Patent Application
20050236343
The present invention relates in general to an apparatus for storing and displaying compact disk (CD), and more particular, to a rotatable CD storage tower which is not only easy to transport, store, and assemble but also facilitate the selecting of any CD from the storage tower. Because the CD storage tower is easy to turn and the front cover of each CD stored on the tower is sufficiently displayed, the CD storage tower is convenient for use.
Most of the CD storage racks on the present market are integrally formed. They cannot be disassembled and, therefore, increase the cost of transportation, storage, and circulation. Moreover, these CD storage racks cannot rotate. It is inconvenient for selecting CD.
Furthermore, CDs are stacked up together in a rack or inserted into preformed slots. The covers of CDs are mantled by each other. When a user selects a CD, he can only see the thin side rather than the front cover of a CD. It is tiresome to locate a specific CD.
In addition, there are some DIY (Do It Yourself) style CD storage racks which can be assembled by consumers themselves. These CD storage racks maybe have more flexibility to satisfy the demands of different consumers, or maybe can display the front cover of a CD. However, because these DIY CD storage racks are always restricted by their assembling structure, they don't possess sufficiently displaying function and rotational function, they are still inconvenient for use.
The present invention provides a rotatable CD storage tower which is easy to transport, store, and assemble. Because the CD storage tower is easy to turn and the front cover of each CD stored on the tower is sufficiently displayed, the CD storage tower is convenient for use.
The CD storage tower provided by the present invention includes a support shaft, a rotational shell, connectors, CD receptacle hangers, and a support shaft stand. It is easy to assemble and disassemble. The rotational shell and the connectors combine together and form a rotational shell body. The support shaft and the support shaft stand constitute a support strut which supports the shell body and becomes the revolving center of the shell body. Plural CD receptacle hangers, annularly and adequately located on the shell body, are provided to vertically store CDs. Because the CD storage tower is easy to turn and the front cover of each CD stored on the tower is sufficiently displayed, the CD storage tower fulfills the consumers' demand for fast and easily selecting CDs.
These and other objectives of the present invention will become obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art after reading the following detailed description of preferred embodiments.
It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary, and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed.
These as well as other features of the present invention will become more apparent upon reference to the drawings therein:
a is an enlarged sectional view of portion A shown in
b is an enlarged sectional view of portion B shown in
a is a top view of the assembly of
b is a cross-sectional view taken along the line B-B in
c is a cross-sectional view taken along the line A-A in
Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers are used in the drawings and the description to refer to the same or like parts.
Referring to
The connector 12 has a central hole 22 in its center and two protruding heads 21, one at each end, as is shown in
The setup procedure of the shell body is now described. First, insert the support shaft 10 through the central holes 22 of all of the connectors 12. Then screw the support shaft 10 onto the threaded receptacle of the support shaft stand 16. Second, sequentially stack the shell by sliding the protruding heads of the connector 12 onto the lower and the upper square slots 19 of each shell 11. The rotational shell 11 is, therefore, fixed to the connectors 12, and may revolve together with the connectors 12 around the support shaft 10, as is shown in
The rotational shell 11 of the preferred embodiment of the present invention may also be constituted by two identical semi-shells. The shape of the shell 11 may be either cylindrical or polygonal. Examples of polygonal shape include, but not limited to, hexagonal prism, octagonal prism, and dodecagonal prism. In addition, the rotational shell 11 may also be constituted by a single cylinder component, as is shown in
Optionally, a ball trust bearing 13 may be installed above the support shaft stand 16. The ball trust bearing 13 includes two washer type disks on the top and the bottom of the bearing 13, and a separator in the middle. There is an opening in the center of the bearing 13 to enable the support shaft 10 to be inserted. The lowest connector 12 of the shell 11 is fixed on the top disk of the bearing 13 and is rotated together with the bearing 13.
Plural I-type slots 20 are annularly located on the wall of the shell 11. CD receptacle hangers 14 are inserted into the I-type slots 20. Moreover, adequate space is provided between two adjacent I-type slots 20 to sufficiently display the cover of each CD disk that is inserted in a CD receptacle hanger 14. Referring to
While an illustrative and presently preferred embodiment of the invention has been described in detail herein, it is to be understood that the inventive concepts may be otherwise variously embodied and employed and that the appended claims are intended to be construed to include such variations except insofar as limited by the prior art.
