U.S. patent application number 12/260283 was filed with the patent office on 2010-04-29 for accessories cabinet.
Invention is credited to Paul F. Chambers, David P. Noe.
Application Number | 20100102689 12/260283 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 42116794 |
Filed Date | 2010-04-29 |
United States Patent
Application |
20100102689 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Chambers; Paul F. ; et
al. |
April 29, 2010 |
ACCESSORIES CABINET
Abstract
A vertically oriented generally rectangular box with a hinged
lid is pivotally supported on a pull-out slide permitting the box
to be linearly displaced and rotated between a stored position and
a use position. Two or more such boxes can be vertically stacked
for independent movement and use. The box sides and rails on the
door interior include opposed rows of holes accepting pins that are
received in inclined slots in the sides of a plurality of
accessories supports that can be selectively positioned within the
box.
Inventors: |
Chambers; Paul F.;
(Jeffersontown, KY) ; Noe; David P.;
(Jeffersontown, KY) |
Correspondence
Address: |
INDIANAPOLIS OFFICE 27879;BRINKS HOFER GILSON & LIONE
CAPITAL CENTER, SUITE 1100, 201 NORTH ILLINOIS STREET
INDIANAPOLIS
IN
46204-4220
US
|
Family ID: |
42116794 |
Appl. No.: |
12/260283 |
Filed: |
October 29, 2008 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
312/257.1 ;
312/329 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47B 88/48 20170101 |
Class at
Publication: |
312/257.1 ;
312/329 |
International
Class: |
A47B 43/00 20060101
A47B043/00; A47B 96/00 20060101 A47B096/00 |
Claims
1. An accessories cabinet comprising: a support, a generally
rectangular box coupled to the support for displacement relative to
the support, the box having an upper end, a lower end, and a back
member extending between the upper and lower ends, box sides
extending between the box upper and lower ends, the sides including
a plurality of openings directed to the box interior generally
parallel to the back member, a door coupled to the box to move
between an open position exposing the box interior and a shut
position closing the box, the door having an interior surface and
an exterior surface, a pair of vertical rails fixed to the door
interior surface, the rails including a plurality of openings
directed generally parallel to the door interior surface, at least
one pair of pins, each pair of pins being received in a selected
pair of the plurality of openings opposite each other, and an
accessories support situated within the cabinet having side
portions, each side portion including an inclined slot coupled to
one of the pairs of pins.
2. The accessories cabinet of claim 1, further comprising slide
members coupled between the support and the generally rectangular
box to facilitate linear movement of the box between a stored
position inhibiting access to the box interior and a use position
exposing the door for entry to the box interior.
3. The accessories cabinet of claim 2, further comprising a pivot
mechanism situated between the slide members and the generally
rectangular box to permit rotation of the box from a storage
alignment with the slides to a display alignment facilitating
access to the box interior.
4. The accessories cabinet of claims 1, 2, or 3, further comprising
a mirror coupled to at least one of the interior and exterior
surfaces of the door.
5. The accessories cabinet of claims 1, 2, or 3, wherein the
accessories support includes at least one drawer.
6. The accessories cabinet of claims 1, 2, or 3, wherein the
accessories support includes at least one inclined surface upon
which personal accessories can be displayed.
7. The accessories cabinet of claims 1, 2, or 3, wherein the
accessories support includes at least one projecting member for
supporting a draping accessory.
8. An accessories cabinet comprising: a support, a generally
rectangular box coupled to the support for displacement relative to
the support, the box having an upper end, a lower end, and a back
member extending between the upper and lower ends, box sides
extending between the box upper and lower ends, the box interior
including an accessories support, a door coupled to the box to move
between an open position exposing the box interior and accessories
support, and a shut position closing the box, the door having an
interior surface and an exterior surface, slide members coupled
between the support and the generally rectangular box to facilitate
linear movement of the box between a stored position inhibiting
access to the box interior and a use position exposing the door for
entry to the box interior, and a pivot mechanism situated between
the slide members and the generally rectangular box to permit
rotation of the box from a storage alignment with the slides to a
display alignment facilitating access to the box interior.
9. The accessories cabinet of claims 3 or 8 wherein the pivot
mechanism comprises a turntable including a first ring fixed to one
of the slide members, a second ring fixed to one of the upper and
lower ends of the box, an a rotational bearing coupling the first
and second rings to each other.
10. The accessories cabinet of claim 9 further comprising at least
one pair of lobes situated on a surface of one of the first and
second rings, the lobes being separated by a notch, and a follower
fixed to the other of the first and second rings and contacting
said surface other of the first and second rings.
11. The accessories cabinet of claim 10, further comprising a
mirror coupled to at least one of the interior and exterior
surfaces of the door.
12. The accessories cabinet of claim 11, wherein the exterior
surface of the door further comprises a handle facilitating the
opening of the door.
13. The accessories cabinet of claim 10, further comprising a
cabinet face plate coupled to one of the box sides, the face plate
extending above the box upper end and below the box lower end.
14. The accessories cabinet of claim 13, wherein the cabinet face
plate further comprises a handle facilitating movement of the box
and slide members between the stored position and the use
position.
15. An accessories cabinet comprising: a support, a pair of
generally rectangular boxes coupled to the support for displacement
relative to the support, each of the boxes having an upper end, a
lower end, and a back member extending between the upper and lower
ends, and box sides extending between the box upper and lower ends
of each box, a door coupled to at least one of the boxes to
independently move between an open position exposing the at least
one box interior and a shut position closing each box, each door
having an interior surface and an exterior surface, slide members
coupled between the support and each of the generally rectangular
boxes to facilitate independent linear movement of each box between
a stored position inhibiting access to each box interior and a use
position exposing the door of each box for entry to the box
interior, and a pivot mechanism situated between each of the slide
members and each of the generally rectangular boxes coupled to the
slide members to permit independent rotation of each box from a
storage alignment with the slides to a display alignment
facilitating access to the box interior.
16. The accessories cabinet of claim 15, wherein the sides of each
box include a plurality of opposed openings directed to the box
interior generally parallel to the back member, wherein a pair of
vertical rails is fixed to an interior surface of at least one of
the doors, the rails including a plurality of opposed openings
directed generally parallel to the door interior surface, a
plurality of pair of pins, each pair of pins being received in a
selected opposed pair of the plurality of openings, and at least
one accessories support situated within each cabinet, each
accessories support having side portions, each side portion
including an inclined slot coupled to one of the pairs of pins.
17. The accessories cabinet of claim 15 or 16, further comprising a
mirror coupled to at least one of the interior and exterior
surfaces of at least one of the doors, and the exterior surface of
each door further comprises a handle facilitating each opening of
the door.
18. The accessories cabinet of claim 15 or 16, further comprising a
cabinet face plate coupled to one of the box sides of each of the
boxes, each face plate extending above the box upper end and below
the box lower end of the box to which the face plate is coupled,
the face plates forming a substantially continuous surface when the
accessories cabinet is situated in the stored position.
19. The accessories cabinet of claim 16, wherein a first
accessories support includes a plurality of projecting member for
supporting draping accessories, and a second accessories support
positioned below the first accessories support includes an inclined
surface upon which personal accessories draped on the first support
can be displayed.
20. The accessories cabinet of claim 15, further comprising a
follower fixed to at least one of the slide members and positioned
to engage the support when the slide member is in the stored
position.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention generally relates to cabinets suitable
for use in domestic areas such as closets and dressing areas, and
particularly to cabinets adapted to be installed in closet systems
to hold personal accessories and supported to permit the cabinet to
be easily moved from a storage position to a use position.
[0003] 2. Description of the Prior Art
[0004] There are presently available any number of closet systems
to assist one with the organization of clothing and accessories
within a closet, particularly a walk-in closet. The closet systems
often have a plurality of baskets or drawers, one or more series of
shelves that may be vertically sub-divided, some areas having
horizontal rods for receiving hangers, and so forth. Some closet
systems include slide-out panels for organizing and storing various
articles of clothing and accessories. The slide-out panels have the
advantage of occupying only a small amount of wall space, while
providing substantial storage area. Examples of such slide-out
panels that can be used in closet systems are shown in U.S. Pat.
Nos. 5,076,442; 5,468,063 and 7,281,634. One difficulty with such
slide-out panels is that access is generally limited to only one
side of the panel, although access to the opposite side may be
permitted by sliding the panel into the stored position, walking
past the panel and then extending the panel outward. Alternatively,
if one has sufficient space which is often not the case even in a
walk-in closet, one might walk around an outwardly extended panel
to view the opposite sides of the panel.
[0005] The known closet systems utilize a variety of means to
provide for the adjustment and/or substitution of storage elements
to contain various articles of clothing and personal accessories.
One common adjustment system employs a vertical pegboard with an
array of holes that can engage various hangers and supports at a
variety of locations. For example, pegboard appears in the
disclosure of U.S. Pat. No. 5,468,063. While such a pegboard system
provides the desired flexibility in the placement of the various
supports and hangers, pegboard lacks the esthetics that is
desirable, particularly in high end closet system
installations.
[0006] There is therefore an unsatisfied need for an esthetically
acceptable accessories cabinet that can be included in a high end
closet system that can hold a substantial inventory of personal
accessories and be supported to permit the cabinet to be easily
moved from a storage position, where the contents is substantially
inaccessible, to a use position, where the contents of the cabinet
can be completely accessed without substantial movement of the
person desiring access.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0007] In one aspect, an accessories cabinet of the present
invention can have a support, which can be secured in a closet at a
desired location. A generally rectangular box can be coupled to the
support for displacement relative to the support between a storage
position and a use position. The box can have an upper end, a lower
end, a back member extending between the upper and lower ends, and
box sides extending between the box upper and lower ends. The box
sides can include a plurality of openings directed toward the box
interior generally parallel to the back member. A door can be
coupled to the box to move between an open position exposing the
box interior and a shut position closing the box, the door having
an interior surface and an exterior surface. A pair of vertical
rails can be fixed to the door interior surface, the rails
including a plurality of openings directed generally parallel to
the door interior surface. At least one pair of pins can be
included, each pair of pins being received in a selected pair of
the plurality of openings opposite each other. An accessories
support can be situated within the cabinet that have side portions,
each side portion including an inclined slot coupled to one of the
pairs of pins.
[0008] In another aspect, an accessories cabinet of the present
invention can have a support, which can be secured in a closet at a
desired location. A generally rectangular box can be included for
displacement relative to the support. The box can have an upper
end, a lower end, a back member extending between the upper and
lower ends, and box sides extending between the box upper and lower
ends, with the including at least one accessories support. A door
having an interior surface and an exterior surface can be coupled
to the box to move between an open position exposing the box
interior and accessories support, and a shut position closing the
box. Slide members can be coupled between the support and the
generally rectangular box to facilitate linear movement of the box
between a stored position inhibiting access to the box interior and
a use position exposing the door for entry to the box interior. A
pivot mechanism can be situated between the slide members and the
generally rectangular box to permit rotation of the box from a
storage alignment inline with the slides to a display alignment
facilitating access to the box interior.
[0009] In yet another aspect, an accessories cabinet of the present
invention can have a support, which can be secured in a closet at a
desired location. Two or more generally rectangular boxes can be
coupled to the support for independent displacement relative to the
support. Each of the boxes can have an upper end, a lower end, a
back member extending between the upper and lower ends, and box
sides extending between the box upper and lower ends of each box. A
door having an interior and exterior surface can be coupled to at
least one of the boxes to independently move between an open
position exposing the box interior and a shut position closing each
box. Slide members can be coupled between the support and each of
the generally rectangular boxes to facilitate independent linear
movement of each box between a stored position inhibiting access to
each box interior and a use position exposing any door of the box
leading to entry to the box interior. A pivot mechanism can be
situated between each of the slide members supporting a given
rectangular box and each of the generally rectangular boxes coupled
to the slide members to permit independent rotation of each box
from a storage alignment with the slides to a display alignment
facilitating access to the box interior.
[0010] In the various aspects of the present invention a mirror can
be coupled to either the interior and exterior surfaces of the
door. At least one drawer can be situated within the cabinet. At
least one inclined surface can be included within the cabinet upon
which personal accessories can be displayed. At least one
projecting member can be included within the cabinet for supporting
a draping accessory, such as a tie or necklace.
[0011] In the various aspects of the present invention the pivot
mechanism can be a turntable, which can include a first ring fixed
to one of the slide members, a second ring fixed to one of the
upper and lower ends of the box, an a rotational bearing coupling
the first and second rings to each other. At least one pair of
lobes can be situated on a surface of one of the first and second
rings, the lobes being separated by a notch. A follower can be
fixed to the other of the first and second rings so as to contact
the lobe bearing surface other ring.
[0012] In the various aspects of the present invention, an exterior
surface of the door can include a handle facilitating the opening
of the door. A cabinet face plate can be coupled to one of the box
sides, the face plate having upper and lower ends that can extend
above the box upper end and below the box lower end. The face
plates can be dimensioned to form a substantially continuous
surface with adjacent closet system faceplates when the accessories
cabinet is situated in the stored position. The cabinet face plate
can further include a handle facilitating movement of the box and
slide members between the stored position and the use position.
[0013] In the various aspects of the present invention, the sides
of each box can include a plurality of opposed openings directed to
the box interior generally parallel to the back member.
Additionally, a pair of vertical rails can be fixed to at least the
interior surface of at least one of the doors, the rails including
a plurality of opposed openings directed generally parallel to the
door interior surface. A plurality of pair of pins can be received
in selected opposed pairs of the plurality of openings. At least
one accessories support can be situated within each cabinet, each
accessory support having side portions, and each side portion can
include an inclined slot coupled to one of the pairs of pins
extending inward from either the box sides or the rails mixed to
the doors. The accessories supports can be easily moved from one
location to another.
[0014] Each of the accessory supports can be suitably finished to
meet the esthetic demands of the particular installation. The
connection between the various accessory supports is coupled to the
generally rectangular box so that the coupling mechanism including
openings receiving supporting pins has only a minimal visual impact
on the assembly as a whole.
[0015] Other features and advantages of the present invention will
become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following
disclosure of preferred embodiments of the present invention
exemplifying the best mode of practicing the invention. The
following disclosure references the accompanying drawings
illustrating the preferred embodiments.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0016] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a two box accessories
cabinet of the present invention, with the lower box in a stored
position and the upper box in the use position.
[0017] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of another accessories cabinet
of the present invention containing a variety of accessories
supports.
[0018] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an accessories cabinet of
the present invention with the accessories supports removed.
[0019] FIG. 4 is a detail taken from FIG. 3 showing the holes and
pins that can be used to hold the accessories supports within the
cabinet.
[0020] FIG. 5 is a perspective detail view of an accessories
support showing an inclined slot for engaging one of the pins.
[0021] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a combined slide and pivot
mechanism that can be used to support the boxes in an accessories
cabinet of the present invention.
[0022] FIG. 7 is a plan view of another combined slide and pivot
mechanism that can be used to support the boxes in an accessories
cabinet of the present invention, with portions broken away.
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0023] An accessories cabinet 10 is shown in FIG. 1 to include an
upper box 12 and a lower box 14. The accessories cabinet 10 can
consist of only a single box, which can be vertically elongated
from that shown in FIG. 1. The accessories cabinet 10 can have a
support 16, which can be secured in a closet at a desired location.
In FIG. 1, the support 16 is shown to be position immediately
adjacent to another unit 18 of a closet system, which is shown in
phantom. The support 16 can be situated between two such other
units 18. The support 16 can include a plurality of tracks 20
projecting outward from a rear surface 21 of the cabinet 10. Each
of the upper box 12 and lower box 14 can be coupled to the tracks
20 for displacement relative to the support 16 between a storage
position and a use position. The lower box 14 is shown in FIG. 1 in
a stored position where the box 14 is recessed into the support 16
as far as possible. The upper box 12 is shown in FIG. 1 in a use
position where the box 12 is extended outward on the tracks 20 so
that the contents of the box 12 are accessible. It will also be
noted that lower box 14 is substantially aligned with the tracks 20
while upper box 12 has been turned relative to the tracks 20. A
pivot mechanism 22 can be provided between each of the boxes 12, 14
and the supporting tracks 20 to facilitate this turning of the
boxes in relation to the tracks 20. A possible pivot mechanism 22
is shown in FIG. 6 and will be discussed further below.
[0024] Each of the boxes can have an upper end 24, a lower end 26,
and a back member 28 extending between the upper and lower ends 24,
26. Each of the boxes can have box sides 30 extending between the
box upper end 24 and the box lower end 26. A door 32 can be coupled
to either side of the box 12, 14 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 to move
between an open position exposing the box interior and a shut
position closing the box. The door 32 can have an interior surface
34 and an exterior surface 36. The exterior surface 36 can support
a mirror. The exterior surface 36 of the door 32 can also include a
handle facilitating the opening of the door 32. A pair of vertical
rails 38 can be fixed to the door interior surface 34 as shown in
FIG. 3. The rails 38 can include a plurality of openings 40
directed generally parallel to the door interior surface 34. At
least one pair of pins 42 can be included, each pair of pins 42
being received in a selected pair of the plurality of openings 40
opposite each other. An accessories support 44, such as a ring
support 46, a necklace support 48, or tie support 50 can be coupled
to the pins 42 to secure the accessories support 44 to the door
interior surface 34. The particular arrangement of the accessories
supports 44 relative to the door interior is subject to variation,
which is facilitated by selective movement of the pins 42 in the
various openings 40 of the rails 38. A mirror 52 can also be
coupled to the door interior surface 34 in the same manner.
[0025] Each of the accessories supports 44, as well as the mirror
52, can include side portions 54 shown in detail in FIG. 5. Each
side portion 54 can extend between an accessories support front
wall 56 and back edge 58. The side portions 54 on the accessories
supports 44 mounted on the door interior surface 34 can be spaced
from each other by a distance approximating the distance between
the vertical rails 38. Each side portion 54 can include at least
one inclined slot 60 that can extend upward from the back edge 58
toward the front wall 56. Each of the inclined slots 60 is sized to
receive one of the pins 42 extending inward from the vertical rails
38. The inclined slots 60 can be situated at a common position on
both sides 54 of the accessories support 44. Installation of an
accessories support 44 does not require any tools as the support 44
is retained in position by gravity. As previously indicated, the
pins 42 can be selectively located at various positions along the
rails 38 so that the various accessories supports 44 can be
repositioned from time to time as desired.
[0026] The box sides 30 can include a plurality of openings 62
directed toward the box interior generally parallel to the back
member 28 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. The openings 62 can be
arranged in one or more than one vertical row 64. The openings 62
can receive pins 42 or brackets for supporting shelves 66. The
shelves 66, like the accessories supports 44, can include the
inclined slots 60 is sized to receive one of the pins 42 extending
inward from the box sides 30. The shelves 66 can be divided by
dividers 68 and can receive drawers 70. The pins 42 in the openings
62 can also support various other accessories supports 44 including
ear ring supports 72 and an inclined necklace rest 74 situated
below the necklace support 48. The lower end 26 of the box 12
and/or box 14 can also support an additional accessories support 44
such as a subdivided box 76 suitable for receiving cuff links,
rings, or other clothing accessories, as shown in FIGS. 1 and
2.
[0027] In FIG. 1, the outer ends 77 of the supporting tracks 20 are
visible, but particularly when the boxes 12, 14 are in their stored
position, the visibility of the supporting tracks 20 is
undesirable. Thus, a face plate 78 can be coupled to one side 30 of
each box 12, 14, as shown in FIG. 3. Each face plate 78 can have an
upper end 80 and a lower end 82 that can extend above the box upper
end 24 and below the box lower end 26, respectively. The face
plates 78 can be dimensioned to form a substantially continuous
surface with faceplates of any adjacent closet systems 18 the
accessories cabinet 10 is situated in the stored position. The
cabinet face plate 10 can further include a handle 84 facilitating
movement of the box 12 or 14, and coupled slide members 20 between
the stored position and the use position. Both the face plate 78
and the handle 84 are subject to a wide variety of design to meet
the esthetic demands of any particular installation.
[0028] FIGS. 6 and 7 show a pivot mechanism 22 that can be used
between each of the boxes 12,14 and the supporting tracks 20 to
facilitate this turning of the boxes 12, 14 in relation to the
tracks 20. The pivot mechanism 22 can be a turntable 86, which can
include a first ring 88 fixed to one of the slide members 90
coupled to the supporting tracks 20. The slide members 90 move in
and out of the cabinet 10 with the forward and rearward movement of
the boxes 12, 14. The turntable 86 can also include a second ring
92 fixed to either the upper end 24 or the lower end 26 of one of
the boxes 12, 14. A rotational bearing, such as a ball bearing
race, can couple the first ring 88 to the second ring 92 so the
rings can rotate with respect to each other so that the boxes 12,
14 can be rotated with respect to the slide members 90. At least
one pair of lobes 96 can be situated on a surface 100 of one of the
first and second rings 88, 92, the lobes being separated by a notch
98. At least one follower 94 can be fixed to the other of the first
and second rings 88, 92 so as to contact the lobe bearing surface
100 to provide at least one stop position, preferably with the box
12, 14 aligned with either the use position or the storage
position. FIG. 7 shows a pair of followers 94 situated on opposite
sides of ring surface 100 to provide a pair of stop positions
separated by 180.degree.. An additional follower 102 can be
provided at a rear portion of at least one of the slide members 90
to interact with a detent, not shown, that is fixed to a rear
surface 21 of the cabinet 10. The additional follower 102 can act
as a retention mechanism to hold the boxes 12, 14 in a fully
retracted storage position within the cabinet 10.
[0029] From the forgoing description of the structure and operation
of a preferred embodiment of the present invention, it will be
apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention is
susceptible to numerous modifications and embodiments within the
ability of those skilled in the art and without exercise of the
inventive facility. Accordingly, the scope of the present invention
is defined as set forth of the following claims.
* * * * *