SEATING FURNITURE WITH BUILT-IN MEDIA DOCK
An article of furniture for storing and powering electronic equipment including a seating area, at least one concealable compartment located within the seating area, and a power source located within the compartment. The power source having a power cable that is attached to the interior frame of the article of furniture and concealed until it is needed. The power source includes power cables that protrude from the article of furniture for connection with a building's power supply. The compartment holds and conceals power supply components for electrical devices within the interior frame of the article of furniture to allow access and ease of use without having to mange a number of power cords.
This applications claims the benefit of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/460,375 filed Jul. 17, 2009, which is hereby incorporated by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONKeeping a neat appearance in a home can be a challenging task. This is particularly true with proliferation of electronic media equipment available. Laptop computers, cell phones, mp3 players, and personal digital assistants (PDAs) now compete for space with the usual various and numerous remote controls, books, magazines, DVDs and CDS. Additionally, many homes also have wireless Internet routers, broadband modems, and game consoles also competing for space, as well as for power outlets. As such, keeping a living area free from clutter, wires and all the various power adaptors for each of the personal electronic devices is nearly impossible.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONTherefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an article of seating furniture that includes at least one compartment for storing and powering electrical equipment, such as audio/video components, portable audio/video devices, personal electronic devices, computing devices, or game consoles.
To attain the above object, according to an aspect of the invention, there is provided an article of furniture including a seating area, at least one concealable compartment, the compartment contains at least one power outlet wherein the power outlet is affixed to the internal framework of the seating furniture in a manner accessible to a user. The power outlet receives power via an electrical cable that connects to a building's power supply.
In an embodiment, the article of seating furniture has an outer layer opening to the facilitate the passage of the electrical cable. In an embodiment, the electrical cable is capable of being powered by a building's electrical system by engaging a power receptacle of the building.
In another embodiment, the power outlet is accessible to the user via a concealable compartment having a flexible material covering. The flexible material covering may be comprise of fabric, plastic, vinyl, leather or other pliable material. The compartment may comprise a zippered, buttonable, hook and look fastener or other closure means.
In still another embodiment, the power outlet compartment is accessible via a louvered opening. The louvered opening comprises wood, plastic, vinyl, metal or pliable material. In still another embodiment, the power outlet is accessible to the user via a concealable compartment having a slidable or hinged door opening. The sidable door or hinged door opening may comprise wood, plastic, vinyl, metal or other pliable material.
The power source preferably includes a plurality of power outlets.
Preferably, the article of furniture further includes an opening in the seating area to permit the passage of at least one wire between the compartment and the seating area. The opening in the seating area is preferably closeable by a hook and loop fastener, buttons or a zipper.
In an embodiment, the compartment is openable from either a front surface of the article of furniture or a side surface of the article of furniture.
In an embodiment, the article of seating furniture capable of providing power to electrical equipment, comprising a seating area and an compartment. The compartment containing at least one power source including at least one power outlet, wherein the power outlet is affixed to the structure of the seating furniture in a manner accessible to a user and concealable via the compartment. The power outlet having a concealed power cable mounted to the interior structure of the seating furniture, wherein the power cable connects to a building's electrical system to provide power to the power outlets.
In an embodiment, the the concealed power cable is attached to the internal structure of the article of seating furningture in a manner to prevent crimping of the power cable and to allow a connector end of the power cable to emerge from the rear of the article of seating furniture so that the power cable can connect to the building's electrical system.
These and other exemplary features and advantages of the present invention will become clear from the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings.
The foregoing and other exemplary purposes, aspects and advantages will be better understood from the following detailed description of an exemplary embodiment of the invention with reference to the drawings, in which:
Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to
As shown in
As illustrated in
In an embodiment, the power source 14 may be fully integrated into the compartment, fixedly attached to the interior structure of the furniture, and/or removable. Additionally, the power source 14 may be situated in any interior compartment of the furniture such as in a drawer 12 or arm rest 12. The compartment is concealed behind a panel 13. The panel 13 may be made of fabric, wood, plastic, vinyl, metal, or a combination thereof. The panel 13 may also be rigid, flexible and/or louvered.
As illustrated in
Preferably, any wires that pass from the compartment 12 to the exterior of the furniture 10 are fixedly attached to the interior structure 21 or frame 21 of the furniture 10 with enough slack provided to any such wires to permit opening of the compartment 12. In this manner, tangling of wires may be prevented. Further illustrated in
The visible front panel 13 of the compartment 12 may be of any suitable design to comport with the design of the article of furniture 10. Alternatively, the front panel of the compartment may be louvered to improve the circulation of air to cool any electrical equipment that may be located within the compartment 12. The front panel may also comprise a slideable or hingedly mounted door, allowing easy access to the power outlet compartment. These front panels 13 may be made of fabric, wood, plastic, vinyl, metal, etc. The cover may be rigid or flexible.
Preferably, when the furniture 10 includes multiple compartments 12, the furniture 10 includes a support brace 15 running between the compartment 12. The support brace 15 provides support for the compartment 12, as well as additional support for users sitting on the furniture 12 to prevent contact and interference with power cables from the power outlets within the compartments 12.
Preferably, the furniture 10 also includes a suspension system to provide additional comfort to users, while preventing contact and interference with the compartments containing the power outlets within or beneath the seating area when a user is seated. Preferably, the suspension system incorporates no sag springs, as opposed to coil springs that may protrude and interfere with the operation of the power outlet compartment.
While the embodiments herein have been described in terms of storing and powering electrical equipment, it should be understood that the compartments 12 may provide storage for any other items whether powered or not, such as remote controls, DVDs, CDs, books, magazines, blankets, etc.
While the invention has been described in terms of several exemplary embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention can be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.
Further, it is noted that, Applicant's intent is to encompass equivalents of all claim elements, even if amended later during prosecution.
Claims
1. An article of seating furniture capable of providing power to electrical equipment, comprising:
- a seating area;
- at least one power source including at least one power outlet, wherein said power outlet is affixed to the structure of said seating furniture in a manner accessible to a user and concealable via a compartment; and
- said power source having an electrical cable to provide power to said power outlets.
2. The article of furniture in claim 1, wherein said at least one power source is powered by a building electrical system via said electrical cable.
3. The article of furniture of claim 1, further comprising an opening in an outer layer of said seating furniture to facilitate the passage of said electrical cable.
4. The article of furniture of claim 2, wherein said electrical cable is capable of connecting to a building electrical system by electrically and mechanically engaging with a power receptacle.
5. The article of furniture of claim 1, wherein said power outlet is accessible the user via the concealable compartment wherein said compartment comprises a flexible material covering.
6. The article of furniture of claim 5, wherein said flexible material comprises fabric, plastic, vinyl, leather or pliable material.
7. The article of furniture of claim 5, wherein said compartment comprises a zippered, buttonable, hook and loop fastener, or other closure means.
8. The article of furniture of claim 1, wherein said power outlet is accessible the user via the concealable compartment wherein said compartment comprises a flexible louvered opening.
9. The article of furniture of claim 8, wherein said flexible louvered opening comprises wood, plastic, vinyl, metal or pliable material.
10. The article of furniture of claim 1, wherein said power outlet is accessible the user via the concealable compartment wherein said compartment comprises a slidable door or hinged door opening.
11. The article of furniture of claim 10, wherein said flexible louvered opening comprises wood, plastic, vinyl, metal or pliable material.
12. An article of seating furniture capable of providing power to electrical equipment, comprising:
- a seating area;
- at least one power source including at least one power outlet, wherein said power outlet is affixed to the structure of said seating furniture in a manner accessible to a user and concealable via a compartment;
- said power outlet having a concealed power cable mounted to the interior structure of said seating furniture, wherein said power cable connect to a building's electrical system to provide power to said power outlets.
13. The article of furniture in claim 12, wherein said concealed power cable is attached to the internal structure of the article of seating furniture in a manner to prevent crimping the power cable and to allow a connector end of the power cable to emerge from the article of seating furniture so the power cable can connect to the buildings electrical system.
14. The article of furniture of claim 12, wherein said power outlet includes one or more standard power outlets, universal serial bus power ports, IEEE 1394 serial bus power ports, or thunderbolt power port.
15. The article of furniture of claim 12, wherein said power outlet is accessible the user via the concealable compartment wherein said compartment comprises a flexible material covering.
16. The article of furniture of claim 15, wherein said flexible material comprises fabric, plastic, vinyl, leather or pliable material.
17. The article of furniture of claim 15, wherein said compartment comprises a zippered, buttonable, hook and loop fastener, or other closure means.
18. The article of furniture of claim 12, wherein said power outlet is accessible the user via the concealable compartment wherein said compartment comprises a flexible louvered opening.
19. The article of furniture of claim 18, wherein said flexible louvered opening comprises wood, plastic, vinyl, metal or pliable material.
20. The article of furniture of claim 12, wherein said power outlet is accessible the user via the concealable compartment wherein said compartment comprises a slidable door or hinged door opening.
Type: Application
Filed: Feb 8, 2012
Publication Date: Aug 9, 2012
Inventor: Edward Earl Wilson, JR. (Sharpsburg, GA)
Application Number: 13/368,864
International Classification: A47C 31/00 (20060101);