Shelf and shelf support

Details Shelf and shelf support Shelf and shelf support

2001-05-30

2004-01-13

Chen, Jose V. (Department: 3637)

Horizontally supported planar surfaces

Plural related horizontal surfaces

Vertically adjustable

C108S110000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06675725

ABSTRACT:

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
Not applicable.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to racks and rack-type supports having horizontal planar surfaces and, more particularly, to such racks and supports of the type having removable and adjustable shelves.
A wide variety of racks and rack-type supports are known. Examples of but a few types are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,805,989 (Levene), U.S. Pat. No. 1,990,756 (Saaf), U.S. Pat. No. 5,127,340 (Maro et al.) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,607,070 (Hellyer). While these arrangements have been generally satisfactory for their intended purposes, they are not without disadvantages for certain applications.
For example, the shelves disclosed in the Levene patent must be bolted in place and unbolted to be removed and, if desired, stored. Where time has value, as is usually the case in a work environment, the arrangement is cumbersome. While the shelves disclosed in the Saaf patent may be more quickly mounted and removed, that convenience requires a shelf having pins mounted for pivoting movement into and out of supporting holes.
For greatest flexibility in erection, use and “tear-down, a scaffold should have a shelf-like platform which can be readily mounted and, just as readily, removed. Home entertainment centers, another type of product having one or more shelves, are most preferably configured so that the vertical spacing between shelves can be selected consistent with the vertical height of the components, e.g., tuner, compact-disc player, amplifier or the like, which are intended to rest upon such shelves. Structures like that disclosed in the Levene patent do not lend themselves easily to such uses.
Another type of rack with one or more shelves is embodied as mounted or freestanding units used to display retail products for sale. Such units are often referred to in the industry as “store fixtures.” Most preferably, store fixtures should be aesthetically attractive, permit easy reconfiguration for displaying any of a variety of types of products and have features easily adapted to integration of advertising graphics or the like.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,816,419 describes one display-type shelving unit which includes a plurality of shelves mounted to laterally spaced posts. Each shelf is mounted using two special brackets which cooperate with slots and recesses in the shelf to support the shelf in a horizontal position, to hang the shelf in an essentially vertical position, or to maintain the shelf in an angled position. While this solution facilitates quick and easy movement of each shelf among its three possible positions, this solution does not enable shelf removal, facilitate changing the vertical positions of each shelf and facilitate various other useful shelving arrangements.
Yet another product which advantageously includes one or more flat surfaces having adjustable height includes a flat-surface desk which may be used by multiple persons. For example, in factories which have more than one shift, often persons who use a desk during different shifts are different heights. To comfortably accommodate users having various heights it is advantageous to have an adjustable-height desk top.
In addition to the problems described above, many current shelving systems require relatively complex mechanical configurations to provide desired support. In addition to rendering these systems difficult to adjust, these complex mechanical configurations also increase the costs associated with manufacturing.
Moreover, in order to provide sufficient support for shelves that may be heavily weighted, often the support configuration tends to be obtrusive and therefore can be aesthetically displeasing. For instance, many shelf configurations include upright vertical support at each of four shelf corners to support the shelves without cantilever action. In addition to being aesthetically obstructive, upright supports hinder access to the shelving space.
Other “cantilevered” shelf configurations may include upright supports located proximate a rear shelf end along each of two lateral shelf edges. These cantilevered configurations, as the name implies, rely upon cantilever action requiring relatively wide upright supports so that shelves are cantilevered across a fulcrum member proximate a front edge of the upright supports with a back shelf end restrained by a member proximate a rear edge of the upright supports.
The wide uprights, while aesthetically more pleasing than assemblies requiring four upright supports, still block more of the lateral edges of shelves than is desirable. In addition, the process for manufacturing uprights having both fulcrums and restraining members proximate the front and rear edges of the uprights, respectively, is expensive.
For the reasons described above an improved support and shelf that is simple, relatively inexpensive to manufacture and aesthetically attractive would be advantageous.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It has been recognized that an easily adjustable and extremely strong shelf assembly can be configured including relatively compact frame members that are inexpensive to produce and that minimally obstruct access to storage space on top of the shelves. To this end, the inventive assemblies include at least one shelf and frame members that are juxtaposed to lateral sides of the shelf. The frame members form vertically aligned coupler pairs and the shelf also includes vertically aligned coupler pairs at each lateral edge. The coupler pairs cooperate to maintain the shelf mounted to the frame members. One of the coupler pairs includes pins and the other includes slot delineators where the delineators form passageways for receiving the pins. Bearing surfaces on the pins and delineators cooperate to support the shelf. Importantly, because of the vertical alignment of the frame member couplers, the dimension of each frame member along the lateral edge of the shelf is minimal and therefore aesthetically unobtrusive.
An exemplary embodiment of the invention includes a shelving assembly comprising at least one shelf member that forms a back edge along a longitudinal axis, forms at least a first lateral edge and includes oppositely facing first and second shelf surfaces, the back edge being a shelf member receiving edge, at least one essentially upright support member including a support member receiving edge, a first coupler pair including first and second couplers mounted to the shelf member, the first and second couplers mounted such that the couplers are aligned along a coupler axis that is essentially perpendicular to the shelf surfaces and such that the first and second couplers are proximate the shelf member receiving edge, a second coupler pair including third and fourth couplers linked to the support member, the third coupler positioned essentially directly above the fourth coupler, one of the coupler pairs including first and second pins and the other of the coupler pairs including first and second slot delineators, the first and second pins formed about first and second pin axis and forming first and second bearing surfaces, respectively, the pin axis defining a first dimension there between, each delineator forming a passageway that opens in a first direction from an opening at the corresponding member's receiving edge to a distal end, the distal ends of the first and second delineators recessing in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction and defining third and fourth bearing surfaces, respectively, each passageway opening having a top edge, the top edges defining a second dimension essentially identical to the first dimension, the first delineator passageway wide enough for the first pin to pass through and the second delineator passageway wide enough for the second pin to pass through, the first coupler pair bearing surfaces within a coupling plane, wherein, the shelf member is supportable by the support member with the first and second pins received in the first and second slot delineators, the first and second bearing surfaces contacting an

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