US2161130A - Cabinet for displaying building tile - Google Patents

Description

June ,'1939.

c, H. BURCHENAL CABINET FOR DISPLAYING BUILDING TILE Filed June 21, 19:57

2s 14 I I I j 2 Sheets-Sheet '1 INVENT OR.

BMM

WMATTORNEYQ June 6, 1939." c. H. BURCHENAL 2,161,130

' CABINET FOR DISPLAYING BUILDING-TILE Filed June 21, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 M k )4/104 ATTORNEYS,

Patented June 6, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFHCE Charles H. Burchenal,

Glendale, Ohio, assignor to The Cambridge Tile Manufacturing Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application June 21, 1937, Serial No. 149,309

1 Claim.

My invention relates to a cabinet for displaying building tile, particularly ornamental colored tile of the type commonly used on the floors and walls of a bathroom, lavatory, indoor swimming pool, or similar place.

For many years White was the conventional color for tile used for any of the above purposes. In fact, white tile was used so preponderantly that it came to be considered as the only acceptable color. Color schemes for bathrooms were practically unknown and it was conventional to use white tile for base sections and cap sections, as well as .for the main body section of the wall and floors.

In recent years color has become an increasingly important factor in the decoration of a bathroom and resultantly there has been a large and growing demand for colored tile. This demand has been met by the manufacturers who 6 now furnish tile in every tint and color imaginable. It is now conventional to use a decorative strip and cap section of a color which is diiferent from, but harmonious with, the main body section and color schemes involving the use of three or four different shades have become not unusual.

The display of white tile was of course a very simple matter involving no problem at all. Any interested customer not already entirely familiar with the standardized type was simply shown a piece of the tile which would be used throughout the entire job.

However, the display of colored tile is not so simple both because of the wide variety of shades and tints now commonly used and because of the inability of the ordinary person to Visualize the appearance of a completed Wall or fioor section from the examination of one or two sample squares and strips.

The colored tile display cabinet of my invention which I will subsequently describe in detail, represents a novel and effective means of bringing home to the prospective customer the exact appearance of a. wall or floor section of any desired color or combination of colors, and at the same time provides a convenient cabinet for the storage of tile samples.

The primary object of my invention therefore is to provide a cabinet, for the storage and display of colored tile samples, that will enable the prospective customer to make an intelligent consideration and decision as to the particular color scheme which he desires.

A second object of my invention is to provide a cabinet of simple construction, having sections for the storage of the tile samples and other sections for their display, the tile samples being removed from the storage section when required for use for display purposes and subsequently replaced in the exact place from which they have been removed.

A further object of my invention is to provide a display cabinet for colored tile in which the tile samples may be arranged in accordance with a predetermined color chart, which enables the dealer and customer to determine harmonious combinations of color with mathematical precision.

Other objects and purposes will become apparent in the further and more detailed description of my invention.

In the accompanying illustrations a preferred embodiment of the colored tile cabinet of the present invention is illustrated. In these drawings:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of the tile cabinet showing the display panels swung to the sides of the cabinet in the position of nonuse.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the same.

Figure 3 is a sectional view taken on line 3-3, Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a perspective view of the cabinet showing the display panels in the position of use with a selection of tile in place.

Figure 5 is a sectional View taken on line 5--5, Figure 4.

Referring to these drawings, an open face case or cabinet, divided into a plurality of sections marked a, b, c, d, e, f, 9, etc., is generally indicated at It]. A pair of display panels II are mounted respectively on either side of the cabinet l0. Normally these panels lie against the side of the cabinet, but they are positioned to swing forwardly into a plane, flush with the face of the cabinet.

The cabinet I0 comprises a pair of side walls l2l2, a backing l3, a top member 14 ornamented as at l5, and a plurality of shelves l6 slottedly annexed and extending between the sides I2 in horizontal plane. A plurality of ver-- tical spacing members l1, adapted also to strengthen the structure, are disposed at spaced intervals to divide the shelves respectively into compartments of desired size. Racking guides [8 are mounted, as in compartments band c, on the shelf surface corresponding to said compartments, and they are mounted, as in the remainder of the compartments, on the upper face of the bottom shelf and correspondingly on the lower face of the upper shelf defining the particular compartment. The appearance of the cabinet may be greatly improved by a curtain H], which can be lowered for screening the interior when the cabinet is not in use.

The samples of ware intended to be previewed according to the present invention are racked serially in the particular compartments, as disclosed in Figure 1. The function of the guide racks is to facilitate disposition of the samples within the compartments in orderly arrangement and in such manner that each sample may be removed conveniently, without disturbance of the sample adjacent to it. The guide racks may extend substantially from the front face of the cabinet to the backing l3. Upper and lower corresponding rack guides are provided, as in the sections (Z, e, f, and g, to prevent the particular samples stored therein from tilting or canting. It is recommended also that the verical members I! be notched, as at 20, to facilitate removal of the particular samples stored on either side thereof.

In the merchandising of articles such as ornamental colored tile, the tile elements used to make up a given composite sample, for example, the floor tile composite as indicated at 2! in Figure 4, are preferably mounted in their intended geometric relation, upon a backing 22 which is made of fiber board, or some substance of like stiffness. The width of the rack guides 18 is sufficient to accommodate the thickness of the particular sample and the thickness of the backing upon which the samples are mounted.

The backing is dimensioned so that, at one side, it projects slightly beyond the edge of the tile mounted thereon in order that the sample may be fitted into the channel slides 24 of the display panels il, in a manner to be subsequently described. The backing is of such a width that the projection will fit in the channel snugly, but will still be readily removable. Floor tile samples, such as 26 and 21, may have a further projection, as indicated at 28, at the side opposite the side engaged in the base channel 25.

The display panels 4 i may be mounted on either side of the cabinet it by hinges 23, or other appropriate means. Channel slides, positioned as indicated at 24, are attached at one edge of the display panels and hold the samples in position after they have been inserted. At the base of the display panels are base channels 25, into which are fitted the tile samples, such as 26 and 21, illustrating representative patterns of floor or wall tile, as the case may be, assembled on single backings.

In mounting the wall tile samples for display in the display panels, the operator builds up the display from the decorative base strip, which is first inserted in the panel. with the backing projection 29 of the sample engaged in the channel slide 25 and the lower edge of the sample resting within the base channel 25. The projecting shelf or angle member 30 constitutes a base or supporting member for the lowermost or bottom wall section 3|. The remaining samples are then serially fitted into the panel in the arrangement desired, each sample resting on the one beneath it with the backing projection of each section fitting into engagement with the channel slide, as is best illustrated in Figure 5. The purpose of the shelf memberv or angle 30 is to enable the operator to remove the base strip and substitute another without removing the entire display. If desired, similar shelf members may be used to support each of the wall sections.

I have found that samples thus secured are maintained in position sufiiciently for display purposes, but still are readily removable.

In the preferred embodiment of my invention, there are no projections, either on the panel surface, itself, or in the side channel, which can interfere with the exercise of great latitude in arrangement of the samples into a conventional wall and floor display which usually consists of a floor pattern, a base strip, two wall sections, a decorative strip, a single wall section and a cap section.

The problem of facilitating the selection and sale of tile to a purchaser involves the problem of assisting in the artistic arrangement of color combinations, since the average purchaser, such as a home owner selecting tile for his intended home, is totally or substantially unskilled in choosing colors which harmonize. Usually, the purchaser has in mind the color which he wishes to predominate in the room, and has relatively little difliculty, therefore, in determining the color of the major tile area. However, in completing the selection and determining the color and design of the floor, the base piece, the ornamental strip and the cap section, genuine difficulty is encountered. Moreover, the salesman assisting in the selection may frequently have had but little more experience than the customer.

The present invention cont mplates the arrangement of the tile in the cabinet It according to a guide, preformulated by, a capable artist according to colors which definitely do harmonize according to accepted color principles. There are a number of these color charts which are commercially available, or if desired, it is possible to prepare a particular one dealing solely with the colors which are customarily used by the particular tile manufacturer.

In using the cabinet, the salesman may commence by selecting from the racks I8 tile sections corresponding in color to the customers choice for the predominating color. By using the color chart the salesman can then fill out the panel with a cap portion, base portion, and decorative strip of colors which harmonize with the color of the main section' All of these are then fitted into the display panels in the manner previously described. Different combinations of base and cap'portions, also harmonious with the main sections, can be tried until the customer has arrived at a selection. When the display is completed the sections may be removed from the display panels and returned to their appropriate places in the storage cabinet. The cabinet is then ready for a second displayv When the cabinet is used in the manner herein described, the prospective purchaser seldom has any difiiculty in arriving at a color selection which is still entirely satisfactory to him after the tile which he has ordered has been laid in place. At the same time the tile dealer has a compact and efiicient storage cabinet for all of the samples which he will ever need.

Another important advantage of the present invention is that it places at the ready command and disposal of the salesman all of the various types of tile which he has available for display purposes. I-Ieretofore, in attempting to display colored tile combinations, it has been necessary for the salesman to have an assistant or runner go to the various bins in the warehouse in which the various pieces of tile were stored, collect the few pieces necessary to make up a small display panel, and bring these pieces back to the salesroom to be assembled and shown to the prospective purchasers.

Obviously the pieces of tile which a runner would collect during the display of tile to a given prospective purchaser would be very large, particularly if the purchaser had difficulty in making up his or her mind as to color and design. During the display period, all of the various shapes and colors of tile which the runners had collected were laid aside in the salesroom after they had been viewed, and the salesroom usually became very disorderly long before the customer was satisfied with a given selection. The confusion of colors in the salesroom tended to make even more diflicult the selection of harmonious color tile combinations. In the present invention, all of the available samples are provided at a central point, but the colors of the samples, which are not in use, are not visible, so that the prospective purchaser is free to concentrate upon the particular combination of tile which is being displayed, and is not confused by a galaxy of color from other tiles around the display room.

It has been found in practice that, by the use of the cabinet, the average customer is able to make a selection in approximately one-half of the time that it formerly took him, and that customers are almost uniformly satisfied with their selection after the job has been completed, whereas heretofore they have, frequently, been, at heart, dissatisfied.

Moreover, the hinged display mounting boards provided at either side of the cabinet may be swung out of View at any time during a given display in order to permit a customer to concentrate his attention upon a display arrangement in position on the other hinged mounting board. For instance, two display assemblies of tile may be viewed at once, for comparison, then one of the display assemblies may be swung out of view for analysis of the color combinations presented in the other display assembly. During such comparisons, it is the practice to lower the shade blank in order to have a smooth and neutral surface between the assemblies. When the display cabinet is not in use, then all of the tile samples are stored in the racks of the cabinet in their proper arrangement, the hinged mounting boards are swung out of sight along the sides of the cabinet, and the cabinet, as a whole, is neat and attractive in appearance. The tile samples are also kept much cleaner and freer from dust than they would be if they were thrown loosely in the contractors storage room. This enables the prospective customer to better appraise the natural hue of the tile, and it greatly facilitates his selection.

In addition, the operation of the cabinet is so simple that it can easily be handled by a stenographer or office attendant when the tile contractor, himself, is not present. Customers can be taught to operate the cabinet, themselves, within a very few minutes.

Having fully described my invention, I desire to be limited only by the following claim:

In a tile display apparatus in combination, a main body section constituting a base structure, wing panels hinged to the respective opposite side edges of said body, adapted to be folded against the side of the body when not in use, and extended parallel with the face thereof when in use, floor panels adjustably attached to the lower edges of the respective wing panels and adapted to be extended forwardly thereof, each of said panels including means for supporting tile sections thereon whereby the wall and floor relationship of tile may be displayed for the purpose of giving the actual effect.

CHARLES H. BURCHENAL.

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