EP2229844A1

EP2229844A1 - Cabinet with pull-out shelf

Info

Publication number: EP2229844A1
Application number: EP10154570A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Paolo Balducci; Margherita Peruzzini
Original assignee: Sige SpA
Current assignee: Sige SpA
Priority date: 2009-03-17
Filing date: 2010-02-24
Publication date: 2010-09-22
Also published as: IT1393242B1; ITMC20090049A1

Abstract

A cabinet (1) is disclosed, comprising an opening (2), a pull-out shelf (7), a column (C), a collar (3) fixed to the column and provided with cam surface (30) and stop seat (31), a sleeve (4) rotatably mounted on said column and provided with brackets (40) that support a curved guide (5) in convex position with respect to the column (C), and a trolley (6) sliding on said guide (5) and supporting the shelf (7). The trolley (6) is provided with cam surface (62). A pin (8) is mounted on the brackets (40) of the sleeve and provided with two ends (81, 82) that act as cam followers to slide on the corresponding cam surfaces (30, 62) of collar and trolley.

Description

The present patent application for industrial invention relates to a cabinet with pull-out shelf.
As it is known, in the interior decoration sector some types of furniture, in particular modular furniture, comprise various modules shaped as shelves used to support objects. Said modular furniture often develops on multiple walls. In this case the shelves of the modules in angular position are difficult to access.
This has resulted in the need to provide pull-out shelves that can be pulled out of the cabinet in order to make it easier for the user to collect and store objects on the shelves.
The German utility model DE 202 14 967 U1 describes a cabinet with a pull-out shelf joined to the door of the cabinet. The shelf is exactly shaped as a semicircle inscribed inside the rectangular perimeter of the cabinet and the centre is hinged to a column. In this way the opening of the door causes the rotation of the shelf that comes out of the cabinet.
However, the aforementioned embodiment is impaired by several drawbacks, which are mainly due to the fact that in order to use the maximum area of the shelf, the dimensions of the cabinet are constrained by exact measures (the length must be two times the depth) and in any case the surface of the shelf is excessively smaller with respect to the surface defined by the perimeter of the cabinet.
These drawbacks are solved, at least partially, in the patent for utility model DE 20 2007 010 283 U1 that discloses a shelf with curvilinear perimeter to use the largest surface possible. The shelf must make a roto-translation movement to be pulled-out of the cabinet. To that end a guide is obtained and a support arm is hinged in the cabinet.
However, this movement system is excessively cumbersome and complicated, and gets often stuck during the roto-translation movement of the shelf.
The purpose of the present invention is to eliminate the drawbacks of the known art, disclosing a corner cabinet with pull-out shelf that is versatile, practical for the user and at the same time capable of using the largest surface possible of the shelf.
This purpose has been achieved according to the invention with the characteristics described in the enclosed independent claim 1.
Advantageous embodiments of the invention are disclosed in the dependent claims.
The cabinet of the invention comprises an opening and a shelf that can be pulled out of the said opening to go from a retracted position inside the cabinet to an extracted position outside the cabinet.
A column is arranged inside the cabinet near said opening.
A coupling rotatably mounted on said column is provided with brackets that support a curved guide in convex position with respect to the column.
A trolley is slidingly mounted on said guide and supports said shelf.
Advantageously, the cabinet of the invention can be also provided with an alternate lock system that regulates the movement of the shelf.
In this case the trolley is provided with cam surface. A collar fixed to said column is provided with a cam surface and a stop seat. A pin mounted on said brackets of the rotatable sleeve is provided with two ends that act as cam followers to slide on the corresponding cam surfaces of collar and trolley.
Additional characteristics of the invention will become evident from the detailed description below, which refers to a merely illustrative, not limiting, embodiment, as shown in the enclosed figures, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic perspective view that partially shows the cabinet of the invention with shelf pulled out of the cabinet;
Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic perspective view that shows the movement mechanism of the shelf;
Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic top plan view that shows the movement mechanism when the shelf is in retracted position inside the cabinet;
Fig. 4 is the same view as Fig. 3, except for it shows the shelf that is being pulled out of the cabinet;
Fig. 5 is the same view as Fig. 3, except for it shows the shelf pulled out of the cabinet; and
Fig. 6 is the same view as Fig. 3, except for it shows the shelf that is being inserted inside the cabinet;
Referring to the Figures, the cabinet of the invention is disclosed, which is generally indicated with numeral (1) and shown in Fig. 1.

The cabinet (1) is preferably given the shape of a parallelepiped with rectangular perimeter, with length double than depth. Nevertheless, the cabinet (1) can have any type of perimeter.
An opening (2) is obtained on the front of the cabinet (1), preferably with length equal to approximately half of the length of the cabinet.
A column (C) is mounted inside the cabinet (1), extending from the lower wall to the upper wall of the cabinet. The column (C) is arranged near the front wall of the cabinet and near the lateral central border that defines the opening (2).
As shown in Fig. 2, a cylindrical collar (3) is fixed to the column (C). The collar (3) has a cylindrical lateral sliding surface (30), which acts as cam, with a radial seat (31) composed of a cavity with rounded profile. As shown in Fig. 1, the radial seat (31) of the cam extends along an axis forming an angle of about 10°- 30° with respect to a vertical plane parallel to the surface of the opening (2) of the cabinet.
A sleeve (4) is rotatably mounted around the column (C) under the fixed collar (3). Two brackets (40) are joined to the rotatable sleeve (4) and branch off radially from it forming an angle of 60°- 90°.
The brackets (40) support a guide (5) having an arched shaped with concavity opposite to the column (C). The guide (5) defines an arch subtended by an obtuse angle and the curving centre of the guide (5) is distant from the axis of the column (C).
The guide (5) has a basically C-shaped cross-section in such a way to define two sliding tracks (51).
A trolley (6) slides on the guide (5), being composed of a support (60) that rotatably supports wheels or bearings (61) with horizontal axis rolling inside corresponding tracks (51) of the guide.
Referring to Fig. 3, the support (60) of the trolley has an external arched lateral surface (62) acting as cam. The cam surface (62) of the trolley is parallel to the trajectory of the tracks (51) of the guide (5).
As shown in Fig. 1, a shelf or tray (7) is fixed on the support (60) of the trolley (6), having a basically bean-shaped (irregular) surface. The shelf (7) has a front straight border (71) that continues with a rounded border (72) until the area of the fixed collar (3) and a back border (73) with semi-elliptical shape that is joined to the ends of the rounded border (72) and the straight border (73). A bend (74) is obtained in the central part of the back border (73) to avoid interference of the shelf with the corner of the cabinet when it is pulled out.
Referring to Fig. 2, a pin (8) is slidingly mounted inside a support (45) fixed to the brackets (40) joined to the rotatable sleeve (4). As shown in Fig. 3, the pin (8) is provided with a first end (81) and a second end (82) respectively acting as cam followers. Advantageously the first end (81) of the pin has a rounded shape.
The first end (81) of the pin (8) is adapted to slide on the cam surface (30) of the fixed collar (3) and engage in the stop seat (31) of the collar. The second end (82) of the pin (8) is adapted to slide on the cam surface (62) of the trolley (6).
With the help of the figures the operation of the cabinet with pull-out shelf of the invention is described.
Initially the shelf (7) is in retracted position inside the cabinet (1). As shown Fig. 3, in this situation, the first end (81) of the pin is situated on the cam surface (30) of the fixed collar.
When the user grabs the shelf (7) and pulls it out, he exerts a force in the direction of the arrow (F1) that tends to rotate the sleeve (4) around the column (C). The trolley (6) cannot slide on the guide (5) because the end of the cam surface (62) of the trolley touches against the second end (82) of the pin. Therefore, the only movement is the rotation of the shelf (7) around the axis of the column (C). During the rotation movement, the first end (81) of the pin slides on the cam surface (30) of the fixed collar.
As shown in Fig. 4, when the first end (81) of the pin reaches the stop seat (31) of the fixed collar, the pin (8) radially springs towards the fixed collar (3) in such a way that the first end (81) of the pin engages in the stop seat (31). Consequently, the second end (82) of the pin frees the end of the cam surface (62) of the trolley.
Now, if the user continues on pulling the shelf (7), the trolley (6) is subjected to a force in direction (F2) that tends to make the trolley (6) slide on the guide (5). The cam surface (62) of the trolley slides on the second end (83) of the pin.
During this movement the sleeve (4) cannot rotate around the column (C) because the first end (81) of the pin (8) is locked in the stop seat (31) of the fixed collar. In this way the shelf (7) makes a rotation movement around the centre of the arched guide (5) that does not coincide with the axis of the column (C). Said second rotation movement follows the entire length of the guide (5) until the shelf (7) is completely pulled out of the cabinet, as shown in Fig. 5.
Starting from the position of Fig. 5, where the shelf (7) is completely pulled out of the cabinet, in order to reintroduce the shelf (7) inside the cabinet, the user pushes the shelf towards the opening (2) of the cabinet. Consequently, the trolley (6) is subjected to a force in the direction of arrow (F3) that tends to make the trolley (6) slide on the guide (5), until the end of the cam surface (62) of the trolley passes the second end (82) of the pin, as shown in Fig. 6. Then the pin (8) is moved backwards, freeing the stop seat (31) of the collar from the first end (81) of the pin.
Now, by keeping on pushing the shelf (7), a force is exerted in direction of arrow (F4) that tends to make the sleeve (4) rotate around the column (C), thus bringing back the shelf (7) to the retracted position inside the cabinet, as shown in Fig. 3.
Numerous variations and modifications can be made to the present embodiment of the invention by an expert of the field, while still falling within the scope of the invention as claimed in the enclosed claims.

Claims

Cabinet (1) comprising an opening (2) and a shelf (7) that can be pulled out of the said opening to go from a retracted position inside the cabinet to an extracted position outside the cabinet, characterised in that it also comprises:
- a column (C) arranged inside the cabinet near the said opening (2),

- a sleeve (4) rotatably mounted on the said column and provided with brackets (40) that support a curved guide (5) in convex position with respect to the column (C), and

- a trolley (6) that slides on the said guide (5) and supports the said shelf (7).
Cabinet (1) according to claim 1, characterised in that the trolley (6) is provided with a cam surface (62) and the cabinet also comprises:
- a collar (3) fixed to the said column and provided with a cam surface (30) and a stop seat (31), and

- a pin (8) mounted on the said brackets (40) of the rotating sleeve and provided with two ends (81, 82) that act as cam followers to slide on the corresponding cam surfaces (30, 62) of collar and trolley.
Cabinet (1) according to claim 2, characterised in that the fixed collar (3) has a cylindrical cam surface (30) and a stop seat (31) that consists in a rounded cavity on the said cylindrical cam surface.
Cabinet (1) according to claim 2 or 3, characterised in that the trolley (6) has a curved cam surface (62) with profile parallel to the trajectory of the said curved guide (50).
Cabinet (1) according to claim 4, characterised in that the end of the said curved cam surface (62) of the trolley acts as stop for the second end (82) of the pin.
Cabinet (1) according to any of the above claims, characterised in that the trolley (6) comprises wheels or bearings (61) designed to slide in tracks (51) obtained in the said guide (5).
Cabinet (1) as claimed in any of claims 2 to 6, characterised in that one end (81) of the pin (8) is rounded in order to engage in the stop seat (31) of the fixed collar.
Cabinet (1) according to any of claims 2 to 7, characterised in that the pin (8) is mounted with possibility of sliding on the brackets (40) in radial direction with respect to the said fixed collar (3).