The present invention relates to an apparatus for mounting a keyboard to a support member.
There are numerous applications in which a computer keyboard can be mounted to a support structure. One such application is keyboards that are used in vehicles.
In one aspect, the invention provides a keyboard mounting assembly including a base having a base upper surface and a downwardly-extending base skirt adjacent at least one side of the base upper surface. The base skirt has a recessed portion offset inwardly from a peripheral edge of the base upper surface. The assembly further includes a keyboard tray having a support portion configured to support a keyboard, the support portion having a tray upper surface and a downwardly-extending tray skirt adjacent at least one peripheral edge of the tray upper surface. The keyboard tray at least partially defines a cavity into which the base can removably nest. The tray skirt has a projection extending inwardly from an interior surface of the tray skirt and configured for receipt within the recessed portion of the base skirt when the base is nested within the cavity defined by the keyboard tray. The assembly further includes an interlock mechanism between the base and the keyboard tray and operable to releasably secure the base within the cavity of the keyboard tray.
In another aspect, a keyboard mounting assembly includes a base having a base upper surface and a downwardly-extending base skirt extending along at least a portion of one peripheral edge of the base upper surface. The base skirt has an opening along a portion of the base skirt underneath the base upper surface. The assembly further includes a keyboard tray having a support portion configured to support a keyboard. The support portion has a tray upper surface and a downwardly-extending tray skirt extending along at least a portion of one peripheral edge of the tray upper surface. The tray skirt has a projection extending inwardly from an interior surface of the tray skirt and configured for receipt within the opening of the base skirt when the base is coupled to the keyboard tray. The projection is formed underneath the tray upper surface. The assembly further includes an interlock mechanism between the base and the keyboard tray and operable to releasably secure the base with the keyboard tray.
In a further aspect, a keyboard mounting assembly includes a base having a base upper surface and a base lower surface opposite the base upper surface. The base upper surface and the base lower surface define at least one peripheral edge of the base. The assembly further includes a keyboard tray having a support portion configured to support a keyboard, the support portion having a tray upper surface and a tray lower surface. The tray upper surface and the tray lower surface define at least one peripheral edge of the keyboard tray. The keyboard tray further includes a projection spaced from the tray lower surface and extending inwardly from the peripheral edge of the keyboard tray to define a space with the tray lower surface that is configured to receive the at least one peripheral edge of the base. The projection defines a pivot axis about which the keyboard tray pivots relative to the base for coupling the keyboard tray to the base. The assembly further includes an interlock mechanism between the base and the keyboard tray and operable to releasably secure the base with the keyboard tray.
Other aspects of the invention will become apparent by consideration of the detailed description and accompanying drawings.
Before any embodiments of the invention are explained in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the following drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways.
With reference to
As best seen in
The keyboard mounting assembly 22 further includes a keyboard tray 70 having a support portion 74 configured to support the keyboard 18, and a handling portion 78 adjacent (e.g., above) the support portion 74. The support portion 74 includes a generally planar tray upper surface 82, a tray lower surface 86 opposite the tray upper surface 82, and a tray skirt 90 extending downwardly from the tray upper surface 82. Apertures 94 extend between the tray upper surface 82 and the tray lower surface 86 for mounting the keyboard 18 to the keyboard tray 70. The apertures 94 can be provided in any desired pattern or arrangement to facilitate mounting the keyboard 18 thereto, and will typically conform to standardized mounting hole patterns. As best seen in
The tray skirt 90 extends downwardly from the tray upper surface 82 along at least one, and in the illustrated embodiment, along three peripheral edges of the tray upper surface 82. The illustrated support portion 74 of the tray 70 is generally rectangular in shape to conform to the shape of the base 26. The tray upper surface 82 has a first or bottom peripheral edge 106, second and third opposed side peripheral edges 108, and a fourth or top peripheral edge 110 opposite bottom peripheral edge 106 that, in the illustrated embodiment, extends along and defines the intersection of the support portion 74 and the handling portion 78. In other embodiments, the tray 70 may take other shapes, but should generally conform to the shape of the base 26. The illustrated tray skirt 90 extends downwardly from each of the bottom and side peripheral edges 106, 108 to at least partially define a cavity 112 (see
Adjacent the bottom peripheral edge 106, the tray skirt 90 has a projection 116 extending inwardly from an interior surface 120 of the tray skirt 90 underneath both the tray upper and lower surfaces 82, 86, and therefore also extending inwardly from the bottom peripheral edge 106. The projection 116 is configured to be received within the recessed portion 62 of the base skirt 38, along the bottom peripheral edge 54 of the base 26, when the base 26 is nested within the cavity 112. To state it another way, the recessed portion 62 of the base skirt 38 defines an opening along a portion of the base skirt 38 into which the projection 116 is received. The illustrated projection 116 has a projection length Lp corresponding to a length Lr of the recessed portion 62 (or opening) of the base skirt 38, such that engagement or inter-engagement between the projection 116 and the recessed portion or opening 62 of the base skirt 38 aligns the base 26 relative to the tray 70 to assist in nesting the base 26 within the cavity 112 in the tray 70. The projection 116 is also spaced apart from the tray lower surface 86, and more specifically from the lowest surfaces of the bosses 98 and ribs 102, to define a space or gap G (see
The handling portion 78 of the tray 70 extends from the top peripheral edge 110, and in the illustrated embodiment is generally cylindrical in shape to facilitate grasping and otherwise handling the tray 70, especially when a keyboard 18 is mounted thereon. The handling portion 78 has an arcuate upper surface 128 and sidewalls 132 extending downwardly from both lateral ends of the upper surface 128. The sidewalls 132 blend seamlessly into the tray skirt 90 on both sides. As best seen in
The keyboard mounting assembly 22 further includes an interlock mechanism 144 between the base 26 and the tray 70 for releasably securing the base 26 to the tray 70. In the illustrated embodiment, the interlock mechanism 144 includes a lock 148 supported by the keyboard tray 70 on the handling portion 78. The illustrated lock 148 is a keyed button lock in which, in an unlocked state, a button 152 can be depressed to retract a pawl 156, and in a locked state, the button 152 cannot be depressed to retract the pawl 156. The button 152 is positioned in a recessed portion 158 of the arcuate upper surface 128, such that the button 152 does not extend substantially above the upper arcuate surface 128, and such that a user's finger or thumb fits easily into position on the handling portion 78 while depressing the button 152. The interlock mechanism 144 also includes a flange 160 defined by the overhanging portion of the upper peripheral edge 58 of the base 26 that is positioned adjacent to the recessed portion 66 of the base skirt 38. As best shown in
Operation of the keyboard mounting assembly 22 will now be described. Once the base 26 has been mounted to the desired support member 10, and the keyboard 18 has been secured to the keyboard tray 70 via fasteners, a user can install the keyboard tray 70 to the base 26 to achieve the engaged position. As shown in
With the initial engagement shown in
As seen in
With reference to
To remove the tray 70 from the base 26, the user, needing only one hand, can grasp the handling portion and press the button 152 of the unlocked lock 148 to retract the pawl 156. With the pawl 156 retracted, the flange 160 is no longer captured by the pawl 156 and the top of the tray 70 is free to pivot away from the top of the base 26 toward the position shown in
Various features and advantages of the invention are set forth in the following claims.
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20170020281 A1 | Jan 2017 | US |