Digital audio players, portable media players, removable mass storage devices (e.g., portable hard disk drives and flash drives), digital cameras, personal digital assistants, smartphones, and other such portable mass media devices (“MMDs”) have become commonplace in modern society. Various different types of media docking stations have been developed and commercially marketed for the home usage, which enable users to quickly connect or dock a MMD with larger systems to, for example, download digital files to or upload digital files from an MMD, to render video content stored on the MMD on a system monitor, and/or to play audio content stored on the MMD on system speakers. The general prevalence of MMDs has translated into a commercial demand to provide mass media docking stations suitable for usage onboard business-class jets and other passenger aircraft. However, media docking stations designed for home usage may be unsuitable for incorporation into larger electrical systems deployed onboard aircraft. For example, conventionally-known docking stations may be undesirable cumbersome, heavy, and/or fragile for usage onboard aircraft. More importantly, conventionally-known media docking stations typically do not provide a means of securely retaining a docked MMD, and thereby preventing the forceful ejection of MMD from the docking station, when subjected to sudden and significant disturbance forces as may be encountered during takeoff, landing, and abrupt maneuvering of the aircraft.
There thus exists an ongoing demand to provide embodiments of a media docking station suitable for usage onboard an aircraft or other vehicle. It would be desirable for such a media docking station to be relatively lightweight, rugged, compact, and capable of operation in both horizontal and vertical orientations to permit integration of the docking station into various locations within the aircraft, such as mounting within a cabin wall. It would be especially desirable for embodiments of such a media docking station allow retraction or withdraw of a docked mass media device into a ruggedized housing such that the mass media device cannot be thrown or dislodged from the docking station in the event of abrupt inertial loads. Ideally, such a media docking station would securely lock the mass media device in such a refracted position, and possibly in an opposing extended position, utilizing a structurally-robust mechanical means requiring little to no power consumption. Finally, it would also be desirable to provide embodiments of an avionic media systems including such an actuated media docking station. Other desirable features and characteristics of embodiments of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent Detailed Description and the appended Claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the foregoing Background.
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