EP0230237B1 - Cabinet, especially adapted to bathrooms - Google Patents

Abstract

A cupboard, more particularly for bathrooms and for the accommodation of bath utensils and the like, contains a housing with at least one pivotably arranged door for closing off or exposing an opening. Compact design, reliable operation and simple construction are to be achieved. To this end it is proposed that a second door be mounted to rotate about a second axis of rotation which is at a distance from the first axis of rotation. Each of the two doors which are pivotable in relation to each other, comprises, at the lower and the upper end, a bearing element which is mounted to rotate in the housing bottom and the housing top by means of pins.

Description

The invention relates to a cabinet, especially for bathrooms, according to the features specified in the preamble of claim 1.

Such a cabinet is known from GB-A-693 446, which has a relatively wide rear wall and curved side walls. Two doors are pivotally arranged, each of which has a flat part over approximately a third of its total width and is rounded off only towards the lateral ends. Nothing special is done to fasten and connect the walls. The cabinet serves as a wardrobe with a front surface which is essentially flat when the doors are closed and which is essentially parallel to the likewise flat rear wall. The upper bearing elements of the doors have an approximately triangular outline, while the lower bearing elements are designed as curved brackets which can reach around the feet of the cabinet. The construction and assembly of such a cabinet require a not inconsiderable effort, especially since a large number of connecting elements are necessary in order to connect the rear wall, the curved side walls, the floor and the ceiling to one another. The connection of the bearing elements to the doors is also carried out in a conventional manner using screws and elbows. The cabinet is designed as a rather solid wooden structure and has a comparatively large weight.

A cabinet with a cylindrical housing wall is known from FR-A-21 16 795. The housing base and the housing cover contain ring grooves into which the housing wall is inserted with the lower or upper end. The housing base and the housing cover are connected to one another by means of a central axis connected, which is passed through a central hole in the bottom, penetrates the entire interior of the housing and is connected at the top in a separate fastening device to the housing cover. An annular support body, which serves to hold bottles, is rotatably mounted in the housing about the central axis. The housing base and the housing cover contain grooves arranged concentrically to the axis, in which a correspondingly curved door is rotatably arranged. The radii of curvature of the door and the guide grooves must be precisely coordinated with one another and close manufacturing tolerances must be observed. The opening that can be closed with the door is comparatively small and the interior of the cabinet is difficult to access. Furthermore, foreign objects that get stuck in the guide grooves can make it difficult or even completely impossible for the door to pivot freely.

Furthermore, a piece of furniture is known from EP-A-27 667, which has side walls curved towards the rear and a flat pivoting door at the front. On the back there is an intermediate part with an H-shaped cross section, into which the longitudinal edges of the side walls mentioned engage, the connection being made by means of screws or the like. This intermediate part protrudes into the interior of the cabinet, with additional measures securing intermediate shelves. There must be enough space in front of the swing door to allow the swing door to be opened.

The invention has for its object to develop a cabinet of the type mentioned in such a way that good stability and a reliable operation of the doors is possible with low weight.

This object is achieved according to the features specified in the characterizing part of patent claim 1.

The proposed cabinet has compact external dimensions and enables good use of the interior. A stiffening of the housing is achieved by means of the webs, so that the housing has good stability even with comparatively small wall thicknesses of the walls. The longitudinal groove present in the interior between the webs expediently enables the attachment of intermediate floors or the like. The webs thus have a double function, namely stiffening the housing and fastening function for intermediate floors or the like. The doors, which are essentially designed as cylindrical shells, extend over an angular range between 90 ° and 130 ° with respect to the respective axis of rotation. The two doors, which can be pivoted against each other, enable the comparatively large opening between the front longitudinal edges of the housing to be closed or released in a functionally reliable manner with little space and weight. The bearing elements, which are designed as cover caps, ensure that the doors are guided in a functionally reliable manner with little design effort, without the risk of interference due to contamination, foreign bodies or the like. Due to the proposed arrangement of the doors and housing walls, the opening mentioned extends practically over the entire width of the cabinet, the interior of which is thus easily accessible when the doors are open. The cabinet has a basically oval base and with an appealing design, good utilization and accessibility of the interior is made possible. The bearing elements in the form of cover caps serve to stabilize and support the doors, which can have a comparatively small wall thickness, nevertheless achieving high torsional rigidity. A smooth pivoting of the doors is guaranteed for a long service life.

A special development is specified in claim 2. The clamping profile enables a reliable and simple connection of the webs, which in particular extend over the entire height of the walls. Manufacturing and assembly can be done inexpensively. The housing walls expediently consist of metal profiles which are connected to one another via the webs and the clamping profile and are inserted between the housing base and the housing cover. However, the walls can also be made of plastic, and the webs can be connected in a suitable injection mold during manufacture.

Another development of the cabinet is specified in claim 4. The fastening bracket formed from the webs enables the fastening of the cabinet to a wall of the room or the like in a simple manner. Furthermore, this mounting bracket enables the connection of the housing walls to the cover or base in a simple manner. The width of this fastening bracket is expediently made between 10 and 30% larger than the outer radius of the walls. The cabinet can thus have an indentation in the area of the opening, into which the front edges of the doors pivot when closing.

Finally, a special embodiment of the invention is specified in claim 7. The interlocking gears enable simplified operation and handling. It is sufficient to operate only one door with one hand in order to open or close the opening of the cabinet.

Fig. 1

einen Schnitt quer zur Längsachse eines Schrankes mit zwei gegeneinander schwenkbaren Türen,

Fig. 2

einen Schnitt parallel zur Längsachse durch den oberen Bereich des Schrankes,

Fig. 3

eine Aufsicht auf den Gehäusedeckel in Blickrichtung III gemäß Fig. 2,

Fig. 4

einen Schnitt entlang Linie IV gemäß Fig. 3,

Fig. 5

eine Aufsicht auf ein Lagerelement samt Verzahnung in Blickrichtung III gemäß Fig. 2,

Fig. 6

einen Schnitt entlang Linie VI gemäß Fig. 5,

Fig. 7

eine perspektivische Ansicht des oberen Teiles des Schrankes,

Fig. 8

eine Ansicht bei teilweise geschlossenen Türen.

The invention is explained in more detail below on the basis of the exemplary embodiments illustrated in the drawing. Show it:

Fig. 1

a section transverse to the longitudinal axis of a cabinet with two hinged doors,

Fig. 2

a section parallel to the longitudinal axis through the upper area of the cabinet,

Fig. 3

2 shows a top view of the housing cover in viewing direction III according to FIG. 2,

Fig. 4

4 shows a section along line IV according to FIG. 3,

Fig. 5

2 shows a top view of a bearing element including teeth in viewing direction III according to FIG. 2,

Fig. 6

5 shows a section along line VI according to FIG. 5,

Fig. 7

a perspective view of the upper part of the cabinet,

Fig. 8

a view with partially closed doors.

1 shows two curved housing walls 2, 4, which have webs 7, 8 in the area of the rear 6 of the cabinet, which in turn are connected to one another by means of a clamping profile 9 extending over the entire length are. The connection of the housing walls 2, 4 with an upper housing cover and a lower housing base 5, which are designed to match and between which the two housing walls 2, 4 are arranged in the direction of the axes 10, 11, is carried out by means of screws or the like, which are inserted into screw channels 13, 14 engage on the outside of the webs 7, 8 from above or from below. The two housing walls 2, 4 are formed in the shape of a shell as parts of cylinders and extend around the axes 10 and 11 over an angular range of approximately 110 °. Between the front longitudinal edges 15, 16 of the two housing walls 2, 4 there is a free opening 18 through which the interior of the cabinet is accessible. The axes 10 and 11 are at a distance 12 in a plane parallel to the opening 18, which is essentially the same size as the outer radius 17 of the doors 24, 26.

Located in the interior of the cabinet in the direction of the axes 10, 11 are spaced-apart intermediate shelves 19 or hooks, partitions or the like, not shown here, which are fastened to the fastening bracket formed from the webs 7, 8. For this purpose, this fastening bracket located in the middle of the cabinet has an undercut longitudinal groove 20, into which the intermediate floors or the like are inserted with correspondingly designed holding parts 21. Due to the connection of the housing walls 2, 4 and in particular their webs 7, 8 by means of the clamping profile 9, it is ensured over the entire axial length that the opposite side walls of this undercut longitudinal groove 20 are at the same distance and cannot be pressed outwards. This ensures that the holding parts 21 of the intermediate floors 19 hooks or the like are securely locked in the longitudinal groove 20 even under load.

The entire cabinet and also the shelves arranged in the interior thereof have an approximately oval plan, an indentation 22 being provided on the front 23 in the area of the opening 18 at the front. The distance 12 between the two axes of rotation 10, 11 corresponds essentially to the outer Radius of the housing walls 2, 4 and is advantageously in the order of 20% larger than this radius. The depth, that is to say the distance between the indentation 22 and the fastening console, is consequently comparatively small and, overall, a narrow floor plan is achieved despite the rounded housing walls. The indentation 22 thus results from the coaxial arrangement of the housing walls and the doors 24, 26 and their essentially circular or barrel-shaped design. Of course, within the scope of this invention there are also those embodiments which are also essentially flat on the front 23, similar to the rear 6. It is essential in all embodiments that the front longitudinal edges 15, 16 of the housing walls 2, 4 are set back from the front surface or the front side 23 to the rear side. If the doors 24, 26 are pivoted backwards in the direction of the arrows 27, the interior of the cabinet is very easily accessible, and in practice also partially from the side.

The doors 24, 26 are arranged coaxially to the housing walls 2, 4 about the axes of rotation 10, 11. The doors 24, 26 are arranged on the outside around the housing walls 2, 4 with a relatively small distance and also extend over an angular range greater than 90 ° and expediently about 110 °. If the doors 24, 26 are pivoted away from the opening 18 from the position shown in the direction of the arrows 27 about the axes 10, 12, the opening 18 is opened. The doors 24, 26, like the two housing walls 2, 4, are designed in a shell-like manner as thin-walled metal profiles which are brought to the required length in accordance with the height or length of the cabinet. The total length of the cabinet can therefore be easily specified. The doors 24, 26 have in the region of their front edges 28 and their rear edges 30 outwardly projecting ribs 34, which a user can easily grip to open or close the cabinet. Although the coaxial arrangement is particularly expedient, the axes of rotation of the doors can be arranged at a distance from those of the housing walls be; this is particularly useful if the doors are designed differently from the circular outer contour shown.

For example, the parts located in the area of the indentation 22 and bent towards the rear can also be designed to be flat in order to obtain a practically flat front surface in this area. The axes of rotation 10, 11 of the doors are then expediently offset with respect to the longitudinal axes of the housing walls, taking into account the radii of curvature. At the rear 6 there is a wall connection element 29 which can be screwed onto a flat wall of the room. For mounting in a corner of a bathroom or the like, the wall connection element can also have the shape indicated by dash-dotted lines. A bracket with an arm to be explained below is assigned to the wall connection element 29 at the top and bottom in order to enable a simple connection and assembly of the entire cabinet on the fastening bracket designed in this way. As will be explained in the following, the doors 24, 26 are pivotally fastened by means of pins 31 in the housing base 5 and correspondingly in the housing cover, the axial securing being achieved by means of a clip or a securing ring 33 which engages in an annular groove of a pin 31.

Fig. 2 shows a section through the plane of the axes 10, 11 in the upper region of the cabinet, wherein the upper housing cover 36 can be seen here. In a corresponding manner, an identically designed housing base is provided at the lower end of the cabinet, so that the explanations below apply accordingly. The housing cover 36 has an outer edge 38 against which the housing shells 2, 4 rest with their upper ends according to the invention. The housing cover 36 contains a support surface 40 delimited by the outer edge 38, on which the two housing walls 2, 4 rest with their axial end surfaces. As already stated above, the housing cover 36 and the housing base are connected by means of screws which engage in the screw channels of the webs, the between the housing cover and the housing base in the manner shown two housing walls 2, 4 are clamped. The assembly of the cabinet is thus extremely simple, since after the corresponding assembly, only the screw connection between the housing cover or housing base and the fastening bracket is to be made.

The doors 24, 26 are closed at the top by means of a bearing element 46, 47 designed as a cover cap, which extend beyond the housing cover 36 and can be pivoted with respect to the housing cover 36 by means of the pin 32. These pins 32 are located in bores 50, 51 which are widened at the top and penetrate the housing cover 36 and are intercepted below it by means of the locking rings 33 and secured against axial displacement. These explanations apply accordingly to the bearing elements which are designed to match at the lower end of the cabinet. The cover caps or bearing elements 46, 47 each have an annular groove 58, 60 in the region of their outer edge 54, 56, into which the doors 24, 26 are inserted with their upper ends. The bearing elements 46, 47, like the two doors 24, 26, are arranged outside the fixed parts of the cabinet, that is to say outside the housing cover 36 and the housing walls 2, 4, and can be pivoted about them with respect to the two spaced axes of rotation 10, 11. Finally, an overlapping end cover 62 is arranged above the two bearing elements 46, 47 in order to prevent, on the one hand, a simple cleaning possibility and, on the other hand, malfunctions or contamination of the parts which can be moved relative to one another.

Fig. 3 shows a plan view of the upper housing cover 36, with the support surface 64 for the above-mentioned arm of the wall connection element of the fastening console now being recognizable. The rear webs and the housing cover 36 engage in one another by means of pins 66, grooves or the like, as a result of which a good mutual alignment and fixation is achieved. Two bores 67 can also be seen here, which are aligned with the screw channels of the webs mentioned above. Screws are screwed through these bores 67 to connect the housing cover and housing shells. Furthermore, according to the invention, there are 36 annular grooves 68 coaxial to the axes in the outer surface of the housing cover for tooth segments to be explained below.

FIG. 4 shows a section along line IV of FIG. 3, the annular grooves 68 introduced into the surface of the housing cover 36 now being clearly visible. The blind bore 69 serves to receive a screw which is passed through the arm of the fastening bracket or the wall connection element resting on the support surface 64, which enables simple fastening and mounting of the cabinet on a wall or the like. The housing base is designed to match.

5 shows a top view of the bearing element 46 with sector-like toothing 70. The other bearing element also has a correspondingly shaped toothing, the two toothings meshing with one another. These toothings 70 extend into the above-mentioned ring grooves 68 and are in engagement with one another in the region of the connecting line between the two longitudinal axes. Due to the arrangement of the toothing 70 in the annular grooves, those are practically invisible from the outside, and the risk of contamination or the penetration of foreign bodies is also not insignificantly reduced. By means of the toothing 70, the opposite movement of the two bearing elements 46, 47 and the door shells and ultimately simple handling when opening or closing the cabinet is ensured. The teeth 70 are located on approximately semicircular approaches of the bearing elements or the cover caps and extend over angular ranges in the order of approximately 110 to 130 degrees. It is ensured that the engagement is maintained for the entire path of the pivoting movement and the joint actuation can take place.

At least on one bearing element 46 or its shoulder 74, preferably on a small pin 78, a spring element 80 is fastened, the other end of which is fastened to the housing cover or to another bearing element. The Spring element, which can also be designed as a simple rubber ring, is arranged in such a way that a snap mechanism is present in order to bring the doors either into the closed or open position. The bearing element 46 is shown here in the open position of the cabinet and assumes the position pivoted toward the rear of the cabinet. If the bearing element 46 is pivoted forward in the direction of the arrow 82, the pin 78 exceeds the tipping point, which is defined by the connecting line of the two longitudinal axes, and subsequently the bearing element 46 is brought into the closed position by the prestressed spring element 80. The spring element is attached in a corresponding manner to a pin of the associated bearing element.

FIG. 6 shows a section through the cover cap 46, the offset bore 50 for the fastening pin and the tooth segment 70 pointing downward being clearly visible here. The axial end face of the door engages in the annular groove 58 and is supported and locked there in a functional manner. The door (not shown here) lies against the inner surface 84 of the edge 54 and is supported in a functionally reliable manner. The inner surface 84 has a radius that corresponds to the outer radius 17 of the door.

7 shows a perspective view of the upper part of the cabinet, the doors 24, 26 being open and the opening between the front longitudinal edges of the two wall parts 2, 4 being released. The upper bearing elements 46, 47 and the pin 32 are clearly visible. The intermediate floor 19 is fastened with the holding part 21 in the longitudinal groove 20 on the rear of the cabinet. The arm 86 of the wall connection element is connected to the housing cover 36 by means of a screw 88.

Fig. 8 shows a view of the cabinet, with the doors 24, 26 arranged outside the housing now being partially closed. The interior of the cabinet is at the bottom of the housing base 5 and at the top of the housing cover 36 closed and contains two longitudinally spaced intermediate floors 19. The doors 24, 26 designed as rotating shells have the two bearing elements 46, 47 at the top in the area of the housing cover 36. Correspondingly, the two bearing elements 48, 49 are provided at the bottom in the area of the housing base 5. The bearing elements 46 to 49 are arranged outside the housing and surround the housing cover 36 or housing base 5 and the housing walls.

Reference symbol list

2, 4

Housing wall

5

Case back

6

back

7, 8

web

9

Clamp profile

10, 11

Axis of rotation

12

distance

13, 14

Screw channel

15, 16

front longitudinal edge

17th

Outside radius of 24, 26

18th

opening

19th

Mezzanine

20th

Longitudinal groove in 8

21

Holding part

22

indentation

23

front

24, 26

door

27th

arrow

28

Leading edge

29

Wall connection element

30th

Trailing edge

31, 32

Cones

33

Circlip

34

rib

36

Housing cover

38

Outer edge

40

Support surface

46 to 49

Bearing element

50, 51

drilling

54, 56

edge

58, 60

Ring groove

62

End cover

64

Contact surface

66

Cones

67

drilling

68

Ring groove

69

Blind hole

70, 72

Gearing

74, 76

approach

78

pen

80

Spring element

82

arrow

84

Inner surface

86

poor

88

screw

Claims (10)

1. A cupboard, particularly for bathrooms, having a housing comprising two curved walls (2, 4), a base (5) and a top (36), having two doors (24, 26) mounted so as to rotate about rotation axes (10, 11) which are at a spacing (12) from each other, for closing off or exposing an opening (18) provided between front longitudinal edges (15, 16) of the housing, and further having bearing elements (46 to 49) which are provided at the lower and upper ends of the doors (24, 26) which are pivotable towards each other, for the rotatable mounting thereof by means of pins (31, 32) in the base (5) and top (36) of the housing, characterised in that the housing walls (2, 4) have an outwardly directed web (7, 8) at the back, for interconnecting said walls, an undercut longitudinal groove (20) is provided between the webs (7, 8) inside the cupboard for securing an intermediate base (19) or the like, the doors (24, 26) are constructed as substantially cylindrical shells which extend over an angular range of between 90° and 130°, in relation to the rotation axis (10, 11) in question, and the bearing elements (46 to 49) are constructed as covering caps which lap over the bottom (5) or the top (36) of the housing and have an edge (54, 56) parallel to the rotation axis (10, 11) on which one end of the door (24, 26) in question abuts and is supported.
2. A cupboard according to claim 1, characterised in that the webs (7, 8), which extend more particularly over the full height of the walls (2, 4) are joined together by means of a clamping section (9).
3. A cupboard according to one of claims 1 to 2, characterised in that the walls (2, 4) are provided, more particularly on the outsides of the webs (7, 8), with screw channels (13, 14) for connecting the bottom (5) and/or the top (36) of the housing using screws or the like.
4. A cupboard according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterised in that a fixing bracket formed from the webs (7, 8) is arranged at the rear of the two walls (2, 4) and/or the fixing bracket is between 10 and 30%, preferably 20%, wider than the outer radius of the walls (2, 4).
5. A cupboard according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterised in that the walls (2, 4) are constructed as substantially cylindrical shells and the webs (7, 8) are disposed on the rear longitudinal edges thereof.
6. A cupboard according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterised in that the bearing elements (46 to 49) include teeth (70, 72) which mesh together.
7. A cupboard according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterised in that the edges (54, 56) of the bearing elements (46 to 49) each have an annular groove (58, 60) in which the doors (24, 26) are inserted at their lower or upper ends, respectively.
8. A cupboard according to one of claims 1 to 7, characterised in that a spring element (80) in the form of a snap mechanism is associated with the doors (24, 26), by means of which the doors (24, 26) can be moved selectively into the closed or open position.
9. A cupboard according to one of claims 1 to 8, characterised in that the doors (24, 26) have outwardly projecting ribs (34) in the vicinity of their front edges (28) and/or rear edges (30).
10. A cupboard according to one of claims 1 to 9, characterised in that the spacing (12) between the rotation axes (10, 11) is substantially equal to the outer radius (17) of the doors (24, 26) or the spacing (12) is greater or smaller than said outer radius (17) within the range of ± 20%, preferably ± 10%.

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