up with an octagonal table top, and using an innovative structural design that enables the casino table even folded in slim form to be free standing, so the foldable casino table can be conveniently packed away for transport or storage.
To this end, the foldable casino table is composed of two halves, with the longest side adjacent to each other and spanning symmetrically on two halves, together forming an octagonal table top with breadth of 48 inches, that means the distance between any pair of opposite edges is in the range 47-49 inches, and having at least one pair of latch means installed on the underside of the table; two pairs of transversal joists, one pair on each half, being fixed on the underside; and a pair of table stands, one on each half, each pivotally jointed with a pair of transversal joists on the same half and themselves also being cross linked through a pivot axis.
The present invention is characterized in that the octagonal table top is provided with multiple trays on the peripheral convenient for holding beverages or chips when multiple persons are playing on the casino table.
The present invention is also characterized in that the first half has two lock pins on two ends of the longest side, and the second half also has two pin holes on two ends of the longest side, which are to be alternately fitted with complementary pin holes and lock pins on opposite halves, so as to have the two halves properly aligned when the table is spanned.
The present invention is characterized in that two latch means, each composing of a hold plate, a rotary dial and a latch, are installed on the underside of the table, where one hold plate and one latch are separately arranged along the longest side of the first half, and one hold plate and one latch are also separately arranged along the longest side of the second half, but the positions of the hold plate and the rotary dial on the second half are interchanged, so that two halves can only be fitted in a certain way to have the pair of latch means properly aligned.
The present invention is also characterized in that when the table is being spanned, the rotary dial of the latch means is rotated in clockwise direction to place the latch in the “ON” position, so that the latch and the hold plate can be locked. When the casino table is being folded, the rotary dial is rotated counter-clockwise to retract the latch from the other half until it is in the “OFF” position, so that the latch can be returned to the original position on own half.
The present invention is also characterized in that two identical first transversal joists are fixed underneath the first half, and two identical second transversal joists are fixed underneath the second half, so that one end of each transversal joist can be used to support the weight of own half, and another end of the transversal joist to support the weight of the other half when the table is spanned. The two ends of the extended portion of each pair of transversal joists are pivotally jointed with two top ends of one table stand. Besides, the pair of second transversal joists is interconnected with a linker rod on the extended portion to improve the structural rigidity, which also serves as a handle bar for hand carrying when the casino table is folded up.
The present invention is also characterized in that the pair of table stands are each pivotally jointed with a pair of transversal joists on the same half, and are cross linked with each other through a pivot axis. This design allows the casino table to be easily set up with simple steps and easily packed away for storage with a small size.
Further, the bottom part of the each table stands is reinforced by two cross bars between two legs to improve the structural rigidity, and the bottom end of each table stand is slightly bent outward to improve the overall structure balance and to allow the casino table even folded in slim form to be free standing.
The present invention will become more obvious from the following description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, which show, for purposes of illustration only, a preferred embodiment in accordance with the present invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the foldable casino table in accordance with the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the structure of the foldable casino table;
FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C show a sequence of steps to operate the latch means in order to fasten two halves of the table;
FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the casino table folded in slim form;
FIG. 5 shows the first stage of assembling the casino table in accordance with the invention; and
FIG. 6 shows the second stage to complete the assembly of the casino table.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, an octagonal table top comprises symmetrical first half 1 and second half 2, with the longest side adjacent to each other, two identical first transversal joist 3 and second transversal joist 4 being fixed on the underside of two halves respectively; a first table stand 5 and a second table stand 6 being connected with the two pairs of transversal joists respectively, and themselves being cross linked through another pivot axis.
The shapes of the first half 1 and the second half 2 are symmetrical, together form an octagonal table top with eight corners and breadth of 48 inches, that means the distance between any pair of two opposite sides is within the range 47-49 inches. The surface of the table top is provided with multiple trays, including a first type 11 and a second type 21, around the periphery for holding beverages or chips. The first half 1 has two lock pins 12 on two ends of the longest side, and the second half 2 has two pin holes 22 on two ends of the longest side, which are alternately fitted with complementary pin holes and lock pins on opposite halves to be properly aligned when table is spanned.
The latch means 7 is a unique mechanical design, comprising a rotary dial 73, a latch 71 and an hold plate 72, which is installed on the underside of the table. One latch 71 and one hold plate 72 are installed underneath the first half 1 physically separated, and one latch 71 and one hold plate 72 are also installed underneath the second half 2 physically separated, but the positions of the latch 71 and the hold plate 72 on the other half 2 are interchanged, so that the two halves 1, 2 can only be fitted only in a certain way to have the pair of latch means 7 properly lined up, that means the latch 71 installed on the first half 1 is to be fitted with corresponding hold plate 72 on the second half 2, and the latch 71 installed on the second half 2 is to be fitted with corresponding hold plate 72 on the first half 1.
When the table is being spanned, the rotary dial 73 of the latch means 7 is rotated 90 degrees in the clockwise direction to place the latch 71 over the hold plate 72 on the other half 2, and then the rotary dial 73 is further rotated another 90 degrees clockwise to the “ON” position, so that the latch 71 and the hold plate 72 are locked. When the casino table is being folded, the rotary dial 73 is first rotated 90 degrees counter-clockwise to free the latch 71 and the hold plate 72, and then the rotary dial 73 is further rotated another 90 degrees counter-clockwise to the “OFF” position, so that the latch 71 is returned to the original position on own half 1.
Two identical first transversal joists 3 are fixed underneath the first half 1, and two identical second transversal joists 4 are also fixed underneath the second half 2. The pair of first transversal joists 3 are disposed in parallel, apart from each other and almost half way over the longest side, and the second transversal joists 4 are arranged in parallel, closer to each other and more inward on own half, so that one end of each transversal joist 3 is used to support the weight of own half, and another end of the transversal joist 3 is to support the weight of the other half when the table is spanned. The two identical second transversal joists 4 are interconnected with a linker rod 41, on the extended portion, to further improve the structural rigidity. The linker rod 41 also serves as a handle bar for hand carrying when the casino table is folded.
The two ends of the extended portion of the pair of first transversal joists 3 are pivotally jointed with the top ends of the first table stand 5, and the two ends of the extended portion of the pair of second transversal joists 4 are pivotally jointed with the top ends of the second table stand 6. These two table stands 5, 6 are also cross linked through a pivot axis.
The details of setting up the foldable casino table includes the steps of: (1) stretching out two halves of the table toward each other so that the two halves are lined up along a horizontal straight line as shown in FIG. 5; (2) stretching out the table stands 5, 6 to support the weight of the table; (3) pushing in the two halves 1,2 with the longest sides facing each other, so that the extended portions of two transversal joists 3,4 are alternately overlaid by the other halves; (4) inserting the lock pins 12 of the first half 1 into the pin holes 22 of the second half 2; and (5) lastly fastening the pair of latch means 7 underneath the table.
The bottom end of the table stand is bent slightly outward, so that the casino table even folded in slim form can be free standing as shown in FIG. 4. This design also improves the overall structure balance when the table is spanned. The bottom part of each table stand 5/6 is reinforced by a pair of cross bars 51/61 between two legs to improve the structural rigidity.
The present invention makes use of the pivot design to allow the casino table to be folded in two stages: firstly, unlocking the latch means and folding down the two halves; and secondly, folding the two table stands into slim form as shown in FIG. 4. Conversely, the casino table can also be set up in two stages: firstly, stretching out the two halves 1, 2 on a horizontal straight line as shown in FIG. 5; and secondly, spanning the two table stands 5, 6 and locking the pair of latch means to secure the overall structure as shown in FIG. 6. The main advantages of the present invention are that the casino table can be easily packed away with a small size, and that the casino table even folded in slim form can be free standing.
Although the present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments thereof, it is apparent to those skilled in the art that a variety of modifications and changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention which is intended to be defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A foldable casino table, comprising

first and second halves, symmetrical and with the longest side adjacent to each other, together forming an octagonal table top with eight corners and breadth of 48 inches, which means the distance between any pair of two opposite sides on the spanned table is within the range 47-49 inches, and the underside of the table top is installed with at least one pair of latch means;

two identical first transversal joists being fixed underneath the first half, and two identical second transversal joists being fixed underneath the second half, where one end is of each transversal joist is fixed underneath own half and another end extends outward to support the weight of the other half when the table is spanned; and

two table stands each having two top ends pivotally connected with the ends of the extended portion of the transversal joists, and the two table stands are cross linked through a pivot axis.

2. The foldable casino table as claimed in claim 1, wherein the distance between two opposite sides of the octagonal table after spanning is 48 inches.

3. The foldable casino table as claimed in claim 1, wherein the two identical first transversal joists being fixed underneath one half are disposed in parallel, apart from each other and almost half way over the longest side, and the two identical second transversal joists being fixed underneath the other half are also arranged in parallel, closer to each other and more inward on own half, so that one end of each transversal joist is used to support the weight of own half and another end is to support the weight of the other half after the table is spanned.

4. The foldable casino table as claimed in claim 1, wherein the pair of second transversal joists is interconnected by a linker rod on the extended portion.

5. The foldable casino table as claimed in claim 1, wherein the legs of the first and second table stands are slightly bent outward on the bottom part.

6. The foldable casino table as claimed in claim 1, wherein the table stands are each reinforced by two cross bars on the bottom between two legs to improve the structural rigidity.

7. The foldable casino table as claimed in claim 1, wherein the surfaces of the first and second halves are formed with multiple trays on the periphery for holding beverages and chips.

8. The foldable casino table as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first half has two lock pins formed on two ends of the longest side, and the second half has two pin holes formed on two ends of the longest side, which are to be fitted with complementary pin holes and lock pins on opposite halves when the table is spanned.