U.S. patent number 3,834,324 [Application Number 05/298,955] was granted by the patent office on 1974-09-10 for rack construction for the storage of articles.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Display-Design GmbH fur moderne Verkaufsforderungs-mittel und. Invention is credited to Franz Josef Lang.
United States Patent |
3,834,324 |
Lang |
September 10, 1974 |
RACK CONSTRUCTION FOR THE STORAGE OF ARTICLES
Abstract
The present invention relates to a rack construction assembly
for the storage of articles. The rack construction comprises
several base plates which are held one above the other by means of
supporting elements to be assembled with the base plates. In the
region of the junction points of base plates and supporting
elements there are provided locking elements which lock in when the
base plates are connected with the supporting elements, thus
securing the single parts of the rack construction against
unintentional disengagement. This rack construction can be
assembled and disassembled quickly and without any tools and offers
all-over access to pick up articles.
Inventors: |
Lang; Franz Josef (Kelkheim,
DT) |
Assignee: |
Display-Design GmbH fur moderne
Verkaufsforderungs-mittel und (Kelkheim, DT)
|
Family
ID: |
5823567 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/298,955 |
Filed: |
October 19, 1972 |
Foreign Application Priority Data
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|
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Oct 27, 1971 [DT] |
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2153603 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
108/91; 211/188;
108/190; 211/126.12 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47B
87/0246 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
A47B
87/02 (20060101); A47B 87/00 (20060101); A47b
047/04 () |
Field of
Search: |
;108/99,101,111,156,53,59 ;211/126,134,135,248 ;248/188 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Zugel; Francis K.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Berman; Hans
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A rack assembly comprising:
a. a plurality of identical base plate members having each a top
surface and a bottom surface,
1. each of said surfaces having four corners;
b. wall means on each of said surfaces in each of said corners
defining a receptacle open in a direction away from the associated
surface, said wall means including
1. an outer wall member of substantially L-shaped cross section in
a plane parallel to said associated surface, and
2. an inner wall member of substantially L-shaped cross section in
said plane, said wall members having respective, spacedly opposite
faces bounding said receptacle therebetween;
c. a plurality of identical, elongated supporting members,
1. each supporting member being of substantially L-shaped cross
section, said cross section being defined by two angularly offset
leg portions meeting in a longitudinal edge of said supporting
member;
d. two transverse projections on each of the two longitudinal end
portions of each supporting member,
1. said projections extending from respective leg portions of said
L-shape away from said edge and being angularly offset from each
other,
2.
2. each of said receptacles being shaped for conformingly receiving
one of said end portions and the projections thereon; and
e. cooperating locking means on each of said projections and on
each outer wall member responsive to insertion of each end portion
and of the projections thereon in said receptacles for preventing
unintentional
disengagement of the inserted end portion from said receptacles. 2.
An assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein said face of said
outer wall member is coextensive in said plane with each inserted
end portion and with the two projections on said end portion, a
part of each projection extending in said plane away from said edge
beyond said face of said inner wall member, said part carrying the
locking means associated with said projection.
3. An assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein said face of said
outer wall member is formed with a recess therein, said recess
being substantially L-shaped in said plane and constituting a
portion of said receptacle, said recess being coextensive in said
plane with the two projections on an inserted end portion and
extending beyond said opposite face of the inner wall member in
said plane in a direction away from said edge of the inserted end
portion.
4. An assembly as set forth in claim 3, wherein said outer wall
member has an end face perpendicular to said plane and bounding
said recess in said direction.
5. An assembly as set forth in claim 3, wherein a part of each
projection received in said recess extends beyond said opposite
face of the inner wall member in a direction away from said edge of
the inserted end portion, and said part carries the locking means
associated with said projection.
6. An assembly as set forth in claim 5, wherein said part and said
outer wall member have contiguously adjacent face portions in said
recess, said locking means including a cam member on one face
portion and a recess in the other face portion receiving said cam
member in the operative condition of said locking means.
7. An assembly as set forth in claim 6, wherein said part consists
of resilient material.
8. An assembly as set forth in claim 6, wherein said supporting
members and said projections are of plate material, each projection
and the associated leg portion extending in a common plane.
Description
This invention relates to a rack construction for the storage of
articles, in particular for the display of goods in shops. This
rack construction includes several equally shaped base plates
stacked one above the other and several equally shaped supporting
elements to be joined with said base plates, said supporting
elements holding said base plates one above the other in the rack
arrangement.
Thanks to their construction, such racks being in particular used
in self-service shops and in whole-sale spots, offer a good view
onto the goods stored on the base plates and the possibility to
pick up goods from all sides. In known rack constructions of such
type the base plates and the supporting elements keep together only
due to gravity and due to the weight of the stored goods. When the
rack construction is to be relocated or if anyone runs heavily into
the rack construction there is the danger that one supporting
element loosens from the base plate and the rack construction falls
down into itself. Other known rack constructions are, when they are
assembled, held together by mechanic means (e.g. by screws and
nuts). It is a disadvantage that it is very tedious to assemble and
disassemble these rack constructions. It is the object of this
invention to form the supporting elements and the base plates in
such manner to prevent unintentional disassemblage of supporting
elements and base plates and to make possible quick assemblage or
disassemblage of the rack construction without any auxiliary
means.
In a rack construction according to this invention the
afore-mentioned problems are solved by the features that each of
said supporting elements includes on both ends projections
projecting normally to the longitudinal direction, that each base
plate is provided on its upper side and on its lower side with
receiving shafts, whereby the cross-sections of said receiving
shafts correspond to the respective end section of said supporting
elements, and that locking elements are provided on said
projections and on one outer end wall of said receiving shaft
respectively to lock into one another when a supporting element is
joined with a base plate.
The advantages of the rack construction according to this invention
are: When it is disassembled, the rack construction requires only a
minimum of space and it can be assembled and disassembled very
quickly and without any tools. Due to the locking elements there is
obtained a stable construction which can easily be relocated as a
whole and which offers a high loading capacity. Since all the base
plates and supporting elements are equally shaped, the production
cost are low. Another advantage of the rack construction according
to this invention over bolted racks or wire-racks is the more
pleasant appearance. The form and the material of the supporting
elements may easily be chosen in such way that the view onto the
base plates is hardly obstructed.
Other features, additional objects, and many of the attending
advantages of this invention will readily be appreciated as the
same becomes better understood by reference to the following
detailed description of preferred embodiments when considered in
connection with the appended drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a rack construction having
square-shaped base plates;
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a corner section of a base plate
and of an end portion of a supporting element arranged above the
base plate;
FIG. 3 is a sectional view along line III--III in FIG. 2; and
FIG. 4 is a sectional view of another embodiment of this invention
corresponding to the section of FIG. 3.
The rack construction as illustrated in FIG. 1 has three levels
formed by three identical base plates 1. Another base plate forms
the upper end of the rack construction. The base plates have a
square shape. Four equally shaped supporting elements 2 whose ends
are inserted into receiving shafts or receptacles on the four
corners of the top surface on the next lower base plate and on the
bottom surface on the next higher base plate are arranged between
two adjacent base plates 1. The supporting elements are L-shaped in
horizontal section, made of plastic plate material of uniform
thickness, and so narrow that the view onto the articles stored on
the base plates is only slightly obstructed and that the goods can
easily be picked up. An improvement of good view can be achieved by
making the supporting elements of translucent material.
The formation of a corner by a base plate 1 and the end portion of
a supporting element 2 is illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3. The base
plate 1 comprises a square plate 3 and an outer end wall 4
connected with or forming an integral part with plate 3; the outer
end wall 4 is arranged perpendicularly with respect to plate 3 and
has a vertical dimension of approximately 1 to 2 centimeters
extending above and below plate 3. In the corners of the base plate
1 the thickness of outer end wall 4 is thinner by approximately
half its size over a predetermined length. At each end of this
thinned portion that is farthest away from the corner there are
provided two recesses 7 of square-shaped cross-section in the outer
wall 4, i.e., one recess above and the other recess below plate 3.
In each corner of base plate 1 there is an inner end wall 5 which
forms the second wall of the receiving shaft 6 which is open on
both ends and in a direction away from the surface of the base
plate 1. The inner end wall 5 consists of two shanks forming a
right angle; these shanks are arranged in a distance from the outer
end wall 4, which distance corresponds to the wall thickness of the
supporting element. The length of both shanks corresponds
approximately to half the length of the thinned portion of the
outer end wall. The shaft or receptacle 6 is L-shaped in a plane
parallel to the base plate 1, and the opposite faces of the walls
4, 5 which bound the receptacle therebetween are correspondingly
shaped.
The supporting element 2 consists of plate material and has two
longitudinal, rectangularly shaped wall or leg portions 8 which
meet each other in a longitudinal edge of the element 2 at a right
angle; the thickness of these wall portions 8 corresponds to the
width of the receiving shaft 6. On each end of the supporting
element, the width of the two wall portions is approximately
doubled, thus forming two projections 9 in common planes with the
leg portions 8 respectively. The height of these projections 9
corresponds approximately to the height of the outer end wall 4,
and the thickness corresponds approximately to half the thickness
of the outer end wall. Wedge-shaped cams 10 are provided on the
outer end of the projections 9 which extend beyond the inner wall
5; with their steep rear side these cams lock, when completely
inserted into the receiving shaft, into the recesses 7 provided in
said receiving shaft, thus preventing an unintentional
disengagement of supporting element 2 and base plate 1.
The base plate and the supporting elements are made of resilient
plastic material. They can easily be produced according to the
die-casting method. It is suitable to make the supporting element
of transparent material so that there is little obstruction of the
view onto the displayed goods.
In another embodiment of this invention -- see sectional view of
FIG. 4 -- the positions of the recesses and of the wedge-shaped
cams are exchanged. The recesses 12 are provided in the projections
9 of the supporting elements 2, the cams 11 are provided on outer
end wall 4. This second embodiment is easier to realize in
production than the first mentioned.
In other embodiments the surface of the base plate may be round,
rectangular or polygonal. If the surface forms e.g. a circle
sector, then at the ends of a supporting element 2 the
cross-section is formed with a corresponding curvature. The inner
end wall 5 is then also correspondingly curved. In this case it is
suitable to provide the supporting element 2 with two longitudinal
ribs so as to prevent a movement of the supporting element in a
direction parallel to the curvature, and to further improve the
bending strength of the supporting element.
It is also possible to assemble base plates only with one
supporting element; then the supporting element is arranged
centrally or asymmetrically with respect to the base plate.
* * * * *