Shelf Assembly

Abstract

This shelf assembly includes a unitary shelf, which is adjustably supported between vertical end panels by a pair of brackets detachably attached to each panel. The panels include opposed pairs of vertical grooves, each groove providing a bearing face at one side, and vertically spaced seating slots at the other side. The brackets are ell-shaped and include an upright leg providing a bearing portion, and an outstanding leg providing a seating portion. The outstanding leg is wider than the groove, and the brackets are attached to the panel by inserting the outstanding leg seating portion into a slot at one side of the groove, and rotating the upright leg into bearing relation with the other side of the groove.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to a shelf assembly, and particularly to an elevationally adjustable bookshelf assembly.

In general, adjustable bookshelves of the type under consideration, are connected to vertical end panels by bracket elements attached to the panels or by support elements which extend from the bookshelves and are engageable with cooperating recesses on the panels. In the former type of connection the brackets are usually attached to recesses substantially in the plane of the panel and are susceptible to being dislodged inadvertently by any slight upward force. The latter type of connection, on the other hand,usually requires retractable elements extending from the ends of the bookshelves, which must be withdrawn from the cooperating recesses in order to effectuate the height adjustment. Such retractable elements, which are commonly spring-loaded are expensive to manufacture and suffer from the disadvantage that only one element can be disconnected at a time.

Another somewhat different type of adjustable bookshelf assembly provides a plurality of elongate transverse slots across the face of the end panels, which receive the ends of the bookshelves. The disadvantage of this system is that the transverse slots tend to weaken the panels and, in addition, the shelf ends which are received by the slots tend to be inadequately stiffened.

The structural arrangement of parts of the present bracket and shelf assembly overcomes these deficiencies in a manner not known in the prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The shelf assembly includes a bookshelf extending between end panels and supported by brackets, detachably connected to each panel to provide height adjustment. The connection of the brackets provides a load carrying capability in an upward as well as a downward direction, thereby precluding inadvertent dislodging of the brackets during adjustment.

The shelf is formed from sheet material and includes end stiffening aprons. There are no projecting parts to interfere with height adjustment process.

The panels include vertically formed grooves, which stiffen the panels longitudinally. One sidewall of each groove includes a plurality of relatively small recesses receiving the bracket connections and formed in a direction which does not significantly reduce the strength of said panels.

The shelf assembly is of a simple, relatively inexpensive construction and the brackets are installed within the grooves by a simple twisting action so that the shelves can be erected and adjusted for height by anyone with little or no instruction.

It is an object of the invention to provide a shelf assembly comprising shelf means, having opposed ends adjacently disposed of vertical panel means and bracket means, detachably attachable to the panel means, to support said shelf means.

It is another object to provide panel means, each of which includes a pair of substantially vertical grooves disposed in side-by-side relation, said grooves having first and second sidewalls disposed in spaced parallel relation, the first sidewall providing a bearing face, and the second sidewall providing a plurality of elevationally spaced recesses.

It is a further object to provide bracket means including opposed pairs of bracket elements received between said first and second sidewall means, each bracket element including a first leg operatively engageable with the first sidewall means, and a second leg having an outstanding seating portion selectively receivable by one of said seating recesses of the second sidewall means.

Another object is to provide shelf means having longitudinal aprons and transverse end aprons, said end aprons having a pair of spaced notches, and to notch the first leg of each bracket element to provide an upstanding lug receivable by an associated end apron notch to preclude transverse movement of said shelf means.

It is another object to provide groove sidewall means, which are defined by inner and outer margins, and seating recesses, which are provided by slots disposed between the inner and outer margins of associated second sidewalls, and to notch the second leg of each bracket element adjacent to the seating portion to provide a bearing portion, engageable with the second sidewall means to limit acceptance of the seating portion within said seating slot, and to provide a shoulder engageable with the second sidewall means to preclude outward movement of said bracket element.

It is an important object to provide bracket elements at one end of the shelf means, which are reversely formed to the bracket elements at the other end of the shelf means to provide substantially horizontal, forwardly extending, shelf seating portions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating the shelf assembly in exploded relation;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged detail in perspective illustrating the relationship of parts between the panel and the bracket, and

FIG. 3 is an enlarged detail of the assembled parts.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT:

Referring now by characters of reference to the drawing, and first to FIG. 1, it will be understood that the shelf assembly includes an elongate shelf 10 supported between vertical panels 11 and 12 by bracket elements 13 and 14. The bracket elements 13 and 14 constitute bracket means and are detachably connected to panels 11 and 12 at selected vertical points of support to provide height adjustment of said shelf 10.

The shelf 10 is substantially symmetrical and of unitary construction including an upper face 15, front and rear aprons 16 and 17, and end aprons 20. Each end apron 20 includes a pair of transversely spaced notches 21, which cooperate with the bracket elements 13 and 14 to preclude forward and rearward movement of the shelf 10.

In the preferred embodiment the panels 11 and 12 are formed of sheet metal substantially in mirror image of each other and will be described with reference to panel 12, it being understood that panel 11 is identically but reversely formed.

Panel 12 includes a first panel portion 22 received in nested relation within a second panel portion 23 said panel portions being welded, or otherwise attached together, to form a substantially rigid structural element. The first panel portion 22 is formed, as by pressing, to provide a generally flat face 24 and a pair of spaced grooves 25 disposed in side-by-side relation. Grooves 25 are shown in enlarged detail in FIG. 2, which also illustrates the operative structural disposition of parts of the bracket elements 14 relative to said groove 25. As shown in FIG. 2 the groove 25 includes a first sidewall 26 extending between inner and outer longitudinal margins 27 and 28 and providing a flat bearing face defining a first plane. The groove 25 also includes a second sidewall 30 extending between inner and outer longitudinal margins 31 and 32 and providing a plurality of slots 33, disposed in elevationally spaced relation between said inner and outer margins 31 and 32. Each slot includes horizontal margins 34 and 35 extending between inner and outer ends 36 and 37 respectively, said horizontal margins providing seating portions. The second sidewall 30 also includes a plurality of elevationally spaced bearing portions generally indicated by numerals 38 and disposed between said slot ends 37 and said outer margin 32. It will be understood from FIG. 3 that the sidewalls 26 and 30 are disposed in parallel relation and are spaced apart a distance defined by the plane of the bearing face, indicated by numeral 26a, and the plane of the innermost portion of the slots, indicated by numeral 30a, said planes 26a and 30a constituting first and second planes.

Considering now the structure of the bracket element 14, it will be understood said bracket element is substantially ell-shaped and includes an upright leg 40 and an outstanding leg 41 constituting first and second leg means respectively. The upright leg 40 is notched to define a bearing face 42 and an upright lug 43. The outstanding leg 41 is notched to define a seating portion 44, a bearing portion 45 and a shoulder 46. As clearly shown in FIG. 3 the outstanding leg 41, in the vicinity of the seating portion 44, is wider than the distance between the spaced planes 26a and 30a defining the groove 25 so that, when the bracket element 14 is disposed in its operative support position, the seating portion 44 is received through and extends beyond the selected slot 33. It will be understood that the bearing portion 45 of the outstanding leg 41 is so spaced from the bearing face 42 of the upright leg 40 that said bearing portion 45 engages the corresponding bearing portion 38 of the sidewall 30, when the bearing face 42 of the upright leg 40 bears against the first sidewall 26. In order to effectuate this bearing engagement, the distance between the bearing portion 45 and the bearing face 42 is substantially equal to the distance between the planes 26a and 30a.

As shown in FIG. 2 the bracket element 14 must be tilted prior to insertion within the groove 25, because the outstanding leg 41 is wider than said groove. Following insertion, the seating portion 44 can be aligned with the selected slot 33, and the outstanding leg 41 rotated clockwise into the slot 33 until the bearing portion 45 engages the sidewall bearing portion 38 to limit further acceptance of the seating portion 44 into the slot, at which time the upright leg 40 engages the sidewall 26. When the bracket element 14 is in position the shoulder 46 is engageable with the slot outer end 37, which precludes direct withdrawal of said bracket element.

It will be understood from a consideration of the bracket element 14 in its installed condition that downward load on the projecting portion of said bracket element results in the seating portion 44 engaging the upper and lower seating margins 34 and 35 of the slot 33. This engagement provides a couple resisting rotational movement in the plane of the sidewalls 26 and 30, particularly downward movement but also, to some extent, upward movement, thereby precluding detachment of said bracket element by inadvertent application of upward forces to the end thereof.

When the bracket element 14 carries the weight of the shelf 10 there is no tendency for it to rotate about its own longitudinal axis and it is securely connected to the panel 12 without the use of fasteners. However, once the shelf weight is removed, the bracket element can be easily disconnected by clockwise rotation of said element about its longitudinal axis until the seating portion 44 of the outstanding leg 41 is clear of the slot 33, at which time the bracket element can be withdrawn from the groove 25.

In the preferred embodiment the portion of the bracket element 14 projecting outwardly of the groove 25 supports one corner of the shelf 10. As shown in FIG. 1, the notches 21, in the shelf end apron portions 20, are spaced to receive the upstanding lugs 43 of the bracket elements 14. It will be readily understood from FIG. 3 that engagement between the notches 21 and the upstanding lugs 43, which constitute cooperating stop means, precludes transverse movement of the shelf 10, and that the apron 20 is supported on the outstanding leg 41 of the bracket elements 14.

Removal of the shelf 10 is effectuated simply by lifting it upwardly and forwardly. The elevational disposition of the shelf is adjusted by detaching the bracket elements and reattaching them at the new elevation, as defined by the newly selected slot 33, and replacing the shelf in position. It is also possible to adjust the height of the shelf 10 without removal by pivoting said shelf upwardly about one pair of bracket elements to effectuate adjustment of the other pair of bracket elements.

As will be clear from a consideration of FIG. 1, the formation of grooves 25 in the panel wall provided by panel portion 22 not only facilitates and simplifies the panel structure as a whole, but also increases its strength. In effect, the grooves 25 provide associated pairs of sidewalls, which serve as longitudinal stiffeners, strengthening the panels considerably in a transverse direction.

Claims

I claim as my invention:

1. A shelf assembly comprising:

a. an elongate shelf means including an end portion,

b. panel means having a substantially vertical groove means, the groove means including:

b. first sidewall means providing a flat bearing face defining a first plane,

2. second sidewall means providing a plurality of elevationally spaced seating recesses having seating margins defining a second plane disposed in spaced parallel relation from said first plane, and

c. bracket means detachably attachable to the panel means and received in outwardly projecting relation within said groove means to support the shelf end portion, the bracket means including:

1. first leg means operatively engageable with the flat bearing face of said first sidewall means, and

2. second, outstanding leg means having a seating portion selectively receivable by one of said seating recesses, said seating portion being operatively spaced from said first sidewall plane a distance greater than the spacing between said first and second sidewall planes, said outstanding leg means also including a bearing portion engageable with said second sidewall means to limit acceptance of said seating portion within said recess.

2. An assembly as defined in claim 1, in which:

d. the first and second sidewall means include outer longitudinal margins,

e. the bracket means is substantially ell-shaped to provide first and second right-angularly related leg means, and

f. the first leg means is notched to provide an upright lug disposed outwardly of said outer longitudinal margins and engageable with the end portion of the shelf means to substantially preclude transverse movement of said shelf means.

3. An assembly as defined in claim 1, in which:

d. the first and second sidewall means include outer longitudinal margins,

e. the bracket means is substantially ell-shaped to provide first and second right-angularly related leg means, and

f. the second leg means is notched to provide the bearing portion, said bearing portion being disposed inwardly of said outer longitudinal margins, and said notch defining a shoulder engageable with said sidewall means to substantially preclude outward movement of said bracket means.

4. A shelf assembly comprising:

a. an elongate shelf means including opposed end portions,

b. panel means at each end of the shelf means, each panel means including a panel wall having a pair of substantially vertical grooves formed therein, said grooves being disposed in spaced, side-by-side relation, each groove including:

1. a first sidewall means, and

2. a second sidewall means disposed in spaced parallel relation from said first sidewall means, and including a plurality of elevationally spaced seating slots, and

c. bracket means detachably attachable to each panel means to support the end portions of the shelf means, and including opposed pairs of bracket elements received in outwardly projecting relation within associated grooves, each bracket element including:

1. first leg means operatively engageable with the first sidewall means, and

2. second, outstanding leg means having a seating portion selectively receivable by one of said seating slots, and a bearing portion engageable with said second sidewall means to limit acceptance of said seating portion within said slot.

5. An assembly as defined in claim 4, in which:

d. each end portion of the shelf means includes transversely spaced stop means, and

e. one of the leg means of each bracket element includes an upstanding lug providing a cooperating stop means engageable with said shelf stop means to substantially preclude transverse movement of said shelf means.

6. An assembly as defined in claim 4, in which:

d. the end portions of the shelf means include an apron portion having transversely spaced notches, and

e. the first leg means of each bracket element is notched to provide an upstanding lug receivable by an associated notch to substantially preclude transverse movement of said shelf means.

7. An assembly as defined in claim 4, in which:

d. each second sidewall means is defined by inner and outer margins,

e. the seating slots are disposed between said inner and outer margins of said second sidewall means,

f. each second sidewall means includes a plurality of sidewall bearing portions adjacently disposed of associated slots between said slots and said outer margins, and

g. the second leg means of each bracket element is notched adjacent to the seating portion to provide the bearing portion.

8. An assembly as defined in claim 4, in which:

d. each sidewall means provides a longitudinally stiffener defined by inner and outer longitudinally extending margins disposed in spaced parallel relation,

e. the slots of the second sidewall means are disposed between said inner and outer margins of said second sidewall means and include outer ends,

f. each second sidewall means includes a plurality of sidewall bearing portions adjacently disposed of associated slots between said slots and said outer margins,

g. the second leg means of each bracket element is notched adjacent to the seating portion to provide the bracket bearing portion, engageable with said sidewall bearing portion to limit acceptance of the bracket seating portion within the slot,and a shoulder, engageable by said slot outer end to substantially preclude outward movement of said bracket element.

9. An assembly as defined in claim 4, in which:

d. the bracket elements at one end of the shelf means are reversely formed to the bracket elements at the other end of said shelf means.

10. An assembly as defined in claim 9, in which:

e. each end portion of the shelf means includes an apron portion, and

f. the second leg means of each bracket element extends forwardly and is engageable in seating relation by an associated apron portion.