Abstract:
Display boards of the kind generally used for presentations in educational and business settings, for example, and that can be made from a variety of materials including foam board and rigid paper pulp, are provided that include an opening for a screen of a multimedia device, a holder for the multimedia device, and a support for stabilizing the display board.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit of Provisional Application for Patent Ser. No. 62/040,525 filed on Aug. 22, 2014. 
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
     Not applicable. 
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to display boards for presentations, in particular display boards to which multimedia devices are attached. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Display boards are manufactured in a variety of shapes and styles, the most popular being tri-fold display boards made of rigid paper pulp and/or foam material that is divided into folding panels. Display boards are used for the public display of static information that is adhered to the front surface of the display board. Typically display boards are placed on tables and are used for non-permanent presentations or exhibitions, often in educational or business settings. 
     In these contexts, the display boards are often accompanied by multimedia devices, such as tablets, e-readers and laptop computers, that can display related and/or interactive content. When used in this manner, a multimedia device typically rests separately on a table near the base of the display board, which is often not at eye level for potential viewers. Therefore, it would be desirable to be able to affix multimedia devices to display boards to unify the display of both digital and static information. However, current techniques, such as simply gluing a multimedia device to standard display boards, may be less aesthetically pleasing, make the board unstable, make the multimedia device difficult to connect to accessory devices and can potentially damage the multimedia device. 
     Therefore, what is needed is a display board designed for integrating a multimedia device. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention provides a display board with an opening for a multimedia device on the display board, a receptacle for securing the device to the board, and a support for stabilizing the board. In addition, ports may be included in the display board for cords for device accessories. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a front view of a display board of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a rear view of a display board of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a side view of a display board of the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  is another side view of a display board of the present invention. 
         FIG. 5  is a front view of a display board of another embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 6  is a front view of the display board of  FIG. 1  with a multimedia device included and accessories connected to the multimedia device and static displays attached to the display board. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Display boards for use in non-permanent presentations and exhibitions are typically constructed of foam board or paper pulp, including cardboard, and can have veneers of paper, plastic, cork, fabric, wood, carbon fiber, chalkboard surfaces or a material to which magnets can attach. A common example is a trifold board in which the display board has three panels connected by a hinge or fold so that the board can both be folded up for easier transport and storage and be stood up on a table or other surface while being displayed. 
       FIG. 1  shows an improved tri-fold display board  100  of such type with a left panel  117 , center panel  116  and right panel  115 , that includes an opening  101  through which a screen or monitor of a multimedia device may be shown. Display board  100  is shown with one opening  101  but it will be understood that display boards of the present invention may have more than one opening for attaching more than one multimedia device, as shown for example in  FIG. 5 . Opening  101  is depicted as generally rectangular in shape but can be any shape depending on the intended use and type of multimedia device, including for example round, oval, square, or slotted. 
     Opening  101  may be sized for a variety of kinds of multimedia devices, including tablets and e-readers, for example. Opening  101  may include a contoured access carve out  102  for allowing access to operational control buttons on a multimedia device while the device is attached to the display board  100 . Display board  100  may also include ports ( 103   a - 103   f ) to allow wires and cables to connect to the multimedia device while it is attached to the display board  100 . For example, a keyboard or mouse may be connected to the multimedia device and cords may run from the multimedia device to the accessories by passing through the ports ( 103   a - 103   f ) as necessary. In addition, power or Ethernet cables may be passed through ports ( 103   a - 103   f ). 
     A multimedia device may be attached to display board  100  near the opening  101  via a holder  104  (shown in  FIGS. 2-4 ). In a preferred embodiment, holder  104  may be located on a rear side of the display board  100 , as shown. Holder  104  may be located such that a screen of a multimedia device will be visible through opening  101  when the device is in the holder  104  and sized to receive multimedia devices. Holder  104  may be adjustable in size in order to accommodate a variety of multimedia devices. Holder  104  may be made of any suitable material, including the material the display board  100  is made of and plastic. Holder  104  may include a rear portion  105 , side portions  106   a  and  106   b , a bottom portion  107  and top portion  108 . The portions of holder  104  may be mesh, solid, or frames and can be attached to display board  100  by any suitable mechanism, including adhesives, threaded pins, rivets, hook and loop, or via hinges or folds. Holder  104  may include holes, such as hole  113  as shown in  FIG. 2 , to facilitate placement and removal of a multimedia device as well as to allow for cooling and ventilation. Further, holder  104  may include a power cord opening  112 , as shown in  FIG. 3 . 
     In operation, as shown in  FIG. 6  (in conjunction with  FIG. 2 ), a multimedia device  109  can be attached to the display board  100  by placing the multimedia device  109  into the holder  104 . Once in place, device  109  can be secured by attaching top portion  108  of holder  104  to the rear face of the display board  100  and/or to the side portions  106  and/or the rear portion  105  using any suitable attachment mechanism, preferably a detachable mechanism such as hook and loop, screw type, slot, or eye and hook. In addition, a locking mechanism can be used to prevent unwanted or accidental removal of device  109  from the display board  100 . Also shown in  FIG. 6 , accessories may be conveniently connected to device  109  through the display board  100  via accessory ports. For example, accessory ports  103   b ,  103   c ,  103   e  or  103   d  can be used for connecting speakers  120   a  and  102   b  as well as keyboard  121 . Lighting accessories ( 119   a  and  119   b ) may also be connected, via accessory ports, such as ports  103   a  and  103   f  as shown. Additionally, other accessories such as a mouse, printer or other multimedia devices may be connected to the attached multimedia device  109  while the display board  100  is in use in an upright position. 
     To remove multimedia device  109 , the top portion  108  may be detached from the display board and/or other portions of holder  104  and the device  109  can be slid out of holder  104 . 
       FIGS. 3 and 4  show a side perspective view of the display board  100  with stabilizers  110   a  and  110   b  (also shown in  FIG. 2 ). The stabilizers can serve to support the extra weight of the multimedia device  109  and provide additional stability to the display board  100 , which may be top heavy when a multimedia device is inserted in holder  104 , depending on the weight of the device and where it is attached to the display board. The stabilizers  110  may be made of any suitable material, including the same material as the display board  100 , that is generally rigid. Preferably, the stabilizers  110  will be connected to the display board  100  near holder  104  or by holder  104 , as shown in  FIG. 3  and  FIG. 4 . Alternatively, or additionally, the stabilizers  110  may be attached to the display board  100  via stabilizer members  111  or other suitable technique, such as with footers. The stabilizers  110  extend downward to the bottom of display board  100  and extend at the bottom of display board  100  away from the display board  100  a distance sufficient to confer additional stability to prevent the display board from tipping over when a multimedia device  109  is in the holder  104  under typical use conditions. Alternatively, one or more feet stabilizers could extend from the bottom of any part of the display board to confer stability as needed. Preferably, the stabilizers  110  could be removably attached to the display board  100  or would be capable of being folded flat onto the back of display board  100  for ease of transport and storage. 
     To facilitate storage and transport prior to intended end use, the display board  100  of the present invention may be constructed so that the holder  104  lies relatively flat with respect to the display board  100  until ready for use. In particular, in one embodiment, the top portion  108  of the holder  104  could be formed by folding along score marks or the like for the top portion in a ninety degrees fashion. In a similar manner, the bottom portion of the holder could be formed by folding the bottom portion out along score marks or the like to ninety degrees, while the side portions  106   a  and  106   b  of the holder  104  could be similarly formed by folding along score marks or the like on the rear side of display board  100  near the vertical sides of opening  101 . Once the portions of the holder  104  were folded out, each portion could be secured together using any suitable mechanism, such as, preferably, adhesives. 
     The present invention may also include a blank piece of display board or other suitable material (not shown) that can be slipped into or in front of or behind opening  101  to cover or obscure the opening  101  when there is no multimedia device in use or to hide a multimedia device until a later time. In addition, a frame of display board material or other suitable material (not shown) can be placed over, behind or into the opening  101  in order to create cleaner appearances when multimedia devices with smaller screen sizes are to be used in holder  104 .