Abstract:
A monitor apparatus, comprising: (a) a housing having an opening; (b) a display positioned within the housing, wherein the display includes a plurality of discrete displays, each of which is visible from within the opening in the housing; (c) at least one input for each of the discrete displays, to, in turn, facilitate the connection of each of the discrete displays with a computer; and (d) a power supply to provide power to the display.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     This application is a continuation-in-part of co-pending U.S. application Ser. No. 10/985,663, filed on Nov. 10, 2004, entitled “MONITOR APPARATUS,” which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/518,796, filed Nov. 10, 2003, entitled “MONITOR APPARATUS,” both of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entirety, including all references cited therein. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0003]     The present invention relates in general to a monitor apparatus, and more particularly, to a monitor apparatus which includes a plurality of discretely controlled displays within a single housing member.  
         [0004]     2. Background Art  
         [0005]     Monitor apparatuses for use with, among other applications, computers have been known in the art for many years. Inasmuch as the use of personal computers has steadily increased over the past twenty years, there has been an ever-increasing commercial demand to decrease individual component size, while increasing the operability of the device. For example, whereas computer components are becoming smaller, there has been a desire to provide more functionality (i.e., more memory in a smaller computer, a larger display without a larger housing for same, etc.).  
         [0006]     One advancement has been that monitor sizes have increased thereby securing increased space on the desktop. To combat the increase in size, CRT monitors have been largely replaced by LCD and PLASMA monitors. The LCD/PLASMA monitors provide similar screen sizes but are generally substantially thinner than corresponding CRT monitors. While LCD monitors have returned some desk space to the user, another trend of utilizing multiple monitors further compromises space on the desktop.  
         [0007]     Thus, it is an object of the present invention to provide a monitor that includes multiple discrete displays within a single housing, to, in turn, minimize the space on the desktop required and utilized by the monitor of a personal computer. Of course, it will be understood that such a monitor has utility beyond its use in association with personal computers.  
         [0008]     These and other objects of the present invention will become apparent in light of the present specification, claims, and drawings.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0009]     The invention will now be described with reference to the drawings wherein:  
         [0010]      FIG. 1  of the drawings is a front elevational schematic view of an embodiment of the present invention, showing, among other things, a substantially concave display having four discrete displays;  
         [0011]      FIG. 2  of the drawings is a front elevational schematic view of an embodiment of the present invention, showing, among other things, a substantially concave display having two discrete displays;  
         [0012]      FIG. 3  of the drawings is a front elevational schematic view of an embodiment of the present invention, showing, among other things, a substantially concave display having three discrete displays;  
         [0013]      FIG. 4  of the drawings is a front elevational schematic view of an embodiment of the present invention, showing, among other things, a substantially concave display having six discrete displays;  
         [0014]      FIG. 5  of the drawings is a front elevational schematic view of an embodiment of the present invention, showing, among other things, a substantially convex display having four discrete displays; and  
         [0015]      FIG. 6  of the drawings is a front elevational schematic view of an embodiment of the present invention, showing, among other things, a substantially flat display having four discrete displays.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0016]     While this invention is susceptible of embodiment in many different forms, there is shown in the drawings and will be described herein in detail, a specific embodiment with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the embodiment illustrated.  
         [0017]     It will be understood that like or analogous elements and/or components, referred to herein, are identified throughout the drawings by like reference characters. In addition, it will be understood that the drawings are merely schematic representations of embodiments of the invention, and some of the components may have been distorted from their actual scale for purposes of pictorial clarity.  
         [0018]     Referring now to the drawings, and to  FIG. 1  in particular, monitor apparatus  10  is generally shown as being associated with computer  12 . Computer  12  may comprise a computer commonly referred to as a PC, which may comprise a conventional personal computer having a keyboard, a mouse, a processor, i/o devices and/or storage. However, monitor apparatus  10  is not limited to the use of any particular device. Such a PC may be operating on any one of a number of operating systems, i.e., Windows (95, 98, SE, ME, NT, 2000, XP, etc.), MacOS (8, 9, X, etc.), or Linux, among others.  
         [0019]     Monitor apparatus  10  is shown in more detail as comprising support  20 , housing  22 , display  24 , computer communication  26 , and power supply  28 . Support  20  comprises a base and a leg member connecting the base with the leg. As such, support  20  facilitates the positioning of the display above a surface (i.e., a desk, table or otherwise), so that it is at eye level. Of course, in certain embodiments the display may be associated with a wall, wherein support  20  may be omitted entirely.  
         [0020]     Housing  22  provides a frame or cover for the electronics and provides an aesthetically appealing surround for display  24 . Typically, housing  22  comprises a plurality of panels which are interconnected and/or otherwise attached together or to the inner electronics of display  24 . Preferably, such panels comprise a plastic material, while other materials are likewise contemplated for use. Housing  22  includes an opening  41  within which display  24  is positioned.  
         [0021]     As is shown in  FIG. 1 , display  24  comprises a plurality of separate and discrete LCD/PLASMA displays, such as discrete displays  30   a,    30   b,    30   c,  and  30   d,  which are separated by division lines  31   a,    31   b.  Typically, such a display includes a single LCD/PLASMA display, whereas the present invention comprises a plurality of discrete displays which are visible through opening  41 . Of course, a greater or lesser number of discrete displays is contemplated, such as, but not limited to, two, three, or six discrete displays as can be seen in  FIGS. 2, 3 , and  4 , respectively. It is contemplated that housing  22  and/or display  24  may be substantially horizontally concave ( FIGS. 1-4 ), substantially horizontally convex ( FIG. 5 ), or substantially flat ( FIG. 6 ). Indeed, monitors comprising a substantially concave or convex configuration are the subject of United States Design Pat. Nos. D497,166 S and D501,854 S, by the same inventor, both of which are hereby incorporated herein in their entirety.  
         [0022]     Computer communication  26  comprises a plurality of monitor connections which connect the separate discrete displays to a video card. It is contemplated that such connections may connect each of the separate and discrete displays, for example discrete displays  30   a - 30   d  in  FIG. 1 , to a single video card or to multiple video cards (which may be placed in one PC or which may be positioned in different PCs). Advantageously, where multiple PCs are utilized, the output from the same can be seen on a single monitor apparatus. Computer communication  26  may comprise digital or analog connections through a number of different commonly known connectors.  
         [0023]     Power supply  28  is shown as comprising a transformer which is capable of converting line voltage (i.e. 110-240V 50-60 Hz) to a desired voltage for the display and the associated electronics. It is contemplated that the power supply may be positioned within the computer or the display or, alternatively, may comprise a separate unit commonly referred to as a “brick.” 
         [0024]     In operation, a user can operate each of the discrete displays, such as discrete displays  30   a - 30   d,  within housing  22  as separate monitors, each capable of performing as an individual monitor. As such, the separate discrete displays can be attached to different PCs or to the same PC. Moreover, it is contemplated that the software associated with monitor  10  (i.e., the driver and support software which may be programmed by one of skill in the art) may facilitate the stretching of an image across all of the discrete displays so as to essentially mimic a single integral display. It is further contemplated that a user can toggle from one to the other.  
         [0025]     The foregoing description merely explains and illustrates the invention and the invention is not limited thereto except insofar as the appended claims are so limited, as those skilled in the art who have the present disclosure before them will be able to make modifications without departing from the scope of the invention.