The present disclosure relates generally to a repositionable holder for storing mobile devices. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to a mobile device holder which is detachably secured to a mounting surface.
Mobile electronic devices generally need to be charged at least daily to remain operative. When used frequently, however, such devices need to be charged more than once a day. Since charging a device generally involves connecting it to a power outlet, it can be challenging to retain access to the device while charging.
A common solution to keep a mobile device accessible while charging is to leave it on a desk or tabletop surface. When left on such a surface, it is very easy to trip over the charging cable and knock the device to the floor, often cracking the screen or causing other physical damage.
Therefore, a need exists for a mobile device holder capable of being detachably secured to a mounting surface, which is further capable of holding mobile devices of any shape and size, and does not obstruct the insertion or removal of mobile devices when multiple mobile device holders are vertically stacked upon the mounting surface.
In the present disclosure, where a document, act or item of knowledge is referred to or discussed, this reference or discussion is not an admission that the document, act or item of knowledge or any combination thereof was at the priority date, publicly available, known to the public, part of common general knowledge or otherwise constitutes prior art under the applicable statutory provisions; or is known to be relevant to an attempt to solve any problem with which the present disclosure is concerned.
While certain aspects of conventional technologies have been discussed to facilitate the present disclosure, no technical aspects are disclaimed and it is contemplated that the claims may encompass one or more of the conventional technical aspects discussed herein.
An aspect of an example embodiment in the present disclosure is to provide a holder capable of receiving and storing a mobile device, which is further capable of being detachably secured to a ferrous vertical mounting surface. Accordingly, the present disclosure provides a mobile device holder comprising a backing panel and a basket portion, the basket portion is adapted to receive and store the mobile device, while the backing panel has a magnet mounting means adapted to detachably secure a mobile device holder upon the vertical mounting surface.
It is another aspect of an example embodiment in the present disclosure to provide a holder capable of being combined with other holders to store a plurality of mobile devices. Accordingly, the present disclosure provides a mobile device holder whereby the backing panel has top and lower edges and sides extending therebetween, allowing multiple mobile device holders to be contiguously aligned in a column configuration or a row configuration.
It is yet another aspect of an example embodiment in the present disclosure to provide a holder which allows mobile devices to be inserted or removed without obstruction when the mobile device holders are positioned in the column configuration. Accordingly, the present disclosure provides a mobile device holder whereby the basket portion tilts forwardly away from the backing panel, preventing the obstruction of the basket portion of the mobile device holder positioned below another mobile device holder in the column configuration.
It is a further aspect of an example embodiment in the present disclosure to provide a holder which is prevented from sliding downwardly upon the vertical mounting surface. Accordingly, the present disclosure provides a mobile device holder further comprising a friction element positioned upon the rear face of the backing panel, which is adapted to frictionally engage the vertical mounting surface to prevent the mobile device holder from sliding downwardly.
It is yet a further aspect of an example embodiment in the present disclosure to provide a holder which can be adapted to mount on a variety of vertical mounting surfaces. Accordingly, the mounting means may include an interchangeable mounting panel that has the mounting means. The mounting means may include magnets for mounting to ferromagnetic surfaces, adhesives and hook and loop fasteners for nondestructive mounting to other surfaces, and hanger hooks or the like.
The present disclosure describes a mobile device holder comprising a backing panel and a basket portion, the backing panel has a selectively attachable mounting panel assembly adapted to detachably secure the mobile device holder to a vertical mounting surface, the basket portion projects forwardly from the backing panel and is adapted to receive and retain a mobile device and mate said mobile device with a charging plug. A contiguous modular arrangement of multiple mobile devices positioned in a column configuration allows multiple mobile devices to be stored, while the basket portion is tilted forwardly to prevent the obstruction of basket openings when the mobile device holders are vertically stacked in the column configuration.
The present disclosure addresses at least one of the foregoing disadvantages. However, it is contemplated that the present disclosure may prove useful in addressing other problems and deficiencies in a number of technical areas. Therefore, the claims should not necessarily be construed as limited to addressing any of the particular problems or deficiencies discussed hereinabove. To the accomplishment of the above, this disclosure may be embodied in the form illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Attention is called to the fact, however, that the drawings are illustrative only. Variations are contemplated as being part of the disclosure.
In the drawings, like elements are depicted by like reference numerals. The drawings are briefly described as follows.
The present disclosure now will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, which show various example embodiments. However, the present disclosure may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the example embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these example embodiments are provided so that the present disclosure is thorough, complete and fully conveys the scope of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art.
Turning briefly to
Returning now to
The mobile device 80 is placed within the basket retaining space 32 by inserting the mobile device lower portion 80L downwardly through the basket opening 21 until the mobile device lower portion rests upon the base panel 30 and the mobile device 80 mates with the charging plug 35. The mobile device 80 tilts forwardly within the basket portion 20, such that the mobile device body 82 rests upon the basket front 22. The basket portion 20 is capable of retaining mobile devices 80 of any shape, as long as the mobile device lower portion 80L rests upon the basket base panel 30 and the mobile device 80 is prevented from falling out of the basket retaining space 32 by the basket front 22 and/or basket sides 26.
Turning now to
Continuing to refer to
In a preferred embodiment, the basket tilt angle 42A is approximately thirty degrees in relation to a horizontal line 41L drawn perpendicularly in relation to the backing panel 12. The basket base panel 30 therefore projects away from the backing panel 12 at an angle of approximately 30 degrees in relation to the horizontal line 41L, when the horizontal line 41L extends through the base panel rear edge. The front side support 28F is oriented perpendicularly in relation to the basket base panel 30. When the mobile device 80 is retained within the basket retaining space 32, the mobile device lower portion 80L rests upon the basket base panel 30 while the mobile device body 82 is supported by the front upper support 22U and/or the front lower support 22L of the basket front 22, thus ensuring that the mobile device 80 is held at an angle of approximately thirty degrees in relation to the backing panel 12, equal to the basket tilt angle 42A.
Referring to
Furthermore, the basket tilt angle 42A ensures that the basket portion 20 of the second mobile device holder 100 does not obstruct the insertion or removal of the mobile device 80 through the basket opening 21 of the mobile device holder 10 positioned therebelow in the column configuration. The base panel front edge 30F of the second mobile device holder 10C is therefore separated from the basket opening 21 of the mobile device holder 10 by a vertical distance 44V sufficient to prevent the obstruction of the basket opening 21.
The backing panel 12 may further have a backing panel upper portion 13 which extends between the top edge 12T and the basket portion 20, and has an upper portion height. In certain embodiments, the backing panel upper portion 13 extends between the upper side supports 28U and the top edge 12T of the backing panel 12. The backing panel upper portion 13 has an upper portion height, which ensures sufficient separation between the basket portions 20 of the second mobile device holder 10C and the mobile device holder 10. In certain embodiments, where the upper side supports 28U extend perpendicularly from the backing panel 12, the upper portion height is equal to the vertical distance 44V.
Referring to
Referring to
Furthermore, it is noted that the mobile device holder 10 may be attached to a surface which is not vertical, so long as the basket opening 21 is properly oriented to ensure the mobile device is retained within the basket retaining space 32.
In the embodiment illustrated in
Advantageously, the easy removal and secure attachment of the mounting panel 102 allows the mounting panel 102 to be easily interchanged. In particular,
In
Advantageously, at least two, or a plurality of mounting panel assemblies 102 can be supplied as part of the mobile device holder. The mounting panel assemblies may be interchanged to facilitate attachment to different surfaces. A mounting panel assembly 102 having a magnet (as in
It is understood that when an element is referred hereinabove as being “on” another element, it can be directly on the other element or intervening elements may be present therebetween. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being “directly on” another element, there are no intervening elements present.
Moreover, any components or materials can be formed from a same, structurally continuous piece or separately fabricated and connected.
It is further understood that, although ordinal terms, such as, “first,” “second,” “third,” are used herein to describe various elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections, these elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element, component, region, layer or section from another element, component, region, layer or section. Thus, “a first element,” “component,” “region,” “layer” or “section” discussed below could be termed a second element, component, region, layer or section without departing from the teachings herein.
Spatially relative terms, such as “beneath,” “below,” “lower,” “above,” “upper” and the like, are used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. It is understood that the spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements described as “below” or “beneath” other elements or features would then be oriented “above” the other elements or features. Thus, the example term “below” can encompass both an orientation of above and below. The device can be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly.
Example embodiments are described herein with reference to cross section illustrations that are schematic illustrations of idealized embodiments. As such, variations from the shapes of the illustrations as a result, for example, of manufacturing techniques and/or tolerances, are to be expected. Thus, example embodiments described herein should not be construed as limited to the particular shapes of regions as illustrated herein, but are to include deviations in shapes that result, for example, from manufacturing. For example, a region illustrated or described as flat may, typically, have rough and/or nonlinear features. Moreover, sharp angles that are illustrated may be rounded. Thus, the regions illustrated in the figures are schematic in nature and their shapes are not intended to illustrate the precise shape of a region and are not intended to limit the scope of the present claims.
In conclusion, herein is presented a mobile device holder. The disclosure is illustrated by example in the drawing figures, and throughout the written description. It should be understood that numerous variations are possible, while adhering to the inventive concept. Such variations are contemplated as being a part of the present disclosure.
This application is continuation in part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/421,830, filed on May 24, 2019, from which priority is claimed and the contents of which are relied upon and incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. This application is also a continuation in part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/933,340, filed on Jul. 20, 2020 which is a continuation in part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/844,313, filed on Apr. 9, 2020 and was issued as U.S. Pat. No. 10,716,396 on Jul. 21, 2020, which is a division of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/421,869, filed on May 24, 2019 and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 10,631,634 on Apr. 28, 2020, from which priority is claimed and the contents of which are relied upon and incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. The entire disclosure of any publication or patent document mentioned herein is entirely incorporated by reference.
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Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 16421869 | May 2019 | US |
Child | 16844313 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 16421830 | May 2019 | US |
Child | 17092121 | US | |
Parent | 16933340 | Jul 2020 | US |
Child | 16421830 | US | |
Parent | 16844313 | Apr 2020 | US |
Child | 16933340 | US |