An article stowage system for stowing substantially flat articles in vertically juxtaposed relation, the flat article stowage system comprising, in combination:
- a slide support assembly-receiving base, the slide support assembly-receiving base comprising an upright-engaging surface, a support-engaging surface, and a substantially linear assembly-receiving slot, the assembly-receiving slot being formed intermediate the upright-engaging surface and the support-engaging surface, the assembly-receiving slot comprising two opposite, substantially parallel spring member-engaging surfaces and a slide member-receiving portion, the slide member-receiving portion being formed intermediate the spring member-engaging surfaces and the support-engaging surface, the spring member-engaging surfaces having a first distance therebetween, the slide member-receiving portion comprising a wedge-shaped cross section, the slide member-receiving portion thus comprising a substantially planar inferior slot surface and two opposite, superior slot surfaces angled from the inferior slot surface to the spring member-engaging surfaces;
- a first slide support assembly, the slide support assembly comprising a substantially planar article-engaging upright, a substantially linear slide member, a substantially V-shaped spring member, spring member attaching means, and slide member attaching means, the article-engaging upright comprising an outer upright surface, an inner upright surface, and an inferior upright surface, the slide member comprising an upright attachment end, a slide surface end, a rounded superior slide surface, a substantially planar inferior slide surface, and a spring member-receiving groove intermediate the upright attachment end and the slide surface end, the V-shaped spring member comprising a vertex region, two opposite spring wings, a superior spring region, and an inferior spring region, each spring wing comprising a wing terminus, the wing termini having a second distance therebetween when the spring member is in a first equilibrium position, the first equilibrium position defined by the second distance having greater magnitude than the first distance, the slide member attaching means fixedly attaching the upright attachment end to the article-engaging upright, the slide member being substantially orthogonal to the article-engaging upright, the spring member attaching means pivotally attaching the vortex region to the outer upright surface, the inferior spring region received in the spring member-receiving groove, the spring wings extending toward the slide surface end, the wing termini being orthogonal to the upright-engaging surface;
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- a substantially planar select support structure, the select support structure being positioned opposite the inner upright surface in substantially parallel relation thereto, the slide member being received in the slide member-receiving portion, the superior slot surfaces being substantially tangent to the superior-slide surface, the inferior slot surface being in slidable contact with the inferior slide surface, the wing termini being in unidirectional contact with the spring member-engaging surfaces when in a second equilibrium position, the second equilibrium position defined by the second distance having substantially equal magnitude as the first distance, the inferior upright surface slidably engaged with the upright-engaging surface, the spring member thus allowing the slide support assembly to translate toward the select support structure given a first friction-overcoming force directed toward the select support structure orthogonal to the outer upright surface, the spring member thus preventing the slide support assembly to translate toward the slide surface end given a load force directed toward the slide surface end orthogonal to the inner upright surface, the spring wings being compressible to a third equilibrium position for eliminating unidirectional contact between the wing termini and the spring member-engaging surfaces to allow the slide support assembly to translate toward the slide surface end given a second friction-overcoming force directed toward the slide surface end orthogonal to the inner upright surface, the third equilibrium position defined by the second distance having a magnitude less than the first distance, the article support system thus enabling a user to stow articles adjacent the slide support assembly-receiving base intermediate the select support structure and the inner upright surface.