CN109477353B

CN109477353B - Sliding door system and method of absorbing forces in a sliding door system

Info

Publication number: CN109477353B
Application number: CN201780041218.3A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 托马斯·埃斯基尔松; 哈坎·佩尔松; 尼克拉斯·施特伦贝格
Original assignee: Ikea Supply AG
Current assignee: Ikea Supply AG
Priority date: 2016-06-30
Filing date: 2017-06-30
Publication date: 2022-01-11
Anticipated expiration: 2037-06-30
Also published as: EP3478913B1; EP3478913A4; CN109477353A; WO2018004450A1; EP3478913A1

Abstract

A sliding door system (400) for a cabinet (300) having at least one central beam (308) dividing the cabinet into at least two vertically extending compartments is disclosed. The sliding door system (400) comprises a guide rail (200, 250) for supporting a sliding door (404); and at least a first bracket (100a, 100d) and a second bracket (100b, 100c) for fixing the rail (200, 250) at the front of the cabinet (300). The first brackets (100a, 100d) are mounted on the side wall (302) of the cabinet (300) and the second brackets (100b, 100c) are mounted on the side of the central beam (308) facing away from the side wall (302) with the first brackets (100a, 100d) mounted; thereby, forces acting on the guide rail (200, 250) by the associated sliding door (404) will be at least partially absorbed by the second bracket (100b, 100c) and the central beam (308). A method of absorbing force during use of a sliding door system is also disclosed.

Description

Sliding door system and method of absorbing forces in a sliding door system

Technical Field

The present invention generally relates to the field of sliding doors. More particularly, the present invention relates to a sliding door system for use with a cabinet and a method of absorbing forces in a sliding door system.

Background

Sliding doors are often mounted on storage systems such as cabinets and wardrobes using support rails that can be screwed into the front region of the cabinet to access the interior space of the cabinet and reduce the available storage space. Alternatively, the guide rails fixed above the cabinet area or to the sides of the cabinet occupy space that could otherwise be used for additional storage and may cause the door to extend above, below and/or to the sides of the cabinet. This is not only aesthetically displeasing but also creates obstacles to nearby objects.

Sliding doors often hit the confines of the guide rails and/or fittings when the sliding door is opened and closed quickly. This results in undesirable forces swinging back throughout the cabinet which can cause damage to the contents stored in the cabinet and lead to premature wear of the rails and fittings.

US8407941B2 discloses a drive arrangement for driving two door panels to move in synchronism.

WO2009/076785a1 discloses a device for pulling a sliding door into an end position and damping the door. The door is supported by the running gear and guided in the side rails.

It is desirable to provide an improved sliding door system for use with cabinets and wardrobes that addresses the disadvantages and limitations of the prior art.

Disclosure of Invention

Accordingly, the present invention preferably seeks to mitigate, alleviate or eliminate one or more of the above-identified deficiencies in the art and disadvantages singly or in any combination and solves at least the above mentioned problems by providing a sliding door system for a cabinet having in a first aspect at least one central beam dividing the cabinet into at least two vertically extending compartments. The sliding door system comprises a guide rail for supporting the sliding door, and at least a first and a second bracket for fixing the guide rail in front of the cabinet. The first bracket is mounted on a side wall of the cabinet and the second bracket is mounted on the side of the centre beam facing away from the side wall with the first bracket mounted, whereby forces acting on the guide rail through the associated sliding door will be at least partly absorbed by the second bracket and the centre beam.

In an embodiment, the forces acting on the guide rails by the associated sliding door will also be at least partly absorbed by the first bracket and the cabinet.

The sliding door system may further include a stopper member at one end of the guide rail; at least one door projection adapter extending longitudinally from the stop member in a direction substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the rail; and a force transmission member contacting the stopper member and/or the at least one door projection engager and the guide rail for transmitting a force generated during closing of the sliding door from the sliding door to the guide rail.

The sliding door system may further comprise a second rail for supporting the at least one sliding door, the second rail having a second stop member at one end of the second rail, and the second rail being located on the cabinet remote from the rail.

The sliding door system may further comprise at least one door mount adapter extending longitudinally from the second stop member in a direction substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the second rail; the second force transmitting member is in contact with the second guide rail and the at least one door bracket adapter for transmitting a force generated during closing of the sliding door from the sliding door to the guide rail.

The at least one door projection adapter may have the following end positions: at least one door projection adapter engages the sliding door at an end position that is disposed closer to the center beam than a corresponding end position of the at least one door bracket adapter of the second guide rail.

The at least one door projection adapter extending longitudinally from the stop member may be an alligator connector.

The rail and/or the second rail may have at least one cut-out located away from the stop member and/or the second stop member.

The guide rail and/or the second guide rail may have at least one track for receiving a bearing mounted on the sliding door.

The sliding door system may further comprise at least one door bracket mountable on the sliding door for operatively associating the sliding door with the guide track.

Each of the brackets may include: a mounting plate configured for reversibly securing the bracket to the cabinet; a load plate configured for reversibly interlocking the rail to the bracket; wherein the load plate is further configured to transfer load from the sliding door to a front side of the cabinet (300) through the guide rail.

The mounting plate may be positioned perpendicular to the load plate such that the mounting plate forms an L-shape with the load plate.

The load plate may be provided with a load transferring surface arranged such that said surface rests on the front side of the cabinet.

Each bracket may also include a flange connected to the mounting plate, the flange being perpendicular to the mounting plate and the load plate.

In a second aspect, a method for absorbing forces during use of a sliding door system located on a cabinet is provided. The method comprises the steps of providing a cabinet having a sliding door system, the system comprising a track for supporting a sliding door; and at least a first bracket and a second bracket for securing the rail at the front of the cabinet. The first bracket is mounted on a side wall of the cabinet, wherein the second bracket mounts one side of the central beam facing away from the side wall with the first bracket mounted. The method further comprises the steps of: the door is slid to contact the end of the rail to generate a force that is at least partially absorbed by the second bracket and the center beam.

The sliding door system may further comprise at least one door projection adapter at one end of the guide rail and a force transfer member in contact with the door projection adapter and the guide rail, wherein the generated force is transferred from the door projection adapter through the force transfer member and along the guide rail to the second bracket and the center beam.

The rail may have at least a portion removed to form a cut-out proximate the second bracket.

Further advantageous embodiments are disclosed below and in the appended patent claims.

Drawings

These and other aspects, features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from and elucidated with reference to the following description of embodiments of the invention, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a sliding door system mounted on a cabinet according to an embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a partially exploded perspective view of the sliding door system of FIG. 1;

figure 3 is a partially exploded perspective view of the guide rail, stop member, force transfer member and projection adapter of the sliding door system of figure 1;

figure 4A is a partially exploded perspective view showing how the guide rails in the sliding door system of figure 1 are mounted relative to two brackets on the center beam;

FIG. 4B is a partial perspective view of an alternative bracket assembly shown in FIG. 4A;

FIG. 5 is a partial perspective view of the installed rail of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6A is a partial perspective view of the sliding door system of FIG. 1 with the sliding door in an open position;

FIG. 6B is a partial perspective view of the sliding door system of FIG. 1 with the sliding door in a closed position;

figure 7 is a perspective view of an engagement member used in the sliding door system of figure 1;

FIG. 8 is a partial side view of the sliding door system of FIG. 1 showing how the sliding door is mounted on the guide track;

figure 9A is a partially exploded perspective view of a sliding door system mounted on a cabinet according to another embodiment;

FIG. 9B is a partial perspective view of an alternative bracket assembly shown in FIG. 9A;

and figure 10 is a front view of the sliding door system of figures 4 and 5 illustrating the transfer of force between the brackets produced during use of the sliding door system. The guide rails and sliding doors are omitted for clarity.

Detailed Description

The following description focuses on embodiments of the present invention applicable to a sliding door for use with a cabinet or wardrobe. However, it should be understood that the present invention is not limited to these embodiments and may be used, for example, for a sliding door that partitions two spaces.

The following table lists specific features of the sliding door system as described below and in the drawings, and their respective reference numerals.

Fig. 1, 2 and 9 show a sliding door system 400 that can be mounted at the top (fig. 2) or bottom (fig. 9) of a cabinet 300. The sliding door system 400 mounted at the top of the cabinet generally comprises: a sliding door 404, a guide rail 200, two brackets 100, a stop member 204, two projection engagers 212 and a force transmitting member 208 in the form of a shaft. Similarly, the sliding door system mounted at the bottom of the cabinet comprises a sliding door 404, a guide rail 250, at least two brackets 150, a stop member 254, two door bracket engagers 262 and a force transmitting member 258 in the form of a shaft.

In the system 400 the

first brackets

100a, 150a are mounted to the inside of the side wall 302 of the cabinet 300 as shown in fig. 2 and 9, while the second brackets 100B, 150B are mounted to the central beam 308 at a position opposite to the

first brackets

100a, 150a as shown in fig. 4A-4B and 9A-9B. As shown in fig. 4A to 4B and 9A to 9B,

third brackets

100c, 150c are mounted on the side of the center beam 308 facing away from the

first brackets

100a, 150 a. The brackets 100, 150 allow reversible fixation of the

rails

200, 250 in front of the cabinet 300. The central beam 308 also divides the inner cabinet space into two or more compartments. Stop

members

204, 254 are located at the ends of

rails

200, 250. The projection engagers 212 and the door bracket engagers 262 extend longitudinally from the

stop members

204, 254 in a direction substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the

guide

200, 250. Projection engager 212 is shown as a crocodile coupler or a crocodile clip. The

shafts

208, 258, which serve as force transfer members, have axes that are substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axes of the projection adapter 212 and the door bracket adapter 262. The

shafts

208, 258 are in contact with the projection adapter 212/door bracket adapter 262 and the

guide rails

200, 250. As shown in fig. 3, the shaft 208 passes through the rail hole 209 in a close fitting relationship, and the shaft 208 may optionally be configured such that when the rail is attached to the cabinet, it is inserted into the rail and locked in place, and the front end of the cabinet will cover the rail hole 209. As will be described below, during use of the system 400, the

shafts

208, 258 transmit forces generated by the impact of the door with the projection adapter 212/door bracket adapter 262 to the

guide rails

200, 250. It should be appreciated, however, that in other embodiments, force transfer member 208 may be provided as an integral part of

rails

200, 250, such as by welding a shaft or the like to

rails

200, 250. The

stop members

204, 254 may be integrally formed with the

rails

200, 250 as sheet metal or as separate plastic or metal components that are then attached to the

rails

200, 250. The guide rails 200, 250 support a sliding door 404. Each

rail

200, 250 has a

cutout

220, 270 remote from the

stop member

204, 254. For example, as shown in fig. 4A-4B and 9A-9B, the location of the

cutouts

220, 270 may correspond to the central beam 308. Similar to the shaft 208 and the shaft 258, the

cutouts

220 and 270 facilitate the transfer of forces, as described below. The guide rails 200, 250 may be made of metal such as aluminum or steel. As shown in fig. 5 and 8, the guide rail 200 has a track 216 for receiving a wheel or bearing 420 that in turn is connected to the sliding door 404.

The cover 440 in fig. 2, 6A and 6B covers the gap between the sliding door 404 and the side wall of the cabinet 300 when the door 404 is slid into the closed position.

The brackets 100, 150 include mounting

plates

104, 154 having holes 132, 182 through which screws pass through the holes 132, 182 to secure the brackets 100, 150 to an inner side wall of the cabinet 300, a surface of a center beam 308 in the cabinet 300, or an inner surface of a top panel of the cabinet 300. The holes in the wall or the ceiling of the cabinet are preferably pre-drilled holes 304 which may e.g. allow shelves to be placed at different heights in the cabinet. In this manner, no new holes need to be drilled in the cabinet to secure mounting

plates

104, 154 to cabinet 300. Furthermore, no additional holes will be left if the sliding door system 400 is detached from the cabinet 300. Mounting

plates

104, 154 absorb most of the force generated by using a sliding door, so that the screws absorb little or no force. Brackets 100, 150 also include

flanges

108, 158 and

load plates

112, 162 positioned perpendicular to mounting

plates

104, 154. The

flanges

108, 158 and

load plates

112, 162 are also perpendicular to each other. The

flanges

108, 158 provide additional strength to the brackets 100, 150 and also absorb forces generated during operation of the sliding door. The

load plates

112, 162 facilitate attachment of the

rails

200, 250 to the brackets 100, 150. As best shown in fig. 2 and 9,

load plates

112, 162 have a first portion in contact with mounting

plates

104, 154 and

flanges

108, 158. The

load plate

112, 162 also has a second portion adjacent the first portion for connecting to and supporting the

rails

200, 250. The second portion of the

load plate

112, 162 includes the rail engaging surface and the rail support member 128. The rail engaging surface closest to mounting

plates

104, 154 has a lip, while the engaging surface furthest from mounting

plates

104, 154 has a ridge. The lips and ridges engage corresponding lip and ridge members on the

rails

200, 250 to snap the

rails

200, 250 onto the brackets 100, 150 or to embed into the brackets 100, 150. The rail support member 128 is in contact with the support protrusion of the rail 200 to ensure that the rail 200 is mounted at the correct angle with respect to the cabinet 300. The

load plates

112, 162 have sufficient size and surface area to prevent the brackets 100, 150 from gradually eroding into the cabinet 300. The brackets 100, 150 are preferably integrally molded from any suitable metal such as stainless steel. The thickness of mounting

plates

104, 154,

flanges

108, 158 and

load plates

112, 162 is between about 1mm and 5mm depending on the size of the

rails

200, 250 and sliding door 404 to be mounted.

As shown in fig. 2, 7, 8 and 9, the sliding door 404 is mounted to the

guide rails

200, 250 using a door bracket 408 and a door bracket 458. The door bracket 408 includes an engagement member 412 and a mounting member 432. As best shown in fig. 2, fasteners 436 are used to secure the mounting member 432 to the sliding door 404. The engagement member 412 is shown in fig. 7 and 8. The engagement member 412 has two opposing projections 416, the two projections 416 being reversibly received by the projection engager 212 during opening and closing of the sliding door 404. The connecting portion 424 is located between the projections 416 and extends slightly below the projections 416. A bearing 420 is mounted on the connecting portion 424, and the bearing 420 is located on the rail 216 on the guide rail 200 and slides on the rail 216. The connecting portion 424 has holes 428, and screws or other suitable fasteners are passed through the holes 428 to secure the engaging member 412 to the mounting member 432.

As shown in fig. 9A-9B, the door bracket 458 includes an engagement member 462 and a mounting member 482. The mounting member 482 is attached to the sliding door 404 and is similar in design to the mounting member 432. The engagement member 462 abuts the mounting member 482. In use, the sliding door moves in the direction of the solid line arrow shown in fig. 9A-9B until the engagement member 462 abuts the door bracket engager 262.

The sliding door system 400 operates as follows. As shown in fig. 6A and 6B, the door 404 slides toward the bump adapter 212 as indicated by the block arrow in fig. 6A until the door is received by the bump adapter 212 as shown in fig. 6B. The impact of the door with the bump adapter 212 generates the following forces: this force is transmitted from the projection coupler 212 to the guide rail 200 through the shaft 208. Once this force is absorbed by the rail 200, it is transmitted to at least one additional bracket 100, such as bracket 100a or

brackets

100b, 100c disposed closest to the

stop member

204 or 100d disposed distal from the stop member 204. In an alternative embodiment, there is a bracket 100a at the stop member 200 and additional brackets 100c are arranged on opposite sides of the central beam 308 of the cabinet 300 as shown in fig. 4A-4B. The guide rail 200 has a cutout 220 above the

additional brackets

100b and 100c, and the

additional brackets

100b and 100c are disposed on the center beam 308. The cutouts 220 help to direct forces from the rail 200 to

additional brackets

100b, 100c mounted on the center beam 308. More specifically, the cut-outs 220 ensure that the forces from the rail 200 are properly absorbed; accordingly, the notch 220 shown in fig. 4A to 4B is configured such that: only the bracket 100B will experience the force from the rail 200 if the force is directed to the right in fig. 4A-4B, and only the bracket 100c will experience the force from the rail 200 if the force is directed to the left in fig. 4A-4B. This means that the central beam 308 will always contribute to absorbing forces from the guide rail 200 by means of the

brackets

100b, 100 c. Eventually, the central beam 308 absorbs the forces from the rails 200, which causes the side walls 302 of the cabinet 300 to remain stable. In another alternative embodiment, there is a bracket 100a at the stop member 204 and an additional bracket 100d is arranged at the other end of the cabinet 300. The forces absorbed by the additional bracket 100d at the other end will be transferred into the cabinet 300, such as to the side wall 302.

Turning now to fig. 4A-4B and 9A-9B, the first brackets 100, 150 are mounted to the interior of the side walls 302 of the cabinet 300, while the second brackets 100B, 150B are mounted to the central beam 308 at a position opposite the first brackets 100, 150. The

third brackets

100c, 150c are mounted on the side of the central beam 308 facing away from the first brackets 100, 150. The brackets 100, 150 allow reversible fixation of the

rails

200, 250 in front of the cabinet 300. The central beam 308 also divides the interior cabinet space into two or more compartments.

The upper two

adjacent legs

100b, 100c form an upper leg assembly, while the bottom two

adjacent legs

150b, 150c together form a bottom leg assembly. The legs of the common leg assembly may be provided as two separate legs (see fig. 4A), or they may be formed as a single piece, as shown in fig. 4B. In particular, the load plate 112 of each

bracket

100b, 100c may be formed in a single piece such that both

brackets

100b, 100c share the same load plate. The same applies to bottom bracket assemblies that include

adjacent brackets

150b, 150 c. These brackets may be provided as two separate brackets, or as shown in fig. 9B, these brackets may be formed as a single piece. In particular, the load plate 162 of each

bracket

150b, 150c may be formed in a single piece such that both

brackets

150b, 150c share the same load plate.

A method for absorbing forces during use of the sliding door system will now be described with reference to figure 10. The method includes the initial step of providing a sliding door system such as that described above with respect to the system 400 of fig. 1-10. The bracket 100a is mounted to a top corner of the cabinet 300 near a stop member of the rail (omitted from fig. 10 for clarity). At least one

second bracket

100b, 100c or 100d is mounted away from the back to the first bracket 100a and opposite to the first bracket 100a, e.g. on the central beam 308 (i.e. bracket 100b and/or bracket 100c) or the top corner of the cabinet 300 opposite to bracket 100a (i.e. bracket l00 d). The door then slides in the direction shown by the solid arrow in fig. 10 until the door contacts the door bracket adapter to generate the following force: the force is absorbed by the door mount adapter before being transmitted to the first mount (100a) and the second mount (100b, 100c, 100d) through the shaft and along the guide rail. Without wishing to be bound by theory, it is believed that when four

brackets

100a, 100b, 100c, and 100d are installed as shown in fig. 10, forces generated proximate bracket 100a are transmitted through the rails to bracket 100c and forces generated proximate bracket 100d are transmitted through the rails to bracket 100b, as indicated by the dashed arrows. The resulting forces may be further transmitted from the

brackets

100a, 100b, 100c and 100d into the center beam 308 and/or the cabinet 300.

The sliding door system 400 shown in fig. 2 is mounted to the uppermost portion of the cabinet 300. This will cause the sliding door 404 to hang, i.e. the door is supported by the uppermost guide rail 200. Alternatively, as shown in fig. 9A-9B, the sliding door system 400 may be mounted to the lowermost portion of the cabinet 300, such as the cabinet floor, to cause the sliding door 404 to stand, i.e., the door is supported by the lowermost guide rail 250. Each bracket 100, 150 may be screwed into a pre-drilled hole 304 on the cabinet 300 and then the

rails

200, 250 attached to the brackets 100, 150 by snap or snap engagement as described above.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 1, the system 400 further includes two

rails

200 and 250 that may be mounted on the top and bottom of the cabinet 300. The rail 250 mounted at the bottom of the cabinet is configured (i) for guiding only the sliding door, or (ii) for absorbing and transmitting forces as described above for the rail 200 mounted at the top of the cabinet 300 as shown in fig. 6A and 6B. The stop member 254 of the lower track 250 is further from the cabinet 300 than the stop member 204 of the upper track 200 so that the door 404 will always be reversibly received by the boss-adapter 212 of the upper track.

The sliding door system 400 provides a quick and efficient modular installation of a durable sliding door assembly, wherein the

guide rails

200, 250 and the sliding door 404 only occupy the space immediately in front of the cabinet 300. The guide rails 200, 250 and the sliding door 404 do not intervene in the inner space of the cabinet or the upper and lower spaces of the cabinet to the space of the side of the cabinet 300. Further, the brackets 100, 150 minimally intervene in the inner space of the cabinet and the space immediately outside the cabinet 300.

When the sliding door is engaged with the

engagers

212, 262 at its end positions, the sliding door system 400 allows the force to be absorbed and then spread over a larger area. This spreading of forces allows for the use of lightweight materials and/or less material during manufacture of the system 400 and reduces the need to replace components after repeated use of the system 400. A system 400 having a cabinet made of a lightweight material and/or less material may also be used when the impact force is propagated over a larger area.

Although the present invention has been described above with reference to specific embodiments, it is not intended to be limited to the specific form set forth herein. Rather, the invention is limited only by the following claims.

In the claims, the term "comprising" does not exclude the presence of other elements or steps. Furthermore, although individual features may be included in different claims, these may possibly be advantageously combined, and the inclusion in different claims does not imply that a combination of features is not feasible and/or advantageous. Moreover, singular references do not exclude a plurality. The terms "a", "an", "first", "second", etc. do not exclude a plurality. Reference signs in the claims are provided merely as a clarifying example and shall not be construed as limiting the scope of the claims in any way.

Claims

1. A sliding door system (400) for a cabinet (300), the cabinet (300) having at least one central beam (308), the central beam (308) dividing the cabinet (300) into at least two vertically extending compartments, the sliding door system (400) comprising:

a guide rail for supporting a sliding door (404), wherein the guide rail is provided with at least one cut-out (220);

at least a first bracket (100a, 100d) and a second bracket (100b, 100c), the first bracket (100a, 100d) and the second bracket (100b, 100c) being for fixing the rail in front of the cabinet (300);

wherein the first bracket (100a, 100d) is mounted on a side wall (302) of the cabinet (300) and the second bracket (100b, 100c) is mounted on a side of the central beam (308) facing away from the side wall (302) with the first bracket (100a, 100d) mounted;

thereby, the at least one cut-out (220) is located above the second bracket (100b, 100c) such that forces acting on the guide rail through the associated sliding door (404) in a direction from the first bracket (100a, 100d) to the second bracket (100b, 100c) will be absorbed by the second bracket (100b, 100c) and the central beam (308) to a greater extent.

2. A sliding door system according to claim 1, wherein the force acting on the guide rail through the associated sliding door (404) will also be at least partly absorbed by the first bracket (100a, 100d) and the cabinet (300).

3. The sliding door system (400) of claim 1 or 2, further comprising:

a stop member (204, 254), the stop member (204, 254) being located at one end of the rail;

at least one door projection adapter (212), the at least one door projection adapter (212) extending longitudinally from the stop member (204, 254) in a direction substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of the rail; and

a force transfer member (208, 258), the force transfer member (208, 258) being in contact with the stop member (204, 254) and/or the at least one door projection adapter (212) and the guide rail for transferring forces generated during closing of the sliding door (404) from the sliding door (404) to the guide rail.

4. The sliding door system (400) of claim 3, further comprising a second guide rail for supporting at least one of the sliding doors (404),

the second rail has a second stop member (254) at one end of the second rail, and

the second rail is located on the cabinet (300) away from the rail (200).

5. The sliding door system (400) of claim 4, further comprising at least one door bracket adapter (262), the door bracket adapter (262) extending longitudinally from the second stop member (254) in a direction substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of the second rail; and

a second force transmitting member (258), the second force transmitting member (258) in contact with the second rail and the at least one door bracket adapter (262) for transmitting a force generated during closing of the sliding door (404) from the sliding door (404) to the rail.

6. The sliding door system (400) of claim 5, wherein the at least one door projection adapter (212) has the following end positions: the at least one door projection adapter (212) engages the sliding door (404) at an end position disposed closer to the center beam (308) than a corresponding end position of the at least one door bracket adapter (262) of the second rail.

7. The sliding door system (400) of claim 3, wherein the at least one door projection adapter (212) extending longitudinally from the stop member (204) is an alligator link (212).

8. The sliding door system (400) of claim 4, wherein the rail (200) and/or the second rail has at least one cut-out (220, 270) located away from the stop member (204) and/or the second stop member (254).

9. The sliding door system (400) of claim 4, wherein the guide rail (200) and/or the second guide rail has at least one track (216) for receiving a bearing (420) mounted on the sliding door (404).

10. The sliding door system (400) of claim 1 or 2, further comprising at least one door bracket (408, 458) mountable on the sliding door (404) for operatively associating the sliding door (404) with the guide rail.

11. The sliding door system (400) of claim 1 or 2, wherein each bracket (100a, 100b, 100c, 100d, 150a, 150b, 150c, 150d) comprises:

a mounting plate (104, 154), the mounting plate (104, 154) being configured for reversibly fixing the bracket to the cabinet (300); and

a load plate (112, 162), said load plate (112, 162) configured for reversibly interlocking said rail to said bracket; wherein the content of the first and second substances,

the load plate (112, 162) is further configured to transfer loads from the sliding door (404) to the front side of the cabinet (300) through the guide rail.

12. The sliding door system (400) of claim 11, wherein the mounting plate (104, 154) is positioned perpendicular to the load plate (112, 162) such that the mounting plate (104, 154) forms an L-shape with the load plate (112, 162).

13. The sliding door system (400) of claim 11, wherein the load plate (112, 162) is provided with a load transferring surface arranged such that the load transferring surface rests on a front side of the cabinet (300).

14. The sliding door system (400) of claim 11, wherein each bracket further comprises a flange (108, 158) connected to the mounting plate (104, 154), the flange being perpendicular to the mounting plate (104, 154) and the load plate (112, 162).

15. A method for absorbing force during use of a sliding door system located on a cabinet (300), the method comprising the steps of:

providing a cabinet (300) with a sliding door system, the system comprising:

a guide rail for supporting a sliding door, wherein the guide rail is provided with at least one cut-out (220); and

wherein the first bracket (100a, 100d) is mounted on a side wall (302) of the cabinet (300);

wherein the second bracket (100b, 100c) is mounted on a side of a central beam (308) of the cabinet (300) facing away from the side wall (302) with the first bracket (100a, 100d) mounted;

wherein the at least one cut-out (220) is mounted on the second bracket (100b, 100c) such that forces acting on the guide rail through the sliding door (404) in a direction from the first bracket (100a, 100d) to the second bracket (100b, 100c) will be absorbed by the second bracket (100b, 100c) and the central beam (308) to a greater extent,

sliding the sliding door to contact an end of the guide rail to generate a force that is at least partially absorbed by the second bracket (100b, 100c) and the center beam (308).

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the sliding door system further comprises at least one door projection adapter at one end of the guide rail and a force transmitting member in contact with the door projection adapter and the guide rail, wherein the generated force is transmitted from the door projection adapter to the second bracket (100b, 100c) and the center beam (308) through the force transmitting member and along the guide rail.

17. The method according to any one of claims 15 or 16, wherein the guide rail is removed at least in part to form a cut-out proximate to the second bracket (100b, 100 c).