WO2000027250A1

WO2000027250A1 - Shelving systems and shelving assemblies

Info

Publication number: WO2000027250A1
Application number: PCT/GB1999/003725
Authority: WO
Inventors: Carlo De Gruttis
Original assignee: Carlo De Gruttis
Priority date: 1998-11-10
Filing date: 1999-11-09
Publication date: 2000-05-18
Also published as: GB2343613A; GB9901169D0; GB2343613B; GB2343613A9

Abstract

A shelving system comprises a wall bar (12) provided with a shelf support formed by a slider (14) and a support rod (16) with a threaded end portion (58). The slider (14) is slidably moveable up and down the wall bar (12) and is lockable to the wall bar (12) by screwing the support rod (16) through the slider (14) into contact with the wall bar (12). The shelving system may be used to support a shelf (10) provided with a bore (70) - the support rod (16) being inserted into the bore (70) to support the shelf (10).

Description

SHRTNTNG SYSTEMS AND SHELVING ASSF.MBT.TF.S

The invention relates to shelving systems and shelving assemblies.

A known shelving system comprises a shelf support in the form of a bracket that is

mounted on a wall to support a shelf. Once the bracket is mounted on a wall, the system

does not readily allow adjustment of the height of the shelf.

According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a shelving system

comprising a wall mountable member and a shelf support slidably mounted on the wall

mountable member and being lockable relative to the wall mountable member for

positioning a shelf supported by the shelf support relative to the wall mountable member.

This arrangement allows positioning of a shelf relative to the wall mountable member at

a number of positions along the wall mountable member after the member has been

mounted on a wall.

For situations in which adjustment of the height of the shelf is of less importance, there

is provided, in accordance with a second aspect of the invention, a shelving system

comprising a member for mounting on a wall and having a projection, and a shelf member

having a bore, the projection being receivable in the bore to mount the shelf member

when the wall mountable member is mounted on a wall. The following is a more detailed description of embodiments of the invention, by way of

example, reference being made to the appended schematic drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of part of a first shelving assembly;

Figure 2 shows, partially in cross-section, part of a shelving system of the shelving

assembly of Figure 1 ;

Figure 3 shows, partially in cross-section, parts of a second shelving assembly suitable

for mounting in a corner of a room;

Figure 4 is a perspective view showing a block suitable for use with the shelving

assemblies of Figures 1 and 2 and Figure 3;

Figure 5 is an elevation of an alternative wall bar for use with the shelving assemblies of

Figures 1 and 2 and Figure 3;

Figure 6 is a perspective view of part of a third shelving assembly;

Figure 7 shows, partially in cross-section, part of a fourth shelving assembly;

Figure 8 is an elevation showing parts of the shelving assembly of Figure 7; and Figure 9 shows, partially in cross-section, a shelving system of a fifth shelving assembly.

The first shelving assembly (parts of which are shown in Figures 1 and 2) comprises a

shelf 10 and two shelving systems. Each shelving system comprises a wall bar 12 and a

shelf support, which in turn comprises a slider 14 and a support rod 16. Each component

(wall bar 12, slider 14, support rod 16) of each shelving system is identical to and given

the same reference number as the corresponding component 12,14,16 of the other

shelving system. Only one of each of the components 12,14,16 is described in detail

below.

Each wall bar 12 is an aluminium extrusion and one of the wall bars 12 is shown in cross-

section in Figure 2. As shown in this Figure, the wall bar 12 comprises two U-sectioned

portions 18a, 18b that are spaced from one another with their open sides facing each other

so that respective first arms 20a,20b of the U-sectioned portions 18 lie in a first common

plane and respective second arms 22a,22b lie in a second common plane.

The two U-sectioned portions 18a, 18b are connected by a connecting portion 24. The

connecting portion 24 consists of a first, relatively short (in cross-section) wall 26 that

extends from the end of one of the first arms 20a, normally to the first arm 20a and

outwardly from the corresponding U-sectioned portion 18a, to a second, relatively longer

(in cross-section) wall 28, that extends parallel to the first arms 20a,20b to a third, relatively short (in cross-section) arm 30 that extends inwardly, normally to the first arms

20a,20b, to the end of the other one of the first arms 20b.

There is a gap 36 between the two second arms 22a,22b.

Hence, the two U-sectioned portions 18a, 18b define respective, parallel, mutually facing

channels 38a,38b. The connecting portion 24 defines a shallow channel 40 facing the gap

36.

A first inclined wall 32 extends from an exterior surface of the wall bar 12 outwardly

from the junction of one of the first arms 20a and the base of the corresponding U-

sectioned portion 18a at an angle of 45° to the first arm 20a. A similar second inclined

wall 34 extends outwardly from the junction between the other first arm 20b and the base

of the corresponding U-sectioned portion 18b and at an angle of 45° to the first arm 20b.

A plurality of holes (not shown), spaced from one another along the wall bar 12, extend

through the second wall 28 of the connecting portion 24.

One of the two sliders 14 is shown in Figures 1 and 2. As shown in these Figures, the

slider 14 comprises a moulded plastics body 42 having opposed front and rear surfaces

44,46 connected by two side edges 48 and two end edges 50. An annular flange 52

extends outwardly from the front surface 44 and defines a cylindrical aperture 54. The annular flange 52 is provided externally with six axially extending ridges (not shown)

spaced circumferentially from one another.

A hexagonal aperture 55 extends through the moulded plastics body 42 from the rear

surface 46 to the annular flange 52 and is aligned with the cylindrical aperture 54.

The hexagonal aperture 55 receives a tightly fitting hexagonal nut 56 - the threaded

aperture of the nut 56 being in register with the cylindrical aperture 54.

One of the two support rods 16 is shown in Figures 1 and 2. The support rod 16 may be

of steel and is provided with a threaded portion 58 adjacent one end 60. The remainder

of the rod 16, from the threaded portion 58 to the other end 62 is cylindrical and

unthreaded.

The shelf 10 has upper and lower rectangular planar faces 63, 64 connected by two side

edges (one of which is shown in Figure 1 at 65) and by two end edges (not shown).

Two identical bores 70 (one of which is shown in Figure 1) extend into the shelf 10 from

the side edge 65 of the shelf 10 (the side edge that will lie closest to the wall when the

shelving assembly is mounted on a wall). Each bore 70 is located near a respective one

of the end edges of the shelf 10. Each bore 70 has an outer cylindrical surface 72 that extends from the side edge 65 to a

frustro-conical surface 76 which, in turn, leads to an inner cylindrical surface 74 of

smaller diameter than the outer cylindrical surface 72.

For each bore 70, the respective inner and outer cylindrical surfaces 72,74 and the

respective frustro-conical surface 76 are mutually coaxial.

The shelving assembly is mounted on a planar wall of a room (for example the planar

interior wall of a recess in a room) as follows.

The two wall bars 12 are mounted vertically and parallel to one another on the planar wall

by suitable screws or bolts passing through the holes in the second walls 28 of the

connecting portions 24. The ends 78 of the inclined walls 32, 34 lie against the planar

wall of the room so that the wall bars 12 lie square to the planar wall with the gaps 36

outermost from the wall.

The wall bars 12 are spaced horizontally from each other by the same distance as that

separating the two bores 70 of the shelf 10 (when the distance between the wall bars 12

is measured from the centre of one wall bar 12 to the centre of the other wall bar 12 and

the distance between the bores 70 is measured between their respective axes). Next, each slider 14 is slipped into a respective one of the wall bars 12 so that, for each

slider 14, each side edge 48 of the slider 14 is received in a respective one of the channels

38a,38b of the corresponding wall bar 14 and the annular flange 52 projects through the

gap 36 of the corresponding wall bar 12, as shown in Figure 2. In this way, each slider

14 is mounted on its wall bar 12 for sliding movement there along. As the heads of the

screws or bolts lie in the shallow channels 40 they do not impede sliding movement of the

sliders 14 up and down the wall bars 12.

The threaded portion 58 of each support rod 16 is then passed through the cylindrical

aperture 54 of a respective one of the sliders 14 and engaged with the threaded aperture

of the corresponding nut 56.

Each slider 14 (together with its support rod 16) is then slid to the desired height for the

shelf 10 before screwing the associated support rod 16 to drive the end 60 of the support

rod 16 into engagement with the second wall 28 of the connecting portion 24 of the

corresponding wall bar 12. This is done manually but may be done using some

alternative mechanism such as a ratchet mechanism and/or by use of a tool. This braces

the front surface 44 of each slider 14 against the second arms 22a,22b of the

corresponding wall bar 12 and locks the slider 14 to the corresponding wall bar 12 to

hold the slider at the desired height. The bracing of the front surfaces 44 of the sliders 14 against the second arms 22a,22b

holds the support rods 16 at right angles to the wall bars 12.

The shelf 10 is then fitted to the shelving systems by offering the shelf 10 to the support

rods 16 (which are at the same level) so that the support rods 16 engage with the bores 70

and then pushing the shelf towards the wall bars 12 so that the rods 16 enter the bores 70.

During this process, when the ends 62 of the rods 16 reach the frusto-conical surfaces 76,

the frusto-conical surfaces 76 guide the support rods 16 into the portions of the bores 70

defined by the inner cylindrical surfaces 74 - each inner cylindrical surface 74 fitting

closely around the corresponding support rod 16.

Each annular flange 52, which is slightly resilient, fits tightly within the corresponding

bore 70, the ridges (not shown) contacting the outer cylindrical surface 72 of the

corresponding bore 70 to hold the shelf 10 on the shelf support.

Of course, by providing each wall bar 12 with a respective second slider 14 and a

respective second support rod 16, the shelving systems can be used to support a second

shelf 10. In this case, the second sliders 14 and the second support rods 16 are identical

and operate in the same way as the sliders 14 and the support rods 16 described above.

As the rear surface 46 of each slider 14 is spaced from the second wall 28 of the

connecting portion 24 of the corresponding wall bar 12 by the shallow channel 40, the slider 14 can be unlocked for sliding movement along the wall bar 12 without screwing

the end 60 of the associated support rod 16 into the nut 56 - screwing the support bar 16

so that the end 60 lies spaced from the second wall 28 but in the shallow channel 40 is

sufficient to allow the slider 14 to slide. This helps prevent accidental removal of the

support bar 16 from the slider 14.

Parts of a second shelving assembly are shown in Figure 1. Parts of the second shelving

assembly that are identical to parts of the first shelving assembly described above are

given the same reference numerals as the corresponding parts of the first shelving

assembly and are not described in detail below.

The second shelving assembly comprises a single shelving system comprising a wall bar

12, a slider 14 and a support rod 16 (the slider 14 and the support rod 16 being omitted

from Figure 3 for clarity). The second shelving assembly also comprises a shelf 66.

The shelf 66 is intended for mounting in a right angled corner in a room. The shelf 66 has

two side edges 67 that lie at right angles to one another and are connected by a convexly

curved front edge (not shown). The shelf 66 is provided, at the junction between the two

side edges 67, with a U-shaped recess 68 which is dimensioned to receive part of the wall

bar 12 in a close fit, with the second arms 22a,22b of the wall bar 12 lying against the

inner surface 69 of the U-shaped recess 68. A bore (not shown), that is identical to the bore 70 of the shelf 10, extends into the shelf 66, perpendicularly from the inner surface

69.

The shelving system is intended to be fitted in a right-angled corner of a room. The wall

bar 12 is mounted in the corner such that each inclined wall 32,34 lies against a respective

one of the walls of the room meeting at the corner. The wall bar 12 is secured in the

corner by suitable screws or bolts passing through the holes in the second wall 28 of the

connecting portion 24. The slider 14 and the support rod 16 are fitted to the wall bar 12

and positioned at the desired height of the shelf 66, as described above for the first

shelving assembly.

The shelf 66 is then fitted to the shelving system by offering the shelf 66 to the support

rod 16 so that the support rod 16 engages in the bore extending into the shelf 66 from the

inner surface 69. The shelf 66 is then pushed towards the wall bar 12 so that the support

rod 66 enters the bore, as described above, until each side edge 64 of the shelf 10 lies

against a respective one of the walls meeting at the corner and the wall bar 12 is received

in the recess 68.

The engagement between the ridges of the annular flange 52 and the outer cylindrical

surface of the bore resists rotation of the shelf 66 around the support rod 16. Additionally, the receipt of the wall bar 12 within the U-shaped recess 68 of the shelf 66

(see Figure 3) resists rotation of the shelf 66 around the support rod 16.

In the first and second shelving assemblies described above, the interiors of the wall bars

12 will be visible in those regions of the wall bars 12 above and below the shelves 10, 66.

This may be considered to be unattractive by some people.

In order to improve the appearance of the wall bars 12, blocks 79 (shown in Figure 4)

may be used. The blocks 79 have a rectangular cross-section and fit within the wall bars

12 with opposed side edges 81 of the blocks being received in respective ones of the

channels 38a, 38b. Hence, the blocks 79 serve to fill in the interiors of the wall bars 12

so that the interiors are not visible. Clearly the blocks 79 may be coloured and have a

finish to match the wall bars 12.

When, for example, a single shelf support (slider 14 and support rod 16) is used with a

wall bar 12, respective blocks 79, cut to appropriate lengths, can be inserted in the wall

bar 12, above and below the shelf support. When, for example, two shelf supports are

used with a wall bar 12, a block 79 of a suitable length can be inserted in the wall bar 12

between the shelf supports, a block 79 of a suitable length can be inserted above the upper

support and a block 79 of a suitable length can be inserted below the lower support. In

this way, the regions of the interior of a wall bar 12 that are not occupied by a shelf

support can be completely filled, so as to improve the appearance of the wall bar. An alternative wall bar 80 is shown in Figure 5. The wall bar 80 is provided with elongate

slots 82, instead of holes, for mounting the wall bar 80 to a wall. The slots extend laterally

in relation to the bar 80. The use of the slots 82 facilitates adjustment of the horizontal

position of the wall bar 80.

Figure 6 shows part of a third shelving assembly. The third shelving assembly comprises

two shelving systems (only one of which is shown in Figure 6), each consisting of a wall

bar 12 and a shelf support comprising a slider 14 and a support rod 16. The wall bars 12,

sliders 14 and support rods 16 are identical to the corresponding features described above

in respect of the first shelving assembly and will not be described in detail below.

The third shelving assembly also comprises a shelf 84 that is generally rectangular in plan

view and has an inner edge 86. The inner edge 86 is provided with two U-shaped recesses

88 (one of which is shown in Figure 6), that are located towards respective ends of the

shelf 84.

The shelf 84 also has two bores 90, identical to the bores 70 shown in Figure 1, each

extending into the shelf 84 from a respective one of the U-shaped recesses 88.

As shown in Figure 6, the U-shaped recesses 88 are considerably broader than the wall

bars 12 and, when the support rods 16 are fully inserted into the bores 90, the U-shaped

recesses 88 receive the wall bars 12. As the support rods 16 and the annular flanges 52 have cylindrical outer surfaces and the

bores 90 are defined by cylindrical surfaces the wall bars can be mounted at an angle to

vertical in the plane of the wall (e.g. 30° or 45°) and still be used to support the shelf 84

- since the support rods are cylindrical, the orientation of the wall bars 12 relative to the

shelf 84 can be changed without changing the way the rods mount the shelf 84.

As the U-shaped recesses 88 are broader than the walls bars, the bars 12 fit within the U-

shaped recesses 88 even when the walls bars 12 are mounted on a planar wall at a

substantial angle to vertical.

Parts of a fourth shelving assembly are shown in Figures 7 and 8. Parts of the fourth

shelving assembly that are identical to the corresponding parts of the first shelving

assembly described above will be given the same reference numerals and will not be

described in detail.

The fourth shelving assembly comprises a shelf 92 and a shelving system comprising a

wall bar 12 and a shelf support formed by a slider 94, a support bracket 96 and a support

rod 16.

The slider 94 consists of a moulded plastics body 97 that has opposed front and rear

surfaces 98,100 that are connected by two side edges 102 and two end edges 104. A central cylindrical hole 99 extends between the front and rear surfaces 98,100. A nut

56 is embedded within the moulded plastics body 97 with the threaded aperture of the nut

in register with the central cylindrical aperture 99 of the moulded plastics body 97.

Two other cylindrical holes 106,108, one located above the central cylindrical hole 99 and

one located below the central cylindrical hole, extend between the front and rear surfaces

98,100.

The shelving system is also provided with a resilient annular collar 110 which fits over

the support rod 16 and which has an internal ridge (not shown) that engages the threaded

portion 58 to resist axial movement of the collar 1 10 along the support rod 16.

The support bracket 96 has an end surface 1 12 that lies at right angles to a support surface

1 14. A bore 1 16, that is identical to the bore 70 shown in Figure 1, extends into the

support bracket 96 from the end surface 1 12.

A cylindrical second bore 118 also extends into the support bracket 96 from the end

surface 1 12 and receives a dowel 120 which is fixed in the cylindrical bore 118.

As shown in Figure 7, the width of the slider 94 is less than the internal width of the wall

bar 12 to allow adjustment of the lateral position of the slider 94 within the wall bar 12. In use, the wall bar 12 is mounted on a planar wall as described above. The slider 94 is

fitted into the wall bar 12 and locked to the wall bar 12 by screwing the threaded portion

58 of the support rod 16 through the nut 56 so that the end 60 of the support rod 16

contacts the second wall 28 of the connecting portion of the wall bar 12. (As described

above).

The support bracket 96 is then slid over the support rod 16 which engages into the bore

116 of the support bracket 96 (as described above) until the end surface 1 12 lies against

the wall bar 12. During this process, the collar 110 enters the bore 1 16 and presses against

the outer cylindrical surface 117 of the bore 116 to hold the support bracket 96 to the

support rod 16. The dowel 120 enters the lower cylindrical bore 108 to prevent the

support bracket 96 from rotating around the axis of the support rod 16.

The shelf 92 is placed on the support surface 1 14 of the support bracket 96 and may be

fixed to the support bracket 96 by a screw 122 passing through a hole 124 in the support

bracket 96.

It will be appreciated that in all of the shelving systems described above, the sliders

(together with the associated support rods) can be positioned at any one of an infinite

number of positions along the wall bars 12. It will be appreciated that many modifications may be made to the systems described

above.

For example, the sliders 14,94 need not be locked to the wall bars 12 using support rods

16 having threaded end portions 58. Alternatively, a separate locking means may be

provided. For example, a separate screw may pass through a threaded hole in the slider

14,94 so that rotation of the screw in one sense brings the screw into contact with the wall

bar 12 so as to lock the slider 14. Where a separate locking means is provided, a threaded

support rod 16 is not required. Any arrangement suitable for supporting a shelf may be

used.

Although the support rods 16 discussed above are generally cylindrical and are received

within the shelves 10,84,92, this need not be the case. The support rods 16 may be

replaced by any suitable support having a threaded portion for engagement with the

sliders 14,94 and for latching the sliders 14,94, and having a portion suitable for

supporting a shelf. The shelf supporting portion could be of any required cross-section.

It is not necessary to use wall bars 12 and sliders 14,94, as described above. Any

combination of wall mountable member and shelf support, the shelf support being

slideably movable in relation to and in engagement with the wall mountable member, may

be used. The wall bars 12 need not be aluminium extrusions. Wall bars can be made of, for

example, hardwood or plastics materials.

The slider 14 of the first shelving system may be provided with additional holes, such as

the holes 106 and 106 of the slider 94, so that the slider can be used with a support

bracket, in the same manner as the slider 94.

Figure 9 shows a shelving system of a fifth shelving assembly (the shelf of the shelving

assembly is not shown). Parts of the shelving system common to the fifth shelving

assembly and to the embodiments discussed above are given the same reference numerals

and will not be described in detail.

The shelving system shown in Figure 9 is unlike the embodiments shown in Figures 1 to

8 as it does not utilise a wall bar 12 and a slider 14,94 but, instead, uses a mounting 130

that is mounted directly on a wall without an intervening wall bar 12.

In addition to the mounting 130, the shelving system shown in Figure 9 comprises a

support rod 16 and a shelf support bracket 132.

The mounting 130 is similar in shape to the slider 14 of Figure 1 and parts of the

mounting 130 corresponding to parts of the slider 14 are given the same names as the

corresponding parts of the slider 14 and are not described in detail below. Such parts of the mounting 130 are given reference numerals that correspond to the reference numerals

of the corresponding parts of the slider 14 preceded by the digit 1. The only structural

difference between the mounting 130 and the slider 14 is that the mounting 130 is

provided with first and second holes 133,134, each extending between the front and rear

surfaces 144,146 of the moulded plastics body 142 of the mounting 130. The first hole

133 is located above the nut (not shown) of the mounting 130 and the second hole 134 is

located below the nut.

The shelf support bracket 132 is elongate and has an end surface 160 that lies at right

angles to a shelf support surface 162. A bore 164 extends into the shelf support bracket

132 from the end surface 160. The bore 164 is identical to the bore 70 of Figure 1, having

an outer cylindrical surface 166, a frustro-conical surface 168 and an inner cylindrical

surface 170.

The shelf support bracket has a projection 172 that extends from the end surface 160 and

which has a planar end surface 174.

The shelf support bracket 132 also has a cylindrical second bore 176 that extends into the

shelf support bracket 132 from the end surface 160. In use, the mounting 130 is mounted on a planar vertical wall by a suitable screw or bolt

(not shown) passing through the upper hole 133 such that the planar rear surface 146 of

the mounting 130 lies against the wall.

The threaded portion 58 of the support rod 16 is passed through the annular flange 152

of the mounting 130 and engaged with the nut (not shown) of the mounting 130. Hence,

the mounting 130 and the support rod 16 together form a wall mountable member having

a projection that comprises the flange 152 and the cylindrical portion of the rod 16.

A dowel (not shown) is fixed in the second bore 176 such that a length of the dowel

corresponding to the length of the second hole 134 in the mounting 130 projects from the

end surface 160 of the shelf support bracket 132.

The projection (formed by the cylindrical portion of the rod 16 and the flange 152) is then

inserted into the bore 164 so that the projecting end of the dowel enters the second hole

134 and until the end surface 160 of the shelf support bracket 132 lies closely adjacent to

the front surface 144 of the mounting 130.

The six axially extending ridges (not shown) provided on the external surface of the

annular flange 152 press into the outer cylindrical surface 166 of the bore 164 to hold the

shelf support bracket 132 relative to the mounting 130. The end surface 174 of the projection 172 of the shelf support bracket 132 now lies

substantially in the same plane as the rear surface 146 of the mounting 130 and contacts

the planar vertical wall below the mounting 130. The contact between the projection 172

and the wall serves the purpose now described.

The weight of the shelf support bracket 132, the rod 16 and, when the shelf support

bracket 132 supports a shelf, the weight of the shelf and anything supported on the shelf,

urges the mounting 130, the support rod 16 and the shelf support bracket 132 to rotate

downwardly around a horizontal axis lying parallel to the wall and passing approximately

through the first hole 133 (which, as discussed above, is used to connect the mounting

130 to the wall using a screw or bolt). The contact between the projection 172 and the

wall resists this rotational force so as to maintain the shelf support surface 162 in a

horizontal position.

The receipt of the dowel in the second hole prevents relative rotation between the shelf

support bracket 132 and the mounting 130. Alternatively a second screw or bolt can pass

through the second hole 134 to further secure the mounting 130 to the wall.

The shelf support system shown in Figure 9 can be used to support a shelf. For longer

shelves, it is preferable to use two or more such systems to support the shelf, the systems

being spaced along the length of the shelf and mounted to the wall as described above. The shelving system of Figure 9 provides advantages over known shelving systems such

as wall mounted brackets. When redecorating a wall, especially by papering, it is often

desirable to remove wall mounted brackets, which otherwise can physically obstruct the

redecoration. However, it is sometimes difficult to replace the brackets, especially when

they are to be remounted on plaster, as their removal can damage the wall surface. This

problem is ameliorated by the shelving system of Figure 9 as the shelf support bracket

132 can be easily removed from the mounting 130 by pulling. This reduces the physical

obstruction provided by the shelving system without requiring removal and subsequent

remounting of the mounting 130. The fact that the rod 16 can be readily removed from

the mounting 130 by unscrewing provides an additional advantage by further reducing the

physical obstruction presented by the shelving system.

It will be appreciated that the shelf support system of Figure 9 may be modified. In

particular, it is not necessary to use the mounting 130 and the support rod 16 as described

above. Any wall mountable member having a projection suitable for mounting a shelf

support bracket may be used. The mounting 130 may be used as a slider in any of the

embodiments of Figures 1 to 8.

Claims

1. A shelving system comprising a wall mountable member and a shelf support

slideably mounted on the wall mountable member and being lockable relative to the wall

mountable member for positioning a shelf supported by the shelf support relative to the

wall mountable member.

2. A shelving system according to claim 1, wherein the shelf support is lockable at

any one of an infinite number of positions extending continuously relative to the wall

mountable member.

3. A shelving system according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the shelf support

comprises a slider slideably mounted on the wall mountable member, locking means for

locking the slider relative to the wall mountable member and support means carried by

the slider for supporting a shelf.

4. A shelving system according to claim 3, wherein the support means is integral with

the locking means.

5. A shelving system according to claim 3, wherein the support means is separate

from the locking means.

6. A shelving system according to any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein the locking

means and the slider are each threaded and in threaded engagement so that relative

rotation between the locking means and the slider in one sense locks the slider relative to

the wall mountable member and relative rotation between the locking means and the

slider in the other sense unlocks the slider.

7. A shelving system according to claim 6, wherein said relative rotation in said one

sense causes the locking means to bear against the wall mountable member so as to bring

a surface of the slider into contact with a surface of the wall mountable member whereby

to hold the support means at a fixed angle relative to the wall mountable member.

8. A shelving system according to any one of claims 3 to 7, wherein the support

means is cylindrical with its axis extending normal to the wall mountable member.

9. A shelving system according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the shelf support

comprises a slider slideably mounted on the wall mountable member and having a

threaded hole, and a generally cylindrical rod having a first cylindrical portion for

supporting a shelf and disposed adjacent one end of the rod and a second

circumferentially threaded portion adjacent the opposed end of the rod, the threaded

portion engaging the threaded hole and relative rotation between the slider and the rod in

one sense bringing the opposed end into contact with the wall mountable member to latch

the slider to the wall mountable member.

10. A shelving system according to any preceding claim, including a further shelf

support for supporting a further shelf and being slideably mounted on the wall mountable

member, and a spacer slideably mounted on the wall mountable member and spacing the

first-mentioned and the further shelf supports.

11. A shelving system according to any preceding claim, wherein the wall mountable

member is shaped to facilitate mounting of the wall mountable member in a right-angled

corner.

12. A shelving system according to claim 1 1, wherein the wall mountable member is

shaped to facilitate mounting of the wall mountable member on a planar wall.

13. A shelving system according to claim 12, wherein the wall mountable member has

first and second spaced walls at right angles to one another for mounting against

respective walls meeting at a right angle corner, each one of the first and second walls

having a respective edge lying in a plane at 45° to each of the first and second walls, the

wall mountable member being mountable against a planar wall with the edges in contact

with the planar wall.

14. A shelving system according to claim 3, claim 9 or any claim dependent on claim

3 or claim 9, wherein the wall mountable member has two opposed parallel channels and

the slider has two opposed edges, each channel receiving a respective one of the edges so as to mount the slider on the wall mountable member for sliding movement along the

channels.

15. A shelving assembly comprising a shelving system according to any one of claims

1 to 14 and a shelf supportable by the shelf supporting.

16. A shelving assembly according to claim 15, wherein the shelf is connectable to the

shelf supporting.

17. A shelving assembly comprising a shelving system according to claim 3 and a

shelf, the shelf having a slot for receiving the support means.

18. A shelving assembly according to claim 17, wherein the support means can be

received within the slot to allow the shelf to be supported at a plurality of angles relative

to the wall mountable member.

19. A shelving assembly according to claim 18, wherein the shelf has a cylindrical

surface surrounding the slot and the support means has a cylindrical surface inwardly

adjacent the shelf cylindrical surface.

20. A shelving assembly according to any one of claims 17 to 19, wherein the shelf

support and the shelf are provided with respective co-operating means for holding the

support means in the slot.

21. A shelving assembly according to claim 20 when claim 20 is dependent on claim

19, wherein the co-operating means of the shelf support is a resilient collar held against

axial movement on the support means and the co-operating means of the shelf is said

shelf cylindrical surface, the collar bearing resiliently against the shelf cylindrical surface

when the slot receives the support means.

22. A shelving assembly according to claim 21 wherein the collar is integral with the

slider.

23. A shelving assembly according to any one of claims 15 to 17, wherein the wall

mountable member is elongate and the shelf is provided with a recess for receiving the

wall mountable member to resist relative rotation between the shelf and the wall

mountable member.

24. A shelving assembly comprising a shelving system according to claim 1 and a

shelf, the wall mountable member being mounted on a wall and the shelf being supported

by the shelf support.

25. A shelving system comprising a member for mounting on a wall and having a

projection, and a shelf member having a bore, the projection being receivable in the bore

to mount the shelf member when the wall mountable member is mounted on a wall.

26. A shelving system according to claim 25, wherein the wall mountable member

includes a portion connectable to a wall and from which the projection extends, at least

a part of the projection being detachably connected to the wall connectable portion.

27. A shelving system according to claim 25 or claim 26, wherein the wall mountable

member and the shelf member have respective co-operating means for holding the shelf

member relative to the wall mountable member when the projection is received in the

bore.

28. A shelving system according to claim 27, wherein the projection has a surface and

the shelf member has a surface that wholly or partially defines the bore, the surfaces lying

closely adjacent one another when the projection is received in the bore, and one of the

co-operating means consisting of one of the surfaces and the other one of the co-operating

means consisting of at least one rib projecting from the other one of the surfaces, the at

least one rib contacting said one of the surfaces when the projection is received in the

bore to hold the shelf member relative to the wall mountable member.

29. A shelving system according to claim 28, wherein the at least one rib is provided

on the projection surface.

30. A shelving system according to claim 26 or any claim dependent thereon, wherein

the wall connectable portion has a threaded aperture, the wall mountable member also

including a rod having, at one end, a threaded portion engaged with the threaded aperture

and, at the other end, a portion that forms at least part of the projection.

31. A shelving system according to claim 30, wherein the portion of the rod that forms

at least part of the projection is cylindrical and the bore is at least partly defined by a

cylindrical surface that lies closely adjacent the cylindrical portion of the rod when the

projection is received in the bore.

32. A shelving system according to claim 30 or claim 31 , when claim 30 is dependent

on claim 29, wherein the projection also includes an annular flange that projects from the

wall connectable portion and extends around the rod, the at least one rib extending

radially outwardly from the flange.

33. A shelving system according to any one of claims 25 to 32 wherein the wall

mountable member is mounted on a wall.

34. A shelving system according to any one of claims 25-32, wherein the wall

mountable member is mounted on a planar vertical wall and the projection is received in

the bore, the shelf member having an end furthermost from the planar vertical wall and

a portion that contacts the wall to resist downward rotational movement of the

furthermost end.

35. A shelving system according to claim 34, wherein the wall mountable member has

a portion that contacts and is connected to the planar vertical wall and the shelf member

portion contacts the planar vertical wall below said wall contacting portion.

36. A shelving system according to any one of claims 25-35 wherein the shelf member

is a shelf.

37. A shelving system according to any one of claims 25-35 wherein the shelf member

is a shelf support.

38. A shelving system according to claim 37 and further comprising a shelf supported

by the shelf support.