SHELVING SYSTEM
Shelving systems having repositionable shelves are described herein. A locking mechanism releasably secures cleats at predetermined positions relative to supports. The cleats disclosed herein are configured and adapted to support different objects including shelves and/or elongated objects, e.g., bars that are configured and adapted to support bottles thereon.
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The present application claims the benefit of the filing date of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/684,379 filed Aug. 17, 2012, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUNDThe present disclosure generally relates to a shelving system, and more particularly to a shelving system including a shelving cleat that is securable and repositionable with respect to supports.
The selection and placement of books and other items upon a shelf is a reflection of the personality and creativity of the individual who placed them upon the shelf.
A shelving unit, e.g., a bookcase, commonly includes a cabinet having a height, a width, and a depth. The cabinet is compartmentalized by shelves that are placed within the cabinet. Each shelf has a width and a depth corresponding to the width and depth of the cabinet in which they are placed. Multiple shelves may be placed within the cabinet and spaced apart from one another along the height of the cabinet.
The placement of items upon a shelf is limited by the physical dimensions of the items and the space upon the shelf. For example, books are published in a multitude of sizes. Commonly, librarians and publishers refer to the sizes of books as ranging from “folio” (the largest), to “quarto” (smaller), and “octavo” (the smallest). Oftentimes, a particularly oversized book is unable to stand upright within a bookcase and the book must therefore be placed upon its side on the shelf.
Some commercially available shelving units include repositionable shelves to accommodate items of varying sizes within the shelving unit. In particular, the shelves are repositionable with respect to the height of the shelving unit such that the shelves may be spaced apart by a dimension corresponding to the height of the tallest item to be placed between the shelves.
One such shelving unit that includes repositionable shelves has a cabinet having two generally opposing sides. Each side includes two columns of apertures extending along the length of the side. The apertures are aligned in rows defining an axis perpendicular to the height of the side. The two sides, and the arrangement of the apertures on each side, are substantially mirror images of each other. Each aperture is configured to receive a pin therein such that four pins may be positioned in apertures positioned along a common plane. A shelf may be rested upon the four pins. Repositioning of the shelf is achieved by removing the pins and placing the pins within apertures located in another row with respect to each side. This shelving unit is referred to herein as the “shelf-pin system”.
While the shelf-pin system is relatively simple to manufacture and use, it has several critical drawbacks. The depth of the apertures is limited by the width of the sides of the cabinet. To save material and to maximize the internal dimensions of the cabinet, the sides of the cabinet are often relatively thin. The extent to which a pin placed in such an aperture is limited by the depth to which the pin is inserted in the aperture. In particular, the longer the pin protrudes from the aperture, the greater the force exerted by the pin upon the sides of the aperture in which it is positioned. Therefore, relatively short pins support relatively long and heavy shelves.
The shelves of the shelf-pin system merely rest upon the pins and are not otherwise fixed or secured within the cabinet. Consequently, a shelf may move when touched or when items are placed upon or removed from the shelf. Such movement may cause pins to become loose or to disengage from the apertures in which they are placed. Once a pin disengaged from the aperture, the shelf is no longer adequately supported and is unstable. Consequently, the shelf may fall and items placed upon the shelf may break much to the consternation of the shelving unit's owner. Moreover, the dislodged pins may be lost, preventing replacement of the shelf and rendering the shelving unit nonfunctional.
A continuing need exists for new and improved shelving systems and devices that facilitate the repositioning of shelves with fewer drawbacks than those of currently available systems.
BRIEF SUMMARYDisclosed herein is a shelving system including a first and second pair of supports. The first pair of supports includes a first and second support, and the second pair of supports includes a third and fourth support. Each support defines a height and includes a plurality of notches that are longitudinally spaced along the height of the support. A first shelf cleat is positioned between generally opposing notches of the first and second support. A second shelf cleat is positioned between the third and fourth support. An elongated object, e.g., a shelf, is supported by upper surfaces of the first and second shelf cleats. A locking mechanism releasably secures the first and second cleats at a predetermined position relative to the notches.
In an embodiment, a shelving system includes a first and second pair of supports. The first pair includes a first and second support and the second pair includes a third and fourth support. Each support defining a height and having a plurality of notches longitudinally spaced along the height of the support. A first shelf cleat positioned between generally opposing notches of the first and second support. A second shelf cleat positioned between the third and fourth support. The first shelf cleat includes a first groove and the second shelf cleat includes a second groove, the first and second grooves are aligned along a common axis and are configured to support an elongated object, e.g., a bottle.
In an embodiment, a shelving system that is configured and adapted to support an elongated object, e.g., a bottle, may include a first shelf cleat and a second shelf cleat. The second shelf cleat is spaced a distance apart from the first shelf cleat and generally opposes the first shelf cleat. The first shelf cleat includes a first groove and the second shelf cleat includes a second groove, the first and second grooves generally opposing one another and aligned along a common axis and configured and adapted to support an elongated object therein.
In an embodiment, a shelving system includes a first and second pair of supports. The first pair includes a first and second support and the second pair having a third and fourth support. Each support defining a height and having a plurality of notches longitudinally spaced along the height of the support. A first shelf cleat positioned between generally opposing notches of the first and second support. A second shelf cleat positioned between the third and fourth support. The first shelf cleat includes a first groove and the second shelf cleat includes a second groove, the first and second grooves are aligned along a common axis and are configured to support a first bar defining a first depression configured to receive an elongated object therein. The first shelf cleat may include a third groove and the second shelf cleat includes a fourth groove, and further including a second bar supported within the third and fourth grooves, the second bar defining a second depression configured to receive the elongated object therein such that the elongated object may be supported by both the first and second depressions.
In an embodiment, the shelving system may include a third and fourth shelf cleat, wherein the third shelf cleat includes a third groove and the second shelf cleat includes a fourth groove, the third and fourth grooves aligned along a common axis and configured to support a second bar defining a depression configured to receive an elongated object therein. The third and fourth shelf cleats may be positioned at different heights with respect to the supports such that when the elongated object is placed upon the first and second depressions, the elongated object is tilted.
In an embodiment, lighting members, e.g., light emitting diodes, may be operatively coupled to the shelving system to provide illumination. The lighting members may be operatively coupled to the cleats, bars, and/or supports described herein.
These and other embodiments of the present disclosure are more fully described herein below.
By way of description only, embodiments of the present disclosure are described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
Particular embodiments of the present disclosure are described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the figures and in the description that follow, like reference numerals identify similar or identical elements. An x-y-z coordinate system, as shown in
A bookcase or cabinet system 100A is described with reference to
A see-through illustration of the right side R of the cabinet system 100A (which is a mirror image of the left side L) is shown in
In an embodiment, a cabinet system 100B includes shelving system 10B, which is described with reference to
As shown in
In an embodiment, a cabinet system 100C includes a shelving system 10C (
The right side of the shelving system is illustrated in
In an embodiment, a cabinet system 100D includes a shelving system 10D (
The lengths of the upper and lower cleats 16U, 16L may be adjusted to fit between the supports 11 by cutting the upper and lower cleats 16U, 16L. The receptacles 17U extend through lower surface 16t of the upper cleat 16U. The receptacles 17L extend through upper surface 16w of the lower cleat 16L. The respective receptacles 17U, 17L of the upper and lower cleats 16U, 16L may be equidistantly spaced along the length of the cleats 16U, 16L. A plurality of receptacles 17U, 17L may extend along a substantial portion of the length of the cleats 16U, 16L such that when the cleats 16U, 16L are cut to a desired length, the remaining portion of the cleats 16U, 16L will still have respective receptacles 17U, 17L for accommodating biasing member 3 therein.
In an embodiment, a cabinet system 100E includes a shelving system 10E (
Each of the cleat assemblies 15A-15D described above may be operatively coupled to a support member 80 such that when the cleat assemblies 15A-15D are operatively coupled to supports 11, the support member 80 is also secured relative to the supports 11 and may be positioned adjacent side faces S of the supports 11. The support member 80 may facilitate proper placement of the cleat assembly 15A-15D with respect to the supports 11. The operation of the support member 80 and placement of the cleat assemblies 15A-15D within cabinet 9 are described with reference to
An upper surface 80u of the support member 80 (
As shown in
As shown in
A bottle rack system 200 is described with reference to
A first bar 220 is placed within grooves 212 of a pair of generally opposing cleats 210. A second bar 220 is placed within grooves 212 of either the same generally a different pair of generally opposing cleats 210 that are positioned differently along axis-z, i.e., either above or below. As shown in
In an embodiment, cleats may support bottles without the use of bars B. A wine bottle cleat 40 is described with reference to
One or more lighting members (not shown), e.g., light emitting diodes, may be operatively coupled to cleats 15, 15A, 15L, 16L, 40, and bar 220 to facilitate illumination. Electrical leads may be disposed within or one the cleats 15, 15A, 15L, 16L, 40 and bar 220, which are electrically connected to conductive elements (not shown) that are operatively coupled to the supports 11. The electrical leads and conductive elements may extend along the length of the cleats 15, 15A, 15L, 16L and/or bars 220, and along the length of the supports 11 described herein and may be cut to an appropriate length prior to assembly. The lighting members that are operatively coupled to cleats 15, 15A, 15L, 16L and/or bars 220 may be powered by electricity flowing through electrical leads (not shown) disposed on or within the supports 11. In addition or as an alternative, the cleats 15, 15A, 15L, 16L and bar 220 may include an internal power source, e.g., a battery, to power the lighting members.
Although the invention herein has been described with reference to particular embodiments, it is to be understood that these embodiments are merely illustrative of the principles and applications of the present invention. It is therefore to be understood that numerous modifications may be made to the illustrative embodiments and that other arrangements may be devised without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.
Claims
1. A shelving system including:
- a first and second pair of supports, the first pair having a first and second support and the second pair having a third and fourth support, each support defining a height and having a plurality of notches longitudinally spaced along the height of the support;
- a first shelf cleat positioned between generally opposing notches of the first and second support;
- a second shelf cleat positioned between the third and fourth support; and a locking mechanism to lock the first and second cleats at a predetermined position relative to the notches.
2. The shelving system of claim 1, wherein the first and second shelf cleats are configured and adapted to support an elongated object.
3. The shelving system of claim 2, wherein the elongated object is a shelf.
4. The shelving system of claim 2, wherein the elongated object is a bottle.
5. The shelving system of claim 4, wherein at least one of the first and second cleats includes a depression defined in an upper surface of the at least one of the first and second cleats, the depression corresponding to a dimension of the elongated object.
6. A shelving system including:
- a first shelf cleat; and
- a second shelf cleat, the second shelf cleat spaced a distance apart from the first shelf cleat and generally opposing the first shelf cleat,
- wherein the first shelf cleat includes a first groove and the second shelf cleat includes a second groove, the first and second grooves generally opposing one another and aligned along a common axis and configured and adapted to support an elongated object therein.
7. The shelving system of claim 6, wherein the elongated object is a bottle.
8. A shelving system including:
- a first and second pair of supports, the first pair having a first and second support and the second pair having a third and fourth support, each support defining a height and having a plurality of notches longitudinally spaced along the height of the support;
- a first shelf cleat positioned between generally opposing notches of the first and second support;
- a second shelf cleat positioned between the third and fourth support,
- wherein the first shelf cleat includes a first groove and the second shelf cleat includes a second groove, the first and second grooves are aligned along a common axis and are configured to support an elongated object.
9. The shelving system of claim 8, wherein the elongated object is a bottle.
10. A shelving system including:
- a first and second pair of supports, the first pair having a first and second support and the second pair having a third and fourth support, each support defining a height and having a plurality of notches longitudinally spaced along the height of the support;
- a first shelf cleat positioned between generally opposing notches of the first and second support;
- a second shelf cleat positioned between the third and fourth support,
- wherein the first shelf cleat includes a first groove and the second shelf cleat includes a second groove, the first and second grooves are aligned along a common axis and are configured to support a first bar defining a first depression configured to receive an elongated object therein.
11. The shelving system of claim 10, wherein the first shelf cleat includes a third groove and the second shelf cleat includes a fourth groove, and further including a second bar supported within the third and fourth grooves, the second bar defining a second depression configured to receive the elongated object therein such that the elongated object is supportable by both the first and second depressions.
12. The shelving system of claim 10 further including a third and fourth shelf cleat, wherein the third shelf cleat includes a third groove and the second shelf cleat includes a fourth groove, the third and fourth grooves aligned along a common axis and configured to support a second bar defining a second depression configured to receive an elongated object therein, wherein the third and fourth shelf cleats are positioned at different heights with respect to the supports such that when the elongated object is placed upon the first and second depressions, the elongated object is tilted.
Type: Application
Filed: Aug 6, 2013
Publication Date: Feb 20, 2014
Applicant: (Washington, NJ)
Inventor: Lawrence D. Brookes (Washington, NJ)
Application Number: 13/960,134
International Classification: A47B 57/10 (20060101); A47B 73/00 (20060101);