GB2458439A

GB2458439A - Screen for hiding cables.

Info

Publication number: GB2458439A
Application number: GB0800206A
Authority: GB
Inventors: John Bentham Rogers
Original assignee: MACRO METAL SERVICES Ltd
Current assignee: MACRO METAL SERVICES Ltd
Priority date: 2008-01-07
Filing date: 2008-01-07
Publication date: 2009-09-23
Also published as: GB0800206D0

Abstract

Concealment means 10 for hiding parts of one or more wires 38, 40, for example, at the rear of a television set has a base 12 and two or more screens 14 affixed to the base 12. The screens 14 are spaced-apart to provide a slot 16 there between through which the wires 38, 40 pass. The screens 14 hide the wires 38,40 from view when the concealment means 10 is viewed from a certain side. The slot 16 may be filed with a deformable edging strip which may take the form of bristles.

Description

Title: Concealment Means

Description:

S This invention relates to concealment means, and in particular, but without limitation, to concealment means for concealing wires, cables and the like.

Most homes nowadays have a television set and a variety of audio/visual equipment, such as a DVD player, a set-top-box, a games console etc. connected to each other and/or the television set via wires or cables. Additionally, each device normally has a dedicated power supply cable. The trend, in recent times, is to use a television stand (often manufactured, at least in part, of glass for aesthetic reasons) rather than a television cabinet for storing and displaying the television and associated equipment. The wiring and cabling associated therewith can, however, be visible, which can be unsightly.

Attempts have been made to improve the appearance of television stands using devices which essentially comprise a tube or coil through which the cables pass. However, these devices can be difficult and time consuming to install, since they merely bundle the cables together (i.e. they do not significantly improve their appearance) and can make it very difficult to separate/un-bundle an individual cable later on.

A known alternative solution is to provide the television stand with a hollow support pillar behind the intended location of the T\J and associated devices through which the cables can pass. This solution suffers from similar problems to the other solution, and is largely unsatisfactory.

Moreover, existing cable-receiving pillars make it difficult to use in conjunction with relatively large mains plugs (for example, the UK-style 3-pin plug) since the plug is often too large to fit through the access apertures provided in the pillar. This can lead to homeowners snipping-off and then re-wiring their plugs, which has potential for error or, more often, the cable tidy pillar being used only for the data cables, but not for the power cables.

The present invention aims to provide a solution to one or more of the above problems.

According to this invention, there is provided a concealment means for concealing at least part of one or more wires comprising: a base and two or more screen means affixed to the base, wherein the screen means are spaced-apart to define a slot therebetween for receipt of a portion of a wire.

Is The screen means may be located side-by-side, such that, for example, the slot is defined by the space between adjacent edges of the screen means. The screen means may be arranged to at least partially overlap. In such a case, the slot may be defined by the space between a rear face of the relatively forward screen means and a front face of the relatively rearward screen means. The slot may have at least one open end.

A brush means may be provided. The brush means, where provided, may at least partially close the slot Where provided, a brush means may be affixed to each screen means. Adjacent pairs of brush means may be arranged to overlap and/or intermesh to partially or completely close the slot.

At least one of the two or more screen means may be moveable relative to the base. By making the screen means moveable relative to the base, it may be possible to reorient and/or reposition the screen means for better concealment of the wires/cables.

A connector means may be provided for releasably and/or moveably connecting at least one of the two or more screen means to the base. The connector may comprise an aperture in the base for receiving a boss extending downwardly, in use, from an underside of at least one of the two or more screen means. Additionally or alternatively, the connector may comprise an aperture in the underside of at least one of the two or more screen means for receiving a boss extending upwardly, in use, from the base.

The base or screen means may comprise a plurality of apertures to enable the screen means to be translated and/or rotated with respect to the base.

At least one of the two or more screen means may be generally planar.

At least one of the two or more screen means may be curved.

The screen means may extend, in use, substantially vertically upwardly from the base.

The concealment means may comprise one or more electrical connectors. The electrical connector may comprise a mains power outlet, a telephone cable socket, a data cable socket (e.g. ADSL, LAN, USB, IEEE 1394, etc.) and/or an AV socket (e.g. a coaxial aerial socket, a D-SUB, VGA, SCART, etc.). Advantageously, by providing one or more electrical connectors on the concealment means, it may be possible to reduce the number of wires extending from the concealment means.

Preferred embodiments of the invention shall now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a front perspective view of a cable tidy according to the invention; Figure 2 is a rear perspective view of a first embodiment of cable tidy shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 is a rear perspective view of a first variant of the cable tidy shown in Figures 1 and 2, which further comprises a brush strip; Figure 4 is a partial cross-section of Figure 3 on IV-IV; Figure 5 is a schematic plan view of second variant of the cable tidy shown in Figures 1 and 2, which comprises partially overlapping screen portions; and Figure 6 is an orthographic projection the cable tidy of Figures 1 and 2 in use behind a television stand.

In Figures 1 and 2, a concealment means in the form of a cable tidy 10, according to the invention comprises a generally flat, oval basel2 and a pair of curved, upstanding screens 14 detachably affixed thereto. The screens 14 are laterally spaced-apart to define a generally rectangular slot 16 for receipt of cables (not shown).

In use, as can be best seen in Figure 6, the cable tidy 10 sits on the floor 18 behind a television stand 20. The television stand 20 comprises an upper shelf 22 for supporting a television 24, and a middle 26 and lower shelf 28 for supporting various AV equipment (in this case, a VCR 30, a games console 32, a DVD recorder 34 and a satellite television receiver 36) off the floor 18. Data cables 38 connect the TV and the AV equipment 30, 32, 34, 36 to one another, and power cables 40 connect each device 30, 32, 34, 36 to a mains power supply. The data 38 and power cables 40 each pass through the slot 16 of the cable tidy 10 and are coiled behind it. Thus, when viewed from the front, the data 38 and power cables 40 are concealed from view, which greatly improves the appearance of the television stand 20 Referring to Figures 1 and 2 again, the base 12 and screens 14 of the cable tidy 10 are manufactured of pressed sheet aluminium The base 12 has a generally planar, oval upper surface 42 and a curved sidewall 44 that extends downwardly therefrom to form a hollow cavity between the underside io of the upper surface 42 and the floor 18. This construction enables relatively rigid structure to be obtained at minimal material usage. The hollow underside of the base 12 provides space to accommodate a weight, in the form of a thick metal plate, the weight of which helps to stabilise the cable tidy 10.

A pair of spaced-apart, cylindrical bosses 46 extend upwardly from the upper surface of the base 12 to form connectors for connecting the base 12 to the screens 14. In Figures 2 and 3, each of the bosses 46 comprises a screw-threaded portion for receiving a nut 48 or wing nut 50, respectively, for securing the screens 14 to the base 12.

Each screen 14 is also manufactured from a single pressed sheet of aluminium and comprises a curved front wall 52, a planar base wall 54, a planar minor side wall 56 and a planar major side wall 58. The screens 14 are provided in pairs that are a mirror image of one another (about a vertical line) for symmetry.

The planar base waIl 54 of each screen 14 has a circular through hole therein for receiving the upstanding bosses 46 of the base 12 Thus, the screens 14 can be rotated R relative to the base 12 to obtain a desired slot dimension, as required.

As can be seen in Figures 2 and 3, the cable tidy 10 comprises a socket outlet 60, which is affixed to the base 12 behind the screens 14 (i.e. out of view from the front) using screws (not shown).

The socket outlet 60 comprises four mains power outlets 62, a telephone jack 64, two USB ports 66, an IEEE 1394 (firewire) port 68 and a local area network (LAN) cable jack 70, although other socket arrangements are possible. The socket outlet 60 comprises a circuit board (not shown) which serves as a data hub for interconnecting the data sockets 64, 66, 68, A combined power and data cable 72 extends from the socket outlet 60 to a remote connection block 74 having a corresponding data jacks 64, 66, 68, is 70 thereon. A mains power plug 76 also extends from the remote connection block 74.

In use, a user simply plugs the mains power plug 76 into an available power outlet and plugs the power cables 40 of his/her TV/AV equipment into the sockets 62 provided on the socket outlet 60 If desired, the user can also connect the sockets of the remote connection block 74 to appropriate telephone or LAN sockets of the house. A computer can also be connected, if desired, to the USB 66 / firewire 68 / LAN 70 ports of the remote connection block 74, using appropriate cables. Since the socket outlet 60 comprises a data hub, the user is able to connect together (e.g. network) his AV and computer equipment 30, 32, 34, 36 by plugging it into the appropriate sockets 64, 66, 68, 70 of the socket outlet 60. Conveniently, this enables the user to position his router, network storage device, multimedia centre etc., behind the television stand where it will be concealed form view by the cable tidy, but conveniently located together with his/her other AV equipment.

The data 38 and power cables 40 can be pushed downwardly so that they pass through the slot 16 of the cable tidy 10. Since a middle portion of the cable is lowered into the slot 16, rather than having to thread its end therethrough, any cable (within reason) can pass through the slot 16 regardless of the size/shape of the plug/connector on its end. Additionally, since the slot 16 provides plenty of space for the cables, individual pieces of TV/AV equipment can be added or removed without having to disconnect all of the other pieces of TV/AV equipment. Moreover, if the cables do become tangled, one or more of the screens 14 can be lifted off / removed from the base 12 to facilitate untangling them, and the screens 14 can be replaced once the cables have been separated, without having to disconnect the TV/AV equipment.

In Figures 3 and 4, a variant of the cable tidy 10 previously described is shown having a plurality of through holes 78 in the base wall of each screen 14 to enable the screens to be translated I and rotated R relative to the base 12. Additionally, the minor side waIl 56 of each screen carries a resiliently deformable brush strip 80 for closing the slot 16 However, the resilient bristles of the brush strips 80 can be deformed aside to permit cables to pass downwardly through the slot 16. The brush strips 80 of the two screens overlap, as seen in Figure 3, so that the slot 16 is closed completely.

In Figure 4, it can be seen that four through holes 78 are provided at 50, 80, 110 and 140 mm centres from the major side wall 58 of the screen 14.

Additionally, the radius of curvature of the front wall 54 is 450mm.

In Figure 5, a further variant of the cable tidy 10 previously described is shown in which the screens 14 are not mirror images of one another, but have oppositely profiled overhangs 82, 84 that project into the slot 16. By overlapping the overhangs 82, 84, the slot 16 is defined by the rear wall of the front screen 14 and the front wall of the rear screen 14'. The cables pass through the slot 16 in a serpentine manner, but it is not possible to see through the slot 16 (when viewed from the front) because the overhangs 82, 84 obscure the line of sight through the slot 16.

The invention is not limited to the details of the foregoing embodiments.

In particular, the screens need not have a curved front surface, nor need they necessarily be manufactured of sheet metal: injection-moulded plastics, might, is for example, be used. Whilst convenient in many circumstances, the socket outlet need not necessarily be integrated into the cable tidy: it could be omitted altogether so that the user can use his own socket outlet.

Additionally, the socket outlet, where provided, may not comprise data sockets, as these may not be needed by all users of the invention. In Figures 2 and 3, the screens are secured to the base using nuts or wing nuts, respectively, although these nuts may be omitted. By omitting the nuts/wing nuts, the screens can be more easily removed, which facilitates regular cleaning of the cable tidy. Whilst in Figures 3 and 4 a resilient brush strip is used for closing the slot, resiliently deformable strips other than brushes may be used, for example, flexible rubber or plastics strips.

Claims

Claims: 1. Concealment means for concealing at least part of one or more wires comprising: a base and two or more screen means affixed to the base, wherein the screen means are spaced-apart to define a slot therebetween for receipt of a portion of a wire.
2. Concealment means as claimed in claim 1, wherein the screen io means are located side-by-side.
3. Concealment means as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the screen means are arranged to at least partially overlap.
4. Concealment means as claimed in any of claims 1, 2 or 3, further comprising a resiliently deformable edge strip projecting into the slot.
5. Concealment means as claimed in claim 4, wherein the resiliently deformable edge strip extends across substantially the whole of the slot.
6. Concealment means as claimed in claim 4 or claim 5, wherein each of the screen means which define the slot is provided with a resiliently deformable edge strip.
7. Concealment means as claimed in claim 6, wherein the resiliently deformable edge strips are arranged to overlap.
8. Concealment means as claimed in any of claims 4 to 7, wherein the resiliently deformable edge strip comprises brush means.
9. Concealment means as claimed in any of claims 4 to 7, wherein the resiliently deformable edge strip comprises a flexible rubber or plastics strip.
Concealment means as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein s at least one of the two or more screen means is/are moveable relative to the base.
11 Concealment means as claimed in any preceding claim, further comprising connector means for releasably and/or moveably connecting at least one of the two or more screen means to the base.
12. Concealment means as claimed in claim 11, wherein the connector comprises an aperture in the base for receiving a base extending downwardly, in use, from an underside of at least one of the two or more screen means, or vice-versa.
13. Concealment means as claimed in claim 12, wherein the base or screen means comprises a plurality of apertures.
14. Concealment means as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein at least one of the two or more screen means is generally planar.
Concealment means as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein at least one of the two or more screen means is curved.
16 Concealment means as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the screen means extend, in use, substantially vertically upwardly from the base.
17. Concealment means as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the slot has at least one open end.
18. Concealment means as claimed in any preceding claim, further comprising a socket outlet.
19. Concealment means as claimed in claim 18, wherein the socket outlet comprises a power outlet socket and/or a data socket.
20. Concealment means as claimed in claim 19, wherein the data socket comprises any one or more of the group comprising: a USB port, a firewire port, a LAN socket and a telephone socket.
21. Concealment means as claimed in any of claims 19 or 20, further comprising a circuit adapted to function as a data hub.
22. Concealment means substantially as hereinbefore described, with reference to, and as illustrated in, the accompanying drawings.