Abstract:
A portable folding desk includes a support member, which has an upper end, and a connector, which is attached to the support member and sized and shaped so as to be removably coupled to a rail mounted to a substantially vertical wall for supporting the desk therefrom. A cover panel extends substantially horizontally from the upper end of the support member in a first direction, while a desk panel is movably attached to the support member. The desk panel is movable between a first position, in which it is oriented substantially vertically, and a second position, in which it extends substantially horizontally from the upper end of the support member in a second direction substantially opposite to the first direction. The cover panel and the desk panel cooperate to form a substantially continuous horizontal work surface when the desk panel is in its second position.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The present invention relates to desks and, more particularly, to a portable folding desk. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    Collapsible desks or tables have been developed in the past. Such desks or tables includes panels that are foldable or collapsible when not in use. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    A portable folding desk includes a support member, which has an upper end, and a connector, which is attached to the support member and sized and shaped so as to be removably coupled to a rail mounted to a substantially vertical wall for supporting the desk therefrom. A cover panel extends substantially horizontally from the upper end of the support member in a first direction, while a desk panel is movably attached to the support member. The desk panel is movable between a first position, in which it is oriented substantially vertically, and a second position, in which it extends substantially horizontally from the upper end of the support member in a second direction substantially opposite to the first direction. The cover panel and the desk panel cooperate to form a substantially continuous horizontal work surface when the desk panel is in its second position. 
         [0004]    In accordance with the present invention, a desk system includes a rail attached to a substantially vertical wall. The desk system also includes a desk removably mounted to the rail. More particularly, the desk has a support member and a connector, which is removably coupled to the rail for supporting the support member in a substantially vertical orientation, and a desk panel, which is movably attached to the support member. The desk panel is movable between a first position, in which it is oriented substantially vertically, and a second position, in which it extends substantially horizontally from the support member so as to provide a substantially horizontal work surface. 
         [0005]    In accordance with the present invention, a method is provided for forming a substantially horizontal work surface by mounting a desk to a rail attached to a substantially vertical wall. The desk includes a support member, a connector, which is sized and shaped so as to be removably coupled to the rail, and a desk panel, which is movably attached to the support member. The desk panel is movable between a first position, in which it is oriented substantially vertically, and a second position, in which it is oriented substantially horizontally. The method includes the steps of removably connecting the connector of the desk to the rail such that the support member is oriented substantially vertically and positioning the desk panel in the second position so as to form the work surface. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0006]    For a more complete understanding of the present invention, reference is made to the following detailed description of an exemplary embodiment considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: 
           [0007]      FIG. 1  is a front perspective view of a foldable, portable desk constructed in accordance with one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the desk having a foldable desk panel illustrated in its extended position; 
           [0008]      FIG. 2  is a top plan view of the desk shown in  FIG. 1 , the foldable panel being shown in its folded or retraced position; 
           [0009]      FIG. 3  is a front elevational view of the desk shown in  FIG. 2 ; 
           [0010]      FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view, taken along section line  4 - 4  and looking in the direction of the arrows, of the desk shown in  FIG. 3 ; 
           [0011]      FIG. 5  is a view similar to  FIG. 4 , except that the foldable panel is shown in its extended position; 
           [0012]      FIG. 6  is a partially exploded, rear perspective view of the desk shown in  FIG. 1 . 
           [0013]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view of a foldable bracket utilized in the desk shown in  FIGS. 1-6 , the bracket being shown in its locked position; and 
           [0014]      FIG. 8  is a view similar to  FIG. 7 , except that the bracket is shown in its unlocked position. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0015]      FIG. 1  shows a portable and foldable desk  10  constructed in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. The desk  10 , which is adapted to be removably mounted from a rail  12  attached to a wall  14  (see also  FIGS. 4 and 5 ), includes a support panel or member  16  having an upper end  18  and a lower end  20 , as well as front and rear planar surfaces  22 ,  24  (see also  FIGS. 2-4  and  6 ). The support panel  16  extends continuously from one side  26  of the desk  10  to an opposite side  28  of the desk  10 . A cover panel  30  is fixedly attached, either directly or indirectly, to the support panel  16  and is oriented substantially perpendicularly with respect to same. More particularly, the cover panel  30  extends rearwardly from the upper end  18  of the support panel  16  and includes substantially planar upper and lower surfaces  32 ,  34  and a handle  36  mounted to the upper surface  32  to permit a user to grip same and carry the desk  10  to a desired destination. 
         [0016]    Now referring primarily to  FIGS. 4 and 6 , the desk  10  includes a bracket or connector  38  having an inverted J-shape. The bracket  38  includes a leg member  40 , which is attached to the rear surface  24  of the support panel  16  along the upper end  18  thereof, and a leg member  42 , which is attached to the lower surface  34  of the cover panel  30  and includes a tongue  44 . The leg members  40 ,  42  cooperate to form a channel  45  for receiving the rail  12  such that the desk  10  can be securely mounted to the rail  12 . The bracket  38  extends from a location adjacent the side  26  of the desk  10  to a location adjacent the side  28  of same. The bracket  38  also has a one-piece construction and is made from a substantially rigid material (e.g., metal). As a result, the bracket  38  fixedly (i.e., rigidly) attaches the cover panel  30  to the support panel  16 . 
         [0017]    With reference to  FIGS. 1 ,  3 ,  4  and  5 , the desk  10  is provided with a foldable desk panel  46  having substantially planar upper and lower surfaces  48 ,  50 , as well as a pair of ends  52 ,  54  and a pair of sides  56 ,  58 . The foldable panel  46  is pivotally attached to the support panel  16  by a pair of foldable brackets  60  (see also  FIG. 2 ), which will be discussed in greater detail below. As a result, the foldable panel  46  is pivotable (as indicated by arrow A in  FIG. 6 ) between an extended position, in which it extends substantially horizontally and outwardly away from the support panel  16  (see  FIGS. 1 and 5 ), and a retracted (i.e., folded) position, in which it is oriented substantially vertically and hence parallel or flat with respect to the support panel  16  (i.e., it does not extend outwardly from the support panel  16  as shown in  FIGS. 2 and 4 ). When the foldable panel  46  is in its extended position, the upper surface  48  of the foldable panel  46  is leveled, and is in an abutting relationship, with the upper surface  32  of the cover panel  30  (see  FIGS. 5 and 6 ). As a result, the upper surface  48  of the foldable panel  46  and the upper surface  32  of the cover panel  30  form a substantially continuous, planar horizontal desk surface  62  (see  FIG. 6 ). The foldable panel  46  also has a length (i.e., a dimension measured between the ends  52 ,  54 ) such that when the foldable panel  46  is positioned in its retracted position, the end  54  is located at the substantially same vertical level as the end  20  of the support panel  16  (i.e., the end  20  of the support panel  16  and the end  54  of the foldable panel  46  are substantially coplanar as shown in  FIG. 4 ). In this manner, when the desk  10  is removed from the rail  12  and is placed on a flat supporting surface (e.g., a floor), the end  20  of the support panel  16  and the end  54  of the foldable panel  46  cooperate to support the desk  10  in an upright manner, thereby making the desk  10  self-supporting. The foldable panel  46  also has a width (i.e., a dimension measured between the sides  56 ,  58 ) which is substantially identical to those of the supporting panel  16  and the cover panel  30 . 
         [0018]    As shown in  FIG. 2 , the foldable brackets  60  are spaced from one another such that one of them is positioned adjacent the side  26  of the desk  10  (i.e., the side  56  of the foldable panel  46 ) and the other one is positioned adjacent the side  28  of the desk  10  (i.e., the side  58  of the foldable panel  46 ). Each of the foldable brackets  60  can be in the form of any conventional foldable bracket (e.g., a bracket sold by Hafele as Model No. 28741600) adapted to releasably support the foldable panel  46  in its extended position and allow it to be folded into its retracted position. To facilitate consideration and discussion, the foldable brackets  60  will be referred to in a singular sense in the following discussion. 
         [0019]    With reference to  FIGS. 5 ,  7  and  8 , the bracket  60  includes a leg  64  and a leg  66 . More particularly, the leg  64  is attached to the front surface  22  of the support panel  16 , and the leg  66  is attached to the lower surface  50  of the foldable panel  46  and is provided with a slot  68 . A pivot pin  70  pivotally connects the legs  64 ,  66  to each other, while a latch  72  is pivotally connected to the leg  64  and is adapted to releasably engage the slot  68  of the leg  66 . In this manner, the leg  64  and the leg  66  can be supported in a substantially perpendicular fashion so as to releasably lock the foldable panel  46  in its extended position. A spring  74  (see  FIG. 8 ) maintains the latch  72  in its locked engagement with the leg  66 . The bracket  60  also includes a release bar  76  and a release button  78 , both of which are movably attached to the leg  66 . When the release button  78  is depressed upwardly toward the foldable panel  46  (as indicated by arrow B in  FIG. 8 ), it causes the release bar  76  to disengage the latch  72  from the slot  68  and hence from the leg  66  (see  FIG. 8 ), thereby allowing the foldable panel  46  to return from its extended position to its retracted position. When the foldable panel  46  is positioned in its retracted position, the bracket  60  is in its folded orientation (i.e., the leg  64  and the latch  72  are folded over the leg  66  as shown in  FIG. 4 ). 
         [0020]    Referring now to  FIGS. 1 ,  4  and  6 , a support strip  80  is attached to the rear surface  24  of the support panel  16  proximate the lower end  20 . The support strip  80 , which has a pair of sides  82 ,  84 , is provided with a width (i.e., a dimension measured between the sides  82 ,  84 ) which is similar or identical to the depth of the rail  12  (i.e., the extent of the projection of the rail  12  from the wall  14 ). In this manner, when the desk  10  is mounted from the rail  12 , the side  82  of the support strip  80  engages the wall  14  so as to orient the support panel  16  in a substantially vertical position (i.e., substantially parallel to the wall  14 ). In a result, when the foldable panel  46  is positioned in its extended position, it is oriented substantially horizontally so as to provide a comfortable working surface. 
         [0021]    The support panel  16 , the cover panel  30 , the foldable panel  46  and the support strip  80  can be fabricated from wood or other suitable material such as metal, plastic, or fiberglass. When wood is utilized in the fabrication of the desk  10 , screws/glue (not shown) or other suitable fasteners may be employed in joining the cover panel  30  and the support strip  80  to the support panel  16 . For example, the cover panel  30  and the support panel  16  can be joined to one another in any conventional joining way utilized in the furniture field (e.g., mitered, mortise-and-tenon, dadoed, or doweled joint). 
         [0022]    In use, the desk  10  may be carried in its folded or retracted position to a desired destination. In order to mount the desk to the rail  12 , the handle  36  is held and then lifted by a user so as to elevate the bracket  38  above the rail  12 . Then, the desk  10  is lowered in order to mount or clip the bracket  38  onto the rail  12 . More particularly, an upper portion  86  (see  FIG. 4 ) of the rail  12  is removably received in the channel  45  of the bracket  38 . When the desk  10  is supported from the rail  12  in this manner, the side  82  of the support strip  80  bears against the wall  14  to prevent the support panel  16  from rotating toward the wall  14 , thereby stabilizing the desk  10 . 
         [0023]    Once the desk  10  is securely mounted to the rail  12 , the foldable panel  46  is pivoted substantially 90° from its retracted position to its extended position. The latch  72  of each of the foldable brackets  60  is then positioned into the slot  68  of its corresponding leg  66 , thereby locking the foldable panel  46  in its extended position. The continuous desk surface  62  (see  FIG. 6 ) formed by the upper surfaces  32 ,  48  of the cover panel  30  and the foldable panel  46 , respectively, may be utilized for writing and/or other purposes. In this regard, it is noted that the cover panel  30  supports as well as conceals the bracket  38 , provides a base for the handle  36 , and extends the working (e.g., writing) area provided by the foldable panel  46  when it is positioned in its extended position. 
         [0024]    In order to position the foldable panel  46  to its retracted position from its extended position, the foldable panel  46  is pivoted slightly upwardly so as to release the latches  72  from the corresponding slots  68  of the foldable brackets  60 . With the release buttons  78  depressed to prevent the latches  72  from engaging the slots  68 , the foldable panel  46  is pivoted downwardly to its retracted position. The desk  10  in its retracted or folded position can remain on the rail  12  or be removed from same for storage at a different location. 
         [0025]    Because the desk  10  in its folded position has a low profile (see  FIG. 4 ), it is suitable for use in a place where space is limited. For example, safety regulations may require that hospital hallways be kept clear of obstructions and objects. Since hospital hallways typically have guard rails mounted to walls thereof, the bracket  38  can be made for engagement with such guard rails such that the desk  10  can be mounted in hospital hallways to provide hospital workers with a working space, which can be folded away when not in use. 
         [0026]    It should be noted that the present invention can have numerous modifications and variations. For instance, the support panel  16  can be replaced with different types of support member (e.g., a support member having a tubular or frame construction) Moreover, metal, plastic or another suitable material may be used in the fabrication of an integral (i.e., one-piece) structure corresponding to the support panel  16 , the cover panel  30  and the support strip  80 , thereby eliminating fasteners and/or joints and potentially reducing the overall weight of the desk  10 . Similarly, the bracket  38  can be formed integrally with the support panel  16  and/or the cover panel  30 . Further, the foldable brackets  60  can be any type of conventional foldable or retractable brackets. 
         [0027]    It will be understood that the embodiment described herein is merely exemplary and that a person skilled in the art may make many variations and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. All such variations and modifications, including those discussed above, are intended to be included within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.