U.S. patent application number 11/037374 was filed with the patent office on 2006-07-20 for portable support arm.
Invention is credited to Ray Hung.
Application Number | 20060157627 11/037374 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 36682894 |
Filed Date | 2006-07-20 |
United States Patent
Application |
20060157627 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Hung; Ray |
July 20, 2006 |
Portable support arm
Abstract
A portable support arm has a base, an arm, a locking spindle and
a cover. The arm is attached pivotally to the base and has a
bracket on which an object is mounted. The locking spindle connects
the arm to the base and securely locks the arm in position relative
to the base. The cover is mounted on the arm. When the portable
support arm is used, the locking spindle is pulled out, and the arm
is adjusted and rotated so the height of the object will be
adjusted.
Inventors: |
Hung; Ray; (Taichung Hsien,
TW) |
Correspondence
Address: |
ROSENBERG, KLEIN & LEE
3458 ELLICOTT CENTER DRIVE-SUITE 101
ELLICOTT CITY
MD
21043
US
|
Family ID: |
36682894 |
Appl. No.: |
11/037374 |
Filed: |
January 19, 2005 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
248/276.1 ;
248/231.71 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F16M 2200/024 20130101;
F16C 11/10 20130101; F16M 13/022 20130101; F16M 11/2064 20130101;
F16M 11/10 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
248/276.1 ;
248/231.71 |
International
Class: |
E04G 5/06 20060101
E04G005/06 |
Claims
1. A portable support arm having a base having a body having a top
surface, and a slot defined in the top surface of the body, and a
bracket mounted in the body, extending from the slot in the body
and having at least one wing, and one of the at least one wing
having a mounting hole with multiple teeth, an arm attached to the
base and having a distal end, a proximal end, at least one side,
and a spindle hole defined in the side corresponding to the
mounting hole in the bracket and having teeth corresponding to the
teeth in the mounting hole in the bracket, and a locking spindle
mounted slidably through the spindle hole in the arm and the
mounting hole in the bracket, and having a spindle having an inner
end, an outer end, an outer surface, multiple teeth formed on the
outer surface of the spindle near the outer end, corresponding to
and selectively engaging the teeth in the spindle hole and the
mounting hole, and a spring mounted around the spindle to provide a
recoil force to the spindle.
2. The portable support arm as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
locking spindle further comprises a knob attached to the outer end
of the spindle and having an inside end attached to the outer end
of the spindle.
3. The portable support arm as claimed in claim 2, wherein the
spindle has a threaded hole defined coaxially through the spindle,
and the knob has a threaded stud formed coaxially on the inside end
of the to knob and screws into the threaded hole in the
spindle.
4. The portable support arm as claimed in claim 3, wherein the
locking spindle further comprises an end cap attached to the inner
end of the spindle and having an outer end, an inner end attached
to the inner end of the spindle, and an annular flange formed
around and extending radially out from the outer end of the end
cap.
5. The portable support arm as claimed in claim 4, wherein the end
cap further has a threaded stud formed coaxially on and protruding
out from the inner end of the end cap and screwing into the
threaded hole in the spindle.
6. The portable support arm as claimed in claim 1, wherein the base
has two wings, one of the wings having the mounting hole, and the
other wing having a through hole, the arm has two sides, one of the
side having the spindle hole, the other side having a through hole,
and the locking spindle further comprises a bushing mounted around
the inner end of the spindle and through the through holes in the
bracket and the arm, an escutcheon mounted on the bushing against
the side of the arm to hold the bushing in place and having an
outer surface, and the spring abuts the outer surface of the
escutcheon and the annular flange on the end cap.
7. The portable support arm as claimed in claim 6, wherein the
spindle further has an annular flange formed around and protruding
radially out from the inner end of the spindle, and the spring is
mounted between the flange on the spindle and the outer surface of
the escutcheon.
8. The portable support arm as claimed in claim 7, wherein the
portable support arm further comprises a cover having two halves
mounted on the arm individually having a distal end, a proximal
end, and a hole defined in the cover near the proximal end, wherein
the holes in one half faces the spindle hole in the arm and the
mounting hole in the bracket, and the hole in the other half faces
the through holes in the arm and the bracket.
9. The portable support arm as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
teeth on the spindle are formed at an oblique angle, and the teeth
on the spindle hole of the arm and the mounting hole in the bracket
are oblique angle.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to a support arm, and more
particularly to a portable support arm that can be adjusted in
height.
[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0004] Conventional support arms are used to adjustably mount
objects like desk lamps, monitors, televisions and the like.
Generally, conventional support arms have a parallelogram linkage
to adjust an object's height, and such conventional support arms
are well known in the art. The support arm has a distal articulated
arm and a proximal articulated arm, and a parallelogram linkage.
The parallelogram linkage connects the distal articulated arm and
the proximal articulated arm. The distal articulated arm is
stationary, and the proximal articulated arm is movable relative to
the distal arm for height adjustment.
[0005] However, the parallelogram linkage loosens easily after use,
and the height of the object will change. Further, a user needs to
loosen and tighten the parallelogram linkage again and again when
adjusts the height of the conventional support arm. Therefore, a
need exists for a portable support arm that can easily adjust the
height of an object attached to the portable support arm.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] The primary objective of the present invention is to provide
a portable support arm that can easily adjust the height of an
object attached to the portable support arm.
[0007] To achieve the objective, the portable support arm in
accordance with the present invention has a base, an arm, a locking
spindle and a cover. The base has a bracket. The bracket has at
least one wing with a mounting hole. The mounting hole has multiple
teeth. The arm is attached pivotally to the base and has a proximal
end, a distal end, a spindle hole and a bracket. The spindle hole
is formed transversely through the proximal end and has multiple
teeth corresponding to the teeth in the mounting hole. The bracket
is attached to the distal end, and an object is attached to the
bracket. The locking spindle connects the arm to the base, keeps
the arm from pivoting and has an outside surface and multiple
teeth. The teeth are formed on the outside surface and correspond
to the teeth in the spindle hole and the mounting hole. The cover
is mounted on the arm.
[0008] To adjust the portable support arm, the teeth on the locking
spindle are disengaged from the teeth in the spindle hole and the
mounting hole. The arm is pivoted to adjust the height of the
object attached to the bracket. The teeth on the locking spindle
are engaged with the teeth in the spindle hole and the mounting
hole to hold the object in place.
[0009] Other objectives, advantages and novel features of the
invention will become more apparent from the following detailed
description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying
drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a portable support arm in
accordance with the present invention;
[0011] FIG. 2 is an explored perspective view of the portable
support arm in FIG. 1;
[0012] FIG. 3 is an enlarged side view in partial section of the
portable support arm in FIG. 1;
[0013] FIG. 4 is an enlarged partially exploded perspective view of
the portable support arm in FIG. 1;
[0014] FIG. 5 is an enlarged operational side view in partial
section of the portable support arm in FIG. 1 when a knob is pulled
out; and
[0015] FIG. 6 is an operational side view of the portable support
arm in FIG. 1.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0016] With reference to FIGS. 1 to 3, a portable support arm in
accordance with the present invention has a base (10), an arm (20),
a locking spindle (30) and an optional cover (40).
[0017] The base (10) attaches to or sits on a desk, table,
workbench or the like, may be a transverse U-shaped clamp or a
weighted base and has a body and a bracket (11). The body has top
surface and a slot. The slot is defined in the top surface of the
body. The bracket (11) is mounted in the body, extends from the
slot in the body and has at least one wing (111). One wing (111)
has a mounting hole (112) with multiple teeth. In a preferred
embodiment, each tooth on the mounting hole is formed as an oblique
angle. In a preferred embodiment, the body (11) has two wings
(111), other wing (111) has a through hole (113).
[0018] The arm (20) is attached to the base (10) and has a distal
end, a proximal end, at least one side, a spindle hole (21), an
optional through hole (22) and a mounting device. The proximal end
of the arm (20) is attached to the body (11). In a preferred
embodiment, the arm (20) has two sides. The spindle hole (21) is
defined in the at least one side of the arm (20) corresponding to
the mounting hole (112) in the body (11) and has multiple teeth
corresponding to the teeth in the mounting hole (112). The through
hole (22) is defined in the other side of the arm (20) and
corresponds to the through hole (113) in the body (11). The
mounting device can be a bracket (23), a clamp or a platform, is
attached to the distal end and can connect to or hold an object
such as a monitor, a television, a lamp or the like.
[0019] Further with reference to FIG. 4, the locking spindle (30)
is mounted slidably through the spindle hole (21) in the arm (20)
and the mounting hole (112) in the bracket (11) and has a spindle
(31), an optional knob (32), an optional bushing (33), an optional
escutcheon (34), an optional end cap (36) and a spring (35).
[0020] The spindle (31) has an inner end, an outer end, an outer
surface, multiple teeth (311), an optional threaded hole (312) and
an optional annular flange. The teeth (311) are formed on the outer
surface of the spindle (31) near the outer end, correspond to and
selectively engage the teeth in the spindle hole (21) and the
mounting hole (112). The teeth (311) may be formed at an oblique
angle. The threaded hole (312) is defined coaxially through the
spindle (31). The annular flange is formed around and protrudes
radially out from the inner end of the spindle (31).
[0021] The knob (32) is attached to the outer end of the spindle
(31) and has an inside end and an optional threaded stud. The
inside end is attached to the outside end of the spindle (31). The
threaded stud is formed coaxially on the inside end of the knob
(32) and screws into the threaded hole (312) in the spindle
(31).
[0022] The bushing (33) is mounted around the inner end of the
spindle (31) and through the through holes (113, 22) in the arm
(20) and the bracket (11).
[0023] The escutcheon (34) has an outer surface and is mounted on
the bushing (33) against the side of the arm (20) to hold the
bushing (33) in place.
[0024] The end cap (36) is attached to the inner end of the spindle
(31) and has an outer end, an inner end, an annular flange and an
optional threaded stud. The inner end is attached to the inner end
of the spindle (31). The annular flange is formed around and
extends radially out from the outer end of the end cap (36). The
threaded stud is formed coaxially on and protrudes out from the
inner end of the end cap (36) and screws into the threaded hole
(312) in the spindle (31).
[0025] The spring (35) is mounted around the spindle (31) and abuts
the side of the arm (20) to hold the spindle (31) in the spindle
hole (21), the mounting hole (112) and the through holes (113).
When the escutcheon (34) is installed to hold the bushing (33) in
the arm (20), the spring (35) abuts the outer surface of the
escutcheon (34). When the end cap (36) is attached to the inner end
of the spindle (31), the spring (35) is mounted between the flange
on the end cap (36) and the outer surface of the escutcheon (34).
When the end cap (36) is not attached to the inner end of the
spindle (31), the annular flange is formed around the inner end of
the spindle (31), and the spring (35) is mounted between the flange
on the spindle (31) and the outer surface of the escutcheon
(34).
[0026] The cover (40) has two halves (400) mounted on the arm (20).
The halves (400) individually have a distal end, a proximal end and
a hole (41). The holes (41) are defined respectively in the halves
(400) near the proximal ends and correspond respectively to the
spindle hole (21) and the mounting hole (112) and the through holes
(113, 22). The holes (41) allow the krob (32) and the end cap (36)
to protrude from the cover (40).
[0027] With reference to FIGS. 5 and 6, the height of the bracket
(23) is adjusted by pulling the knob (32) out until the teeth (311)
on the spindle (31) disengage from the teeth in the mounting hole
(113), the arm (20) is pivoted until the bracket (23) is at the
desired height. When the knob (32) is pulled out, the spring (35)
is compressed. After adjusting the height of the bracket (23), the
knob (32) is released, the compressed spring (35) pulls the spindle
(31), and the teeth (311) engage the teeth in the mounting hole
(113) and lock the arm (20) in position.
[0028] The portable support arm has the following advantages.
[0029] 1. Adjusting the height of an object mounted on the portable
support arm is easy since a user only has to pull the locking
spindle (31).
[0030] 2. The height of an object mounted on the portable support
arm in accordance with the present invention is locked in place and
will not loosen because the teeth (311) on the spindle (31) engage
the teeth on the mounting hole (113) and the spindle hole (21) and
lock the arm (20) in position relative to the bracket (11).
[0031] The invention may be varied in many ways by a person skilled
in the art. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure
from the spirit and scope of the invention, and all such
modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the
following claims.
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