Patent ID: 6028945
Filing Date: 2000-02-22
Classification: H05K

Abstract:
A new and improved interchangeable amplifier device for boosting the power to stereo speakers comprising in combination:a generally rectangular amplifier cabinet having a bottom side, a top side and enclosing side walls for housing the amplifier electronics, the enclosing side walls having a front wall and a back wall, the front wall of the cabinet having a volume control and a power switch, the volume control being comprised of a plurality of sliders each being movable up and down within a slider channel, the sliders being capable of controlling frequencies being projected through stereo speakers;the back wall of the amplifier cabinet having an audio port and an AC power supply cord, the audio port having a plurality of speaker terminals for receiving the stereo speaker leads, the audio port having a plurality of input jacks below the speaker terminals, the input jacks being capable of receiving audio input for transmission to the stereo speakers;an upgradable power board being generally rectangular and having at least two flat leads, the two leads capable of being plugged into an upgrade slot connector, the upgrade slot connector having four panels with each panel having a plurality of vertical jack slots, the jack slots of one panel being in symmetrical alignment with the jack slots of the other panels;a sliding bracket assembly including a pair of guide rails extending between the front wall and the back wall of the cabinet adjacent to the bottom side thereof, an elongated rack positioned between the guide rails in parallel relationship therewith, and a bracket having an L-shaped configuration with a bottom horizontal face and a top vertical face integrally coupled to a side edge of the bottom horizontal face, the bracket slidably coupled to the guide rails along a bottom surface of the bottom horizontal face thereof wherein the upgrade slot connector is coupled to an outer surface of the top vertical wall of the bracket, the sliding bracket assembly having a first orientation with the upgrade slot connector situated adjacent a plurality of openings formed in the cabinet for allowing access thereto and a second orientation with the upgrade slot connector positioned distant the openings adjacent the front wall of the cabinet for storing the upgradable power board entirely within the cabinet, the sliding bracket assembly further including a pinion motor positioned on a top surface of the bottom horizontal face of the bracket with a pinion thereof extending through a cutout formed in the bottom horizontal face for engaging the rack thereby facilitating mechanized sliding of the sliding assembly along the guide rails;said upgradable power board being capable of receiving a first voltage of input from a transformer when plugged into the upgrade slot connector of the amplifier, the upgradable power board being capable of resupplying the amplifier with a second voltage of a magnitude greater than the magnitude of the first voltage; andan integrated circuit within the upgradable power board being capable of receiving the first voltage for the amplifier from a transistor within the upgradable power board, the integrated circuit being capable of amplifying the first voltage to produce the second voltage for increasing the output from the amplifier to the stereo speaker.