Ironing board

Abstract

A kit of parts for constructing a collapsible ironing board includes two sub-assemblies 30, 31, for combining. The kit has a first assembly 30 comprising a leg formation 32 with a foot formation 34 a

Description

The present invention relates to an ironing board. Conventional ironing boards typically comprise a one piece board, tapered at one end, to which is attached a pair of collapsible leg formations that permit the ironing board to be converted from a collapsed state, suitable for storage, to a deployed state, suitable for ironing. The two leg formations are pivotally attached to one another about half way down their respective lengths. An end of one leg formation is pivotally mounted to the underside of the board at a fixed position, towards one end of the board. An end of the other, second leg formation is slidably and pivotally mounted towards the opposite end of the underside of the board so that the mounted end can slide from the opposite end of the board towards the position at which the other leg formations is pivotally mounted. Means are provided to lock the pivotally mounted slidable end of the second leg formation in selected positions along the board. That slidable mounting enables the leg formations of the board to be folded together and towards the underside of the board to facilitate storage of the board and, when the board is in use, the height of the board to be adjusted. One well established means for locking the slidable pivot in a selected position comprises an elongate lock bar that is attached to and moves in unison with the slidable end of the second leg formation and the other, distal, end of the bar extends through a pivotally mounted lock plate. The lock plate is secured to a pivotally mounted rod that extends transversely relative to the length of the board and is pivotable by means of an operating lever positioned substantially adjacent to one side of the length of the board. The transversely mounted rod typically extends through at least one track of a pair of guide tracks that enable an end of the second leg formation to slide relative to the length of the board for adjustment of height position. Distal ends of the leg formations typically are provided with ferrules or other such non-slip feet for resting on a support surface. However, a problem with said conventional ironing boards is that, in the collapsed state, a leg formation at at least one end of the board extends significantly beyond the end of the board. In consequence the length of the collapsed ironing board exceeds that of the board and that extra length presents a disadvantage particularly in respect of space and cost of transportation for delivery to a retail outlet or end user and also warehousing space required for storage. The present invention seeks to provide a method of and apparatus for assisting in minimising the extent to which, prior to transportation, a leg formation extends beyond the end of a board. The present invention provides a kit of parts for an ironing board and method of constructing an ironing board. In accordance with one aspect of the present invention there is provided a kit of parts for constructing a collapsible ironing board, said kit comprising two sub-assemblies for combining together to construct the ironing board, said kit comprising a first assembly comprising a leg formation provided at a first end region with a foot formation and at a second end region a support bar which extends transversely relative to the length of the leg formation, said support bar having secured thereto or being securable to a lock bar for use in retaining the assembled ironing board in an erected position, the second assembly comprising a second leg formation pivotally secured at a fixed position to an elongate body section which comprises a support board that defines a support surface for an item being ironed, the body section further comprising a track along which the support bar is slidable in the direction of the length of the body section and a tiltable lock plate which defines an aperture through which the lock bar of the first assembly is slidable and securable as a function of position of the tiltable lock plate. Preferably the first assembly comprises the lock bar pre-secured to the support bar. Preferably the length of the first assembly is no greater than the length of said support board. The length of the first assembly may be less than the length of the second assembly. The length of the second leg formation may be less than the length of the support board. Preferably the length of the first assembly is no greater than the distance between a foot formation of the second leg formation and a distal end of the support board when the second leg formation is positioned to lie alongside the support board. Preferably the kit further comprises connection means such as a fixing bar and a retainer such as a clip for pivotally securing the two leg formations relative to one another. The two leg formations preferably are each pre-formed with an aperture, the two apertures being orientated such that they may be aligned to enable a fixing bar or other such connection means to extend through the aligned apertures and to provide a pivotal interconnection of the leg formations of the first and second assemblies. The fixing bar may comprise at one end a head formation in use for bearing against one of the leg formations and the other end of the fixing bar may define a retention formation adapted to cooperate with a retainer whereby, in use, the two leg formations may be retained between the head formation and the retainer. Said other end of the fixing bar may define an aperture that extends transversely relative to the length of the fixing bar to receive a retainer such as a spring clip whereby the spring clip or other such retainer may bear against the other of the two leg formations. Alternatively the fixing bar may define a circumferentially extending recess into which a spring clip may be located to bear against the other of the two leg formations in the final assembly. Accordingly the recess may define a shoulder surface against which a spring clip or other such retainer may bear, the clip then being sandwiched between the other of the two leg formations and said shoulder surface. To assist ease of assembly and stability, the lock plate may be provided at a position between a lock plate operating lever and the two legs as considered across the width of the board. In accordance with a second aspect of the present invention a method of assembling components of an ironing board from a kit of parts in accordance with the invention comprises securing the lock bar to the support bar if not already secured thereto, feeding the distal end of the lock bar through the aperture of the tiltable lock plate and subsequently bringing the support bar into engagement with the body section track, the method further comprising pivotably securing together the leg formations of the first and second assemblies. Preferably the first and second leg formations are pivotally secured together subsequent to bringing the support bar of the first assembly into engagement with the body section track for sliding movement under the guidance provided by the body section track. An embodiment of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which :- Figure 1 is a plan view of the first and second assemblies of a kit of parts in accordance with the present invention; Figure 2 shows the height lock bar being brought into engagement with the aperture of the height lock plate 27, with the support bar poised for engagement with the track guide rails; Figure 3 shows the support bar in engagement with the track guide rails; Figure 4 shows a fixing bar 45 of circular cross-section being introduced into aligned apertures of the leg formations 32, 46; Figure 5 shows a spring clip 47 poised for securing into position between the leg formation 46 and a shoulder (not shown) of a circumferentially extending groove at one end 48 of the fixing bar; Figure 6a shows the pivotally interconnected leg formations in a first direction; Figure 6b shows the pivotally interconnected leg formations in a second direction substantially opposite that of Figure 6a; Figure 7 is a longitudinal view of an apertured pivot pin; Figure 8 is a view of a spring clip for use with the pin of Figure 7, and Figure 9 is a longitudinal cross section of an alternative pivot pin for use with the spring clip of Figure 8. Figure 1 shows the first sub-assembly 30 and the second sub-assembly 31. The first sub-assembly 30 comprises an elongate tubular leg 32 provided at one end with a curved foot bar 33 the ends of which are provided with ferrules 34 to act as foot formations. The other end 35 of the leg 32 is provided with a transversely extending support bar in the form of a cross bar 36 the ends of which support rotatable rollers 37 which are engagable with the pair of C section tracks 40 of the second assembly. The first sub-assembly additionally comprises the height lock bar 38 that is pivotally secured to the transverse cross bar 36. The second sub-assembly 31 comprises a perforated type support board 41 of conventional construction and provided with a pair of track guide rails 40 for guiding movement of the transversely extending cross bar 36 of the elongate tubular leg 32 of the first assembly 30. The second sub-assembly additionally comprises a second elongate tubular leg 46 provided at one end with a curved foot bar 43 the distal ends of which are provided with ferrules 34 to act as foot formations. In this embodiment the second elongate tubular leg has a length substantially equal to the length of the support board. In the collapsed orientation the curved foot bar 43lies beyond the end of the support board but in an alternative embodiment may lie within the length of the support board. Additionally, in conventional manner, the second sub-assembly comprises a lock plate 27 secured to a lock plate bar 26 that extends transversely relative to the length of the board and is pivotally supported by apertures in the guide rails 40. The lock plate defines an aperture through which the height lock bar 38 extends. The lock plate bar 26 is rotatable whereby the lock plate 27 may be moved between a position at which it engages the height lock bar 38 to prevent movement of the height lock bar and a position at which the height lock bar is free to move relative to the lock plate. The lock plate bar 26 is rotatable by means of a lever arm 28 positioned substantially adjacent to one side of the length of the board. The lever arm may be spring biased, for example inherently to tend to bias the lock plate into engagement with the heights lock bar. Alternatively, for example, the lever arm may be associated with an over-centre type formation whereby it may reside selectively in either a position at which the lack plate allows free movement there through of the height lock bar or a position at which it locks the height lock bar against movement. Typically the lock plate is positioned close to that of the two guide tracks which is furthest from that end which is connected to an operating lever. However, as best seen in Figure 3, in this embodiment of the invention the lock plate 27 is provided at a position between the lever arm 28 and the two legs 32, 46 as considered across the width of the board. To assemble the ironing board the height lock bar 38 is first threaded through the aperture of the lock plate 27 by means of which the position of the leg 32 can be controlled to adjust the height of the erected ironing board. The rollers 37 are then slid into the track guide rails 40 as shown in Figures 2 and 3. A fixing bar 45 in the form of a pivot pin is then slid through the aligned apertures of the legs 32, 46 as shown in Figure 4. The pivot pin is then held in place by means of a spring clip 24 as shown in Figures 5, 6a and 6b. The pivot pin 45 (see Figure 7) comprises at one end a head formation 21 that in the final assembly bears against one 46 of the leg formations (see Figure 6b). The other end of the pivot pin defines an aperture 47 that extends transversely relative to the length of the pivot pin to receive the straight limb section 49 of the spring clip 24 whereby the spring clip may bear against the other 32 of the two leg formations (see Figure 6a). In an alternative construction the other end of the pivot bar may define a circumferentially extending recess 22 which provides a shoulder surface 23 against which the curved limb section 50 of the spring clip may bear, the clip then being sandwiched between the other 32 of the two leg formations and the shoulder surface 23. Providing the two sub-assemblies for on site assembly by a consumer minimises the cost of transport to the consumer, notwithstanding that when assembled the ironing board may have an overall length greater than that of either of the sub-assemblies. VM20DE4

Images