Panel anchor assembly
Embodiments of the present invention provide an anchor assembly configured to be secured to a panel. The anchor assembly includes a main body, a double-sided adhesive, and a fastening member. The main body includes a base, wherein a through-hole is formed through the base. The double-sided adhesive is attached to one side of the base. The fastening member is retained within the through-hole. The fastening member may be manufactured with the main body and the double-sided adhesive as a single piece.
This application relates to and claims priority benefits from U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/782,443 entitled “Thin Panel Anchor Assembly,” filed Mar. 15, 2006, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONEmbodiments of the present invention generally relate to anchor assemblies, and more particularly to anchor assemblies that are configured for use with household refrigerator units.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONConventional refrigerators and freezers include a plurality of shelves that are configured to support various food items within the refrigerator. For example, the shelves may support beverages, such as a gallon of milk, soft drink cans, and various other food items that are to be chilled. The shelves are supported by rails, which are mounted to lateral walls of an inner shell of the refrigerator.
The anchor 14 includes a unitary main body 16 having a flat base 18 integrally formed with angled wings 20. A hole 22 is formed through a central area of the base 18, and is aligned with the hole 12 formed through the refrigerator liner 10. A layer of double-sided foam tape (not shown) is adhesively secured to a rear surface of the base 18. Because the tape is double-sided, the tape adhesively secures to the base 18, and an outer surface of the refrigerator liner 10.
A need exists for a quick and efficient method of securing shelf rails to a refrigerator liner. A need exists for a less time-consuming process than that described above with respect to
Certain embodiments of the present invention provide an anchor assembly configured to be secured to a panel. The anchor assembly includes a main body including a base, wherein a through-hole is formed through the base, a double-sided adhesive attached to one side of the base, and a fastening member retained within the through-hole. The fastening member is configured to extend through an opening in the panel, and may be configured to be secured to the main body before the main body is secured to the panel through the double-sided adhesive. The fastening member may be manufactured with the main body and the double-sided adhesive as a single, unitary piece.
The fastening member may be a screw or bolt. Optionally, the fastening member may include a barrel integrally formed with a head, with the barrel defining a fastener passage. The barrel is configured to receive and retain a fastener within the fastener passage. The barrel may include at least one outwardly extending ramped tab that snapably secures the barrel to the main body. The barrel may also include a distal lip or flash ridge configured to secure around an opening of a shelf rail.
Certain embodiments of the present invention provide a system for securing a shelf to a panel. The system includes a plurality of anchor assemblies and a shelf rail. Each anchor assembly includes a main body including a base, wherein a through-hole is formed through the base, a double-sided adhesive attached to one side of the base, wherein the double-sided adhesive adhesively secures the main body to an outer surface of the panel, and a fastening member retained within the through-hole, wherein the fastening member passes through the panel.
The shelf rail is supported on an inner surface of the panel by the fastening members of the anchor assemblies. The shelf rail includes a plurality of fastener openings, wherein each of the fastening members passes through one of the plurality of fastener openings.
Before the embodiments of the invention are explained in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or being carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of “including” and “comprising” and variations thereof is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items and equivalents thereof.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTIONThe anchor assembly 54 includes a unitary main body 58 having a planar base 60 integrally formed with outwardly angled wings 62 at either vertical end. A fastener through-hole (not shown) is formed through a central portion of the base 60 and is configured to allow a fastener to pass therethrough.
Double-sided foam tape 64 is adhesively secured to a front surface of the base 60. The foam tape 64 may be 0.40″ thick. Tapes of various other thickness may also be used.
A fastener 66, such as a screw, is threadably secured through the fastener through-hole of the base 60 before the anchor assembly 54 is positioned on the refrigerator lining 52. The fastener 66 is driven through the base 60 at a set distance. The anchor assembly 54, including the fastener, is manufactured as a unitary piece. The fastener hole 56 formed through the lateral wall 50 is large enough to allow the head of the fastener 66 to pass. Because the anchor assembly 54, including the fastener 66, is manufactured as a single piece, the process of installing shelf rails to the lining 52 is simplified, due to the fact that separate fasteners are not used. As such, the time-consuming process of lining up the shelf rails with holes, inserting fasteners through the holes, and then ensuring that the fasteners are aligned and positioned before tightening is eliminated.
Thus, the shelf rail 76 may be quickly and easily secured to the liner 50 without aligning holes of the shelf rail 76 with holes formed in the liner 52. Instead, as discussed above, the fastener holes 80 are positioned over the easily visible fasteners 66. Once the shelf rail 76 is positioned on the fasteners 66, the shelf rail 76 is downwardly shifted in the direction of arrow A, as shown in
Instead of a screw-type fastener, however, a barrel anchor 102 is positioned through the hole 98 and the tape 100. The barrel anchor 102 may be formed of plastic or other suitable materials, and may be configured to snapably secure to the planar base 94. The barrel anchor 102 includes a head 104 integrally formed with a cylindrical barrel 106 that includes a fastener passage (not shown in
Thus, embodiments of the present invention provide a quick and efficient method of securing shelf rails to a refrigerator liner. The embodiments of the present invention aids in the installation and support of fasteners into thin panels. In general, embodiments of the present invention decrease the time it takes to align support members onto thin panels. Although embodiments of the present invention have been described in connection with a refrigerator, the embodiments may be used in various other applications. A refrigerator is merely shown and described as one example of an application.
Variations and modifications of the foregoing are within the scope of the present invention. It is understood that the invention disclosed and defined herein extends to all alternative combinations of two or more of the individual features mentioned or evident from the text and/or drawings. All of these different combinations constitute various alternative aspects of the present invention. The embodiments described herein explain the best modes known for practicing the invention and will enable others skilled in the art to utilize the invention. The claims are to be construed to include alternative embodiments to the extent permitted by the prior art.
While various spatial terms, such as upper, bottom, lower, mid, lateral, horizontal, vertical, and the like may used to describe embodiments of the present invention, it is understood that such terms are merely used with respect to the orientations shown in the drawings. The orientations may be inverted, rotated, or otherwise changed, such that an upper portion is a lower portion, and vice versa, horizontal becomes vertical, and the like.
Various features of the invention are set forth in the following claims.
Claims
1. An anchor assembly configured to be secured to a panel, the anchor assembly comprising:
- a main body comprising a base, wherein a through-hole is formed through said base;
- a double-sided adhesive attached to one side of said base; and
- a fastening member retained within said through-hole, wherein said fastening member is manufactured with said main body and said double-sided adhesive as a single piece.
2. The anchor assembly of claim 1, wherein said fastening member is one of a screw and bolt.
3. The anchor assembly of claim 1, wherein said fastening member comprises a barrel integrally formed with a head, said barrel defining a fastener passage.
4. The anchor assembly of claim 3, wherein said barrel is configured to receive and retain a fastener within said fastener passage.
5. The anchor assembly of claim 3, wherein said barrel comprises at least one outwardly extending ramped tab that snapably secures said barrel to said main body.
6. The anchor assembly of claim 3, wherein said barrel further comprises a distal lip configured to secure around an opening of a shelf rail.
7. The anchor assembly of claim 1, wherein said fastening member is configured to outwardly protrude from the panel, and wherein a support structure is configured to be securely fastened to the panel through said fastening member.
8. The anchor assembly of claim 1, wherein the panel is a liner of a refrigerator.
9. The anchor assembly of claim 1, wherein said main body comprises at least one collar that secures said fastening member within said through-hole.
10. A system for securing a shelf to a panel, the system comprising:
- a plurality of anchor assemblies, each of said plurality of anchor assemblies comprising: a main body comprising a base, wherein a through-hole is formed through said base; a double-sided adhesive attached to one side of said base, said double-sided adhesive adhesively securing said main body to an outer surface of the panel; and a fastening member retained within said through-hole, said fastening member passing through the panel; and
- a shelf rail supported on an inner surface of the panel by said fastening members, said shelf rail comprising a plurality of fastener openings, wherein each of said fastening members passes through one of said plurality of fastener openings.
11. The system of claim 10, wherein each of said plurality of fastener openings comprises fastener through hole integrally connected to a keyhole slot.
12. The system of claim 10, wherein each of said fastening members is one of a screw and bolt.
13. The system of claim 10, wherein each of said fastening members comprises a barrel integrally formed with a head, said barrel defining a fastener passage.
14. The system of claim 13, wherein said barrel is configured to receive and retain a fastener within said fastener passage.
15. The system of claim 13, wherein said barrel comprises at least one outwardly extending ramped tab that snapably secures said barrel to said main body.
16. The system of claim 13, wherein said barrel further comprises a distal lip configured to secure around one of said fastener openings of said shelf rail.
17. An anchor assembly configured to be secured to a panel, the anchor assembly comprising:
- a main body comprising a base, wherein a through-hole is formed through said base;
- a double-sided adhesive attached to one side of said base, said double-sided adhesive configured to adhesively secure said main body to the panel; and
- a fastening member retained within said through-hole, wherein said fastening member is configured to extend through an opening in the panel, and wherein said fastening member is configured to be secured to said main body before said main body is secured to the panel through said double-sided adhesive.
18. The anchor assembly of claim 17, wherein said fastening member is one of a screw and bolt.
19. The anchor assembly of claim 1, wherein said fastening member comprises a barrel integrally formed with a head, said barrel defining a fastener passage, wherein said barrel is configured to receive and retain a fastener within said fastener passage, said barrel comprising at least one outwardly extending ramped tab that snapably secures said barrel to said main body, and a distal lip configured to secure around an opening of a shelf rail.
20. The anchor assembly of claim 17, wherein said main body comprises at least one collar that secures said fastening member within said through-hole.
Type: Application
Filed: Jan 25, 2007
Publication Date: Oct 4, 2007
Inventors: Andrew MacKay (Akron, OH), Phillip Johnson (Naperville, IL), Frank W. Bechetel (Roscoe, IL), Scott H. Carr (Westmont, IL), Terrence P. Meier (Naperville, IL)
Application Number: 11/657,803