Luggage with Utility Desk Panel

Abstract

A luggage piece includes a luggage housing and a personal accessory arrangement. The personal accessory arrangement includes a utility desk panel pivotally connected to the luggage housing to move between an idle position and a working position, wherein in the idle position, the utility desk panel is pivotally moved toward the luggage housing to align with the surrounding surface of the luggage housing, wherein in the working position, the utility desk panel is pivotally moved to be securely held at a predetermined angle of inclination with the surrounding surface for allowing a user to work on the utility desk panel.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

Field of Invention

The present invention relates to luggage article, and more particularly to a luggage piece comprising a personal accessory arrangement which is capable of allowing a user to temporarily work on a utility desk panel while traveling.

Description of Related Arts

A conventional luggage piece usually comprises a main body having a receiving cavity for storing personal items, a plurality of wheels provided on the main body, and a retractable handle also provided on the main body for allowing a user to carry the entire luggage piece. The main body may have a zipper and a locking mechanism for selectively sealing and locking the receiving cavity.

A major disadvantage of conventional luggage pieces such as the one described above is that a user may need some sort of working surfaces while traveling. However, the conventional luggage piece does not provide such a working surface. For example, when a user is checking in for a flight, and he needs to fill in some address forms, he may find that there is no feasible place to put the address form on and start filling in the form. Subsequently, he may need to leave the check-in queue, carry the luggage piece to somewhere else where a working surface is available, fill in the forms, and come back to the check-in queue and line up again. This creates a very inconvenient situation for a typical traveler, specially when he is rushing for the flight.

Moreover, conventional luggage pieces are not usually equipped with personal accessories which may allow a user to take a temporary rest while traveling. This also causes inconvenience to users, especially when the users are older in age and need to take more rest while traveling.

As a result, there is a need to develop a luggage piece which may provide a working surface for temporary use by a user and at the same time provide a personal accessory for temporary resting by the user.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

Certain variations of the present invention provide a luggage piece comprising a personal accessory arrangement which is capable of allowing a user to temporarily work on a utility desk panel while traveling.

Certain variations of the present invention provide a luggage piece comprising a personal accessory arrangement which is capable of providing a resting accessory for allowing a user to temporarily rest on it while traveling.

Certain variations of the present invention provide a luggage piece comprising a personal accessory arrangement which can normally be incorporated in a luggage housing so as to allow easy carrying. The personal accessory arrangement may be utilized whenever necessary when a user is traveling and carrying the luggage piece with him.

In one aspect of the present invention, it provides a luggage piece, comprising:

a luggage housing having a surrounding surface and a main storage compartment; and

a personal accessory arrangement which comprises a utility desk panel pivotally connected to the luggage housing to move between an idle position and a working position, wherein in the idle position, the utility desk panel is pivotally moved toward the luggage housing to align with the surrounding surface of the luggage housing, wherein in the working position, the utility desk panel is pivotally moved to be securely held at a predetermined angle of inclination with the surrounding surface for allowing a user to work on the utility desk panel.

This summary presented above is provided merely to introduce certain concepts and not to identify any key or essential features of the claimed subject matter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a luggage piece according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, illustrating that a utility desk panel is in an idle position.

FIG. 2 is another perspective view of the luggage piece according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, illustrating that a utility desk panel is in a working position.

FIG. 3 is schematic diagram of the luggage piece according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, illustrating that a personal accessory is accommodated in the accessory accommodating compartment.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a foldable chair as a personal accessory according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is another schematic diagram of the foldable chair as the personal accessory according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of the luggage piece according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, illustrating that the personal accessory can be received in a rear side of a luggage housing.

FIG. 7 is an alternative mode of the luggage piece according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The following detailed description of the preferred embodiment is the preferred mode of carrying out the invention. The description is not to be taken in any limiting sense. It is presented for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1 to FIG. 6 of the drawings, a luggage piece according a preferred embodiment of the present invention is illustrated. Broadly, the luggage piece may comprise a luggage housing 10 having a surrounding surface 11 and a main storage compartment, and a personal accessory arrangement 20. The luggage piece is for storing a plurality of items while traveling.

The personal accessory arrangement 20 may comprises a utility desk panel 21 pivotally connected to the luggage housing 10 to move between an idle position and a working position, wherein in the idle position, the utility desk panel 21 is pivotally moved toward the luggage housing 10 to align with the surrounding surface 11 of the luggage housing 10, wherein in the working position, the utility desk panel 21 is pivotally moved to be securely held at a predetermined angle of inclination with the surrounding surface 11 for allowing a user to work on the utility desk panel 21.

According to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the luggage housing 10 may comprise a front wall 13, a rear wall 14, a top wall 15, a bottom wall 16, and two sidewalls 17, wherein the main storage compartment 12 may be formed as a space enclosed by the front wall 13, the rear wall 14, the top wall 15, the bottom wall 16, and the two sidewalls 17.

The luggage housing 10 may further comprise a zipper 18 extended along the top wall 15, the bottom wall 16 and the two sidewalls 17 for selectively closing and opening the main storage compartment 12. In this preferred embodiment, the luggage housing 10 may be configured as having a substantially rectangular cross section when viewed from the front. However, it is worth noting that the shape and size of the luggage housing 10 may take a wide variety of forms. Each of the front wall 13, the rear wall 14, the top wall 15, the bottom wall 16 and the two sidewalls 17 may be configured as a rigid panel. However, other configuration of the luggage housing 10 may also be feasible. For example, the luggage housing 10 may be made from fabric or softer material and this does not affect the general inventive concept of the present invention. One of these alternative configurations will be described below.

The luggage housing 10 may further comprise a plurality of wheels 19 rotatably mounted on the bottom wall 16 for allowing easy carry of the luggage piece of the present invention.

Moreover, the luggage housing 10 may further comprise a retractable handle 101 provided on the rear wall 14. A user may be able to grab on the retractable handle 101 and slide the entire luggage piece at a predetermined direction through the wheels 19.

The front wall 13 of the luggage housing 10 may have an indented portion 131 for forming an accessory accommodating compartment 22 within the space created by the indention. The accessory accommodating compartment 22 may be configured to normally receive a predetermined personal accessory 23. Thus, the accessory accommodating compartment 22 may be sized and shaped to accommodate at least one predetermined personal accessory 23. Note that to form the accessory accommodating compartment 22, the front wall 13 may have the indented portion 131. Alternatively, a supporting frame having the indented portion 131 may also be mounted on the front wall 13 for forming the accessory accommodating compartment 22.

The utility desk panel 21 of the personal accessory arrangement 20 may have a substantially flat contour and may be pivotally mounted on the luggage housing 10 in such a manner that the utility desk panel 21 may normally cover or conceal the accessory accommodating compartment 22. The utility desk panel 21 may be configured from or made of rigid material such as metallic material. Other rigid materials may also be apposite. Therefore, the personal accessory arrangement 20 may further comprise a plurality of hinges 24 provided on the front wall 13 of the luggage housing 10 for pivotally mounting the utility desk panel 21 to the front wall 13 in a manner described above. When the utility desk panel 21 is in the working position, the utility desk panel 21 may be held by the hinges 24 to have an angle of inclination of approximately 90° with respect to the front wall 13. This allows a user of the present invention to use the utility desk panel 21 as a writing surface for filling forms, documents etc. while traveling.

In other words, when the utility desk panel 21 is in the working position, the utility desk panel 21 is pivotally moved apart from the front wall 13 and as prescribed by the hinges 24 until the utility desk panel 21 is at approximately 90° angle of inclination with respect to the front wall 13. It is worth noting that the angle of inclination may be adjusted through adjusting the mechanical structure of the hinges 24 so that a predetermined angle of inclination between the utility desk panel 21 and the front wall 13 may be adjusted by the manufacturer of the present invention. The exact angle may depend on the manufacturing and marketing circumstances of the luggage piece of the present invention.

The personal accessory arrangement 20 may further comprise at least one magnetic element 25 provided on the front wall 13 of the luggage housing 10 at corresponding positions for magnetically attracting the utility desk panel 21 when the utility desk panel 21 is in the idle position. In this preferred embodiment, the personal accessory arrangement 20 may comprise a plurality of magnetic elements 25 provided on the utility desk panel 21 and the front wall 13 respectively so that when the utility desk panel 21 is in the idle position, the magnetic elements 25 may magnetically attract to each other. The magnetically attractive force may assist retaining the utility desk panel 21 in the idle position.

Each of the magnetic elements 25 may be configured by iron or magnets. Alternatively, both magnetic elements 25 may be configured as magnets having opposite polarity facing each other when the utility desk panel 21 is in the idle position. When two magnetic elements 25 are used, one of the magnetic elements 25 may be provided on an inner side surface of a peripheral rim portion of the utility desk panel 21, while the other magnetic element 25 may be provided on the front wall 13 near a rim portion of the accessory accommodating compartment 22, in such a manner that when the utility desk panel 21 is in the idle position, the magnetic elements 25 may magnetically attract to each other for retaining the utility desk panel 21 in the idle position.

Referring to FIG. 4 to FIG. 5 of the drawings, the personal accessory 23 may comprise a foldable chair 231 comprising a first leg frame 2311, a second leg frame 2312 pivotally connected to the first leg frame 2311, and a seat fabric 2313 connected to the first leg frame 2311 and the second leg frame 2312 for allowing a user to seat thereon. The first leg frame 2311 and the second leg frame 2312 may be pivotally folded to overlap with each other to form a compact folded structure. This compact structure may normally be received in the accessory accommodating compartment 22 when the utility desk panel 21 is in the idle position. The foldable chair 231 may be taken out when the utility desk panel 21 is in the working position. When the foldable chair 231 is taken out, the first leg frame 2311 and the second leg frame 2312 may be pivotally unfolded to stand on the ground while the seat fabric 2313 may support a user to seat thereon.

The personal accessory arrangement 20 may further comprise a securing strap 26 provided in the accessory accommodating compartment 22 for tightening the personal accessory 23 when the personal accessory 23 is received in the accessory accommodating compartment 22. The securing strap 26 may be equipped with hook and loop fasteners 261 and connected to an inner sidewall of the accessory accommodating compartment 22.

The operation of the present invention is as follows: when the utility desk panel 21 is in the idle position, the utility desk panel 21 is pivotally moved to enclose the accessory accommodating compartment 22 and prevent the personal accessory 23 from falling out of the accessory accommodating compartment 22. The utility desk panel 21 itself may be secured by the magnetic elements 25. When in the idle position, the utility desk panel 21 may substantially align with un-indented part of the front wall 13 so as to form a relatively smooth front surface of the luggage piece. All these configurations allow easy carrying of the luggage piece of the present invention by a user.

When the user wishes to use the utility desk panel 21 for writing, he or she may simply need to upwardly and pivotally move the utility desk panel 21 from the idle position to the working position. The hinges 24 may lock the utility desk panel 21 at the working position for allowing the user to use the utility desk panel 21 as a supporting platform for writing. Additionally, the user may untie the personal accessory 23 such as the foldable chair 231 and take it out from the accessory accommodating compartment 22 for personal use. For example, the user may take out the foldable chair 231, unfold it, and sit thereon and write on the utility desk panel 21.

After writing or using the personal accessory 23, the user may put the personal accessory 23 back to the accessory accommodating compartment 22 and secure the personal accessory 23 in the accessory accommodating compartment 22 through the use of the securing strap 26 and move the utility desk panel 23 back to the idle position. After that, the user may then continue his trip by carrying the luggage piece through the use of wheels 19 and the retractable handle 101.

It is worth mentioning that the personal accessory 23 may take a wide variety of forms and may not be limited to the foldable chair 231 mentioned above. For example, the personal accessory 23 may be a laptop computer or other personal items. Moreover, the accessory accommodating compartment 22 may actually be formed on any one side of the luggage housing 10, depending on the manufacturing and marketing circumstances of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 6 of the drawings, the accessory accommodating compartment 22 may be formed on the rear wall 14 while the utility desk panel 21 may be formed on the front wall 13.

Moreover, the accessory accommodating compartment 22 may also be formed on the luggage housing 10 at a position not overlapping with the utility desk panel 21. For example, the accessory accommodating compartment 22 may be formed on the rear wall 14 (or any other wall) of the luggage housing 10 while the utility desk panel 21 may be arranged to overlap on the front wall 13 while the utility desk panel 21 is in the idle position.

Referring to FIG. 7 of the drawing, an alternative mode of the luggage piece according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention is illustrated. The alternative mode is similar to the preferred embodiment, except the configuration of the luggage housing 10′. According to the alternative mode, the luggage housing 10′ may be configured as a backpack type luggage and may be configured from soft or fabric material. Wheels 19′ and a retractable handle 101′ may be provided on the luggage housing 10′. The personal accessory arrangement 20′ may also be provided on a front wall 13′ of the luggage housing 10′ so that the utility desk panel 21′ may be pivotally moved with respect to the front wall 13′ through the hinges 24′. Moreover, the utility desk panel 21′ may be configured from as a rigid panel which may be pivotally moved between the idle position and the working position. The personal accessory 23 described above may also be used in the alternative mode.

The present invention, while illustrated and described in terms of a preferred embodiment and several alternatives, is not limited to the particular description contained in this specification. Additional alternative or equivalent components could also be used to practice the present invention.

Claims

1. A luggage piece, comprising:

a luggage housing having a surrounding surface; and

a personal accessory arrangement which comprises a utility desk panel pivotally connected to said luggage housing to move between an idle position and a working position, wherein in said idle position, said utility desk panel is pivotally moved toward said luggage housing to align with said surrounding surface of said luggage housing, wherein in said working position, said utility desk panel is pivotally moved to be securely held at a predetermined angle of inclination with said surrounding surface for allowing a user to work on said utility desk panel.

2. The luggage piece, as recited in claim 1, wherein said luggage housing further has an accessory accommodating compartment indently formed on said surrounding surface at a position not overlapping with said utility desk panel.

3. The luggage piece, as recited in claim 1, wherein said luggage housing comprises a front wall having an indented portion for forming an accessory accommodating compartment within said space created by said indention, said utility desk panel being shaped and size to enclose said accessory accommodating compartment when said utility desk panel is in said idle position.

4. The luggage piece, as recited in claim 2, wherein said personal accessory arrangement further comprises a personal accessory normally received in said accessory accommodating compartment.

5. The luggage piece, as recited in claim 3, wherein said personal accessory arrangement further comprises a personal accessory normally received in said accessory accommodating compartment.

6. The luggage piece, as recited in claim 4, wherein said personal accessory arrangement further comprises a plurality of hinges provided on said luggage housing for pivotally mounting said utility desk panel to said surrounding surface, such that when said utility desk panel is in said working position, said utility desk panel is held by said hinges to have a predetermined angle of inclination with respect to said surrounding surface.

7. The luggage piece, as recited in claim 5, wherein said personal accessory arrangement further comprises a plurality of hinges provided on said luggage housing for pivotally mounting said utility desk panel to said front wall, such that when said utility desk panel is in said working position, said utility desk panel is held by said hinges to have a predetermined angle of inclination with respect to said front wall

8. The luggage piece, as recited in claim 6, wherein said personal accessory comprises a foldable chair comprising a first leg frame, a second leg frame pivotally connected to said first leg frame, and a seat fabric connected to said first leg frame and said second leg frame, said first leg frame and said second leg frame being pivotally and selectively folded to overlap with each other to form a compact folded structure.

9. The luggage piece, as recited in claim 7, wherein said personal accessory comprises a foldable chair comprising a first leg frame, a second leg frame pivotally connected to said first leg frame, and a seat fabric connected to said first leg frame and said second leg frame, said first leg frame and said second leg frame being pivotally and selectively folded to overlap with each other to form a compact folded structure.

10. The luggage piece, as recited in claim 6, wherein said personal accessory arrangement further comprises a securing strap provided in said accessory accommodating compartment for tightening said personal accessory when said personal accessory is received in said accessory accommodating compartment.

11. The luggage piece, as recited in claim 7, wherein said personal accessory arrangement further comprises a securing strap provided in said accessory accommodating compartment for tightening said personal accessory when said personal accessory is received in said accessory accommodating compartment.

12. The luggage piece, as recited in claim 5, wherein said personal accessory arrangement further comprises a plurality of magnetic elements provided on said luggage housing and said utility desk panel at corresponding positions respectively, said magnetic elements are arranged to magnetically attracted with each other when said utility desk panel is in said idle position.

13. The luggage piece, as recited in claim 6, wherein said personal accessory arrangement further comprises a plurality of magnetic elements provided on said luggage housing and said utility desk panel at corresponding positions respectively, said magnetic elements are arranged to magnetically attracted with each other when said utility desk panel is in said idle position.

14. The luggage piece, as recited in claim 7, wherein said personal accessory arrangement further comprises a plurality of magnetic elements provided on said luggage housing and said utility desk panel at corresponding positions respectively, said magnetic elements are arranged to magnetically attracted with each other when said utility desk panel is in said idle position.

15. The luggage piece, as recited in claim 7, wherein said utility desk panel is configured from metallic material.

16. The luggage piece, as recited in claim 11, wherein said utility desk panel is configured from metallic material.

17. The luggage piece, as recited in claim 14, wherein said utility desk panel is configured from metallic material.