Patents by Inventor Francois L'Hotel

Francois L'Hotel has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 8875908
    Abstract: An item display stand including, in a substantially rigid and foldable material, a polyhedral compartment. The polyhedral compartment including a support wall and two side walls, and being articulated to change between a flat folded state and an open and operational unfolded state for receiving an item on the support wall extending between the side walls.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 26, 2011
    Date of Patent: November 4, 2014
    Inventor: Francois L'Hotel
  • Patent number: 8348360
    Abstract: A support can provide information and display objects. The compartment of the support is hinged to switch between a flat folded condition and an unfolded and open functional condition to receive an object. It comprises a retractable wall (115) for holding the compartment in its unfolded and open condition and an elastic element (127) for biasing the holding wall in an unretracted holding position. The flattening of the compartment is done by retracting the holding wall against the action of an elastic element. The pivoting holding retracting wall (115) is a shoring wall between a floor face (105) and a ceiling face (103) with which they form a force descending rod.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 12, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2013
    Inventor: François L'Hotel
  • Publication number: 20120305512
    Abstract: An item display stand including, in a substantially rigid and foldable material, a polyhedral compartment. The polyhedral compartment including a support wall and two side walls, and being articulated to change between a flat folded state and an open and operational unfolded state for receiving an item on the support wall extending between the side walls.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 26, 2011
    Publication date: December 6, 2012
    Inventor: Francois L'Hotel
  • Patent number: 7980016
    Abstract: Stand for displaying information having at least one presentation surface, comprising a plurality of panels (32-34) made of a substantially rigid material and articulated together in an articulation direction, having two end panels (32, 34) each extending between an articulation edge (35, 36) and a free border (37, 38) substantially parallel to the articulation edge (35, 36), the stand being able to be laid flat counter to the action of elastic return means, with the two free borders (37, 38) of the two end panels (32, 34) being spaced apart from one another. The return means are arranged in order, after the panels have been unfolded, to bring the two free borders (37, 38) together, so as to be approximately coincident, and to thus set up the stand.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 8, 2008
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2011
    Inventor: Francois L'Hotel
  • Patent number: 7774964
    Abstract: The support comprises at least one sheet (2) of a substantially rigid and foldable material having a display face (3), elastic return and constraint bands (44) for making the display face of the sheet convex, and a plurality of inserts (18-20) for keeping the display face of the sheet in the convex state, opposing the elastic constraint bands, and exerting their force in a discretely distributed way along the display face of the sheet. The inserts (18-20) have a length equal to the distance between the two lateral edges (8, 9) of the sheet (2), in its convex state, the sheet being extended by two sets of lateral tabs (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17) intended to form two sets of dihedrals for receiving the inserts, the elastic bands (44) interacting with the inserts and the tabs (12-17) and exerting, in addition to their horizontal constraint force, vertical forces in opposite directions (49, 50) to keep the inserts at the correct height in the convex state of the display face.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 5, 2005
    Date of Patent: August 17, 2010
    Inventor: Francois L'Hôtel
  • Patent number: 7634865
    Abstract: Information display medium (1) having at least two display faces, one on each of two blank parts (2, 3) made of a substantially rigid and foldable material, the blank parts (2, 3) being arranged so that, when the medium is unfolded, they are stressed so as to stress the display faces, a plurality of holding inserts, which act at various different points along said display faces, being provided to keep the display faces stressed. The blank parts (2, 3) of the display faces are joined together by their edges (14, 19), each holding insert (21) is mounted between the blank parts (2, 3) in a variable position that can switch between a position in which the medium is collapsed and a position in which the display faces of the blank parts (2, 3) of the medium are kept in the stressed state, each insert (21) being associated with a mechanism for locking it in its holding position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 5, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 22, 2009
    Inventor: François L'Hôtel
  • Publication number: 20090230829
    Abstract: The compartment of the support of the invention is hinged to switch between a flat folded condition and an unfolded and open functional condition to receive an object. It comprises a retractable wall (115) for holding the compartment in its unfolded and open condition and elastic means (127) for biasing the holding wall in an unretracted holding position. The flattening of the compartment is done by retracting the holding wall against the action of elastic means. The pivoting holding retracting wall (115) is a shoring wall between a floor face (105) and a ceiling face (103) with which they form a force descending rod. The display of the invention can serve to provide information but also objects to be displayed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 12, 2009
    Publication date: September 17, 2009
    Inventor: FRANCOIS L'HOTEL
  • Publication number: 20080257843
    Abstract: Stand for displaying information having at least one presentation surface, comprising a plurality of panels (32-34) made of a substantially rigid material and articulated together in an articulation direction, having two end panels (32, 34) each extending between an articulation edge (35, 36) and a free border (37, 38) substantially parallel to the articulation edge (35, 36), the stand being able to be laid flat counter to the action of elastic return means, with the two free borders (37, 38) of the two end panels (32, 34) being spaced apart from one another. The return means are arranged in order, after the panels have been unfolded, to bring the two free borders (37, 38) together, so as to be approximately coincident, and to thus set up the stand.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 8, 2008
    Publication date: October 23, 2008
    Inventor: Francois L'Hotel
  • Publication number: 20080244948
    Abstract: The support comprises at least one sheet (2) of a substantially rigid and foldable material having a display face (3), elastic return and constraint bands (44) for making the display face of the sheet convex, and a plurality of inserts (18-20) for keeping the display face of the sheet in the convex state, opposing the elastic constraint bands, and exerting their force in a discretely distributed way along the said display face of the sheet. The inserts (18-20) have a length equal to the distance between the two lateral edges (8, 9) of the sheet (2), in its convex state, the sheet being extended by two sets of lateral tabs (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17) intended to form two sets of dihedrals for receiving the inserts, the elastic bands (44) interacting with the inserts and the tabs (12-17) and exerting, in addition to their horizontal constraint force, vertical forces in opposite directions (49, 50) to keep the inserts at the correct height in the convex state of the display face.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 5, 2005
    Publication date: October 9, 2008
    Inventor: Francois L'Hotel
  • Publication number: 20070294925
    Abstract: Information display medium (1) having at least two display faces, one on each of two blank parts (2, 3) made of a substantially rigid and foldable material, the blank parts (2, 3) being arranged so that, when the medium is unfolded, they are stressed so as to stress the display faces, a plurality of holding inserts, which act at various different points along said display faces, being provided to keep the display faces stressed. The blank parts (2, 3) of the display faces are joined together by their edges (14, 19), each holding insert (21) is mounted between the blank parts (2, 3) in a variable position that can switch between a position in which the medium is collapsed and a position in which the display faces of the blank parts (2, 3) of the medium are kept in the stressed state, each insert (21) being associated with means (22) for locking it in its holding position. The invention is very suitable for point of sale advertising.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 5, 2005
    Publication date: December 27, 2007
    Inventor: Francois L'Hotel
  • Patent number: 7159350
    Abstract: The support comprises at least one sheet of a substantially rigid and foldable material having the presentation face (111), an elastic member (110) for bending the presentation face (111) of the sheet and strips (39) for keeping the presentation face (111) of the sheet in the bent state, which strips (39) oppose the elastic member (110). The strips (39) opposing the elastic member (110) for keeping the presentation face (111) of the sheet bent are designed so that the force is exerted at discrete points distributed along the presentation face (111) of the sheet by a plurality of strips (39).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 2, 2002
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2007
    Inventor: François L'Hotel
  • Publication number: 20020171023
    Abstract: The support comprises at least one sheet of a substantially rigid and foldable material having the presentation face (11), stressing means (10, 20, 21) for bending the presentation face (11) of the sheet and means (9, 19, 5) for keeping the presentation face (11) of the sheet in the bent state, which holding means oppose the stressing means (10). The holding means opposing the stressing means (10) for keeping the presentation face (11) of the sheet bent are designed so that their action is exerted at discreet points distributed along the presentation face (11) of the sheet by a plurality of strips (9).
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 2, 2002
    Publication date: November 21, 2002
    Inventor: Francois L'Hotel
  • Patent number: 6347772
    Abstract: A display unit having a front face and a structure for supporting the front face in a vertical position when the display unit is in a use position. The supporting structure has an assembly element extending from a pair of sides of the front face and being folded over the front face. The supporting structure also has a traction member adapted to connect between the assembly elements for asserting a traction force thereto. The traction member, after being connected to the assembly elements, is movable between the use position and a storing position. In the use position the traction member forces the assembly elements toward each other so that the front face assumes a convex shape. In the storing position the traction member is forced to extend so the convex front face resumes a flat shape for convenient storage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 8, 1999
    Date of Patent: February 19, 2002
    Inventor: François L'Hotel
  • Patent number: 5261552
    Abstract: Box or case for a lighter or the like has a hinge the hinge including a flat tenon integral with one of the parts and engaging into a slot provided on the other part, the tenon being equipped with pins interacting with identations formed laterally on the slot and opening towards the inside of the case.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 1991
    Date of Patent: November 16, 1993
    Assignee: Marin's Edition
    Inventors: Francois L'Hotel, Jacques Tenenhaus, Sylvie Dugain