Lateral File Drawer And Anti-Tip Device
An anti-tip device for a furniture piece having two drawers within a cabinet, and two keys that move with the drawers along a drawer axis. The keys have primary and secondary top surfaces with a valley therebetween, the valley defining a ledge wall. A lock bar is slidably secured to the cabinet and movable in a direction generally perpendicular to the drawer axis, and biased in a direction from the primary top surface to the bottom surface of each key. The lock bar has slots to receive the keys, and capture surfaces proximate to the slots on the side of the lock bar opposite the drawer. When one drawer is open the other drawer is moved toward the open position, the lock bar moves into the valley of the key so that the ledge wall abuts with the capture surface, thereby preventing further opening of the drawer.
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This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/167,277, filed Apr. 7, 2009.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to furniture, and in particular to a device that prevents two drawers of a furniture piece from being in the open position at the same time.
2. Description of Related Art
A problem that can arise during the use of furniture with drawers is that when two drawers are in the open position, the combined weight of the drawers, alone or in combination with their contents, shifts the center of gravity of the furniture. This shifting can cause the furniture to tip over.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention is directed toward preventing two drawers in a piece of furniture from being opened at the same time. The anti-tip device for a piece of furniture has a first drawer and a second drawer within a cabinet. The device includes a first key attached to the first drawer and a second key attached to the second drawer, wherein each key moves with the respective drawer along a drawer axis. Each key has a bottom surface, as well as a primary top surface and a secondary top surface with a valley therebetween, the valley defining a ledge wall adjacent to the secondary top surface. The device further includes a lock bar slidably secured to the cabinet and movable in a direction generally perpendicular to the drawer axis, and biased in a direction from the primary top surface to the bottom surface of each key. The lock bar has a first slot and a second slot extending therethrough, the first slot being adapted to receive the first key, the second slot being adapted to receive the second key, wherein the interior of each slot has an engaging surface. The engaging surface is proximate to a capture surface on the side of the side of the lock bar opposite the drawer. In a first arrangement, each drawer is in a closed position and the keys extend through the slots of the lock bar, the engaging surface of each lock bar slot being supported by the primary top surface of each of the keys. In a second arrangement, one drawer is open so that the key no longer contacts the lock bar and the other drawer, from a closed position, is moved toward the open position such that the primary top surface moves past the slot and the bias causes the lock bar to move into the valley of the key so that the ledge wall of the key abuts with the capture surface of the lock bar, thereby preventing further opening of the drawer.
Still other desirable features of the invention will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading and understanding the following detailed description, taken with the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals represent like elements throughout.
The present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying figures. For purposes of the description hereinafter, the terms “upper”, “lower”, “right”, “left”, “vertical”, “horizontal”, “top”, “bottom” and derivatives thereof shall relate to the invention as it is oriented in the drawing figures. However, it is to be understood that the invention may assume various alternative variations and/or step sequences, except where expressly specified to the contrary. It is to be understood that the specific system illustrated in the attached figures and described in the following specification is simply an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Hence, specific dimensions and other physical characteristics related to the embodiments disclosed herein are not to be considered as limiting.
Referring to
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Referring again to
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As shown in
Returning to
The slots 52, 54 of the housing portion 46 are sized and configured to have openings at least as large as the slots 36, 38 of the lock bar 32 to permit unencumbered motion of the keys 12, 14 therethrough (see
As shown in
The spring 62 is attached at one end to the dowel 60 and at the other end to the side wall 8 of the cabinet 2. Because the dowel 60 is contained by the elongated hole 58, the lock bar 32 can only move up and down through the conduit passageway 50 to the extent permitted by the elongated hole 58. The spring 62 provides a downward biasing force on the lock bar 32 through the dowel 60. It should be noted that although the spring 62 is depicted as being attached to the side wall 8 of the file cabinet 2, the spring 62 may also be attached to the lock housing 34, or to any other object that is stationary relative to the lock bar 32 so that the spring 62 still provides the downward biasing force. It should also be noted that gravity alone acting on the lock bar 32 provides a downward biasing force, but additional force provided by the spring 62 may be desired. Further, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that objects other than springs, such as elastic bands or weights, may be suitable to provide the downward biasing force on the lock bar 32.
To discuss the anti-tip device 10 in operation, reference will be made to
To allow the second drawer 6 to then be opened, the first drawer 4 must first be closed. As the first key 12 moves back into the first slot 36, the secondary ramp 30 engages with the beveled edge 40 (
Once the secondary ramp 30 moves past the beveled edges 40 of the lock bar 32, the engaging surface 41 of the first slot 36 of the lock bar 32 will be engaged with the secondary top surface 28 of the first key 12. Further insertion of the key 12 will cause the lock bar 32 and engaging surface 41 to fall off the secondary top surface 28 and engage with the lock surface 24. Further insertion of the key 12 will finally cause the primary ramp 22 to push the lock bar 32 upward, against the downward biasing force provided by the spring 62, until the engaging surface 41 of the first slot 36 is engaged with the primary top surface 18 of the key 12. At this point, the engaging surface 43 of the second slot 38 has been lifted from the lock surface 24. Also, both slots 36, 38 of the lock bar 32 are once again aligned with the respective keys 12, 14 to allow uninterrupted passage of the keys 12, 14 through the slots 36, 38. Therefore, the ledge wall 26 of the second key 14 is no longer engaged with the lock bar 32 to prevent the second drawer 6 from opening.
In the event that a user of the anti-tip device 10 attempts to pull both drawers 4, 6 open at the same time, both drawers 4, 6 will be prevented from opening. As the keys 12, 14 slide out of the slots 36, 38, the opening of the drawers 4, 6 combined with the downward biasing force of the spring 62 will cause the engaging surfaces 41, 43 to slide down the primary ramps 22 and engage with the lock surfaces 24. At this point, any further opening of the drawers 4, 6 will be blocked by the engagement of the lock bar 32 with the ledges 26 of the keys 12, 14. In order to open either of the drawers 4, 6 at this point, one of them must be pushed closed, causing the primary ramp 22 of one of the keys 12, 14 to lift the lock bar 32 off of the lock surface of the opposite key and onto the primary top surface 18 to allow the opposite key to pass through the opposite slot, as described above.
During the initial assembly of the anti-tip system 10 into a file cabinet 2, both drawers 4, 6 will be in the opened position and will need to be inserted into the file cabinet 2. At this point, both keys 12, 14 will be outside the slots 36, 38 of the lock bar 32 and the dowel 60 will be pulled downward by the spring 62, causing the dowel 60 to engage with the lower edge of the elongated hole 58 in the lock housing 34. This engagement prevents the dowel 60 and lock bar 32 from being pulled any further downward by the spring 62. At this point, the lock bar 32 is in essentially the same position as shown in
If a user of the anti-tip device 10 needs to remove the drawers 4, 6 entirely from the file cabinet 2, the first drawer 4 may be removed without interference from the anti-tip device 10, provided that the second drawer 6 is in the closed position, as described above. However, to then remove the second drawer 6, the user would need to lift the lock bar 32 to allow the second key 14 to pass through the second slot 38. This can be accomplished by manually pulling upward on the dowel 60, which extends on the side of the lock bar 32 opposite of the spring 62. For this reason, the dowel 60 may be sized and configured to extend laterally from the lock bar 32 a distance sufficient to allow a user to grip it and lift the lock bar 32.
The lock bar 32′ is essentially the same as lock bar 32, except that the first and second slots 36′, 38′ may be adapted to receive the somewhat different shape of the keys 12′, 14′ (e.g., by rounding the slots 36′, 38′ to better engage with the lock surface 24′), as is well understood in the art. As will likewise be appreciated by those skilled in the art, these various elements of the keys 12′, 14′ operate in essentially the same manner with respect to the lock bar 32′ as keys 12, 14 operate with respect to the lock bar 32. The primary and secondary ramps 22′, 30′ can push the lock bar 32′ in the upward position upon insertion through the slots 36′, 38′. Also, the lock surface 24′ and ledge wall 26′ can engage the lock bar 32′ within the slots 36′, 38′ to prevent the keys 12′, 14′ from moving out of the slots 36′, 38′.
Further, while the anti-tip device 10 is shown and described herein as being used for vertically oriented drawers, the anti-tip device 10 may also be adapted to be installed into a piece of furniture having drawers that are horizontally oriented side by side. As an example, if the arrangement illustrated in
The invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments. Obvious modifications and alterations will occur to others upon reading and understanding the preceding detailed description. It is intended that the invention be construed as including all such modifications and alterations insofar as they come within the scope of the appended claims or the equivalents thereof.
Claims
1. An anti-tip device for a piece of furniture having a first drawer and a second drawer within a cabinet, comprising:
- a first key attached to the first drawer and a second key attached to the second drawer, wherein each key moves with the respective drawer along a drawer axis, each key having a bottom surface, each key having a primary top surface and a secondary top surface with a valley therebetween, the valley defining a ledge wall adjacent to the secondary top surface; and
- a lock bar slidably secured to the cabinet and movable in a direction generally perpendicular to the drawer axis and biased in a direction from the primary top surface to the bottom surface of each key, the lock bar having a first slot and a second slot extending therethrough, the first slot being adapted to receive the first key, the second slot being adapted to receive the second key, wherein the interior of each slot has an engaging surface, the engaging surface being proximate to a capture surface on the side of the side of the lock bar opposite the drawer;
- wherein, in a first arrangement, each drawer is in a closed position and the keys extend through the slots of the lock bar, the engaging surface of each lock bar slot being supported by the primary top surface of each of the keys; and
- wherein, in a second arrangement, one drawer is open so that the key no longer contacts the lock bar and the other drawer, from a closed position, is moved toward the open position such that the primary top surface moves past the slot and the bias causes the lock bar to move into the valley of the key so that the ledge wall of the key abuts with the capture surface of the lock bar, thereby preventing further opening of the drawer.
2. The anti-tip device of claim 1, wherein the ledge wall extends into a lock surface at the bottom of the valley, wherein in the second arrangement of the anti-tip device, the engaging surface of the slot associated with the unopened drawer abuts with the lock surface of the key associated with the unopened drawer.
3. The anti-tip device of claim 2, wherein the keys each have an overall height at the primary top surface, a locking height at the lock surface, and a ledge height at the secondary top surface, the overall height being greater than or equal to the ledge height, and the ledge height being greater than the locking height.
4. The anti-tip device of claim 1, the keys each further comprising a primary ramp extending from the primary top surface into the valley, such that when the anti-tip device is in the second arrangement and the key associated with the unopened drawer is inserted further into the associated slot, the lock bar is displaced by the primary ramp in the direction opposite of the bias, thereby permitting the key to be inserted into the slot so that the anti-tip device is in the first arrangement.
5. The anti-tip device of claim 4, wherein when the lock bar is being displaced by the primary ramp of a key, the engaging surface of the slot abuts with the primary ramp.
6. The anti-tip device of claim 1, wherein the keys each further comprise a secondary ramp adjacent to the secondary top surface and opposite the ledge wall, such that when the anti-tip device is in the second arrangement and the open drawer is pushed toward the closed position, the secondary ramp engages the engaging surface of the slot and displaces the lock bar in the direction opposite of the bias, thereby permitting the key of the open drawer to be inserted through the associated slot.
7. The anti-tip device of claim 4, wherein the keys each further comprise a secondary ramp adjacent to the secondary top surface and opposite the ledge wall, such that when the anti-tip device is in the second arrangement and the open drawer is pushed toward the closed position, the secondary ramp displaces the lock bar in the direction opposite of the bias, thereby permitting the key of the open drawer to be inserted through the associated slot.
8. The anti-tip device of claim 1, further comprising a lock housing attached to the cabinet and having a conduit, the lock bar being received within the conduit, the lock housing permitting movement of the lock bar in the direction generally perpendicular to the drawer axis while preventing movement of the lock bar in a direction generally parallel to the drawer axis.
9. The anti-tip device of claim 8, wherein the lock bar further comprises a laterally extending dowel and the lock housing further comprises an elongated hole through which the laterally extending dowel extends, the elongated hole defining the limits of displacement of the lock bar in the direction of and opposite of the bias.
10. The anti-tip device of claim 9, wherein the bias is provided by a spring attached at one end to the lock bar and at the other end to the cabinet.
11. The anti-tip device of claim 1, wherein the bias is provided by gravity.
Type: Application
Filed: Apr 5, 2010
Publication Date: Oct 7, 2010
Applicant: BUSH INDUSTRIES, INC. (Jamestown, NY)
Inventor: John M. Green (East Otto, NY)
Application Number: 12/754,179
International Classification: A47B 88/04 (20060101);