BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the grommet cover assembly of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the grommet cover assembly of FIG. 1 closed over a grommet and several wires;
FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the grommet cover assembly of FIG. 1;
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a grommet cover assembly taken along line 4-4 in FIG. 2;
FIG. 4A is a cross-sectional view of a grommet cover assembly taken along line 4-4 in FIG. 2, albeit without support legs;
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a grommet cover assembly for hiding multiple grommets where the cover is in an open, accessing position;
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a grommet cover assembly for hiding multiple grommets having multiple hinges;
FIG. 7 is a perspective view of an alternate version of a hinged grommet cover assembly including a circular cover
FIG. 8 is a perspective view of an alternate version of a grommet cover assembly consistent with another inventive embodiment;
FIG. 9 is a perspective view of an alternate version of a grommet cover assembly consistent with another inventive embodiment;
FIG. 10 is a perspective view of an alternate version of a portion of a grommet cover assembly;
FIG. 11 is a perspective view of an alternate version of a circular grommet cover shown as a rotatable mounted cover;
FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view of a grommet cover assembly where the grommet cover assembly is in a closed position; and
FIG. 13 is similar to FIG. 12, albeit where the grommet cover assembly is in an open position.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Referring now to the drawings wherein like reference numbers refer to similar elements throughout the several views, and more specifically, referring to FIGS. 1-4, an exemplary embodiment of one grommet cover assembly 10 that is consistent with at least some inventive aspects is illustrated.
The grommet cover assembly 10 is intended for installation on the surface of a planar member such as a furniture surface or a wall surface. For purposes of brevity, the present disclosure refers to a planar member 12 as a table or desktop member.
As seen in FIGS. 1-4, a first embodiment of the grommet cover assembly 10 of the present invention is shown. In this version the grommet cover assembly comprises a mounting coupler 16 and a cover 18. Cover 18 includes a flat cover member 20, a cover coupler 22 and first and second support feet members 24. Cover member 20 includes a rectilinear flat and rigid member that includes oppositely facing and substantially parallel front and rear edges 11 and 13, respectively, first and second substantially parallel and oppositely facing lateral edges 15 and 17, respectively, and top and bottom or under surfaces 19 and 21, respectively.
Coupler 22 includes a female hinge member that is substantially C-shaped in cross-section (see FIG. 4) and includes, generally, first and second arm members 31 and 33 that extend generally downwardly from undersurface 21 adjacent rear edge 13 to form a hinge channel 45 that opens away from undersurface 21. In at least some inventive embodiments, cover 18 is extruded and member 20 and coupler 22 are integrally formed.
Referring still to FIGS. 14, foot members 24 are short members that extend from undersurface 21 and substantially perpendicularly therefrom to distal ends. A separate foot member 24 is provided adjacent each front edge corner of member 20. Foot members 24 are dimensioned so that they support cover member 20 in a substantially horizontal orientation when coupler 22 is mounted to coupler 16 and member 20 is in a closed position. While foot members 24 may be integrally formed with member 20, in some embodiments members 24 may be separate rubber or plastic members that mechanically or adhesively attach to undersurface 21.
Referring again to FIGS. 1-4, coupler 16 includes a flat base member 47, a cylindrical male hinge member 49 and end stop members 51 and 53. Base member 47 is a rigid flat and elongated member that has oppositely facing top and bottom surfaces (not labeled) and front and rear edges (not labeled). Hinge member 49 is mounted to base member 47 along the rear edge thereof, is raised slightly above the top surface thereof and extends substantially along the entire length thereof. Member 49 is circular in cross-section and, as best illustrated in FIG. 4, is dimensioned to be matingly received within channel 45 formed by female hinge coupler 22.
As illustrated in FIG. 3, end stop members 51 and 53 are formed at opposite ends of male hinge member 49 and extend radially outward to a greater extent than the member 49 structure. As the label implies, stop members 51 and 53 operate to limit lateral movement of the female hinge coupler 22 after installation. In at least some embodiments coupler 16 is molded into its integral shape. In other embodiments the base and cylindrical members 47 and 49 may be extruded and stop members 51 and 52 may be added on mechanically (e.g., screws) or adhesively in some fashion.
Referring to FIG. 4, to install cover 18, coupler 16 is secured to the top surface of member 12 with base member 47 adjacent an opening 14 to be optionally covered by cover 18. Here, as shown in FIG. 4, screws 32 may be used to secure base member 47 to member 12. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 4A, an adhesive strip 57 may be used to secure member 47 to member 12. Next, female hinge coupler channel 45 (see FIG. 4) is aligned with member 49 and pressed there against so that arm members 31 and 33 flex outward and cylindrical member 49 is received in the channel 45.
In use, cover member 20 can be rotated about a hinge pivot axis 29 between an open position shown in FIG. 1 and a closed position shown in FIGS. 2 and 4. When in the closed position cover member 20 is supported by coupler 16 and foot members 24 adjacent and parallel to the top surface of top member 12 and spaced apart therefrom so that member 12 blocks the view of opening 14 while still providing a cable passing gap 60 (see FIG. 4). When member 20 is in the open position, large cable plugs and the like can be passed through opening 14.
Referring again to FIG. 4, in at least some embodiments hinge leg members 32 and 33 have relatively short length dimensions. Here, the leg lengths are sufficient to form a channel 45 that is capable of holding cylindrical member 49 during normal cover opening and closing activity but are short enough that, if a large force is applied to cover member 20, the legs 32 and 33 will allow coupler 22 to detach from member 49. For instance, with cover 20 closed as shown in FIG. 4, if front edge 11 is hit by a book or the like sliding along the top surface of member 12, leg 31 will flex slightly and cover member 20 detaches from member 49 so that hinge couplers 22 and 16 will not be damaged.
Referring to FIG. 5, a second exemplary cover assembly 10a is shown. In FIG. 5, components that are similar to components described above with respect to FIGS. 14 are labeled with the same number followed by a “a”. For instance, where numeral 20 is used to refer to a cover member in FIGS. 1-4, label “20a” is used to refer to a similar cover member in FIG. 5, albeit having different relative length and width dimensions. While similar components are labeled in FIG. 5, not all of the components or their functions are described again in detail in the interest of simplifying this explanation.
In FIG. 5, cover member 20a is longer between lateral edges than is cover 20 in FIGS. 1-4 so that cover member 20a can be used to cover two table top openings collectively identified by number 14a. Here, a single hinge assembly 16a, 22a is provided that has a length dimension that is less than the length dimension between lateral cover member edges and the hinge assembly is juxtaposed centrally with respect to the undersurface of top member 20a adjacent a rear edge. Thus, in this case, although not illustrated, cables passing up through openings 14a may extend out from below cover member 20a below any of the front edge, the lateral edges and/or the rear edge (e.g., to either side of the hinge assembly 16a, 22a).
Referring to FIG. 6, a third cover embodiment 10b is illustrated where components that are similar to the components of the FIGS. 1-4 embodiment 10 are labeled with the same number followed by a “b”. Here, cover member 20b is even wider than cover member 20a so that the cover member 20b can cover three adjacent circular openings (collectively identified by numeral 14b). In addition, in this embodiment, two separate hinge assemblies 16b, 22b are provided adjacent a rear edge of member 20b and along an undersurface. In this case, the two hinge assemblies are separated by a gap and are spaced apart from lateral edges of member 20b so that cables may pass below the rear edge if desired.
Referring to FIG. 7, according to fourth embodiment 10c, a cover member 20c may be circular. The cover member 20c may also be oval, triangular, square and polygonal in shape. Regardless of shape, the cover member 20c is mounted to the mounting coupler 16c in the same manner as a rectangular cover member 20 (see FIG. 1) described above.
Referring to FIG. 8, a fifth exemplary embodiment 10d is illustrated where components that are similar to the components described above with respect to FIGS. 14 are labeled with the same number followed by a “d”. In this version a cover member 20d is circular and includes a plurality of ribs or pins 34 positioned along the peripheral edge of the inner surface of the cover member 20d. The ribs 34 are spaced equidistantly along the edge of the cover member 20d, and protrude downwardly from the cover 20d. In this version, the mounting couplers 16d are mounted (e.g., via undersurface screws or the like) to the desktop 14 around and adjacent to at least one opening 14 in the desktop 12. The mounting couplers 16d comprise protruding legs with channel forming recesses 36 corresponding to the ribs 34 on the cover member 20d. In use, the ribs 34 securely engage with the corresponding recesses 36 defined on the mounting couplers 16d, thus securing the cover 20d to the mounting couplers 16d over the opening 14.
Referring to FIG. 9, a sixth embodiment is illustrated where components that are similar to the components described above with respect to other embodiments are labeled with the same number followed by an “e”. Here, the coupling subassembly (e.g., 34e; 16e) is similar to the coupling assembly described above with respect to FIG. 8 and the main difference is that the cover member 20e is square.
Referring to FIG. 10, a portion of a seventh embodiment 10f is illustrated where similar components are labeled with numbers used above to describe other embodiments followed by an “f”. Here, a surface mounted coupler includes a C-shaped flat member 42 that includes oppositely facing top and bottom surfaces and mounting-couplers 16f that extend-upward from the top surface to link to couplers (e.g., see 34 in FIG. 8) on the undersurface of a cover member (not illustrated). In at least some embodiments adhesive is applied to the undersurface of member 42 for securing member 42 to member 12f about opening 14f.
Referring to FIG. 11, an eighth embodiment 10g is illustrated where a round cover member 20g is mounted via a pin type mounting coupler 16g to member 12g for rotation between a closed position over an opening 14g and an open position to the side of opening 14g. In this case, coupler 16g may include a threaded shaft that extends through member 12 to receive a mounting nut or other mechanical fastener below member 12. In this version, support legs akin to legs 24 in FIG. 1 may or may not be used.
As seen in FIG. 12, a cover member 20 may be secured in the closed position over cables 30 via a detent feature 40. The detent feature can be any detent that provides physical resistance to movement of the cover member 20 from a closed position. In the illustrated version the detent feature 40 includes a rib or protrusion member 40 that extends from the male hinge member that forms part of coupler 16 and a complimentary recess or opening 50 formed in the internal surface of the female hinge member that forms part of coupler 22. Here, when the cover member 20 is in the closed position (see FIG. 12), rib member 40 registers with and is received within opening 50 and operates to restrain cover movement against the force of a cord or the like that may push up on the undersurface of cover 20. Here, it is contemplated that coupler 22 may be somewhat flexible so that during rotation into the open position, the arms of the female hinge position can flex outward to accommodate the rib.
In addition to forming opening 50, the internal surface of the female hinge portion may also form a second opening 52 positioned so that when the cover member 20 is in the open position (see FIG. 13), the rib member 40 registers with and is received within the second opening 52 to maintain the cover in the open position unless affirmatively moved.
The mounting coupler 16, cover member 20 and cover coupler 22, regardless of shape, design or configuration, may be manufactured using either an extrusion process or molding techniques. For instance, referring again to FIG. 4, an extrusion process may be used to form cover member 20 as an integral component including the rectilinear cover as well as coupler 22. The extrusion process may also be used to form the cover assembly of FIG. 6 where the separate coupler sections 22b are formed by machining off sections of the extruded coupler.
The grommet cover assembly 10 may be made from any material suitable for substantially blocking the view of at least one opening 14, including but not limited to plastic and/or metal.
According to another aspect, an inventive method includes forming an opening in a table or desk top member and mounting an cover member to the top member and over the opening so that the cover member is spaced apart from the top member and is substantially parallel to the top member. Here, in at least some cases the cover member will have dimensions that are larger than the opening. For instance, in at lease some cases the cover member may extend over one-quarter inch or more portions of the top member adjacent the opening edge. In some cases the cover member is extruded. In some cases the step of mounting includes adhering while in other cases it includes mechanical fastening. In some cases mounting includes hingedly fastening. In some cases the cover to top member gap is between one-eighth of an inch and one inch.
While preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it should be appreciated that the invention could be used in a variety of other embodiments.
Thus, the principles of the present invention can be applied in a variety of other ways apart from those specifically noted herein and/or depicted in the drawings. Still other modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Thus, the claims (rather than just the preferred embodiments) should be reviewed in order to understand the full scope of the invention.
Patent Application
20070273256
