IES80927B2 - A portable desktop - Google Patents

Description

A portable desktop This invention relates to a portable desktop. It relates in particular to a portable desktop suitable for use in a motor vehicle when the vehicle is stationary.

People spend a lot of time in stopped motor vehicles, especially in passenger motor cars. Many people experience a need for the temporary use of a writing desk, a bookrest, a newspaper rest, a support for food, a games board, a sketch pad, an easel and like conveniences at times when they are confined, for one reason or another, to a stationary motor vehicle, This applies in particular to police officers, commercial travellers, doctors, nurses, social workers, goods delivery people, business people, clergy, designers, draftspeople, writers, journalists and artists, These needs are less than adequately served by conventional vehicle interior fitments, such as the flap-down covers of glove compartments, Several prior patent proposals for steering wheelmountable desktops are known, among which may be mentioned those of US 3 952 988, US 4 375 881, US 4 453 788, US 4 805 867, US 4 955 567, US 5 083 736, US 5 193 777, US 5 386 785, US 5 487 521, CA 213 637 , CA 2 119 492, GB 1 383 609, G3 144 627, GB 2 226 983, FR 2 596 625, FR 2 630 380, BE 906 068 and NO 90 04812.

They involve desktop-to-wheel securing, affixing or mounting devices of various constructions, some awkward and conspicuous, others of doubtful efficiency, such as clips, skirts, straps, collars, is flanges, hooks, flaps, rigid-walled recesses, resilient padding, claws, slots and the like, most of which are visually obtrusive and lacking in aesthetic appeal. There is a need for an elegant, smooth operating steering wheelmountable desktop of really simple construction and streamlined appearance.

The invention, among its objects, seeks to supply the needs indicated above, by providing a portable desktop which can be packed away when not in use, is easy to deploy when wanted, is simple in construction and has an appealing exterior.

The invention accordingly provides a portable desktop which comprises a board adapted for rigid deployment, resilient pocket means fast with the board for disengageably engaging a vehicle steering wheel within the pocket to support the board flat upon the steering wheel, and means for supporting an object on or in relation to the board, The board may be adapted for rigid deployment by being a one-piece rigid board in the first place.

Alternatively the board may comprise two or more panels hinged together or otherwise foldable into face to face relationship.

The resilient pocket means may comprise a shallow pocket fashioned by application of an elongate strip of flexible resilient fabric to an upper region of the rear face of the board along an essentially U-shaped or arcuate line of attachment, the wide pocket opening being thus directed towards the base of the board in use, whereby the desktop can be applied to a steering wheel by placing it flat thereon, higher than its intended position of use, and easing the pocket opening downwardly over the steering wheel while sliding the board thereover towards the driving seat, The resilience of the fabric should be such that the steering wheel rim is a snug positive fit in the pocket, resistant to slippage.

In a preferred embodiment the board is bound in a suitable fabric after the manner, more or less, of a hardback book cover, and the applied fabric which completes the pocket is of the same material and colour as the binding fabric. This gives a pleasing unity to the appearance of the desktop. The applied fabric should preferably be under appreciable tension in its long dimension, especially in a folding board in its open or flat position.

In another embodiment the pocket comprises two elongate strips of flexible fabric secured together to form a sheath with an opening along its length in its own plane, the completed sheath being secured to the rear face of the board. This arrangement simplifies the work of replacing a damaged pocket, and also permits, the choice of a fabric of a different (e.g. greater) resilience for the pocket, from thar which covers rhe board, Suitable materials may include elasticated woven textile fabrics, and natural and synthetic rubbers, as well as laminated fabrics containing these and other materials as layers in their structure, Preferably the inside surfaces of the pocket orifice are smooth so as to reduce friction during introduction of the steering wheel. The pocket may be fixed to the board or be detachably attachable thereto, as by patches of Velcrotype material which co-operate together (Velcro is a · trade mark).

The means for supporting an object on or in relation to the board may be selected from among several alternatives, Thus a shelf may extend forwardly from the lower edge of the board. The shelf may be of any suitable width, from e.g. a ledge of width 1 cm or less, sufficient to support by their lower edges a book, newspaper or document placed flat on the board, or to support writing, drawing or sketching instruments, up to, at the extreme, a shelf proper, of 10 - 15 cm width adapted to support the crockery and/or cutlery for a beverage and/or an on-board snack, The shelf may extend at right angles to the board, or at a greater angle chosen to provide a level shelf by compensating for the backward tilt of the steering wheel from the vertical.

The shelf may be integral with the board, requiring no other support, or it may be supported by brackets or stays or a foldable web extending between rhe shelf and a parr of the board remote from the shelf, The longitudinal extension of the shelf (if narrow and rigid) may be interrupted in the central region thereof to permit the board to be folded.

Alternative means for supporting an object on or in 5 relation to the board comprise a set of perforations in the board, e.g. on the lines of the commercially available pegboard, This is particularly useful for board games such as draughts and chess, for which the pieces may be equipped with base projections seatable , in the perforations of the board, Other means include the provision of one or more patches of Velcro-type material for supporting objects provided with cooperating patches of such material (Velcro is a trade mark) .

Further object-supporting means comprise a board having a surface layer of cork or the like, into which pins or drawing pins may be inserted to secure paper of various kinds to the board, In another embodiment the board comprises a conventional flannel board which will support small light objects such as stamps or press cuttings, or heavier objects provided with a flannel backing, Finally the board may be provided at its upper edge with a clip or clips whereby the desktop serves as a supported, but otherwise conventional, clipboard.

The invention will be appreciated in greater detail from.the following description of a particular embodiment thereof, given by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig I is a perspective view of a portable desktoc; J Fig 2 is a rear elevation of the desktop of Fig 1; Fig 3 is a section of the desktop of Fig 1 along the line III-III, viewed in the direction of the associated arrows; Fig 4 is a front elevation of the portable desktop of Fig 1; Fig 5 is a vertical section of the desktop of Fig 4, taken along the line V-V of that figure and viewed in the direction of the associated arrows; Fig 6 is a perspective view of the desktop of Fig 4, shown in a partially folded-up condition; and Fig 7 is a perspective view of the desktop of Fig 4, shown in the folded-up condition for storage.

Referring now to the drawings, a portable desktop comprises a folding board 1 of medium-density fibreboard finished in imitation crocodile-skin. It has a front face 2 and a rear face 3.

On the flap 4 bottom gussets front face 2, along the lower edge thereof, a of the finishing material is constructed as a extension of the board 1; it has foldable 5 connecting its ends to the front face 2. The cf the gussets 5 is that the flap 4 folds down, which rests Fig 6, In t or extended position of board 1, to crevice supporting a book, document or the like against said front face 2. as best seen in he folded or stowaway condition of board-1, Ί the flap 4 folds up and lies against the front face 2, thus facilitating the neat folding of the board for stowage (see Fig 7).

On the rear face 3. along the upper region and the side edge regions 7 thereof, there is secured a web of flexible material to provide a pocket 6 having a long opening 9 downwardly directed. The lower edge of the pocket 6 is indicated by a broken line in Figs 1,4 and 6.

In use, the portable desktop is mounted on a vehicle steering wheel 8 by passing the upper arc of the wheel from below up into the pocket 6 to seat it firmly therein, and allowing the board 1 to rest against the wheel in a plane tangential to that of the whole rim thereof. Concealed parts of the steering wheel 8 are shown in broken outline.

The collapsible, portable desktop of the invention is designed after the manner of a hardback book cover having a front board 10, a spine 11 and a back board is 12, Thus it has two parallel fold axes 13, 14.

The desktop may be folded with the pocket on the outside or the inside thereof in the folded condition. In cases where the pocket is on the inside, extra gussets 5 are provided at the fold axes 13, 14 of the flap 4 to permit folding of the board 1 in that sense, The site of the' portable desktop can be such as to fit any given design of vehicle steering wheel. A prototype which has been constructed and tested measures 40 cm x 29 cm, It can be enclosed in a sales envelope of clean plastics material bearing suitable printed descriptive or advertising matter, or containing such matter on a separate disposable The invention is not limited by or to the details of the embodiments described, many of which can be widely varied without departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims (5)

Claims:

1. A portable desktop comprising a board adapted for rigid deployment, resilient pocket means fast with the board for disengageably engaging a vehicle steering wheel within the pocket to support the board flat upon the steering wheel, and means for supporting an object on or in relation to the board.

2. A portable desktop as claimed in claim 1, wherein the pocket is attached to an upper region of the rear of the board and has a downwardly facing opening to accommodate the upper portion of the rim of a steering wheel.

3. A portable desktop as claimed in claim 2, wherein the pocket is made of a resilient fabric and has an arcuate base.

4. A portable desktop as claimed in claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the board comprises at least two panels foldable into face to face relationship.

5. A portable desktop as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the means for supporting an object on or in relation to the board comprises a shelf extending forwardly from the lower edge of the board. f.r; kelly & co.