AU613537B2 - Mobile storage furniture - Google Patents

Description

Form COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA PATENTS ACT 1952-62 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION

(ORIGINAL)

FOR OFFICE USE;' Application Number: C'ass Int. Class Lodged: o Complete Specification I )dged: Accepted: Published: Priortty: Related Art: TO BE COMPLETED BY APPLICANT Name of Applicant: S* ADELAIDE SHELVING SUPPLIES PTY. LTD.

Address of Applicant: 13 PRICE STREET, EDWARDSTOWN, SOUTH AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA Actual Inventors: MICHAEL NELSON TAPPING and BRIAN MAURICE PARKER Address forService: R K MADDERN ASSOCIATES, 345 KING WILLIAM STREET, ADELAIDE, SOUTH AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA Comp!3te Specification for the invention entitled: "Mn-RTT.f, STORAGE FURNITURE"

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This invention relates to storage furniture of the type which is sometimes used for commercial. or industrial purposes, where there is a shortage of space and it is desirable to have storage cabinets which can move to abut one another, but can readily move to provide access space, and for example in a three cabinet unit, access space can be provided between the first and second or the second and third cabinets by immediately sliding the second cabinet towards the third or first cabinets respectively.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Such mobile storage furniture is well known and in common use, but is subject to a number of disabilities.

Firstly, the dead weight of such furniture is sometimes excessively high, making it unsuitable for use on floors which have a low loading rating, this being due to heavy and complex base structures. One object of this invention is to provide a storage furniture arrangement which has a lower dead weight, which spreads its load relatively evenly over its area, and which is of lower cost.

2A BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve this result, it is necessary that means should be provided which will render the cabinets rigid and easily movable along tracks, and in an embodiment of the invention flexible mobile storage furniture comprises a pair of tracks supporting at least two cabinets, and at least one of those cabinets is supported by rollers which engage and are guided for movement by the tracks, the rollers being carried by a base frame, and fasteners secure a lower shelf of the cabinet to the base frame, the base frame having a stiffening web which receives those fasteners, and stiffens the base frame against distortion.

Quite often floors are partly uneven, and it is necessary for the support rails to bridgo3 some "low spots" in the floors, and in another embodiment of the invention, there are provided traclks which have a plurality of downwardly projecting ribs spaced from one another, the tracks having retaining beads -2which retain hard steel strips engaged by the rollers of the cabinets.

If the ribs are substantial, and if one of the ribs is located immediately below the loaded area, the danger of distortion due to uneven floors is substantially reduced, and the ribs are so effective in concentrating the load of the cabinets that in most instances it is unnecessary to secure the tracks to the floor, and in some instances the tracks can be supported by the floor through a carpet, the ribs inhibiting dislodgement such as would render the mobile cabinets difficult to move along the tracks.

In many instances it is not necessary to have any security for shelving assemblies, but in certain instances such security is desired and in another embodiment of the invention, there is provided a lock between adjacent cabinets, the lock comprising an arm pivoted at one end to one cabinet and having a lockable spigot at the other end which can enter an aperture in an adjacent cabinet when those two cabinets abut one another.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 2Q An embodiment of the invention is described hereunder in some detail with reference to and is illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a furniture assembly i according to a very simple form of the invention where there S 25 are three only cabinets, Fig. 2 is a plan view of a lock arm, Fig. 3 is a front elevation of same, partly sectioned at !I I one end, Fig. 4 is a section taken on the plane 4-4-4-4 of Fig. 1 L 30 but drawn to a larger scale, i i Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section on plane 5-5-5-5 of Fig.

1i, drawn to a similarly larger scale, and Fig. 6 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating two portions of a track joined in end-to-end abutment by joining strips.

-3rrr~-- 3~YYLY~~'Li-*: In this embodiment, flexible mobile storage furniture comprises two end cabinets 11, each being a shelving assembly, (which may be fixed or mobile), and a single intermediate cabinet 12 which is movable between the two end cabinets 11 to provide an access space either at the locality A or the locality B between respective end cabinets.

Each end cabinet comprises an open box-like structure which has an end wall 13, a front wall 14, and rear and top walls which are not herein illustrated. Supported by these i walls are a plurality of shelves 15. The intermediate cabinet 12 is movable by means of a handle 16, but can be locked by a swinging urm lock 17 comprises a tubular arm 18 through the rear wall of which is an aperture which carries a pivot bolt 19 (Fig. and at the other end a tubular arm 18 carries a lock ii assembly 20 which is provided with a lockable spigot-type plunger 21.

Fig. 4 illustrates a very important aspect of the invention. In Fig. 4, an extruded rail 24 of a track 25 has two sloping side walls 26 and three downwardly directed ribs 27 2 which are spaced from one another, the central rib being immediately under the load applied by roller 28, but the ribs 27 have the effect of spreading the load over a wider area, stiffening the rail and assisting to inhibit accidental dislodgement of the rail on the supporting surface (which could be a carpeted surface).

Extrusile material is usually of soft metal, and in order to prevent excessive wear, retaining beads 29 in the rail retain hard steel strips 30 which, because of their hardness, are unlikely to warp and are usually easily slid from the end of the rail 25. However, there are provided a pair of underlying slots 31 which enhance withdrawal of the strips from the rail 25 even if they become firmly engaged therein.

The frame 32 which supports the shelving assembly of cabinet 12 is also an extrusion, and is provided with an upstanding stiffening web 33 and a horizontal stiffening web 34. The upstanding flange 33 has bolted to it a vertical structural panel 14 (which is covered by a "dressing panel" -4- V and the flange 33 also has bolted to it a shelf 15 with at least two bolts 36.

A Lie bar 37 is secured by bolts 38 to the stiffening web 34.

As seen in Fig. 4, the frame 32 has a pair of depending i flanges 39 which are spaced from one another and depend from a i web 40, to define a downwardly facing channel. A pin 41 between flanges 39 supports the bearing assembly 28 which constitutes i the roller.

Si 1 0 Consideration of the above will indicate that the securing arrangement for the lower shelf 15 and the base panel 36, as well as for the front wall 14, provides a structurally sound r: and stable assembly unlikely to be distorted by average use conditions. This is of value since it avoids the need to ii separately secure the rails 25 to a floor. The structure of the track rails 25 is such that the load imposed upon them is spread over a greater floor area, not only laterally as seen in Fig. 4 but also longitudinally because of the additional i strength which is imparted due to the width of the rail and the Il 2 existence of the downwardly directed ribs.

ii In the embodiment illustrated, all cabinets 11 and 12 have l i' similar frames 32 (except for length), supported by rollers 28.

S However, often it is unnecessary for the end cabinets 11 to be mobile, and, as shown in Fig. 5, these are releasably locked S 25' against movement by tightening a locking screw 43 which passes i through a closure cap 44 and threadably engages a brake member

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45. Closure cap 44 and brake member 45 both comprise high density polyethylene, and tightening screw 43 wedges the brake member 45 firmly between roller 28 and web 40, and this S 30 inhibits movement of cabinet 11 towards cabinet 12. It also K inhibits movement in the other direction, but movement in that 1 direction is further inhibited by stop 46, also of high density polyethylene, secured to the rail 24 of track 25 by screw 47.

Sometimes there is a requirement for a long track 25, and it is necessary to fabricate the track in portions which abut one another end to end. Fig. 6 illustrates joining means for two rail portions 24 joined end to end. Between depending ribs 27 there are two grooves 48, and these contain joining strips 49 of rectangular cross-section, secured in place with blind rivets 50, and bridging the rail portions 24.

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Claims (10)

1. Mobile storage furniture of the type having tracks, and a plurality of storage cabinets carried by the tracks, at least one said cabinet being mobile along the tracks, wherein: each said track comprises a pair of track surfaces inclined with respect to one another, each said mobile cabinet comprises a pair of base frame members overlying respective said tracks, each said base frame member being of constant cross sectional shape, havTing a web flanked by two depending flanges defining a downwardly I0 facing channel, and at least one stiffening web, rollers journalled for rotation between the flanges engaging and guided by a respective said track, a lower shelf, and fasteners securing the lower shelf to the base frame members.

2. Mobile storage furniture according to claim 1 wherein each said base frame member comprises two said stiffening webs, one upstanding from and one extending laterally from said downwardly facing channel, said fasteners securing the lower shelf to the upstanding web, a tie member extending between the base frame members, and further fasteners securing end so the tie member to respective said base frame members.

3. Mobile storage furniture according to claim 2 wherein the tie member is a tie bar.

4. Mobile storage furniture according to any preceding claim wherein each said track has a constant cross-sectional shape, comprising two pairs of strip retaining beads, and said track surfaces are surfaces of two hard metal strips retained by respective said pair of those said beads.

Mobile storage furniture according to any preceding claim wherein each said track comprises three support ribs extending downwardly, one along the centre and the others along respective sides of said track.

6. Mobile storage furniture according to any preceding claim wherein said three ribs define two grooves between them each said track comprises at least two track portions, and joining strips in said grooves join the track portions in end- to-end abutment. -7-

7. Mobile storage furniture accorling to any preceding 'I claim further comprising a plurality of polymeric end covers, and fasteners joining said end covers to respective ends of said tracks.

8. Mobile storage furniture according to any preceding claim further comprising respective brakes in one end of each of the base frame members of at least one of said mobile cabinets, each said brake comprising a brake member, a closure cap in the end of the relevant base frame member, and a screw 10 extending through the closure cap and threadably engaging the brake member, the configuration being such that, upon tightening of the screw, the brake member becomes firmly wedged between a periphery of a roller and the base frame member. i

9. Mobile storage furniture according to any preceding claim further comprising a lock between adjacent cabinets, said 0 lock comprising an arm pivoted at one end to one said cabinet and having a lockable spigot at its other end, an adjacent said cabinet having an aperture therein releasably engageable by the lockable spigot. ,o2°p

10. Mobile storage furniture substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying representations. 1 4 DATED this 14th day cf November, 1989. ADELAIDE SHELVING SUPPLIES PTY. LTD. BY ITS PATENT ATTORNEYS R K MADDERN ASSOCIATES Ally "*C -8-