Abstract:
An embodiment of the invention comprises an apparatus for mounting a speaker to a wall, comprising a wall plate covering the in-wall electrical box and having an opening and a support member being coupled to the wall plate and capable of coupling to the speaker.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
         [0001]    Not Applicable.  
         STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT  
         [0002]    Not Applicable.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0003]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0004]    The present invention relates generally to a speaker support assembly. More particularly, the present invention relates to a wall plate having or using a support device to support a speaker.  
           [0005]    2. Description of the Related Art  
           [0006]    Most new homes and apartments now include a speaker pre-wire configuration for installation of surround sound-home stereo and theatre. The pre-wire usually stems from the central location where the entertainment center is likely to be positioned. A speaker wire then branches off through the walls terminating at an in-wall electrical box, typically hidden by a blank wall plate. Wall plates of many types are known in the art. For example, Leviton Manufacturing produces wall plates, some having various openings therein for switches and knobs and some with louvres therein. Such wall plates are made from a variety of material, including plastic, stainless steel, high abuse nylon, chrome, aluminum, and brass. Even with the pre-wire configuration, remote speakers must still be installed.  
           [0007]    Presently, there are very few options for installation of a remote speaker that do not require a professional installer. Many methods and speaker mounting systems are well known. Most of these prior art speaker mounting systems use some type of frame, shelf, or arm mounted to a wall in a secure location, preferably mounted to the studs in the wall. However, prior art speaker mounting systems have many problems, including costs, aesthetics, and simplicity. For example, for a full surround sound system, purchase and installation of a prior art system may cost $500-$600. Additionally, prior art systems do not account for aesthetics when transitioning the wire from the original pre-wire location to the newly installed brackets, thus requiring the wire to be run along the ceiling or baseboard, and eventually against the wall and to the speaker. This problem clearly detracts from the goal of hidden, in-wall pre-wire.  
           [0008]    Another problem with prior art systems is that such systems require additional wall penetrations, requiring that new holes be cut or drilled into the wall and requiring that careful attention be paid to assure alignment, secureness, and coordination with the source&#39;s speaker wire. The present invention solves these problems by providing an inexpensive, aesthetically pleasing, and simply speaker support system.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0009]    An embodiment of the present invention features an apparatus for mounting a speaker to a wall, comprising a wall plate having a first opening therethrough and a support member having a first end and a second end and extending through the first opening, the first end being coupled to the wall plate, and the second end being capable of supporting the speaker. The present invention comprises a combination of features and advantages which enable it to overcome various problems of prior devices. The various characteristics described above, as well as other features, will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading the following detailed description of embodiments of the invention, and by referring to the accompanying drawings.  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0010]    For a more detailed description of embodiments of the present invention, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, wherein:  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 1A is a front view of an embodiment of the invention;  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 1B is a front view of another wall plate embodiment of the invention;  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 1C is a front view of yet another wall plate embodiment of the invention;  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 1D is a front view of yet another wall plate embodiment of the invention;  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 2 is the rear view of the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1A;  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 3A is a side view of the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1A;  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 3B is a side view of the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1A, further illustrating the embodiment coupled to a wall and also to a speaker;  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 4 is a side view of an alternative embodiment of the support portion of an embodiment of the invention;  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 5 is a side view of an embodiment of a directional assembly in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 6 is a perspective view of another alternative embodiment of the support portion of an embodiment the invention;  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 7 is a perspective view of another alternative embodiment of the support portion of an embodiment the invention;  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a speaker set forth in an X, Y, Z coordinate system; and  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 9 is a perspective view of another alternative embodiment of the support portion of the invention.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0024]    [0024]FIGS. 1A and 2 show an embodiment of the wall plate speaker support apparatus  20 . Apparatus  20  comprises support member  21  and wall plate  24 . Wall plate  24  has a front  22 , a back  26 , and at least one opening  27 . Wall plate  24  can be made from metal, plastic, wood, nylon, or other like materials. Opening  27  preferably has its center along the vertical center of wall plate  24 , but of course may be positioned elsewhere. In one embodiment, support  21  extends through wall plate  24  via opening  27 . Opening  27  is sized so that support  21  and wire  31  (see FIG. 3B) are able to simultaneously pass through opening  27  in wall plate  24 .  
         [0025]    Apparatus  20  may also have another opening  23  that can allow wire  31  (FIG. 3B) or support  21  to extend from back  26 , through wall plate  24 , and couple with speaker  30 . Thus, wire  31  and support  21  may extend through different openings.  
         [0026]    In another embodiment, support  21  is coupled to front  22  via an adhesive, including but not limited to glue or cement, or via a weld or solder. Use of the term “coupled” herein means a direct or indirect connection that can be permanent or releasable. Thus, if a first device “couples” to a second device, that connection may be through a direct connection, or through an indirect connection via other devices and/or connections. Additionally, support  21  and wall plate  24  can be produced from a unitary mold, cast, or plasmature. In these embodiments, wire  31  can pass through opening  23 .  
         [0027]    In FIG. 1A, support  21  is an elongated member, such as a bolt, having first and second  20  ends  28 ,  29  respectively. First end  28  is capable of coupling to wall plate  24 . Second end  29  couples to speaker  30  (see FIG. 3B). Preferably, second end  29  is threaded so as to engage a correspondingly threaded portion of speaker  30 . This allows speaker  30  to be readily engaged and disengaged from support  21 . Further, the bolt embodiment of support  21  is inexpensive and easily installed.  
         [0028]    Still referring to FIGS. 1A and 2, one or more holes  25  in wall plate  24  allow support  21  to be mounted to the wall. Typically this is accomplished by screws, bolts, or other support devices passing through openings  25  and into a stud or other wall member. Mounting may also be accomplished by engaging the support device with the sheet rock or other wall surface, depending on the weight of the speaker.  
         [0029]    Turning to FIG. 1B, in another embodiment yet another opening  36  is provided for passage of wire  31  and/or support  21  through wall plate  24 . This can help, for example, the installer of the speaker  30  to adjust the positioning of support  21  and/or wire  31  to assure the best access to the coupling of support  21  and/or wire  31  to speaker  30 . Further, opening  36  allows support  21  and speaker  30  to be adjusted relative to wall plate  24 . It must be noted that openings  23 ,  27  and  36  may have the same or different diameters and/or the same or different shape without deporting from the spirit of the invention.  
         [0030]    Turning to FIG. 1C, yet another embodiment of wall plate  24  is shown. There, the opening through which support  21  and/or wire  31  can pass is an elongated opening  37 . Preferably, opening  37  is located on the central vertical axis of plate  22 , but may be located elsewhere. This embodiment also allows the installer flexibility in positioning the support  21  and/or wire  31 . Although opening  37  is preferably elongated, it may take other shapes. Still further, apparatus  20  may comprise a combination of shapes for the openings through which support  21  and/or wire  31  pass. For example, as shown in FIG. 1D, an embodiment of apparatus  20  may comprise a round opening  38  and an elongated opening  39 .  
         [0031]    Turning next to FIGS. 3A and 3B, there are shown side views of apparatus  20 . FIG. 3A shows a stand alone side view of apparatus  20  with support  21  extending from front  22  of wall plate  24 . FIG. 3B shows apparatus  20  coupled to wall  32  and speaker  30 . As depicted in the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3B, wire  31  passes through opening  23  and couples with speaker  30 . It must be noted, however, that FIG. 3B does not limit the breadth of the present invention, as wire  31  could pass through the same opening as support  21 , or wire  31  could pass through opening  27  while support  21  could pass through opening  23 . As shown from FIG. 3B, wire  31  is virtually hidden from all views. This should be contrasted with the prior art where wire  31  may run several feet along a wall before connecting with speaker  30 .  
         [0032]    Turning now to FIG. 4, a side view of a hook embodiment  40  of the support is shown. Hook  40  has a first end  41  and a second end  42 . In the embodiment shown, first end  41  would be coupled to wall plate  24  at, preferably, first opening  27 , but could be coupled to any opening. On the other hand, second end  42  would couple with speaker  30 . Hook  40  can pass through an opening in wall plate  24  or can be coupled to wall plate  24  via an adhesive, weld, or solder. Hook  40  and wall plate  24  can also be made from the same unitary mold, cast, or plasmature as wall plate  24 . It should be understood that hook  40  is not limited to the precise configuration shown in FIG. 4 but instead encompasses other configurations that do not depart from the spirit of the invention.  
         [0033]    Referring now to FIG. 5, a directional assembly  50  is shown. Directional assembly  50  comprises first arm  51  having ends  54  and  55 , second arm  52  having ends  56  and  57 , and directional member  53 . Directional member  53  can be disposed between arms  51  and  52 . In such embodiment, ends  55  and  57  couple to directional member  53  while end  54  of arm  51  is coupled to wall plate  24  and end  56  of arm  52  is coupled to speaker  30 . Further, directional member  53  can be located anywhere along apparatus  20 . Directional assembly  50  may also comprise multiple directional members  53  and multiple support members or arms.  
         [0034]    In the preferred embodiment, directional member  53  allows speaker  30  to translate and rotate through the six degrees of freedom illustrated in FIG. 8. Specifically, FIG. 8 illustrates directional member  53  allowing speaker  30  to translate in the directions of Arrows X, Y, Z and also allowing speaker  30  to rotate in the directions of Arrows M x , M y , M z . Examples of directional members  53  include, but are not limited to, swivels and ball and socket joints.  
         [0035]    Referring now to FIG. 6, an alternative embodiment of the support of the invention is shown. Apparatus  60  includes shelf member  61  coupled to wall plate  64  by connector  62 . Shelf member  61  may also be made from the same unitary mold, cast, or plastmature as wall plate  64 .  
         [0036]    Turning now to FIG. 7, another embodiment of the support of the invention is shown. There, apparatus  70  comprises holder  71  and wall plate  74 . Holder  71  is coupled to wall plate  74  and extend therefrom. Holder  71  may also be made from the same unitary mold, cast, or plastmature as wall plate  74 . Holders  71  can include two or more gripping members  72 , which are preferably biased, so as to grip and support a speaker that is placed between gripping members  72 . Preferably holder  71  comprises three gripping members  72 , one contacting each side of speaker  30  and the third contacting the bottom or rear of speaker  30 .  
         [0037]    Referring next to FIG. 9, yet another embodiment of the support is shown. In this embodiment apparatus  90  comprises at least one telescopic member  91 , which itself comprises inner and outer telescopic portions  92 ,  93  respectively. End  95  of inner portion  92  preferably couples to speaker  30 , possibly via a threading engagement for example. Telescopic member  91  can be coupled to wall plate  94  in any manner, including all ways described herein. Telescopic member  91  allows for adjustment and movement of speaker  30 . Telescopic member  91  may telescope in any direction, including perpendicular to wall plate  94  (FIG. 9) or parallel to the face of the wall plate (not shown). Further, telescopic member  91  can be used alone or in combination with directional members  53 .  
         [0038]    It should be noted that the various embodiments of openings for the support members and/or wire, the support members, and directional member can be used in any combination. Moreover, while preferred embodiments of this invention have been shown and described, modifications thereof can be made by one skilled in the art without departing from the spirit or teaching of this invention. The embodiments described herein are exemplary only and are not limiting. Many variations and modifications of the system and apparatus are possible and are within the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the scope of protection is not limited to the embodiments described herein, but is only limited by the claims which follow, the scope of which shall include all equivalents of the subject matter of the claims.