US2441678A - Drawer cabinet with ejecting and adjusting means - Google Patents

Description

C. A. TIETJE May 18, 194s.

DRAWER CABINET WITH EJECTING AND ADJUSTING MEANS Fil ed Feb. 8, 1945 :5. Sheets-Sheet 1 INVEN TOR. 6M1 A'A/TO/v 7/5727:

May 18, 1948.

C. A. TIETJE DRAWER CABI NET WITH EJEC'IING AND ADJUSTING MEANS 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 8, 1945 DRAWER CABINET WITH EJECTI-NG AND ADJUSTING MEANS c. A. TIETJE 2,441,678

Filed Feb. 8, 1945 s Sheets-Sheet s I N V EN TOR. 64/?4 rf/vra/v 7/2- 7272 Patented May 18, 1948 DRAWER CABINET WITH EJECTING AND ADJUSTING MEANS Carl Anton Tietje, Montclair, N. J.

Application February 8, 1945, Serial No. 576,738

3 Claims. 1

The invention relates to a drawer cabinet construction.

In drawer cabinets it has heretofore been customary to provide various devices for opening or closing the drawers which usually involve a handie that might have been a member projecting from the front, a pivoted bail or other knoblike projection from the front of the drawer that could be conveniently grasped in thehand of the person desiring to secure access to the drawer.

In the design of furniture and particularly of modern furniture as well as in other instances it may and frequently is desirable in order to maintain the lines of design to avoid the use of knobs, bails or ther handles. In the past it has been necessary to provide some type of device to be grasped but all such devices have affected the general appearance of the cabinet. I

This invention seeks to provide in a drawer cabinet drawers under the control of the operator which may be projected from the cabinet Without the use of any knob or other projection.

The invention seeks to provide further a cabinet construction wherein there may be a plurality of drawers free from any type of handle or knob for withdrawing the drawer.

More particularly, the invention provides in a drawer cabinet having a plurality of drawers a construction whereby the drawers are arranged in pairs so that when one drawer of a pair is moved inwardly another drawer is ejected.

Also provided by the invention are means to realign the drawers after operation to eject a selected drawer.

These and other objects which will be apparent from the sequent description are all embraced within the invention as hereinafter more specifically described and as set forth in the appended claims.

The invention is described with reference to certain preferred embodiments specifically illustrated in the accompanying drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is a view in front elevation with parts broken away showing a drawer cabinet;

Figure 2 is a view in section along the lines 2--2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a view in section of an impositive lock; and,

Figure 4 is a view in section along the lines 4-4 of Figure 1.

Referring to Figure 1 there is'shown a drawer cabinet 2 provided with a conventional top 4 and a plurality of drawers including a pair of drawers li and 8 arranged side by side,anoth'er similarpair'of drawers l0 and I2 which drawers l0 and I2 ar each of substantially half the width of the cabinet. There are also shown two full-length drawers I4 and IS.

The individual drawers have generally conven- 2 tional construction with front walls l8 which as shown in Figure 2 may be aligned with the cabinet front wall 20. Suitable end guides and center guides 22 may be provided as in usual drawer cabinet construction. The cabinet front wall '20 may provide drawer separating strips 24 or the drawers may be so arranged that their respective fronts I8 are adjacent each other or adjacent another drawer.

In accord with this invention means are pro-" vided whereby the drawers are arranged in operating pairs which pair arrangement may be side by side or one above the other. As illustrated, the pairs are adjacent although the invention could be applied to pairing drawers which were not directly adjacent.

Referring to Figure 2 the two full-length drawers I4 and I6 which are shown as near the bottom of the cabinet are each provided with a suitable back wall 26. The rear wall 28 of the cabinet or other member at the rear of the cabinet such as a portion of the frame on which the drawer rests may serve as a mount for a rocker arm 30. The rocker arm 30 is mounted in a bracket member 32 which in turn is mounted as above described at the rear of the cabinet. A spring 34 is also mounted in connection with the bracket member so that normally the rocker arm 30 will be held in what may be termed a neutral position. In this position the ends 36 of the rocker arm 30 will each engage the rear walls 26 of the respective drawers l4 and, I6 when the front walls l8 are aligned with the front wall 20 of the cabinet 2. This is the normal position for the drawers.

When it is desired to withdraw a drawer as, for example, the drawer M, the drawer I6 is pushed into the cabinet to the position shown in dotted lines in Figure 2 with the result that the rear wall 26 of the drawer I6 engages the lower end 36 of the rocker arm 30 pivoting it about its axis 38 and forcing the other end 36 of the rocker arm 30 against the rear wall 26 of the drawer l4 therebyejecting the drawer to the position shown in. dotted lines whereby the front wall it! of the drawer I 4 is ejected beyond the front wall 20 of the cabinet 2. In this position the drawer may be conveniently pulled out to any extent desired byvgrasping a cut-away portion 40 in the lower rear of the front wall I8. The drawer might be grasped from another edge, either a side or top edge of the front wall or the degree of ejection might be such that no special provision would be necessary.

The spring 34 may, if desired, be of such strength that when the operator releases the drawer l6 which has been pushed in; that drawer will be restored to its normal position with its front l8 flush with the front 20 of the cabinet 2 under the action of the spring 34. In any case where the spring 35 is not sufficient to accomplish this, the drawer It would be restored to its proper position upon pushing the drawer it back into the cabinet afterthe articles to be removed or placed in the drawer had been so arranged.

In order to insure accurate aligning of the fronts l8 of the respective drawers with the wall 23 it may be desirable to provide means such. as a latch or an impositive lock 32 illustratediiin greater detail in Figure 3. As therein shown it comprises a ball at in a cylindricalichamber; i6 held against lips 58 by a spring 58. This, portion of the latch may be mounted in the strip "25 or other portion of the front Ell of thercabinet 2. Front I8 of a drawer'may be provided with a amember 52 with a notch M into whichthe ball M'may fall when the front E8 of the drawer and the frontit of thecabinet 2 are in alignment.

In Figure 4 is illustrated a suitable arrangement for a of adjacent half drawers such as the drawers ii and l2. In this case a rocker arm may be conveniently mounted ona longitudinal board 58 adjacent the rear of the cabinet 2 wirestoring spring yet releases the drawer for ,moyementcupon the application of greater force 2. In a cabinet having a wall with drawer openings; repairer-drawers therein, each drawer hav- .ing aifrontmwall, latching means for releasably holding the frontw'all of each drawer in normal by a pivoting bolt or the like 59. The ends 62, g

56 of the rocker armfiii engage the rear walls of drawers it and 12, respectively, and spring 56 engages the rear portion of the rocker arm preferably adjacent the ends. thereof. It will be recognized that instead of a leaf spring there could be provided coil tension or compression springs suitably mounted toaccomplish a similar purpose.

In Figure i there is illustrated the position of the drawers after the operator had pushed drawer l2 into the cabinet to eject drawer ll).

had assumed the position shown in dotted lines but when the operator released the drawer 12,

the action of the spring 56 restoredcthe drawer iii to proper alignment while the drawer it stayed in partially ejected position as shown in dotted lines. 7 V

The rocker arm operating mechanism has been illustrated and described as mounted at. the rear of the drawers but it will be evident thatiother mounting positions with cooperating mechanisms may be substituted. Instead of a rocker arm or 'other'lever systemsthe invention might be carriedv out by-the use of cables or ropes together with suitable weights and pulleys.

UWhilethe invention has been described with respect to certain preferred embodiments, these are toibe considered illustrative of the invention which is particularlyset forth in the appended claims.

1 I claim:

1. In a cabinet having a wall with drawer openings, a pair of drawerstherein, each drawer having a front wall, means mounting said drawers for movement throughsaid openings in said cabinet wall into and out Of said cabinet, releasable latching meanstohold eacndrawer'iront wall :in normal position with respect to saidcabinet wall; said mounting means and releasable latch- $0116 of said pair of drawersis pushed. into. -said *cabinetbeyond the wall thereof the. otherlof said drawers is ejected therefrom, and spring means to restore either, drawerto normal position where his held by said releasablelatl'ching means when In so doing the drawer l8 and rocker arm- 56' position in alignment with the wall of said cabinet, means mounting said drawers for movement through said openings in said cabinet wallinto and out of said cabinet, said mounting means .and latching means permitting movementof each entire drawer into the cabinet beyondlthe wall otthe cabinet, lever meanswithin said cabinet engaging a portion of each of said pair of drawers, said lever means being so arranged that when one of said two drawers is pushed into saidcabinetsbeyond the wall thereof the othermf said drawers is ejected therefrom, andspringsmeans to restore either drawer to normal position Where it is held by said latching means when said drawor :isrel-eased after it has been pushed intosaid cabinet, eachsaid releasable. latching means icomprising cooperating elements which .automatically hold the front wall of a drawer in the :plane of thecabinet wall when thesdrawer is brought to-thls position by the action of the; restoring spring yet releases the drawer for movement upon the application of greater force: to the drawer.

3; In a :cabinet having a-wall with I drawer openings, a pair of drawers therein, each drawer having a front wall, means mounting'said drawers for movement throughsaid openingsin said cabinet wall into and out of said cabinet, releasable latching means tohold saidcdrawers with their front walls'in normal position inialignment with the wall oisaid cabinet, said mounting means and releasable latching means permitting movement of-said drawers intothe cabinet-runtil the drawer front wall is beyond the wallroi the cabinet, means actuated by the movement of one drawer intothe cabinet to eject the other drawer so that its front wall is outsidept-the wall of :the cabinet and spring meansto res-tore said first mentioned drawer to itscnormal position where it isheld by saidreleasable latching :means with its front wall in alignment with the wall of the cabinet, each said releasablelatching means comprisingcooperating-elements which automatically hold thesfront walloi adrawerin :the-plane'of the cabinet wall-whenithe .draweris brought to: this position by the action .of therestoring spring -yet releases the drawer .fonsmovementupon the application of greater force to the drawer.

- CARLA'NTON REFERENCES. .CITED The following references are ofnre'co'rd'inthe file of this patent:

UNITED. STATES PATENTS Number Name Date; 1,018,689 '*'W0ocl Feb." 27,?1-912 1,827,928 Berger Oct. 20, 1931

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