The present disclosure generally relates to electronic device stands, and more particularly, to stands capable of holding music equipment.
Various types of stand assemblies are used to maintain various music equipment in static positions while in use. It is desired to design a lock to ensure the stand maintains the music equipment in a predefined position.
According to some aspects of the present disclosure, a lock assembly for a stand assembly having a supporting a boom arm is disclosed. The lock assembly includes a support member defining first and second voids at opposing end portions of thereof. A first locking knob has a first handle and a first shaft extends from the first handle. A second locking knob has a second handle and a second shaft extends from the second handle. A first mounting fixture is configured to at least partially surround the boom arm and defines a first hole. The first shaft is positioned through the first void and the first hole. A second mounting fixture is configured to at least partially surround the support and defines a second hole. The second shaft is positioned through the second void and the second hole.
In a further non-limiting embodiment of the foregoing assembly, the first and second shafts each define threaded portions thereon that are configured to interact with threaded portions on the first and second holes. Additionally or alternatively, the lock assembly may include a first tip portion on the first shaft and a second tip portion on the second shaft. The first and second shafts are formed from a first material and the first and second tip portions are formed from a second, different material. In some embodiments, the second material has a higher coefficient of friction than the first material.
In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing assemblies, the lock assembly can further include a first insert disposed within the hole of the first mounting fixture.
In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing assemblies, the lock assembly can further include a rib extending between the first and second voids of the support member.
In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing assemblies, the lock assembly can further include one or more washers positioned around the first shaft on an opposing side of the support member from the first mounting fixture.
In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing assemblies, the first handle is over-molded onto the first shaft.
In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing assemblies, the boom arm is configured to be compressively retained between a retaining surface of the first mounting fixture and the first shaft.
According to some aspects of the present disclosure, a lock assembly is disclosed that includes a support member defining first and second voids. A first locking knob has a first shaft. A second locking knob has a second shaft. A first mounting fixture defines a first hole and a first retaining pocket. The first retaining pocket is configured to at least partially surround a boom arm. A second mounting fixture defines a second hole and a second retaining pocket. The second retaining pocket is configured to at least partially surround a support.
In a further non-limiting embodiment of the foregoing assembly, the lock assembly includes a first washer positioned around the first shaft; and a second washer positioned around the second shaft.
In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing assemblies, the first locking knob further includes a first handle and a first tip portion at opposing ends of the first shaft, the first handle formed from a first material, the first shaft formed from a second material, and the first tip portion formed from a third material.
In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing assemblies, the third material is at least partially formed of a nylon material.
In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing assemblies, the first mounting fixture defines a first opening and the second mounting fixture defines a second opening, the first opening having a width that is greater than a diameter of the boom arm and the second opening having a width that is greater than a diameter of the support.
In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing assemblies, the first and second shafts each define thread portions thereon that are configured to interact with threaded portions on the first and second holes.
In a further non-limiting embodiment of any of the foregoing assemblies, the support is configured to be compressively retained between a retaining surface of the second mounting fixture and the second shaft.
According to some aspects of the present disclosure, a lock assembly is disclosed that includes a support member defining first and second voids. A rib extends from the support member. A first mounting fixture is operably coupled with a first shaft. The first mounting fixture is configured to at least partially surround a boom arm. A second mounting fixture is operably coupled with a second shaft. The second mounting fixture is configured to at least partially surround a support.
In a further non-limiting embodiment of the foregoing assembly, the rib extends between the first and second voids of the support member.
Additionally or alternatively, the first shaft is positioned through the first void and the second shaft is positioned through the second void. Additionally or alternatively, the first and second shafts each include a threaded portion thereon that respectively interact with threaded portions within first and second holes respectively defined by the first and second mounting fixtures.
These and other aspects, objects, and features of the present invention will be understood and appreciated by those skilled in the art upon studying the following specification, claims, and appended drawings.
In the drawings:
For purposes of description herein, the terms “upper,” “lower,” “right,” “left,” “rear,” “front,” “vertical,” “horizontal,” and derivatives thereof shall relate to the invention as oriented in
As required, detailed examples of the present invention are disclosed herein. However, it is to be understood that the disclosed examples are merely exemplary of the invention that may be embodied in various and alternative forms. The figures are not necessarily to a detailed design and some schematics may be exaggerated or minimized to show function overview. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present invention.
In this document, relational terms, such as first and second, top and bottom, and the like, are used solely to distinguish one entity or action from another entity or action, without necessarily requiring or implying any actual such relationship or order between such entities or actions. The terms “comprises,” “comprising,” or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements does not include only those elements but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. An element preceded by “comprises . . . a” does not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of additional identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises the element.
As used herein, the term “and/or,” when used in a list of two or more items, means that any one of the listed items can be employed by itself, or any combination of two or more of the listed items can be employed. For example, if any assembly or composition is described as containing components A, B, and/or C, the assembly or composition can contain A alone; B alone; C alone; A and B in combination; A and C in combination; B and C in combination; or A, B, and C in combination.
Boom microphone arms can be used to support a microphone. During operation of the microphone, an operator can either hold a boom microphone arm or use a stand to support the boom arm. If a stand is used to support the boom arm, it is desirable that the microphone remain in a position chosen by the user. When a stand is used for supporting a boom arm, the stand generally includes a base and a vertical stand extending from the base. The boom arm connects with an opposing end of the stand from the base, often, through an upwardly projecting shank portion. In this case, the boom arm carries a clamp for being clamped to the upwardly projecting shank portion of the stand. Regardless of how the boom arm connects to the stand, the vertical stand forms a fulcrum about which the boom arm pivots. By pivoting the boom arm, a user can raise or lower the microphone to a desired position. Once the boom arm is at a user's preferred angle and, thus, the microphone is in a desired position, pivoting of the arm with respect to the stand is no longer desirable, since it is uncontrolled pivoting of the boom arm that can cause the microphone to fall to the ground.
The clamp that is disposed on the upper end of the stand can be used to retain the boom arm in a desired position. When the clamp is loosened, the boom arm is able to pivot about the stand. When the boom arm is pivoted to the desired orientation, the clamp is tightened on the shank. However, vibrations that occur during recording can contribute forces that cause the clamp to gradually loosen to the point of failure, where the microphone will drop down and hit the ground, sustaining damage to the support assembly and/or the microphone. Furthermore, an operator may easily fail to sufficiently tighten the clamp, putting the microphone at risk of falling to the ground. Moreover, over time, the clamp may wear, diminishing its ability to protect the microphone from falling. Despite the presence of the clamp, the microphone may still fall to the ground, sustaining damage, which may cause a recording to be ruined.
The following disclosure describes a lock assembly for a stand assembly having a support supporting a boom arm. The lock assembly can include a support member defining first and second voids at opposing end portions of thereof. A first locking knob can have a first handle and a first shaft extending from the first handle. A second locking knob can have a second handle and a second shaft extending from the second handle. A first mounting fixture can be configured to at least partially surround the boom arm and defining a first hole. The first shaft can be positioned through the first void and the first hole. A second mounting fixture can be configured to at least partially surround the support and defining a second hole. The second shaft can be positioned through the second void and the second hole.
The stand assembly is adapted to support one or more of a variety of known devices thereon. For example, the stand assembly may support microphones, cameras, lights, medical equipment, and many other devices. In the example illustrated in
The stand assembly 10 provided herein may substantially prevent a microphone 12 boom arm from sagging through a quick and simple operation. Moreover, the lock assembly is fully adjustable and can be used on a wide array of microphone 12 stands having various structural configurations. The lock assembly can protect microphones, or any other equipment, that is supported by the microphone stand assembly 10. In addition, by maintaining the microphone 12 in a desired position, the lock assembly can also prevent ruined recording sessions due to movement of the microphone 12, or other electronic equipment.
In the embodiment illustrated in
A vertical support 18 extends from the base 16 that can include one or more segments 20, 22 that telescope relative to one another 20, 22 and are locked into place by a locking member 24. At the top of the support 18 distal to base 16 is a pivoting boom support clamp 26, carrying thereon a boom arm 28. The boom arm 28, like the support 18, may include one or more of telescoping sections 30, 32 held in relative placement by additional locking members 34.
A mount 36 may be attached to one end portion 56 of the boom arm that is configured to support the microphone. The pop filter 14, in use, is configured to be positioned between an audio source, e.g., a human singer, announcer, speaker or any other source of audio that may generate plosive artifacts, and the microphone thereby improving the fidelity of the electronic signal output by the microphone 12. In some embodiments, such as the example illustrated in
A counterweight 42 may be positioned on an opposing end portion 58 of the boom arm 28 from the mount to counteract the weight of the microphone 12 and/or the pop filter 14 such that the rotational forces placed on the support clamp can be reduced. In addition to, or in lieu of the counterweight 42, a lock assembly 44 may be removably coupled with the boom arm 28 and the support 18 to maintain the boom arm 28 in a desired position.
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
The first and second voids 60, 62 have respective first and second radii r1, r2. The first and second radii r1, r2 may be of a common size or varied from one another depending on the embodiment. A collar 64 may be disposed about the rim of each of the first and second voids 60, 62. In some embodiments, the first and second voids 60, 62 and/or the collars 64 may be unthreaded and/or generally smooth. However, in some examples, the first and second voids and/or the collars may include threaded portions or other surface variations.
In some embodiments, such as the example illustrated in
A first locking knob is used in conjunction with the first void and a second locking knob is used in conjunction with the second void. Each of the first and second locking knobs may operably couple with respective first and second mounting fixtures. As illustrated in
In some embodiments, a tip portion 90 of the first shaft 78 may include a third material, which may be different from the first and second materials of the first locking knob 70. Likewise, a tip portion 92 of the second shaft 80 may also include the third material, which may be different from the first and second materials of the second locking knob 72. For example, the third material is at least partially formed of a nylon material, or other material having some elasticity. Additionally or alternatively, the third material may have a desired frictional coefficient that is greater than that of the second material. The third material may be configured to contact the boom arm 28 and/or the support 18 without substantially scratching and/or otherwise marking the boom arm 28 and/or the support 18 when in contact therewith.
In some embodiments, such as the example illustrated in
As illustrated in
In some embodiments, the mounting fixtures may be disposed on an opposing side of the support member from the handle. For example, in the embodiment illustrated in
In some embodiments, such as the example illustrated in
The first and second mounting fixtures 96, 98 may also each define a retaining surface 106, 108 on an opposite side of the mounting fixture 96, 98 from the first and second holes 102, 104. In various embodiments, the first and second mounting fixtures 96, 98 may be formed from a metallic material, a polymeric material, an elastomeric material, and/or a combination thereof. In some examples in which the first and second mounting fixtures are formed from a polymeric material, an insert may be disposed within the first and/or second hole. The insert can be formed from a metallic material, such as brass or any other practicable material and may be threaded or unthreaded in various embodiments.
In some embodiments, such as the example illustrated in
In operation, the first mounting fixture 96 is arranged around the boom arm 28 and the second mounting fixture 98 is arranged around the support 18. The first shaft 78 is disposed through the first void 60 of the support member 46 and inserted into the hole 102 of the first mounting fixture 96. One or more washers 94 can be positioned between the support member 46 and the first handle 74 of the first locking knob 70, as illustrated in
With both the first and second mounting fixtures 96, 98 loosely attached, the boom arm 28 can be adjusted relative to the support 18 by repositioning one or both of the first and second mounting fixtures 96, 98 along the boom arm 28 and the support 18, respectively, until a desired boom angle for the particular situation is achieved. The boom arm 28 is then locked into place by tightening the first locking knob 70 by further extending the first shaft 78 towards the boom arm 28 such that the boom arm 28 is compressively retained between the first shaft 78 and the retaining surface 106 of the first mounting fixture 96. The support 18 is compressively retained between the second shaft 80 and the retaining surface 108 of the second mounting fixture 98 once tightened. In addition, the tightening of the first and second shafts 78, 80 into the respective first and second mounting fixtures 96, 98 may also prevent inadvertent removal of the boom arm 28 and/or the support 18 from the retaining pockets 100.
Use of the present disclosure may offer a variety of advantages, which is provided by various combinations of the features provided herein. For instance, the lock assembly provided herein may substantially prevent a microphone boom arm from sagging through quick and simple operation. Moreover, the lock assembly is fully adjustable and can be used on a wide array of microphone stands having various structural configurations. The lock assembly can protect microphones, or any other equipment, that is supported by the microphone stand. In addition, by maintaining the microphone in a desired position, the lock assembly can also prevent ruined recording sessions due to movement of the microphone, or other electronic equipment. The lock assembly may be manufactured at reduced costs compared to other devices and supports that may be commercially available.
It will be understood by one having ordinary skill in the art that construction of the described invention and other components is not limited to any specific material. Other exemplary examples of the invention disclosed herein may be formed from a wide variety of materials unless described otherwise herein.
For purposes of this disclosure, the term “coupled” (in all of its forms: couple, coupling, coupled, etc.) generally means the joining of two components (electrical or mechanical) directly or indirectly to one another. Such joining may be stationary in nature or movable in nature. Such joining may be achieved with the two components (electrical or mechanical) and any additional intermediate support members being integrally formed as a single unitary body with one another or with the two components. Such joining may be permanent in nature or may be removable or releasable in nature unless otherwise stated.
Furthermore, any arrangement of components to achieve the same functionality is effectively “associated” such that the desired functionality is achieved. Hence, any two components herein combined to achieve a particular functionality can be seen as “associated with” each other such that the desired functionality is achieved, irrespective of architectures or intermedial components. Likewise, any two components so associated can also be viewed as being “operably connected” or “operably coupled” to each other to achieve the desired functionality, and any two components capable of being so associated can also be viewed as being “operably couplable” to each other to achieve the desired functionality. Some examples of operably couplable include, but are not limited to, physically mateable, physically interacting components, wirelessly interactable, wirelessly interacting components, logically interacting, and/or logically interactable components.
It is also important to note that the construction and arrangement of the elements of the invention as shown in the examples are illustrative only. Although only a few examples of the present innovations have been described in detail in this disclosure, those skilled in the art who review this disclosure will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible (e.g., variations in sizes, dimensions, structures, shapes and proportions of the various elements, values of parameters, mounting arrangements, use of materials, colors, orientations, etc.) without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of the subject matter recited. For example, elements shown as integrally formed may be constructed of multiple parts or elements shown as multiple parts may be integrally formed, the operation of the interfaces may be reversed or otherwise varied, the length or width of the structures and/or support members or connectors or other elements of the system may be varied, the nature or number of adjustment positions provided between the elements may be varied. It should be noted that the elements and/or assemblies of the system might be constructed from any of a wide variety of materials that provide sufficient strength or durability, in any of a wide variety of colors, textures, and combinations. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the present innovations. Other substitutions, modifications, changes, and omissions may be made in the design, operating conditions, and arrangement of the desired and other exemplary examples without departing from the spirit of the present innovations.
It will be understood that any described processes or steps within described processes may be combined with other disclosed processes or steps to form structures within the scope of the present invention. The exemplary structures and processes disclosed herein are for illustrative purposes and are not to be construed as limiting. In addition, variations and modifications can be made on the aforementioned structures and methods without departing from the concepts of the present invention and such concepts are intended to be covered by the following claims unless these claims by their language expressly state otherwise.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 62/656,359, filed on Apr. 12, 2018, the full disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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62656359 | Apr 2018 | US |