US2785035A

US2785035A - Cabinet frame assembly

Info

Publication number: US2785035A
Application number: US440105A
Authority: US
Inventors: Hammer Samuel
Original assignee: UNITED METAL CABINET CORP
Current assignee: UNITED METAL CABINET Corp
Priority date: 1954-06-29
Filing date: 1954-06-29
Publication date: 1957-03-12
Anticipated expiration: 1974-03-12

Description

March 12, 1957 s. HAMMER CABINET FRAME ASSEMBLY 2 Shecs-Sheet 1 Filed June 29, 195 4 INVEN TOR. s /waa HHMMEI? March 12, 1957 s. HAMMER CABINET FRAME ASSEMBLY 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 29, 1954 CABINET FRAME ASSEMBLY Samuel Hammer, New York, N. Y., assignor to United Metal Cabinet Corporation, Brooklyn, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application June 29, 1954, Serial No. 448,105

3 Claims. (Cl. 312-257) This invention relates to cabinets and more particularly to metal frames for cabinets.

Heretofore difliculty has been experienced in providing metal frames with tight mitered joints and without soldering or welding thereat or use of exposed fastening means such as screws and the like. The present invention contemplates an improved construction to overcome the difiiculty mentioned.

Likewise of general nature, the invention proposes a construction applicable to various sizes of cabinets with minimum tools and parts inventory at the factory.

More specifically, the invention has an objective of providing corner pieces for receiving and retaining the mitered frame sections on the cabinet.

Another object of the invention is to utilize said corner pieces to draw the mitered ends of the frame sections to a closed joint. 1

in conjunction with the foregoing objects, the invention provides a construction wherein the means for securing the frame to the cabinet and for tightening the joint is located out of sight from the front or exposed part of the frame.

Other objects, advantages, and distinguishing characteristics will appear to persons skilled in the art to which the invention appertains as the description proceeds, both by direct reference thereto and by implication from the context.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, in which like numerals of reference indicate similar parts throughout the several views;

Figure 1 is an isometric view of a cabinet to which my invention is applied;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of a flange plate constituting a feature of the invention;

Figure 3 is a perspective view of an end portion of the frame moulding;

Figure 4 is a perspective view of the assembled corner piece constituting a feature of the invention;

Figure 5 is an elevational section of a portion of a frame assembled on a cabinet and looking at the rear of the cabinet and frame;

Figures 6 and 7 are sectional views taken on lines VlVl and VHVH respectively of Fig. 5; and

Figure 8 is a rear elevation of the corner portion of the corner piece of Fig. 4.

In the specific embodiment of the invention illustrated in said drawings, the reference numeral 19 designates a cabinet in general, such, for instance, as a medicine cabinet adapted to be set into a wall and having a peripheral front flange 11 to which the frame of my invention is applied as a part of the factory fabrication of the complete unit. The usual thickness of metal employed in making cabinets of the character indicated is too thin gauge for acceptable or permanent attachment of frames thereto by threaded holes in the metal for screws. It is diflicult to fabricate cabinets and frames with such perfection that screw holes will exactly register and obtain tight joints of front moulding around a cabinet. These objections are overcome in the present invention by welding, as at 12, an L-shaped flange plate 13 in flatwise engagement with the rear face of the cabinet flange 11 at each corner of the cabinet. This flange plate is of heavier gauge metal than said flange and adequately resistive to bending for the purpose for which employed. By virtue of the welded attachment of the flange plate, it becomes and remains a permanent part of the cabinet flange and reenforces the same so that the cabinet flange remains flat and in a plane common with or parallel to the hem of the cabinet. While the vertical inner edge of the L-shaped flange plate is shown in engagement with the side wall of the cabinet, the horizontal edge of said plate is offset from the horizontal wall of the cabinet so as not to interfere with free sliding of the slidable doors 14 with which the cabinet is shown equipped.

The frame of the present invention is applied at the front of said cabinet flange 11 and has a depth so as to also extend rearwardly at the outer periphery of said flange. Said frame is assembled before being applied in place on the cabinet, an essential feature of the invention residing in means for bringing the meeting ends of the. front moulding of the frame into tight or closed engagement at the corners of the cabinet.

In carrying out my invention, the frame conveniently includes front mouldings 15 at the four sides of the cabinet front opening, the ends of said mouldings being cut or mitered at 45 angles. The invention also includes four corner pieces 16 with reaches 17 at right angles to each other permanently held in that relation by a gusset plate 18 spanning the junction of said reaches and welded to both, as at 19. Said gusset plate is shown at the rear faces of reaches 17 so that in ultimate assembly of the frame on the cabinet, the gusset plates will be juxtaposed flatwise against the front face of the cabinet flanges 11,- one at each corner, and overlying the part of said flange that is reenforced by the L-shaped flange plate 13. As the corner pieces 16 are completely covered in the ultimate assembly, there is no necessity for the reaches 17 to abut at their meeting or mitered ends, so I have shown, indulging in some exaggeration over actual practice, a gap 20 between the mitered ends. It may also be here noted that the reaches 17 of the corner pieces 16 are relatively short compared to the lengths of the mouldings and the successive reaches in any one moulding section do not meet each other, but are at substantial distances apart.

The reaches 17 of the corner pieces 16 and the sections of moulding 15 are formed to have slidable inter-engagement, although the surface configurations of the moulding do not have to be in duplication of all of the corresponding portions of the corner pieces. For instance, as shown, the moulding has a front face that bows from edge to edge, whereas the corresponding face of the corner piece reach 17 has a more pronounced bow or bulge 21 medially thereof but with the altitude of that bulge no greater than the altitude of the bow of the moulding.

The edge of the corner piece reach which is toward the cabinet opening in use, and here termed the inner edge, has a marginal dip 22 lengthwise thereof. The corresponding edge of the moulding has a U-shaped bend 23 longitudinally thereof thereby forming a slideway that enables the moulding to be slid onto the dipped marginal edge of the corner piece. The opposite or outer edges of the reach and moulding are arranged to have a longitudinal slidable fit agreeable to the selected contour of the moulding. According to the present showing, the moulding has a side wall 24 extending rearwardly from the front bowed face at the entire longitudinal edge thereof.

The rear edge of the side wall of the moulding bends inwardly substantially at right angles, forming a longitudinal lip 25 thereat. In like manner, the reach 17 has a side wall 26 the rearward edge of which bends inward to form a lip 27. The dimension rearwardly of the side wall 24 of the moulding is enough greater than the corresponding dimension of the'side wall 26 of the corner piece for enabling the moulding to telescope upon the reach of said corner piece. When the cabinet and the frame are applied in position in a room wall, it is the inwardly directed lip 25 of the moulding at the rear edge thereof which lies against the room wall, and it is the depth of the side wall 24 of the moulding which gives the over-all thickness or projection of the moulding outwardly from said room wall.

An essential feature of the present invention is the means by which the miter joints at the corners of the frame moulding are drawn tightly together or closed, and the frame simultaneously secured to the cabinet. In carrying out this feature, a headed screw 28 is secured nonrotatably in the gusset plate 18 at a mid-part thereof and projects from said plate perpendicular thereto, the head of said screw being located at the face of the gusset plate toward and within the bows or bulges 21 of the reaches 17 of the corner pieces 16 and axially intersects a 45 line traversing the gusset plate from the outer to the inner corners thereof, said line being parallel to the mitered ends 29 of the moulding in final assembled condition. Said screw has a length not greater than the depth of the side wall 26 of the corner piece so as not to interfere with the ultimate mounting of the cabinet in its place of use on.a room wall.

' The Lshaped flange plate 13 is provided with a tongue 39 stamped in part from and integral at one end with the said plate. This tongue is directed diagonally inwardly toward the frame and cabinet opening, with its center line at an angle of 45 from the outer corner of the said plate. The tongue has a location such that the screw maybe received in the end of the opening 31 in the plate created by bending the tongue outwardly therefrom, the corresponding end of the tongue engaging the side of the screw nearest thereto.

The sections of the moulding 15 are first assembled uponthe reaches 17 of the corner pieces 16, forming a rectangular frame and with the mitered ends 29 of the moulding sections substantially meeting at the corners. There consequently will be four screws 28 projecting rearwardly within the four corner portions of the frame. The frame is then applied to the peripheral flange 11 of the cabinet 10, the said screws 28 being inserted through the tongue holes 31 in the several L-shaped flange plates 13 and through appropriate openings 32 of larger size than the screws provided at the corresponding location in the cabinet flange 11. Since the tongues 39 slope rearwardly, the screws 28 are readily pushed inwardly past the same notwithstanding engagement of the ends of said tongues with said screws. Nuts 33 are then applied to the screws 28 and rotatively advanced into engagement with said tongues 39, thereby tending to flatten the tongues back toward their respective openings 31. This applies a momentof force longitudinally of the tongue directed toward the outer corner of the flange plate 13 and a counterforce, indicated by "arrow 34 in Fig. 8, tending to move the screw laterally inward toward the inner corner of the frame. Since the flange plate is welded to the cabinet, it cannot move so any movement resulting from the forces mentioned will be movement of the screw. By virtue of the 45 angle of the direction of the force at the corner of the frame, the corner piece to which the force is applied ismoved diagonally and the sections of the moulding on the reaches of the corner piece will be telescoped therewith until the mitered ends 29 of said sections are in tight engagement. The screws, nuts and tongues therefore both closethe corners of the frame and maintain them closed, and also mount the frame upon the cabinet.

I claim:

1. A frame assembly for cabinets, comprising corner pieces, moulding sections telescopically mounted on said corner pieces, tongues fixed on said cabinet diagonally of the corners thereof, and screw means engaged by said tongues applying pressure to said tongues diagonally'of the corner pieces for telescoping the moulding sections into tight engagement one with another.

2. A frame assembly for cabinets having a peripheral flange, flange plates fixed on the back of said flange at the corners of the cabinet, movable corner pieces at the front side of said flange, moulding sections telescopically mounted on said corner pieces, tongues fixed to and sloping rearwardly from said flange plates, and screw means carried by said corner pieces and in engagement with said tongues for applying pressure thereto and both mounting the frame on the cabinet and maintaining tight engage- I References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 739,295 Crane Sept. 22, 1903 1,600,981 Goddard Sept. 28, 1926 2,004,727 Keller June 11, 1935 2,184,783 Tinnerman Dec. 26, 1939 2,373,409 Myer Apr. 10, 1945 2,538,138 v Webster Jan. 6, 1951 2,580,029 Krauss Dec. 25, 1951 2,632,535 Clerk Mar. 24, 1953