Combination packing case and desk

A combination packing case and desk includes a shelf unit adapted to secure a plurality of articles during shipping. A hollow seating member having an open bottom is adapted to be received about the upper portion of the shelf unit to protect the articles therein. An outer casing is provided with an open bottom and is adapted to be received about the shelf unit-seating member assembly in fully enclosed fashion. At the shipping destination, the outer casing comprises a base upon which the shelf unit is supported to form a desk. The seating member may be used in conjunction with the desk for tasks involving the articles shipped in and supported on the shelf unit.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
In the field of shipping and freight handling, it is common practice to 
employ sophisticated protective packaging for fragile articles such as 
electronic components and the like. Such articles often must be protected 
not only from shock and impact, but also from static electricity, dust, 
moisture, and other contaminants. As a result, the shipping containers 
used for delicate electronic articles are often well designed, thoroughly 
engineered enclosures. These enclosures, which are generally very 
successful at protecting their contents, represent a significant 
expenditure in materials as well as in design effort. 
When such a shipping container reaches its destination, it is a common 
practice for the components to be removed and tested to assure that they 
survived their journey unscathed. The shipping container, often comprising 
combinations of wooden supports, corrugated enclosures, and foam packing 
members, are usually considered refuse and destroyed. Hence a significant 
expenditure in materials and design is wasted after a minimal use. Indeed, 
it is not uncommon for the cost of packaging of an item to exceed the 
value of the item, even though the packaging is destroyed and the item is 
intended for long-term use. 
The following United States Patents comprise the closest known prior art: 
U.S. Pat. Nos. 327,749, 1,385,094, 652,784, 1,501,440, 722,286, 2,213,985, 
909,091, 2,604,959. 
SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION 
The present invention generally comprises a packing and shipping container 
which is adapted to protect delicate electronic components and the like 
during shipping and handling procedures. A salient feature of the packing 
container is that at the final shipping destination, the container may be 
used as a desk to support and display the components that have been 
shipped therein. Thus the materials and design effort involved in the 
packing container combine to form a structure which is permanent and 
reusable, making far better use of the materials and offering far more to 
the customer purchasing the components within the packing case. 
The combination packing case and desk includes a shelf unit adapted to 
secure a plurality of articles during shipping. A hollow seating member 
having an open bottom is adapted to be received about the upper portion of 
the shelf unit to protect and retain the articles therein. An outer casing 
comprising a hollow rectangular solid is provided with an open bottom and 
is adapted to be received about the shelf unit-seating member assembly in 
fully enclosed fashion. The outer casing includes a large cutout in one 
side thereof, the cutout being disposed in the shipping configuration in 
confronting impingement to one side of the shelf unit assembly. At the 
shipping destination, the outer casing is disposed open end downwardly to 
comprise a base upon which the shelf unit is supported to form a desk. The 
seating member is disposed adjacent to the cutout in the outer casing to 
comprise a stool adjacent to the leg opening cutout. The desk may be used 
for tasks involving the articles shipped in and supported on the shelf 
unit, or may be used separately with other items.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
The present invention generally comprises a packing and shipping case which 
is also usable as a desk to support and display the components which are 
shipped therein. With reference to the accompanying figures, the invention 
includes a shelf unit 11 which is adapted to receive and support a 
plurality of components, such as electronic components. These electronic 
components may comprise computer hardware, video hardware, stereophonic or 
audio hardware, radio communications equipment, or the like. 
The shelf unit 11 includes a generally rectangular base panel 12, with 
opposed sides 13 extending orthogonally upwardly therefrom. The shelf unit 
also includes a short front panel 14, and a rear panel 16 equal in height 
to the sides. An inwardly stepped shoulder 17 is disposed at a medial 
height portion of the side panels and rear panel, and extends continuously 
thereabout. A pair of flanges 15 extends outwardly from the opposed sides 
13, adjacent to the vertices thereof and extending below the shoulder 17 
to the base panel 12, as shown in FIG. 4. A shelf member 18 extends 
between the side walls 13 adjacent to the shoulder 17 and vertically 
spaced from the base panel 12, and is also joined to the rear panel. 
Another shelf member 19 extends between the upper portions of the side 
panels 13 and the rear panel 16, and is vertically spaced from the shelf 
member 18. The side panels 13 include cut-out portions 21 adjacent to the 
front panel 14 to facilitate access to the volume defined by the side 
walls 13, the base panel 12, and the shelf 18, and the rear panels 16. 
Furthermore, the shelf members 18 and 19 are each provided with an 
upwardly extending lip 22 at the distal edges of the shelves to retain 
items on the respective shelf member during shipping and handling. 
The present invention also includes a seating member 26, as shown in FIGS. 
1, 2, and 3. The seating member 26 comprises a generally rectangular, 
hollow member having an open bottom. The top panel 27 of the member 26 
includes an anatomically contoured recess 28 which is provided to 
facilitate seating comfort. The side walls and end walls of the member 26 
are provided with dimensions so that the member 26 may be received over 
and about the upper portion of the shelf unit 11, in close fit 
relationship, with the lower edges of the side walls and end walls of the 
member 26 impinging upon the stepped shoulder 17 of the shelf unit 11, as 
shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. In the disposition of FIGS. 2 and 3, the seating 
member 26 encloses the storage areas of the shelf members 18 and 19, and 
aids in protecting and retaining the items supported thereon. A pair of 
flanges 25 extend outwardly from the opposed sides of the seating member 
26 adjacent to the vertices formed therewith by the rear panel of the 
seating member. The flanges 25 are generally colinear with the flanges 15 
extending from the shelf unit, when the two members 11 and 26 are 
assembled. It should be noted that the periphery of the seating member is 
generally coplanar with the sides and rear panel of the shelf unit. 
The present invention also includes an outer casing member 31, as shown in 
FIGS. 1 and 4. The outer casing member 31 includes a trio of side panels 
32 disposed in a rectangular plan configuration. One of the sides 33 of 
the rectangle is open, the edges of the sides adjacent thereto being inset 
from the vertices, as seen in FIG. 4. A top panel 34 extends between the 
upper portions of all of the side walls 32 and is inset slightly below the 
top edge portions thereof. The plan configuration of the side walls 32 is 
arranged so that the outer casing member 31 may be received about the 
assembly consisting of the shelf unit 11 and the seating member 26. In 
this configuration, shown in FIG. 2, the open side 33 of the outer casing 
member 31 receives the shelf unit-seating member assembly therein. In such 
a disposition, the inset edges adjacent to the opening 33 impinge upon the 
colinear flanges 15 and 25, and the outer casing 31 forms a completely 
enclosed packing case, as shown in phantom line in FIG. 2. The sub-volumes 
within the packing case which do not contain components or other articles 
to be shipped, may be filled with resilient packing material or excelsior, 
as is known in the prior art. 
The packing case itself, comprising the shelf unit, the seating member, and 
the outer casing member, is an extremely strong and rigid structure, due 
in part to the "nesting" elements which combine to strengthen each other. 
Furthermore, the shelf members 18 and 19 extending laterally within the 
packing case provide great resistance to deflection of the side walls of 
the packing case. Also, the flanges 15 and 25, in addition to the shoulder 
17, aid in providing rigidity to the structure. It may be appreciated that 
the side walls of the outer casing 31 impinge upon the side walls 13 of 
the shelf unit and the side walls of the seating member 26. 
A most salient feature of the present invention is that the components of 
the packing case are adapted to be used as a desk to support and display 
the components or articles which have been shipped in the packing case. As 
shown in FIG. 4, the outer casing 31, after it is removed from the 
package, may be disposed on a stable surface with the open end thereof 
extending downwardly. The shelf unit 11 may then be supported with the 
base panel 12 thereof resting upon the upper panel 34 of the outer casing 
31. The inset of the upper panel 34 provides a "socket" in which the lower 
portion of the shelf unit 11 fits with minimal clearance. The shelf unit 
11 is thus securely supported by the outer packing case 31. 
The seating member 26, after it is disassembled from the packing container, 
may be disposed directly adjacent to the open side 33 of the outer packing 
case 31, to form a stool upon which an individual may sit. The individual 
sitting on the member 26 may address the components or items disposed on 
the shelves 18 and 19 and on the base panel 12, with the individual's legs 
extending through the opening 33 so that the individual may be closely 
proximate to the items supported on the shelf unit 11. 
The packing container of the present invention is thus adapted to be 
reconfigured as a complete desk assembly, including base, shelf unit, and 
seating stool. The present invention thus provides an extremely convenient 
means of packaging, in that it also provides the end user of the packaged 
product with a means to support and display that product. Furthermore, all 
of the materials and effort which are devoted to creating the shipping 
container are not wasted, as is known in the prior art, but are instead 
re-used indefinitely and permanently. Thus the customer receiving the 
shipped articles also receives a furniture assembly of significant utility 
and value. 
Indeed, it may be appreciated that the packing case may be used as a desk 
ensemble in conjunction with any items or articles which are convenient 
and desirable, and not necessarily the items shipped in the packing case. 
In the present description the invention is depicted as generally 
rectangular in the configuration of the component parts and the assembly 
thereof. This is due to the perceived preferences of the shipping and 
freight industry, and not to any inherent limitation of the invention. 
Indeed, the inventive concept may be extended to any regular geometrical 
configuration or curvalinear geometry which permits the "nesting" 
configuration of the shelf unit, the seating member, and the outer casing.