Headboard anchor

Abstract

The present invention is a headboard anchor capable of attaching furniture to a wall while at the same time, providing a buffer between the wall and furniture which is meant to be attached. In the preferred embodiment, the anchor consists of two rubber suction cups flexibly and adjustably attached by a middle collapsible portion.

Description

BACKGROUND

This invention pertains to mounting and/or protection of furniture or appliances; more specifically, this invention relates to a removal headboard anchor designed to secure and buffer headboards and the like from walls.

Standard furniture or bed installation is often limited to a standard four point gravitational embodiment, i.e., four legs simply placed on a floor. Although simple, this often doesn't take into account the flexibility of the structure. Many times, a bed frame is loose, or loosens with use, such that the headboard will often make contact with the wall against which it is placed causing noise as well as damage to the wall. Even for more bulky furniture or appliances which due to mass do not have rigidity issues (such as for example refrigerators, microwaves, etc., etc) during installation, the aggressive placement of these types of objects can lead to structural damage to both the appliance and the wall. Many appliances require proper spacing for ventilation in order function properly and efficiently which can be comprised during installation by placing the back of the unit too close to a wall.

Examples of different mounting and buffer configurations are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,118,179 to Wilson et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,182,307 to Rutrick; U.S. Pat. No. 4,604,768 to Goldfarb; and U.S. Pat. No. 2,745,116 to Jackson, the subject matter of each of which is herein incorporated by reference.

SUMMARY

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a simple device which prevents flexible furniture from making undue contact with the wall and is easy to install. Another object of the invention is to provide for a simple device which provides the proper spacing upon installation to allow for efficient and safe operation of the appliance, i.e., a refrigerator or microwave.

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. In addition, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.

As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods, and systems for carrying out aspects of the present invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a view of the headboard anchor, it should be noted that since the headboard anchor is essentially symmetrical only one perspective is considered necessary to understand and practice the invention.

FIG. 2 shows the headboard anchor in a typical installation.

DESCRIPTION

Referring to FIG. 1, the anchor 100 in accordance with the present invention consists essentially of two rubber suction cups 200 connected by a collapsible spiral structure 300, similar to what one might find in for example on drinking straws which collapse and extend, or alternatively similar to that of dryer exhaust hosing.

The operation of embodiments of the present invention is shown in FIG. 2. Simply, one suction cup 200 is attached to the back of a headboard 500 (or other similar piece of furniture or appliance). The furniture is pressed into place wherein the headboard anchor 100 makes contact with the wall 600 and becomes vacuumly attached. The compressible portion 300 adjusts to the spacing accordingly.

The anchor can be made of various types of rubberized material and those of ordinary skill in the art would find such types of manufacture to be well within the normal skill of any manufacturing entity. In one embodiment, the diameter of the suction cup 200 would preferably be around 2 inches. The elongated portion could also be of a distance of two inches. The entire device ideally can be compressed to one inch from the wall to adjust distance.

While a particular embodiment has been chosen to illustrate the invention, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

1. A furniture stabilizing and buffering device comprised of: two ends, both of said ends having a vacuum attachment structure and a middle portion, said middle portion compressibly adjustable.

2. The device of claim 1 wherein said ends consist of rubber suction cups.

3. The device of claim 1 wherein said adjustable middle portion is comprised of the same material as said two ends.