Adjustable folding board

Abstract

One aspect of the invention relates to a folding board (2) comprising: a rectangular central plate (20) having two lateral edges and two transverse edges; two lateral plates (21, 22) hinged on each lateral side of the central plate (20); and an intermediate plate (23) hinged to the central plate (20), between the two lateral plates (21, 22) and perpendicularly to said plates, characterized in that the central plate (20) and the intermediate plate (23) are adjustable in width. Since both the intermediate plate and the central plate are adjustable in width, the result is a board that is fully adapted to the chosen size.

Description

DESCRIPTION TITLE: ADJUSTABLE FOLDING BOARD TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The technical field of the invention is that of folding boards used to easily fold clothes evenly.

[0002] The present invention relates in particular to a folding board which can be used in stores to fold clothes of different sizes. TECHNOLOGICAL BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0003] For folding clothes, such as t-shirts or shirts, there are folding boards that allow for quick and consistent folding in stores. As shown in Figure 1, these boards are generally made up of four hinged elements: a central element 10, two lateral elements 11 and 12 on either side of the central element 10, and a fourth intermediate element 13 located at the lower end of the central element 10 or on one of its faces. The two lateral elements 11 and 12 are hinged on either side of the central element 10 by lateral joints 100, and the intermediate element 13 by a lower joint 101. To fold a garment placed on the board 10, you first fold one side by tilting the first lateral element 11, then unfold it, and fold the other side by tilting the second lateral element 12, then unfold it.To finalize the folding, the intermediate element 13 is folded upwards onto the central element 10 and then it is reopened to retrieve the folded garment.

[0004] However, these boards do not easily allow for obtaining several distinct folding widths. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0005] The invention offers a solution to the problems mentioned above, by allowing the folding board to be modified to obtain different fold widths.

[0006] The invention relates to a folding board comprising a rectangular central plate with two lateral edges and two transverse edges, two lateral plates hinged to each side of the central plate, and an intermediate plate hinged to the central plate between the two lateral plates and perpendicular to them. The board is characterized in that the central plate and the intermediate plate are adjustable in width. Since both the intermediate plate and the central plate are adjustable in width, the board is perfectly adapted to the chosen size.

[0007] Advantageously, the central plate comprises a first part into which a second part slides laterally. The first part has at least two notches of identical size, while the second part has a tab the same size as the notches. This tab is inserted into one of the notches depending on the desired width of the central plate. The tab is elastic, and by inserting it into one of the notches, the width of the central plate can be adjusted. Two, three, or more notches can be used depending on the number of sizes required. For example, three notches would provide folding widths of 20 cm, 25 cm, and 33 cm.

[0008] Advantageously, the intermediate plate comprises a first part into which a second part slides laterally. The first part is fixed to the first part of the central plate. The first part has at least two notches of identical size, and the second part has a tab the size of the notches. This tab is inserted into one of the notches according to the desired width of the intermediate plate. Similar to the central plate, the intermediate plate is adjusted by inserting a spring tab into a notch. The number of notches on the intermediate plate is preferably the same as the number of notches on the central plate, and the dimensions are identical.

[0009] Advantageously, a size is indicated opposite each notch. To facilitate adjusting the board width, a width indication is marked on the first part of the central plate and / or the intermediate plate containing the notches.

[0010] Advantageously, the first part of the central plate includes two rails on each of its transverse sides in which the second part of the central plate slides. These two rails facilitate the sliding of the second part of the central plate on the first part and prevent any misalignment.

[0011] According to one embodiment, the rails are each formed by a flap of the first part of the central plate.

[0012] Advantageously, the first part of the intermediate plate includes two rails on each of its transverse sides in which the second part of the intermediate plate slides. As with the central plate, these rails allow the second part of the intermediate plate to slide along the first part of the intermediate plate.

[0013] According to one embodiment, the rails are each formed by a flap of the first part of the intermediate plate.

[0014] Advantageously, the first part of the intermediate plate includes gripping means. These gripping means can, for example, be an extension of the first part of the intermediate plate to allow it to be folded down onto the central plate and reopened.

[0015] Advantageously, the first part of the intermediate plate includes a lateral cutout. This cutout allows the second part of the intermediate plate to be gripped and pulled to extend the intermediate plate.

[0016] The invention and its various applications will be better understood by reading the following description and examining the accompanying figures. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

[0017] The figures are presented as an example and in no way limit the invention.

[0018] [Fig. 1] is a state-of-the-art folding board.

[0019] [Fig. 2] is a perspective view of a folding board according to the invention in a first compressed position.

[0020] [Fig. 3] is a perspective view of the board in figure 2 in a second fully deployed position.

[0021] [Fig. 4] is a perspective view of two parts of the central plate.

[0022] [Fig. 5] is a top view of the board in Figure 2 in the first position, with the intermediate plate unfolded.

[0023] [Fig. 6] is a top view of the board in Figure 2 in the first position, the intermediate plate being folded.

[0024] [Fig. 7] is a top view of the board in Figure 2, the central plate being deployed.

[0025] [Fig. 8] is a top view of the board in Figure 2, with the central plate deployed and the intermediate plate being deployed.

[0026] [Fig. 9] is a top view of the board in figure 2, in the second position. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0027] Unless otherwise specified, the same element appearing on different figures has a unique reference.

[0028] In this description, the upper part of Figures 1, 4 to 8 will be referred to as "top," and the lower part of these same figures as "bottom." The sides parallel to the connection between the central plate and the lateral plates will be referred to as "lateral," and the sides perpendicular to the lateral sides will be referred to as "transverse." Similarly, the upper part will correspond to the part in front of the figures, and the rear part to the part behind them.

[0029] As can be seen in Figure 2, the folding board 2 according to the invention comprises a central plate 20 connected on each side to a side plate 21 and 22 by a hinge 210 and 220 respectively. In this example, the central plate 20 and the side plates 21 and 22 are of the same length, but the central plate 20 could be shorter, as for example in Figure 1, without going out of the scope of the present invention.

[0030] An intermediate plate 23 is fixed transversely to the central plate 20, approximately in the middle, in a hinged manner to allow the intermediate plate 23 to pivot between a lower, unfolded position and a higher, folded position. The intermediate plate 23 is connected to the central plate 20 by a hinge 230.

[0031] Figure 3 shows that the intermediate plate 23 is composed of two parts: an upper part 23a and a lower part 23b. The second part 23b slides in two rails 233 located on the two transverse edges of the first part 23a.

[0032] As can be seen in Figure 2, the first part 23a of the intermediate plate 23 includes several notches 232 (here three) corresponding to several widths of said plate 23. The second part 23b includes a tab 234 (see Figure 3) which is intended to fit into one of the notches 232. An index corresponding to the size 236 is indicated below each notch 232.

[0033] To facilitate the sliding movement of the second part 23b in the rails 232 of the first part 23a, a lateral cutout 235 is provided on the first part 23a. Gripping means 231, here in the form of a protrusion, are arranged on the first part 23a opposite the hinge 230.

[0034] Figure 4 shows that the central plate 20 is composed of two parts: an upper part 20a and a lower part 20b. The second part 20b slides in two rails 203 arranged on the two transverse edges of the first part 20a. These rails 203 have a flap on their transverse edges.

[0035] The first part 20a includes notches 200 (here three) which cooperate with a tab 201 placed on the second part 20b. An index corresponding to the size 204 is indicated below each notch 200.

[0036] We will now describe how folding board 2 works. To fold a garment with a folding board, you start by placing the garment on board 2, with the right side facing down. Then, you fold and unfold the two side plates 21 and 22 successively, which allows you to fold both sides of the garment. Next, you fold the middle plate 23 up over the middle plate 20 using the gripping means 231 to complete the fold. You then reposition the middle plate 23 downwards and you can retrieve the folded garment.

[0037] When using the board according to the invention, if the user wants to change from a smaller to a larger size, they must first adjust the width of the folding board 2 according to the size of the garment to be folded. If the garment is small, the folding board 2 is adjusted with the tabs 201 and 234 respectively in the notches 200 and 232 corresponding to the smaller size, as illustrated in Figure 5.

[0038] To enlarge the board 2, the user must first position the intermediate plate 23 towards the top of the central plate 20 in order to access the notches 200 of the central plate 20 (see Figure 6). They must then press the tab 201 of the second part 20b of the central plate 20 to release it from the notch 200 and pull on one of the side plates (in Figure 7, the side plate 22) to the desired width corresponding to one of the other notches 200.

[0039] Once the central plate 20 is widened, the intermediate plate 23 can be folded down, thus providing access to the notches 232 in the intermediate plate 23 (see Figure 8). As with the central plate 20, the user must first release the tab 234 from its notch 232 in order to pull out the second part 23b of the intermediate plate 23 by grasping it in the cutout 235 of the first part 23a and positioning the tab 234 in the corresponding notch of the same size as for the central plate 20 (see Figure 9).

[0040] To change the size of folding board 2, to reduce it we proceed in reverse.

Claims

7 DEMANDS

1. Folding board (2) comprising a rectangular central plate (20) with two lateral edges and two transverse edges, two lateral plates (21, 22) hinged to each lateral side of the central plate (20) and an intermediate plate (23) hinged to the central plate (20) between the two lateral plates (21, 22) and perpendicular to them, characterized in that the central plate (20) comprises a first part (20a) in which a second part (20b) slides laterally, the first part (20a) comprising at least two notches (200) of identical size, the second part (20b) comprising a tab (201) of the size of the notches (200), the tab (201) being inserted into one of the notches (201) according to the desired width of the central plate (20), and the intermediate plate (23) are adjustable in width.

2. Folding board (2) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the intermediate plate (23) comprises a first part (23a) in which a second part (23b) slides laterally, the first part (23a) being fixed on the first part (20a) of the central plate (20), the first part (23a) comprising at least two notches (232) of identical size, the second part (23b) comprising a tab (234) of the size of the notches (232), the tab (234) being inserted into one of the notches (232) according to the desired width of the intermediate plate (23).

3. Folding board (2) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that a size (204, 236) is indicated opposite each notch.

4. Folding board (2) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the first part (20a) of the central plate (20) comprises two rails (203) on each of its transverse sides in which the second part (20b) of the central plate (20) slides.

5. Folding board (2) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the rails (203) are each formed by a flap of the first part (20a) of the central plate (20).

6. A folding board (2) according to any one of claims 2 to 5, characterized in that the first part (23a) of the intermediate plate (23) comprises two rails (233) on each of its transverse sides in which the second part (23b) of the intermediate plate (23) slides.

7. A folding board (2) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the rails (233) are each formed by a flap of the first part (23a) of the intermediate plate (23).

8. Folding board (2) according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the first part (23a) of the intermediate plate comprises gripping means (231).

9. Folding board (2) according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the first part (23a) of the intermediate plate (23) includes a lateral cutout (235).

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