U.S. patent application number 12/554067 was filed with the patent office on 2011-03-10 for travel lap desk with magnetic coupling.
Invention is credited to Scott E. Andochick.
Application Number | 20110056413 12/554067 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 43646670 |
Filed Date | 2011-03-10 |
United States Patent
Application |
20110056413 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Andochick; Scott E. |
March 10, 2011 |
TRAVEL LAP DESK WITH MAGNETIC COUPLING
Abstract
A travel lap desk has a foam wedge that rests on, and is
removably coupled to, a deformable pad. A first magnetic element is
attached to the underside of the foam wedge and a second magnetic
element is attached to the upper surface of the deformable pad.
These magnetic elements are positioned to removably couple the foam
wedge to the top of the deformable pad. The foam wedge is
sufficiently stiff to provide a writing surface and yet is
sufficiently compliant to deform when impacted by the user without
causing injury to the user. The foam wedge may be covered with a
washable material that may be removable.
Inventors: |
Andochick; Scott E.;
(Potomac, MD) |
Family ID: |
43646670 |
Appl. No.: |
12/554067 |
Filed: |
September 4, 2009 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
108/14 ; 108/26;
108/28; 108/43; 248/444 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B42F 9/001 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
108/14 ; 108/43;
248/444; 108/28; 108/26 |
International
Class: |
A47B 23/00 20060101
A47B023/00; A47B 13/00 20060101 A47B013/00; A47B 13/16 20060101
A47B013/16; A47B 85/00 20060101 A47B085/00 |
Claims
1. A travel lap desk comprising: a foam wedge; a first magnetic
element attached to the underside of the foam wedge; a deformable
pad sized to rest on the lap of a user of the travel lap desk; and
a second magnetic element attached to the upper surface of the
deformable pad; wherein the first and second magnetic elements are
positioned to removably couple the foam wedge to the top of the
deformable pad, and wherein the foam wedge is sufficiently stiff to
provide a writing surface and sufficiently compliant to deform when
impacted by the user without causing injury to the user.
2. A travel lap desk in accordance with claim 1, wherein the foam
wedge is covered with a washable material.
3. A travel lap desk in accordance with claim 2, wherein the
washable material is removable.
4. A travel lap desk in accordance with claim 1, wherein the
deformable pad comprises a flexible bag containing a plurality of
small objects.
5. A travel lap desk in accordance with claim 1, wherein the
deformable pad comprises a flexible bag containing a gel.
6. A travel lap desk in accordance with claim 1, further
comprising: a clip attached to the upper surface of the foam wedge
and adapted to secure an object on the foam wedge.
7. A travel lap desk in accordance with claim 1, further
comprising: at least one third magnetic element attached to a side
of the foam wedge; a holder; and a fourth magnetic element attached
to a side of the holder; wherein the holder is removably coupled to
the foam wedge by magnetic attraction between the third and fourth
magnetic elements.
8. A travel lap desk in accordance with claim 7, wherein the holder
comprises a pen holder.
9. A travel lap desk in accordance with claim 7, wherein the holder
comprises a pouch.
10. A travel lap desk comprising: a foam wedge; a first magnetic
element attached to the underside of the foam wedge; a deformable
pad sized to rest on the lap of a user of the travel lap desk; a
second magnetic element attached to the upper surface of the
deformable pad; a container; and a third magnetic element attached
to the underside of the container; wherein the first, second and
third magnetic elements are positioned to removably couple one of
the foam wedge and the container to the top of the deformable pad,
and wherein the foam wedge is sufficiently stiff to provide a
writing surface and sufficiently compliant to deform when impacted
by the user without causing injury to the user.
11. A travel lap desk in accordance with claim 10, wherein the
container is a container selected from the group of containers
consisting of a bowl, a food tray, a cup, and a cup holder.
12. A travel lap desk in accordance with claim 10, wherein the
deformable pad comprises a bean-bag.
13. A travel lap desk in accordance with claim 10, further
comprising a clip attached to the upper surface of the foam wedge
and adapted to secure an object on the foam wedge.
14. A travel lap desk in accordance with claim 10, further
comprising: at least one fourth magnetic element attached to a side
of the foam wedge; a holder; and a fifth magnetic element attached
to a side of the holder; wherein the holder is removably coupled to
the foam wedge by magnetic attraction between the fourth and fifth
magnetic elements.
Description
BACKGROUND
[0001] A variety of lap trays and child activity trays are known in
the art. Commonly, they are designed for use by a person seated in
a bed or in a chair. For people seated in beds, the trays may be
supported by the bed using legs attached to the tray. More
generally, the trays are supported by the user's legs. The legs
provide an uneven support surface, and a variety of means are used
to stabilize a tray on a user's legs. These include shaping the
underside of the tray to accommodate the user's legs, making the
underside compliant, using foam rubber for example, so that the
underside compresses to follow the shape of the legs, and making
the underside of a bean-bag structure, that is, a flexible bag that
contains many separate elements.
[0002] A disadvantage of many lap trays is that the working surface
is constructed of a rigid material. This may be dangerous if the
tray is to be used in a motor vehicle, since the user may impact
the tray in the event of a crash or harsh maneuver.
[0003] A resilient safety cushion that may also be used to provide
a surface for reading, writing, or other activities. A disadvantage
of this design is that if the foam is stiff enough to be used as an
activity surface, it is too stiff to deform to the users legs when
placed on the users lap. As a result, the cushion does not sit
securely on the user's lap. To overcome this disadvantage, the
cushion may be attached to the user's seatbelt, to limit motion.
However, this may make it difficult for smaller children to fix or
remove the cushion.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
[0004] The accompanying figures, in which like reference numerals
refer to identical or functionally similar elements throughout the
separate views and which together with the detailed description
below are incorporated in and form part of the specification, serve
to further illustrate various embodiments and to explain various
principles and advantages all in accordance with the present
invention.
[0005] FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic representation of an example travel
lap desk in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.
[0006] FIG. 2 is a further diagrammatic representation of an
example travel lap desk in accordance with some embodiments of the
invention.
[0007] Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the
figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not
necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of
some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to
other elements to help to improve understanding of embodiments of
the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0008] Before describing in detail embodiments that are in
accordance with the present invention, it should be observed that
the embodiments reside primarily in combinations of method steps
and apparatus components related to a travel lap desk with magnetic
coupling. Accordingly, the apparatus components have been
represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the
drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to
understanding the embodiments of the present invention so as not to
obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent
to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the
description herein.
[0009] In this document, relational terms such as first and second,
top and bottom, and the like may be used solely to distinguish one
entity or action from another entity or action without necessarily
requiring or implying any actual such relationship or order between
such entities or actions. The terms "comprises,""comprising," or
any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive
inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that
comprises a list of elements does not include only those elements
but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to
such process, method, article, or apparatus. An element preceded by
"comprises . . . a" does not, without more constraints, preclude
the existence of additional identical elements in the process,
method, article, or apparatus that comprises the element.
[0010] One embodiment of the present invention relates to travel
lap desk that includes a foam wedge that rests on, and is removably
coupled to, a deformable pad. A first magnetic element is attached
to the underside of the foam wedge and a second magnetic element is
attached to the upper surface of the deformable pad. These magnetic
elements are positioned to enable the foam wedge to be removably
coupled to the top of the deformable pad.
[0011] The foam wedge is sufficiently stiff to provide a writing
surface and yet is sufficiently compliant to deform, when impacted
by the user, without causing injury to the user. The foam wedge may
have a washable covering that, in turn, may be removable.
[0012] The deformable pad is sized to rest on the lap of a user of
the travel lap desk.
[0013] FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic representation of an example travel
lap desk 100 in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.
In this embodiment, the travel lap desk includes a foam wedge 102
and a deformable pad 104. The foam wedge 102 is removably coupled
to the deformable pad 104 using a pair of magnetic elements. The
pair of magnetic elements comprises a first magnetic element 106
attached to the underside of the foam wedge 102 and second magnetic
element 108 attached to the upper surface of the deformable pad
104. One, or both, of the magnetic elements may be a magnet. In
FIG. 1, the foam wedge and deformable pad are shown decoupled.
Coupling is achieved by bringing the two magnetic elements within
proximity of one another, as indicated by arrow 110. Magnetic
attraction between the magnetic elements draws the elements
together and forms the coupling. In this embodiment, only a single
pair of magnetic elements is used, but multiple pairs could be
used.
[0014] In one embodiment, the deformable pad 104 comprises a
flexible bag containing multiple small objects. This is commonly
called a `bean-bag`, although the small objects may be constructed
of man-made materials, such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC), or
expanded polystyrene foam pellets, or the small objects may be
natural materials, such as dried beans or rice.
[0015] In a further embodiment the deformable pad 104 comprises a
flexible bag containing a gel.
[0016] The deformable pad may be constructed from, or covered with,
a water resistant material, such as a flexible plastic or vinyl, so
that it resists liquid spills and may be easily wiped clean.
[0017] The foam wedge may be covered with a water resistant
material, such as a flexible plastic or vinyl, so that it resists
liquid spills and may be easily wiped clean. The cover may be
removable for washing or it may be permanent.
[0018] In accordance with another embodiment of the invention, a
third magnetic element 112 is attached to the underside of a
container 114. This allows the container 114 (rather than the foam
wedge 102) to be removably attached to the deformable pad 104. The
container 114 may be a cup, cup holder, food tray or bowl, for
example.
[0019] FIG. 2 is a further diagrammatic representation of an
example travel lap desk 100 in accordance with some embodiments of
the invention. In FIG. 2, the foam wedge 102 is shown coupled to
the deformable pad 104. In use, the deformable pad 104 is placed on
the legs of a seated user. The resulting deformation of the
deformable pad 104 allows the travel lap desk 100 to sit securely
and comfortably on the lap of the user. In this position, the upper
surface 200 of the foam wedge is angled towards the user and
provides a flat surface on which various activities may be
performed, such as reading, writing and drawing, for example.
[0020] The upper surface 200 of the foam wedge 102 may be covered
with, or constructed from, a rubber-like material to reduce the
chance of objects slipping on the desk.
[0021] The material of the foam wedge 102 is selected to be stiff
enough to provide support for activities such as writing and
drawing, but is deformable so that if the travel lap desk is used
in a vehicle it will provide a degree of protection to the user in
the event of an a crash or harsh maneuver. This is preferable to a
hard object, such as a rigid desk, which could be harmful to the
user in the event of a crash or harsh maneuver. Open or closed cell
foam may be used.
[0022] In one embodiment, the travel lap desk includes a clip 202
attached to the foam wedge 102. The clip 202 may be a spring clip,
for example. The clip 202 may be used to secure objects, such as
books, sheets of paper, personal electronic devices etc., to the
upper surface 200 of the travel lap desk.
[0023] Other elements may be coupled to the travel lap desk 100
using magnetic coupling. For example, in FIG. 2, magnetic elements
204 and 206 may be used to couple other objects, such as holders,
to the travel lap desk. For example, a pouch or container 208 may
be equipped with a magnetic element 210 that couples to magnetic
element 204 (or 206) on the travel lap desk. The pouch may be used
to hold objects, such as writing implements, for the convenience of
the user. A pen holder 212, with attached magnetic element 214, may
be used to hold a single writing or drawing implement.
[0024] In one embodiment, the magnetic elements 204 and 206 are
magnets, in which case any object with a ferrous component may be
attached to the travel lap desk.
[0025] Other attachment methods, such as hook-and-loop fasteners
could be used. However, a magnetic coupling has the advantage that
an object may be attached and removed easily, without undue force
on the travel lap desk. A further benefit of a magnetic coupling is
that, to some extent, it is self-aligning, since the paired
magnetic elements are drawn together by magnetic attraction once
they are close to one another. This feature is not found in
hook-and-loop fasteners. A still further benefit is that magnetic
elements provide a smooth surface that easy to keep clean.
[0026] A further advantage is that the magnetic element, 108 in
FIG. 1, on the upper surface of the deformable pad 104 may
alternatively be used to hold items other than the foam wedge 102.
For example, it may be used to hold a cup, bowl, food tray, basket
or other container that has a corresponding magnetic element
attached to its underside.
[0027] In the foregoing specification, specific embodiments of the
present invention have been described. However, one of ordinary
skill in the art appreciates that various modifications and changes
can be made without departing from the scope of the present
invention as set forth in the claims below. Accordingly, the
specification and figures are to be regarded in an illustrative
rather than a restrictive sense, and all such modifications are
intended to be included within the scope of the present invention.
The benefits, advantages, solutions to problems, and any element(s)
that may cause any benefit, advantage, or solution to occur or
become more pronounced are not to be construed as a critical,
required, or essential features or elements of any or all the
claims. The invention is defined solely by the appended claims
including any amendments made during the pendency of this
application and all equivalents of those claims as issued.
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