Office furniture system with integral electronic components

Abstract

An office furniture system with integral electronic components comprises at least one vertically oriented prefabricated furniture panel. The panel can be free standing or wall or desk mounted, and has a structural frame providing a hollow interior to the panel. The panel is thick enough to house electronic components in its interior, and the frame has compartments for separately housing computer components, so that each component can be replaced separately. The system also includes one or more work surface components mounted on the vertical furniture panels that are not obstructed by the computer components mounted in the vertical panel. The panel also can include pivotal storage bins for files or the like.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]The present application is based on and claims the filing date of applicant's co-pending provisional application Ser. No. 60 / 903,541, filed Feb. 26, 2007, which is incorporated herein by reference.STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT[0002]Not Applicable.PARTIES TO A JOINT RESEARCH AGREEMENT[0003]Not Applicable.REFERENCE TO A SEQUENCE LISTING[0004]Not Applicable.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0005]Office furniture systems were first introduced in 1965. Prior to that date, office furniture was limited mainly to the traditional desk, filing cabinet and bookshelf. These furniture objects equipped the working offices, whether partitioned rooms or open space in which desks were lined up in rows. The working environment was noisy, unproductive and lacked privacy for the end-users. AT that time, the common office equipment was limited mainly to the telephone and the typewriter. A few offices also had a desk calculator. Bot...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0015]5. The invention extends the functional life of the equipment and reduces its fast obsolescence by breaking the equipment into plug-in components that are easily accessible and replaceable.

[0016]6. The invention also reduces the generated waste by disposing of a single component that requires updating, instead of disposing of a full unit of equipment. The replaced components are easily pre-sorted for recycling or reinstalling for different application with lesser requirement.

[0017]7. The system provides storage cabinets and multiple filing bins for files in process, within easy reach of the end-user.

[0020]10. The system enhances the utilization of the working space and reduces the financial cost of replacing fully assembled equipment.

Problems solved by technology

Prior to that date, office furniture was limited mainly to the traditional desk, filing cabinet and bookshelf.

The working environment was noisy, unproductive and lacked privacy for the end-users.

AT that time, the common office equipment was limited mainly to the telephone and the typewriter.

These limited work surfaces have little room left with a telephone, a monitor, a keyboard, a mouse, and possibly a printer occupying them.

The equipment and the paper have been hard to manage in such an environment, which has become known as the “cluttered cubical.”

The financial and environmental impact of discarding perfectly functional equipment for updating is considerable.

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