U.S. patent number 3,807,320 [Application Number 05/214,061] was granted by the patent office on 1974-04-30 for rack assembly.
This patent grant is currently assigned to The General Fireproofing Company. Invention is credited to Melvin A. Textoris.
United States Patent |
3,807,320 |
Textoris |
April 30, 1974 |
RACK ASSEMBLY
Abstract
A storage rack includes a pair of upright members adapted to
adjustably support, in a cantilever manner, a plurality of shelf
elements. Each upright comprises a pair of half channel sections
forming hook cavities at each corner of the uprights to permit
attachment of up to four shelf elements to each upright while a
separate lock bar on each shelf engageable within one said cavity,
allows independent vertical adjustment of each shelf.
Inventors: |
Textoris; Melvin A. (Chagrin
Falls, OH) |
Assignee: |
The General Fireproofing
Company (Youngstown, OH)
|
Family
ID: |
22797619 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/214,061 |
Filed: |
December 30, 1971 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
108/106; 211/187;
211/193; 108/186 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47B
57/26 (20130101); F16B 12/02 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
A47B
57/26 (20060101); A47B 57/00 (20060101); F16B
12/00 (20060101); F16B 12/02 (20060101); A47b
009/08 () |
Field of
Search: |
;108/111,114,158,106,108,109,110 ;211/148,177 ;298/243,188 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
634,961 |
|
Jan 1962 |
|
CA |
|
510,988 |
|
Aug 1939 |
|
GB |
|
Primary Examiner: Gay; Bobby R.
Assistant Examiner: Aschenbrenner; Peter A.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Groff; Emory L. Groff, Jr.; Emory
L.
Claims
I claim:
1. A storage rack comprising, at least two spaced-apart upright
members, support means at the bottom of said members, engageable
with a floor, a shelf element disposed between and connected to
said upright members at adjacent corners thereof, said shelf
element including a vertical inner wall and a pair of adjacent
vertical sidewalls disposed normal to said inner wall, the ends of
said inner wall and the adjacent ends of said sidewalls provided
with free edges engageable with said upright members, each said
upright member including a pair of half channel sections connected
in back-to-back realtionship, each said section having an end wall
engageable with said free edge of one said shelf element sidewall
and also having an intermediate web disposed normal to said end
wall and engageable with said free edge of one end of said shelf
element inner wall, said section including an inside wall parallel
to said web and intermediate said end wall and web to define a hook
cavity therebetween extending substantially the height of said
upright member, said hook cavity bounded by a catch flange directed
rearwardly from said end wall to said web, lock means on said shelf
element adjacent said inner wall and side wall free edges, said
lock means including an adjustable lock bar carried by said shelf
element insertable within said channel section cavity and
vertically displaceable therein to selectively position said shelf
element, said lock bar having a hook arm disposed behind said catch
flange and directed towards said channel section end wall, and
releasable fastener means on said lock bar to clamp said lock bar
against said channel section catch flange to rigidly abut the shelf
element free edges to said channel section end wall and web.
2. A storage rack, according to claim 1, wherein each said
half-channel section includes two said end walls and hook cavities
with said web intermediate said two hook cavities.
3. A storage rack according to claim 1 wherein, said lock means
includes a mounting bracket affixed to said shelf element at each
end thereof and provided with an opening, said fastener means
including a stud extending from said lock bar through said bracket
opening and a nut on said stud movable to urge said lock bar toward
said bracket.
4. A storage rack according to claim 1 wherein, said support means
includes a beam extending substantially in one direction from said
upright members and said shelf element is disposed above said
beam.
5. A storage rack according to claim 4 wherein, said beam is
substantially hollow and one end thereof adjacent said upright
member is provided with an opening, and an end cap removably
attached over said beam opening.
6. A storage rack according to claim 5 including, a second beam
having a telescopic portion insertable through said beam opening
when said end cap is removed.
7. A storage rack according to claim 5 including, adjustable glides
attached to the undersurface of said beam adjacent the ends
thereof.
8. A storage rack according to claim 1 wherein, said support means
includes a pair of beams interlocked to each other and extending in
opposite directions from each said upright member, and one of said
shelf elements is disposed above each said beams.
Description
This invention relates generally, to a storage rack, and more
particularly, to a rack structure comprising a pair of vertically
disposed uprights adapted to adjustably support a plurality of
shelf elements and wherein the basic components comprising each
individual rack assembly may be ganged to provide a unitary
assembly including any number of individual rack units.
It is well known to provide rack assemblies comprising a pair of
spaced-apart uprights suitably supported by floor-engaging
standards and wherein one or more shelf elements may be adjustably
positioned between the uprights. The present arrangement offers an
improved construction involving a unique channel assembly for each
of the uprights comprising a pair of half channel sections which
cooperate with a locking device at each end of the shelf elements
for securing these elements at the desired elevation. Each upright
member is constructed to permit attachment of a shelf element to
each corner thereof such that a total of four shelf elements may be
independently supported by each upright for individual vertical
adjustment thereon.
In the present instance, the rack assembly may comprise, on the one
hand, two uprights each of which is supported by means of a main
support beam extending substantially in only one direction from its
point of attachment to the upright so that the rack may be placed
substantially flush against a wall while permitting subsequent
ready adjustment of all shelf elements attached thereto without the
necessity of moving the rack assembly from its position adjacent
the wall. On the other hand, the very same construction may be
readily adapted to provide a double-faced rack assembly for use in
a position well spaced from any walls merely by the addition of an
alternate support beam to each of the supporting standards.
Thereafter, it is only necessary to quickly attach the desired
number of shelf elements to the opposite face of the upright to
obtain a double-faced assembly.
Accordingly, one of the primary objects of the present invention is
to provide an improved rack assembly including a pair of vertically
disposed upright constructed to permit ready attachment and removal
of shelf elements thereto and also permitting vertical adjustment
thereof.
A further object of the present invention is to provide an improved
rack assembly for the adjustable support of shelf elements and
including an upright member having a plurality of hook cavities
therein adjacent opposite corners thereof to permit independent
attachment of at least a pair of shelf elements thereto.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an
improved rack assembly including shelf elements adjustably
supported on spaced-apart uprights, which uprights are attached to
horizontally disposed standards and wherein said standards may be
readily modified to provide a rack assembly for flush mounting
against a wall or as a double-faced assembly well spaced from any
walls.
With these and other objects in view which will more readily appear
as the nature of the invention is better understood, the invention
consists in the novel construction, combination, and arrangement of
parts hereinafter more fully described, illustrated, and
claimed.
A preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown in the
accompanying drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the rack assembly of the present
invention.
FIG. 2 is an enlarged horizontal sectional view taken along the
line 2--2 of FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary side elevation, partly in
section, taken along the line 3--3 of FIG. 1.
FIG. 4 is an enlarged transverse sectional view taken along the
line 4--4 of FIG. 3.
FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the adjustable
locking mechanism for attaching the shelving elements to the
upright members.
FIG. 6 is a horizontal sectional view taken along the line 6--6 of
FIG. 3.
Similar reference characters designate corresponding parts
throughout the several figures of the drawings.
Referring now to the drawings, particularly FIG. 1, the present
invention will be seen to comprise a rack assembly including a
plurality of upright members 1, each of which is disposed in a
vertical position and retained therein by means of a standard,
generally designated S. Adapted to span the distance between each
pair of adjacent uprights 1 are a plurality of shelf elements 2.
Preferably a first shelf element is attached to the uprights 1 at a
point immediately adjacent the standard S and thus serves to
rigidly interlock the respective uprights 1 at the lower portion of
the rack assembly while any number of additional shelves 2 may be
selectively installed and locked at the desired position throughout
the remaining portion of the uprights 1. The arrangement shown in
FIG. 1 discloses both a laterally ganged and double-faced
installation wherein the standards extend forwardly and rearwardly
from each upright 1 substantially an equal distance and shelf
elements 2 are mounted on opposite faces of each of the uprights on
the one hand, and also are mounted adjacent to one another on the
other hand.
The specific construction of each standard S may vary from that
disclosed in the present drawings. However, it is desirable to
utilize an arrangement generally similar to that shown in order to
permit the ready modification of the rack assembly from a
single-faced device to a double-faced assembly. As will be seen
most clearly in FIG. 3 of the drawings, the standard S includes a
main support beam 3, preferably of hollow construction with a
box-like configuration, and having a forward end wall 4 closing the
outermost portion of the hollow support beam 3. The beam extends
rearwardly a slight distance beyond the rear face of the upright 1
and terminates with a vertically disposed rear edge 5. The bottom 6
of the upright 1 is suitably attached to the upper portion of the
main support beam 3 such as by welding thereto. Mounted upon the
lower surface of the main support beam at a point adjacent the rear
edge 5 is a central adjustable glide 7, while a similar adjustable
glide 8 is mounted to the undersurface of the forward portion of
the support beam 3 adjacent the end wall 4 thereof. The
construction of these glides is well known in the art and means
must be provided to permit the ready removal and attachment of at
least the central adjustable glide 7 for reasons which will become
apparent immediately hereinafter.
In the case of a single-faced installation, wherein the rack
assembly is intended to be placed immediately adjacent a wall and
shelf elements 2 will be mounted only on one face of the uprights,
the main support beam 3 may be closed at its rear opening by means
of any suitable removable end cap 9, preferably of plastic,
enclosing the rear of the support beam to preclude the entrance of
dirt or other foreign material into the beam interior and also
serving as anti-scuff bumper means when the unit abuts a wall.
Modification of a single-faced assembly in order to achieve a
double-faced arrangement, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, is readily
accomplished by removing the aforedescribed end cap 9 and attaching
the alternate support beam 10. This alternate support beam is of
similar construction as the main support beam 3 and also includes
an outboard adjustable glide 8 at the free end thereof while its
opposite open end is provided with a telescopic portion 11 adapted
to provide a close sliding fit within the interior of the rear
portion of the main support beam 3 whereby, when the alternate
support beam 10 is combined with the main support beam 3, as shown
in FIG. 3, any suitable means such as the fasteners 12 may be
employed to lock the two support beams 3 and 10 together.
The construction of each of the upright members 1 will be
understood to be the same whether the rack assembly is employed in
the single-faced or double-faced configuration. Each upright
comprises a pair of imperforate half channel sections 13-13 secured
in back-to-back relationship when viewed from the front or rear of
the rack assembly and as shown most clearly in FIGS. 2 and 6. Each
half section comprises a pair of opposite end walls 14 having an
inwardly directed catch flange 15 at its outer edge. Medially
disposed between each pair of end walls 14 is an intermediate web
16 in turn joined to an inner wall 17 at each edge thereof parallel
to the end walls. The opposite edge of each inner wall 17 is
connected to an inside wall 18 parallel to the webs 16 whereby each
end wall 14, inside wall 18 and inner wall 17 cooperate to define a
hook cavity 19 at four points about the periphery of the upright
member 1.
From the above description, it will be seen that each upright in
effect provides four different quadrants having a similar
construction and which are intended to cooperate with anywhere from
one to four different shelf elements 2 to provide support therefor.
This cooperation between the upright channel 1 and shelf elements 2
will be most apparent from a consideration of FIGS. 2 and 3 of the
drawings.
Each shelf element 2 includes a horizontally disposed platform 20
having an outer flange 21 along one longitudinal edge thereof and
an inner wall 22 depending from the opposite longitudinal edge
thereof adjacent a pair of spaced-apart uprights 1. Side walls 23
depend from the two lateral edges of the platform 20 and include
bottom flanges 24 cooperating with bottom flanges 25 on the inner
walls 22 and bottom flanges 26 on the outer flanges 21 to provide a
rigid construction for each shelf element.
Rigidly attached at each rear corner of the shelf 2 is a shelf
mounting bracket generally designated 27 and which includes a pair
of edge flanges 28 affixed to the side wall 23 and inner wall 22 of
the shelf, respectively. The shelf mounting bracket 27 is provided
with a central web 29 preferably disposed at a 45.degree. angle
with respect to the edge flanges 28--28 and connected thereto by
means of a pair of adjacent angled side arms 30. As will be seen in
FIG. 2, the corner portions of the inner wall 22 and side wall 23,
as well as the remaining structure of each shelf in this area, are
notched or foreshortened in order to permit a mating fit between
this area of the shelf and the juxtaposed portion of the upright
members 1. Each shelf mounting bracket 27 carries a lock bar
generally designated 30' and which is adjustably connected to the
mounting bracket 27 by means of a stud 31 freely disposed through
an opening in the central web 29 of the mounting bracket so that
the free end thereof may receive any suitable fastening element
such as the wing-nut 32 shown in the drawings. The lock bar 30'
includes a base plate 33 which carries the stud 31 and an
intermediate plate 34 disposed normal to one edge of the base plate
33. Angled inwardly from the opposite edge of the intermediate
plate 34 is a hook arm 35 having its free edge spaced from the
opposed surface of the base plate 33 to permit access to the catch
opening 36 formed within the confines of the components of the lock
bar.
The manner of attachment of the shelf elements to the uprights will
now be readily appreciated. When the two rear corners of a shelf
are positioned adjacent a pair of respective spaced apart upright
members 1--1, the hook arms 35 are inserted into the respective
cavities 19 of the juxtaposed uprights and engage behind the catch
flanges 15 on the end walls 14 of the channel half sections. When
the shelf has been vertically positioned to the desired location,
it is then only necessary to tighten the fastening element 32 in
order to draw the lock bar towards the shelf mounting bracket 27
until the free edges 22a and 23a of the shelf inner wall and side
wall tightly engage the intermediate web 16 and end wall 14,
respectively, of the upright member.
* * * * *