U.S. patent application number 12/218050 was filed with the patent office on 2010-01-14 for drawer storage system.
Invention is credited to Craig Ryerson.
Application Number | 20100007253 12/218050 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 41504544 |
Filed Date | 2010-01-14 |
United States Patent
Application |
20100007253 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Ryerson; Craig |
January 14, 2010 |
Drawer storage system
Abstract
A drawer based storage system is disclosed. It comprises a
drawer adapted to be supported on a support frame having sides and,
preferably, a front. The drawer is supported for pivotal movement
between a closed, generally horizontal position and an open,
non-horizontal position and, further, for sliding movement, only
when the drawer is in the open position, between a retracted
position and an extended position.
Inventors: |
Ryerson; Craig; (Toledo,
OH) |
Correspondence
Address: |
PURDUE LAW OFFICES;2735 N. HOLLAND-SYLVANIA ROAD
SUITE B-2
TOLDEO
OH
43615
US
|
Family ID: |
41504544 |
Appl. No.: |
12/218050 |
Filed: |
July 10, 2008 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
312/247 ;
312/248; 312/322; 312/325 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47B 88/60 20170101 |
Class at
Publication: |
312/247 ;
312/322; 312/325; 312/248 |
International
Class: |
A47B 88/18 20060101
A47B088/18 |
Claims
1. A drawer storage system comprising a drawer comprising a bottom,
a front and a pair of sides a support frame comprising a front and
a pair of sides, said support frame sides having peg receiving
slots extending from near rear ends of said sides towards said
support frame front, pegs supported on said drawer sides, away from
the drawer front, said pegs being operable, when received in said
peg receiving slots, to support said drawer on said support frame
for pivotal movement between a closed position and an open
position, wherein said drawer, when it is in the open position, can
be moved towards the front of said support frame while said pegs
are in the peg receiving slots, and wherein said drawer, when it is
in the closed position, is prevented from being moved towards said
front of said support frame when said pegs are received in the peg
receiving slots.
2. The drawer storage system claimed in claim 1 wherein said pegs
comprise wheels.
3. The drawer storage system claimed in claim 1 wherein the slots
are formed in said support frame sides.
4. The drawer storage system claimed in claim 1 which further
comprises a catch for releasably maintaining said drawer in the
closed position.
5. The drawer storage system claimed in claim 1 wherein said pegs
and said slots are configured to prevent the unintended removal of
said pegs from said slots.
6. A drawer storage system comprising a drawer comprising a bottom,
a front, a pair of sides and pegs supported so that they extend
outwardly from said drawer sides at the rear of said drawer, a
support frame comprising a front and a pair of sides, said support
frame sides having peg receiving slots extending from near rear
ends of said sides towards said support frame front, and a catch,
wherein said pegs are operable, when received in said peg receiving
slots, to support said drawer on said support frame for pivotal
movement between a closed position and an open position, wherein
said drawer, when it is in the open position, can be moved towards
the front of said support frame while said pegs are in the peg
receiving slots, wherein said drawer, when it is in the closed
position, is prevented from being moved towards said front of said
support frame when said pegs are received in the peg receiving
slots, and wherein said catch is operable to releasably maintain
said drawer in the closed position.
7. The drawer storage system claimed in claim 6 wherein said pegs
comprise wheels.
8. The drawer storage system claimed in claim 6 wherein the slots
are formed in said support frame sides.
9. The drawer storage system claimed in claim 6 wherein said pegs
and said slots are configured to prevent the unintended removal of
said pegs from said slots.
10. A drawer storage system comprising a drawer comprising a
bottom, a front, a pair of sides and pegs supported so that they
extend outwardly from said drawer sides at the rear of said drawer,
a support frame comprising a front and a pair of sides, said
support frame sides having peg receiving slots extending from near
rear ends of said sides towards said support frame front, and a
catch for releasably maintaining said drawer in the closed
position, wherein said pegs are operable, when received in said peg
receiving slots, to support said drawer on said support frame for
pivotal movement between a closed position and an open position,
wherein said drawer, when it is in the open position, can be moved
towards the front of said support frame while said pegs are in the
peg receiving slots, and wherein said drawer, when it is in the
closed position, is prevented from being moved towards said front
of said support frame when said pegs are received in the peg
receiving slots.
11. The drawer storage system claimed in claim 10 wherein said pegs
comprise wheels.
12. The drawer storage system claimed in claim 10 wherein the slots
are formed in said support frame sides.
13. The drawer storage system claimed in claim 10 wherein said pegs
and said slots are configured to prevent the unintended removal of
said pegs from said slots.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] This invention is a storage system including a drawer which
can be installed under something such as the bottom shelf of an
upper kitchen cabinet unit. The drawer includes pegs which extend
outwardly from its sides, near the rear of the sides, about which
the drawer can rotate between a closed position in which it is
positioned in a generally horizontal orientation and an open
position in which it is positioned in a generally vertical
orientation. The drawer is supported so that, when it is rotated to
the open position, it can be slid towards the front of a kitchen
cabinet unit or other associated mounting structure for ease of
access to its contents.
[0002] A Professional Searcher who reported that he made a computer
based search using PTO facilities and furnished the following list
of patents and the classification information set forth below said
that the following US patents were the most pertinent ones that he
found in regard to the subject invention.
TABLE-US-00001 7,140,703 312/323 6,309,038 312/246 5,957,558
312/323 5,649,751 312/242 3,846,005 312/248 3,485,544 312/248
2,839,349 312/323 2,695,831 312/246 2,676,863 312/246 2,565,845
312/246 2,471,245 312/246 2,450,233 312/319 1,345,194 312/204
1,052,778 235/78 876,159 312/248
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0003] The drawer based storage system of the present invention
comprises a drawer adapted to be supported on a support frame with
sides and, preferably, a front, for pivotal movement between a
closed, generally horizontal position and an open, non-horizontal
position and, further, for sliding movement, only when the drawer
is in the open position, between a retracted position and an
extended position.
[0004] It is an object of the instant invention to provide a
storage system that is especially adapted to make use of space that
is otherwise unused, especially in kitchens and other rooms with
wall mounted cabinets.
[0005] It is another object of the instant invention to provide a
storage system that is especially adapted to make use of space that
is under wall mounted cabinets.
[0006] It is a further object of the instant invention to provide a
drawer based storage system in which the drawer is mounted for
pivoting and sliding movement that is especially adapted to make
use of space that is otherwise unused, especially in kitchens and
other rooms with wall mounted cabinets.
[0007] It is yet another object of the invention to provide a
drawer based storage system in which the drawer can be hidden when
the drawer is closed.
[0008] It is still a further object of the invention to provide a
drawer based storage system which can be configured so that the
drawer can be removed from a frame in which is supported when
closed.
[0009] These and other objects and advantages will be apparent from
the description which follows, reference being made to the attached
drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING
[0010] FIG. 1 is a view in perspective showing a drawer storage
system according to the invention with a drawer supported in a
closed position.
[0011] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the drawer storage
system of FIG. 1 with the drawer in the open position at an
intermediate position between a retracted open position and an
extended open position as shown in FIG. 3.
[0012] FIG. 3 is a view in perspective showing the drawer storage
system of FIG. 1 with the drawer in the open and extended
position.
[0013] FIG. 4 is an enlarged perspective view showing one side of
an end of a cooperating drawer support including a groove in which
a peg of the drawer is received.
[0014] FIGS. 5-8 are plan views showing custom drawer storage
assemblies similar to that of FIG. 1, but differing in that the
drawers of the systems have been outfitted to make them
particularly useful for storing and, in some case, dispensing
particular household items.
[0015] FIG. 9 is a fragmentary view showing a catch comprising an
actuator and lock which can be used with any of the drawers of
FIGS. 1-8.
[0016] FIG. 10 is vertical sectional view taken along the line
10-10 of FIG. 9.
[0017] FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a second embodiment of
a groove for receiving a peg of a drawer according to the
invention.
[0018] FIG. 12 is a view in vertical section taken along the line
12-12 of FIG. 11, and showing the shape of the groove shown in FIG.
11.
[0019] FIG. 13 is a vertical sectional view showing a second
embodiment of a catch for maintaining the drawer in the closed
position.
[0020] FIG. 14 is a bottom view of the drawer showing another
embodiment of a catch for maintaining the drawer in the closed
position.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0021] Referring now in more detail to the drawings, an assembly
including a drawer 15 having a drawer bottom 16 is shown in FIGS. 1
through 3. The drawer has sides 17 and 18, which are parallel to
one another, and a drawer front 19. In the embodiment shown in
FIGS. 1 through 3, the back of the drawer 15 is open and, there is
a rod 20 extending between the sides 17 and 18 at the rear of the
drawer 15. The back of the drawer can include a drawer back (not
shown) corresponding somewhat with the drawer front 19. The drawer
15 is shown in a closed position in FIG. 1 where it is surrounded
by support sides 21 and 22, which are parallel to one another and
to the sides 17 and 18 of the drawer 15, to which they are closely
adjacent. The drawer 15 is further surrounded by a support front 23
which is closely adjacent and parallel to the front 19 of the
drawer 15 and a support back 24 which is parallel to the support
front 23. The support sides 21 and 22 and the support front and
back 23 and 24 constitute a support frame which frames the drawer
15 when it is in the closed position as shown in FIG. 1. It will be
appreciated that the support frame may actually be part of
something larger such as a wall cabinet or the like with the frame
defined by the lower ends of the cabinet back, sides and front.
Alternatively, the support frame can be attached to the underside
of a shelf (not shown) or the like. It is preferred that the
support frame include a support front 23 so as to hide the drawer
15 when it is in the closed position. This permits the drawer
storage system to blend in with a cabinet, for example when the
drawer is closed. The support back 24 is not necessary to the use
or operation of the drawer storage system but it can be
incorporated in the support frame if desired.
[0022] In the embodiments shown in the several drawing Figs., the
ends of the rod 20 extend through the sides 17 and 18 of the drawer
15, near the rear of the drawer. The ends of the rod 20 constitute
pegs 25 and 26 which extend from the drawer sides 17 and 18 to the
outside of the drawer sides 17 and 18, as can be seen in FIGS. 5
through 8, and into cooperating slots, one of which is indicated at
27 in FIGS. 2 through 8. The slot 27 is formed on the inside face
of the support side 21. A corresponding slot (not shown) is provide
on the inside face of the support side 22. The drawer sides 17 and
18 can be made smaller than what is shown in the drawing Figs. and
still perform the function of supporting the pegs 25 and 26.
[0023] The slots that cooperate with the pegs that extend from the
drawer sides may be simple, i.e., having a square or rectangular
cross-section or, as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, a contoured slot
with a dovetail shape may be used, as indicated at 29 in FIG. 12,
in a support side 21' with a cooperating slot 30 provided in
support side 22'. A correspondingly shaped peg (not shown) or a
wheel, as described below with reference to FIG. 12, can be used
with a contoured slot so that the peg or wheel will be retained
within the slot and its accidental removal from the slot will be
prevented. In these cases, it is preferred to provide an enlarged
opening such as indicated at 31 in FIG. 11 in order to facilitate
the initial placement of the drawer pegs within the slots as well
as the removal of the drawer pegs from the slots in case it is
desired to remove the drawer from the frame. With the simple peg
and slot configuration shown in FIGS. 1 through 8, drawer placement
and removal can be effected by manipulating the drawer so that one
of the pegs is closer to the support front 23 or the support back
24 of the drawer support frame than the other peg, until one of the
pegs is withdrawn from its slot. Alternatively, the pegs could be
retractable and movable between and extended position and a
retracted position and, if desired, resiliently urged into the
extended position. Of course, the slots could be external, i.e.,
defined by tracks (not shown) mounted on the inside of the support
frame sides.
[0024] As can be seen in FIG. 11, the back ends of the slots 29 and
30 are positioned near the top of the support sides 21' and 22'.
The front ends of the slots 29 and 30 are positioned near the
bottom of the support sides 21' and 22'. The slots 29 and 30 are
straight in between the front ends and the back ends although they
may be otherwise shaped. The enlarged openings 31 are positioned
between the front and back ends of the slots 29 and 30.
[0025] Referring now to FIG. 12, a contoured wheel 32 is carried in
the slot 29 and it is mounted for rotation on an axle 33 which, in
turn, is mounted on the drawer side 17. In this case, the rod 20
does not need to extend through the drawer side 17 as it is the
wheel 32 and the axle 33 on which it is mounted which constitute
the peg that supports the drawer 15' in the slot 29 in the support
side 21' of the support frame. Of course, a corresponding wheel and
axle could be provided on the drawer side 18 to support the drawer
in the slot 30.
[0026] Returning now to FIGS. 1 through 4, the movement of the
drawer 15 within the support frame will now be described. In FIG.
1, the drawer 15 is in a closed position. The back of the drawer 15
is supported by the pegs 25 and 26 (FIGS. 5 through 8) and the
front of the drawer is supported relative to the support frame by a
suitable catch. Several suitable catches are described below with
reference to FIGS. 9, 10, 13 and 14. When the catch is released,
the front of the drawer 15 is lowered as the pegs which extend
outwardly from the drawer sides 17 and 18 rotate in the slot 27 and
the corresponding slot in the support side 22. It is desirable that
the front of the drawer 15 be supported so as to prevent it from
falling rapidly, so that its movement is controlled. As soon as the
drawer front 19 is lowered below the support front 23, sliding
movement can begin and the drawer support pegs can be slid from the
back of the slots in the support sides 21 and 22 towards the front
of those slots. Rotation and sliding of the drawer 15 can continue
until the drawer is supported by the pegs cooperating with the
slots in the support sides 21 and 22 in the open extended position
shown in FIG. 3. As illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, when the drawer
15 is at rest and supported in the support frame in the open
extended position, the back of the drawer 15 is behind the support
front 23 while the drawer front 19 or a portion of it, anyway, is
in front of the support front 23. This is achieved by positioning
the pegs closer to upper surfaces 34 and 35 of the drawer sides 17
and 18 than to the drawer bottom 16. If the pegs are positioned
closer to the drawer bottom 16 than is shown in the drawings, then
the drawer 15, in the open position, will be supported so that it
hangs with the drawer bottom 16 more nearly vertical.
[0027] The closing of the drawer is achieved by sliding the drawer
15 from the extended position shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 towards the
retracted position until the drawer can be pivoted to the closed
position whereupon the catch, described further below, is engaged
to maintain the drawer 15 in the closed position. The catch is
operable in one position and inoperable in a second position to
prevent relative movement between at least a portion of the drawer
15 and a portion of the support frame.
[0028] The drawer 15 is shown in FIG. 1 in its closed position,
and, in FIGS. 9 and 10, maintained in the closed position by a
catch consisting of a blade 36 which is carried on and rotatable
with a pin 37 which, in turn, is connected to and rotatable with a
knob 38 which is on the outside of the drawer bottom 16. The pin 37
extends through the drawer bottom 16 giving the drawer storage
assembly a neat, clean appearance when the drawer 15 is closed. In
the position shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the blade 36 extends through
a slot in the drawer front 19 and into a recess in the support
front 23, acting as a catch to prevent relative movement between
the drawer 15 and the support frame. When it is desired to open the
drawer 15, the knob 38 is rotated one quarter turn clockwise,
causing the blade 36 to rotate out of the recess in the support
front 23 so that relative movement between the drawer 15 and the
support frame is not prevented. Any manner of catch is suitable for
use with the drawer storage system although preference would be
shown towards catches that provide a clean look when the drawer 15
is closed. Other examples of catches are described later with
reference to FIGS. 13 and 14.
[0029] One can begin to appreciate the versatility of the drawer
storage system of the present invention by reference to FIGS. 5
through 8. A custom drawer assembly is shown in FIG. 5 and it has a
shelf 39 and retainers 40 so that small containers, for example
spice containers (not shown), can be placed on the shelf 39 and
also on the drawer front 19, between the retainers 40 and the
drawer bottom 16 of the drawer 15, and the containers will be kept
in the positions in which they are placed on the shelf 39 and
drawer front 19 by the retainers 40 and the drawer bottom 16. Other
containers, for example flatware baskets (not shown) can be filled
with flatware and placed on the shelf 39 or the drawer front 19,
between the retainers 40 and the drawer bottom 16.
[0030] A second custom drawer assembly is illustrated in FIG. 6.
The drawer assembly has rods 41 and 42 supported between the drawer
sides 17 and 18, spaced from the drawer bottom 16. Roll material
indicated at 43 is mounted on the rod 42 for easy dispensing. If
desired, a cutting strip may be provided for the roll material
which could be anything from gift wrapping paper to plastic wrap to
parchment paper to foil to wax paper, etc.
[0031] A third custom drawer assembly is illustrated in FIG. 7. The
drawer assembly has three openings 43 in the drawer bottom 16'. In
FIG. 7, the openings 43 are all trapezoidal in shape although other
shapes may be utilized. The drawer bottom may have more or less
than three openings, if desired. A food storage bag from each of
three boxes can be pulled partially from its box, so that the food
storage bag extends out the top of the box, but is still engaged by
the food storage bags which remain in the box. Each of the three
boxes can then be placed over one of the openings 43, upside down,
with its partially released bag extending through one of the
openings in the drawer bottom 16', and the drawer 15 can be closed.
The drawer assembly used in this way can be maintained in its
closed position until it is time to replace an empty box of food
storage bags so that food storage bags or other household items can
be dispensed through the openings in the drawer bottom 16'.
[0032] A fourth custom drawer assembly is illustrated in FIG. 8. A
plurality of magnets 44, each of which is suitably attached to the
drawer bottom 16'', are operable to engage and retain any
ferro-magnetic object including utility knives, as illustrated, out
of sight and out of the reach of hands too young.
[0033] Referring now to FIG. 13, a catch for releasably retaining
the drawer 15 in the closed position is illustrated. The catch
consists of cooperating portions of a support frame front 23' and
of a drawer front 19'. The support frame front 23' includes a
projecting ledge 45 which is angled slightly and cooperates with a
protrusion 46 formed on the outer face of the drawer front 19' so
that when the protrusion 46 is placed on the ledge 45, the drawer
front 19' and, thus, the drawer, is supported relative to the
support frame front 23 and, thus, the support frame. In this case,
the slots in which the pegs or the like are received must extend
rearwardly (to the right in FIG. 13) far enough so that the drawer
can be moved rearwardly from the position shown in FIG. 13 until
the protrusion 46 clears the ledge 45, so that the drawer 15 may be
opened. The drawer 15 may be closed by moving the drawer rearwardly
and pivoting the drawer to bring it to a horizontal position and
then manipulating the drawer until the protrusion 46 is resting on
and supported by the ledge 45.
[0034] In FIG. 14, another catch is illustrated. The catch
comprises a pair of catch rods 47 with first ends mounted on a
rotatable actuator plate 48 and movable between a first, extended
position, shown in FIG. 14 and a second, retracted position shown
in phantom lines in FIG. 14. The rods 47 extend through openings in
the drawer sides 17 and 18 and, when the rods 47 are in the
extended position, distal ends 49 of the rods 47 are received in
openings in the support frame sides 21 and 22, thereby preventing
the drawer 15 from being opened. When the plate 48 is rotated from
the illustrated position, in the direction indicated by the arrows,
to the position shown in phantom, the distal ends 49 of the rods 47
are retracted from the support frame sides 21 and 22 so that the
drawer is not prevented from being opened. A knob 50 is provided to
facilitate turning of the plate 48.
[0035] It will be appreciated from the foregoing description of
preferred embodiments thereof that the instant invention is a
drawer storage system including a drawer and a support frame for
the drawer. The drawer has a bottom and two sides and a front and
support pegs extend from the drawer outwardly into grooves in the
support frame. The drawer is rotatable between a closed and an open
position and, when in the open position, is slidable between a
retracted and an extended position.
* * * * *