Patent Publication Number: US-2022228697-A1

Title: Supporting device

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 63/138,981 filed on Jan. 19, 2021, and the benefit of Taiwan Patent Application Serial No. 110212048 filed on Oct. 14, 2021. The entirety of each Application is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     1. Technical Field 
     The present disclosure relates to a supporting device, and more particularly, to a supporting device with a quick-release function. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     The China Patent No. CN212617111U discloses a sinking double-rotation mechanism and a screen including the mechanism, which integrates the functions of rotation and tilting forward and backward, is mounted on a stand body (not shown in the figure), and includes a screen, a fixing component, a pivoting component and a plastic cover. One side of the fixing component is provided with a circular cavity and connected to the screen. The pivoting component includes a movable plate and a pivoting block. The pivoting block pivotally connects to the movable plate, the movable plate is immersed in the circular cavity, and the pivoting block protrudes outward to be exposed outside the circular cavity. The plastic cover is used to cover the circular cavity and has a body, an elastic hook and an elastic member. The elastic hook is arranged on the body, and the elastic member is passing through the elastic hook. The stand body includes a column and a chassis for arranging the column. 
     Although such design has achieved an effective reduction in a volume of a pivot assembly, since only the chassis and the column are separated (assembled by the user) at the time of shipment, the fixing component and the pivoting component are already assembled on the column of the stand body, the volume of the packaging material required is still very large, such that the cost of the packaging material cannot be effectively reduced. 
     In view of this, the present disclosure provides another supporting device with a quick-release function, such that a fixing component and a pivoting component can be quickly and detachably arranged, and the fixing component and the pivoting component can be separated from each other when shipped, thereby reducing the volume and cost of packaging materials. 
     SUMMARY 
     In view of the aforementioned problems of the prior art, the present disclosure provides a supporting device for carrying a display on a working surface, the supporting device comprises: a support upright disposed on the working surface and including a column and an opening, wherein the column substantially extends along a gravity direction, and the opening is formed on the column; a protruding neck disposed on the column and partially extending from the opening along a first axis; and a carrying board unit being able to be detachably arranged on the protruding neck and used for carrying the display, wherein the carrying board unit includes a quick-release fixing member being able to be fixed on the protruding neck. 
     In the aforementioned supporting device, the supporting device further comprises a first pre-component and a second pre-component, wherein the first pre-component is disposed on one of the protruding neck and the carrying board unit, and the second pre-component is disposed on the other one of the protruding neck and the carrying board unit and is able to be removably matched with and connected to the first pre-component. 
     In the aforementioned supporting device, the first pre-component and the second pre-component are hung on each other by gravity. 
     In the aforementioned supporting device, the first pre-component includes a hanging ear, the second pre-component includes a hanging hook, and the hanging ear is able to be hung on the hanging hook. 
     In the aforementioned supporting device, the hanging ear has an ear groove and an ear pinna, and the ear pinna surrounds and defines the ear groove. 
     In the aforementioned supporting device, the hanging ear further has a positioning groove formed on the ear pinna and intercommunicating with the ear groove, wherein the hanging hook has an extension portion and a hook portion, and wherein when the first pre-component and the second pre-component are matched and connected, the extension portion is accommodated in the ear groove, and the hook portion is accommodated in the positioning groove. 
     In the aforementioned supporting device, the first pre-component further includes a slot and a body, one end of the body is connected to the ear pinna, and the slot is formed at the other end of the body, and wherein the second pre-component further includes a snap hook being able to be accommodated in the slot and engaged with the body. 
     In the aforementioned supporting device, when the first pre-component and the second pre-component are matched and connected, the positioning groove extends substantially along the gravity direction, the ear groove and the extension portion substantially extend along the first axis, and the hook portion is connected to the extension portion and extends substantially along the gravity direction. 
     In the aforementioned supporting device, the body has an abutting surface, and the second pre-component further includes a contacting surface, and wherein when the first pre-component and the second pre-component are matched and connected, the abutting surface and the contacting surface are attached. 
     In the aforementioned supporting device, the hanging hook and the snap hook are disposed on the contacting surface at intervals, and the ear groove and the slot are disposed at intervals, and wherein when the first pre-component and the second pre-component are matched and connected, the hanging hook and the snap hook are arranged along the gravity direction, and the ear groove and the slot are arranged along the gravity direction. 
     In the aforementioned supporting device, the body further has a buckling block, wherein the snap hook has an extension section and a hook section connected to each other, and wherein the extension section is able to be accommodated in the slot, and the hook section is able to be buckled with the buckling block. 
     In the aforementioned supporting device, the slot has a main slot body and an extended slot body intercommunicated with each other, and wherein the main slot body is formed on the body along the gravity direction, the extension section is able to be accommodated in the extended slot body, and the hook section is able to extend into the main slot body and abut against the buckling block. 
     In the aforementioned supporting device, the buckling block has two protrusions and a stop inner surface, the extension section has a convex rib and two wing plates, the wing plates respectively extend outward from the convex rib, and wherein when the first pre-component and the second pre-component are matched and connected, the hook section abuts against the stop inner surface, the convex rib is accommodated in the extended slot body and located between the protrusions, and the wing plates respectively and correspondingly abut against the protrusions. 
     In the aforementioned supporting device, the buckling block has an inverted U-shaped cross-section, and the extension section has an inverted T-shaped cross-section. 
     In the aforementioned supporting device, the quick-release fixing member includes a screw head and a screw rod connected to each other, wherein the protruding neck has a screw hole, the first pre-component further includes a through hole extending along the first axis, and wherein when the first pre-component and the second pre-component are matched and connected, the screw rod is able to be screwed into the screw hole by passing through the carrying board unit and the through hole, and the screw head abuts against the first pre-component, such that the carrying board unit is able to be quickly and detachably arranged on the protruding neck. 
     In the aforementioned supporting device, the carrying board unit includes a rod member arranged along a second axis perpendicular to the gravity direction and the first axis, wherein the rod member has a penetrating hole penetrating along the first axis, intercommunicating with the through hole and allowing the screw rod to pass through, and wherein the first pre-component further includes a fixing hole extending along the second axis, intercommunicating with the through hole and allowing the rod member to pass through. 
     In the aforementioned supporting device, the carrying board unit further includes a carrying board and a tilting module, wherein the carrying board is used to connect to the display and has an accommodating space, and the rod member and the tilting module are arranged in the accommodating space, and wherein when the first pre-component and the second pre-component are matched and connected and when the quick-release fixing member is fixed to the protruding neck, the carrying board is able to rotate relative to the column about a third axis, the display is able to be switched between a portrait position and a landscape position, and the carrying board is also able to be tilted relative to the column about the second axis and change an inclination angle of the display. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic overall view of a supporting device according to the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 2  is a schematic exploded view of the supporting device according to the present disclosure. 
         FIGS. 3 and 4  are respectively schematic exploded views of different viewing angles of some elements of the supporting device according to the present disclosure. 
         FIGS. 5A and 5B  are respectively schematic enlarged views of different viewing angles of a first pre-component of the supporting device according to the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 6  is a schematic enlarged view of a protruding neck and a second pre-component of the supporting device according to the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 7  is a schematic partial cross-sectional view of the supporting device according to the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 8  is a schematic top view of each element of the supporting device being detached from each other and placed on a lower layer of a packaging material according to the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 9  is a schematic side view of each element of the supporting device being detached from each other and placed on the lower layer of the packaging material according to the present disclosure. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTIONS 
     Please refer to  FIGS. 1 and 2 . A supporting device  1000  according to the present disclosure is used to carry a display  2000  on a working surface  3000 . The supporting device  1000  includes a support upright  1 , a protruding neck  2 , a carrying board unit  3 , a first pre-component  4  and a second pre-component  5 , wherein the support upright  1  is arranged on the working surface  3000  (for example, a desktop), the protruding neck  2  is penetrating through the support upright  1 , and the carrying board unit  3  is provided on the protruding neck  2  in a manner that can be quickly and detachably arranged and used for carrying the display  2000 . The first pre-component  4  is fixed on the carrying board unit  3 , and the second pre-component  5  is fixed on the protruding neck  2  and removably matched with and connected to the first pre-component  4 . The structure of each element and the connection relationship between each element are described in detail below, wherein some of the drawings show a gravity direction G. 
     The support upright  1  includes a chassis  11 , a column  12  (e.g., an upright column), and an opening  13 . The chassis  11  is roughly a trapezoidal board body placed on the working surface  3000 , but it is not limited to this, and can also be in a form of clamping a tabletop or fixing on a wall. The column  12  extends substantially along the gravity direction G and one end of the column  12  is disposed on the chassis  11 , and the opening  13  is formed on the column  12 . In the embodiment, the column  12  extends in a manner of slightly inclined to the working surface  3000 . In other embodiments, the column  12  may also be extended in a manner of perpendicular to the working surface  3000 , but it is not limited to this. 
     The protruding neck  2  is disposed on the column  12 , partially extended from the opening  13  along a first axis X 1 , exposed to the column  12 , and has a screw hole  21  formed along the first axis X 1 , wherein the first axis X 1  is free from being parallel to the gravity direction G. In addition, the protruding neck  2  according to the present disclosure is an example of a fixed type, but the protruding neck  2  can also be a sliding type (for example, a slider that can slide back and forth substantially parallel to the gravity direction G). 
     Please refer to  FIG. 3  and  FIG. 4 . The carrying board unit  3  includes a quick-release fixing member  31 , a carrying board  32 , a tilting module  33  and a rod member  34 . The quick-release fixing member  31  has a screw head  311  and a screw rod  312  that are connected to each other to be detachably screwed to the screw hole  21 . In an embodiment, the quick-release fixing member  31  is a quick-release screw, but not limited to this. The carrying board  32  is used for connecting to the display  2000  and has an accommodating space  321 , and the tilting module  33  is disposed in the accommodating space  321  and can be tilted together with the carrying board  32 . A second axis X 2  is perpendicular to the gravity direction G and the first axis X 1 . The rod member  34  is disposed in the accommodating space  321  along the second axis X 2  and penetrates through the tilting module  33 , and has a penetrating hole  341  penetrating along the first axis X 1 . In the embodiment, the rod member  34  is a flat shape. 
     Please refer to  FIGS. 5A and 5B . The first pre-component  4  includes a body  41 , a hanging ear  42 , a slot  43 , a through hole  44  and a fixing hole  45 . The body  41  and the hanging ear  42  are integrally formed, but it is not limited to this. The body  41  has an abutting surface  411  and a buckling block  412 . The abutting surface  411  is substantially a plane. The buckling block  412  has two protrusions  4121  and a stop inner surface  4122 , and the buckling block  412  has an inverted U-shaped cross-section. The hanging ear  42  has an ear groove  421 , an ear pinna  422 , and a positioning groove  423 . The ear pinna  422  surrounds and defines the ear groove  421 . The positioning groove  423  is formed on the ear pinna  422  and intercommunicates with the ear groove  421 , wherein penetrating directions of the ear groove  421  and the positioning groove  423  are different and approximately perpendicular to each other. The ear pinna  422  is connected to one end of the body  41 , and the slot  43  is formed at the other end of the body  41  and is spaced apart from the ear groove  421 . The slot  43  has a main slot body  431  and an extended slot body  432  intercommunicated with each other. The main slot body  431  is formed in the body  41 , the extended slot body  432  is located between the two protrusions  4121 , and the stop inner surface  4122  actually faces the main slot body  431 , wherein the main slot body  431  may be larger than the extended slot body  432 . The through hole  44  penetrates the body  41  and allows the screw rod  312  to penetrate therethrough. The fixing hole  45  penetrates the body  41  and intercommunicates with the through hole  44  for the rod member  34  to pass through, such that the first pre-component  4  is disposed on the carrying board unit  3 . 
     Please refer to  FIG. 6 , the second pre-component  5  is disposed on the protruding neck  2 , and the second pre-component  5  includes a hanging hook  51 , a snap hook  52  and a contacting surface  53 , wherein the hanging hook  51  and the snap hook  52  are arranged on the contacting surface  53  at intervals. The hanging hook  51  has an extension portion  511  and a hook portion  512 , the extension portion  511  and the hook portion  512  are angularly connected to each other, and the snap hook  52  has an extension section  521  and a hook section  522  that are connected to each other. The extension section  521  has an inverted T-shaped cross-section and has a convex rib  5211  and two wing plates  5212 . The wing plates  5212  respectively extend from the convex rib  5211  outward roughly along the second axis X 2 . The contacting surface  53  is substantially a flat surface. 
     The second pre-component  5  is removably matched with and connected to the first pre-component  4 , and the first pre-component  4  and the second pre-component  5  are hung on each other by gravity. Please refer to  FIG. 7  at the same time. When the first pre-component  4  and the second pre-component  5  are matched and connected, the positioning groove  423  extends substantially along the gravity direction G, the ear groove  421  and the extension portion  511  substantially extend along the first axis X 1 , the main slot body  431  extends along the gravity direction G, the through hole  44  extends along the first axis X 1 , the fixing hole  45  extends along the second axis X 2  and intercommunicates with the through hole  44 , the hook portion  512  is connected to the extension portion  511  and substantially extends along the gravity direction G, the hanging hook  51  and the snap hook  52  are arranged along the gravity direction G, and the ear groove  421  and the slot  43  are arranged along the gravity direction G. At this time, the extension portion  511  is accommodated in the ear groove  421 , the hook portion  512  is accommodated in the positioning groove  423 , and the snap hook  52  is accommodated in the slot  43  and is engaged with the body  41 . In specific, the convex rib  5211  of the extension section  521  is accommodated in the extended slot body  432  of the slot  43  and is located between the two protrusions  4121 , and the two wing plates  5212  respectively and correspondingly abut against the two protrusions  4121 , and the hook section  522  extends into the main groove body  431  and abuts against the inner stop surface  4122  of the buckling block  412 , and the abutting surface  411  and the contacting surface  53  are attached to each other. A volume of the convex rib  5211  can be equivalent to a volume of the extended groove body  432 , a volume of the hook section  522  can be equivalent to a volume of the main slot body  431 , such that the slot  43  and the snap hook  52  can be closely matched. After the first pre-component  4  and the second pre-component  5  are hung on each other, the screw rod  312  can be screwed into the screw hole  21  of the protruding neck  2  by passing through the penetrating hole  341  of the rod member  34  and the through hole  44  of the first pre-component  4 , and the screw head  311  abuts against the body  41  of the first pre-component  4 , such that the carrying board unit  3  is fixed to the protruding neck  2 . On the contrary, as long as the screw rod  312  is withdrawn from the screw hole  21 , the through hole  44  and the penetrating hole  341 , the carrying board unit  3  is only hung on the protruding neck  2  by gravity. At this time, the user can easily detach the carrying board unit  3  from the protruding neck  2  only along a direction opposite to the gravity direction G. 
     Continuing, when the first pre-component  4  and the second pre-component  5  are matched and connected and the quick-release fixing member  31  is fixed to the protruding neck  2 , the carrying board  32  can rotate relative to the column  12  about a third axis X 3 , as a result, the display  2000  can be switched between a portrait position and a landscape position. The carrying board  32  can also be tilted relative to the column  12  about the second axis X 2  by the tilting module  33  to change an inclination angle of the display  2000 . In the embodiment, when the carrying board  32  is parallel to the gravity direction G (as shown in  FIG. 7 ), the first axis X 1  and the third axis X 3  coincide. 
     Since the supporting device  1000  and the display  2000  are shipped together, they are placed in the same packaging material  4000  (for example, a packaging box). Generally, the display  2000  is placed on an upper layer of the packaging material  4000 , and other elements are detached from each other and placed on a lower layer of the packaging material  4000 . For example, please refer to the schematic views shown in  FIGS. 8 and 9  (with different angles) where the elements are detached from each other and placed on the lower layer of the packaging material  4000 . Since the carrying board unit  3  according to the present disclosure can be detached from the protruding neck  2 , the carrying board unit  3  can be placed next to the chassis  11 , that is, the remaining space of the packaging material  4000  between the chassis  11  and the column  12  is fully utilized, and the volume of the packaging material  4000  is effectively reduced. However, in the conventional supporting device, because the carrying board unit cannot be disassembled from the protruding neck (as shown by a dotted line  6  in  FIG. 9 , the space range of the packaging material occupied by the carrying board unit fixed on the protruding neck), the packaging material of the conventional supporting device cannot be effectively reduced in the height direction. In addition, the packaging material generates a lot of remaining space, and the volume of the packaging material occupied may be more than twice, which makes the utilization of the internal space of the packaging material be poor and causes the cost of the packaging material to increase. 
     The above embodiment is described in a manner that the first pre-component  4  is disposed on the carrying board unit  3  and the second pre-component  5  is disposed on the protruding neck  2 . However, the first pre-component  4  may also be disposed on the protruding neck  2 , and the second pre-component  5  may be disposed on the carrying board unit  3 , and the present disclosure is not limited to this. In addition, the slot  43  of the first pre-component  4  and the snap hook  52  of the second pre-component  5  can additionally provide foolproof and positioning functions, which facilitates an installation work of the user. However, in other embodiments, the first pre-component  4  may only have the body  41  and the hanging ear  42 , and the second pre-component  5  may only have the hanging hook  51 . That is, omitting the slot  43  of the first pre-component  4  and the snap hook  52  of the second pre-component  5 , the supporting device  1000  according to the present disclosure can still maintain a function of the first pre-component  4  and the second pre-component  5  being gravitationally hung on each other. 
     In summary, the carrying board unit in the supporting device according to the present disclosure can be quickly and detachably arranged on the protruding neck, and can be separated from each other when shipped, and can effectively reduce the volume and cost of packaging materials. In addition, the structural design of the first pre-component and the second pre-component in the supporting device according to the present disclosure that are matched with each other and hung on each other by gravity, in addition to having a foolproof effect, is more conducive to installation by users.