Stand having a housing adapted for supporting a liquid crystal display panel on a base, and a universal serial bus hub module mounted detachably on the housing

A stand includes a housing with an upper portion to be mounted on a liquid crystal display (LCD) panel, and a lower portion to be secured on a base. A display power connector is mounted on the housing and connects electrically the LCD panel to a power source. A display signal connector is mounted on the housing and connects electrically the LCD panel to a computer. A first hub power connector is mounted on the housing and provides a voltage output. A universal serial bus (USB) hub module includes a hub casing, a USB connector set mounted on the hub casing, a second hub power connector mounted on the hub casing, and a USB hub controller mounted inside the hub casing and connected electrically to the connector set and the second hub power connector. The hub module is mounted detachably on the housing such that the second hub power connector engages removably the first hub power connector for supplying the voltage output from the first hub power connector as operating power to the hub controller.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
The invention relates to a stand for supporting a liquid crystal display 
(LCD) panel on a base, more particularly to a stand of the aforementioned 
type that includes a housing and a universal serial bus (USB) hub module 
mounted detachably on the housing. 
2. Description of the Related Art 
A conventional LCD device includes an LCD panel, a base, and an upright 
stand for supporting the LCD panel on the base. The stand generally has a 
housing and a display connector, such as a 15-pin D-sub connector, mounted 
on the housing and adapted to permit electrical connection between the LCD 
panel and a computer. In order to increase the functionality of the LCD 
device, the LCD device may be provided with a USB hub capability by 
mounting a number of standard USB connectors on the housing and by 
incorporating a USB hub controller, which is connected electrically to the 
USB connectors, inside the housing. As such, the computer can be connected 
to a number of input/output (I/O) peripheral devices, such as printers, 
scanners, modems, etc., via the USB connectors on the stand of the LCD 
device. 
However, providing the stand with an integral USB hub capability increases 
the cost of the LCD device. Since the USB hub capability is an optional 
feature, some consumers might not be willing to spend more for the 
inclusion of this feature. Thus, manufacturers of LCD devices must 
continue to make two different types of stands, e.g. one having a built-in 
USB hub capability and the other having no USB hub capability, for the LCD 
devices. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide a stand that 
includes a housing adapted for supporting an LCD panel on a base, and a 
USB hub module mounted detachably on the housing. Since the USB hub module 
is separate from the housing, consumers can purchase the USB hub module as 
an optional component, thereby obviating the need for manufacturers of LCD 
devices to supply two different kinds of stands, e.g. one having no USB 
hub capability and the other having a built-in USB hub capability, to meet 
the demands of different consumers. 
Accordingly, the stand of the present invention is adapted for supporting 
an LCD panel on a base, and comprises: 
a housing having an upper portion adapted to be mounted on the LCD panel, 
and a lower portion adapted to be secured on the base; 
a display power connector mounted on the housing and adapted to connect 
electrically the LCD panel to a power source; 
a display signal connector mounted on the housing and adapted to connect 
electrically the LCD panel to a computer; 
a first hub power connector mounted on the housing and providing a voltage 
output; and 
a USB hub module including a hub casing, a USB connector set mounted on the 
hub casing, a second hub power connector mounted on the hub casing, and a 
USB hub controller mounted inside the hub casing and connected 
electrically to the connector set and the second hub power connector, the 
hub module being mounted detachably on the housing such that the second 
hub power connector engages removably the first hub power connector for 
supplying the voltage output from the first hub power connector as 
operating power to the hub controller. 
Preferably, a cover plate is mounted removably on the housing to cover the 
first hub power connector when the hub module is detached from the housing 
.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
Referring to FIG. 1, the preferred embodiment of a stand 1 according to the 
present invention is shown to comprise a housing 10 formed from 
complementary housing parts 101, 102. The housing part 101 is formed with 
first, second and third openings 1031, 1032, 104. The housing 10 has an 
upper portion formed with a pair of pivot holes 105 (only one is shown) on 
opposite lateral sides and adapted for engaging a pair of pivot pins 200 
on a bottom portion of an LCD panel 20, thereby mounting pivotally the 
housing 10 on the LCD panel 20. The lower portion of the housing 10 is 
adapted to be secured on a base 21. 
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 5, a display power connector 30 is mounted in the 
housing 10 and is accessible via the first opening 1031. The display power 
connector 30 is connected electrically to the LCD panel 20 via electrical 
wiring that extends through a wiring port 106 formed in the upper portion 
of the housing 10, and is adapted to mate with a power cord 22, thereby 
permitting the supply of electrical power to the LCD panel 20. 
A display signal connector 40, such asa 15-pin D-sub connector, is mounted 
in the housing 10 and is accessible via the second opening 1032. The 
display signal connector 40 is connected electrically to the LCD panel 20 
via the electrical wiring that extends through the wiring port 106 in the 
upper portion of the housing 10, and is adapted to mate with a display 
signal cable 23, thereby permitting electrical connection between the LCD 
panel 20 and a computer 24. 
A first hub power connector 50 is mounted in the housing 10 and is 
accessible via the third opening 104. The first hub power connector 50 
provides a voltage output (Vcc) that serves as operating power of a USB 
hub module 60. 
Referring to FIGS. 1, 2, 3 and 5, the USB hub module 60 includes a hub 
casing 600 with front and rear sides, a USB connector set 601 mounted on 
the front side of the hub casing 600, a second hub power connector 602 
mounted on the rear side of the hub casing 600, and a USB hub controller 
603 mounted inside the hub casing 600 and connected electrically to the 
USB connector set 601 and the second hub power connector 602. The USB hub 
module 60 is mounted detachably on the housing 10 such that the hub casing 
600 covers the third opening 104 and such that the second hub power 
connector 602 engages removably the first hub power connector 50 for 
supplying the voltage output (Vcc) from the first hub power connector 50 
to the USB hub controller 603. In this embodiment, the USB connector set 
601 includes four standard USB connectors 6011 adapted for connection to 
the computer 24 and to other I/O peripheral devices 25, such as printers, 
scanners, modems, etc. The USB hub controller 603 manages electrical 
signal transmission among the computer 24 and the I/O peripheral devices 
25 via the USB connectors 6011 in a known manner. 
Referring to FIG. 4, when the USB hub module is detached from the housing 
10, a cover plate 70 can be mounted removably on the housing 10 to cover 
the third opening 104 and the first hub power connector 50. 
In the present invention, the USB hub module 60 can be sold separately from 
the housing 10. Thus, manufacturers of LCD devices need not supply two 
different kinds of stands 1, e.g. one having no USB hub capability and the 
other having a built-in USB hub capability, to meet the demands of 
different customers. The object of the present invention is thus met. 
While the present invention has been described in connection with what is 
considered the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is understood 
that this invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiment but is 
intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and 
scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such 
modifications and equivalent arrangements.