PARTITIONS FOR CUBICLES
Non-architectural posts and beams of the kind used as cubicle backbone structures are now used to support open racks as skeletons for hanging diverse user-selected panels. The open racks have upright standards joined by spaced-apart transverse rails. A pair of brackets join an open rack to a beam. Each bracket has a beam gripping face and a rack gripping face. The rack gripping face has clefts that engage spaced-apart rails and have mass relief for light weight. Panels are freely hung on the rails and may be selected from whiteboards, bulletin boards, shelving, book cases and window panels for user personalization.
The invention relates to modular furniture and, more particularly to space dividing partitions and panels for use in forming non-architectural walls, such as in cubicles and room partitions.
BACKGROUND ARTIn many corporations, particularly electronics, software and related high technology companies, office cubicles form the landscape of the work environment. Becoming popular in the past 40 years, cubicles are used by all levels of office workers, with modularity allowing clustering of people in space-saving layouts. Although occupying only a small amount of space, a cubicle seeks to give privacy and a high degree of functionality by means of variable configurations, with desk-like work surfaces, book cases, shelving, white boards and the like.
Variability in cubicle design has been recognized in the prior art. U.S. Pat. No. 5,155,955 to Ball et al. shows space-dividing rectangular frames having openings that may be left open or closed in varying degrees with a wide variety of fill options that may be changed to create a desired degree of privacy. The space dividing components are a full height partition system with doors and open plan panels.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,148,567 to DeRuiter et al. shows wall panels with horizontal panels supported by opposed vertical members. A connector bracket with multiple inserts supports furniture components.
One of the problems faced by major organizations is that a large number of cubicles appear to have a degree of monotony, depending on numbers. Workers and visitors can become lost in maze of streets and alleys formed by cubicles. Sounds from unknown locations become an irritant. Productivity declines have been associated with cubicle architecture where monotony isolation and random noise is seen as part of the work environment.
To offset such trends, user customization is offered by walls that allow personal expression. Shelves, bulletin boards, white boards, electrical strips for lamps or appliances, insulation panels have been incorporated as options to cubicle wall structures.
An object of the invention is to further enhance personal expression in cubicle design by improved partition and wall panel construction.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe above object has been achieved by a cubicle design that relies upon known upright posts and fixed beams as backbone elements. From these backbone elements novel open racks are supported by sturdy brackets that allow variable height removable positioning of racks in an upright position forming a wall portion. In turn, the racks support user selected panels that partially divide space defined by the rack structure.
Each rack has spaced-apart upright standards at opposed sides. A series of transverse, spaced-apart parallel rails join the standards and define a wall skeleton structure that can be filled by user-selectable panels that close partitions of the space between parallel rails. Racks, i.e., the wall skeleton structures, are rectangular tubular structures that are sufficiently light weight that they can easily be moved and positioned by an office worker using novel brackets. Each bracket has a beam gripping face or side and a rack gripping face or side. The rack gripping face has at least one cleft receiving a rack member while the beam gripping face has a tab engaging a slot in the beam. Racks vary in size, both height and width, with typical heights ranging between 2 to 3 feet for shorter racks to 3 to 5 feet for larger racks. The panels are hung freely or otherwise supported by the rails and may provide insulation, privacy, windows, storage while simultaneously allowing functionality as whiteboards, shelving, bulletin boards, slatwall panels, etc. An advantage of this invention is that installation and modifications can be done by hand, without the use of tools.
With reference to
The present invention deals with separation partitions between cubicles. Such separation partitions form portions of cubicle walls that can be personalized in a manner described herein. In the embodiment of
With reference to
Cubicle users can select open racks of a desired size, such as a four rail rack or a five rail rack, or some other configuration so long as rails fit in clefts of the support brackets. The construction and weight of open racks allow individual workers to install, move, re-configure and disassemble racks by hand without assistance of tools or special equipment. A company may keep an assortment of racks in a storage area and allow users to change racks as desired.
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A similar situation exists in
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The four panels described above are exemplary other panels involving video displays, photo display boards, or art work displays may be substituted. The idea is to allow a user to customize the users cubicle with whatever panels are deemed appropriate with selected amounts of openness. The height of racks may be adjusted with the brackets or by the size of the rack itself as seen by the choices between the racks of
Claims
1. Partitions for cubicles comprising:
- a post and beam backbone; and
- at least one open rack removably mounted on a beam, the rack having upright standards and a plurality of transverse, spaced-apart rails.
2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein each rack is mounted to a beam by a removable bracket.
3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein each bracket has at least one cleft receiving a rail.
4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein each bracket has two clefts receiving a pair of spaced-apart rails.
5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein a plurality of free hanging panels each engage a rail.
6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said plurality of panels provide diverse user-customization opportunity.
7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said panels are selectable from whiteboards, tack boards, shelving, book cases, and slatwall panels.
8. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the post and beam backbone contains electrical and signal utilities.
9. The apparatus of claim 1 having first and second racks of different sizes.
10. The apparatus of claim 1 having back-to-back racks mounted on a beam.
11. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein each open rack comprises a pair of spaced apart standards joined by parallel spaced-apart rails.
12. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the number of rails ranges between 3 and 7.
13. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the number of rails is four.
14. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the number of rails is five.
15. Separation partitions for cubicles comprising:
- spaced apart upright posts extending from a floor, with pairs of posts joined together by transverse beams;
- at least one open rack having spaced apart upright standards joined by parallel transverse rails, each rack having at least two brackets allowing removable joinder of that rack to a transverse beam; and
- a plurality of panels sized to span some of the space between parallel rails.
16. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the spaced apart standards are hollow tubes.
17. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the parallel transverse rails are hollow tubes.
18. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein each transverse beam has at least one transverse slot associated with the beam.
19. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein each bracket has opposed faces, including a rack gripping face and a beam gripping face, the rack gripping face having a cleft engaging the at least one rail, the beam gripping face having a tab slideably engaging a slot of a beam.
20. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein each bracket has mass relief portions.
21. A method of dividing space comprising:
- providing non-architectural posts and interconnecting beams as a cubicle backbone;
- providing skeletal user-mountable and removable open racks on the beams, the open racks having spaced-apart transverse rails; and
- providing a plurality of user-selectable diverse panels freely hangable on the rails to at least partially close the open racks thereby forming wall portions.
Type: Application
Filed: May 28, 2008
Publication Date: Dec 3, 2009
Applicant: ONE WORKPLACE (Milpitas, CA)
Inventor: Terry DeVore (Newark, CA)
Application Number: 12/128,529
International Classification: E04B 2/74 (20060101); A47F 5/00 (20060101); A47B 96/06 (20060101);