Abstract:
A tray is mounted on the arms of a walker and which includes cup holders, and a compartment that can be closed by a lid that can then serve as a work surface. The lid of the compartment also includes a mirror and a light is mounted on the lid adjacent to the mirror.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     The present invention relates to a tray that is used with walkers, which are used by people with walking disability or who are otherwise infirm to assist them in movement.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     Persons experiencing problems with their legs or hips often resort to the use of a walking a frame to provide them partial support as they move from one place to another and to lend stability to themselves as they move or stand. Essentially the structure which has now become known as a “walker” is a device which consists of four connected legs so arranged that the person using the device may stand inside the device between the four legs and utilize crossbars extending parallel to the intended path of movement and which connect a pair of legs on each side, as handles by which the walker may be used to support the person who is using the same and by which the walker may be moved ahead to provide support for advancing movement.  
         [0003]     The lower ends of the legs are generally and preferably provided with friction cups or other devices which will ensure a secure engagement with the floor while the connecting bars at the top on each side may if necessary be provided with appropriate handle structures to ease the utilization of the walker.  
         [0004]     Frequently the walker is made as a collapsible structure in which the two legs which are intended to extend in front of the user are connected by a crossbar. These two legs are then rotatably connected or supported by the crossbar or structure attached thereto. Each of the two front legs is then part of a frame which includes the rear leg on each side; each of these frames may be swung toward the front of the unit in order to provide a collapsed and easily stored structure as well and may also be swung outwardly to open the unit to full supporting position. Appropriate latches may also be provided to hold the unit in the extended or open position.  
         [0005]     To utilize a walker, the person stands within the enclosure with left and right hand grasping the left and right hand grasp, respectively, of the frame at either side of the person. In this position, with the weight on the arms transferred through to the ground via the frame, stability is provided to enable a person to stand with some confidence. To move forward a person lifts the frame from the ground and places it slightly in front of himself. With his weight partially supported by the frame via the grasping of the hand holds, the person moves forward within the partial enclosure of the frame. Once positioned within the partial enclosure, the person repeats the process lifting the frame, advancing it and moving to within the enclosure again.  
         [0006]     It is readily apparent that the use of a walker frame occupies a person&#39;s hands and arms and inhibits the use of a person&#39;s hands for carrying objects. Thus, although a person who has difficulty walking may be able to move about, for example, in the kitchen so as to prepare a meal for himself, he would be unable to transfer a plate of food, or the like, to a position where he could sit and enjoy the meal. Thus, a major problem which occurs in the use of the walker is that, since it is a two-handed device and the person using it is usually infirm because of injury or other disability of the legs or because of age the person using the walker cannot carry any other object and certainly cannot take care of himself or herself in for instance preparing meals and carrying the necessary plates, objects and other materials back and forth, which activities are entailed in preparation of meals or for that matter in the performance of other household chores. Thus, very frequently a person who requires such a walker and who otherwise would be able to manage very well even though living alone finds it necessary to enter or join some community group where his or her needs may he taken care of.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0007]     The above-discussed disadvantages of the prior art are overcome by a tray that is mounted on the arms of a walker and which includes cup holders, and a compartment that can be closed by a lid that can then serve as a work surface. The lid of the compartment also includes a mirror and a light is mounted on the lid adjacent to the mirror.  
         [0008]     Other systems, methods, features, and advantages of the invention will be, or will become, apparent to one with skill in the art upon examination of the following figures and detailed description. It is intended that all such additional systems, methods, features, and advantages be included within this description, be within the scope of the invention, and be protected by the following claims. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES  
       [0009]     The invention can be better understood with reference to the following drawings and description. The components in the figures are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating the principles of the invention. Moreover, in the figures, like referenced numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the different views.  
         [0010]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a tray for use on a walker embodying the present invention.  
         [0011]      FIG. 2  is a sectional view taken along line A-A of  FIG. 1 .  
         [0012]      FIG. 3  is a top plan view of the tray shown in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0013]      FIG. 4  is a side elevational view of the tray shown in  FIG. 1 . 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0014]     Referring to the figures, it can be understood that the present invention is embodied in a tray  10  for use on a walker. Tray  10  comprises a body  12  which can be formed of plastic material or the like. Body  12  has a first surface  14  that is a top surface when the tray is in use and a second surface  16  that is a bottom surface when the tray is in use.  
         [0015]     A first end edge  20  is a forward edge when the tray is in use. First end edge  20  is arcuate. A second end edge  22  is a rear edge when the tray is in use. The second end edge is also arcuate. A longitudinal axis  24  extends between first end edge  20  and second end edge  22 .  
         [0016]     A first side edge  26  connects forward edge  20  to rear edge  22  and a second side edge  28  also connects the forward edge to the rear edge. A transverse axis  30  extends between first side edge  26  and second side edge  28 . A first elongate slot  40  is defined through the body, and is located adjacent to first side edge  26  and extends from adjacent to first end edge  20  to adjacent to second edge  22  and has a width dimension  42  that extends in the direction of transverse axis  30  of the body. A second elongate slot  44  is defined through the body and is located adjacent to second side edge  28 . Second slot  44  extends from adjacent to first end edge  20  of the body to adjacent to second end edge  22  of the body and has a width dimension  46  extends in the direction of transverse axis  30  of the body.  
         [0017]     First and second cup-holder blind-ended bores  50  and  52  are defined in the body and extend from first surface  14  of the body toward second surface  16  of the body. The cup-holder bores are spaced apart from each other in the direction of transverse axis  30  of the body. The cup holder bores can include securing elements located adjacent thereto, such as handle-accommodating bores, such as bore  50 , to accommodate handles of cups, or securing straps, such as hook-and-loop strap  52 ′, so the cups held in the cup-holder bores will be securely held in place.  
         [0018]     A third blind-ended bore  54  is defined in the body adjacent to first end edge  20  and extends in the direction of longitudinal axis  24  of the body toward second end edge  22 . Third blind-ended bore  54  forms a storage compartment for the tray and can be used to store items, such as medicine or the like.  
         [0019]     A lid  60  is hingeably mounted on first surface  14  of the body adjacent to third blind-ended bore  54  by a hinge element  62 . Lid  60  is movable between a bore-covering position covering the third blind-ended bore and a bore-uncovering position, which is shown in  FIGS. 1 and 4 . The lid includes a first surface  64  that is an outside surface and is co-planar with first surface  14  of the body when the lid is in the bore-covering position and a second surface  66  which is an inside surface that is located inside the third blind-ended bore when the lid is in the bore-covering position.  
         [0020]     A mirror  70  is mounted on inside surface  66  of the lid. A light-emitting element  80  is mounted on inside surface  66  of the lid adjacent to mirror  70 . Two fourth blind-ended bores  82  and  84  are defined in first surface  14  of the body adjacent to third blind-ended bore  54 . The fourth bores form pen light supporting bores for the tray.  
         [0021]     Use of tray  10  can be understood from the teaching of the foregoing disclosure and thus will be only briefly discussed. Tray  10  is placed over the top rungs of a walker so those rungs are accommodated in slots  40  and  44  to securely mount the tray on the walker. Items can be stored in compartment  54 , and accessed when lid  60  is moved into the open position such as shown in  FIGS. 1 and 4 . The mirror and light can also be used. The light can be designed to be activated when the lid is moved away toward the open position and to be de-activated when the lid is closed. Items, such as pen lights or the like can be stored in the bores  82  and  84  and cups can be held in bores  50  and  52 . Other items can also be stored in the bores as will occur to those skilled in the art based on the teaching of this disclosure. Accordingly, the disclosure of cups and pen lights is intended to be examples only and is not intended to be limiting.  
         [0022]     While various embodiments of the invention have been described, it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that many more embodiments and implementations are possible within the scope of this invention. Accordingly, the invention is not to be restricted except in light of the attached claims and their equivalents.