Supports – Brackets – Shelf or scaffold type
Patent
1993-05-26
1994-11-15
Ramirez, Ramon O.
Supports
Brackets
Shelf or scaffold type
108108, E04G 308
Patent
active
053640527
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention relates to a shelf support system which is suitable for assembly by amateurs or professionals in order to support a shelf on a wall or similar vertical support surface by means of a horizontal shelf support arm which extends from the wall or similar vertical support surface at right angles and engages with a vertically extending support bar fixable to the wall or similar vertical support surface. In the system of this invention the shelf support arm can be moved into an infinitely variable number of positions up and down the vertically extending support bar.
The invention is an improvement over various systems on the market, which consist of two or more vertically disposed wall bars which are perforated along their length with one or more lines of slits. Two or more shelf support arms are used for supporting the shelf. Each shelf support arm has hook-shaped extensions which engage in the parallel slits in one wall bar so that the shelf support arm is held horizontal and at right angles to the wall. This known type of shelf support system is difficult to align, since each of the wall bars must be affixed to the wall so that the supporting slits are in precise horizontal alignment, an adjustment not easy for the average D.I.Y. practitioner. Such perforated bars have the further disadvantage that the support arms can only be adjusted from slit to slit in steps. The shelf cannot easily be adjusted by less than the interval between successive slits. The slit bar is not elegant in appearance, and the slits tend to gather dust, which is a disadvantage in the home or office.
According to the present invention there is provided a shelf support system comprising a shelf support arm adapted to be mounted horizontally and a support bar adapted to be disposed vertically and means for mounting the support bar to a vertical wall or other support surface, sliding means enabling the arm to slide up and down the support bar and retaining means to secure the-support arm to the support bar at any desired position, wherein the support arm is a two sided member with an external flange at the end of each side and the support bar has a profiled section that provides spaced apart and opposed recesses to accommodate the said external flanges of the support arm, the retaining means including expandable means held by the support arm and operable by actuating means to urge the said flanges of the support arm apart laterally and to engage the said support bar recesses sufficiently to secure the support arm in a desired position.
The expandable means may take the form of a bolt which passes upwardly through a hole in a bottom portion of the arm adjacent to the flanges and a nut spanning the gap between the sides of the arm engageable with the bolt, the flanges being caused to separate laterally from one another by tightening the bolt to cause the nut to ride over opposed protrusions provided on the inner surfaces of the arms and thereby increasing the gap between the said flanges. At least a portion of the outer edges of the said flanges may be provided with teeth to engage more positively the said recesses in the support arm; the teeth nearer the protrusions may be made shorter than those more remote from the protrusions. The bolt may extend substantially along the whole length of the said flanges.
The support bar may be provided with holes therein to enable it to be screwed or bolted to a vertical support wall as disclosed in the specification of the prior application GB 90 25 641.3 (De Gruttis) and in the specification of co-pending application which claims priority from GB 90 25 641.3 (De Gruttis).
By way of example a preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings, wherein:
FIG. 1 is a cross-section of a profiled shelf support bar,
FIG. 2 is a section through a shelf support arm fitted with an expandable means,
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the shelf support arm of FIG. 2 ready to be fitted into the support bar of FIG. 1, and
FIG. 4 is a se
REFERENCES:
patent: 3136520 (1964-06-01), Reiss
patent: 4313587 (1982-02-01), Loeschen
patent: 4895331 (1990-01-01), Nehls
patent: 4901965 (1990-02-01), Bowman
Litman Richard C.
Ramirez Ramon O.
LandOfFree
Shelf support system does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Shelf support system, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Shelf support system will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-1092129