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US 2026/0251015 A1Published application
Step stool with bracket-receiving extruded channel
OwnerKyle J. Lawrenceinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A foldable step stool includes an expandable step frame, steps pivotably coupled to the expandable step frame, and a releasable step-retainer lock coupled to one of the steps. The step-retainer lock is operable to block movement the expandable step frame when the foldable step stool has been opened.
Claims20
A foldable step stool comprising
- an expandable step frame including a front leg unit and a rear leg unit pivotably coupled to the front leg unit at a leg-pivot axis for pivotable movement relative to the front leg unit during a change in the expandable step frame from a collapsed-storage mode in which the rear leg unit lies alongside the front leg unit to an expanded-use mode in which ground-engaging lower ends of the rear leg unit and the front leg unit are separated to establish an acute angle between the front and rear leg units, the rear leg unit including first and second rear legs and a crossbar arranged to interconnect the first and second rear legs,
- a top step including a tread panel, a rear rail that extends downwardly from the rear side of the tread panel, and a bracket hook that cooperates with the tread panel and an interior face of the of the rear rail to define a bracket-receiving channel, and
- a releasable step-retainer lock including a bracket arranged at least in part in the bracket-receiving channel of the top step and a latch supported by the bracket for pivotable movement about a latch-pivot axis relative to the top step to selectively engage the crossbar of the step frame when the step frame is in the expanded-use mode to stabilize the expandable step frame when the step stool is opened to the expanded-use mode.
A foldable step stool comprising
- an expandable step frame including a front leg unit and a rear leg unit pivotably coupled to the front leg unit at a leg-pivot axis for pivotable movement relative to the front leg unit during a change in the expandable step frame from a collapsed-storage mode in which the rear leg unit lies alongside the front leg unit to an expanded use mode in which ground-engaging lower ends of the rear leg unit and the front leg unit are separated to establish an acute angle between the front and rear leg units, the rear leg unit including first and second rear legs and a crossbar arranged to interconnect the first and second rear legs,
- a top step including an extruded plank, the extruded plank formed to have a constant cross-sectional shape that provides (i) a tread panel with a top face arranged to provide an upwardly facing step surface when the expandable step frame is in the expanded-use mode and (ii) a bracket-receiving channel arranged along a bottom face of the tread panel, opposite the top face, and
- a releasable step-retainer lock including a bracket arranged at least in part in the bracket-receiving channel of the top step and a latch supported by the bracket for movement relative to the top step to engage the crossbar of the step frame when the step frame is in the expanded-use mode to stabilize the expandable step frame when the step stool is opened and to disengage the crossbar of the step frame when the step frame is in the collapsed-storage mode and the step stool is closed.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.