Supports: cabinet structure – Simulation – ornamentation or with secret compartment
Reexamination Certificate
2001-01-19
2003-05-06
Weiss, John G. (Department: 3629)
Supports: cabinet structure
Simulation, ornamentation or with secret compartment
C312S292000, C312S293300, C024S297000, C403S408100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06557956
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to cabinets or other objects having false front connectors, and more particularly to false front cabinets/objects including connectors for connecting the false front over an opening.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
A variety of cabinets, furniture and other objects have openings which are covered by a false front panel. By way of example, cabinets in bathrooms often include a false front panel in front of the bathroom sink that appears to be the front of a drawer. Such a false front is usually employed to match or compliment the front panel of an adjacent drawer or drawers. The false front panel is often used to cover an opening in the face of the cabinet. Connectors are known in the art for connecting such a false front panel over the opening in the cabinet or other object.
In many applications, false front panels are designed to be releasably attached to the wall, cabinet, furniture face or other object to which they are attached. In these applications, the false front panel may be removed to provide access to items inside of the wall, cabinet or other object such as a sink. In these applications, permanent connectors such as adhesives, rivets or nails, or semi-permanent connectors such as screws, are typically inappropriate. However, various other types of false front connectors are available that may be used to releasably attach a false front panel over an opening in an object.
One known type of releasable false front connector
10
is depicted in FIG.
1
A. As shown in
FIG. 1A
, the false front connector
10
comprises a two piece connector that includes a clip
20
and a post
40
. The post
40
is cylindrical in shape, and has a top end
42
and a bottom end
44
. The post
40
further includes an aperture
46
along its central axis which extends from the top end
42
to the bottom end
44
. As is also shown in
FIG. 1A
, along the central axis
47
of aperture
46
a larger countersunk recess
48
is formed in the top end
42
of post
40
. The diameter of the recess
48
is sufficiently large so as to receive the head of a screw or nail. The diameter of aperture
46
, on the other hand, is smaller than the head of the screw or nail, but large enough to receive the shank end of the screw
ail. In this manner, a screw or nail may be inserted into the top end
42
of post
40
and through the bottom end
44
into an object, to connect the post
40
to the object.
The second piece of the false front connection device
10
, namely the clip
20
, has a thin, flat body portion
22
and a latch
30
that extends from the body portion
22
. The body portion
22
further includes an aperture
24
that is configured to receive a screw (not shown in FIG.
1
A). The diameter of the aperture
24
is smaller than the head of the screw, but large enough to receive the shank end of the screw. In this manner, the screw may be inserted through the aperture
24
into a false front panel to connect the clip
20
to the false front panel. In the false front connector
10
depicted in
FIG. 1A
, the aperture
24
is located in the center of the body portion
22
, between the two arms
32
,
34
of the latch
30
.
The latch
30
comprises a pair of opposed arms
32
,
34
and a base portion
36
. The arms
32
,
34
are configured to receive the post
40
. The arms
32
,
34
connect to the top part of base
36
, and together the inside portion of arms
32
,
34
and the top portion of base
36
form a partial cylinder having a diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the post
40
. The distal ends of arms
32
,
34
are separated by a gap
38
. This gap
38
is smaller than the diameter of the post
40
. Both the clip
20
and the post
40
are typically formed out of a polymeric material such as HIPS, ABS, PC or nylon.
As shown in
FIG. 1B
, a plurality of clips
20
are connected to the rear side
54
of a false front panel
50
. In a complimentary manner, a plurality of the posts
40
are connected to the side surfaces
62
′,
63
′ of the walls
62
,
63
that define part of an opening
66
in an object
60
. The false front panel
50
is used to cover this opening
66
in the object
60
. As shown in
FIG. 1B
, typically, four separate false front connectors
10
are used to connect the false front panel
50
over the opening
66
in the object
60
. As shown in
FIG. 1B
, the false front connectors may be arranged so that the posts
40
are attached at the top and bottom of the side surfaces
62
′,
63
′ of the walls
62
,
63
that define the side of the opening
66
with the clips
20
similarly arranged adjacent the top and bottom of each side of the back surface
54
of the false front panel
50
. The false front connectors
10
may be arranged so that a clip
20
is provided at the center of the top, bottom and side edges of the rear side
54
of false front panel
50
, and so that the posts
40
are inserted at the corresponding locations at the center of side surfaces
65
′,
67
′,
62
′,
63
′ of the walls
65
,
67
,
62
,
63
that define the opening
66
. Other arrangements and/or numbers of the connectors
10
could also be used to attach the false front panel
50
over the opening
66
.
As shown in
FIG. 1B
, when the false front panel
50
is placed over the opening
66
in the object
60
, the clips
20
are aligned with the corresponding posts
40
which extend out into the opening
66
. A force may then be applied to the front side
52
of the false front panel
50
, which acts to enlarge the gap
38
between the arms
32
,
34
on each clip
20
by forcing the arms
32
,
34
to deflect away from each other. When the arms
32
,
34
are sufficiently deflected, the posts
40
pass through the gap
38
in the corresponding clip
20
. The arms
32
,
34
then snap back into their original positions, thereby locking the posts
40
into their respective latches
30
on the clips
20
. In this manner the false front panel
50
is attached over the opening
66
. The false front panel
50
may later be removed by pulling on the front side
52
of the false front panel
50
with sufficient force to separate the posts
40
from their respective latches
30
.
FIG. 2A
depicts another known false front connector
70
. The false front connector
70
likewise is a two piece connector that includes a clip
80
and a post
100
. The post
100
is cylindrical in shape, and includes an aperture
102
along its central axis
104
having a diameter that is smaller than the head of the screw or nail, but large enough to receive the shank end of the screw
ail. In this manner, a screw or nail may be inserted through the aperture
102
into an object to connect the post
100
to the object.
The clip
80
has a base
82
and a pair of arms
92
,
94
that extend substantially perpendicular from the base
82
. The base
82
includes an aperture
84
that is configured to receive a screw (not shown in FIG.
2
A). The diameter of the aperture
84
is smaller than the head of the screw, but large enough to receive the shank end of the screw so that the screw may be inserted through the aperture
84
into a false front panel to connect the clip
80
to the false front panel. The arms
92
,
94
extend from respective sides of the base
82
, and are configured to receive the post
100
. The inner sides of arms
92
,
94
are curved so that they together form opposing sides of an incomplete cylinder that has a diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the post
100
. The distal ends of arms
92
,
94
are separated by a gap
98
. This gap
98
is smaller than the diameter of the post
100
. The clip
80
is formed of a flexible metal such as aluminum and the post
100
is formed out of thermoplastic, HIPS, ABS, nylon, PC, HPPE or PP. As shown in
FIG. 2B
, false front connector
70
may be used in a fashion identical to false front connector
10
to connect a false front panel
50
over an opening
66
in an object
60
.
Yet another known type of false front connector device
110
is depicte
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