No-tools breakdown furniture
Articles of breakdown furniture (e.g., a desk and a TV stand) that can be quickly and easily assembled and disassembled by a user without the need for traditional tools, in a relatively short time, and with minimal assistance. In its disassembled condition, the furniture is advantageously adapted to be packaged and transported in compact shipping containers. A removable top is detachably connected between a pair of opposing sides or legs by locking pins which slide through lock bodies affixed to the detachable top for receipt by respective pin holes formed in the sides. A back panel is connected between the pair of opposing sides by connectors which project from ends of the support panel for removable receipt by slotted brackets affixed to the sides. In the case of the desk, a removable pull-out drawer is located below the removable top to be slidably received by grooves formed along the sides. In the case of the TV stand, removable shelves which extend between the pair of opposing sides are detachably connected to shelf supports that are affixed to each of the sides and the back panel.
This application is related to Provisional Application No. 61/070,428 filed Mar. 24, 2008.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to break-down furniture (e.g., a desk and a TV stand) of the kind commonly used in a home or office that is capable of being quickly and easily assembled and disassembled by a user without the requirement for traditional tools, in a relatively short time, and with minimal assistance. By virtue of its break-down characteristic, the furniture described herein is advantageously adapted for space-efficient storage and transport in compact shipping containers.
2. Background Art
It is known for articles found in a home or office to be shipped to retailers and delivered to consumers unassembled in a shipping container. However, it is often impractical to ship large and/or heavy articles of furniture to consumers in a disassembled condition. Where furniture has been shipped unassembled, the consumer is typically required to rely on complex instructions and complex skill or have access to tools by which fasteners are inserted to connect the parts of the furniture together. In some cases, the consumer must spend considerable time to complete the assembly which can lead to frustration. The same time and inconvenience will be encountered should the consumer wish to disassemble the furniture.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to have break-down furniture that can be shipped to retailers and carried to the home or office of a consumer in a disassembled condition within one or more compact shipping containers so as to be efficiently transported and quickly and easily assembled (and disassembled) without the use of special tools or skill, in a relatively short time, and with minimal assistance.
Reference may be made to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/825,871 filed Jul. 11, 2007 which has been or will be assigned to the assignee of this application for an earlier example of no tools, break-down furniture.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONIn general terms, break-down furniture (e.g., a desk and a TV stand) is disclosed that can be quickly and easily assembled and disassembled by a user without the requirement for traditional tools, in a relatively short time, and with minimal assistance. By virtue of its break-down nature, the furniture can be disassembled for packing and transport in compact shipping containers. A pair of opposing sides (i.e., legs) are included to enable the furniture to stand upright on a surface. A removable top extends laterally between and is detachably connected to each of the opposing sides without the use of tools. A removable support panel that is located below the top extends laterally between and is detachably connected to each of the opposing sides without the use of tools.
A plurality of lock bodies are attached below the removable top. Each lock body has a locking pin that is slidable between a locked position and an unlocked position. In the locked position, the locking pins are received within respective pin holes formed in each of the opposing sides, whereby the removable top is detachably connected between the sides. In the case of a break-down TV stand, a locking pin is also received within a pin hole formed in the support panel, whereby the removable top is detachably connected to the support panel. In the unlocked position, the locking pins are withdrawn from the pin holes to permit the removable top to be separated from the opposing sides.
A bracket having retaining slots formed therein is affixed to each of the opposing sides of the furniture. Fasteners (e.g., shoulder bolts) project outwardly from opposite ends of the removable support panel. The fasteners are simply dropped into respective ones of the retaining slots, whereby the support panel is detachably connected to the opposing sides of the furniture at the brackets affixed thereto. In one embodiment, each bracket includes a bracket stand that is coupled to a bracket base by means of a hinge pin. The bracket base is affixed to one of the opposing sides of the furniture, and the bracket stand, in which the retaining slots are formed, is rotatable at the hinge pin relative to the bracket stand from an upstanding position, projecting from the side, to a flat position, laying alongside the side. In another embodiment, pairs of upper and lower hinge plates are affixed to each one of the pair of opposing sides of the furniture and opposite ends of the support beam. The upper hinge plates have coupling pins projecting therefrom for removable receipt by axially aligned coupling sleeves that are carried by the lower hinge plates, whereby the removable support panel is detachably connected to the opposing sides of the furniture.
In the case of a break-down desk, a flexible wire management channel is attached to and suspended from the bottom of the removable top to route electrical wires from electrical equipment seated on the top to a source of power. The flexible wire management channel is responsive to a compressive force applied thereto so as to lay flat against the top to facilitate a compact configuration for storage or shipping purposes.
Disclosed herein is breakdown furniture that is advantageously adapted to be assembled and disassembled by a user without traditional tools, in a relatively short time, and with minimal assistance. By way of a first example, and referring initially to
In the example of
Referring to
The pull-out drawer 10 accessible at the front of desk 1 is shown having a bottom tray 22. In the assembled configuration of
The support beam 14 which extends laterally between the opposite sides 5 and 6 of desk 1 is shown having a pair of connectors (e.g., shoulder bolts 26 and 27) affixed to and projecting outwardly therefrom at locations adjacent each end thereof. In a preferred embodiment, the connectors 26 and 27 include wide button heads that are spaced from the support beam 14. In the assembled desk configuration of
A wire exit port 30 is formed in support beam 14 to cooperate with the wire management holes 8 through the desktop 3 and/or the wire management channel 20 suspended below the desktop 3 to run electrical wires and cables to a convenient source of electrical power.
An important feature of the no-tools breakdown desk 1 of this invention is the manner in which the desktop 3 is quickly and easily coupled to and detachable from the opposing sides 5 and 6. More particularly, locking grooves 32 (best shown in
Pairs of conventional lock bodies 34 and 36 are affixed to the bottom of the desktop 3 at locations adjacent each of the opposite ends thereof. Referring in this regard to
With all of the locking pins 38 pushed inwardly of respective ones of the pin holes 40 to the locked position (of
Turning now to
In the example of
A back panel 67 (best shown in
Referring to
A slotted bracket 74 (only one of which being shown) projects inwardly from each side (e.g., 54) of the TV stand 50. The slotted bracket 74 is affixed to the side 54 so as to stand upwardly therefrom by means of a bracket base 76. The use of slotted bracket 74 for enabling the back panel 67 to be detachably connected to and extend laterally between the sides 54 and 56 is now described while referring briefly to
In the assembled TV stand configuration of
Returning to
Pairs of wire management holes 88 and 89 are located through the back panel 67 at locations adjacent the opposite ends thereof. The wire management holes 88 and 89 are conveniently located with respect to the upper and lower shelves 58 and 60 so that the wires or cables from any electronic (e.g., audio/video) equipment seated upon either one or both of the upper and lower shelves 58 and 60 can pass through back panel 67 for connection to an accessible source of electrical power.
To enable the top 52 of TV stand 50 to be detachably connected to the pair of sides 54 and 56 and the back panel 67, a plurality of conventional lock bodies 90 are affixed beneath top 52. In the example of
Each of the lock bodies 90 has a manually-operated spring-loaded locking pin 92 that is slidable relative to axially-aligned pin holes 94 formed in each of the sides (only one of which 54 is shown) of TV stand 50 and a pin hole 95 formed in the back panel 67. Since the lock bodies 90 of
In this regard, each locking pin 92 includes a manually-accessible head to which a pushing force is applied to cause the locking pin to slide through its lock body 90 to a locked position for receipt by an opposing pin hole 94 or 95 in one side 54 or the back panel 67 of the TV stand 50. When all of the locking pins 92 are pushed to the locked position inwardly of respective ones of the pin holes 94 and 95, the top 52 will be detachably connected to each of the sides 54 and 56 and the back panel 67. Should it be later decided to disassemble the TV stand 50, a pushing force is applied to a release button (designated 44 in
A plurality of locator pins 96 project upwardly along the detachable top of the back panel 67 to facilitate the axial alignment of the locking pins 92 which slide through lock bodies 90 for removable receipt within opposing pin holes 94 and 95. The upstanding locator pins 96 are removably received within respective pin holes (not shown) that are formed along the underside of the top 52 adjacent the rear thereof. When locator pins 96 are received in their respective pin holes, the locking pins 92 of lock bodies 90 will be automatically aligned to slide into locking engagement with the pin holes 94 and 95 formed in the pair of sides 54 and 56 and back panel 67 of TV stand 50. After the locking pins 92 have been removed from their pin holes 94 and 95, a lifting force is applied to the detachable top 52 to cause the top 52 to be displaced upwardly relative to the back panel 67 and separated from the locator pins 96.
The vertical dividers 64 and 66 are preferably located one above the other at approximately the middle of the TV stand 50 between the detachable top 52 and the upper shelf 58 (for divider 64) and the upper shelf 58 and the lower shelf 60 (for divider 66). The vertical dividers 64 and 66 are detachably connected in TV stand 50 by means of pairs of upper and lower dowel pins 63 and 65 being removably received within respective pairs of dowel pin holes 69 and 71 formed in the underside of top 52, the top and bottom of upper shelf 58, and the top of lower shelf 60. The dividers 64 and 66 prevent the top 52 and the upper shelf 58 of TV stand 50 from sagging between the pair of sides 54 and 56 in response to a heavy weight laid thereon.
Optional features for the no-tools breakdown desk 1 and TV stand 50 of
However, in order to be able to efficiently package the removable side 5 or 54 from which the upstanding slotted bracket 16 or 74 projects in a compact shipping container, it is preferable that each of the slotted bracket 16 and 74 described above be capable of rotating from its upstanding position as shown in
To this end, and referring first to
The slotted bracket 100 has a pair of sloping retaining slots 110 and 112 disposed one above the other. The function of retaining slots 110 and 112 is identical to the function of the pairs of retaining slots 28, 29 and 80, 81 shown in
Referring specifically to
Turning now to
In this regard, and as is best shown in
In order to assemble the breakdown desk 1 or TV stand 50, the end 144 is first lifted above the adjacent side 146 so that coupling pin 132 which extends downwardly from the upper hinge plate 128 is axially aligned with the coupling sleeve 134 carried by the lower hinge plate 142 (best shown in
Referring now to
Like the desk 1 of
Unlike the desk 1 of
Claims
1. An article of furniture, comprising:
- a pair of opposing side legs to enable said article of furniture to stand on a surface;
- a removable top extending laterally between and detachably connected to each of said pair of side legs without the use of tools; and
- a removable support panel located below said top, said support panel extending between and being detachably connected to each of said side legs without the use of tools.
2. The article of furniture recited in claim 1, wherein said article is one of a breakdown desk, table, TV stand, or bookshelf wherein said pair of opposing side legs, said removable top, and said removable support panel are connected to one another and disconnected from one another without the use of tools.
3. The article of furniture recited in claim 1, further comprising a plurality of lock bodies attached to said removable top, each lock body having a locking pin slidable between a locked position and an unlocked position, and each of said pair of side legs having at least one pin hole formed therein, the locking pins of said lock bodies sliding to said locked position for receipt by respective ones of said pin holes, whereby said removable top is detachably connected to said pair of side legs, and said locking pins sliding to said unlocked position so as to be withdrawn from said pin holes, whereby said removable top is detachable from said pair of side legs.
4. The article of furniture recited in claim 3, wherein said removable support panel has at least one pin hole formed therein, a locking pin from one of said plurality of lock bodies attached to said removable top sliding to said locked position for receipt by the pin hole formed in said support panel, whereby said removable top is detachably connected to said support panel.
5. The article of furniture recited in claim 3, wherein each of said pair of side legs has at least one locating pin projecting upwardly therefrom, and the bottom of said removable top has at least one locator hole formed at first and opposite ends thereof, the locating pins projecting from said pair of sides being removably received within respective ones of said locator holes formed in said removable top by which to automatically align the locking pins of said plurality of lock bodies for removable receipt by respective ones of the pin holes formed in said pair of legs.
6. The article of furniture recited in claim 1, further comprising a bracket affixed to each one of said pair of side legs, first and opposite ends of said removable support panel being detachably connected to of said pair of side legs at the respective brackets thereof.
7. The article of furniture recited in claim 6, further comprising at least one connector affixed to and projecting outwardly from each of first and opposite ends of said removable support panel, said bracket affixed to each one of said pair of side legs having a locking slot formed therein, and the at least one connector at each end of said support panel being removably received within the locking slot of a respective bracket, whereby said support panel is detachably connected to each of said pair of side legs.
8. The article of furniture recited in claim 7, wherein each bracket is rotatable relative to the one of said pair of side legs to which said bracket is affixed from an upstanding position, projecting outwardly from said one side leg, to a flat position, laying alongside said one leg.
9. The article of furniture recited in claim 8, wherein each bracket includes a bracket base affixed to one of said pair of side legs, a bracket stand having said locking slot formed therein, and a hinge pin by which said bracket stand is pivotally coupled to said bracket base so as to be rotatable relative to said bracket base between said upstanding and flat positions.
10. The article of furniture recited in claim 1, further comprising a first hinge plate affixed to each of first and opposite ends of said removable support panel and a second hinge plate affixed to each one of said pair of side legs, one of said first and second hinge plates having a coupling pin projecting therefrom and the other one of said first and second hinge plates having a coupling sleeve, the coupling pin of the one said hinge plates being removably received by the coupling sleeve of the other one of said hinge plates, whereby the first and opposite ends of said support panel are detachably connected to respective ones of said pair of side legs.
11. The article of furniture recited in claim 10, further comprising a pair of said first hinge plates affixed to each one of the first and opposite ends of said removable support panel and a pair of said second hinge plates affixed to each one of said pair of side legs, each pair of said first and second hinge plates including a coupling pin projecting from one of said first and second hinge plates and a coupling sleeve carried by the other one of said first and second hinge plates in which to removably receive said coupling pin, the coupling pin of one pair of first and second hinge plates being shorter than the coupling pin of the other pair of said first and second hinge plates.
12. The article of furniture recited in claim 1, further comprising a wire management channel connected to said removable top and adapted to carry electrical wires from electrical equipment located on said top to a source of electrical power.
13. The article of furniture recited in claim 12, wherein said wire management channel is suspended from and hangs downwardly below the removable top, said wire management channel manufactured from a flexible material so as to lay substantially flat against said top in response to a compressive force applied thereto.
14. The article of furniture recited in claim 1, further comprising a pull-out drawer located below said removable top and having a bottom tray, each of said pair of side legs having a guide track formed therein for slidably receiving respective first and opposite ends of said bottom tray.
15. The article of furniture recited in claim 1, wherein said removable top has a locking groove formed in first and opposite ends thereof, the top of each of said pair of side legs being removably received within a respective locking groove, whereby said removable top and said pair of side legs are detachably connected to one another.
16. The article of furniture recited in claim 1, further comprising at least one shelf located below said removable top and extending between said pair of side legs, each one of said pair of side legs and said removable support panel having a shelf support projecting therefrom, said at least one shelf being seated on each shelf support, and an attachment pin projecting upwardly from each shelf support to be connected to said shelf to hold said shelf against each shelf support.
17. An article of furniture, comprising:
- a pair of opposing side legs to enable said article of furniture to stand on a surface;
- a removable top extending laterally between and detachably connected to each of said pair of side legs without the use of tools; and
- a removable support panel located below said top, said support panel extending between said pair of side legs and being detachably connected to each one of said side legs and said removable top without the use of tools.
Type: Application
Filed: May 13, 2008
Publication Date: Nov 19, 2009
Inventors: Thomas B. Hazzard (Ladera Ranch, CA), Steven Krause (Irvine, CA)
Application Number: 12/152,422
International Classification: A47G 29/00 (20060101);