US2583931A - Collapsible cabinet - Google Patents

Description

L. CUMMINGS COLLAPSIBLE CABINET Jan. 29, 1952 2 SHEETS-SHEET l Filed May 4. 1949 '3% KG-2L ATT NEY L. CUMMINGS COLLAPSIBLE CABINET Jan. 29, 1952 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 Filed May 4, 1949 INVENTR 0a/S WMM/NGS ATTONEY 47 47; mITHII Patented Jan. 29, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 1 Claim.

This invention relates to a collapsible cabinet.

One of the principal objects of this invention is the provision of a collapsible or foldable cabinet which may be prefabricated in all of its parts, assembled at the factory, folded for shipment from the factory to the distributor and from the distributor to the consumer, and unfolded and set up by the consumer either at his home or at his place of business or at any other appropriate location, Without the aid of tools or fastening members of any kind. Shipping costs of conventional cabinets are completely out of proportion to their selling price. Shipping costs are particularly too high insofar as mail order houses are concerned, since their business requires individual shipments of a single cabinet to a given customer or, at best, a very small quantity of cabinets to a given customer.

The collapsible or foldable cabinet of the present invention comprises, essentially, a plurality of y parts which are -hingedly connected to each other and means to hold said hingedly connected parts in predetermined relationship. More specifically, the collapsible or foldable cabinet herein `described and claimed comprises a plurality of hingedly connected walls and doors and cover, shelf, and floor members to hold the walls in predetermined relationship. When the cabinet of the present invention is folded flat for packing and shipping purposes, it occupies a shipping space which is only a small fraction of the shipping space which conventional cabinets of the same size occupy. Shipping cost-s are correspondingly reduced. When the cabinet of the present invention arrives at its destination, that is at the home or place of business of the consumer, it may be unfolded and set up by the consumer without any trouble whatsoever, without an;I great skill and without the use of tools or fastening elements of any nature; When the cabinet is fully set up for use, it looks like any conventional cabinet of the same general type and it may be used in precisely the same manner conventional cabinets are used. Should it be desired to move the cabinet from one place to another after it has been fully set up, it may be disassembled in the sense of removing its cover. shelf and floor members and itmay then be folded to collapsed condition. The work of taking the cabinet apart and. to fold it is no more complicated than to unfold it and to set it up.

Another principal object of this invention is the provision of a foldable or `collapsible cabinet of the character described which is of exceeding- 1y simple and inexpensive construction and which may be fabricatedin anyxmachine shop having stamping and forming facilities. All of the major parts of this cabinet, that is the side and back walls, th-e door or doors, the top cover, shelf and floor members, are stamped out of sheet metal and their respective edges are formed or bent in appropriate fashion. Metal rods constitute the hinge pins or pintles by means of which the several walls and door or doors are hingedly connected to each other. It is not necessary to do anything to thesev rods but to cut them to proper length and to insert them into the hinge portions of the walls and door or doors. Their respective ends need not be disturbed in any way to prevent them from falling out of the hinge portions .in which they are mounted, since they rest on the floor when the cabinet is set up for use; No machining, bolting, riveting, welding or spot welding is required to fasten the several parts together. Unskilled labor may be `employed to assemble the several parts of the cabinet, since assembling means only the insertion of the rods into the hinge portions of the walls and door or doors.

A preferred form of this invention is shown by way of illustration in the accompanying drawing in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a two-door cabinet-made in accordance with the present invention and fully assembled and set up, ready for use;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section looking downwardly upon said cabinet and showing how the shelf and floor members are connected to the back and side walls of the cabinet;

Fig. 3 is a `vertical section on the line 3---3` of Fig. 2, showing how the cover, shelf and floor members are mounted in the cabinet;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the top cover of the cabinet, looking upwardly at it;

Fig. 5 is a similar perspective view of the shelf of said cabinet, also looking upwardly at the shelf;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the bottom or floor member of the cabinet looking downwardly upon it;

Fig. 'l `is a plan view showing how the three walls and two doors of said cabinet appear when they are spread out nat on a common planeyand Fig. 8 is an enlarged fragmentary view in perspective of a portion of one of the side walls of the cabinet, showing a lug struck out therefrom to receive'the shelf.

Cabinet I0, shown in Fig. l, is illustrative of the many types of cabinet which may be con '42 and a bottom floor member 43.

three members whichV hold the cabinet in theA structed in accordance with the principles of the present invention. Cabinet Ill is a typical clothes cabinet with a shelf for hats, gloves, mufliers and the like. It is a two-door cabinet and again the use of two doors instead of only one is illustrativeonly of the invention.

Cabinet l has a back wall II, a pair of side walls I2 and I3 respectively, and a pair of doors I l and I5 respectively. Considering back wall I I first, it will be seen that it comprises a rectangular sheet of metal of the type generally used in metal cabinet construction, the lower edge ofV said metal sheet being bent inwardly and upwardly to provide an upwardly extending Vflange i'I which is spaced from the main body of the metal sheet. The two side edges of said metal sheet are provided with a plurality of spaced projections which are curled or rolled to form hinge portions I8 and I9 respectively. The top edge is left untouched. Side walls I2 and I3 are folded over upon themselves along their respective top edges for added strength and rigidity. Their bottom edges are bent inwardly and then upwardly to form flanges 20 and 2I respectively, Which project upwardly-in spaced relation to the main body of the wall. Along their respective side edges, side walls I2 and I3 are provided with outwardly projecting portions which are curled or rolled to form hinge portions 23 and 24 respectively and 25 and 26 respectively. Doors I4 and I5 are also provided with hinge portions 28 and 29 respectively along one of their side edges. Door I is provided with a anged top edge 30, a iianged bottom edge 3l and a flanged leading edge 32. Similarlyv door I 4 is provided with a hanged top edge 33, a flanged bottom edge 34, and a flanged leading edge 35. TheY flanges on these doors contribute measurably to their strength and rigidity and they provide nicely finished edges which enhance the appearance of the cabinet and prevent injury to the hands. See Figs. l and 2. Hinged members 26 and 29 complement each other, as do hinge members I9 and 25, hinge members I8 and 24, and hinge members 23 and 28.V

Walls II, I2 and I3, and doors I4 and I5, may be hingedly connected to each other by simply slipping rods 43 into their respective hinged portions last above described. Piano type hinges are thereby provided between doors I 4 and I5 andV side walls I2 and i3 and also between said side walls and back wall I I. It is clear `from the foregoing that the several walls and their two doors may Vbe laid out at in a common plane, as shown in Fig. 7 or they may be folded flat upon themselves, or they may be set up in the manner 'shown in Fig. 1.

Cabinet I0 also includes a top cover 4I, a shelf It-is these assembled or set-up condition shown in Fig. l.

Cover 4I comprises a'rectangular piece of sheet metal whose back edge is turned downwardly to `form a angey 45. The two side edges of said sheet metal are also turned downwardly and then folded upwardly to form double flanges 43 and i1 respectively. The front edge is also bent downwardly and then stepped or offset inwardly and then again bent downwardly to form a stepped flange d8. AWhen the side walls of the cabinet are swung'toward each other to their respective positions shown in Fig. l, normal to the back wall, cover 4l may be laid upon said back and side walls in the manner shown in Figs. 1 and 3. lDownwardly extending flanges 45, 46 and 41 project downwardly on the outside of walls II, I2 and I3 respectively and thereby prevent the walls from swinging outwardly and away from each other. Thus far there is nothing to prevent the side Walls from swinging inwardly toward each other. It is the shelf and the floor member which prevent such inward movement and they, of course, also assist in preventing the side walls from swinging outwardlyfromtheir respective positions as shown in Fig. 1. l

S-helf 42 has four downwardly extending flanges V50, 5I 52 and 53 respectively along its front, back and side edges. It will be noted in Figs. l, 2, 3, 7 and 8 that side walls I2 and I3 are provided with a plurality of upwardly projecting lugs Gil which are struck out of the sheet metal of which said side walls are made. These lugs 60 are arranged in rows of three, one row on each of said side walls, both rows being disposed at a common height above the floor and in predetermined spaced relationship to the cover 4I. Shelf d2 may be placed upon said lugs 63 with its side flanges 52 and 53 respectively engaging said lugs and occupying the space between said lugs and said walls I2 and I3 respectively. When the anges of shelf 42 are thus in engagement with the lugs of the side walls, it will be apparent that i the shelf will fix the position of said side walls relative to each other and that it will prevent relative movement between them and between said side walls andthe back wall.

Floor member 43 is also provided with downwardly extending flanges on all four side edges, to wit, back flange 52, side flanges 63 and B4 respectively and front flange S5. Front ange 65 is of a stepped nature, consisting of a downwardly extending portion, an outwardly bent horizontal portion, and a second downwardly extending portion which may be turned up along its lower edge for added rigidity. It will be recalled that the back and side walls are all provided with upwardly turned fianges I'I, ZIB and 2| respectively along their lower edges and that said flanges are spaced from the main body of said walls. It will become apparent therefore that downwardly extending anges 62, 33 and 64 of the floor member may be inserted into the spaces between said flanges Il, 2@ and 2l and their respective walls. This interlocking engagement of the flanges of the floor member with the anges of the walls is best shown in Fig. 3. It will be clearly understood therefore that when the flanges of the floor member are in engagement with the flanges of the walls, relative movement f between the two side walls and between said'side walls andthe back wall is thereby prevented.

The reason for the steps in front flanges 48 and 65 of the cover and floor members respectively, is4 best shown in Fig. 3. It will there clearly be seen that these stepped flangesaccommodate the doors which nestle into their oiT-.

so that although no screws, bolts, welds or other fastening means are used, the entire structure is strong and rigid in all of its parts, These observations of course do not apply to such accessories and hardware as the Vclothes hanging rod 'le and the door handles 'H and 'l2 respectively. Suitable bolts or rivets 'I5 are used to amx the clothes hanging rod to the bottom of shelf 42 and suitable screws 16 or other fastening members are used to affix said door handles to the doors. The doors may also be provided with snap catches or latches TI and 18 respectively or wi-th any other suitable latching or locking means.

The foregoing is descriptive of a preferred form of this invention and it will be clearly yun derstood that this form may be modied in many ways and other forms may be had within the broad scope of the invention. By way of illustration, the upwardly turned iiange on the bottom of the back wall may be eliminated, and reliance placed solely on the upwardly turned iianges of the two side walls. Lugs similar to those shown on the side walls may also be formed at the top of the back wall to engage the downwardly extending flange formed along the baci: edge of the cover member and thereby to prevent forward or backward shifting of the cover member. Other variations are lpossible within the broad scope of the present invention and especially should it be understood that the invention is not limited to the specific type ci cabinet shown in the drawing.

The invention is deiined in the following claim:

A collapsible cabinet comprising a unitary, sheet metal back wall, a unitary, sheet metal side wall on one side of said back wall, a unitary, sheet metal side wall on the opposite side of said back wall, and at least one unitary, sheet metal door, rolled hinge portions being formed along one vertical edge of the rst mentioned side wall, integrally therewith, complementary rolled hinge portions being formed along the adjacent vertical edge of the .back wall, integrally therewith, a pintle interengaging said hinge portions to join the iirst mentioned side wall to the back wall, rolled hinge portions being formed along the opposite vertical edge of the back wall, integrally therewith, complementary rolled hinge portions being formed along the adjacent vertical edge of the second mentioned side wall, integrally therewith, a second pintle interengaging the last mentioned hinge portions and the hinge portions on said opposite vertical edge of the back wall to join said second mentioned side wall to the back wall, rolled hinge Iportions being formedalong the opposite vertical edge of the second mentioned side wall, integrally therewith, complementary rolled hinge portions being formed along the adjacent vertical edge of the door, integrally therewith and a third pitle interengaging the hinge portions on the door and the hinge portions on said opposite vertical edge of the second mentioned side wall to join said door to said second mentioned side wall, inwardly and upwardly extending lugs being formed on the side walls a short distance below their respective top edges, inwardly and upwardly extending flanges being formed on said side walls along their respective bottom edges, a cover member which rests upon said back and side walls and has downwardly extending fianges which engage the outer surfaces of said back and side walls to prevent the side walls from swinging outwardly and away from each other on the iirst two mentioned pintles, a shelf which is disposed between said side walls and which rests upon their .respective lugs, said shelf having downwardly extending flanges which project into the spaces between said lugs and the walls to which they are respectively connected, thereby preventing the side walls from swinging either inwardly toward each other or outwardly away from each other on said first and second mentioned pintles, and a floor member which is disposed between said side walls and which rests upon their respective upwardly turned flanges, said oor member having downwardly extending flanges which project into the spaces between said upwardly extending flanges and the walls to which they are respectively connected, thereby preventing said side walls from swinging either inwardly toward each other or outwardly away from each other on said iirst and second mentioned pintles.

LOUIS CUMMINGS.

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

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 963,853 Benson July 12, 1910 1,121,816 Ellis Dec. 22, 1914 1,141,991 Terrell June 8, 1915 1,394,338 Nyman et al. Oct.` 18, 1921 1,520,420 Kideney Dec. 23, 1924 1,735,375 Card et al. Nov. 12, 1929 1,822,448 Morin Sept. 8, 1931 2,083,114 Blechman June 8, 1937 2,333,585 Rosenfeld Nov. 2, 1943 2,424,217 Bales July 22, 1947 2,461,219 Lew Feb. 8, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 549,224 France Feb. 5, 1923

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