Horizontally supported planar surfaces – Attached laterally of support
Reexamination Certificate
2000-07-25
2002-10-08
Chen, Jose V. (Department: 3636)
Horizontally supported planar surfaces
Attached laterally of support
C248S250000, C108S108000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06460469
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention pertains to shelving and, more particularly, to shelving units for general household and utility use. A variety of shelf structures and shelving assemblies are known in the art. Many shelving assemblies are provided as “knock down” kits for assembly by the user at a location where the shelving assembly is to be used. This minimizes shipping costs by avoiding the need to transport bulky shelving assemblies. Such knock down shelving assemblies typically include a plurality of generally planar shelves separated by poles connected to the corners of the shelves. The interconnecting components are usually inexpensive and are typically made of a light weight polymeric material, such as molded polypropylene, to further reduce manufacturing and shipping costs.
Most knock down shelving assemblies are intended for use as stand alone units and, in general, they are sufficiently strong and stable for their intended purposes, despite their light weight construction. However, the light weight construction increases the propensity for tipping when improperly loaded. For example, the unbalanced load of a child climbing on one side of the shelving unit may cause the entire unit, and all things stored thereon, to tip over onto the child.
To reduce the likelihood of such dangers, various support brackets have been devised for securing shelves to adjacent walls. In general, such prior art brackets are secured to a wall in a selected location where the shelving unit is to be used. The shelving unit is moved into place and then connected to the pre-mounted bracket. While this is generally effective in preventing tipping of the shelving unit, mounting such brackets in a proper location on the wall before the shelving unit is moved into place can be difficult. Moreover, such brackets are typically designed for connection to particular portions of the shelving unit and are fixed relative thereto once connected. Therefore, although the user may have a particular location in mind for the shelving unit, the precise location may be dictated, at least in part, by the location of wall studs to which to brackets may be mounted.
Thus, there is a need for a shelving unit having mounting brackets or “anchors” that are connectable to the unit prior to being secured to a wall, and which are adjustable relative the shelf once connected to permit precise positioning of the anchor relative to the wall.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is a general object of the present invention to provide a shelving unit including a shelf anchor configured for securing the shelving unit to an adjacent wall to prevent tipping. A more specific object of the invention is to provide a shelving unit having a mounting anchor that is connectable to the shelving unit prior to being secured to a wall, and which is adjustable relative the shelving unit after being connected thereto.
In general, a shelving unit of the present invention comprises a shelf and a shelf anchor for securing the shelf to an adjacent wall. The shelf has a generally vertical peripheral rim. The shelf anchor includes a base and a shelf retainer. The base has opposite front and rear sides. The rear side of the base has a wall-engaging portion adapted for flush engagement with the wall. The shelf retainer has a bridge portion and a shelf-retaining portion. The bridge portion extends outwardly from the front side of the base. The shelf-retaining portion extends generally vertically from a distal end of the bridge portion. The shelf-retaining portion is spaced from the front side of the base to define a rim-receiving recess between the front side of the base and the shelf-retaining portion. The shelf retainer is positioned relative to the shelf so that at least a portion of the peripheral rim of the shelf is received within the rim-receiving recess. The rim is received within the recess in a manner to prevent the shelf from moving outwardly from the wall when the shelf anchor is mounted to the wall.
In another aspect of the invention, a shelf anchor comprises a base and a shelf retainer. The base has opposite front and rear sides. The rear side of the base has a wall-engaging portion adapted for flush engagement with a wall. The shelf retainer extends from the front side of the base portion. The shelf retainer has a generally rearwardly facing surface adapted for engagement with a generally forwardly facing surface of the shelf. The rearwardly facing surface of the shelf retainer and the generally forwardly facing surface of the shelf are adapted to engage one another in a manner to prevent the shelf from moving outwardly from the wall when the shelf anchor is mounted to the wall.
The present invention also includes a method for securing a shelving unit to a wall. The method comprises the steps of: providing a shelf anchor having a rim-receiving recess adapted to receive at least a portion of a peripheral rim of one shelf of the shelving unit; positioning the shelf anchor on the peripheral rim of the shelf so that at least a portion of the peripheral rim is received within the rim-receiving recess; and securing the shelf anchor to the wall.
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Dickinson Thomas
Holmberg Scott
Chen José V.
Contico International LLC
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