U.S. patent application number 11/168093 was filed with the patent office on 2006-12-28 for table with electric hidden storage.
Invention is credited to Joe Chandler.
Application Number | 20060290248 11/168093 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 37566507 |
Filed Date | 2006-12-28 |
United States Patent
Application |
20060290248 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Chandler; Joe |
December 28, 2006 |
Table with electric hidden storage
Abstract
A storage table is disclosed in which a finished hardwood
enclosure is provided which may have whatever ornamentation is
desired. The top surface of the enclosure may be slid horizontally
to provide access to the interior of the enclosure, in which a
storage chest is vertically oriented. Sliding means are provided to
allow the horizontal positioning of the top surface, and
electromechanical lifting means are provided to raise and lower the
storage chest with respect to the enclosure.
Inventors: |
Chandler; Joe; (Portales,
NM) |
Correspondence
Address: |
Joe Chandler
177 N.M. 88
Portales
NM
88130
US
|
Family ID: |
37566507 |
Appl. No.: |
11/168093 |
Filed: |
June 27, 2005 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
312/312 ;
312/319.5 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47B 51/00 20130101;
B25H 3/026 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
312/312 ;
312/319.5 |
International
Class: |
A47B 51/00 20060101
A47B051/00 |
Claims
1. A storage table comprising: an enclosure having front, back,
left, and right sides which define an interior; a top surface
connected to each of said left and right sides of said enclosure by
sliding means for sliding said top surface horizontally; a storage
chest having a plurality of storage compartments, wherein said
storage chest has exterior dimensions substantially equal to or
smaller than said interior of said enclosure, and wherein said
storage chest is located within said interior of said enclosure;
lifting means for moving said storage chest vertically from a
storage position within said interior of said enclosure to a raised
position above said interior of said enclosure, or to any linear
position between said storage position within said interior of said
enclosure and said raised position above said interior of said
enclosure.
2. The storage table of claim 1, wherein said lifting means further
comprise a reversible electric motor in mechanical communication
with one or more continuous chains, wherein said chains are
connected to a horizontal lifting bracket positioned immediately
beneath and in physical contact with said storage chest, and
wherein said horizontal lifting bracket may be raised or lowered by
actuation of said chains by said reversible electric motor.
3. The storage table of claim 1, wherein said front, back, left and
right sides of said enclosure and said top surface are made from
wood with a finished surface.
4. The storage table of claim 2, wherein said front, back, left and
right sides of said enclosure and said top surface are made from
wood with a finished surface.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] Reference is hereby made to and priority is hereby claimed
from provisional application No. 60/581,693, filed Jun. 21,
2004.
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH
[0002] Not Applicable.
REFERENCE TO "MICROFICHE APPENDIX"
[0003] Not Applicable.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0004] The present Invention is directed towards a table which
incorporates hidden storage with access to the storage provided by
electrically powered mechanical means for opening the top of the
table and lifting the storage compartment upwards. There is an
ongoing need for storage volumes in order to organize and store
tools and items associated with a variety of activities, including
hobbies, crafts, and other leisure activities. Existing systems for
storing such tools typically include tool chests and other similar
devices. A wide variety of such systems exist, including, e.g.,
Herdies, U.S. Pat. No. 4,953,601; Miles, U.S. Pat. No. 4,338,987;
and Geiss II, U.S. Pat. No. 5,586,816. For aesthetic reasons,
however, these existing systems are generally unsuitable for
widespread use in an environment outside a workshop. Many hobby and
leisure activities carried out by individuals in a home are
conducted in family living areas or bedrooms, where individuals
take the opportunity to multitask such hobby and leisure activities
with the entertainment increasingly available in such parts of the
typical household. For aesthetic reasons, traditional tool storage
systems are unsuitable in these locales, exposed tools and hobby
supplies are similarly aesthetically displeasing. A need exists,
therefore, for a device which allows for the storage of tools and
supplies associated with hobbies and other leisure activities while
maintaining the neat appearance of home living areas.
[0005] One example of a prior effort at providing the solution to
these problems appears in Hastings, U.S. Pat. No. 4,317,606. While
similar in direction to the present invention, Hastings provides a
limited solution to specific storage problems attendant to one
particular activity, art. The instant invention provides a general
solution applicable to most, if not all, general hobbies, crafts,
and other tool-intensive activities. Additionally, the Hastings
solution provides storage which is not vertically adjustable. As
such, the storage provided by Hastings is inconvenient to access
during use of the Hastings invention. Furthermore, the storage in
Hastings is only accessible through manual means. An ongoing need
remains for a general storage solution with vertically adjustable
storage, which is provided by the instant invention as described
further herein.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] The present invention seeks to solve these issues by
providing a storage table which, on its exterior, resembles an end
table or other similar piece of furniture which is commonly found
in a family living area. The table consists of an enclosure,
typically a right rectangular hardwood enclosure including four
sides and a top surface. The enclosure may include such exterior
ornamentation as is necessary to allow the invention to appear to
be a normal piece of household furniture. The top surface of the
table is attached to the sides by means of two sliding mechanisms
(such as drawer slides), which allow the top surface to be slid
forward a distance at least equal to the side dimension of the
enclosure. By this sliding action, the interior of the enclosure is
thereby exposed.
[0007] Contained within the interior of the enclosure, a storage
chest rests upon a lifting bracket. The storage chest may be of a
variety of designs, but most typically would comprise a plurality
of shallow drawers stacked in a vertical configuration, with the
top level of the chest comprising a removable tray. By this
arrangement, the interior volume of the storage chest is divided
into as large a surface area as possible, allowing for the storage
and organization of a large number of small items. Furthermore, by
including a removable tray on the top of the chest, easy access to
the most commonly used items is provided, as only the top surface
of the enclosure need be opened for access to the removable
tray.
[0008] As noted, the storage chest rests upon a lifting bracket,
which is connected to electrical lifting means. The lifting bracket
may slide freely in a vertical direction within the enclosure, and
has a outer shape that is approximately the same as the inner
cross-sectional shape of the enclosure. The electrical lifting
means may include a wide variety of mechanisms, but preferably
include an electrical motor turning a chain drive which lifts and
lowers the lifting bracket, thereby allowing for rapid, reliable,
and simple access to the storage chest contained within the
enclosure.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] FIG. 1 is an oblique view of the storage table in its closed
position.
[0010] FIG. 2 is an oblique view of the storage table with the top
surface slid forward, revealing the storage chest contained
within.
[0011] FIG. 3 is a cutaway view of the storage table from the front
showing the storage chest in the raised position and showing the
lifting mechanism.
[0012] FIG. 4 is a top view of the storage table with the chest
removed, showing the lifting mechanism and lifting bracket and
showing the top surface in its forward position.
CATALOG OF ELEMENTS
[0013] 10 Storage table
[0014] 20 Front side
[0015] 22 Back side
[0016] 24 Left side
[0017] 26 Right side
[0018] 30 Top surface
[0019] 32 Top surface left slide
[0020] 34 Top surface right slide
[0021] 40 Lifting mechanism
[0022] 42 Drive motor
[0023] 44 Drive shaft
[0024] 46 Drive shaft sprocket
[0025] 48 Lifting chain
[0026] 50 Lifting axle
[0027] 52 Lifting axle drive sprocket
[0028] 54 Lifting axle chain sprocket
[0029] 60 Upper sprocket
[0030] 100 Storage chest
[0031] 102 Storage chest compartments
[0032] 104 Storage chest tray
[0033] 110 Storage chest lifting bracket
[0034] 112 Lifting pins
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0035] Referring to FIG. 1, the invention in its closed position
may be seen, in which an enclosure 12 is provided having a front
side 20, back side 22, left side 24, and right side 26.
Additionally, the top of the enclosure 12 consists of a top surface
30. The four sides of the enclosure 12 are permanently joined
together and may include any desired ornamentation to allow the
invention to match other household furniture. Referring to FIG. 2,
the top surface 30 is attached to the left side 24 and right side
26 by a top surface left slide 32 and a top surface right slide 34,
respectively. The top surface slides 32 and 34 may be of any of a
variety of designs, but are preferably some form of commercially
available drawer slide. The top surface slides 32 and 34 are
connected to the upper portion of the outer surface of the
corresponding left or right side 24 or 26 and to the underside of
the top surface 30. By this arrangement, the top surface 30 may be
slid to one side of the enclosure 12 such that access to the
interior volume of the enclosure 12 from the top of the invention
is not obstructed by the top surface 30. It will be understood that
the preferred direction of slide of the top surface 30 will be
towards the front of the invention; by this arrangement, when the
top surface 30 is slid forward, it will form a work surface on
which items retrieved from the interior storage chest, infra, may
be placed while the apparatus is in use. It will be further
understood that the top surface slides 32 and 34 will preferably
extend a distance sufficient to permit the rear edge of the top
surface 30 to clear the interior volume of the enclosure 12.
[0036] Located within the interior volume of the enclosure 12, a
storage chest 100 is provided. This storage chest 100 may take on a
wide variety of forms in order to provide organization to a wide
variety of materials, but will preferably consist of a housing with
a plurality of relatively shallow drawers 102 stacked vertically
atop each other, such that the drawers may be independently
articulated for access to the contents of each. It will be further
understood that the top level of the storage chest 100 will
preferably comprise a tray 104 (more preferably a removable tray,
as depicted in FIG. 3), which will allow for access to a portion of
the storage area by simply sliding the top surface 30 to one side,
without the need for lifting the entire storage chest 100.
[0037] The storage chest 100 may be raised or lowered to whatever
degree desired by the operation of a lifting mechanism 40. While a
variety of mechanisms may be used, referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, the
preferred mechanism comprises an electric motor 42 which drives a
lifting chain 48, which in turn vertically actuates a lifting
bracket 110. Specifically, the electric motor 42 (which receives
electrical power through a power supply 60) turns a drive shaft 44.
Mounted along and coaxially with the drive shaft 44, a drive shaft
sprocket 46 turns with operation of the electric motor 42. The
drive shaft sprocket connects to a lifting axle drive sprocket 46
mounted along a lifting axle 50 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. This
arrangement permits torque generated by the motor 42 to be
transferred through the lifting axle 50 to a pair of lifting axle
chain sprockets 54, mounted on either end of and coaxially with the
lifting axle 50. Each lifting chain 48 extends around the
corresponding lifting axle chain sprockets 54 upward to pass around
an upper sprocket 60, one of which is connected to the interior
surface of each of the left side 24 and right side 26. The lifting
bracket 110 is connected at its left and right sides to the lifting
chains 48 by lifting pins 112, which securely connect the lifting
bracket 110 to the lifting chains 48. By this arrangement, when the
drive motor 42 is operated, the drive shaft 44 and drive shaft
sprocket 46 are turned. Torque is transferred from the drive shaft
sprocket 46 to the lifting axle drive sprocket 52, which causes the
lifting axle 50 to turn about its axis, and thereby causes the
lifting axle chain sprockets 54 to turn. This causes the lifting
chains 48 to travel, both in the same direction of rotation, about
the lifting axle chain sprockets 54 and upper sprockets 60. As the
chain moves, the position along the chain where the lifting pins
112 are attached are moved vertically (either up or down, depending
on whether the operator is raising or lowering the tool box), and
hence the lifting bracket 110 and storage chest 100 are moved
vertically as well. It will be understood that the drive motor 42
is a reversible motor which is controlled by a user-actuated switch
mounted on the exterior of the enclosure 12. Since the drive motor
42 is a reversible motor, the lifting bracket 110 may be raised or
lowered to any desired height without the need to fully raise or
lower the lifting bracket 110.
[0038] Although all portions of the invention have not been
described in detail, persons with ordinary skill in the art will
understand the method of forming all parts of the apparatus as well
as methods of connecting them. Although the preferred embodiment is
described herein, it is understood that other variations embodying
the spirit of the instant invention are incorporated herein.
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