GB2211073A

GB2211073A - Cover for drawer sliding gear

Info

Publication number: GB2211073A
Application number: GB8724315A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Martin James Butterworth
Original assignee: KINDERFLEX Ltd
Current assignee: KINDERFLEX Ltd
Priority date: 1987-10-16
Filing date: 1987-10-16
Publication date: 1989-06-28
Also published as: GB8724315D0

Abstract

A sliding drawer unit for incorporating into office or domestic furniture has opposite sides 10, 20 formed of sheet metal, with each side, having a portion 13, 23 extending from its top edge and folded over and down to provide a shroud for sliding gear by which the drawer is slidably mounted to the item of furniture. <IMAGE>

Description

SLIDING DRAWER UNIT This invention relates to a sliding drawer unit for incorporating in office or domestic furniture.

Sliding drawers are generally fitted with or coupled to sliding gear along their opposite sides. It is known to manufacture drawers from plastics material by injection moulding and to provide integral shrouding along each side to cover the sliding gear, but the tooling for such drawers is expensive.

In accordance with this invention, there is provided a sliding drawer unit having opposite sides formed of sheet metal, with each side having a portion extending from its top edge and folded over and down to provide a shroud for sliding gear.

Preferably the folded over portion of each side includes an outwardly inclined section followed by a downwardly extending section. The drawer sits witch the two sets of sliding gear covered by the folded over portions of its two sides and the inclined sections can be formed without difficulty by folding the sides from sheet metal such as steel.

An embodiment of this invention will now be described by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawing, the single Figure of which is an end view of a sliding drawer unit in accordance with the invention.

Referring to the drawing, there is shown a sliding drawer unit formed of steel sheet and comprising opposite side members 10, 20, a base member 30 and two end members of which the end member 40 can be seen in the drawing.

Each side member comprises a flat, rectangular portion 11, 21 with a margin 12, 22 along its lower edge bent inwardly through a right angle. The base member 30 comprises a flat, rectangular sheet with margins 31, 32 along its opposite side edges bent downwardly through a right angle. The base member 30 sits, by way of the free edges of.its margins 31, 32, on the margins 12, 22 of the side members 11, 21 and the margins 31, 32 of the base member are spot-welded to the side member.

Each end member comprises a flat rectangular sheet having margins 41-44 along its edges bent through a right angle. The end member is disposed with the margin 41 along its bottom edge sitting on the top surface of the base member 30 and with the margins 42, 44 along its side edges abutting the opposite side members 10, 20. The end members may be disposed as shown with their margins 41-44 directed outwardly, or they may be disposed the opposite way around i.e. with their margins 41-44 directly inwardly. The end members are spot-welded along their margins 141, 142 and 1414 to the base and side members.

Each end member is further formed with apertures e.g.

45, 46 to enable a drawer front to be fastened for example by bolting. Furniture manufacturers may therefore fasten drawer fronts of any material or design to drawer units of the type shown in the drawing.

Each side member comprises a portion 13, 23 extending from its top edge and folded over and down to provide a shroud for sliding gear. Each such shroud portion comprises a first section 14, 24 bent outwardly through a right angle from the top edge of the vertical side portion 11, 21, then a second section 15, 25 bent downwardly through a right angle from the outer edge ot the first section so as to lie generally parallel to the side portion 11, 21, then a third sedtion 16, 26 which is bent outwardly from the bottom edge of the second section to lie at an inclined angle, and finally a fourth section 17, 27 bent downwardly from the bottom edge of the third section to lie generally parallel to the side portion 11, 21.

The third section 16, 26 of each shroud portion thus extends both downwardly and outwardly at an inclined angle.

The side members can be bent without difficulty to the profile shown and provide effective shrouds for the sliding gear of the drawer. The sides 11, 12 of the drawer are preferably formed with holes for the attachment of the sliding gear to each side.

Claims

1) A sliding drawer unit having opposite sides formed of sheet metal, with each side having a portion extending from its top edge and folded over and down to provide a shroud for sliding gear.

2) A sliding drawer unit as claimed in claim 1, in which the folded over portion of each side includes an outwardly inclined section followed by a downwardly extending section.

3) A sliding drawer unit as claimed in claim 1 or 2, in which the two sides are formed of separate members of sheet metal, each having a margin along its lower edge bent inwardly.

4) A sliding drawer unit as claimed in claim 3, comprising a base member of sheet metal with margins along its opposite side edges bent downwardly to sit on said margins of the two side members.

5) A sliding drawer unit substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

6) An item of furniture comprising a sliding drawer unit as claimed in any preceding claim slidablly mounted to the item of furniture by sliding gear covered by the folded over portions of the two sides of the drawer unit.