IRON REST

Abstract

An iron rest assembly removably attachable to an ironing board is provided. The iron rest includes a pair of support areas with a recess area therebetween, a basket suspended below the recess area for storing an iron, and a pair of bars extending away from a back end of the iron rest assembly. The pair of bars serves to attach the iron rest assembly to the ironing board.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a non-provisional patent application of and claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/313,644, filed on Mar. 12, 2010, entitled “IRON REST” is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to holders or rests for irons and in particular to an iron rest assembly suitable which can be detachably fastened to an iron board.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Iron rests or holders of many different designs have been known in the prior art. These iron rests are typically fastened or shaped onto a side of an ironing board, which is typically a narrow board that can be set up by means of two table legs pivotal against one another and can be stored space-savingly in a collapsed condition when not in use.

One such iron rest is disclosed within U.S. Pat. No. 5,154,379 to Dorothy J. Parish, issued on Oct. 13, 1992. The disclosed iron rest is a detachable iron support suitable for use with an ironing board, table or the like comprising a frame, a plurality of support members and a belt attachment assembly. The frame is shaped correlatively to the face plate of an iron and the support members are shaped such that each support member has a straight segment located between two leg segments. The frame and support members are mated at a position along the leg segments opposite the ends of the leg segments. The belt attachment assembly is comprised of a strap, a plurality of shaped plates and a fastening means. The mated frame and support members are attached to the belt attachment assembly. The iron support is then attached to the ironing board by fastening the strap around the board. U.S. Pat. No. 5,154,379 is incorporated herein by reference for at least the purpose of giving context to the present invention.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,909,862 to Sharon L. Ratliff et al., issued on Jun. 8, 1999, discloses a ironing system formed of a combination of an iron, an iron holder and an iron board. The ironing system, configured for guests of the hospitality industry, is not only compact in size, for storage in a guest room closet, but is also convenient and safe to use when the guest needs to press garments or other articles of wearing apparel. By combining the customary iron and the usual ironing board with a specially constructed iron holder and tethering arrangement, property damage and loss is contained, all to the benefit of management and guest alike. U.S. Pat. No. 5,909,862 is incorporated herein by reference for at least the purpose of giving context to the present invention.

However, these prior iron rests reduce the ironing surfaces of their corresponding iron boards, and furthermore render them hard to transport and store. Thus, it is desirable to have an iron rest that does not reduce ironing surfaces, but also provide a storage location to hold the iron when the ironing board is in storage.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is defined by the appended claims. This description summarizes some aspects of the present embodiments and should not be used to limit the claims.

One embodiment of the present invention is directed to an iron rest. The iron rest includes a pair of support areas with a recess area therebetween, a basket suspended below the recess area for storing an iron, and a pair of bars extending away from a back end of the iron rest assembly. The pair of bars serves to attach the iron rest assembly to the ironing board.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

To understand the present invention, it will now be described by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a top perspective view of an embodiment of an iron rest in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates a bottom perspective view of the iron rest of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 illustrates a top plan view of the iron rest of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 illustrates a bottom plan view of the iron rest of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 illustrates a side view of the iron rest of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 illustrates a back view of the iron rest of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 illustrates an enlarged view of area A of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 illustrates the iron rest of FIG. 1 in an attached arrangement with an ironing board ;

FIG. 9 illustrates an iron stored in the iron rest with the iron board of FIG. 7 folded in a storage configuration;

FIG. 10 illustrates a front elevational view of another embodiment of the iron rest in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 11 illustrates a top view of the iron rest of FIG. 10;

FIG. 12 illustrates a side view of the iron rest of FIG. 10;

FIG. 13 illustrates a perspective view of the iron rest of FIG. 10; and

FIG. 14 illustrates a front view of the iron rest of FIG. 10 storing an iron and holding an ironing board.

Illustrative and exemplary embodiments of the invention are described in further detail below with reference to and in conjunction with the figures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention is defined by the appended claims. This description summarizes some aspects of the present embodiments and should not be used to limit the claims.

While the present invention may be embodied in various forms, there is shown in the drawings and will hereinafter be described some exemplary and non-limiting embodiments, with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered an exemplification of the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the specific embodiments illustrated.

In this application, the use of the disjunctive is intended to include the conjunctive. The use of definite or indefinite articles is not intended to indicate cardinality. In particular, a reference to “the” object or “a” and “an” object is intended to denote also one of a possible plurality of such objects.

FIG. 1 shows a top view of an iron rest or support assembly 10 (hereafter referred to as iron rest) configured to be detachably affixed to a blunt or tapered end of an ironing board (not shown). The iron rest 10 includes a rest area formed from trays or support areas 12 and 14, separated by a recess 13 formed in a central area of the iron rest 10. The trays 12 and 14 are coupled by a narrow section 15 forming a horizontal back end of the recess 13. The iron rest 10 further includes a basket 16 suspended below the recess 13. The trays 12 and 14 have a generally curved parallelogram shape, and the horizontal recess 13 faces away from the blunt end of the ironing board. Each of the trays 12 and 14 includes a bottom wall 18 and a low-rise side wall 20 that define a central area 22. Side wall 20 includes an annular top flange 21 extending radially outward around the side wall 20 to form a narrow ledge 24 and then extending downwardly to form a vertical wall 26. Each of the bottom walls 18 includes a curved opening 28 formed adjacent to one of the corners of the wall 18 that is distant from the recess 13. The recess 13 may include stamping tabs (not shown) on an inside wall 30 situated between the two trays 12 and 14.

As shown FIGS. 2, 4 and 5, the iron rest 10 includes a wire 32, which is detachably secured or welded to a bottom wall of the iron rest 10 near the mouth or opening 32 of the recess 13, and extends downwardly into an angled U-shaped arrangement or configuration. The iron rest 10 further includes wire bars 34 and 36 projecting downwardly and then horizontally away from the iron rest 10 on either side of the back end of the recess area 13. Each of the shown couple of wire bars 34 and 36 has a free end 38 that is bent backward in a U-shape manner toward the iron rest 10 and then bent or angled away from the other wire bar 36 or 34. The couple of wire bars 34 and 36 may also be detachably secured or welded to a bottom wall of the iron rest 10. The downward projection of the wire bars 34 and 36 can serve to accommodate a thickness of the blunt end of the ironing board. Alternately, the wire 32 and the wire bars 34 and 36 may be parts of a continuous wire.

As best shown in FIG. 2, the basket 16 includes a bottom wall 40 and an end wall 42. The end wall 42 includes a plurality of holes (not shown) configured to engageably mate with the stamping tabs of the recess 13, and the bottom wall 40 includes an end 44, opposite the end wall 42, that is bent to accommodate the insertion and removal of or to be supported by the horizontal section of the U-shaped wire 32. As such, the basket is removably attachable to the iron rest 10 by engaging the wire 32 with the bottom wall end 44 and mating the end wall holes with the stamping tabs. Both the bottom wall 40 and the end wall 44 include longitudinal and transversal grooves or openings 46.

As best shown in FIGS. 1-4 and 7, the iron rest 10 further includes a removably attachable U-shaped trivet 48. The attachment of the trivet 48 is performed by sliding it into the recess 13, subsequently to the attachment of the basket 16, and then snap-locking it into place, as shown in FIG. 7. The trivet 48 is preferably made of silicone for heat resistance so that the iron 52 can be stored within the basket 16 at any angular position during use, as shown in FIG. 8.

As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the ironing board 50 includes a flat bed 54 for ironing and collapsible legs 55 that are hinged or slip into the top and folded down for easy storage. The iron rest 10 is removably attached to the flat bed 54 of the iron board 50, at the blunt end thereof, by sliding or guiding the wire bars 34 and 36 under a bottom surface of flat bed 54 to be preferably hooked onto a cross bar (not shown) or a wire meshed horizontal support 56 of the iron board 50. Once attached, the narrow ledge 24 of the iron rest 10 is substantially coplanar with an upper surface of the flat bed 54. When in folded condition, the ironing board 50 can be conveniently stored in a closet with the blunt end up and with the attached iron rest 10 holding the iron 52 within the basked 16.

Now referring to FIGS. 10-14, another embodiment of the iron rest 60 in accordance with the invention is shown. The iron rest 60 includes a couple of support areas 62 and 64, configured for storing ironing accessories, and a recess area 66 formed therebetween for storing an iron 68, as illustrated in FIG. 14. In one embodiment, the recess area 66 includes a bottom wall 69, which can be coplanar with the support areas 62 and 64. The iron rest 60 further includes a couple of inverted U-shaped wires 70 that serve to delimit or separate horizontally the recess area 66 from the support areas 62 and 64. In one embodiment, the bottom wall 69 and the support areas 62 and 64 may be formed from one single supporting member, such as a wire rack to which the U-shaped wires 70 may be securely affixed or welded. In this embodiment, the iron rest 60 further includes a pair of wire bars 72 that extend downwards from the supporting member. Each of the pair of wire bars 72 has a free end 74 that is bent backward in a U-shape manner toward the iron rest 60. The iron rest 60 further includes a wire 76 that couples the legs of each of the U-shaped wires 70 above the support areas 62 and 64 in a curved manner that substantially matches a contour configuration of the support areas so as to securely store ironing accessories. The wire 76 also connects the two U-shaped wires 70 above the wire bars 72. As shown in FIG. 14, the iron rest 60 stores the iron 68 in the recess area 66 and supports a couple of legs of a folded ironing board 78 via the bent free ends 74 of the wire bars 72.

While a preferred embodiment of the invention have been described in detail, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various modifications and alternatives to those details could be developed in light of the overall teachings of the disclosure. Accordingly, the particular features and arrangements disclosed are meant to be illustrative only and not limiting as to the scope of the invention which is to be given the full breadth of the appended claims and any equivalent thereof.

Claims

1. An iron rest assembly removably attachable to an ironing board, comprising:

a pair of support areas with a recess area therebetween;

a basket suspended below the recess area for storing an iron; and

a pair of bars extending away from a back end of the iron rest assembly, wherein the pair of bars is configured to securely attach the iron rest assembly to the ironing board.

2. The iron rest assembly of claim 1, wherein:

the pair of bars extends downwardly and then away from the back end of the iron rest assembly, wherein the downward extension of the bars is configured to substantially match a thickness of a blunt end of the ironing board so that upper surfaces of the support areas and of the ironing board are substantially coplanar.

3. The iron rest assembly of claim 1, wherein:

a back wall of the recess area includes a plurality of tabs, and

the basket includes a bottom wall and an end wall, wherein the end wall includes a plurality of holes configured to engageably mate with the plurality of tabs to secure the basket to the iron rest assembly.

4. The iron rest assembly of claim 1, further comprising:

a trivet configured to be removably attachable to a contour of the recess area, wherein the trivet is made of a heat resistance material so that the iron can be stored within the basket at any angular position during use.

5. The iron rest assembly of claim 3, further comprising:

a wire extending downward near an opening of the recess area, and

the basket is removably attachable to the iron rest assembly by engaging the wire with the bottom wall.

6. An ironing board, comprising:

an ironing body; and

an iron rest, comprising: a pair of support areas with a recess area therebetween; a basket suspended below the recess area for storing an iron; and a pair of bars extending away from a back end of the iron rest assembly, wherein the pair of bars is configured to attach the iron rest assembly to the ironing body.