SWING OUT SHELF SUPPORT
An innovative shelf support device is disclosed. The shelf support device includes a swing out pin that engages with a shelf cross member. The swing out pin is permanently housed within a housing fitted to press into a vertical member. The swing out pin is held in a storage position when not in use & the support position when being used. This device requires no tools & has no loose pieces.
The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Nos. 62/560,393, filed Sep. 19, 2017 and 62/664,305, filed Apr. 30, 2018, which are hereby incorporated herein in their entirety by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention relates to shelf support devices and, particularly to adjustable shelf support devices for use in cabinets.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONShelves in cabinets are supported in some means and are often desired to be adjustable. Adjustable shelving units in which the vertical placement of a shelf in a cabinet or other structure may be varied are known in the art. An example of an early shelf bracket that allowed for adjustable placement of shelves is U.S. Pat. No. 76,232 to E. S. Morse (incorporated herein by reference). These systems required additional loose pieces that were moved to adjust the position of the shelves. Additionally, this type of bracket relied upon a cantilever support, which did not provide uniform support for the shelf.
A typical means of providing such support with adjustability is to provide a plurality of holes drilled in the cabinet wall wherein pins are inserted. The shelf is supported on the pins. The holes are drilled at discrete locations. The pins have to be physically removed and placed into another set of holes to adjust the shelf position. U.S. Pat. No. 1,052,516 to Soeren Ringer, incorporated herein by reference, is an example of an improvement in which a single clip is formed of round wire to take the place of two pins along the depth of the shelve.
Another method known in the art includes shelves with tabs that can be inserted into an array of slots in the cabinet. An example of this type of shelving unit is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,481,485 to E. J. Hess (incorporated herein by reference). This basic design was beneficial in that it did not have any loose or additional parts necessary for changing the position of the shelves. However, aesthetically it was lacking because it required numerous slots in the cabinet and relied upon the strength of the tabs for supporting the weight placed upon the shelf. Additionally, the design of Hess required tabs that extended beyond the footprint of the shelf Other shelf support systems included flexible latches built into the shelf that could be retracted from the edge to allow the shelf to be moved to another location. U.S. Pat. No. 4,231,301 to Wade H. Barrineau III, incorporated herein by reference, is an example of such a system. While this type of design eliminates loose pieces of the prior art, this design requires corner posts and the flexible latches can lose their strength over time.
U.S. Patent Publication No. US20070284983A1 to Robert C. Wayner, incorporated herein by reference, discloses a system comprising stationary support pin assemblies with a pin that is threaded to allow the pin to be retracted into the cabinet side wall when not in use. While this design addresses some of the deficiencies of prior art shelf supports, retracting the pins of Wayner is time consuming, requires a tool to rotate the pins, and requires deep cabinet side walls to accommodate the length of the pins.
What is desired is shelf support system with pre-positioned pins that can be retracted when not in use, provides load bearing across the depth of the shelf, and contains no loose parts that may be lost when not in use.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONAn innovative support device is disclosed. The device includes a swing out pin that engages with a shelf. It is intended that more than one (usually four) of the devices are used to support a single shelf. The swing out pin is housed within a housing fitted to press into vertical members. The swing out pin may be joined with the housing by being trapped within the housing or by use of a cross pin.
The housing of the device is preferably barbed around its perimeter to secure the device into slots machined in vertical members. It is desirable that the housing be constructed of high impact polymer or metal to provide strength and minimize weight of the device. However, the housing can be made of any material known in the art for various desirable features. The housing may also include a flange that controls the insertion depth and covers any chipping or roughness in the insertion hole on the vertical members. The housing may further include keyholes, catches, ramps, magnets, and or detents to allow the swing out pin to be stored within the vertical members. Another embodiment includes shaping the housing so that it can be inserted in only one orientation, which prevents the device from being installed incorrectly.
Also disclosed is a unique locking mechanism for securing an item using this device. Added to the shelf is a bracket with a slot arranged for receiving the end of the swing out pin with a latch installed to create a locking feature. The locking feature will likely automatically lock itself & will only require a person to push/pull the latch to unlock the shelf. The latch may be constructed of a spring material, elastomeric element or have a spring incorporated to it. Alternately, the shelf or bracket has a slot or opening sized and arranged for receiving the swing out pin. The mechanism may also include a means for securing the swing out pin in the slot of the shelf or bracket. Also contemplated is a means for easily releasing the locking mechanism, such as a latch or lever.
ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION
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- Allows for adjustable shelf positioning without having to move or place pins and without having pins exposed when not being used.
- Shallow depth allows swing out pins to be placed on both sides of a shelf divider panel (back-to-back).
- Pre-installation into shelf side panels ensures that the swing out pins are properly aligned for accepting shelves.
- Ribs molded into housing provide press fit into side panels.
- Single-piece housing allows increased toughness for insertion when using tools (mallet).
- Controls insertion depth and covers chipping around routed hole in substrate.
- Keyhole allows swing out pins to be stowed within housing for maximum space usage when not in use.
- Shaped to prevent device from being inserted backwards or upside down.
- Swing out pin can be made to pivot on a pin or a ball that fits a socket in the housing.
- Housing may be molded, poured, forged, co-molded, pressed, cast, cold forged, printed, or any similar technique for a part of this style.
- It is desirable for the housing to be a single piece however, it may be multi-piece.
- Device may have a pin permanently installed within.
- Device may have a magnet permanently installed within.
- Device becomes a self-contained assembly & has no small loose parts that might be lost.
- Device requires no tools to activate or deactivate after installation.
- Device may snap, rotate, press, slide, clasp, thread, or be adhered into assembled position.
- Swing out pin may be pinched, pressed, spring loaded, compressed, magnetized to hold pin in activated or deactivated position.
- Swing out pin may be constructed of a high strength polymer, composite, or metal.
- Swing out pin may be molded, poured, forged, co-molded, pressed, cast, cold forged, printed or any similar technique for a part of this style.
- Swing out pin may be constructed as a “ball and socket” or pivot with cross pin design.
- Swing out pin may pop-up, pop-out, or swing out to support horizontal members.
- Cabinets are configurable & adjustable with the self-contained device.
- Cabinets can be re-configured in minutes rather requiring a customer to disassemble the cabinet or storage system creating small loose parts.
- Cabinets may have the same, more or less shelves than offered today simply by adding or removing shelves.
- This device allows a cabinet to have a high-pack option by adding more shelves.
- This device allows a cabinet to have one instrument that fills the entire cabinet or column of a cabinet or allows many instruments to be stored in the same cabinet or column of the same cabinet.
- The latch automatically catches pin while inserting shelf. The latch may require pushing or pulling the latch to release the shelf from its location. Herein we have incorporated a tab to prevent the latch from being functioned beyond its flex (yielded).
- Cabinets will be provided with a nominal quantity of shelves that could be removed for large instruments or additional shelves could be purchased to increase the quantity of instruments that fit within the cabinet.
- The vertical members may have ribs within the cut-outs that may interlock with the ribs or barbs on the housing of the device.
- Extra shelves may be stored on a horizontal member within a cabinet to prevent misplacing them.
Subject matter hereof may be more completely understood in consideration of the following detailed description of various embodiments in connection with the accompanying figures, in which:
While various embodiments are amenable to various modifications and alternative forms, specifics thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the intention is not to limit the claimed inventions to the particular embodiments described. On the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the subject matter as defined by the claims.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGSA swing out shelf support according to an embodiment of the invention is depicted generally in
The preferred embodiment contemplates the housing 130 being one-piece molded design of high impact plastic for mallet insertion into cabinet walls or dividers. The housing 130 may be molded, pored, forged, co-molded, pressed, case, cold forged, printed, or formed by any similar technique known in the art. The preferred embodiment of the invention is for the housing 130 to be a single piece to allow for increased durability when installing the swing out shelf support 100 with a mallet or other tool, but it may be made of multiple pieces. The preferred embodiment also contemplates the housing 130 being shaped in a manner that only allows insertion of swing out shelf support 100 in the correct orientation (i.e., the swing out shelf support 130 cannot be installed backwards). The rib set 155 is molded to allow insertion into a cabinet wall or divider while preventing the swing out shelf support 100 from being removed from the cabinet wall or divider (i.e., ribs 150 act as barbs). The flange 140 controls the insertion depth of the housing 130 into a cabinet wall or divider and covers any chipping or imperfections in the substrate of the cabinet wall or divider into which it is place. The flange 140 also prevents the swing out shelf support from being installed upside down. The housing depth 190 of the preferred embodiment is less than half the thickness of the cabinet wall or divider to allow two swing out shelf supports 100 to be installed in a back-to-back configuration (i.e., installed from opposite sides on a divider panel. The swing out shelf support 100 may be snapped, rotated, pressed, slid, clasped, threaded or adheres into a cabinet wall or divider.
The rotatable pin 120 may be constructed of a high strength polymer, a composite material, or metal and can be molded, poured, forged, co-molded, pressed, case, cold forged, printed or formed by any technique known in the art. The rotatable pin 120 may be pinched, pressed, spring loaded, compressed, or magnetized to hold the pin in the in-use or stored position within the housing 130. The preferred embodiment contemplates the rotatable pin 120 being permanently mounted within the housing 130 to provide a self-contained assembly that has no small loose parts that may be lost. However, it may be beneficial to have rotatable pins 120 that can be removed for various reasons.
An embodiment of the rotatable pin 120 is presented in
The swing out shelf support 100 of the invention is contemplated to be used with shelves containing brackets for accepting the rotatable pin 128 of the device.
Various embodiments of systems, devices, and methods have been described herein. These embodiments are given only by way of example and are not intended to limit the scope of the claimed inventions. It should be appreciated, moreover, that the various features of the embodiments that have been described may be combined in various ways to produce numerous additional embodiments. Moreover, while various materials, dimensions, shapes, configurations and locations, etc. have been described for use with disclosed embodiments, others besides those disclosed may be utilized without exceeding the scope of the claimed inventions.
Persons of ordinary skill in the relevant arts will recognize that the subject matter hereof may comprise fewer features than illustrated in any individual embodiment described above. The embodiments described herein are not meant to be an exhaustive presentation of the ways in which the various features of the subject matter hereof may be combined. Accordingly, the embodiments are not mutually exclusive combinations of features; rather, the various embodiments can comprise a combination of different individual features selected from different individual embodiments, as understood by persons of ordinary skill in the art. Moreover, elements described with respect to one embodiment can be implemented in other embodiments even when not described in such embodiments unless otherwise noted.
Although a dependent claim may refer in the claims to a specific combination with one or more other claims, other embodiments can also include a combination of the dependent claim with the subject matter of each other dependent claim or a combination of one or more features with other dependent or independent claims. Such combinations are proposed herein unless it is stated that a specific combination is not intended.
Any incorporation by reference of documents above is limited such that no subject matter is incorporated that is contrary to the explicit disclosure herein. Any incorporation by reference of documents above is further limited such that no claims included in the documents are incorporated by reference herein. Any incorporation by reference of documents above is yet further limited such that any definitions provided in the documents are not incorporated by reference herein unless expressly included herein.
Claims
1. A swing out shelf support comprising:
- a housing comprising a flange, a keyhole, and circumferential ribs;
- a rotatable pin having a stored position and an in-use position.
2. The swing out shelf support of claim 1 wherein the rotatable pin comprises a ball and a head.
3. The swing out shelf support of claim 2 wherein the housing comprises a socket and the ball of the rotatable pin is inserted within the socket.
4. The swing out shelf support of claim 3 wherein the entirety of the rotatable pin fits within the keyhole when the rotatable pin is in the stored position.
5. The swing out shelf support of claim 2 further comprising a roll pin to mount the rotatable pin to the housing and about which the rotatable pin rotates.
6. The swing out shelf support of claim 1 wherein the housing has an ovoid profile.
7. The swing out shelf support of claim 1 wherein the housing has depth of less than half of the depth of a cabinet divider into which the swing out shelf support is to be installed.
8. The swing out shelf support of claim 3 further comprising a keyhole slot
9. The swing out shelf support of claim 8 wherein at least part of the rotatable pin rests within the keyhole slot when in the stored position.
10. The swing out shelf support of claim 2 wherein the rotatable pin head comprises a detent.
11. A shelf support system comprising:
- a swing out shelf support comprising:
- a housing comprising a flange, a keyhole, and circumferential ribs; and
- a rotatable pin having a stored position and an in-use position;
- a shelf bracket comprising:
- a latch; and
- a latch release;
- wherein the rotatable pin engages the latch when the rotatable pin is in the in-use position.
12. The shelf support system of claim 11 wherein the rotatable pin fits within the keyhole when the rotatable pin is in the stored position.
13. The swing out shelf support of claim 12 wherein the housing comprises a socket, the rotatable pin comprises a ball and a head, and the ball of the rotatable pin is inserted within the socket.
14. The shelf support system of claim 12 further comprising a roll pin to mount the rotatable pin to the housing and about which the rotatable pin rotates.
15. The s shelf support system of claim 11 wherein the housing has an ovoid profile.
16. The shelf support system of claim 11 wherein the housing has depth of less than half of the depth of a cabinet divider into which the swing out shelf support is to be installed.
17. A cabinet comprising:
- a vertical member;
- a shelf comprising a bracket, the bracket comprising a latch;
- a swing out shelf support embedded within the vertical member, the swing out shelf support comprising:
- a housing comprising a flange, a keyhole, and circumferential ribs;
- a rotatable pin comprising a head and having a stored position and an in-use position;
- wherein the entirety of the rotatable pin fits within the keyhole when the rotatable pin is in the stored position; and
- wherein the rotatable pin head engages the latch when the rotatable pin is in the in-use position.
18. The swing out shelf support of claim 17 wherein the housing has depth of less than half of the depth of the vertical member.
19. The swing out shelf support of claim 17 further comprising a latch release.
20. The swing out shelf support of claim 17 further comprising an anti-yield tab.
Type: Application
Filed: Sep 19, 2018
Publication Date: Mar 21, 2019
Inventors: Mark R. Friedrichs (Owatonna, MN), Terrance L. Miller (Faribault, MN), Paul M. Buttera (Owatonna, MN), Steven D. Phelps (Owatonna, MN), Pete F. Menzel (Owatonna, MN)
Application Number: 16/135,539