CA1072738A

CA1072738A - Picture frame

Info

Publication number: CA1072738A
Application number: CA218,362A
Authority: CA
Inventors: Monika Kuhling
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1974-01-22
Filing date: 1975-01-21
Publication date: 1980-03-04
Also published as: JPS50113374A; FR2258155A1; SE7500470L; GB1499031A; BR7500402A; ES209273Y; IT1028429B; FR2258155B1; CH580410A5; ES209273U; US3988846A

Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE

A picture frame for holding a picture or certif-icate, etc., is constructed in two parts. The front part is completely transparent and is of box-like shape whilst the back part is of similar box-like shape so as to fit within the front part with a picture clamped therebetween. Clamping members, such as screws or ball-catch type devices, can be used to fasten the front and back parts together.

Description

~o7'æ7313 This inYentiOn relates to a fr~e ~h~ch can be used for dîsplaying pictures or other art ~ork, certificates etc., wherein a transparent frant box, is proYided with a rim extending all ~round ilts outside edgeO A back wall is provided behind the front box and fits into the box. It will be appreciated that in this specification, the term "picture frame" is to be interpreted as covering frames for other articles besides pictures, but of a similar type - to the ~rames used for pictures. The picture, or the like, is held in position be~'ween-the surfaces of the front box and the back wall.
In German Design Patent No. 6,917,904 a picture frame of the above-mentioned type is shown wherein the picture is pressed by a back wall against the front part. The back wall is held by a spring-tape, so that pressure is applied against the rim of the front part. Due to the fact that the tape will be permanently extended due to tension, - a resultant factor of instability is somehow introduced and this results in the tape being easily dislodged from the rim, when the tape is not placed properly in position along the rim or if the frame is knocked or otherwise disturbed. Furthermore, the tape has to be placed very carefully in order to prevent its sudden dislocation, due to its inherent ;tension during installation. This could easily hurt the person who is handling the frame or it `~ could damage nearby objects. When the frame and picture are hung up, the spring tape has to be fixed, in any case, in such a way, that it cannot be dislocated during transport to the place where it is to be hung.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a picture fram~ which can be constructed from ~.
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73i3 simple components and permits a qu:ick change o ~he picture or the like without difficulty.
Accordingly! the present invention provides a frame for pictures or the like comprising a front part of transparent flexible synthetic plastic material designed as a box cover having a face with an extending rim, and a back part of flexible synthetic plastic material designed as a box cover having a face with a U-shaped rim having an inner side and outer side, the inner side of the U-shaped rim running obliquely in such a way that the clearance between the opposite sides is wider at the ends of the sides - than at a connection of the two sides of the U-shaped rim whereby said frame ma~ be hooked on a nail on a wall, said back part of said frame being adapted to fit snuggly into the front part ~nd to hold said picture between the respective faces thereof with the U-shaped rim of said back part being directed toward the front part and with the outer I side of the U-shaped rim being in contact with the rim of the! front part, whereby said flexible front and back parts may be simply snapped together to mount a picture and yet readily separated to remove said picture.
Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which -Figure 1 is a diagrammatic view of a rame from the rear;
Figure 2 is a sectional view taken on the line I-I o Figure l;
Figure 3 is a sectionàl sketch of a clamp element for a frame, and;
Figure 4 is a sectional view of a frame according to the present invention and having a U-shaped rim formed on the back wall.

~$ 2 -~72~738 Figure 1 shows:the rear view of a picture frame. In the frame shown in Figures 1 and 2, there will be seen to be a front part 1 and a back wall part 2, both formed as a box-shaped cover open on one side. Both the front part 1 .

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2a -1~

7273i 3 and the back wall 2 have a respective integral xim 3, 4 which is at right angles to the front surface of pcrt 1 and extends around each edge. The rims 3 ana 4 enclose the surface area S of the fxont part 1 and the suxface area 6 of the back wall

2. The rims 3 and 4 which, in this case, are right-angled to the surfaces 5 and 6 are, with regaxd to the inside and outside dimensions, so foxmed that the back wall 2 fits exactly into the fxont paxt 1 and, because of their formation, both parts are held together. A picture 7 - shown as a thick line -lQ is placed between the parts including surfaces S and 6 and if viewed fxom the front, the picture is clearly visible because the front paxt 1 is made of a transpaxent material.
~he rims 3 and 4 can also be fcrmed at a diffexent angle, i.e. on a slant,to the suxfaces S and 6 so as to be, effectively, in the form of a pyramid, bearing in mind that, in this case, the rims 3 and 4 must fit tightly together.
a rear flap portion 8 is pxovided paxallel to I the ~ront surface 5 on the upper rim 3. This flap - as shown -¦ is located behind the xim 4 of the back wall 2 and is effective 1 2a to hold the back wall 2 in place. The flap can also be used , as a support whexeby the frame can be affixed to a wall, ¦ eith~r on hooks or Qn strips.
¦ In a modification of the described frame, it is also possible to hold the front part 1 and the back wall 2 together by clamp elements which are directed towards the rims 3 and 4. An example of this construction is shown in Figure 3. In this example a plug 10 with a spherical surface is placed on the rim 4 of the back wall 2 and is spring-clamped. The plug 10 passes through a hole 11 in the

3~ rim 4, 50 that it can snap into a calotte, 12 which is formed 1 in ~he rim 3. When either the front part 1 or back wall part .' !

~C37Z731!3 2 is ~o be put together or dismantled, this can be achieved by lifting the plug 10 a~ainst the tension of the spring 9 until it is enga~ed in or pushed out o the calotte 12.
~hen the fxame has a flap 8, the aboYe-mentioned clamp element must be placed opposite it în order to hold everything in place and provide a comp~osite frame. However, it is also possible - especially when the frame has no flap 8 - to place the clamp elements on the vertical parts of rims 3 and 4 and,. particularly with the larger sizes, it is useful to install several clamp elements.
It is also possible to use ball-catch type devices .
such as spring-loaded balls or knobs which are pressed against the opposite rim, in order to clamp the front part . 1 and back wall 2 together; this effect can be enhanced by providing calottes in the opposite rimO
To facilitate safer hanging of the frame on its rim, ;.j.
-- the shaping of which has to be simple, bearing in mind the manufacturing tools, one can, as illustrated,-advantageously design the back wall in the shape of a U, as shown in Figure 4, whereby the sides of the U are directed towards .I the front box part, the outer side of the U is in contact ¦ . . with the rim of the front part and the inner side is . oblique in such a way that the horizontal clearance between . the opposite rims is wider at the end of the sides than at 1 the connection of the two sides of the U.
¦ To ensure t~at front box part and back wall part are held safely together, it is useful to desi~n the rim of the front box part and the back wall part in such a way that the.outer side of the U has knobs which snap 1nto cavities which are opposite to them in the rim of the front box.
Front ~ox part and back wall part can be formed ~ , . ' . ' .

7Z73~3 -"
out of thin material ox both can be produced b~ "pressing"
or "injection moulding". This is p~rticularly true if both the front part and the back wall part are made of transparent material.
The frame illustrated in Figure 4 consists of the front part 1 and the back wall part 2, each of box-like construction. Each part - front part 1 and back wall part 2 - has a rim 3 and 13 respectively, all around. A
picture - shown as a line 7 - is placed between front part 1 and back wall part 2 and, if one looks from the front part of the frame, the picture is clearly visible because the front part 1 is made of a transparent material.
The outside rims 13 of the back wall 2 are U-shaped as shown, with the surfaces of both sides 14 and 15 of-the U directed to the front part 1. In this manner, the outer side 15 of the U is positioned in close contact with th~
rim 3 of the front part 1.
To guarantee that the front part 1 and the back wall part 2 are held securely together, the outer side 15 of the U has knobs 17 which fit in cavities 16 of the rim 3.
Knobs or protrusions 17 and cavities 16 are arranged opposite each other so that a picture 7 - placed between ~ront part 1 and back wall 2 - will be gently pressed against the front part 1.
The described U-shaped rim 13 of the back wall 2 permits the edge of the back wall 2 to`be pressed without nee*ing any tools.
As shown, the side 14 runs slightly obliquely in such a way that the horizontal clearance between the two opposite sides 14 is wider at the base of the back wall 2 than at the position where the sides 14 and 15 are connected.

If the frame is hooked on a nail 18, ik therefore has the ' .' . . l r ~J ~11.0~7Z73~3 tendency to position itself with its side 14 behind the head 19 of the nail 18. ~he slant of the side 14 prevents the frame from sliding down from the nail 18.
To change a picture, it is only necessary to push out the front part l of the back wall part 2, so thatthe picture will be accessible and can be replaced by another one.
It will be appreciated that if the frame is made completely of a synthetic plastic material, it will be very light and can, therefore, be held by relatively weak hooks.
The front part 1, at least should be made of a transparent - material. It is also expedient to manufacture the back wall - ! 2 of transparent material. However, it will be appreciated that the back wall can be made of any other rigid material. .
In the above-described ~mbodiment the frame is constructed from simple components and, in use, it will not be readily apparent ~hat the picture, or the like, is being ¦ held in a frame~ The frame will, of course, be dust proof I to prevent dust spoiling the picture and this is due to the ¦ box-like construction of the back wall part which fits into the front box part, the whole front box part being made of a - transparent material.
From the above, it will be seen that the frame i co~sists of two very simpl designed parts of a box-type construction similar to box covers. One box cover fits into the other ~nd, at t~e same time, the rims of both ! boxes are close together so that, between them, dust cannot penetrate into the area where the picture lS held. The picture occupies the entire front area, so that the front part of the inner box will be totally covered. The rim around all 3~ sides of the front part faces the wall on which the frame will be fixed, so that when looking directly at the picture i.
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1~:97273~3 it gives the impression of being frameless which,of course, is what is required for modern art.
The described embodimen~ can, of course, be used in galleries and museums; but will also he suitable for domestic use.
It lS appropriate to also provide the back wall with a rim all around. With this rim the back wall will be stabilized and, therefore, will not sag or b~nd. However, it is pointed out that, if the inner box is made of material with sufficient rigidity, it would be acceptable to pro-vide the back wall with only two rims, one opposite the - i other.
Proceeding on the assumption that the rim of the inner box does not surmountthe rlm of the outer box, the rim of the outer box determinesthe distance bet~een the frame ¦ and the wall. In this connection the dist~nce betwsen the wall and the picture can be emphasized if, for example, the-` ¦ rim of the inner box is metallic in appearance and, in this case, the whole inner box can be made out of alumin~m sheet.
i 20 On the other handt it is also possible to intensify the j effect of the presentation of the picture without showing the rims by producing the whole inner box from transparent i material. In this case, the transparent rims of inner and outer -¦ box are close together and the presentation of the picture ~' will therefore be especially effective.
It will be understood that there are different ways of holding together the inner and outer box parts. On the one hand~ it is possible to construct the inner and outer ; boxes of such a shape that both parts hold together only if ; ~, 3n one is put into the other. It is also to be considered khat, if the frame is fixed to a wall, the inner box part -~ .

.. .i:' under the effect of its own we:Lght - together with the outer box part, will be pressed a~ainst the wall,so that the inner box cannot fall out of the outer bo~. ~n t~e other hand, it is also possible to hold inner and outer boxes together with some type of clamp element, which presses a~ainst the rims. When using such clamp elements, it is not importan-t that the inner and outer boxes fit in exactly, because the clamp elements ~7ill hold both boxes together. The clamp elements direct their Eorce against the rims in such a way that they are hardly ~isible. For example, it is possible to use as clamp elements, screws which are passed through the rims o-f the inner box part and, when they are tightened, press against the outer bo~ rim. Furthermore, it is also possible to use locking elements. For example, spring-clamped plugs, which are passed inside through the rims of the inner box and which are pressed in the clearance in the rim of the outer box. Finally, it is also possible to use small pins which are passed through both rims in a vertical direction.
Additionally, it may be appropriate to design 2~ the top rim of the outer box as a suppor-t, so that it is possible to hang the frame on a hook with such a support. For this pur-pose the top rim of the outer box is, as shown, folcled inwards, i.e. turned down behind -the front rim as a flap. The flap which has been formed in this way ~an be simllltaneousl~ used ~o hold the back wall, because it overlaps the inner case. In this case it is appropriate to install the clamp elements opposite -the rim with the flap and this holds toge-ther the front part and the back wall. To put both parts -together, first the back wall part has to be removed behind the flap and it can 3a then be pressed into the front part. In doing so the rims of the front part and bac]c wall - opposite the side with the flap -will be placed one upon the other and ~inally will be held together by clamps which are installed therein.

3a

Claims

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:-

1. A frame for pictures or the like comprising a front part of transparent flexible synthetic plastic material designed as a box cover having a face with an extending rim, and a back part of flexible synthetic plastic material designed as a box cover having a face with a U-shaped rim having an inner side and outer side, the inner side of the U-shaped rim running obliquely in such a way that the clearance between the opposite sides is wider at the ends of the sides than at a connection of the two sides of the U-shaped rim whereby said frame may be hooked on a nail on a wall, said back part of said frame being adapted to fit snuggly into the front part and to hold said picture between the respective faces thereof with the U-shaped rim of said back part being directed toward the front part and with the outer side of the U-shaped rim being in contact with the rim of the front part, whereby said flexible front and back parts may be simply snapped together to mount a picture and yet readily separated to remove said picture.

2. A frame according to claim l, wherein the outer side of the U-shaped rim has knobs which snap into cavities, which are opposite to them in the rim of the front part.