Description:
This invention relates to knockdown drawer construction and, more particularly, to smoothly gliding drawers fitted into cabinets which may withstand the vibrations of mobile home travel.
The traditional methods of constructing furniture use labor intensive crafts, almost as practiced hundreds of years ago. While machine tools may reduce the labor content of furniture manufacture, the problem of excessive labor costs remains as an ultimately limiting factor. Mobile and prefabricated homes often use manufacturing techniques which are appropriate for the manufacture of automobiles and trucks. Still, people like home-like atmosphere, and do not want stamped metal drawers.
In the more recent forms of mobile homes, conventional furniture fabrication methods introduce further problems. For example, these homes sometimes travel over rough terrain which shakes all structure therein. As a result, joints loosen and furniture tends to lose its shape. Moreover, during accidents every screw, nail, and splinter in the home becomes a potentially lethal weapon.
Once the drawer is made, it should slide smoothly into the cabinet, and should not shake or lose shape due to the mobile home vibrations. Besides being a noise nuisance, the shaking can also weaken the drawer construction. Thus, a sudden violent vibration or accident can misalign or destroy the drawer, while within the cabinet. This shaking is especially troublesome when it causes the drawer to lose its shape, bind and tend to jam in the cabinet.
Accordingly, an object of the invention is to provide a new and improved knockdown drawer construction. Here an object of the invention is to provide a method of drawer construction which makes it quick and easy to assemble a drawer that holds together and retains its shape despite the shaking and jostling.
Still another object of the invention is to provide modern production methods for enabling knockdown drawer construction by those who have no special skill in cabinet making. Here an object is to provide structures which are small and compact, easy to ship and store in knockdown kit form.
Yet another object is to provide a smoothly gliding drawer which retains shape despite vibrations. Here an object of the invention is to provide a method whereby the amount of shaking of the drawer within the cabinet is minimized.
In keeping with an aspect of this invention, these and other objects are accomplished by providing one or two different types of channel form clamps, which slip into mating grooves in each of the five panels that form the bottom, sides and back of a cabinet drawer. The invention provides bearing inserts which are placed in the cabinet drawer opening and channel clamp forms which perform the dual functions of clamping together the drawer panels and provides smooth glide strips. This reduces the amount of drawer vibrations and allows the drawer to retain shape in most situations.
A preferred embodiment of the invention may be understood best from a study of the attached drawings wherein:
FIG. 1 is a partly exploded, perspective view of a cabinet drawer having a bearing insert and a combined clamp form with a glide strip contour.
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a preferred channel clamp form used to hold the drawer panels together;
FIG. 3 is an enlargement of the glide strip and the bearing insert portions of FIG. 1 that are identified therein by a dot-dash line circle 3;
FIG. 4 is a fragmentary perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the channel clamp form;
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view (taken along line 5--5 of FIG. 1) of an additional channel clamp form which may be used to enable an attachment of virtually any kind of drawer front;
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a completely assembled drawer;
FIG. 7 is a front view of a cabinet with a drawer shown in phantom within the cabinet and the bearing inserts with the glide strips schematically shown by heavily inked lines;
FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a drawer slide which may be used to mount the inventive drawer;
FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view (taken along line 8--8 of FIG. 7) of a slide bearing mounted on a front of a drawer and;
FIG. 10 is a perspective view of an alternative and preferred embodiment of the slide bearing of FIG. 8.
The drawer 20 (FIG. 1) is made from a series of panels 21-24, channel clamp forms 25-29, and front panel mounting brackets 30, 31. Since the two sides 21, 22 have the same dimensions and two ends 24 (and the front panel, not shown) have the same dimensions, two piece parts may be used as these four panels. A third and bottom panel piece part 23 completes the drawer. Likewise, the channel clamp forms 25, 26 may be the same piece parts, and the corner channel clamp form 28-29 may also be the same piece parts. Clamp 27 forms a third piece part. Therefore, the entire drawer may be made from as few as six piece parts.
The nature of each channel clamp form will become more apparant from a study of its cross-section (FIG. 2). In greater detail, the form is preferably extruded from aluminum, plastic, or the like, depending upon the decorative effect desired. The cross-section may be described as somewhat square, having two sides 35, 36 which may be in the order of two-thirds to three-quarters of an inch wide. The other two sides are extruded or formed a shape retaining clamp having a generally C-shaped channel cavities 37, 38 set perpendicularly to each other. A rounded contour corner 40, shown by heavily inked lines, provides a smooth gliding strip which rests on bearing inserts 15. Separating the C-shaped channel cavities 37, 38 is a strut 39. The strut 39 extends from within the outer rounded contour of corner 40, to the inner surface of the cove 42. Each of the inwardly facing ears or tips of the C-shape may project (as at 41) into the cavity for a distance of approximately three or four tenths of an inch. A cove 42 may be formed between the two C-shaped shaped channels in order to improve the interior appearance and to save material.
The rounded contour of corner 40 of the channel clamps, slide on the bearing inserts 15 placed on the inner surface of the cabinet drawer opening seen in FIG. 7. The bearing inserts 15 are L-shaped and have two sides, a vertical side 16 and a horizontal side 17. On its inner surface the bearing inserts have steps 18 and 19. At least two of the channel clamps 25, 26 when gliding into the cabinet, glide on the bearing inserts 15.
The rounded contour of corner 40 further provides a means for equally distributing the drawer weight throughout the channel clamp, and not only on the outer corner. This is achieved by the slides 35 and 36 gliding on the bearing inserts 15, and the rounded contour of corner 40 not making contact with the complete bearing insert 15.
The strut 39 within the channel clamp prevents the weight of the panels from shifting the shape of the channel clamp. Thereby the channel clamp maintains its shape and glides easily on the bearing inserts.
An alternative embodiment of a channel clamp form is seen in FIG. 4. Here, there is a generally rectangular form 45 having two generally C-shaped channels 46, 47 positioned in side-by-side relationship. This particular channel is attractive when made from spun aluminum and the more narrow side 48 is exposed to view.
The foregoing dimensions are here given, by way of example, to illustrate how different panels may be interconnected, and the drawer retains shape while gliding smoothly. Any suitable material may be used to make these panels, preferably hardboard since it does not have splinters and will not split if a mobile home is involved in an accident.
Each of the panels 21-24 has grooves rabbited on opposite sides, as at 50, 51 (FIG. 4). The distance 52 between an edge of a panel and a groove is approximately equal to the depth 34 (FIG. 4) of a C-shaped channel. The width 53 of the panel is about the same as the width 33 of the C-shaped channel. The depth and width of the grooves 50, 51 is approximately equal to the thickness and the projection 41 of the ears or tips on the channel clamp form.
Thus, it should now be apparent how the channel form clamp may capture, interconnect, and hold the various panels in a final assembly and glide smoothly while retaining its shape. For example, FIG. 3 shows how the ears 55, 56 of the clamp 25 may slide into and capture grooves in the side panel 21. Likewise, the ears 57, 58 may slide into, capture, and hold grooves 59 (FIG. 1) on the bottom panel 23. Accordingly, the channel clamp form 25 securely locks and holds together the two panels 21, 23. A moment's reflection clearly indicates how all of the other panels may also be held together in a similar manner. The contour of corner 40 on the channel clamp forms 25, 26 also act to glide smoothly over bearing inserts 15.
A special channel clamp form or drawer bracket (FIG. 5) is used on the front two corners of the panel. This bracket comprises a single C-shaped channel 60, with ears 61, 62 which are captured when slipped into the rabbited grooves 63, 63 on the front edge of the panel 21. The bracket 31 is used to make a similar attachment to panel 22. On each of the brackets 30, 31, a plate 64 projects outwardly at right angles from the axis of the channel clamp 60. Two or more screw holes 65 are formed on each bracket plate 64 whereby virtually any drawer front 66 (FIG. 6) may be attached by screws or other fasteners.
It should now be apparent that the channel clamp forms 25-31 lock every panel to every other panel to make a rigid structure, as seen in FIG. 6, which survives severe vibration. The interpanel connections are made at an infinite number of points uniformly distributed along the edges, and they are recessed about a quarter inch from the edge. It should be clear that the drawer will retain its shape due to the channel form clasp structure, and will glide smoothly even when weighed down with heavy material. Thus, the final drawer is a very strong structure, able to withstand the severe jolts and vibrations occurring as a mobile home is driven over even the roughest terrain.
Operationally, the drawer slides on two different glide means; the bearing inserts 15 attached on the inner surface of the cabinet in FIGS. 1, 3, and 7 and an elongated track or runner 70 seen in FIGS. 1, 7, and 8. The near end of the track or runner 70 slips into a form-fitting socket 71 which may be a molded plastic part. The back of the socket is formed into a plate-like member 72 having a number of screw holds therein (as at 74), and the socket 71 may be attached to the inside track of the cabinet. A bearing member 75 is attached to the bottom of the drawer panel 23 via screw holes 56, 77. As best seen in FIG. 8, the bearing member 75 embraces the runner 70 to position, guide and direct the drawer as it glides over the runner. The bearing inserts 15 in the cabinet cooperate with the long glide strips or the contour of corner 40 (as seen in cross section) to provide a smooth sliding drawer.
A perferred embodiment of the front drawer slide bearing is seen in FIGS. 1 and 9. Here the bearing 80 comprises an integral molded plastic piece part which may be made from nylon, for example.
The bearing may be described as a table 81 having a recessed pedestal 82 resting upon a platform 83 with bearing arms 84, 85. The arms 84, 85 partially encircle the runner 70 to assist the bearing inserts in supporting, guiding, and directing the drawer as it slides back and forth.
The bottom 23 of the drawer has a notch 86 with a width 87 corresponding to the width of the pedestal 82. The thickness 88 of the drawer bottom 23 corresponds to the height of the pedestal 82. Thus, the bearing 80 may be slipped into the notch 86 by fitting the table 81 over the top and the platform 83 under the bottom of the drawer bottom 23. This way, the bearing is captured and securely held in position inside the notch, as seen in FIG. 1. Thereafter, a channel clamp form 27 is slipped into grooves similar to grooves 90-92, but on the rear edge of the drawer bottom 23. Thereafter, the channel clamp 27 interferes with and prevents removal of the bearing 80.
While specific embodiments have been described herein, various modifications may be made by those who are skilled in the art. Therefore, the appended claims are to be construed to cover all equivalent structures which fall within the spirit and the scope of the invention.