GB2474716A

GB2474716A - Foam block for storing radio microphone or other audio equipment

Info

Publication number: GB2474716A
Application number: GB0918899A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Timothy Alber Comey
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2009-10-20
Filing date: 2009-10-28
Publication date: 2011-04-27
Also published as: GB0918899D0

Abstract

A foam block is provided for storing radio microphone receivers and other audio equipment. The foam block is for use in an on-the-shoulder audio bag (ref 2, fig 5). The foam block has a plurality of holes machined, or otherwise formed, therein, and preferably consists of two layers, a thinner upper layer (ref 1, fig 3) of black foam, and a thicker lower layer (ref 2, fig 3) of coloured foam. The layer of coloured foam (ref 2, fig 3) allows the holes to be easily seen in dark environments and the items of audio equipment easily located within the block. The foam block prevents damage to stored radio microphones and other audio equipment. The foam block may be provided with an extension (see fig 7) for supporting a battery in the same bag as the other equipment.

Description

DESCRIPTION. THE AUDIO INSERT BLOCK (AIB)

DESCRIPTION.

AUDIO INSERT BLOCK (AIB).

THIS INVENTION RELATES TO A DEVICE FOR AN AUDIO FRAME.

WHAT S IT? THIS INVENTION IS A SOLID FOAM BLOCK INTO WHICH FOUR SLOTS ARE MACHINED OUT.

WHAT DOES IT DO? SUPPORTS, PROTECTS, ORGANIZES AND IMPROVES

THE PERFORMANCE OF RADIO MICROPHONE EQUIPMENT IN

PARTICULAR THE RECEIVER UNITS WITHIN LOCATION ON-SHOULDER' AUDIO BAGS.

WHAT S IT MADE FROM? MAY BE MADE FROM ANY SUITABLE MATERIAL.

TYPICALLY A FOAM MATERIAL IS USED TO PROVIDE RESILIENCY I

CUSHIONING I SHOCK ABSORBANCY / DURABILITY AND LIGHTNESS OF WEIGHT. WITH THIS IN MIND LD45 PLASTAZOTE FOAM IS FREQUENTLY USED.

HOW DOES IT RELATE TO THE DEVICES IT WORKS WITH? THE

INVENTION IS A PIECE OF KIT DESIGNED TO SUPPORT AND PROTECT

EQUIPMENT HOUSED IN fNDUSTRY STANDARD ON-SHOULDER' AUDIO BAGS. THE DIMENSIONS HAVE BEEN CALCULATED SO THAT THE BLOCK CAN FIT SNUGLY INTO MOST STANDARD AUDIO BAGS.

LOCATION ON-SHOULDER' AUDIO BAGS ARE THE STANDARD DESIGN CHOICE FOR LOCATION, PORTABLE SINGLE CAMERS (PSC) AND ELECTRONIC NEWS GATHERING (ENG) SOUND RECORDING. THIS FORM

OF SOUND RECORDING IS VERY PHYSICAL AND REQUIRES A LOT OF

MOVING ABOUT FROM ONE LOCATION TO ANOTHER.

THE INVENTION WILL NOW BE DESCRIBED SOLELY BY WAY OF EXAMPLE

AND WITH REFERENCE TO THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS IN WHICH: FIG 1 /8 SHOWS A TYPICAL AUDIO ON-SHOULDER' BAG LOOKING DOWN UPON THE BAG. IT WILL HAVE AN OPEN BAG CAVITY (REF 1) AND HOUSE A LOCATION MIXER IN ANOTHER CAVITY (REF 2) A LARGE BATTERY WITH POWERING CLIP (REF 3) AND EXPENSIVE RADIO RECEIVER UNITS (REF 4) WILL BE PLACED IN THE OPEN CAVITY.

MORE OFTEN THAN NOT THESE UNITS ARE PLACED IN THE CAVITY

LOOSE AND WITHOUT ANY RIGID SUPPORT. THE UNITS, THEIR AERIALS

AND ATTACHED CABLES FALL ABOUT INSIDE THE BAG AND BECAUSE

THEY ARE NOT PROTECTED, GET KNOCKED ABOUT,ULTIMATELY BECOMING DAMAGED.

IN ADDITION, SfNCE THE UNITS ARE PLACED LOOSELY IN THE AUDIO BAG, THERE IS NO ORGANIZATION THAT ALLOWS THE SOUND PROFESSIONAL TO DEAL WITH FAULT FINDING IN AN EFFICIENT WAY.

THE UNITS FALliNG ABOUT THE BAG ALSO MEANS THAT THE

FREQUENCY RECEPTION THEY ARE BUILT TO DETECT IS NOT AT ITS

MOST EFFICIENT SINCE THE AERIALS ARE NOT RAISED ABOVE THE BAG

IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN MAXIMUM RECEPTION.

FIG 2/8. TO OVERCOME THE PROBLEMS DESCRIBED ABOVE, THE PRESENT INVENTION PROPOSES A FREE STANDING, VERY LIGHT, SOLID BLOCK MADE FROM HIGHLY DURABLE, LIGHT PLASTAZOTE FOAM THAT SUPPORTS, PROTECTS, ORGANIZES AND IMPROVES RADIO RECEIVERS WITHIN AUDIO BAGS.

LOOKING DOWN UPON THE INVENTION, IT IS A SOLID FOAM BLOCK (REF 1) INTO WHICH FOUR SLOTS ARE MACHINED DOWN TO A DEPTH OF 70MM (REF 2) AND SPACED 20MM APART (REF 3).

THE MACHINING OF SLOTS ALLOWS RADIO RECEIVERS TO BE PLACED, SUPPORTED AND PROTECTED FROM DAMAGE AND THE 20MM SPACING

PROVIDES ROOM FOR THE ACCOMPANYING RADIO TRANSMITTER

PACKS TO BE PLACED BETWEEN THE RECEIVERS DURING TRANSPORT.

THE BLOCK IS 80MM DEEP, 10 MM OF WHICH IS BLACK, THE REST OF A

HIGH VISIBLE COLOUR LIKE ORANGE TO AID THE USER IN LOCATING

THE SLOTS ESPECIALL IN DARK ENVIRONMENTS (REF 4).

FIG 3/8 ATTEMPTS TO ILLUSTRATE THE INVENTION IN 3D SHOWING THE BLACK TOP LAYER (REF 1) IN CONTRAST TO THE HIGH VISIBIUTY LOWER LAYER (REF 2).

FIG 418 Is THE SAME AS FIG 3/8 BUT WITHOUT COLOUR.

FIG 518. THE INVENTION (REF 1)15 PLACED INTO THE OPEN BAG CAVITY OF AN AUDIO ON-SHOULDER' BAG (REF 2) TO THE RIGHT OF THE BATTERY / CLIP.

FIG 6/8. IN THE BAG THE BLOCK HOUSES THE RECEIVERS (REF 1) SUPPORTING EACH UNIT INDIVIDUALY, PROTECTING FROM DAMAGE TO EACH OTHER, ORGANISING THE UNITS LEFT TO RIGHT FOR EASE OF

FAULT FINDING AND IMPROVING FREQUENCY STRENGTH BY RAISING

THE RECEIVER UNITS ABOVE THE BAG THUS MAINTAINING A CONSTANT

SIGNAL FROM THE TRANSMITTER UNITS.

ON PROFILE THE LOCATION MIXER IS TO THE LEFT (FIG 2) AND THE RECEIVERS, SLOTTED INTO THE BLOCK AND RAISED ABOVE THE BAG CAVITY IS TO THE RIGHT (REF 3).

FIG 7/8 IS A DRAWING OF THE AUDIO INSERT BLOCK STILL AS A

FREESTANDING SOLID BLOCK OF FOAM BUT WITH AN EXTENSION TO

SUPPORT THE BATTERY IN THE SAME BAG CAVITY.

THERE IS A SMALL RAISED BLOCK THAT SUPPORTS BASE LOADING' POWER CLIPS (REF 1). ON TWO SIDES OF THIS SMALL BLOCK IS A 25MM GULLY' THAT HOLDS STANDARD NP1 BATTERIES IN AN UPRIGHT POSITION WHEN USING A TOP LOADING' POWER CLIP (REF 2).

THE REST OF THE UNIT IS EXACTLY AS DESCRIBED ABOVE IN FIG 2/8 (REF 3).

THE PROFILE DRAWING ILLUSTRATES THE EXTENTION (REF 4) WITH THE SMALL RAISED BLOCK (REF 5) THE GULLY (REF 6) AND THE STANDARD BLOCK (REF 7).

FIG 8! 8. IS A DRAWING OF THE EXTENTION PART OF FIG 7/8. WHICH MAY BE AN ADDITIONAL PART TO THE STANDARD AUDIO INSERT BLOCK.

AGAIN THERE IS THE RAISED BLOCK (REF 1) AND A GULLY' (REF 2).

Claims

CLAIMS.1. A STANDALONE BLOCK MADE OF ANY SUITABLE MATERIAL AND OF A SIZE THAT SUPPORTS, PROTECTS, ORGANIZES AND IMPROVES THEPERFORMANCE OF RADIO MICROPHONE EQUIPMENT LOCATED IN AUDIOSOUND BAGS.
2. ACCORDING TO CLAIM 1, THE BLOCK CAN BE MADE FROM ANY SUITABLE MATERIAL.TYPICAL SUITABLE MATERIAL IS FOAM WHICH IS DURABLE AND LIGHT IN WEIGHT.
3. ACCORDING TO CLAIM 1, SUPPORT IS ACHIEVED BY MACHINING FOUR SLOTS TO A DEPTH INTO WHICH RECEIVER UNITS ARE INSERTED.
4. ACCORDING TO CLAIM 1, PROTECTION FROM DAMAGE TO EQUIPMENT, WHILE IN USE AND IN TRANSIT, IS DESIGNED INTO THE BLOCK BY USE OF ANY SUITABLE MATERIAL.REGULARLY USED IS HIGH QUALITY DENSE LD45 FOAM A MATERIALUSED IN THE DESIGN OF HIGH QUALITY CASING FOR DELICATETECHNICAL EQUIPMENT SUCH AS CAMERAS.
5. ACCORDING TO CLAIM 1, THE AUDIO INSERT BLOCK ORGANIZES THERADIO RECEIVERS FROM LEFT TO RIGHT IN THE INTEGRATED FOURSLOT CONFIGURATION ALLOWING THE SOUND PROFESSIONAL TOLOCATE A FAULTY RECEIVER (OR TRANSMITTER) EFFICIENTLY.
6. ACCORDING TO CLAIM 1 IN WHICH IMPROVED PERFORMANCE ISATTAINED BY HAVING RADIO RECEIVERS IN A SECURED POSITIONRAISED ABOVE THE EDGE OF THE BAG ALLOWING RECEIVERS TOMAINTAIN A STRONGER, CONSISTENT FREQUENCY SIGNAL.
7. MY RESEARCH HAS FOUND NO COMPARABLE PIECE OF EQUIPMENT CURRENTLY EXISTS IN THE AUDIOISOUND MARKET. THE CLOSEST THING FOUND TO BE IN USE, ARE WHAT AN INDIVIDUAL MAY BOTCH UP TO REDUCE DAMAGE TO UNITS. SOME AUDIO BAGS PROVIDE INSERT SLATS TO USE FOR SUPPORT. I HAVE FOUND NO STANDALONE UNIT THAT CLAIMS TO DO WHAT I HAVE OUTLINED ABOVE.