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Description  |
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SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a lightweight portable desk which may be used on
regular irregular base surfaces and comprises two principal components, a
hard, rectangular upper portion, which forms a desk surface, and a
pillow-like bottom portion which is substantially filled with flowable
material, which material can be shifted so as to adjust the bottom portion
to a regular or an irregular base surface.
The pillow-like lower portion or casing is substantially filled with a
lightweight flowable material, such as, sawdust, expanded styrofoam
particles or beads, expanded polyurethane particles or beads or particles
of other lightweight plastic material. Such material is of such density
and looseness that it may be readily shifted within the casing so as to
conform to the surface on which it is to be used. The bottom portion may
also be so shifted or tilted as to give to the plane upper portion a
desired position, to make it most effective while in use. That is, it may
be tilted to support a book for a comfortable reading position or it may
be made to assume a flat horizontal position for writing, playing cards or
for numerous other activities.
A longitudinal stop member may be secured along a side of the plane upper
portion, on which a book may be rested, or drawing or writing materials
maintained on the top as the bottom is shifted, and the desk may be used
with the stop member either at the top or the bottom of the plane upper
surface, the desk may also be tilted or with the top level when in use.
The present device is so constructed that it may be readily used on the lap
for writing or to support a book, with the hard planar surface arranged at
such an angle as to be best suited to the activity, or it may be used in
bed or on other irregular surface, and the material within the pillow-like
bottom casing readily shifted or shuffled so the bottom of the pillow-like
casing assumes the contour of the surface on which it is to be used, to
position the hard planar surface in the particular position desired. The
planar surface, when level, may be used to receive a snack tray, or the
base of a slide or movie projector or the like.
Prior Art
The following prior art was noted, but no one of the patents taken alone or
any combination of these patents is considered to anticipate the claims to
the present invention: U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,471,003, 3,147,948, 3,147,949, and
3,407,757.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
An object of this invention is to provide a lightweight portable desk which
has a hard planar upper surface and a lower, pillow-like casing which is
filled with a lightweight dry, flowable material which may be shifted so
that the pillow-like bottom casing can be made to conform to almost any
regular or irregular surface, so the hard planar surface may be positioned
in the desired plane.
Another object of this invention is to provide a lightweight portable desk
which is mounted on a pillow-like casing so the lightweight dry flowable
material, contained therein to substantially fill the casing, will adjust
to a surface that is not compatible with the hard upper surface of the
desk.
Still a further object of this invention is to provide a lightweight
portable desk which may be used almost anywhere, on almost any surface,
which is light in weight, is durable and relatively inexpensive to
manufacture.
Another object of the invention is to provide a lightweight portable desk
which may be easily used by invalids, traveling men, children or any one
whose work space is constricted or whose physical capabilities are
restricted.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a lightweight desk
surface which can be adjusted to be horizontal for use as a TV snack tray
or utility tray, or it can be placed at an infinite number of angles
simply by shuffling the material inside the pillow for maximum comfort
while reading, writing or sketching.
A further object of the invention is to provide an excellent base for
tilting a slide or movie projector at the desired angle.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a lightweight portable
desk for use at home, school dorm, office, car, motel, camping, in an air
plane and in hospitals, which is light in weight, easy to handle, requires
little space, and which is simple in construction.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
In the Drawings:
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the lightweight portable desk, showing the
desk placed in the lap of the user, the legs of the user being shown in
dot-dash outline, showing the pillow-like bottom portion of the desk
contoured to fit the legs on which it rests and showing a portion of the
top of the desk as broken away and in section to bring out the details of
construction and showing a portion thereof in dashed outline, the
cementing arrangement being shown on a sub-cover;
FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the hard top surface portion of the desk,
showing a longitudinal stop in exploded relation outward therefrom, and
showing a sub-cover portion of the desk, with slits formed therein to
enable the pillow-like bottom portion to be substantially filled with a
lightweight dry, flowable material, such as styrofoam beads or the like,
with parts being broken away and shown in section to show the interior of
the bottom portion with the styrofoam beads therein, and with a portion
broken away to show adhesive between the sub-cover of the desk and the
underside of the over-lapping fabric of the pillow-like casing;
FIG. 3 is an enlarged, fragmentary sectional view of a side view of a
portion of the portable desk, showing the longitudinal stop cemented to an
edge of the desk and showing various layers of cementitious material
between the inturned fabric edges of the lower pillow-like casing portion
of the desk and the upper sub-cover of the top portion of the desk;
FIG. 4 is an enlarged transverse, sectional view taken on the line 4--4 of
FIG. 1, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows, with parts
broken away and with parts shortened, and with parts being shown in
dot-dash outline, in raised position, the closed position of which parts
is shown in full outline.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
With more detailed reference to the drawing, in which like reference
characters designate like parts in the several views thereof, the numeral
1 designated generally an irregular surface, such as the lap of the user.
The numeral 2 designates generally the lightweight portable desk of this
invention having a sheet of material 4, which may be plastic, hardboard or
other suitable hard material, to form a desired planar surface, which
surface is adapted to support an article, such as a book, or drawing or
writing material, a snack tray, a movie projector base or the like.
The sheet of material 4 has a longitudinal stop 6 along one edge thereof
and secured thereto, as by cement 8, as will best be seen in FIGS. 3 and
4. The portable desk has a bottom portion which is a flexible, pillow-like
casing, designated generally at 10, with a lightweight flowable granular
material 12 substantially filling the casing 10. The material 12 may be
sawduct, expanded foam plastic material such as styrofoam, either expanded
beads or particles, expanded polyurathane beads or granules.
The pillow-like bottom casing may be made of fabric, plastic material,
leather or other suitable pliable material which will yield to a regular
or an irregular surface.
The portable desk 2 has a sheet of material 14 which is at least partially
rigid and is corrugated, as indicated at 26, which sheet of material 14
forms a sub-cover for the lower pillow-like casing 10. The edges of the
pillow-like casing 10 are inturned over the sub-cover 14, as indicated at
17, and as best seen in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4.
The upper surface of the sub-cover 14 has fastening means applied thereto,
which may be cement, as indicated at 18, or other suitable fastening
means. The inturned edges 17 of the pillow-like casing 10 are thus secured
to the sub-cover 14, to form a container for the flowable granular
material 12. The sub-cover 14 has slits 20 and 22 formed therein, so that
the portion 24 may be raised, as indicated in FIG. 4 in dot-dash outline,
to enable the pillow-like casing 10 to be substantially filled with a
flowable, granular material, such as indicated at 12 in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4.
The slit 22 is parallel with the corrugations 26 in the sub-cover 14. In
this manner the portions 24, when raised, will fold longitudinally along
the corrugations 26, which will enable the portions 24 to be folded back
in place, as shown in FIG. 2, after the insertion of the granular material
12 into the bottom pillow-like casing 10.
After the desired quantity of granular material or plastic beads has been
inserted into the pillow-like casing 10 through the openings formed in the
sub-cover 14 by opening the door-like portions or elements 24, as shown in
dot-dash outline in FIG. 4. The door-like elements are then closed and
cement 28 is applied around the over-lapping edges of the fabric 16 from
which the pillow-like portion is made, and sealing means, such as spots or
patterns of cement, as indicated at 30 is applied to the upper surface of
the sub-cover 14.
When the pillow-like casing portion 10 has been substantially filled to the
desired degree, with lightweight flowable, granular material 12, and the
edges 17 of the pillow-like casing portion 10 inturned over the
subcovering 14 and the sub-covering 14 secured thereto as by cement or
other suitable fastening means, the upper surface of the subcovering
receives the sheet of material 4, having a planar surface, which surface
is hard, to supply a suitable desk surface. The sheet 4 may be made of
wood, hardboard, plastic or the like. The planar sheet may be somewhat
greater in dimension than the subcovering 14 or they may be of like
dimension, as desired. The subcovering 14 and the planar sheet 4 are
permanently secured together by suitable fastening means, which may be a
sealing means, such as cement 28 applied in spots or patterns. The members
4 and 14 and 17 are firmly pressed together until the hard sheet of
material, which is planar is firmly affixed to the subcovering 14.
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