Patent Application
20250234989
Embodiments of the invention relate generally to tables. More particularly, embodiments of the invention relate to a foldable table that can be readily stored and deployed.
The following background information may present examples of specific aspects of the prior art (e.g., without limitation, approaches, facts, or common wisdom) that, while expected to be helpful to further educate the reader as to additional aspects of the prior art, is not to be construed as limiting the present invention, or any embodiments thereof, to anything stated or implied therein or inferred thereupon.
Small structures, such as recreational vehicles, tiny houses, small apartments, or the like, try to conserve space in efforts to maximize uses of the available square footage. Tables, such as coffee tables and end tables, for example, may only be used under certain circumstances, where, during other times, it may be advantageous to remove the table to increase floor space. Conventional tables, however, may be difficult to fold and store. Further, where folding tables are provided, such tables may be less stable when used as compared to their fixed-leg counterparts.
In view of the foregoing, there is a need for a providing a folding table that can be easily stored and deployed to permit usage as desired while saving floor space when the table is not required.
Embodiments of the present invention aim to solve the aforementioned problems in conventional tables by providing a foldable table that can be folded and easily stored.
Embodiments of the present invention provide a folding table comprising a table top; a plurality of support leg rods extending from a bottom side of the table top, each of the plurality of support leg rods having a proximal end, adjacent the bottom side of the table top, and a distal end, opposite the proximal end; support legs, each support leg interconnecting the distal end of an adjacent pair of the plurality of support leg rods; and a plurality of support leg rod slots formed on a bottom side of the table, wherein when folding the folding table from an expanded position to a folded position, each of the adjacent pair of the plurality of support leg rods slide along the bottom side of the table top away from respective side ends of the table top to be disposed in respective ones of the plurality of support leg rod slots; and the support legs are disposed along respective side ends of the table top.
Embodiments of the present invention provide a folding table comprising a table top; a plurality of support leg rods extending from a bottom side of the table top, each of the plurality of support leg rods having a proximal end, adjacent the bottom side of the table top, and a distal end, opposite the proximal end; support legs, each support leg interconnecting the distal end of an adjacent pair of the plurality of support leg rods; and a plurality of support leg rod slots formed on a bottom side of the table, wherein when folding the folding table from an expanded position to a folded position, each of the adjacent pair of the plurality of support leg rods slide along the bottom side of the table top away from respective side ends of the table top to be disposed in respective ones of the plurality of support leg rod slots; the support legs are disposed directly adjacent respective side ends of the table top; and a top side of the support legs face in a first direction and a top surface of the table top faces in the first direction when the folding table is in the folded position.
Embodiments of the present invention provide a folding table comprising a table top; a plurality of support leg rods extending from a bottom side of the table top, each of the plurality of support leg rods having a proximal end, adjacent the bottom side of the table top, and a distal end, opposite the proximal end; support legs, each support leg interconnecting the distal end of an adjacent pair of the plurality of support leg rods; a plurality of support leg rod slots formed on a bottom side of the table; first and second connection rod legs pivotably attached, at a proximal end thereof, to the bottom side of the table top at opposite sides thereof; a connection rod interconnecting distal ends of the connection rod legs; and a connection rod slot formed in opposite ones of the support legs, wherein ends of the connection rod are pivotably and slidably engaged with the connection rod slot, wherein when folding the folding table from an expanded position to a folded position, each of the adjacent pair of the plurality of support leg rods slide along the bottom side of the table top away from respective side ends of the table top to be disposed in respective ones of the plurality of support leg rod slots; the support legs are disposed along respective opposite side ends of the table top; and the connection rod legs and the connection rod are disposed adjacent the bottom side of the table top when the folding table is in the folded position.
These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings, description and claims.
Some embodiments of the present invention are illustrated as an example and are not limited by the figures of the accompanying drawings, in which like references may indicate similar elements.
The illustrations in the figures may not necessarily be drawn to scale.
The invention and its various embodiments can now be better understood by turning to the following detailed description wherein illustrated embodiments are described. It is to be expressly understood that the illustrated embodiments are set forth as examples and not by way of limitations on the invention as ultimately defined in the claims.
The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well as the singular forms, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.
Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one having ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. It will be further understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and the present disclosure and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.
In describing the invention, it will be understood that a number of techniques and steps are disclosed. Each of these has individual benefit and each can also be used in conjunction with one or more, or in some cases all, of the other disclosed techniques. Accordingly, for the sake of clarity, this description will refrain from repeating every possible combination of the individual steps in an unnecessary fashion. Nevertheless, the specification and claims should be read with the understanding that such combinations are entirely within the scope of the invention and the claims.
In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. It will be evident, however, to one skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details.
The present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the specific embodiments illustrated by the figures or description below.
As is well known to those skilled in the art, many careful considerations and compromises typically must be made when designing for the optimal configuration of a commercial implementation of any system, and in particular, the embodiments of the present invention. A commercial implementation in accordance with the spirit and teachings of the present invention may be configured according to the needs of the particular application, whereby any aspect(s), feature(s), function(s), result(s), component(s), approach(es), or step(s) of the teachings related to any described embodiment of the present invention may be suitably omitted, included, adapted, mixed and matched, or improved and/or optimized by those skilled in the art, using their average skills and known techniques, to achieve the desired implementation that addresses the needs of the particular application.
Broadly, embodiments of the present invention provide a table, such as a coffee table, that can be quickly folded and unfolded. The coffee table can be used indoors or outdoors. Compared with the traditional coffee table, the folding coffee table can be quickly unfolded and folded, and can be put away to gain more space under the condition of limited space indoors and can also be used as a temporary table outdoors. There is a carrying handle in the center of each of the two long sides of the table, which can be unfolded by holding it and lifting it upwards. When deployed, the coffee table can provide a stable structure for use.
In the folded state, on either side of the short side of the tabletop are folded up support legs. On either side of the long side of the tabletop are two carrying handles to assist in unfolding and retracting the coffee table.
To unfold, the user can simply place their hands in the two handles and lift the tabletop upwards. The legs on the short side are moved downward by a rod attached to the bottom of the table. The rod and the legs are connected by a slide, and when the rod reaches the end of the slide, the whole coffee table will be unfolded. The height and size of the table is the same as a normal coffee table.
Referring to
A connection rod leg member 24 can extend downward from each side of the bottom side 12B of the table top 12. A proximal end 24A of the connection rod leg member 24 is pivotably attached to the bottom side 12B of the table top 12, at a location near the side edge 12C of the table top 12, with a connection rod leg member linkage 40 fixed to the bottom side 12B of the table top 12. A connection rod 22 can span between distal ends (opposite the proximal ends 24A) of the connection rod leg members 24. Ends 22A of the connection rod 22 can slidably and pivotably engage with a connection rod slot 44 formed along an inside edge 26B of the support legs 26.
One or more carrying handles 14 may be formed in a front edge 12D (and/or in an opposite rear edge) of the table top 12. The carrying handles 14 may be formed as a slot 14A in the front edge 12D that communicates with a slot 14B formed in the bottom side 12B of the table top 12. The handle 14C that remains between the slots 14A, 14B can provide the user with a convenient means to move and carry the table 10.
When fully folded, as shown in
Further, when fully folded, the connection rod 22 and the connect rod legs 24 may rest against the bottom side 12B of the table top 12.
Support leg slots 42 can be formed in the bottom side 12B of the table top 12. As best illustrated in
As shown in
All the features disclosed in this specification, including any accompanying abstract and drawings, may be replaced by alternative features serving the same, equivalent or similar purpose, unless expressly stated otherwise. Thus, unless expressly stated otherwise, each feature disclosed is one example only of a generic series of equivalent or similar features.
Claim elements and steps herein may have been numbered and/or lettered solely as an aid in readability and understanding. Any such numbering and lettering in itself is not intended to and should not be taken to indicate the ordering of elements and/or steps in the claims.
Many alterations and modifications may be made by those having ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, it must be understood that the illustrated embodiments have been set forth only for the purposes of examples and that they should not be taken as limiting the invention as defined by the following claims. For example, notwithstanding the fact that the elements of a claim are set forth below in a certain combination, it must be expressly understood that the invention includes other combinations of fewer, more or different ones of the disclosed elements.
The words used in this specification to describe the invention and its various embodiments are to be understood not only in the sense of their commonly defined meanings, but to include by special definition in this specification the generic structure, material or acts of which they represent a single species.
The definitions of the words or elements of the following claims are, therefore, defined in this specification to not only include the combination of elements which are literally set forth. In this sense it is therefore contemplated that an equivalent substitution of two or more elements may be made for any one of the elements in the claims below or that a single element may be substituted for two or more elements in a claim. Although elements may be described above as acting in certain combinations and even initially claimed as such, it is to be expressly understood that one or more elements from a claimed combination can in some cases be excised from the combination and that the claimed combination may be directed to a subcombination or variation of a subcombination.
Insubstantial changes from the claimed subject matter as viewed by a person with ordinary skill in the art, now known or later devised, are expressly contemplated as being equivalently within the scope of the claims. Therefore, obvious substitutions now or later known to one with ordinary skill in the art are defined to be within the scope of the defined elements.
The claims are thus to be understood to include what is specifically illustrated and described above, what is conceptually equivalent, what can be obviously substituted and also what incorporates the essential idea of the invention.
