US2785939A - Drawer guide - Google Patents

Description

March 19, 1957 F. HILLSON DRAWER GUIDE Filed March 25. 1955 HVl E/VTOR FRANK HILL SON flu. w. (444 A TTORNEV DRAWER GUIDE Frank Hillson, Irvington, N. L, assignor to Hardware Designers, Inc., Irvington, N. 1., a corporation of New Jersey Application March 23, 1955, Serial No. 496,269

6 Claims. (Cl. 312347) This invention relates to drawer guides for furniture and more particularly to adjustable drawer guides of the type having no moving parts.

In the art of furniture construction it is an obvious maxim that a drawer should be fitted inits place so that it can slide easily Without binding or wobbling. Thus, it is highly important that a drawer be made to slide in and out of its frame freely and in a straight line.

As a result of these requirements, a number of expedients have been developed in the prior art which serve as guides to maintain this desired alignment. One typical device of this type consists of a pair of wood strips which are fastened on the frame structure to form a channel and are in sliding contact with a guide rail, comprising a third Wood strip, fastened on the bottom of the drawer and positioned between the aforementioned pair of wood strips. This arrangement is not a highly satisfactory one in that there are many unnecessarypoints of frictional contact between the guide rail strip and the frame channel strips which give rise to sticking and thus the requirement of considerable effort in opening and closing the drawer. This problem of sticking is aggravated by the known tendency of wood to swell or warp under certain atmospheric conditions. It has been shown that efforts to anticipate this condition by spacing the channel strips further apart frequently only lead to objectionable Wobbling of the drawer.

Another approach to this problem has 7 been made through the use of roller bearings which are attached to the drawer bottomand make rolling contact with the guide rail attached to the frame. These frequently have the disadvantage of extremely noisy operation, such as squealing, and of developing flat spots on the roller and causing bumpy operation. I

A further disadvantage of such roller bearings is that, in general, they are adaptable only for guide rails of given width and thus must be manufactured in a large variety of sizes to accommodate the furniture industry.

Therefore, it is an object of this invention to provide an improved drawer guide which permits noiseless, nonsticking, and straight line drawer operation.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a drawer guide which is of integral construction and thus is easy and inexpensive to manufacture.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide a drawer guide which is adjustable to guide rails of different widths.

These and other objects are provided in a specific illustrative embodiment of the invention in which the drawer guide comprises substantially a fl-shaped member. The guide advantageously may either be fastened on the bottom of the drawer to straddle a guide rail attached to the frame, or, vice versa, the guide may be fastened to the frame to accommodate a guide rail attached to the drawer.

The drawer guide includes a base member having a plu rality of openings located at each end and a pair of side flanges located therebetween. The flanges are curved outwardly, that is, they are concave looking towards the States Patent middle of the guide from each end, and serve to straddle the guide rail. By virtue of the curvature of the flanges and the plurality of openings at each end of the guide, the guide may be fastened in a number of angular positions relative to the guide rail to properly fit a large variety of guide rails of ditferent widths.

Advantageously, the novel drawer guide may be constructed of nylon or some like material to give smooth, quiet, and effortless operation, which is completely unaffected by changes in humidity or temperature.

It is a feature of this invention that a drawer guide be adjustable to guide rails of different sizes. More specifically, it is a feature of this invention that a drawer guide comprise a pair of curved flanges and a plurality of openings at each end for enabling adjustable operation with guide rails of dilferent widths.

It is a further feature of this invention that an adjustable drawer guide be made of nylon to give smooth and noiseless slide action and be free of distortion from changes in atmospheric conditions.

These and other desirable features of this invention may be completely understood from the following detailed description, together with the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a view of an illustrative embodiment of a drawer frame structure which advantageously may be used with the invention;

Fig. 2 is a detailed enlarged view of one specific illustrative embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 3 is a series of sketches showing how the invention may be used to accommodate guide rails of different widths; and

Figs. 4, 5 and 6 depict several illustrative slide devices which may be employed with the invention.

Referring now to the drawing, Fig. 1 depicts a cabinet or frame structure which comprises a pair of horizontal members 1 and 2 positioned between a pair of vertical members 3 and 4 so as to form an opening for the accommodation of a sliding drawe'r 6. A lower guide rail 7, which advantageously is constructed of wood, is fastened perpendicular to the inner surface of the lower horizontal member 2 and extends inwardly for a distance which generally is equal to the depth of the drawer. Also extending inwardly, but above the opening, is an upper guide rail 8 which is attached at right angles to the inner face of the upper horizontal member 1. It is the usual practice to make both guide rails 7 and 8 of the same dimensions and to have them fastened to the frame in vertical alignment. A sliding drawer 6 has a pair of opposite side members 9 and 10, such side members having bottom edges 15 and 16, respectively, an inner end member 11, such end member having an upper edge 12 and a lower edge 13, a bottom member 14, and an outer end member 17, such outer end member normally having a pull membet on the outer face thereof to enable the drawer 6 to be pulled in and out of the above-described opening. It can be seen from Fig. 1 that the slide drawer 6 has four main areas of frictional contact with a frame structure; namely, between the drawer bottom member 14 and the lower guide rail 7, between the upper edge 12 of the inner end member 11 and the upper guide rail 8, between the bottom edge 15 and the outside of the side member 9 and the horizontal member 2 and vertical member 4, respectively, and between the bottom edge 16 and outside of the side member 10 and the horizontal member 2 and vertical member 3, respectively.

In accordance with an aspect of this invention, slide means are positioned in the aforementioned main areas of frictional contact to provide noiseless and relatively friction-free operation, each slide means being of integral construction and substantially free of distortion due to changes in atmospheric conditions. One of such slide means, the drawer guide 20, is fastened to the drawer bottom member 14, advantageously beneath the lower edge 13 of the inner end member 11, to enable smooth and effortless drawer operation in addition to guiding the drawer in a straight line in and out movement.

As clearly shown by the enlarged view in Fig. 2 of the drawing, drawer guide 20 comprises a base member 24, such base member having a curved upper surface, and a pair of curved flanges 18 and 19 spaced from each other and positioned in right angle relationship to the base member 24. Flanges 18 and 19 are concave with respect to the outer ends of the guide and thus are most narrowly separatedat their centers and most widely separated at their ends. Base member 24 is shown as having a plurality of openings at each end thereof for enabling the guide to be fastened to the drawer bottom member 14 in any desired one of a number of angular positions relative to the axis of the guide rail 7.

In accordance with an aspect of this invention, these openings in conjunction with the curved flanges 18 and 19 permit the use of a single drawer guide with a large number of guide rails of different widths, such as might be used in the art. a

This is more clearly shown by the series of sketches comprising Fig. 3 of the drawing. Fig. 3a shows the drawer guide 20 as it would be used with a relatively narrow guide rail 26. The guide 2% is fastened to the drawer bottom member 14 at an angle such that the flanges define a relatively narrow opening in the direction of the drawer movement. This arrangement limits the drawer movement to straight line in and out operation, and because the guide is adjustable to the rail wid h, eliminates the wobbling action frequently caused by the poor fit which results from the use of the no-nadjustable guide devices of the prior art. Similarly, Fig. 3!) depicts the use of the instant novel drawer guide with guide rails of moderate width. Here it can be seen that the angular position of the guide 2%) relative to the guide rail 27 can be made smaller than in the case of Fig. 3a to obtain the same advantageous results. Fig. 3c shows drawer guide 26 in position for operation with a guide rail 28 of relatively large width. It should be noted that although the novel drawer guide is adjustable to guide rails of'a large variety of widths, the adjustment is a relatively simple one which can be made with a minimum of effort.

Adva'ntag'eously, the drawer guide 20 is of onepiece construction. This not only gives rise to low cost and ease of manufacture but, in addition, provides extra durability and freedom from the manufacturing and operating difficulties normally associated with multiple part devices. In accordance with an aspect of this invention, the drawer guide is made of nylon or some like material which is readily adaptable to one piece construction and which is relatively free from distortion due to changes in atmospheric conditions. In accordance with a still further aspect of the invention, all of the surfaces of the guide which contact the guide rail are curved to minimize the area of contact and thereby reduce the resultant friction.

Figs. 4, and 6 depict several preferred embodiments of slide bearings which advantageously may be used at the other main areas of friction contact described above. As in the case of the drawer guide 2!), these slide bearings preferably are of one piece nylon construction. Fig. 4 shows a slide bearing 21 which comprises a side member 34, the side member having a pair of openings 29 therein, and a top member 35 positioned at right angles to the side member 34 Advantageously, slide bearing 21 is fastened, by means of nails or the like, through openlugs 29, to the inner end member 11 so that the top member 35 is positioned on the upper edge 12 of end member 11, as shown in Fig. 1. Top member 35 thus makes sliding contact with the upper guide rail 8, and to make the required pulling eflort as small as possible the upper surface of slide bearing 35 is curved to reduce the area of contact to a minimum.

Fig. 5 depicts a slide bearing 22 adapted for use at the lower left corner of the frame opening as shown in Fig. 1. This bearing comprises a lower vertical member 31, such member having a circular opening 32 and a slotted opening 33, a center horizontal member 36, such member being positioned at right angles to the lower vertical member 31 and having a curved upper surface, and an upper vertical member 30, such member being positioned at right angles \to the center member 36 and having an inner curved surface. Advantageously, the slide bearing 22 is fastened so that the lower vertical member 31 is positioned against the side of the lower horizontal frame member 2, the center horizontal member 36 rests on the top of lower horizontal frame member 2, and the upper vertical member 30 is positioned against the vertical frame member 3. In this position, it can be seen that hearing 22 makes sliding contact on two surfaces thereof with the bottom edge and outside surface of the drawer side member 10. As in the above-discussed devices, sliding friction is minimized due to the curvature of the contact surfaces. A slotted opening 33 is provided in slide bearing 22 to permit adjustment of the bearing relative to the drawer 6.

Fig. 6 depicts a slide bearing 23 which is adapted for use at the lower right hand corner of the frame opening as shown in Fig. 1-. Slide bearing 23 is similar in construction to slide bearing 22 with the exception that the lower vertical member 31, positioned at right angles to the center horizontal member 37, is connected at a side of the center member opposite that shown for slide bearing 22. As in slide bearing 22 the lower vertical member 31 includes a rounded opening 32 and a slotted opening 33 for permitting adjustable attachment to the frame structure. Similarly, the outer horizontal member 37 and upper vertical member 3%) have their contact surfaces curved to reduce sliding'friction to a minimum.

It is to be understood that the above-described arrangements are merely illustrative of the application of the principles of the invention. Numerous other arrang'ements may be devised by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a fixture having a drawer opening, a guide rail extending inwardly from said opening, and a drawer adapted to slide through said opening and adjacent said guide rail, adjustable guide means for causig said drawer to slide through said opening in a straight line comprising a base member, means located at each end of said base member for permitting said guide means to be fastened to said drawer, and a pair of flanges positioned between the ends of said base member and attached at right angles thereto for straddling said guide rail, said flanges being integrally constructed with said base member and being curved concavely with respect to the ends thereof for enabling said guide means to be adjustably mounted to fit guide, rails of different widths.

2. In a fixture having a guide rail and sliding drawer means adapted for movement adjacent to said guide rail, adjustable guide means connected to said drawer for guiding the drawer in a direction parallel to said guide rail comprising a base member and a pair of curved flanges positioned substantially perpendicular to said base member, the spacing of said flanges with respect to each other being narrowest at their. centers and widest at their ends, said spacing being such as to permit a number of guide rails of different widths to be a'djustably straddled by said guide means.

3. An adjustable drawer guide adapted to straddle a guide rail for enabling straight line drawer movement comprising a base member and a pair of flanges attached to said base member and substantially perpendicular thereto, said flanges being curved concavely with respect to the outer ends of the base member for enabling the drawer guide to be adjustably adaptable to guide rails of difierent widths.

4. An adjustable drawer guide in accordance with claim 3 wherein said base member and said flanges are constructed of nylon.

5. An adjustable drawer guide in accordance with claim 3 wherein the surface of said base member which contacts said guide rail is curved to minimize the area of contact and thereby reduce the sliding friction arising 10 from said contact.

6. An adjustable drawer guide in accordance with claim 3 wherein said base member includes a plurality of openings at each end thereof for enabling said drawer guide to be adjustably adapted to said guide rails of dilferent Wid ths.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNlTED STATES PATENTS 1,227,001 Randall May 22, 1917 1,866,853 Kennedy July 12, 1932 2,202,209 Kennedy May 28, 1940 2,254,132 Appleyard Aug. 26, 1941 2,606,091 Buchy et a1. Aug. 5, 1952

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