Abstract:
A display mount system comprises a display mount, a display, a display control element, and a bracket. The bracket is secured to all of the display mount, the display, and the display control element. The bracket facilitates the supporting of both the display and the display control element in very close proximity with one another and without using a second mount (i.e., in addition to the display mount).

Description:
RELATED APPLICATION DATA  
       [0001]     This application claims priority from, and incorporates by reference, provisional U.S. Patent Application No. 60/857,757, filed Nov. 8, 2006. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to display mounts, and more particularly, to a bracket that is configured to be mounted to a display mount while simultaneously supporting both a display and a related display control element.  
         [0003]     Display mounts are now used in many commercial, industrial, and consumer applications for mounting flat panel displays. A display mount is typically secured to a fixed location such as a wall or ceiling. The distal end of a display mount includes a mounting plate for mounting a display. The Video Electronics Standard Association (“VESA”) has set forth a family of standards for mounting flat panel displays. The family of standards is known as the Flat Display Mounting Interface (FDMI) or the VESA Mounting Interface Standard (MIS), while a display mount employing the standard is simply known as a VESA mount. Most modern flat-panel displays (e.g., monitors and televisions) employ a VESA mount.  
         [0004]     A VESA mount consists of a standardized array of screw holes so that display mounts and displays can be secured to one another. In other words, A VESA mount allows for the mounting of a display employing an overlapping and standardized array of screw holes.  
         [0005]     Recently, it has become common practice to introduce a display control element that is located in proximity to the display. The purpose of the control element is to enable a display to show a variety of content in addition to, or in place of, conventional broadcast content such as terrestrial, cable, and satellite television. The utility of the control element is to determine what and where content will be displayed. The control element may be used for a variety of purposes, including the receipt, positioning, or recording of content or to report on content display schedules. The content may include conventional broadcast content (as described above) as well as information provided by means of solid state memory, media (e.g., hard drive, CD, and DVD) or networks (e.g., wireless, wired, and fiber).  
         [0006]     When a control element is employed in the proximity of a display, the control element is not typically positioned directly adjacent to, or in contact with, the display or display mount. For example, a wall-mounted display may include a control element that is separately mounted to the wall, several inches or feet from the display. The control element transmits to the display through the use of cables or wires that traverse the several inches or feet to connect the control element to the display. As the display mount does not house or support the control element, separate provisions are employed to mount the control element and to secure it from damage or theft, and to communicably connect the control element to the display.  
         [0007]     Thus, a need exists for a display mount that can serve as an integrated mounting platform for both a display and a display control element. Further, a need exists for security for such a display control element mounted in what may be a public venue. Finally, a need exists for a suitable housing to provide the proper environment for the display control element, which consists of electronic components sensitive to environmental conditions such as heat, humidity, and dust.  
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0008]     Certain embodiments of the present invention provide a display mount system. The display mount system includes a bracket configured to be mounted on a display mount. The display mount may be, for example, of a ceiling-mount or wall-mount variety. The bracket is configured to receive and support both a display and a related display control element.  
         [0009]     The bracket facilitates the supporting of both the display and the display control element in very close proximity with one another. Because the bracket is able to secure the display control element in close proximity with the display, very little wiring or cables are needed in order for the display to receive signals from the display control element. Thus, the display control element and therefore the display&#39;s content can be controlled locally.  
         [0010]     The display control element does not need to be separately mounted. It is integrated by the bracket into a conventional mounting system (i.e., a display and display mount).  
         [0011]     Certain embodiments of the present invention also provide for the security of the display control element from theft or tampering and for the protection of the display control element from environmental conditions such as heat, humidity, and dust. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0012]      FIG. 1  illustrates a rear isometric view of a display, a display control element, and a bracket according to an embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0013]      FIG. 2  illustrates an isometric view of a display mount for use with an embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0014]      FIG. 3  illustrates a front isometric view of a bracket according to an embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0015]      FIG. 4  illustrates a front isometric view of a display control element and a bracket according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
       [0016]     The foregoing summary, as well as the following detailed description of certain embodiments of the present invention, will be better understood when read in conjunction with the appended drawings. For the purpose of illustrating the invention, there is shown in the drawings, certain embodiments. It should be understood, however, that the present invention is not limited to the arrangements and instrumentalities shown in the attached drawings.  
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0017]      FIG. 1  illustrates a flat panel display  10  viewed from a rear perspective. The display  10  includes a screen for viewing purposes, but the screen is not visible in the illustrated perspective.  FIG. 1  also illustrates a bracket  12 , which is secured to (or mated with) both the display  10  and a display control element  14 . The purpose of the control element  14  is to control the content shown on the display  10 .  
         [0018]      FIG. 2  illustrates a display mount  20  for use in mounting a display to a ceiling. The display mount  20  includes a pole  22  having a top end  24  that includes a ceiling-engaging plate  26  and a bottom end  28  that includes display-engaging hardware  30 . The ceiling-engaging plate  26  can be secured to a ceiling by inserting appropriate screws through the two screw holes  27 . The display-engaging hardware  30  includes a display-engaging plate  32  for mounting the display  10 . The display-engaging plate  32  includes two sets of four screw holes  34  and  36  in compliance with two VESA Mounting Interface Standards. The inner four holes  34  are separated from one another by 100 mm intervals  35 . The outer four holes  36  are separated from one another by 200 mm intervals  37 . The display  10  can be mounted directly to the display-engaging plate  32  using screws that match one of the sets of holes  34  and  36 .  
         [0019]     There is nothing novel regarding the display mount  20  depicted in  FIG. 2 . However, instead of mounting the display  10  directly to the display-engaging plate  32  of the display mount  20  as is typically customary, certain embodiments of the present invention employ the display  10  mounted to the bracket  12 , which, in turn, is mounted tQ the display-engaging plate  32  of the display mount  20 . In other words, in accordance with certain embodiments of the present invention, the bracket  12  is physically positioned between the display  10  and the display-engaging plate  32  of the display mount  20 . Thus, the display  10  is not directly secured to the display mount  20  as is typically customary in the field.  
         [0020]      FIG. 3  illustrates a front perspective view of the bracket  12  in isolation. The bracket  12  includes a display-engaging surface  40 , a display mount-engaging surface  41 , a control element-engaging surface  42 , and a non-engaging surface  43 . Together the four surfaces  40 - 43  form a rectangular periphery encompassing empty space. The empty space can be accessed via a rectangularly-shaped top opening  46  of the bracket  12  and a rectangularly-shaped bottom opening  48  of the bracket  12 .  
         [0021]     The display-engaging surface  40  includes two sets of four screw holes  34  and  36  in compliance with two VESA Mounting Interface Standards. The inner four holes  34  are separated by 100 mm intervals  35 . The outer four holes  36  are separated by 200 mm intervals  37 .  
         [0022]     The display mount-engaging surface  41  includes eight screw holes  34  and  36  arranged in the same manner as the sets of screw holes  34  and  36  on the display-engaging surface  40 . (In  FIG. 3 , only one screw hole  36  is visible on the display mount-engaging surface  41 .)  
         [0023]     The control element-engaging surface  42  includes a bottom end  49  that extends beyond the other three surfaces  40 ,  41 , and  43  of the bracket  12 . The bottom end  49  includes a locking hole  50  and a screw hole  51 . The locking hole  50  is configured to receive an externally applied security device such as a padlock. The display control element may include a corresponding and overlapping locking hole (not shown) so that, for example, a padlock could be passed through it as well as through the locking hole  50  of the bracket  12 , thereby securing the bracket  12  and the control element  14  to one another.  
         [0024]     The screw hole  51  on the bottom end  49  of the control element-engaging surface  42  may be used to secure the bracket  12  to a corresponding and overlapping screw hole (not shown) of the control element.  
         [0025]     The control element-engaging surface  42  also includes two tabs  52  that are formed from the control element-engaging surface  42 . The tabs  52  protrude outward (i.e., in a direction away from the empty space encompassed by the four surfaces  40 - 43 ) of the bracket  12  for engaging cutouts formed in the housing  70  of the control element  14  (see  FIG. 4 ).  
         [0026]     The non-engaging surface  43  includes a seam  54 , formed by the manufacturing process of the bracket  12 . The bracket  12  is formed from a single metal plate that is subsequently folded 90 degrees in four places creating the rectangular shape of the bracket  12 . After being folded, the rectangular shape of the bracket  12  is strengthened by the seam  54 . (The seam  54  is better illustrated in  FIGS. 1 and 4 .)  
         [0027]     Returning to  FIG. 1 , the display  10  includes a back surface  60 , which is interrupted by a mounting surface  62  that protrudes rearwardly from the back surface  60  by a distance  64 . A portion of the mounting surface  62  is mated with the bracket  12  via screws  65  that penetrate screw holes (not shown) in the mounting surface  62  of the display  10 . (Only one of the screw  65  is visible in  FIG. 1 .) Although the screw holes in mounting surface  62  of the display  10  are not illustrated, they are in the same quantity and arrangement as the holes  34  and  36  on the display-engaging surface  40  of the bracket  12  as shown in  FIG. 3   
         [0028]      FIG. 4  illustrates, from a front perspective, the bracket  12  and the control element  14  secured to one another. The control element  14  includes a housing  70  that protects it from unauthorized access and from environmental conditions such as dust and humidity. The housing  70  includes a front surface  72  that includes two vents  74  for cooling the control element  14  during operation. When the bracket  12  is secured both to the control element  14  and to the display  10  (as is shown in  FIG. 1 ), the vents  74  do not abut the back surface  60  of the display  10 . Rather, there is a gap between the vents  74  and the back surface  60  because the mounting surface  62  of the display  10  protrudes rearwardly from the back surface  60  by the distance  64 .  
         [0029]     Although certain embodiments of the present invention (e.g.,  FIG. 1 ) do not illustrate wires or cables extending from the display control element to the display, it is well within the skill in the art to establish such a wire or cable connection. It is also appreciated by those of skill in the art that very little wiring or cable is needed to connect the display control element to the display since they are so closely arranged with one another.  
         [0030]     While certain embodiments of the present invention employ a 4-walled rectangularly-shaped bracket, other embodiments may include brackets of other shapes such as, for example, a 2-walled L-shaped bracket. A first wall of such an L-shaped bracket could provide a display-engaging surface and a display-mount-engaging surface on its opposing sides while a second wall could provide the control element-engaging surface.  
         [0031]     While the invention has been described with reference to certain embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted without departing from the scope of the invention. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from its scope. Therefore, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed, but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.