Patent Publication Number: US-2007119348-A1

Title: Portable desk for use in vehicles

Description:
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION  
      1. Technical Field  
      The present invention relates generally to portable desks and, more particularly, to a portable desk for use in vehicles that provides a flat, non-skid, heat-dissipating surface and secures soundly to the front passenger seat of a vehicle.  
      2. Description of Related Art  
      Travelers and especially business travelers often find that a need arises to write, use a computer, or perform other office-type functions while in route to or from a destination. This need in particularly acute for those who spend a significant amount of time working in and out of their cars.  
      To facilitate these activities, portable desks have been created for use in vehicles. Many different types of portable desks exists-varying in size, material and method of securing the desk into the vehicle. While some of these desks are “universal,” i.e., designed for use in a variety of vehicles, others are designed for use in specific vehicle makes and models.  
      Of these “universal” desks, some units are located in the front passenger seat to provide the driver with easy access to items on the desk. These portable desks are designed to rest in the front passenger seat or be secured to the seat itself. Examples of desks such as these are illustrated in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,092,507; 5,322,021; 5,542,589; 5,551,616; 5,560,676; and U.S. Design Pat. No. 329,444.  
      All these patents disclose portable desks that have flat working surfaces. Some desks are designed to store files and hold cups and writing instruments. Other units use a number of straps, or the seatbelt itself, to secure the desk to the front passenger seat.  
      Of the portable desks in the prior art, none of them address the need for a simple unit with a non-skid, heat-dissipating surface large enough to hold a laptop computer and a portable printer comfortably, the ability to removably secure the desk to the front passenger seat simply, and the ability to quickly and easily reduce the size of the desk so it can be stored under a vehicle seat or in a briefcase. What is needed is a portable desk that addresses all of these needs.  
     SUMMARY OF INVENTION  
      The present invention comprises a desktop, a leveling support, and a securing strap. The desktop comprises a base large enough to accommodate a laptop computer and a portable printer wherein the base is covered by a non-skid, heat-dissipating work surface. Both the base of the desktop and the leveling support are made of a lightweight rigid durable material. The top end of the leveling support is perpendicularly attached to the underside of the base of the desktop using a hinging means.  
      The securing strap comprises a first strap, a second strap and a locking means. The securing strap is used to secure the desk to the lower portion of a vehicle&#39;s front passenger seat. The first and second straps are made of flexible durable strips of material. The locking means, located near one end of the second strap, releasably connects the second strap to the first strap. The other end of the second strap and one end of the first strap are attached to the opposing sides of the leveling support.  
      In another embodiment, the desktop comprises a plurality of planar leaves. These planar leaves are foldably attached to one another allowing the desktop to be collapsed for storage underneath a vehicle&#39;s seat or in a briefcase. In order to create a stable, sturdy surface when the desktop is extended, bracketing means are used to support the inner facing edges of the leaves by traversing these edges.  
      The primary advantage of this invention is that it provides the business traveler with a simple portable desk that contains a large, non-skid, heat-dissipating work surface, an easy method of securing the desk to a vehicle&#39;s front passenger seat, and the option of a collapsible desktop that facilitates storage or movement of the desk.  
    
    
     BRIEF DESRCIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
      The novel features believed characteristic of the main invention are set forth in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, as well as a preferred mode of use, further objectives and advantages thereof, will be best understood by reference to the following detailed description of illustrative embodiments when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:  
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of a portable desk for use in vehicles in accordance with the present invention;  
       FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the underside of the desk shown in  FIG. 1 ;  
       FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the desk shown in  FIG. 1  secured to the front passenger seat of a vehicle;  
       FIGS. 4   a ,  4   b  and  4   c  are perspective views of another embodiment of a portable desk for use in vehicles in accordance with the present invention where the desktop comprises of two foldable, planar leaves wherein  FIG. 4   a  is a perspective view of the top side,  FIG. 4   b  I a perspective view of the underside, and  FIG. 4   c  is perspective view of the top side showing folding of the leaves:  
       FIG. 5  is another embodiment of a portable desk for use in vehicles in accordance with the present invention where the desktop comprises of four foldable, planar leaves;  
       FIG. 6  is another embodiment of a portable desk for use of vehicles in accordance with the present invention where the height of the leveling support is adjustable; and  
      FIGS.  7  is a plan view of the present invention being carried by a user.  
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
      In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration, specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention, and it is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized. It is also to be understood that structural, procedural and system changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. The following detailed description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents. For clarity of exposition, like features shown in the accompanying drawings are indicated with like reference numerals and similar features as shown in alternate embodiments in the drawings are indicated with similar reference numerals.  
      Referring to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , shown is portable desk  10  comprising desktop  12 , leveling support  14 , securing strap  16 , buckle  26 , work surface  18 , base  20 , and a hinging means  22  for rotatively coupling.  
      Desktop  12  comprises work surface  18  and base  20  and has a top side  27 , bottom side  28 , front portion  36 , and rear portion  38 . Work surface  18  is preferably a rubberized, skid-resistant material with heat-dissipating properties but may be comprised of any similar skid-resistant material with heat-dissipating properties material including but not limited to plastic or cloth. Work surface  18  is fixedly attached to and substantially covers top side  27  of base  20 .  
      Leveling support  14  is perpendicularly attached to bottom side  28  of base  20  proximate to rear portion  38  using hinging means  22 . Hinging means  22  may be any hinged means known in the art that releasably locks in a fully open position of about 90 degrees from bottom side  28  of base  20  to a closed position of about 0 degrees from bottom side  28  of base  20 . Examples include but are not limited to a locking angle bracket or door hinge.  
      Hinging means  22  allows leveling support  14  to be folded relatively flat against bottom side  28  of base  20  to facilitate storage of desk  10  or allow desk  10  to be easily moved from one vehicle to another. In the preferred embodiment, as shown in  FIG. 2 , at least two hinging means  22  are used.  
      Both base  20  of desktop  12  and leveling support  14  are preferably made of a rigid, lightweight durable material such as a wood, metal, plastic or composite. Preferably, the edges of desktop  12  and leveling support  14  are rounded to eliminate any sharp edges and facilitate fitting desk  10  into the contours of a vehicle&#39;s front passenger seat. Both desktop  12  and leveling support  14  are preferably rectangular in shape.  
      Securing strap  16  is fixedly attached to and extends from leveling support  14  and contains locking means  26 . Locking  26  means is any locking means know in the art that allows securing strap  16  to be releasable attached to itself. Examples of such locking means include but are not limited to mating mechanical fasteners similar to the one shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , hook and loop fastener such as VELCRO, or a buckle. Securing strap  16  is made of flexible, durable strips of material such as nylon or leather. As shown in  FIG. 3 , the combined length of securing strap  16  is sufficiently long enough to encircle front passenger seat  24 . Front passenger seat  24  is a typical front passenger seat and can be found in a variety of vehicles such as sedans, coupes, sport utility vehicles, and trucks.  
      In alternative embodiments, shown in  FIGS. 4   a  and  5 , desktop  12  comprises at least two planar leaves. The leaves are rotatively attached to each other using hinging means  30 . Hinging means  30  is attached approximately at the center of the bottom side of two leaves. Preferably hinging means  30  is similar to a door hinge and the motion of hinging means  30  is limited to about 0 degrees to about 180 degrees relative to the leaves. If there are two leaves, as shown in  FIG. 4   a , then one hinge may be used to connect the two leaves. If four leaves are used, as shown in  FIG. 5 , then two hinges may be used. Alternatively, the leaves may not contain any hinges and may be pieces that are slid into place. One leaf may have a channel while the other leaf may have a mating ridge to mate with the channel and provide some support.  
      To ensure the leaves create a study, stable surface when desktop  12  is extended, in one embodiment, bracketing means  32  are attached to the bottom side of the leaves as shown in  FIG. 4   b . Bracketing means  32  may be any mechanism known in the art that could be used to stabilize and secure the leaves. For example, a bracketing means similar to the one shown in  FIG. 4   b  may be located on the outside edge of two connecting leaves. In addition, bracketing means  32  may be a rod that is secured to the bottom side of the leaves and spans at least a portion of each leaf, or the rod may span the at least a portion of the outside edge of the leaves. Use of a bracketing means ensures that the leaves create a sturdy, stable surface when desktop  12  is extended.  
      Bracketing means  32  generally comprises of a channel that accepts a sliding rod or pin  40 . Preferably, bracketing means  32  are configured in such a manner that, when the sliding rod or pin is retracted, the leaves can be easily folded one atop another, as shown in  FIG. 4   c , to allow desk  10  to be stored underneath a vehicle&#39;s seat, in a briefcase, or carried relatively easy as shown in  FIG. 7 .  
      Preferably, the size of desktop  12  is about 20 inches wide and about 25 inches long; and, the size of leveling support  14  is about 10 inches wide, about ½ to about ⅜ inches thick, and about 2 to about 5 inches high. In another embodiment of desk  10 , leveling support  14  can adjust in height from about 2 to about 5 inches using a telescoping mechanism  34 . Telescoping mechanism  34  allows leveling support  14  to extend about 2 to about inches from base  20  of desktop  12  and may be any device allowing for such an extension such as a cotter pin, as shown in  FIG. 6 .  
      To use desk  10  shown in  FIG. 1 , the user first unfolds leveling support  14  from desktop  12  to its fully open and locked position. Then, desk  10  is placed into the vehicle&#39;s front passenger seat in a manner wherein rear portion  28  of desktop  12  and leveling support  14  fit snugly against the back and bottom, respectively, of the seat. Finally, securing strap  16  is secured about the lower portion of the vehicle&#39;s seat back so desktop  12  forms a stable, relatively level surface.  FIG. 3  shows desk  10  secured to a vehicle&#39;s front passenger seat  24 .  
      It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.