Washing-machine folding shelf

Application filed March 19, 1919. Serial No. 283,462.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, John Nelson, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of Newton, in the county of Jasper 5 and State of Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in WashingMachine Folding Shelves; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference 10 being had to the accompanying drawings and to the numerals of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates more particularly 15 to a shelf adapted to be used in combination with a washing machine and pivotally connected thereto to be supported in a horizontal position by foldable interfitting bracket arms.

It is an object of this invention to provide a washing machine with a folding shelf.

It is also an object of the invention to equip a washing machine with a pivoted shelf adapted to be releasably supported in 25 a horizontal position for use by pivotally connected bracket arms connected between the washing machine and said shelf.

A further object of this invention is to rigidly secure angle supports to the legs of 30 a washing machine to permit foldable bracket arms also attached to said legs to support and hold a shelf, pivoted to said angle supports, in horizontal position for use.

It is furthermore an object of the invention to provide a washing machine with a swinging shelf adapted to be moveci from a vertical or hanging position out of use along one side of the machine, into a hori40 zontal position for use braced by interfitting folding bracket arms connected with the shelf and the washing machine.

, It is an important object of this invention to use in combination with a washing ma45 chine, an adjustable shelf adapted to be' swung from a braced position for use into an out-of-the-way position adjacent one side of the washing machine.

Other and further important objects of 50 this invention will be apparent from the disclosures in the specification and drawings.

The invention (in a preferred form) is illustrated in the drawings and hereinafter more fully described.

On the drawings: 55

Figure 1 is a side -elevation of a washing machine equipped with a folding shelf embodying the principles of this invention.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged top plan view of the shelf showing the washing machine legs in 60 section.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged elevation of one of the folding brackets.

Fig. 4 is a side view thereof.

Fig. 5 is a detail section taken on line 65 5—5 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary detail section taken on line 6—6 of Fig. '1, with parts in elevation.

Fig. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary detail 70 section taken on line 7—7 of Fig. 1.

As shown on the drawings:

The reference numeral 1, indicates a washing machine supported by a frame or angle legs 2, and equipped with a driving mecha- 75 nism 3, and a rotatably mounted wringer 4, connected to be driven by the driving mechanism.

Used in combination with the washing machine is an adjustable shelf or bench em- 80 bodying the principles of this invention and comprising a pair of angle supports 5, each of which has one flange thereof rigidly secured to the rear flange of one of the rear washing machine legs 2, by means of rivets 85 6, or other suitable means. The other flanges of said angle supports project outwardly and are disposed in the planes of the side flanges of the rear legs 2, as clearly shown in Fig. 7. The two angle supports 5, are 90 positioned at the same level above the middle portion of the rear washing machine legs 2. Pivotally connected to the extending flanges of the angle supports 5, by bolts or rivets 7, are the angle side members 8, of a 95 bench or shelf, having a plurality of parallel cross members 9, rigidly connected between the side members 8, to form the shelf.

Normally the shelf 8—9, is adapted to hang vertically in an out-of-the-way posi- 100 tiqn adjacent the back of the washing machine, as shown in clotted lines in Fig. 1. To hold the shelf 8—9, releasably supported in a horizontal or extended position for use a pair of folding brackets are provided. Each 105 bracket embraces a shelf arm 10, slightly bent or offset at 11, near one end and pivotally connected at about the middle of the

1,369,933 side flange of one of the side frame members 8, by means of a bolt 12, or other suitable means, as shown in detail in Fig. 5. The other end of each of the shelf arms 10, is 5 provided with an integral extension 13, bent inwardly at the end to form a lug or stop 14. Pivotally connected, by means of a rivet 15, to each of the shelf arms 10, to the inside of the stop 14, is one end of a machine 10 bracket arm 16, the other end of which is pivotally connected to the side flange of one of the rear washing machine legs 2, by a bolt 17, or other suitable means. Each of the bracket arms 16, is provided with a notch 15 18, on one side edge thereof to receive the stop 14, of the shelf arm to which it is connected.

Normally the pivoted shelf 8—9, is in a hanging position out of the way. adjacent 20 the rear of the washing machine as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1, with the bracket arms 10 ancl 16, folded. To use the shelf as a tub or basket support it is only necessary to manually pull the shelf upwardly into a 25 horizontal position as shown in full lines in Fig. 1, thereby extending the bracket arms 10 and 16, to aline with one another to form rigid braces for the shelf. To prevent the pivotally connected bracket arms 10 ancl 16, 30 from moving beyond an alined bracing position the stops 14, of the shelf arms engage in the notches 18, provided for the purpose in the arms 16, as clearly disclosed in Figs. 3 and 4.

To release the shelf 8—9, the brace brackets are broken or forced inwardly.

I am aware that various details of con struction may be varied through a wide range without departing from the principles of this invention, and I therefore do not 40 purpose limiting the patent granted otherwise than necessitated by the prior art.