NZ330190A - Socket, for a hinge pin, and a cabinet, for holding electronic equipment or wiring systems - Google Patents

Abstract

A hinge pin socket 90, for a cabinet, comprises, in the plane of rotation of the hinge, a static part 91 and a moveable part 92, which in a first position (Fig.8B) defines a hinge pin retaining enclosure 90. The moveable part 92 is resiliently biased (spring 96) toward the first position but has a permitted movement relative to the first position to open the enclosure (Fig. 8A) to enable entry or exit of the hinge pin. The moveable part may be formed with a slot to accommodate a protrusion 95 on the static part 91 so that the protrusion and the slot together define the available slidable movement of part 92. The moveable part 92 may have a flat bearing surface 93 to complete the enclosure 90 so that with a hinge pin in position within the enclosure pressure against the bearing surface does not encourage sliding movement of part 92.

Description

NEW ZEALAND PATENTS ACT, 1953 No: 330190 Date: 15 April 1998 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION A CABINET AND PARTS THEREOF We, PDL INDUSTRIES LIMITED a company duly incorporated under the laws of New Zealand of 14 Hazeldean Road, Christchurch, New Zealand, do hereby declare the invention for which we pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement: 1 - ! : J. .'1 APR 19g9 This invention relates to cabinets and in particular cabinets for holding electronic equipment or wiring systems, and to the construction and various parts thereof.

For organisation and convenience electronic equipment and associated wiring systems such as patch panels, hubs and the like are often mounted in cabinets. These cabinets are commonly referred to as rack mounting cabinets as they include a number of vertical racks to which the various components can be bolted. In the past these cabinets have generally had a bolt-together or screw-together steel sheet construction often similar to a filing cabinet type construction. They generally have a hinged door on the front for accessing the equipment, and this is normally hung from standard hinges in a similar manner to on any other cabinet construction. These cabinets generally are intended to either be screwed to a wall, or to be free-standing on a floor surface. Those free-standing on a floor surface may also have a hinged door on the rear side thereof. Cables generally exit the cabinet through the bottom thereof which is often unenclosed. When used for example to hold patch panels and the like, significant numbers of cables are required to exit the cabinet. Clearly when the cabinet is hung on a wall or the cabinet is for example located over a cable trough in the floor, then this will not cause a problem. In other circumstances it has often been found necessary to locate the cabinet on a plinth which in turn has holes in one or more of the sides thereof to allow egress of the bundles of cables.

Given their intended use, rack mounting cabinets are required to be of a sturdy, robust and durable construction. A need has previously been recognised for cabinets of a kitset form, and, in partial satisfaction of that need, cabinets have been supplied made from a number of panels which bolt together. This task has however been considered difficult and time-consuming.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a cabinet and/or parts thereof which at least go some way towards overcoming one or more of the above disadvantages or which will at least provide the public with a useful choice.

In a first aspect the invention consists in a cabinet comprising: a framework of frame members arranged as edges of a substantially rectangular box, a plurality of corner connectors connecting said frame members at their ends to form vertices of said box, each said corner connector including a vertically facing, either upward or downward, depressed region which accommodates a socket for a hinge pin comprising in the plane of rotation of the hinge, a movable part which with said movable part in a first position, together with said depression defines a pin retaining enclosure, said movable part resiliently biased toward said first position but having a permitted movement rela iv-P-fn sairl first pnqitinn to Open intellectual property cifhct of n.z, 2 4 MAY 2000 said enclosure to enable entry or exit of said hinge pin, the nature of said permitted relative movement and the form of the portion of said movable part contributing to said enclosure being such that pressure from a said pin does not encourage said permitted movement.

In a further aspect the invention consists in a socket for a hinge pin comprising in the plain of rotation of the hinge, a static part and a moveable part which with said moveable part in a first position define a pin retaining enclosure, said moveable part resiliently biased toward said first position but having a permitted movement relative to said first position to open said enclosure to enable entry or exit of said hinge pin, the nature of said permitted relative movement and the form of the portion of said moveable part contributing to said enclosure being such that pressure from a said pin does not encourage said permitted movement.

To those skilled in the art to which the invention relates, many changes in construction and widely differing embodiments and applications of the invention will suggest themselves without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims. The disclosures and the descriptions herein are purely illustrative and are not intended to be in any sense limiting.

The preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which; Figure 1 is a perspective view of a cabinet according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a perspective view of a cabinet frame of the cabinet of Figure 1, Figure 3 is a perspective exploded view of one of the bottom corner connectors of the frame of Figure 2, Figures 4A - 4C are cross-sectional elevations of the constant cross-section extrusions forming the horizontal frame cross-members, vertical frame members and perpendicular connecting struts between frames, respectively of the cabinet of Figure 1, Figure 5 is an elevation with a connecting strut shown in cross-section, showing the manner of engagement of the connecting strut on to a corner connector and the connection of an equipment mounting rack to the connecting strut extrusion according to the cabinet embodiment of Figure 1, Figure 6 is a side elevation of the connection of Figure 5 with the relevant connection between strut and corner connector shown in cross-section, Figure 7 is a perspective view of the lower left corner region of the front side of the cabinet of Figure 1 with the door of the cabinet removed to reveal the hinge pin socket mechanism in fully assembled form, Figures 8A and 8B are plan views of the portion of a frame corner connector "intellectual property office of n1. 2 h MAY 2000 incorporating the hinge pin socket mechanism depicted in Figure 7, with the figures showing the hinge pin socket in open and in closed positions respectively, Figure 9 is an illustration according Figure 7 with a door in place, Figure 10 is a cross-sectional elevation of the constant cross-section extrusion of the vertical side members of the door of the cabinet of Figure 1, and Figure 11 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a cabinet according to one aspect of the present invention incorporating a part height door and a closure completing facia having holes to allow cable egress.

With reference to Figure 1, a rack mounting cabinet incorporating the inventions of the present application is shown generally referenced 1. The rack mounting cabinet has an opened fronted body 2 with a hinged door 3 to enclose the open front face thereof. The corners 4 of the cabinet each have a similar configuration and preferably all include a hinge pin socket so that the door 3 is hung by its top and bottom corners, and may be hung either left or right opening, and the back face of the cabinet (obscured) may similarly be hingeable and hung with vertically extending hinge pins at its corners.

The open fronted body 2 of the cabinet 1 is constructed having a pair of substantially planar frames 5 with the vertices thereof connected by a plurality of connecting struts 6 to form a rigid framework. Panels 7 are secured to the rigid framework as will be described later in the specification. Mounting racks 8 are secured inside the cabinet extending vertically between the lower and upper connecting struts 6 on each of the left and right sides.

Referring now to Figures 2 to 4, each of the open and substantially planar frames 5 can be seen to comprise a pair of horizontal members 52, a pair of vertical members 51 and a plurality of corner connectors 41 interconnecting the horizontal and vertical members to form a rectangular open frame. The horizontal members 52 and vertical members 51 are preferably formed from extruded aluminium of constant cross-section, and Figures 4A and 4B demonstrate applicable cross-sectional configurations as utilised in the present embodiment.

The cabinet of the present application is intended for transport in a total knockdown form and rapid assembly on site, and the embodiment shown incorporates features designed to improve both the efficiency of assembly and the efficiency of transport of the cabinet. One feature providing for improved efficiency of transport is the relative dimensions of the width and depth of the cabinet. The width and depth are largely fixed by equipment that is required to be retained within the cabinet, and frequently the overall depth of the cabinet will need to be greater than the overall width of the cabinet. In the embodiment as depicted the front and rear frames are provided having a substantial depth, and together representing a significant proportion of the overall depth of the cabinet, so TNTELIKTUAL PROPERTY OFHCEf of n.z. 2 *i MAY 2000 that even for cabinets of a substantially greater depth than width, the side panels required to enclose the wall so the cabinet remain narrower than the width of the cabinet. This allows these side panels to be accommodated within a package defined overall by the dimensions of the front and rear frames.

The corner connector 41 may for example be an integrally formed body as depicted in Figure 3 having connections 56 to 58 extending perpendicularly from each of a pair of orthogonal sides 42 and 43 for connection of a vertical and horizontal member respectively. Methods and materials of forming such as injection moulded plastic are possible, however die cast metal such as an aluminium alloy is preferred.

In the preferred embodiment as depicted the corner connector 41 preferably has a basic form which is substantially symmetric as this reduces the need for a left or right hand version, allowing a single form to be used. For this reason, both the extrusions 52 and 51 of Figures 4 A and 4B respectively can be accommodated by the connection means 56 to 58 on the corner connector 41 and in particular with the extrusions mounted on the connectors 56 to 58 the connectors 57 and 58 are disposed within the substantially rectangular clear space 59 in the extrusions with a face 61 of inwardly extending leg 62 of the extrusion abutting the outer face 45 of the connector 56, and part circular channels 60 in registration with holes 44 in the connector 41. Screws inserted through opening 53 in the outer bevelled face 46 of corner connector 41 have the shank thereof pass through holes 44 and screwed into the channels 60. The channels 60, being formed for this purpose, may for example have a plurality of longitudinal depressions therein to assist with metal deformation in self-threading of the screws inserted. The frame 35 thus constructed a rectangular frame as depicted in Figure 2 is achieved with rigid perpendicular connections between adjoining members.

Referring now to Figures 1-6, each corner connector 41 has a plug part 54 extending therefrom which, with the frame in the assembled condition as shown in Figure 2, extends perpendicularly to the plane of the frame 5 thereby forming a stud at each corner or vertex of the frame. In assembling the overall framework of the cabinet as depicted in Figure 1, a pair of frames 5 are arranged back to back, and have extending there between a plurality of connecting struts 6. The connecting struts 6 preferably comprise another extrusion of constant cross-section, the preferred form of which is depicted in Figure 4C. The extrusion includes an open space 63 to act as a socket at the ends thereof and accommodate the plug 54 of a corner connector 41, legs 64 and 65 extending therefrom perpendicular to one another to assist in connection of enclosing panels to the cabinet framework, a curved or curled over lip of a panel engaging over the leg 64, or in the case of the top face merely sitting upon the flanges formed by legs 65. A further leg 66 is provided parallel to leg 65 with each of legs 65 and 66 having further Intellectual property of-ice of n.z. 2 % MAY 2000 perpendicular branches 67 therefrom giving means for connecting the mounting racks 8 by means of a square nut 81 retained within the channel 68 generally defined by the branches 67, slidable within that channel for adjustment of the depth positioning of the mounting racks secured to the nut by a bolt 82.

In securing the aluminium extrusion connecting struts 6 to the corner connectors 41, a system is used which provides continued positive pressure engagement of the extrusion over the plug 54. In particular referring to Figures 5 and 6 the accommodating space 63 of the extrusion 6 has a hole 71 drilled or formed perpendicularly there through at a set distance X from the end thereof. The plug 54 of the corner connector 41 has a corresponding bore 47 formed perpendicularly there through so that a pin 72 may fit through the bore 47 and hole 71 to thereby interconnect these parts. To ensure continued pressure and abutment of the extrusion 6 against face 48 of the corner connector 41 a sprung member is located within an axial cavity 49 of the connector plug 54 to bear against the pin 72. The sprung member preferably comprises as depicted a flanged spigot member 80 with a coil spring 81 compressed between the outwardly extending flange 83 of the spigot member 80 and the inwardly extending shoulder 84 of the cavity 49. The flange 83 bears against a forward shoulder 87 of the cavity 49 with an abutment portion 85 of the spigot 80 extends forwardly, and into a reduced diameter portion 86 of the longitudinal cavity 49 where it may, without the pin 72 in place, partially eclipse the transverse bore 47 in the plug 54.

The bore 47 is preferably sized and positioned on the plug 54, relative to the size and positioning of the hole 71 transversely formed through the extrusion 6, such that the distance Y from the bore 47 to the base 48 of the connector 41 is less than the distance X, and the pin is forced to bear against the edge of holes 71 in the extrusion 6. In this way pressure is transmitted from the inwardly extending shoulder 84 of the plug 54, through the compressed spring 81 to the shoulder of bolt 83, from the abutting end 85 of spigot 80 to the pin 72, from there to the edge of holes 71 to maintain continued pressure of the extrusion 6 against base 48 of connector 41.

Preferably the abutting end 85 of spigot 80 and the leading end of pin 72 are each rounded to encourage easy passing of the pin 72 through the hole 71 and bore 47, the abutment of the curved surfaces under pressure forcing back the spigot 80 into a compressed mode. Thereby fast and secure connection of the connecting struts 6 at each end to a plug 54 of a corner connector end are achieved.

Looking at Figure 2, assembly of the corner connector, with the sprung spigot 80, can be achieved by passing into the connector cavity 49 through open space 88 on the outer face thereof.

Referring now to Figures 1, 3 and 7-10, the hinging connection of the door 3 to the INTaLECTUAL property office of nz 24 MAY 2000 open fronted box 2 is demonstrated. In particular a releasable hinge pin socket 90 is shown which is formed from a cavity wall 91 of connector 41 and a moveable retainer 92 to complete the pin holding enclosure 90.

Referring particularly to Figures 8A and 8B, the retainer 92 is slidable between a first position (Figure 8B) where, together with the wall 91 of the connector 41 it defines the enclosure 90 and a second position whereby no enclosure is formed and a path is available for entry of the hinge pin into the otherwise enclosed area 90, as depicted in Figure 8A. The retainer 92 preferably has a flat bearing surface 93 to complete enclosure 90 so that with a hinge pin in position within the enclosure 90, pressure against the bearing surface does not encourage sliding movement of the retainer 92. Preferably the retainer 92 is formed with a slot 94 to accommodate a protrusion 95 in the cavity of the connector 41, so that the protrusion 95 and slot 94 together define the available slidable movement of the retainer 92. A spring means 96 is provided to bias the retaining member 92 into the enclosure forming position of Figure 8B, the spring means 96 preferably comprising an integrally formed arm as depicted, the whole retainer 92 being moulded from a plastic material. Elastic deformation of the elbows 97 of the arm 96 into the more deformed configuration of Figure 8 A retains energy and in a usual elastic manner biases the retainer to the less deformed position of Figure 8B. Preferably a bulbous abutment 98 of the arm 96 is lodged in a detent 99 in one side edge of the cavity of the connector 41.

The connector as depicted is considered to be particularly effective in this purpose as it involves only a single and easily formed moving part, cooperating with a complementary formed cavity of the connector 41 to achieve the opening and closing objective. With particular reference to Figure 7, the retainer 92 is secured in place with the slot 94 over protrusion 95 by the engagement of the vertical extending extrusion 51 over its connectors 56 -58 on the corner connector 41.

With reference to Figure 9 the assembly is shown with the door in place, the hinge pin extending vertically downward from the bottom edge of the door and being secured in the enclosure (obscured). For removal of the door the visible end 100 of the retainer 92 may be pressed in the direction of arrow 101 to open the enclosure 90 and release or make available the hinge pin for movement back past the retainer 92 in the direction of arrow 102 in Figure 8A.

Preferably a hinge pin retaining assembly as described is incorporated at each corner of the cabinet on the horizontal exposed face of each corner connector. Thereby a door may be hung from any vertically corresponding pair of corners with the lower hinge pin retaining corner of the door located in the lower socket and the upper hinge pin retaining corner of the door located in the upper socket. With reference to Figure 1 rotation of the door in its plane through 180° allows the door to be hung from a left rather intellectual property office* of nz. 2 h MAY 2000 than a right or vice versa opening direction. A similar but non-transparent door may of course be provided for either the front or rear cabinet opening. A lock 104 on the door which can cooperate with leg 105 of the vertical extrusion 51 (see Figure 4B) allows securing of the door against opening. A similar locking arrangement of locks 106 on side panels 7 can be made with leg 64 of connecting struts 6, for securing side panels in place.

Referring now also to Figure 10 a vertical extrusion for the side edges of the door 3 is shown having a bead 111 for securing the glass or perspex pane 112. Connected from this via leg 114 is a vertically extending open cavity having a generally circular open portion to accommodate at each end a portion of each vertically extending hinge. The form of outer edge 110 of the extrusion, relative to the hinge pin retaining cavity 109, together with the form of face 108 of the vertical frame extrusion as depicted in Figure 4B, allows, with the vertically extending hinge pin configuration, the swinging of the door through angles of up to 180° or more, while the positioning of edge 110 preferably promotes clean lines and aesthetic value with the door in a closed position. In assembly of the door the pair of similar side extrusions 115, with the enclosing panel 112 fitted in the beads 111 thereof, are retained in position by screwing on top and bottom batons 116, screws being retained in vertical channel 113 of the vertical extrusions. The hinge pin is a force fit within the retaining channel 109 (for example having an end chamfer) and passes through the baton 116. The pin preferably has a flange formed thereon which bears against the baton to further secure it to the extrusion. A retaining cap is fitted in place of a hinge pin at the other side of the door to fit within the channel 109 and help retain the baton in place..

Referring now to Figure 11, a variation of the cabinet is shown which removes the need for a base plinth when the cabinet is located on a solid floor without access to the rear thereof or to an underfloor cable trough. In this embodiment the cabinet is provided with a part height door 120 with the remainder of the open space of the box 2 being enclosed by a facia 121 which has a number of large holes 122 therein to permit egress of cables from the cabinet with the door in a closed position. The facia 121 preferably has a pair of hinge pin studs extending downwardly from the bottom edge thereof to engage within the hinge pin retaining enclosures of the two lower corners of the cabinet, and has further retaining means at the lateral edges thereof, such as locks 123 to engage with the vertical extrusions 51 of the cabinet frames to thereby fully secure the facia in place. The facia has a pair of hinge pin retaining closures of its own, preferably merely comprising blind holes 124 located at each end of the top face thereof to retain the lower hinge pin of the door 120. It will be appreciated that even without the releasable hinge pin retaining mechanism the door 120 will be placeable as only one releasable connection is required, the non-releasable connection merely being inserted first. intellectual property office OF NZ 24 MAY 2000 It will be readily appreciated that the invention as broadly outlined earlier and as described in detail above with reference to the illustrations provides many advantageous features which together or alone contribute toward overcoming one or more of the earlier mentioned disadvantages. While the cabinet has been described incorporating all of these novel and advantageous features, it may be constructed only incorporating a few.

Some of the advantages that are gained by the present invention include: - The cabinet is provided in a readily knock-downable form with extremely simple and fast construction. The front and rear frames may be provided with doors in place stacked one atop the other with a plurality of side and top and bottom panels there between. In most configurations the overall package would comprise approximately 20% of the total cabinet volume. The time consumed in assembling the cabinet should amount to approximately five minutes.

- The releasable hinge configuration allows mounting and dismounting of the door with ease, and also allows for alteration of the configuration by hanging the door from either side without disassembly or alteration of the cabinet. The door is furthermore able to swing through an angle of greater than 180°.

- The connections between the connecting struts and the major frames of the cabinet construction are simple and effective and maintain a continued positive pressure for abutment of the strut members by the compressed spring. Screwing and bolting and eventual cabinet assembly, when supplied with the main frames intact, is not required, greatly reducing the on-site assembly time.

- The part height front facia arrangement as referred to with respect to Figure 11 can remove the need for a cabinet plinth and is considered to be extremely convenient in its arrangement and assembly and particularly in its relative alignment with other products in the product range whereby the part height door which accompanies it may be selected from the doors available for cabinets of smaller vertical size.

In the cabinet as described the mounting racks are readily adjustable by sliding of the square nut connector within the horizontal channels provided.

This is of course by no means an exhaustive list of the many advantages provided by this invention and many more will be readily apparent to persons skilled in the art. Many further variations on the parts described and illustrated may also be readily apparent to persons skilled in the art without departing from what is considered to be the scope of the invention. intellectual property office* of n.z. 2 4 MAY 2000 RECEIVED

Claims (13)

WHAT WE CLAIM IS:

1. A cabinet comprising: a framework of frame members arranged as edges of a substantially rectangular box, a plurality of corner connectors connecting said frame members at their ends to form vertices of said box, each said corner connector including a vertically facing, either upward or downward, depressed region which accommodates a socket for a hinge pin comprising in the plane of rotation of the hinge, a movable part which with said movable part in a first position, together with said depression defines a pin retaining enclosure, said movable part resiliency biased toward said first position but having a permitted movement relative to said first position to open said enclosure to enable entry or exit of said hinge pin, the nature of said permitted relative movement and the form of the portion of said movable part contributing to said enclosure being such that pressure from a said pin does not encourage said permitted movement.

2. A cabinet as claimed in claim 1 wherein each said corner connector includes a resilient engagement with at least one of the frame members with which it is engaged, said resilient engagement comprising an engagement member of each said corner connector of each said frame inserted into a cavity of a socket of the said frame member in a longitudinal direction, such that said frame member may abut a shoulder of said stud at the base of said engagement member, and interconnection means which resiliency draw said frame member against said shoulder.

3. A cabinet as claimed in claim 2 wherein said interconnection means comprises a hole through the wall of said frame member into the cavity thereof and an opening in the respective said stud which is in substantial registration with said hole with said engagement member and said frame member engaged, and an interconnection pin insertable into said opening through said hole to, by its relative bearing against the edge of said hole and the said stud, resiliently draw said frame member against said shoulder.

4. A cabinet as claimed in claim 3 wherein said engagement member includes elastically deformable abutment means intruding into said cavity and eclipsing a portion of said hole away from said shoulder with said stud and said frame member fully engaged, said abutment adapted to contact said pin and press said pin towards said shoulder in the intellectual property office of nx 1 k MAY ?nno unobscured side of said hole to abut an abutment region of the surround of said hole of said frame member, said abutment region of said surround of said hole of said frame member eclipsing a portion of said opening of said stud towards the shoulder of said stud so that in use and engagement, with said pin in place, said elastically deformable abutment means presses said pin which presses the said abutment region of said surround of said hole of said frame member to press said frame member against said shoulder of said stud.

5. A cabinet as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4 wherein each said corner connector includes a screw secured engagement with at least one of the frame members with which it is engaged, said screw secured engagement comprising a plug part of said corner connector inserted into a cavity or socket of the said frame member in a longitudinal direction, a bore through said corner connector in the longitudinal direction of said frame member, and a screw fastener passing through said bore and being longitudinally engaged into said fame member.

6. A cabinet as claimed in claim 5 wherein said frame member comprises a hollow extrusion having a longitudinal channel or passage on the inside wall of said hollow cavity, said screw fastener engaged in said longitudinal channel or passage.

7. A cabinet as claimed in claim 1 wherein said movable part comprises a member having a slot therein, a registration protrusion from said depressed region on said corner connector fits within said slot and is configured to allow, in conjunction with said slot, sliding movement of said movable part, but substantially no rotational movement thereof, and a spring means biases said movable part so that said registration protrusion is at one end of said slot at rest.

8. A cabinet as claimed in claim 7 wherein said spring means comprises an integrally formed elastically deformable spring arm which extends from said movable part and which acts against a wall of said depressed region.

9. A socket for a hinge pin comprising in the plain of rotation of the hinge, a static part and a moveable part which with said moveable part in a first position define a pin retaining enclosure, said moveable part resiliently biased toward said first position but having a permitted movement relative to said first position to open said enclosure to enable entry or exit of said hinge pin, the nature of said permitted relative movement and the form of the portion of said moveable part contributing to said enclosure being such that pressure from a said pin does not encourage said permitted movement. intellectual property office of nz 2 4 MAY 2000 -12-

10. A socket for a hinge pin as claimed in claim 9 wherein said moveable part comprises a member having a slot therein, a registration protrusion on said static part fits within said slot and is configured to allow, in conjunction with said slot, sliding movement of said moveable part, but substantially no rotational movement thereof, and a spring means biases said moveable part so that said registration protrusion is at one end of said slot at rest.

11. A socket for a hinge pin as claimed in claim 10 wherein said spring means comprises an integrally formed elastically deformable spring arm which extending from said moveable part and which acts against an abutment of said static part.

12. A cabinet substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated by Figures 1-2 and 7-9 of the accompanying drawings.

13. A socket for a hinge pin substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated by Figures 7-9 of the accompanying drawings. DATED THIS a 5 DAY OF AJ PARK AGENTS POR THE APPLICANT intellectual property office OF NZ 2 k MAY 2000