GB2252999A - Panel releasably fitted to a frame - Google Patents

Abstract

An item of panelled furniture such as a door, comprises a framework 12, 14, 16, 18, defining one or more openings for panels 20. Each opening has a rebate therearound to receive the edge of a panel 20 mounted in the opening, the panel being held in place by releasable retaining members 30, 100. The panel 20 may be reversed or replaced to allow ready alteration of the appearance of the item of furniture, whereby customers can readily be offered a wide choice of different styles at relatively low cost. <IMAGE>

Description

DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION Title: "Improvements in or relating to panelled furniture, doors, and the like" THIS INVENTION relates to panelled furniture, doors and the like, herein referred to, for convenience, as "furniture".

It is an object of the present invention to provide a means whereby a manufacturer of panelled furniture, doors or the like can economically provide a wide range of different appearances or finishes.

According to the invention, there is provided an item of panelled furniture, as herein defined, comprising a framework defining at least one opening, a rebate around the edges of said opening to afford abutment faces, a panel removably fitted in said opening engaging said abutment faces by one surface of the panel and means for engaging the opposite surface of the panel for releasably retaining the panel in said opening.

Preferably the panel is reversible whereby at least two different styles or finishes may be afforded without any additional manufacturing step, merely by reversing the panel.

The panelled furniture in question may comprise, for example, fitted cupboards, wardrobes or the like, particularly doors for such items of furniture. However, a similar construction may be used for interior or exterior doors of buildings.

Embodiments of the invention are described below by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: FIGURE 1 is an elevation view of a panelled door embodying the invention, FIGURE 2 is an elevation view showing a replaceable panel of the door of Figure 1 removed from the door, FIGURE 3 is a view in section along the line III III in Figure 1 illustrating the fitting and location of the panel in the door, FIGURE 4 is a cross-sectional view of a lower or upper transverse member of the frame of the door, FIGURE 5 is a cross-sectional view of an intermediate transverse member of the door, FIGURE 6 is a side elevation view, to an enlarged scale, of a variant panel retaining member, FIGURE 7 is a perspective view of the retaining member of Figure 6, FIGURE 8 is an end view of the retaining member of Figure 6, FIGURE 9 is a fragmentary sectional view through an item of furniture utilising the retaining member of Figures 6 to 8 and, FIGURE 10 is a fragmentary perspective view, corresponding to Figure 9, from the rear side of the respective panel.

Referring to Figure 1, a panelled door comprises a frame 10, comprising two spaced-apart uprights 12 connected by upper, intermediate and lower horizontal members 14, 16 and 18 respectively, to define an upper rectangular space accommodating a corresponding rectangular panel 20 and a lower rectangular space accommodating a corresponding rectangular panel 22. The door frame has, on the rear thereof, (i.e. the face not normally presented to view), around each said panel opening, a respective rebate 24 (see Figure 3) extending around all four sides of the respective opening. Each panel 20, 22, comprises a substantially planar marginal portion 26, extending around all four sides of the panel and which, when the panel is fitted, is received within the respective rebate 24.

Depending upon the desired aesthetic effect, a panel 20, 22 may be simply in the form of a flat slab, completely planar on its opposite major surfaces, or may have desired embellishments in relief, for example, as illustrated in Figure 2, may have ornamental beading 32 around the four sides of the panel on one face, just within the margin 26, so that the outer periphery of the beading lies slightly within the aperture in the door frame on the outer side of the latter when the panel is fitted.

The panels 20, 22 may be retained in place in the frame by means of unobtrusive fasteners, such as sheet metal brackets of the form illustrated at 30 in Figure 3, backed by felt pads 33 and held by screws 31 to the door frame, on the rear side of the latter, around the edges of the panels 20, 22. Alternatively "push and snap-in" clips may be used for this purpose.

In a preferred embodiment, the frame 10 may be formed of lengths of medium density fibreboard bearing a coating, of, for example, decorative impregnated paper, the transverse members 14, 16 and 18 being fitted in the uprights 12 in such a manner as to conceal from view the fibreboard substrate of these members and of the uprights with only the decorative coating remaining visible, thereby avoiding the need for post-assembly finishing of the surfaces of the door. As illustrated in Figure 3, the inner edges of the uprights 12 may be provided with rectangular-section longitudinal grooves 50 running therealong, and the transverse members 14, 16 and 18 may be provided with tenons 52 at their ends received in respective said grooves 50 and secured therein, e.g. by adhesive.

As illustrated, the grooves 50 are formed in the lateral surfaces of the rebates in the uprights and are of a width slightly less than the thickness of the panels 20, 22, so that the edges of the panels do not enter the grooves 50.

Figures 4 and 5 show respectively, in crosssection, the members 18 and 16. The member 14 may be of substantially the same cross-sectional form as the member 18, as may the uprights 12 (with the "addition" of the grooves 50).

The frame may, if desired, be formed of hardwood or softwood, metal, (for example extruded aluminium prelacquered to provide a desired finish), or of appropriately coated or finished structural plastics foam or chipboard, for example.

The panels 20, 22 may be of any desired material, for example of fibreboard coated with impregnated paper or of hardwood or softwood, or of plastics or metal, or chipboard, any or all of which may be coated or finished as desired or may even be of clear or patterned glass or in the form of rectangular mirrors. When glass is used it may be plain or decorated, for example arranged to give the appearance of a "leaded light" window.In a particularly preferred embodiment the upper panel 20 is of transparent glass with opaque surface patterning applied thereto to give the appearance of a "leaded light" window and a curtain is supported on the rear side of the door by a demountable rail mounted on the rear of the door or is extended between a pair of such rails mounted above and below the upper and lower edge of the respective opening, said rails being supported by brackets secured to the door frame.

Where panels 20 or 22 of paper-coated fibreboard are provided, beading 32 may be secured thereto by adhesive. The paper coating may, if desired, be printed or patterned, in a manner known per se, to resemble wood grain.

Whilst, in the arrangement shown in the drawings, the replaceable panels 20, 22 are rectangular and fit within correspondingly rectangular spaced in the door frame, it will be appreciated that the panels and corresponding spaces may be of other shapes. Thus, for example, the replaceable panels might be of oval or elliptical shape with the door frame affording spaces of correspondingly oval or elliptical form to receive such panels.

It is contemplated that, for example, a builder engaged in the construction of a large number of homes might install fitted wardrobes, for example in bedrooms, using substantially the same frame or framing system in each installation but might, for example, offer to potential purchasers a choice from a range of "styles" or "finishes" each characterised by a different style of panel. Thus, the building would hold in stock a range of panels of different styles for fitting in such frames, and would fit selected panels in each case according to the selection made by the particular home purchaser. The fitting of such panels after the remainder of the installation is complete can be done readily without mess or damage and by relatively unskilled labour.

Whilst, in the above, the panels have been described as being fitted in a door it will be appreciated that corresponding panels could be fitted in other locations, for example in panelled walls of a room or wardrobe, or in open framed structure affording, for example, drawer fronts or the like. A similar construction might be adopted for internal or decorative doors between rooms in a building or even, with adequate reinforcement, etc., for external doors.

FIGURES 6 to 10 illustrate a variant retaining member 100 which may be used with other such members 100 instead of the bracket 30 illustrated in Figure 3. The retaining member 100, which is preferably formed of resilient plastics material such as polypropylene, includes a shank portion 102 and a head portion 104 at one end of the shank portion 102. The head portion 104 comprises a portion adjacent the shank 102 which is in the form of a relatively thick bar 106 extending transversely to the shank 102 and a relatively thin flat tab or plate 108 extending from the bar 106, away from the shank 102 and away from the longitudinal axis of the shank, at a slight angle, for example of 10 to 300, to the longitudinal axis of the shank.One side, herein referred to, for convenience, as the underside, of the bar 106 is in the form of a flat face 109 likewise inclined, in the direction away from the shank 102, away from the longitudinal axis of the shank and the under-surface 110 of the tab 108 is formed as a continuation of this face 109 and may be coplanar with face 109 or as shown, inclined slightly relative to face 109. The tab 108 may, as shown, be of substantially the same thickness throughout or may taper towards its free end. A recess or groove 111 is formed where the upper surface of tab 108 meets the bar 106.

As shown in the detailed sectional view of Figure 9, in the assembled door or the like, each member 100 is located with its shank 102 within a bore 114 formed in the frame member 12, 14, 16, 18, of the door or the like from the side face thereof, referenced 122, which faces into the opening receiving the panel 20. The location of the member 100 is such that the tab 108 bears resiliently against the panel 20, having been resiliently deflected towards a position of parallelism with the shank 102 and the major planes of the panel 20. The bore 114 is formed parallel with the last-noted planes, substantially perpendicular to the edge surface 122 of the respective frame member, the bore 114 being disposed so as to be just exposed at the back of the panel 20 when the latter is fitted.Several such bores 114 are formed in the inner face of each member 12, 14, 16, 18 of the frame bounding the panel recess, at intervals along such member, each said bore 114 receiving a respective retaining member 100 with its respective tab 108 bearing against the back face of the panel.

To secure the respective panel 20 in the frame after the panel has been positioned within its frame opening to bear against the shoulders provided by the rebate 24, with the bores 114 empty. The members 100 are then fitted, each having its shank inserted into its bore 114 with its tab 108 bearing against the rear face of the panel 20. Each member 100 is driven into its bore 114 by a suitable tool engaged with the groove 111 until the head 106 engages the inner surface 122 of the side member, whereby the tab 108 is deflected and resiliently stressed.

The resilient deflection of the various tabs 108 thus provides a permanent force urging the panel 20 against the shoulders.

The shanks 102 are frictionally engaged in their respective bores 114 but are preferably not a particularly tight fit therein, so that when it is desired to replace or reverse the panel 20, the members 100 can readily be extracted simply by gripping the heads 106 with pliers and pulling the members 100 from their bores 114.

The shank 102 has a plurality of circumferential ribs 120, which, as shown in Figure 6, may be of saw-tooth form in profile with the surfaces forming the steeper "edges" of the "teeth" facing towards the head 104. The end of the shank 102 remote from the head 104 is cut away or bevelled as indicated at 124 to form a tapering tip.

Claims (5)

1. An item of panelled furniture, as herein defined, comprising a framework defining at least one opening, a rebate around the edges of said opening to afford abutment faces, a panel removably fitted in said opening engaging said abutment faces by one surface of the panel and means for engaging the opposite surface of the panel for releasably retaining the panel in said opening.

2. An item of panelled furniture according to claim 1 wherein said means for engaging said opposite surface of the panel comprises a plurality of retaining members each having a shank engaged in a respective bore in said framework at a respective position around said opening and extending generally parallel with the plane of said opening and each retaining member further comprising a head attached to said shank and having a resilient bearing part which bears resiliently against the rear surface of the panel to hold the latter in place.

3. An item of panelled furniture, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as shown in the accompanying drawings.

4. A retaining member for a panel, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as shown in Figures 6 to 10 of the accompanying drawings.

5. Any novel feature or combination of features described herein.