Bretford Manufacturing, Inc.

Philip John Sopicki

Morad Ghassemian

Tad Petrick

Cary Brown

John W Poremba

Brian Wixted

Jim Fisher

Harrison Yuan

Dave Mecherle

Arkady Tsorin

Mike Hansen

Mark Anthony Kinsley

Chris Brandel

Chris Kalujian

A computer cart has segregated computer storage areas and adapter/cord management areas. This enables the adapters and cords to be stored in an orderly fashion and also prevents the cords and adapters from being accessed or removed from the cart when the computers are being accessed. In one embodiment, extensions of shelves on which the computers are stored extend through a dividing panel into a rear compartment of the cart to create AC adapter shelves for storage of the AC adapters. In another embodiment, the AC adapters are stored in bins in a separate compartment and cords from the AC adapters extend through a dividing panel to an area designed to hold the computers, to enable the computers to be plugged in to be charted while stored in the cart.

Computer cart

An electrical system for a computer cart enables power to be diverted between electrical channels within the cart using an intelligent round robin charging scheme. All power may be diverted to individual channels one at a time for short charging intervals. When a selected primary channel does not require all available power within the cart, excess power is provided to a secondary channel. All three channels may likewise share power if excess is available. Relays are used to allow power to be controlled to the individual channels. Current sensors on each channel sense an amount of current used by the channel. The output of the current sensor is digitized and integrated to determine how much current is being used by the channel. The current is used by the control to detect uncharged laptops and to selectively divert power between channels to optimize use of power within the computer cart.

Electrical system for a computer cart

Table

Furniture support

A system for maintaining a large number of Handheld Electronic Devices is implemented as a carrying case having circuitry configured to connect to the Handheld Electronic Devices to enable the HEDs to be charged and synchronized. The carrying case has a central area configured to hold the circuitry for charging and synchronizing the HEDs, and a pair of divider structures on either side of the central area to hold the HEDs in a protective manner while stored in the carrying case. A grounded protective coating is applied to the interior of the carrying case to dissipate electromagnetic radiation generated by the circuitry and/or HEDs within the carrying case.

Carrying case

Table leg

Support system for a computer cart

A computer cart is formed to have ventilation channels extending along its sides to enable computers to be ventilated while stored in the computer cart without requiring excessive machining of the side panels forming the cart. The cart includes a frame with an external skin formed of panels. The upper edges of the side panels are offset from an edge of a top panel so that a ventilation channel is formed between the top panel and the side panels. Optionally, the channel may also extend between the top panel and a side panel and between the top panel and a front panel including doors that allow access to an inside of the computer cart. A similar channel may be formed on the bottom. As air is heated by computers within the computer cart, the warm air will rise and exit the computer cart via the upper ventilation channel, while drawing in cooler air through the lower ventilation channel.

Handle for a computer cart

Growing community of inventors

Glenview, IL, United States of America

Philip John Sopicki