US2492697A

US2492697A - Accessory drawer

Info

Publication number: US2492697A
Application number: US720889A
Authority: US
Inventors: Walter C Higley
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1947-01-08
Filing date: 1947-01-08
Publication date: 1949-12-27
Anticipated expiration: 1966-12-27

Description

Dec. 27, 1949 w, c, HIGLEY 7 2,492,697

ACCES SORY DRAWER Filed Jan. 8, 1947 Inventor Walter C. Higley A ttorn eys Patented Dec. 27, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ACCESSORY DRAWER Walter C. Higley, Hilledale, Mich.

Application January 9, 1947, Serial No. 720,889

10 Claims. I

This invention relates to accessory drawers adapted to many types of furniture, especially articles of furniture having a drop border, such as desks, utility tables, game and card tables, stands, work benches, shelving and the like, the object thereof being to hold and contain cards, chips, checkers and other game pieces or equipment so that they will be readily accessible and will be securely retained in convenient position for use when needed without getting loose, scattered about or lost.

Another object of the invention is to provide a convenient and simple mounting for an accessory drawer especially designed to be mounted beneath a horizontal support having a ledge or rim for retaining the drawer in closed or retracted position beneath the horizontal supporting surface, where it is precluded from view and closed but adapted to be conveniently pulled out for obtaining access to the contents of the drawer.

Another object of the invention is to provide an accessory drawer which has a two-way movement for opening and closing the same, and so that accidental opening thereof will be avoided, by necessitating a downward movement prior to an outward movement for pulling the drawer open, thereby avoiding the disturbance of the appearance of the article of furniture or rendering the same unsightly when the drawer is in closed position.

Another object of the invention is to provide a.

Other objects and advantages reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the drawer mounted in position and opened;

Figure 2 is an enlarged sectional view taken on the line 22 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a sectional elevation corresponding to Figure 2, but showing the drawer in closed position and precluded from view;

Figure 4 is a vertical transverse sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary perspective view of one end of the drawer showing means to coopcrate with the drawer case for limiting the outward pull of the drawer to open position, and

Figure 6 is a perspective view of the drawer case.

Referring to the drawings in detail, in which like reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, It designates a horizontal supporting surface such as of many types of articles of furniture, game or card tables, desks, utility tables, stands, work benches, shelves and the like, preferably having a drop border, molding or frame ll around the outer edge thereof, to which the top In forming the horizontal supporting surface is secured and suitably reinforced if desired. In the case of game or card tables, the usual foldable legs are designed to fit or fold in rear of the border or molding ll forming a drop ledge beneath the surface or top H) as indicated at [2, if desired.

Adapted to be mounted beneath the surface or top Ill is a drawer comprising a sheet metal or plastic rectangular case 13 relatively elongated with open ends it and narrow sides l5 having longitudinal slots l6 therein opening at the rear end of the case and provided with enlarged portions or upwardly ofi-set angular end portions I! at their forward ends, in spaced relation to the forward open end of the case I3. The drawer I8 is designed to slidably fit in the drawer case I3 and is shown of shallow rectangular tray-like form open at the top so as to partially project into the case and drawn outwardly for use in open position, and to telescope or slide into the case when closed. To facilitate this, the front end l9 of the drawer may be provided with a finger or hand-gripping portion 20 which may be in the form of a strip or bracket piece 2| fastened to the front of the drawer and bent at its finger gripping portion or handle 20 to extend under the bottom of the drawer for convenient grasping, to pull the drawer out.

In order to mount the drawer case in position beneath the supporting surface or top In, a substantially U-shaped spring structure is provided as indicated at 22 made of a spring strand, strip or wire and as shown, comprising elongated U- shaped spring members 23 each formed of a section of spring material or wire provided intermediately of the ends thereof with one or more spring coils 24 with upper and lower spring arms. The lower arms are slidably mounted on or connected to the drawer case l3, and have stops or upwardly bent ends at their forward extremities, as indicated at 25, so that they can be sprung together to pass within the sides l5 of the case II and to spring outwardly through the slots I6 and angular enlarged portions i'l at the forward drawings.

ends thereof, within retaining and guide members 26 formed or secured at the sides I! lengthwise thereof. formed of elongated strips of metal or plastic of outwardly bowed formation and substantially U- shaped or concavo-convex cross section with outturned wings 21 along the opposite edges thereof, suitably secured to the sides I! of the case IS on opposite sides of the slots It to slide over the spring arms at the lower portions of the springs 23 so as to slidably mount the case thereon and support the latter in a normally raised position beneath the supporting surface It and in back of the molding or border ll forming the frame as described. The rearward movement of the case l3 on the lower arms of the springs 23 may be limited by the coils 24 or otherwise, though ordinarily, the case l3 will not have suflicient rearward movement to engage the coils. The forward movement of the case is limited by the bent ends 25 engaging the forward ends of the guides 26 in a manner clearly shown in Figures 1 and 2 of the In this position, it will be noted that the drawer and case are swung downwardly at an acute angle so as to be extended forwardly in open position or drawn out from beneath the border or molding ll forming the frame when it is desired to obtain access to the drawer it which is slid outwardly in its sliding support formed by the case It to obtain access to the equipment or game apparatus contained in the drawer.

In order to anchor the springs in position, the upper arms of the springs 23 may be suitably secured to the horizontal supporting surface III, or to the border or frame Ii forming part thereof and to which the bight or connecting portion of the U-shaped spring structure 22 is anchored as shown. For this purpose, the upper arms are shown connected by a continuation of the spring wire structure, or by means of a metal or plastic sheet bracket 28 which is shown of right angular formation with rearwardly extending upper and downwardly extending forward flanges, the ends of the upper flange being coiled or otherwise suitably anchored to the sides or arms at the top of the springs 23, such as at the forward ends of the arms as indicated at 29. The connecting member or bracket 28 may be suitably secured to the inner surface of the molding or frame ll,

through holes in the depending vertical flange. as indicated at 30, so as to mount the device in position precluded from view by the frame in back of which it is disposed, and with the upper arms of the springs 23 disposed against the horizontal supporting surface or top Ill at the bottom of the latter. Incidentally, the bracket 28 serves as a reinforcement of the connection between the top l and the molding II as will be seen from Figure 2 of the drawings.

In order to limit the movement of the drawer when pulled out, to open position, the back of the drawer It, may be provided with suitable stops or projections 3| extending outwardly from the sides thereon, and formed as reduced portions of a strip 32 suitably secured to the inner end of the drawer, as indicated at 33, or otherwise suitably forrned. These stops are designed to engage the forward ends of the slots it when the drawer is pulled out, in order to limit the forward displacement thereof in the case l3, which also moves outwardly to a lesser degree in pulling the drawer to an open position. This will permit the drawer to be extended forwardly of the adjacentedge of the top Ill and molding H for obtaining convenient access to the equipment in the drawer,

These guides 26 are shown as v such as cards, chips, checkers or other game pieces in convenient position for use. when the drawer is pushed in to closed position, it will move into the case I3 and the latter will be moved rearwardly on the lower arms of the springs 22 to a limited position, when the springs 22 at their lower arms, will automatically raise the case and drawer to the upward position behind the frame or molding II at the border of the horizontal supporting surface or table top l0 so as to be precluded from view beneaththe latter and behind the molding II. In this way, spilling of the contents or accidental opening of the drawer will be prevented. In opening the drawer, the same is first gripped between a thumb and forefinger or otherwise at the finger piece or handle portion 20 and pulled downward and then outward toward the person opening the same, so as to escape and move beneath the ledge formed by the frame, border or molding I I in a forwardly inclined position at the acute angles to the top II to be pulled out to its fullest extent so that the equipment may be removed from the drawer. On the other hand, when the drawer is pushed in to closed position, it will be automatically engaged behind the stop formed by the frame or border II and may be frictionally retained against the same with the finger piece or handle portion 20 hanging below the bottom edge thereof, in convenient position to be grasped for opening or pulling out the drawer. Of course, frictional engagement of the front end of the drawer in back of the drop rim or border i l at the bracket or.attaching plate 28 of the spring structure isnot essential, since the lower arms of the springs exert suificient tension when the drawer is pushed in, to hold the drawer and its,

case firmly to the underside of the table top or supporting surface and likewise, against the bottom of the frame or border II when the drawer is pulled out for obtaining access thereto.

While in the foregoing there has been shown and described the preferred embodiment of this invention it is to be understood that minor changes in the details of. construction, combination and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed.

While the device may be applied to any horizontal supporting surface It with or without a drop ledge, border or molding I I at the edge, such as an article of furniture and the like as enumerated above, in the case of card or game tables, with the collapsible or foldable legs I 2 as seen in Figures 2 and 3, the extended upper front edge of the drawer I8 or strip 2| may engage the back edge or in back of the bracket 28 or coiled portions 29 thereof so that the finger grip portion or handle 20 will not interfere with the movements of the legs l2 in extending or folding the same. In this way, when the table is folded up or resting on the rim II at the accessory drawer side, the back edge of the bracket plate 28 will form a stop to any forward movement of the drawer and case assembly.

What I claim is:

1. An accessory drawer for articles of furniture and the like, comprising a spring structure having arms for attachment to a horizontal supporting surface thereof and lower spring arms extending forwardly in spaced relation beneath the aforesaid arms and normally held upwardly,

a guide member carried by the latter arms, and

a drawer slidable in said guide member and adapted to be normally held upwardly against and slid forwardly to open position.

2. An accessory drawer of the class described, comprising a spring structure having upper arms, means for attaching said arms beneath the bottom of a supporting surface having a rim depending therefrom, lower arms extending forwardly from the rear ends of said first arms and normally sprung upwardly, a case slidable mounted on the lower arms and limited in its forward movement, and a drawer slidable in said case and adapted to be lowered therewith beneath said rim to pull the same outwardly to open position.

3. An accessory drawer of the class described, comprising a spring structure having upper arms,

means for attaching said arms beneath the bottom of a supporting surface having a rim depending therefrom, lower arms extending forwardly from the rear ends of srid first arms and normally sprung upwardly, a case slidably mounted on the lower arms and limited in its forward movement, and a drawer slidable in said case and adapted to be lowered therewith beneath said rim to pull the same outwardly to open position and means to limit the opening movement of the drawer with respect to the case.

4. An accessory drawer for card tables or the like having a top supporting surface and a drop border, a spring structure comprising divergent spring arms consisting of upper arms with coils at their rear ends, means for attaching said upper arms to the back of the border against said top, the lower arms diverging forwardly and normally held upwardly, a case having guide means slidably receiving the lower arms for movement downwardly and forwardly thereon beneath said border, and a drawer slidable in said case and limited in its forward movement therein extended beyond the border when open in a lower inclined position forwardly beneath the border.

5. An accessory drawer comprising a bracket adapted to be anchored to a support, a case, a drawer slidably mounted in said case, at least one spring having a first and second arm projecting therefrom, said first arm being attached to said bracket, a guide attached to said case, said second arm slidably received in said guide, means integral with said second arm and engaging said guide limiting the travel of said case, and said spring normally biasing said bracket and said plate relative to each other.

6. An accessory drawer comprising a bracket adapted to be anchored to a support, a case, a drawer slidably mounted in said case, at least one spring having a first and second arm projecting therefrom, said first arm being attached to said bracket, a guide attached to said case, said second arm slidably received in said guide, means integral with said second arm and engaging said guide limiting the travel of said case, and said spring normally biasing said bracket and said plate relative to each other, said case having sides with slots therein, means on said drawer slidably received in said slots limiting the travel of said drawer relative to said case.

7. An accessory drawer comprising a bracket adapted to be anchored to a support, a case, a drawer slidably mounted in said case, at least one spring having a first and second arm projecting therefrom, said first arm being attached to said bracket, a guide attached to said case, said second arm slidably received in said guide, means integral with said second arm and engaging said guide limiting the travel of said case, and said spring normally biasin said bracket and said plate relative to each other, said case having sides with slots therein, means on said drawer slidably received in said slots limiting the travel of said drawer relative to said case, said case limiting means comprising a bent end on said second arm whereby said drawer may be slid a maximum relative to said case and then the case slid a maximum relative to the second arm.

8. For use in an article of furniture having a relatively stationary element, a bracket mounted in proximity to the element, a spring structure having a first spring arm attached to said bracket, a second spring arm normally substantially parallel to said first spring arm, a case including a bottom and sides, said sides having slots therein, guides attached to said sides and having said second arm slidably received under one of said guides, means associated with said second arm engaging said guide limiting the travel of said case, a drawer having protuberances thereon slidably received in said slots.

9. For use in an article of furniture having a relatively stationary element, a bracket mounted in proximity to the element, a spring structure having a first spring arm attached to said bracket, a second spring arm normally substantially parallel to said first spring arm, a case including a bottom and sides, said sides having slots therein, guides attached to said sides and having said second arm slidably received under one of said guides, means associated with said second arm engaging said guide limiting the travel of said case, a drawer having protuberances thereon slidably received in said slots, said case adapted to engage the element to retain the case in a predetermined position, and a finger grip at the lower front edge of said drawer.

10. For use with an article of furniture including a relatively stationary element, a bracket mounted in proximity to the element, a spring structure including a first coil having a first arm and a second arm projecting therefrom, a second coil having a third arm and a fourth arm projecting therefrom, said first and third arms being rigidly attached to said bracket, a case having a top, bottom and side walls, said side walls having longitudinal slots therein, said second and fourth arms resting on the exterior surface ofby limiting the travel of said drawer relative to said case, whereby upon reaching the travel limit of said drawer sliding movement thereof is imparted to said base.

. WALTER C. HIGLEY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent: I

UNITED STATES PATENTS Waugh June 1, 1937