US 6,409,134 · Granted 2002-06-25
The Monitor Arm That Hid Your Cables Inside the Boom
This is a fancy swiveling arm that clamps a flat-screen monitor or TV to your desk or wall—but here's the clever bit: the cables run invisibly through hollow channels built into the arm itself, so your desk doesn't look like a rat's nest of wires. Gas springs keep the whole thing balanced and adjustable, letting you tilt and rotate the screen without it sagging or drooping.
The plain-English version
What it protects
The claim covers a hinged extension arm specifically designed to mount flat-screen devices while routing cables through internal channels. What's protected here is the combination of a parallelogram-shaped frame (made from upper and lower channels connected by endcaps with rollers), a gas spring that maintains tension, a threaded adjustment rod inside the first endcap, and critically, the lower channel that functions as a hidden cable conduit. Anyone building a monitor arm with this exact cable-hiding architecture—channels cast into the boom itself with a matching parallelogram suspension system—would be stepping on this patent's claims.
Why it matters
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, monitor arms were becoming mainstream as flat-screens replaced bulky CRTs, but most designs left cables dangling visibly. This patent combines mechanical elegance (the parallelogram keeps the screen level while you adjust height and depth) with practical cable management—a feature that makes the whole desk look cleaner and more professional. The gas-spring balancing system means users don't need brute strength to reposition their screen, which mattered a lot for ergonomic office setups. This kind of integrated design became a template for premium monitor mounts.
Real-world use
Every time you swing your desk monitor up and down or pull it closer without the cables snagging or tangling, you're benefiting from the hidden cable routing this patent locks down—no visible spaghetti under your desk.
Original USPTO abstract
An extension arm suitable for mounting a flat-screen electronic peripheral device, such as a computer monitor or television, comprises a forearm extension that has at one end a first coupling for attachment to a tilter, a platform or other means for supporting a flat-screen device and at the other end a second coupling with a slot formed therein. The extension arm also comprises a pair of endcaps, each having a shaft. The shaft of the first endcap is pivotably rotatable in a support mount, such as a wall, desk or pole mount. The shaft of the second endcap is hollow and is pivotably rotatable in the second coupling of the forearm extension. The extension arm also comprises an upper channel and a lower channel. Each channel has at opposite ends integrally cast rollers which are pivotably attached to each of the endcaps. The lower channel has a cable channel formed therein. The upper and lower channels and the endcaps form an adjustable parallelogram. The shape of the parallelogram is retained by a gas spring, which is attached at a first end to a ball stud mounted in the upper channel and adjustably mounted at a second end to the first endcap. A clevis is located within the first endcap and is pivotably attached to the second end of the gas spring. A threaded rod threadedly engages the clevis, such that the clevis slides within the first endcap when the rod rotates around its axial centerline. A cable from the flat-screen device can be hidden from view by being disposed within the forearm extension, the second endcap, and the lower channel of the extension arm.
Patent details
- Publication number
- US 6,409,134
- Filing date
- 1999-09-24
- Grant date
- 2002-06-25
- Assignee
- Innovative Office Products, Inc.
- Inventor(s)
- ODDSEN, JR. ODD N.
- CPC class
- F16M13/02
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