The invention concerns a device for wireless charging of electronic devices, especially pliones and other mobile devices, intended for fixing in a piece of furniture, in particular a sofa or a chair.

For charging portable electronic devices, such as mobile phones, smartphones, tablets and notebook computers, wireless charging devices are increasingly used. They transmit electricity via induction. Charging devices are usually powered from the mains through a socket located on the wall and cables led from the socket to the charger’s localization. The charger has an induction coil powered by electricity from the mains and it usually takes the form of a pad (placed under the device being charged) or it is built into the surface of a piece of furniture or a worktop. Such charging can take place not only at a desk or table, but also when using a sofa or a chair. Therefore, there is a need to place the charger on such a piece of furniture that can be characterized by a various form or different sizes. If the user is not interested in equipping a piece of furniture (itself) with a charger built into it, it is necessary to use a portable device - but with the possibility of stable fastening to parts of a piece of furniture with different thicknesses (for example, to an armrest).

US 10476 216 description is related to the device enabling access to electrical outlets or electric data for users, who use a piece of furniture for sitting, placed on a piece of furniture, or for users in the vicinity of an article of furniture. In one of the embodiments, the device may be suspended from the arm or backrest of a chair or a sofa. It comprises a flexible or rigid body that has the shape of an inverted U letter or it can take the shape of an inverted U letter. The device has downwardly extending inner and outer arm portions (spaced apart) and a central articulated part that fonns the top of the body. An electric power or digital data socket is mounted on the outer part of the arm and it is accessible along the external surface of the arm’s outer part. The device can be powered by an electrical source such as a wall socket or its own battery.

In one form of the above-mentioned invention, the device has the shape of an inverted U letter or an inverted U shape, as well as an electric socket available to users located along the body. The body has an inner and outer arm portion spaced apart and extending downward from the central articulated part, which extends between parts of the arm. The curved part forms the upper part of the body. The electrical outlet is mounted on the outer part of the arm and it is accessible along the external surface of the outer arm. An electrical outlet is configured to receive electricity from an electrical source. The above-described device is used to supply receivers with electricity at a distance from an electrical socket. However, wireless charging of such receivers via this device is not taken into account.

On the other hand, the description of US 2018/0191178 application shows a piece of furniture with a wireless charging system, in which the charging station is configured for mounting below the upper support surface in the upper vertical arm area of a piece of furniture (such as a chair of a sofa). The charging station is connected by an electric cord that extends down the vertical arm of a piece of furniture and is connected to an external power source, such as a wall outlet. The wireless charging station is powered by an external power source in order to transmit (wirelessly) electricity to a portable electrical, electronic or rechargeable energy storage device supported on the upper bearing surface of a piece of furniture’s vertical arm, equipped with a wireless electricity receiver.

The technical problem to be solved by the indicated invention is to enable the detachable attachment of the wireless charging device to pieces of furniture characterized by various widths or thicknesses, in particular on armrest, sofa, side rail of a chair or other part of an article of furniture, while maintaining a rigid and secure connection with a piece of furniture, as well as the possibility of easy disassembly of the wireless charging device.

The device for wireless charging of portable electronic devices (according to the invention), in particular phones and other mobile devices, is intended to be attached to a piece of furniture, especially a sofa or a chair. The device has a charger that transmits electricity via induction, powered from the mains through a socket located on the wall and cables led from the socket to the charger’s location. Moreover, the device has a desktop, in which the charger is embedded.

The essence of the solution according to the invention is connected with the fact that the device has the form of a bracket that can be mounted to a piece of furniture and disassembled with the possibility of adjusting its spacing to the width or thickness of a piece of furniture. This element consists of a fixed angular shelf with a horizontal base, under which an adjustable angular bracket is placed. A charger is located between the horizontal base and the horizontal arm of the bracket. The support is mounted slidingly in relation to the angular shelf. It is equipped with a set of displacement and positioning lock.

The shelf is an angle section. One arm of this angle section is the base of the shelf, in the horizontally located mounting position, and the second shelf arm is a support, in the vertically located mounting position - adjacent to the first vertical side wall of the armrest in a piece of furniture or another vertical wall of a piece of furniture.

Under the shelf (under its horizontal base), there is a bracket. It enables the adjustment of sliding and pressure. The bracket is an angle section. Its one arm (in the fastened position) rests horizontally against the lower horizontal surface of the shelf s base. The other arm of the backet (in the fastened position) extends vertically and adj cent to the second vertical side wall of the armrest.

The device is equipped with manual adjustment by manual pressure. The set position of the adjustable support is locked by tightening the locking screw. The locking element is screwed from the bottom into the socket (into the horizontal based of the shelf) and passes through a longitudinal slot made in the horizontal arm of the support.

The device can be equipped with manual adjustment by means of a manual pressure. The set position of the adjustable support is locked by a single-acting ratchet mechanism located between the horizontal arm of the support and the shelf s horizontal base. The bracket is attached to the horizontal base with the use of sliding pins in slots of the bracket’s horizontal arm. The toothed locking bar is embedded in the horizontal base of the shelf- in its recess (at the bottom). The latch is embedded in the adjustable horizontal arm of the bracket - in its longitudinal through hole. The latch is made of a resilient material and has a pressure zone used to unlock it.

The device can be equipped with a mechanical adjustment via a mechanical pressure, in which the movement of the adjustable bracket and locking of the set position are carried out with the use of a motor. The motor is connected through a gear with a bolt cooperating with the nut. The nut is attached to the lower surface of the shelf s horizontal base. The other end of the bolt is embedded in the yoke attached to the horizontal arm of the bracket. The bracket is slidably mounted in relation to the shelf with the use of sliding pins in slots of the bracket’s horizontal arm. The shelf can be equipped with handles in the fonn of holes or containers. The shelf can be equipped with a locator system for automatic adjustment of the position of charger’s inductive element in relation to elements that receive electric energy.

An advantage of the solution according to the invention is the fact that the shelf with the charger can be attached to a piece of furniture equipped with an armrest or other part of any width or thickness. Thanks to the adjustable position of the shelf bracket, it is possible to quickly and accurately attach the charger. If it is not necessary to use the charger - it can be quickly disassembled. The solution (according to the invention) enables to introduce variants with a mechanical lock for adjusting the width of the charger clamp. Furthermore, it is possible to automate the assembly and disassembly of the device via the use of a mechanical drive fastening with an electronic control.

Additionally, the invention introduces the possibility of using the wireless charging function not only for portable phones and tablets, but also for supporting a wide range of other devices, such as magnetically mounted lamp (wirelessly powered) or mechanical devices such as fans or shavers. It is possible to heat cups with drinks and transfer electricity to other receivers that use it in real time.

The solution according to the invention is presented in examples in the drawings, which sequentially show:

FIG. 1 - device with manual adjustment, in a perspective view,

FIG. 2 — device with manual adjustment, in a bottom perspective view,

FIG. 3 - device mounted on the sofa’s armrest in a perspective view,

FIG. 4 - device mounted on the sofa’s armrest in a bottom perspective view,

FIG. 5 - device with manual adjustment, with a locking latch, in a perspective view,

FIG. 6 - device with manual adjustment, with a locking latch, in a bottom perspective view,

FIG. 7 - device with manual adjustment, with a locking latch, in a bottom view,

FIG. 8 - device with manual adjustment, with a locking latch, in A-A cross-section,

FIG. 9 - detail B of the device with manual adjustment, with a locking latch,

FIG. 10 - device with motor adjustment, in a perspective view,

FIG. 11 - device with motor adjustment, in a bottom perspective view,

FIG. 12 - device with motor adjustment, in a bottom view,

FIG. 13 - device with motor adjustment, in a side view,

FIG. 14 - device with additional handles in the form of holes,

FIG. 15 - device with additional handles in the form of containers,

FIG. 16 - device with phone charging function,

FIG. 17 - device with the function of heating a cup with a drink,

FIG. 18 — device with the function of charging a portable lamp.

The device is mounted to a piece of furniture and dismantled after using a clamp with the spacing adjusted to the width of a piece of furniture. The clamp is a load-bearing element of the whole device. The assembly of the charger, other optional elements and mounting elements for mounting the device on a piece of furniture is based on the clamp.

The clamp has a fixed angular shelf 1 with a horizontal base 1 a, under which an adjustable angular bracket 2 is placed. The charger 3 is located between the horizontal base 1 and the horizontal arm la of the bracket. The bracket 2 is slidably mounted in relation to the angular shelf 1. It is equipped with a set of displacement and positioning lock. The shelf 1 is an angle section. One ann la of this angle section is a horizontal base (horizontally positioned). The second arm lb of the shelf 1 is a support (vertically positioned). It is adjacent to the vertical side wall of the armrest (piece of furniture S) or other vertical side wall of an article of furniture. Under the base 1 (under its horizontal arm la), the bracket 1 is slidably mounted - with the possibility of sliding and pressure adjustment.

The bracket 2 is an angle section. One ann 2a of this angle section adheres horizontally to the lower surface of the shelf 1 in its horizontal leg portion la. The other arm 2b of the bracket 2 is positioned in a vertical way. After pressing against the vertical side wall of the armrest S, the second vertical arm 2b of the bracket 2 (along with the second vertical arm lb of the shelf 1 - also vertically positioned) constitutes a clamp that immobilize the device shelf on the armrest of a sofa, a chair or a vertical wall of a piece of furniture.

The device is equipped with a wireless charger 3 located in the space under the shelf 1 between its horizontal arm la, the bracket lb and the arm 2a of the adjustable support 2. The charging surface is on the outside of the shelf 1 (above its horizontal base 1 a).

In the basic version, with manual adjustment, the position of the sliding bracket 2 is blocked by tightening the locking screw 5. The locking element 5 is screwed from the bottom into the socket in the shelf 1 and passes through a longitudinal slot 4 made in the horizontal arm 2a of the support 2. The use of an adequately profiled handle of a selected size enables to tighten and unscrew the screw 5 without the use of additional tools.

Optionally, under the shelf 1 , there is a set of batteries 5 allowing the operation of the wireless charger 3 without an external power supply. The battery packs 6 (using standard USB sockets) can also be used for wired charging of electronic devices. The batteries 6 are powered by an external charger (it is not shown in the figure).

During manual fastening, the spacing between the vertical shelf arm lb and the vertical bracket arm 2b is adjusted (according to the width or thickness of a piece of furniture, on which the charging device shall be mounted).

The device is mounted by pressing it from the top to the side of the sofa S, squeezing the side of the sofa S between the fixed shelf 1 and the adjustable bracket 2, and then locking the position of the bracket 2 in order to ensure that the side of the sofa is still compressed. The device with a wireless charger 3 should be fixed to a piece of furniture. Thanks to this, the wireless charging surface is located within a piece of furniture above the shelf, which can be moved to another appropriate place on an article of furniture or removed.

In another variant with manual adjustment, the position of the sliding bracket 2 is locked by a singleacting ratchet mechanism 7 positioned between the horizontal arm 2a of the bracket 2 and the horizontal arm la of the shelf 1.

The sliding bracket 2 is fastened to the shelf 1 with the use of sliding pins 8 in slots 9 of the horizontal arm 2a of the bracket 2 in a manner that enables their mutual sliding movement.

The toothed locking bar 10 is embedded in the base la of the shelf 1 - in its bottom recess (for example, by screwing with assembly screws). The latch 11 is embedded in an adjustable horizontal arm 2a of the bracket 2 (in its longitudinal through hole). The latch 11 is made of a resilient material and has a pressure zone 12 for its unlocking.

While moving the bracket 2, the latch 11 locks automatically in grooves of the toothed bar 10. The ratchet mechanism 7 is unidirectional. It locks automatically while plates move closer together (when the adjustable support 2 is moved towards the shelf 1).

In order to unlock the adjustable bracket 2, press the latch 11 in its zone 12 - this will release the latch 11 from grooves of the blocking bar 10 - until the bracket 2 is released. The bracket 2 can be moved aside by keeping the latch 11 pressed.

The manual fastening system with a self-actuating mechanical latch is based on manual movement of the adjustable bracket with an appropriate force in order to ensure that the shelf is firmly embedded. Correction of the force will cause a slight retraction of the adjustable bracket. This reversal movement will actuate the ratchet locking system, which will maintain a predetermined position of the adjustable bracket with respect to the shelf. In order to disassemble the shelf, the force should be applied again in the direction of its blocking. Simultaneously, you should press the blocking element that is responsible for unlocking the adjustable bracket. Correction of the compressive force while holding the unlocking element will release the shelf and enable its removal or change its position on a piece of furniture.

In another execution variant, the bracket movement and its pressure with the assistance of a motor are introduced.

The motor 13, in this example - an electric motor, is connected via a gear 14 with a screw 15 cooperating with a nut 16. The nut 16 is attached to the lower surface of the horizontal base la of the shelf 1 and passes through the longitudinal hole in the arm 2a of the bracket 2. The other end of the screw 15 is placed in the yoke 17 fixed to the horizontal bracket 2. The screw 15 along with the nut 15 and the yoke 17 constitute an element of the drive unit of the bracket 2. The bracket 2 is slidably mounted in relation to the shelf 1 with the use of sliding pins 8 in slots 9 of the horizontal arm 2a of the bracket 2 - in a manner enabling their mutual sliding movement.

This execution method may be modified by the use of other mechanical coupling with the system of converting rotational motion to translation motion. The solution can be any application of a screw with a nut, toothed bar, chains, cables or other mechanical system that performs this function.

Therefore, the fixing system on a piece of furniture can be done by automatic setting of the adjustable bracket, which (at the right moment - using an intelligent control program) will start the motor driving the adjustable bracket and (as a result of the operation of the feedback line in the form of information about the pressure force against the wall of a piece of furniture) will stop the motor in order to obtain the adequate gripping force. This force will result in a stable seating of the shelf - without damaging delicate surfaces of a piece of furniture.

The principle of operation in this exemplary execution is connected with manual activation - pressing the button of the automatic fixing system, which (in turn) will start the sequence of checking the correctness of the shelf’s placement in a given place of a piece of furniture and start the motor so as to cause the movement of the adjustable bracket in the blocking direction, while checking the pressure force in real time. This will enable the mediate shutdown of the motor when a certain contact pressure is reached. Simultaneously, such a system protects against overloading the system or the intention of inadequately fastening of the shelf. Pressing the activation button again will cause the automatic movement of the adjustable bracket in the unlocking direction - i.e. starting position. The starting position enables disassembly, movement or relocation of the shelf and its reassembly.

In each of the above-mentioned examples, the base 1 a of the shelf 1 can be equipped with additional holders 18, in which various elements can be fastened. Figure 14 presents handles in the form of holes. Figure 15 shows handles in the form of containers.

An additional functionality is the use of wireless charging systems in order to transfer energy to other devices. The device can be equipped with a locator system for automatic adjustment of the position of the charger’s inductive element 3 in relation to elements receiving electric energy.

Moreover, the use of a wireless charging device with a locator function will enable the placement of additional energy-receiving elements in an indefinite manner - i.e. it is not necessary to aim at the center of the charging device. The locator system (itself) will correct the position of the inductive element of the wireless charger in a manner ensuring the highest charging efficiency. The shelf with an adjustable fixing bracket along with a locator is a solution for the free organization and arrangement of elements (being charged) that are placed on the shelf.

The basic functionality of the device is shown in Figure 16. It shows its use for charging a mobile phone. Examples of wireless powering of devices are shown in the following drawings - Figure 17 (heating a cup with a drink), Figure 16 (powering or charging a portable lamp). It is possible to use the device for charging any other mobile electronic devices or utility items with an electric drive.