U.S. patent number 3,841,725 [Application Number 05/315,180] was granted by the patent office on 1974-10-15 for multi-purpose built-up shelving.
Invention is credited to Heinz Dorner.
United States Patent |
3,841,725 |
Dorner |
October 15, 1974 |
MULTI-PURPOSE BUILT-UP SHELVING
Abstract
A multi-purpose built-up shelving consisting of at least one
vertical row of superposed box-type elements which, when installed,
are open both to the front and on top; the uppermost box-type
element is fitted on its upper side with a lid. The superposed
box-type elements preferably made of foamed plastics are held
together by positive locking components; if the shelving includes
two or more vertical rows, adjacent box-type elements are joined
together by connecting pieces. Each box-type element is adapted to
be fitted with a slide-in element and/or a door.
Inventors: |
Dorner; Heinz (8702
Zollikon/ZH, CH) |
Family
ID: |
4433573 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/315,180 |
Filed: |
December 14, 1972 |
Foreign Application Priority Data
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Dec 17, 1971 [CH] |
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18523/71 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
312/107; 312/111;
312/198 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47B
87/00 (20130101); A47B 87/0276 (20130101); A47B
87/007 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
A47B
87/02 (20060101); A47B 87/00 (20060101); A47b
087/00 () |
Field of
Search: |
;312/107,111,324,198,330
;217/18,36H,17H,56H ;229/9F ;220/24A |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
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1,255,448 |
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Jan 1961 |
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FR |
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186,388 |
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Aug 1956 |
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OE |
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1,906,233 |
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Mar 1968 |
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DT |
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Primary Examiner: McCall; James T.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Crosby; Melvin A.
Claims
I claim:
1. In a shelving arrangement; at least one shelf unit having a
horizontal bottom wall, a vertical rear wall upstanding from the
rear edge of said bottom wall, a pair of vertical side walls
upstanding from the side edges of said bottom wall, the upper edges
of said side walls and back wall being disposed in the same
horizontal plane and said walls being integrally interconnected
along the contiguous edges thereof, first means on the upper edges
of said side walls and real wall for interfitting locking
engagement with complementary shaped means on the bottom of an
element which is the same size as the shelf unit when viewed from
above and placed on top of the shelf unit, second means on the
bottom of said bottom wall in vertical alignment with said first
means and complementary in shape to said first means for
interfitting locking engagement with complementary shaped means on
the top of an element which is the same size as the shelf unit when
viewed from above and on which said shelf unit is placed, and at
least one upwardly opening recess formed in the upper edge of at
least one of said side walls, and a connecting member receivable in
said recess and having a pair of legs protruding upwardly above the
top of the upper edge of said side wall, said legs adapted for
interfitting locking engagement with the element placed on said
shelf unit and with a like element placed on a second shelf unit
which is disposed in side to side relation with the first mentioned
shelf unit.
2. A shelf unit according to claim 1 in which said connecting
member includes a third leg upstanding between said pair of legs
and serving as a spacer between the elements placed on the shelf
units.
3. A shelf unit according to claim 1 which includes a second shelf
unit substantially identical with the first mentioned shelf unit
and in side by side relation therewith, the recesses in the side
walls of said shelf units being in registration and said connecting
member extending from the inside surfaces of the side wall of one
unit which is nearest the other unit to the inside of the adjacent
side wall of the other unit.
4. A shelf unit according to claim 1 which includes an element the
same size as the shelf unit when viewed from above and resting
thereon and having means on the bottom in registration with and
interengaged with said first means on the upper edges of said side
walls and rear wall of said shelf unit, and holes in the bottom
wall of said shelf unit near the ends thereof for receiving the
lower hinge pins of doors, said element having holes therein in
vertical registration with the holes in said bottom wall for
receiving the upper hinge pins of the doors.
5. A shelf unit according to claim 4 which includes a pair of doors
in the space between the side walls of said shelf unit and between
the front edge of said bottom wall of said shelf unit and the said
element on top of the shelf unit, and hinge pins protruding from
the upper and lower edges of said doors and extending into the said
holes in said bottom wall of said shelf unit and in said element
for hingedly supporting said doors.
6. A shelf unit according to claim 1 in which said shelf unit is
molded from foamed plastic.
Description
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTS
This invention relates to a multi-purpose built-up shelving.
Built-up shelvings made of metal are already known, in which sheet
metal bearing surfaces in the form of shelves are inserted into
vertical perforated piles. It is true that, for the assembly and
dismantling of such shelving, nothing more than a hammer is
required; none the less, apart from the high costs of manufacture,
they have other disadvantages.
One of the most serious disadvantages lies in the fact that the
vertical piles which, for reasons of rationalisation, are usually
supplied in one size only, are not of a height which is suitable
for every purpose, with the result that the available space cannot
be utilized to the fullest possible extent when, for example, the
height of one shelf space is considerably smaller, and the height
of two shelf spaces, one above the other, is only slightly greater
than the height of the room. A further disadvantage of such
shelving is the unsightly appearance of the perforated vertical
piles which, in addition, are not as a rule connected to one
another by a wall at the sides of the shelving, with the result
that the shelving, in an office, for example, does not harmonise
with the rest of the office furniture. As a result of the hammer
blows necessitated by repeated assembly and dismantling, the
vertical piles become even more unsightly. Finally, with this type
of shelving, the subdivision of the spaces between the individual
shelves gives rise to considerable difficulties, unless one is
prepared to punch further ugly holes in the shelves themselves for
the insertion of intermediate partitions; in consequence, the range
of application of this shelving is in practice limited to
warehouses, basements and storerooms.
The basic purpose of this invention is the creation of a built-up
shelving which can be easily and quickly assembled and dismantled
without the aid of tools, which permits maximum utilization of
headroom and, because of its pleasing appearance and practical
design, can be used for a very wide variety of purposes.
SUMMARY
This problem is solved through a shelving of the above mentioned
type by means of the combination of the following features:
A. THE SHELVING CONSISTS OF AT LEAST ONE VERTICAL ROW COMPRISING A
PLURALITY OF BOX-TYPE ELEMENTS IN THE FORM OF HOLLOW, RECTANGULAR
POLYHEDRA WITH RIGHT-ANGLED SIDES WHICH, WHEN INSTALLED, ARE OPEN
BOTH TO THE FRONT AND ON TOP,
B. EACH BOX-TYPE ELEMENT IS FITTED ON ITS UNDERSIDE, WITHIN AT
LEAST A PART OF ITS HORIZONTAL PERIPHERY, WITH ONE COMPONENT, AND
ON ITS UPPER SIDE, WITHIN AN EQUALENT ZONE, WITH THE OTHER
COMPONENT OF AT LEAST ONE PAIR OF POSITIVE LOCKING COMPONENTS,
C. THE UPPERMOST BOX-TYPE ELEMENT IS FITTED ON ITS UPPER SIDE WITH
A LID, THE UNDERSIDE OF WHICH HAS THE SAME POSITIVE LOCKING ELEMENT
IN THE SAME ZONE AS THE UNDERSIDE OF THE ASSOCIATED BOX-TYPE
ELEMENT.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention is illustrated by way of example in the following
figures:
FIG. 1 is a front view of a multi-purpose built-up shelving
according to the invention, made up of two adjacent vertical rows
of superposed box-type elements, with lids placed on the uppermost
box-type elements.
FIG. 2 is a perspective representation of an uppermost box-type
element in FIG. 1, with lid.
FIGS. 3 to 5 are longitudinal sections through part of the box-type
elements, showing the positive locking components which prevent
them from being laterally displaced. FIG. 6 is a longitudinal
section through part of a lid as shown in FIG. 2.
FIG. 7 is a detail of a box-type element with a recess to take a
connecting piece.
FIGS. 8A and 8B are vertical part sections through box-type
elements joined together by connecting pieces.
FIGS. 9A and 9B are perspective views of the connecting pieces
shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B.
FIG. 10A is a one version of a slide-in element.
FIG. 10B is another version of a slide-in element.
FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a drawer.
FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a leaf of a door.
FIG. 13 is the front view of a door consisting of two leaves as
shown in FIG. 12, fitted into a box-type element.
FIG. 14 shows a locking device fitted between door leaf and the
bottom of a box-type element.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
The shelving, of which the front view appears in FIG. 1, consists
alltogether of six box-type elements 1, arranged three one above
the other, and two alongside one another. Each of these box-type
elements is in the form of a hollow, right-angled polyhedron with
rectangular, preferably square sides 2 and open both to the front
and on top. When the box-type elements are fitted one on top of the
other, the bottom 3 of each box-type element 1 simultaneously forms
the lid of the box-type element below it; in this way, any
deformation of a bottom 3 cannot leave a gap such as would be
caused with two box-type elements located one on top of the other
which are open only to the front. Each of the uppermost box-type
elements 1 has a detachable lid 4.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a top box-type element 1 with
raised lid 4.
The box-type elements 1 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 have the further
advantage of saving material and -- if they are made of plastics --
of being easier to remove from the mould (because of the deliberate
omission of conicalness in the region of the bearing areas). At the
same time, painting with automatic or hand-operated spray guns does
not cause any reflections, which give rise to paint mist and thus
to rough surfaces. Finally, the special shape of box-type elements
of this kind permits the simultaneous transport of two box-type
elements, while requiring for this a space which, in effect, is no
greater than that needed for a single box-type element.
The box-type elements 1 arranged one above the other as shown in
FIG. 1 can, for example be secured against lateral movement by
fitting each box-type element 1, in accordance with FIG. 3, at the
bottom in the region of the rear edge 5 and the two side edges 6,
with the one component 9, and in corresponding regions at the top
with the other component 10 of at least one pair of positive
locking components. The positive locking components 9, 10 to be
seen in FIG. 3 take the form of a groove and tongue joint, and
extend along a part only of the corresponding edge lengths. They
could, however, extend over the entire edge lengths or,
alternatively, there could be several pairs of locking components,
e.g., pegs and holes, in each edge length. Especially simple pairs
of positive locking components are illustrated in FIGS. 4 and
5.
The lid 4 of the uppermost box-type elements 1 in FIG. 1 has -- as
shown in FIG. 6 -- on its underside the same positive locking
component 9 in the same region as the associated box-type element
(FIG. 3) on its underside.
To prevent sideways movement of the adjointing, vertically arranged
rows of box-type elements 1 shown in FIG. 1, each box-type element
1 has -- as shown in FIG. 7 -- at at least two points, for example,
on the upper side near the center of each side edge 8, a recess 11
to take a connecting piece 12a which positively holds together two
laterally adjacent box-type elements, and which is shown in FIG. 8A
in the installed position and in FIG. 9A in perspective. The
recesses 11 and the connecting pieces 12a are, of course, not
restricted to any particular shape, but can be adapted to the
prevailing requirements; for example, if a connecting piece 12b,
such as illustrated in FIG. 9B, is used between two laterally
adjoining box-type elements 1, there will be a corresponding gap Z,
as shown in FIG. 8B.
To enable the built-up shelving to meet all possible requirements,
any desired numbr of the box-type elements 1 can be provided with a
slide-in element 13a, as shown in FIG. 10A. By means of such
slide-in element 13a, the interior of the box-type element 1 is
divided into three adjoining smaller spaces; the size of such a
smaller space can be so adjusted that, for example, there is roon
for two upright box files side by side. The slide-in element 13a
can, of course, be replaced by another suitable one, for example by
a slide-in element as shown in FIG. 10B, whereby the interior of
the box-type element 1 is divided into twelve horizontal smaller
spaces which can be used, e.g., for storing forms, typing paper,
etc.
A suitably sized drawer 15, shown diagrammatically in FIG. 11, can
be inserted into one or more of the subdivisions, making it
possible to keep small articles, such as screws, nuts, paper clips,
pencils, buttons, etc., tidily and safely.
To use the multi-purpose built-up shelving in the home as well, a
box-type element or a number of such boxtype elements can be
covered to the front by an easily fitted door consisting of at
least one leaf. This door should preferably be two-leaved, both
leaves of the door being, for reasons of economy of manufacture, of
identical shape. SUch a door leaf 16, as shown in perspective in
FIG. 12, can serve as either the left-hand or right-hand door leaf.
It has, at the top and bottom, two vertical holes 17, into which
hinge pins 18 can be inserted; the hinge pins 18., when inserted in
this way to give a tight fit, are, as shown in FIG. 13, pivoted so
that they can rotate in corresponding holes in the bottoms 3 of
box-type elements 1 (or of the lids of the uppermost box-type
elements) to form the hinges of the door leaves 16.
At at least one point between the door leaf 16 and the bottom 3 (or
lid 4) of the box-type element, a catch 20 can be fitted which
holds the door leaf 16 in the closed position; in its simplest
form, this catch 20 can, as shown in FIG. 14, consist of a plug of
highly resilient material, such as rubber or plastics, which fits
tightly into a vertical blind hole in the door leaf 16, is slightly
rounded at its outer end and, when the door leaf 16 is in the
closed position, provides a friction contact closure with the
adjoining part, e.g., the bottom 3 of a box-type element 1, thus
preventing unintentional opening of the door leaf 16. Any other
type of closure in common use can, of course, also be used as the
catch 20, e.g., a plastic latch, a magnetic catch, etc. A sliding
door known per se can also be used instead of a single or double
leaf door, in which case the left and right sliding sections can
each be slid towards the center of the door opening, thus freeing
half of this opening.
It is especially advantageous if the box-type element 1, the
connecting pieces 12a and 12b, the lid 4, the slide-in elements 13a
and 13b, the drawers 15 and the door leaves 16 are made of
plastics. Preferably, the box-type elements 1, the lids 4 and the
door leaves 16 in particular should be of formed plastics, as this
ensures accurate dimensioning and at the same time a reduction to
the minimum of the manufacturing costs for mass production; the
fact that these components can be made in various colours or
covered with self-adhesive sheeting means that the multi-purpose
built-up shelving can also be used in the home, where, where a
shelving unit or a double shelving unit (consisting of two units,
back to back) can serve as a movable partition; by means of such a
movable partition, the room can be rearranged at any time as
required without much trouble. The brightly-coloured box-type
elements are particularly suitable for children's rooms, and also
for offices in which the various subjects are denoted by different
colours. The multi-purpose built-up shelving is also equally
suitable for storerooms and shop premises in which the available
headrooms is utilized to the maximum by placing the box-type
elements appropriately one on top of another up to or to within a
short distance of the ceiling, especially in those cases where
box-type elements or lower height are envisaged.
* * * * *