GB2224924A

GB2224924A - Drawers

Info

Publication number: GB2224924A
Application number: GB8925188A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Terence Hardy
Original assignee: LB Plastics Ltd
Current assignee: LB Plastics Ltd
Priority date: 1988-11-12
Filing date: 1989-11-08
Publication date: 1990-05-23
Anticipated expiration: 2009-11-08
Also published as: GB8826502D0; GB8925188D0; GB2224924B

Abstract

A drawer of knock-down construction comprises side and back wall panels formed from extruded plastics components, a drawer front, a rigid base, and optionally drawer runners mounted to the underside of the base, the outer faces of at least the side wall panels being of smooth generally planar form. The base is rigid in the sense that it is inflexible in nature as distinct from semi-rigid bases previously employed in drawers of knock-down construction which although made of stiff material such as hardboard or plywood are essentially flexible. <IMAGE>

Description

Drawers This invention relates to drawers.

There are two principal types of drawer construction commonly incorporated in kitchen, bedroom and like domestic furniture, namely moulded drawers and KD or "knock-down" drawers. Moulded drawer constructions have substantial load carrying capacity and are more rigid than drawers of knockdown construction. Knock-down drawer constructions can be supplied in flat packed form which produces substantial savings in transport and storage but are of less substantial construction and have lower load carrying capacity than moulded drawers.

Generally drawers of knock-down construction have semi-rigid bases or floors of limited load carrying capacity and are mounted in their supporting cabinets or the like by runners engaging in recesses formed in the outer surfaces of the drawer walls. They are generally of less satisfactory appearance than moulded drawers which in some instances are mounted on runners located beneath the drawer and hence do not require runner recesses formed in the side walls.

Moulded drawers are however considerably more expensive than drawers of knock-down construction and it is an object of the present invention to provide a drawer construction ha\ing the advantages of knock-down drawers combined with performance nearer to that of moulded drawers but at lesser cost than the latter.

The invention provides a drawer of knock-down construction comprising side and back wall panels formed from extruded plastics components, a drawer front, a rigid base, and drawer runners mounted to the underside of the base, the outer faces of at least said side wall panels being of smooth generally planar form.

The term "rigid base" is used herein to refer to a base which is inflexible in nature and is to be distinguished from semi-rigid bases hitherto employed in drawers of knock-down construction which although made of stiff material such as hardboard or plywood are essentially flexible.

Advantageously said base is formed from chipboard having a thickness of not less than 9 mi 11 imetres.

Preferably said base is supported by engagement of edge regions thereof in inwardly directed recesses formed in the opposite side wall panels of the drawer and preferably in the side and back wall panels.

Preferably each of said drawer runners comprises a first component secured to the underside of said drawer base adjacent and parallel to one of said side wall panels and a second component slidably engaged with said first component and adapted to extend outwardly beneath the associated side wall panel for connection to a cabinet or the like in which the drawer is mounted in use.

Preferably said side and back panels are interconnected by corner pieces having projecting spigot portions engageable in apertures in the ends of the panels to interconnect same to one another at right angles. Advantageously some or all of said spigot portions are provided with projecting detents engageable in recesses formed adjacent the edge regions of the wall panels.

The drawer front may be connected to the side wall panels by connecting pieces secured to the rear of the drawer front and provided with projecting spigots similar to those on the corner pieces adapted for engagement in the ends of the side wall panels.

The invention also provides a kit of parts for the construction of a drawer comprising side and back wall panel members formed from extruded plastics components and having smooth, generally planar, outer faces, a drawer front, a rigid base member, and means for interconnecting said compon nts to form a drawer.

An embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a drawer construction according to the invention; and Fig. 2 is a cross-section through the drawer construction on the line 2-2 in Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings, the drawer comprises side wall panels 5A and 5B and a back wall panel 6 of extruded plastics construction interconnected at right angles to one another by corner pieces 7 and provided with a drawer front 8 and a drawer base or floor 9.

The side and back wall panels of the drawer are formed b) cutting appropriate lengths from the same extruded plastics profile which comprises upper, intermediate and lower hollow portions 10A, 10B and 10C, the lower portion 10C incorporating an inwardly directed recess 11 adapted to accommodate an edge of the base or floor 9.

The corner connectors 7 incorporate arms 7A and 7B extending at right angles to one another and respectively connected to the side wall panels 5A,5B and to the back wall panel 6. Connection is effected by projecting spigots 12A 12B and 12C on the arms 7A,7B engageable in the hollow portions 10A, 10B and lOC of the wall panels. The upper and lower spigots are provided with outwardly directed detents 12D engageable in apertures formed adjacent the associated ends of the wall panels to retain the corner pieces and the wall panels in engagement with one another.

The drawer front 8 is connected to the forward ends of the wall panels 5A and 5B by front connectors secured to the rear face of the drawer front 8 and having similar rearwardly directed spigots engageable in the open ends of the wall panels and provided with detents for engagement in apertures adjacent the edges of the panels.

A drawer runner assembly is mounted beneath the floor 9 of the drawer, the runner assembly comprising a first component 13A secured to the underside of the floor 9 and a second component 13B slidably engaged with the component 13A and extending outwardly beneath the lower edge of the associated side wall to an upwardly directed attachment portion 13C adapted for connection by screws or similar fastening means to the side wall 14 of a cabinet or the like in which the drawer is mounted in use.

The corner connectors 7 are constructed i the manner described in our co-pending Application No. 8826516 filed simultaneously with the present Application and incorporate an opening or recess 15 at a level beneath the floor 9 to provide clearance for the runner component 13B during sliding movement of the drawer relative to the cabinet between closed and open positions.

The arrangement described posssess a number of substantial advantages. By virtue of the rigid construction of the base 9 and mounting of the runner assembly beneath the base, the load carrying capacity of the drawer is substantially increased compared with knock-down drawer constructions having runners engaging in recesses in the side walls of the drawer and having semi-rigid drawer bases. The rigid nature of the base 9 also assists in rigidifying the drawer structure as a whole and since the runners are located beneath the base the outer surfaces of the side walls of the drawer are essentially of flat planar form, thereby considerably improving the aesthetic appearance of the drawer compared with knock-down drawers having longitudinal recesses in the side walls for engagement with drawer runners.

Since the load in the drawer is essentially transmitted directly from the drawer floor to the drawer runners, the walls require only to retain contents within the drawer against horizontal sliding movement. The walls need not therefore be of such heavy construction as in previously proposed knock-down drawers and may therefore be of reduced wall thickness, thereby employing less plastics material and hence reducing manufacturing costs. Alternatively by employment of wall panels of a construction similar to those employed in currently available knock-down drawer constructions a drawer having substantially increased strength and load carrying capacity can be produced.Moreover by virtue of the rigid construction of the floor it is not necessary for the forward edge to be supported by the drawer front, thereby eliminating the need to groove the rear face of the drawer front and further reducing costs.

arious modifications may be made without departing from the invention. For example the thickness of the floor may be varied to suit different requirements subject only to its being rigid as distinct from the semi-rigid floor constructions employed hitherto. The manner of interconnecting the floor and wall panels may be altered if desired and the wall panels may be of varying height to produce drawers of different depth. The manner in which the wall panels are interconnected and are connected to the drawer front may also be altered if desired. Various different runner constructions may also be incorporated subject only to their being located beneath the drawer floor to maintain load carrying capacit and and enhance t he aesthetic appearance of the drawer.

Whilst endeavouring in the foregoing Specification to draw attention to those features of the invention believed to be of particular importance it should be understood that the Applicant claims protection in respect of any patentable feature or combination of features hereinbefore referred to and/or shown in the drawings whether or not particular emphasis has been placed thereon.

Claims

Claims:

1. A drawer of knock-down construction comprising side and back wall panels formed from extruded plastics components, a.

drawer front, a rigid base, and drawer runners mounted to the underside of the base, the outer faces of at least said side wall panels being of smooth generally planar form.

2. A drawer according to Claim 1, wherein said base is formed from chipboard.

3. A drawer according to Claim 1 or 2, wherein said base has a thickness of not less than 9 millimetres.

4. A drawer according to any preceding Claim, wherein said base is supported by engagement of edge regions thereof in inwardly directed recesses formed in the opposite side wall panels of the drawer.

5. A drawer according to Claim 4, wherein edge regions of said base are engaged in inwardly directed recesses in the side and back wall panels of the drawer, but not in the drawer front.

6. A drawer according to any preceding Claim where in each of said drawer runners comprises a first component secured to the underside of said drawer base adjacent and parallel to one of said side wall panels and a second component slidably engaged with said first component and adapted to extend outwardly beneath the associated side wall panel for connection to a cabinet or the like in which the drawer is mounted in use.

7. A drawer according to any preceding Claim, wherein said side and back panels are interconnected by corner pieces having projecting spigot portions engageable in apertures in the ends of the panels to interconnect same to one another at right angles.

8. A drawer according to Claim 7, wherein some or all of said spigot portions are provided with projecting detents engageable in recesses formed adjacent the edge regions of the wall panels.

9. A drawer according to any preceding Claim, wherein said drawer front is connected to said side wall panels by connecting pieces secured to the rear of the drawer front and provided with projecting spigots adapted for engagement in the ends of the side wall panels.

10. A drawer substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

11. A kit of parts for the construction of a drawer comprising side and back wall panel members formed from extruded plastics components and having smooth, generally planar, outer faces, a drawer front, a rigid base member, and means for interconnecting said components to form a drawer.

12. A kit of parts according to Claim 11, incuding a pair of drawer runners each comprising elongated, relatively slideable components, one of which is mounted on or adapted to be mounted on the underside of said base member.

13. A kit of parts according to Claim 11 or 12, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

14. A drawer constructed from a kit of parts according to any of Claims 11 to 13.