Wall unit support system

Abstract

The wall unit support system, configured for supporting cabinets and shelving flush against a wall, includes an elongated mounting rail and at least one inverted, J-shaped bracket engagable to the mounting rail. The rail has a planar back portion adapted for mounting to the wall and an elongated flange extending upwardly and outwardly parallel to the planar back portion. The rail may include a second flange extending downwardly and outwardly parallel to the planar back portion. The J-shaped bracket has a planar-face adapted for attachment to a back surface to a cabinet and a hooked portion. The hooked portion includes a descending leg and a U-shaped bight. The hooked portion slidably engages the flange of the mounting rail with the descending leg coplanar with the back portion of the mounting rail.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to cabinet and shelving supports, and particularly to a wall unit support system for supporting wall units flush against a wall.

2. Description of the Related Art

Cabinets and shelves are widely installed by taking prefabricated units and mounting them directly onto a wall. These wall units are often of considerable weight and therefore require support devices of sufficient strength to adequately support the units. A number of cabinet and shelving supports exist in the art that provide such support. Some of these support systems only consist of a mounting rail to which a cabinet is mounted directly. For some of the systems, an additional piece is attached to the cabinet and then mounted on the rail. While the support systems function effectively in holding the cabinets and shelving against the wall, problems do arise with these systems.

One problem that often occurs with some systems is that the back of the cabinet is not held flush against the wall. The cabinet or shelf does not have the same clean look as a cabinet mounted flush to the wall. Other systems may keep the cabinet held flush against the wall, but do not allow for multiple cabinets to be mounted against each other because the support systems include pieces that must attach to the sides of the cabinets.

Accordingly, there is a need for a support system of sufficient strength to support wall units and that also holds cabinets and shelving flush both against the wall and against additional cabinets. Thus, the wall unit support system of the present invention solving the foregoing problems is desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The wall unit support system, configured particularly for supporting cabinets, shelving, etc. against a wall, includes an elongated mounting rail and at least one inverted, J-shaped bracket engagable to the mounting rail. The J-shaped bracket is attached to the cabinet or wall unit and then slides onto a flange extending from the mounting rail, supporting the cabinet flush against the wall.

The elongated mounting rail has a planar back portion and an elongated flange that extends outwardly and upwardly parallel to the planar back portion. The elongated mounting rail may additionally include a second elongated flange that extends outwardly and downwardly parallel to the planar back portion. The planar back portion of the mounting rail is placed flush against the wall in a horizontally leveled position. Fasteners are used to attach the mounting rail to the wall.

The J-shaped bracket has a hooked portion adapted for engaging the flange of the mounting rail and a planar face adapted for attachment to a back surface of a cabinet. The bracket is attached to the cabinet, which contains recesses of sufficient dimension to enclose the mounting rail and the bracket when the cabinet is hung. The bracket with the attached cabinet is lifted and hung on the mounting rail so that the hooked portion of the bracket is placed in engaging relationship with the elongated flange of the mounting rail.

The mounting rail and bracket may be made from aluminum, plastic or any other material suitable for hanging cabinets and the like. The planar back portion of the mounting rail may have a notched strip, which allows a fastener to be drilled more easily into the wall.

These and other features of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an environmental side view of a wall unit support system according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded side view of the wall unit support system according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the bracket and the mounting rail of the wall unit support system according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an exploded side view of the wall unit support system according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The present invention is a wall unit support system, configured particularly for supporting cabinets, shelving, etc. flush against a wall. The wall unit support system, designated generally as 10 in the drawings, is removably attached to a wall.

As shown in FIGS. 1-3, the wall unit support system 10 generally comprises an elongated mounting rail 12 and at least one inverted, J-shaped bracket 14 engagable to the mounting rail 12. The mounting rail 12 is attached to a wall W or other vertical support structure. The J-shaped bracket 14 is attached to a cabinet C by at least one fastener 40, such as a screw or nail. The J-shaped bracket 14, with the cabinet C, engages the mounting rail 12, supporting the cabinet C flush against the wall W.

The elongated mounting rail 12 has a planar back portion 16 and an elongated flange 18. The planar back portion 16 is adapted for mounting to the wall W. The elongated flange 18 extends outwardly and upwardly parallel to the planar back portion 16. The flange 18 is offset from the planar back portion 16 by a short cross member 20 and terminates in a rounded end 22. The cross member 20 extends outward from the top of the planar back portion 16. The planar back portion 16 of the mounting rail 12 is placed flush against the wall W in a horizontally leveled position. At least one fastener 42, such as a screw or nail, is inserted through the back portion 16 of the rail 12 and into a wall stud or other wall frame member, thus affixing the mounting rail 12 to the wall W.

The inverted, J-shaped bracket 14 has a planar face 24 and a hooked portion 26. The planar face 24 is adapted for attachment to a back surface of a cabinet C. The planar face 24 of the J-shaped bracket 14 has at least one fastener aperture 44 defined therein. The hooked portion 26 includes a descending leg 28 and a U-shaped bight 30 joining the leg 28 to the planar face 24. The leg 28 is parallel to the planar face 24. The hooked portion 26 of the J-shaped bracket 14 is adapted for engaging the flange 18 of the mounting rail 12. The J-shaped bracket 14 provides strong support in holding the cabinet C against the wall W due to the fact that it hooks into the elongated flange 18 of the mounting rail 12. The tight fit between the bracket 14 and the rail 12 supplies the needed level of support for the heavy cabinet C.

The fastener 40 is inserted within the aperture 44 in the J-shaped bracket 14 and screwed into the cabinet C. The cabinet C contains recesses 50 in the back surface of the cabinet C that are of sufficient dimension to enclose the mounting rail 12 and the J-shaped bracket 14 when the cabinet C is hung. The J-shaped bracket 14 with the attached cabinet C is lifted and hung on the elongated mounting rail 12. The J-shaped bracket 14 is raised above the mounting rail 12 and then lowered onto the mounting rail 12 such that the hooked portion 26 of the J-shaped bracket 14 is placed in engaging relationship with the elongated flange 18 of the mounting rail 12. In this position, the leg 28 of the J-shaped bracket 14 is coplanar with the back portion 16 of the mounting rail 12. As the mounting rail 12 and the bracket 14 fit within the recess 50 of the cabinet C, the cabinet C is held flush against the wall W. Additionally, because the bracket 14 fits into the back of the cabinet C instead of affixing to the side of the cabinet C, multiple cabinets may be supported on the wall W flush against each other.

The elongated mounting rail 12 and the J-shaped bracket 14 may be made from aluminum, plastic or any other material suitable for hanging cabinets and the like. The wall unit support system 10 is capable of holding up to eight hundred pounds of weight.

The planar back portion 16 of the mounting rail 12 may have a notched strip or groove 60 having a thickness less than that of the rest of the rail 12. The notched strip 60 runs the length of the rail 12, and the thinning of the rail 12 makes it easier to drill a fastener hole through the rail 12 at any desired location along the rail. The groove 60 may be V-shaped, rectangular-shaped, or any other desired shape.

FIG. 4 is an exploded side view of the wall unit support system with a second embodiment of the elongated mounting rail 12a. In addition to the planar back portion 16 and the first, or upper, elongated flange 18, the mounting rail 12a includes a second, or lower, elongated flange 52. The second elongated flange 52 extends outwardly and downwardly parallel to the planar back portion 16. The second flange 52 is offset from the planar back portion 16 by a second cross member 54 and terminates in a second rounded end 56. The second cross member 54 extends outward from the bottom of the planar back portion 16. When the hooked portion 26 of the J-shaped bracket 14 engages the first flange 18, the bottom of the planar face 24 of the J-shaped bracket 14 abuts the second flange 52 of the mounting rail 12a, providing a greater level of support when the cabinet C is hung onto the wall W. The second flange 52 is preferably coplanar with the first flange 18, rendering the rail 12a symmetrical, so that the installer need not worry about which flange 18 or 52 is oriented upward or downward, since they are interchangeable.

It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.

Claims

1. A wall unit support system, comprising:

an elongated mounting rail having a planar back portion adapted for mounting to a vertical support structure and a first elongated flange extending upward and outward parallel to the planar back portion; and

at least one inverted, J-shaped bracket having a planar face adapted for attachment to a back surface of a cabinet and a hooked portion including a descending leg and a U-shaped bight joining the descending leg to the planar face, the hooked portion slidably engaging the flange of the mounting rail with the descending leg coplanar with the back portion of the mounting rail.

2. The wall unit support system according to claim 1, wherein the elongated mounting rail has a second elongated flange extending downward and outward parallel to the planar back portion.

3. The wall unit support system according to claim 1, wherein the planar face of said bracket has at least one fastener aperture defined therein.

4. The wall unit support system according to claim 1, wherein the elongated mounting rail is made from aluminum.

5. The wall unit support system according to claim 1, wherein the planar back portion of the elongated mounting rail has an elongated groove defined therein extending parallel to the first flange.