US1750544A - File follower - Google Patents

Description

March 11, 1930. sc 1,750,544

FILE FOLLOWER Filed June 8, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 gwventz #7210 Ase-"M172 dttomwq 4 Patented Mar. 11, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE FRED A. SCHMITZ, OF CANTON, OHIO, .ASSIGNOR TO THE BERGER MANUFACTURING COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF OHIO FILE FOLLOWER Application filed June 8,

This invention relates to file followers, such as are commonly employed in metal filing cabinet drawers, and the like, to compress and hold in an upright position letters, fold- 6 ers, etc.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide a file follower, which may be effectively locked or held against longitudinal movement or displacement in a drawer, and

10 which, when locked, is of relatively small depth, thereby affording maximum filing space in the drawer.

Another object of the invention is to provide a file follower, having a novel locking mechanism, which may be readily released to permit longitudinal adjustment of the follower to any desired position.

lVith the above and other objects in view which will be more readily apparent as the nature of the invention is better understood, the same consists in the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described, illustrated and claimed.

A preferred and practical embodiment of the invention is shown in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a rear elevation of the file follower in locked condition in a filing cabinet drawer;

Figure 2 is a cross section, on an enlarged scale, through the file follower, taken on the line 2--2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2, but

showing the file follower, in unlocked or released condition;

Figure 4: is a perspective view of the follower clutch plate and Figure 5 is a perspective view of one of the followers shoes.

Referring more particularly to the drawings wherein similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several figures, 1 represents a filing cab inet drawer, having sides 1 and a bottom 1 The bottom 1 is depressed'centrally to provide a longitudinally extending trough 1, which not only serves to reinforce the drawer bottom, but also provides a recess to receiy e a track channel 2 provided with in- 1929. Serial No. 369,284.

turned flanges 2" which are flush with the drawer bottom.

The file follower includes a follower board 3, the lower portion 3 of which, when in position in the drawer 1, is approximately perpendicular to the bottom 1 of the drawer, and the upper portion 3' of which is rearwardly inclined with respect to the drawer bottom.

The locking mechanism for the follower board includes a pair of shoes 4, a clutch plate 5, a lever 6, and a toggle 7.

As shown-in Figure 5, each shoe 4, includes an upper guide channel formed by flanges 45, 4- and a connecting web 4 and a lower channel formed by flanges 4 4 and a connecting web 4 the lower channel extending at right-angles to the upper channel; The upper edge of the flange t is provided with teeth a having a backward rake. The shoes t are secured as by spot-Welding the flanges et thereof to the rear face of the lower portion 3 of the follower board in such position that the fianages 4: underlie the flanges 2*" of the track channel 2.

As shown in Figure 4, the clutch plate 5 is provided with vertically extending notches 5 and the transverse slot 5 The notching of the clutch plate forms tongues 5, the lower ends of which are rearwardly inclined as at 5. v

The lever 6 is provided at its lower end with an offset portion 6, which in turn is provided at its lower end with a rearwardly extending tongue 6 the metal on both sides of this tongue constituting shoulders 6, which serve a purpose to be presently de scribed.

The toggle 7 consists of a crank 7 and bearing arms 7". The toggle 7 is pivotally secured to the rear face of the upper portion 3 of the follower board, in any suitable manner, as for example by means of clips 8, which are spot-welded to the follower board, and the crank '7 of the toggle is pivotally secured in any suitable manner to the offset portion 6 of the lever 6.

In assembling the various parts, the clutch plate 5 is inserted between the flanges 4t and 4 of the shoes 4, the connecting webs 4 of the shoes entering the notches 5 in the clutch plate, and the tongue 6 of the lever 6 is caused to enter the slot 5* in the clutch plate.

The operation of the device is briefly as follows:

hen the follower is in unlocked condition, as shown in Figure 3, the connecting webs l of the shoes t rest upon the bottom of the track channel 2, and in this position the teeth 9% of the flange are out of contact with the track channel 2. Moreover, the lever 6, being pivoted rearwardly on the toggle T, the clutch plate 5 is supported on the tongue 6" of the lever 6, and in this position, the rear wardly inclined portions 5 of the clutch plate 5 are held out of contact with the flanges 2 of the track channel 2. In this condition, the follower board may be slid rearwardly or forwardly to any desired position.

lVhen it is desired to lock the follower in position, it is only necessary to pull the lever 6 forward to the position shown in Figure 2. This movement causes a pivoting of the toggle which brings the shoulders 6 of the lever into abutment with the upper edge of the clutch plate 5, thereby forcing the clutch plate downward and bringing the rearwardly inclined portion 5 of the clutch plate into contact with the upper surfaces of the flanges 2 of the track channel 2. At the same time, the teeth 4 of the shoes are brought into contact with the lower surfaces of the flanges 2 of the track channel 2, and the flanges 2 of the track channel are thus securely gripped between the clutch plate and the shoes.

It will be noted that during the locking movement, the pivotal connection of the lever 6 and toggle 7 moves past a plane which passes through the axes of the bearing arms 7 b and the clutch plate 5 In order to permit this movement past said plane, thefollower board 3 is necessarily flexed, and after such movement the follower board tends to resume its initial unflexed condition. This tendency to resume the unflexed condition serves to positively maintain all of the parts in locked condition.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the present construction provides a follower board which will fulfill the objects set forth herein.

Without further description it is thought that the features and advantages of the invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and it will, of course, be understood that changes in the form, proportion and minor details of construction may be resorted to, without departing from the spirit of the invention and the scope of the appended claims.

Claims:

1. In combination with adrawer having a track therein provided with inturned flanges, a file follower adapted to be moved longitudinally along said track and comprising a resilient sheet-metal follower board capable of being flexed, shoes secured to said follower board and having portions which underlie said inturned flanges, a clutch plate having portions overlying said inturned flanges, and toggle means for moving the clutch plate toward or away from the portions of the shoes which underlie said inturned flanges to thereby lock the follower board against longitudinal displacement or release the same, operation of the toggle means being permitted by the flexing of said follower board.

2. A structure as defined in claim 1, in which the toggle means includes a lever and a toggle, the lever being pivotally connected to the toggle.

3. A structure as defined in claim 1, in which the portions of the shoes which underlie the inturnedflanges of the track are provided with teeth.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

FRED A. SCHMITZ.

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