Leg-Mounted Media Display Device

The present application is a continuation in part of application Ser. No. 18/828,882, filed Sep. 9, 2024, which takes priority from Provisional App. No. 63/537,856, filed Sep. 12, 2023, which are both incorporated herein by reference.

The present invention relates generally to devices for displaying communications, and more particularly to portable music stands.

There has been a large variety of music stands in use throughout the history of written music. Most of them are bulky and hard to transport, comprising a tray at the top to hold paper sheets or books and a stand at the bottom to keep the device upright. While folding music stands do exist, they are flimsy, susceptible to breakage, and often hard to assemble and deploy.

Another problem associated with traditional music stands is that they take up significant space near the user, often blocking the line of sight between the user and other parties.

Finally, a traditional music stand is hard to use outdoors, especially on uneven ground, and is vulnerable to falling over when it is windy.

A need exists for a portable music stand that can be used outdoors, does not require significant space near the user or block line of sight, and is easy to assemble and use.

An object of the present invention is to provide a portable media display stand that can be used outdoors, does not require significant space near the user, does not block lines of sight, and can still function when it is windy.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a portable media display stand that can attach to a user's limb.

The device of the present invention comprises a strap with buckles on either end, a base that attaches to the strap, and a media holder integrated into the top side of the base. The media holder can hold at least one sheet of paper at an angle ranging from vertical to 45° off vertical. One or more tabs located in front of the media holder, not coplanar with the bottom of the base, are used to attach clip-on accessories.

The strap may be approximately equal to the circumference of a typical human thigh, and the media holder can be configured so that a seated user can read the media on a sheet of paper in the media holder when the device is attached around the user's thigh. The strap may be elastic.

The media holder may be a curved slot cut in the top side of the base. The slot may be wide or narrow. The wide curved slot may have a rectangular cross-section approximately 15 mm wide, and may be curved with a radius of approximately 58 mm. The narrow curved slot may have a triangular cross-section with one vertex at the bottom, and the width of approximately ½″ at the top. The radius of the narrow curved slot may be approximately 75 mm.

In an embodiment, the media holder may comprise both a narrow and a wide curved slot.

In an embodiment, the media holder also comprises a phone holder, wherein the phone holder comprises a cutout for a charger cord.

In an embodiment, the device also comprises a semi-cylindrical pen cutout in the wide curved slot so that a pen or pencil can be held in the device. In another embodiment, a horizontal pen hole can be located in the base of the device so that a pen or pencil can be held there.

In an embodiment, the device also comprises separate attachments that can fit into the wide curved slot. In an embodiment, a separate phone holder attachment is used, comprising a clamp for holding a mobile phone and a curved plug that fits into the wide curved slot.

In an embodiment, the device also comprises a separate music stand attachment, with a wide platform for supporting sheetmusic, wherein the separate music stand attachment also comprises a curved plug that fits into the wide curved slot.

In an embodiment, the device comprises a screw inset located on the bottom side, so that the device can be attached to a camera tripod.

While the foregoing disclosure describes the device of the present invention being used to hold sheetmusic while playing a musical instrument or singing, it is to be understood that it is not limited to that application. The device of the present invention may be used to hold any flexible media in a vertical position while a user is seated.

In brief, the device of the present invention is a media holder that attaches to a user's limb (arm or leg) while a user is seated and holds it in such a position that the user can see the media while seated. The embodiment described below is a sheetmusic holder that attaches to a user's limb while the user is playing a musical instrument and holds sheetmusic in the correct position for the user to see it while playing. This enables a user to see their sheetmusic even in places where a regular music stand is not practicable. For example, in an outdoor music festival, the ground may be uneven, it may be windy, and it may be too hard to lug around both a musical instrument and a bulky music stand. In a crowded orchestra or band, a regular music stand may block a user's line of sight and may require too much space in front of the user. In both of those applications, a leg-mounted music holder will be preferable—it takes no extra space in front of the user, it does not block the user's line of sight, and it can be used even on uneven ground or in windy conditions.

In its most basic form, the device comprises three elements-a strap, a base that is attached to the strap, and a media holder integrated into the top side of the base. The strap is configured to buckle around a user's limb, such as an arm or a leg. The media holder is configured to hold the media in such a way that the user can easily see it. The base attaches to the strap (removably or non-removably) and is rigidly attached to the media holder.

show a diagram of an embodiment of the device of the present invention. The leg-mounted media display device baseis attached with a straparound a user's leg while the useris playing a guitar. The device holds a music bookat an appropriate angle for the user to read while playing. As can be seen in the two Figures, the device can be usable for a classical guitar (shown in) or an acoustic guitar (shown in).

The device of the present invention may also be used for other instruments, as long as they can be played while seated. As shown in, a user can play the saxophonewhile using the device. The disclosure is not meant to be limiting to any type of musical instrument (or for that matter, any other activity where a user may need to refer to a sheet of paper or a book that needs to be held at a particular angle.)

As shown in, the leg-mounted media display devicecan incorporate attachments—for example, a music standthat can hold a single pageof music. The attachments may also be used to hold a mobile phone or tablet, as discussed below.

shows a close-up diagram of an embodiment of the leg-mounted media display device. As shown, it comprises a baseand a strap; the base is a rigid piece of material that comprises a strap holethrough which strapis inserted. Strapis preferably (but not necessarily) made of elastic webbing, and of an approximate size to fit around a typical user's thigh. In an embodiment, it comprises a buckleto make it easier to attach and detach, and it is adjustable in length to fit different sizes of users. While the strap is elastic in its preferred embodiment, a non-elastic strap made of webbing may also be used.

Basecomprises one or more types of media holders incorporated into its top side, configured in such a way that they hold a piece of readable media at an appropriate angle for reading while seated. In the embodiment shown in, the base comprises three separate media holders—a phone or tablet holderwith a cutoutfor the charging cable, a wide curved slot, and a narrow curved slot. Those features will be discussed further below.

While the embodiments described below incorporate three types of media holders, it is to be understood that the base may incorporate only one or two of the media holders described below. The present invention does not require all three media holders to be present.

show three separate views of the embodiment of the base portrayed in. As shown, the wide curved slotand the narrow curved slotare configured in such a way as to hold paper-based media in a position that will prevent the paper from flexing forward—the radius of the curved slots is such that the paper-based media stays stiff and does not flex. The wide curved slotis intended for music books or other multi-page media; the narrow curved slotis intended for a single sheet of paper.

As shown in, the wide curved slothas a rectangular cross-section; the narrow curved slot has a triangular cross-section to improve retention of the single sheet of paper. In the embodiment shown in the Figure, the radius of the wide curved slot is approximately 58 mm; the radius of the narrow curved slot is approximately 75 mm. The width of the wide curved slot is approximately 15 mm; the narrow curved slot is approximately 8 mm wide at the top and narrows down to a point. While these dimensions provide the requisite function of keeping a sheet of paper or a bound soft-cover booklet vertical and keeping it from flexing, it is to be understood that any other radius and width of the curved slots is also included in the present invention, as long as the curved slots have sufficient curvature to keep the paper-based medium from flexing while inserted into the slots.

As shown in, the phone holdercomprises a flat surface with a lip to keep the phone (or tablet) at a proper angle for reading, and a cutoutfor the charging cable.

Strap slotis used to pass the strapthrough so that the basecan easily be fastened to the user's leg. The strap slotis preferably large enough that the bucklefits through it.

In an embodiment, the basealso comprises a flat bottom so that it may also be used on a flat surface such as a table.

It is to be understood that while the baseshown in the Figures is circular, it does not have to be; there are no restrictions on its shape other than the ones disclosed with relation to the media holder. The base may be square, rectangular, or any other shape. The size of the base is preferably such that it can be easily transported, for example in an instrument case.

In an embodiment, the baseis made out of a single piece of plastic. The plastic may be any material that is rigid and capable of holding its shape well enough to support the media it is meant to support. The base may be hollow or solid.

In an embodiment, the base may be modular and some of the media holder features may be removable or replaceable. In that embodiment, the media holder features are rigidly attached to the base.

show the basebeing used to hold a single sheet of paperin the narrow curved slot. As shown, the sheet of paperis flexed in such a way as to stay stiff without flexing while it is in the narrow curved slot. The bottom of the narrow curved slotpreferably narrows down to a point so that the sheet of paperis wedged into it.

show the basebeing used to hold a softcover bookin the wide curved slot. As shown, the softcover bookis flexed in such a way as to stay stiff without flexing while it is in the wide curved slot. The bottom of the wide curved slotis preferably flat to accommodate different thicknesses of books.

show the basebeing used to hold a mobile phoneor a tabletin the phone slot.

While the basemay be used by itself as shown above, various attachments may be used to anchor other devices to the user's leg.shows two such attachments-a phone holderand a music stand. Any attachment attaches to the base with a curved plugthat fits the exact contours of the wide curved slot in such a way as to hold the attachment securely. While several attachments are shown in the Figure, any other attachment may also be used with the present invention as long as it comprises a curved plug.

Separate phone holderis used for applications where a user may need to use their phone in a leg-mounted setting and hold it more securely than the phone holder on the base. The separate phone holdercomprises a curved plugand a phone clampthat can hold a phone or a tablet.

Separate music standis used for applications where a user may need to hold an open book, or more than one sheet of paper, and may require more space to spread out the sheetmusic.show the back view of the separate music stand attached to the base. The separate music standalso comprises a curved plug, a shelf, and a back panel. The shelfand back panelpreferably nest into the phone holder on the base when the separate music stand is attached, as shown in the Figures.show the front view of the separate music stand, both empty and in use holding an open music book.

show several views of the separate phone holder, including a view of it being used to hold a phone. As discussed above, the separate phone holder is used to hold a mobile phone or tablet if a more secure hold is needed than the one provided by the built-in phone holder of the base.

The base is preferably configured to be attached to a user's leg or other limb-however, it may also be attached to other objects near the user.show a stand mount attachmentthat could be used to mount the base on a music stand or microphone stand. In that embodiment, a plugwith a compression clipis inserted into the strap hole. The terminal bumpon the compression clipis used to release the plugwhen it needs to be removed. The stand attachment pointis used to attach the clip and base to a microphone stand, and could be any shape that could perform that function.

In an embodiment, the media holder comprises extra tabs located in front of the sheetmusic when the user is using the device.shows tabslocated on the front side of the media holder. These tabs are preferably not coplanar with the base of the device. The tabs can be used to clip on accessories such as lights or tuners. The thickness of the tab is preferably such that a clip-on accessory can be clipped onto it, while not so thin that it will not provide structural stability for the device. In the preferred embodiment, a thickness of 0.25″ is preferable.

Since musicians often need to have a pen or pencil handy to mark up their sheetmusic or make notes to themselves, in an embodiment of this device, a pen holder option is provided.shows two independent options for a pen or pencil holder. Semi-cylindrical pen cutoutis placed vertically in the wide curved slot and is used for holding a pen or a pencil where it can be easily reached. The semi-cylindrical pen cutout is preferably of a sufficient diameter to fit a pen or pencil comfortably, preferably less than 1″. Pen holeis placed horizontally, going all the way through the device, for pens or pencils that do not need to be in such close reach. The pen holeis also preferably less than 1″ in diameter but sufficiently large that a pen or pencil can fit comfortably through it.

The media holder may be used in multiple situations. It is most commonly used where a user is playing an instrument while seated, where the media holder is attached to the user's thigh in a way that the user can look down on the media while playing. In some cases, where the user's arm is relatively stationary while playing, the media holder may also be attached to the user's arm. If a user is sitting in a chair with arms, the media holder may be attached to the arm of the chair, or to the top of a guitar stand or other musical instrument stand, for example. As mentioned above, the media holder may be attached to a microphone stand with a stand mount attachment. In an embodiment, as shown in, the media holder comprises a screw insetlocated on the underside of the device. The screw inset is preferably of a threading that can match a camera tripod, such as ¼″-20.

The advantages of this media holder are numerous. First of all, it is easy to use and holds either single sheets of music or music books at the correct angle without flexing. It is portable and can be taken anywhere—it easily fits into a musical instrument case. It is sturdy and does not break very easily, which is important for music festival situations where rough handling is a possibility. It is very easy to set up, as opposed to folding music stands. It takes no extra space in front of the user, meaning that it does not require a flat floor and does not block the user's line of sight.

Exemplary embodiments are described above. It is to be understood that the present invention is limited only by the appended claims.