The present disclosure relates generally to a cabinet assembly having an adjustment mechanism, and more particularly to a cabinet assembly having adjustable track mount assemblies coupled to adjustment strips for adjusting the relative positioning, in terms of height, of a drawer within the cavity of a cabinet.
Cabinet assemblies known in the art and generally include a cabinet and drawers that are slidably coupled within a cavity of the cabinet and extendible between an open and closed position.
Typically, the drawers are supported within the cavity of the cabinet for slidable extension and retraction by means of elongated guide members which are fixedly attached (i.e., fastened or mounted or otherwise secured) to the opposite sides of the cabinet within the cavity and the cooperating elongated slide members secured to opposite sides of the drawer. The relative positioning of the drawer within the cavity of the cabinet, in terms of height, corresponds to the relative location of the secured elongated guide members along the sides of the cabinet within the cavity. Accordingly, to change the relative positioning of the drawer (i.e., change the height of the drawer within the cavity of the cabinet), one must change the relative positioning of the secured elongated guide members along the sides of the cabinet. To accomplish this, after removing the drawer by disengaging the elongated slide members of the drawer from the elongated guide member, the elongated guide members must first be detached (i.e., unfastened or unmounted or otherwise unsecured) from the opposite sides of the cabinet, moved to a new desired position, and reattached to the opposite sides of the cabinet. The elongated slide members of the drawer are then reengaged to the elongated guide members such that the drawer is at the new desired height within the cavity of the cabinet. This process of detaching and reattaching the elongated guide members can be time consuming and burdensome.
The present disclosure provides a cabinet assembly which has a simpler adjustment mechanism for quickly and easily changing the relative positioning of a drawer within the cavity of the cabinet.
One embodiment of a cabinet assembly is provided that includes a first side and an opposing second side. In further embodiments, the cabinet assembly also includes a back, a top and a bottom, and together with the first and second sides defines a cavity having an opening. The cabinet assembly also includes first and second adjustment strips coupled adjacent to the first side of the cabinet as well as third and fourth adjustment strips coupled adjacent to the second side of the cabinet, with each the respective adjustment strips including a plurality of slots aligned vertically. The cabinet assembly further includes a first track mount assembly adjustably mounted to each of the first and second adjustment strips along the first side of the cabinet, and a second track mount assembly adjustably mounted to each of the third and fourth adjustment strips along the second side of the cabinet.
The first and second track mount assemblies, respectively, include a housing having a rearward housing end and a forward housing end and at least one fixed locater extending from the forward housing end, wherein each one of the at least one fixed locaters is coupled within a respective one of the plurality of slots of one of the respective adjustment strips. The first and second track mount assemblies also, respectively, include an adjustment mechanism coupled to the housing at the rearward housing end that includes a moveable insert having at least one locater coupled thereto. The adjustment mechanism is moveable relative to the rearward housing end between an engaged position and an adjustment position. The adjustment mechanism also includes a biasing device coupled to the moveable insert that biases the moveable insert in a biasing direction such that the at least one insert extends beyond the rearward housing end when the moveable insert is in the engaged position. Each of the at least one locaters is coupled within a respective one of the plurality of slots of another one of the respective adjustment strips when the respective moveable insert is in the engaged position.
The cabinet assembly, in a further related embodiment, also includes a drawer having a right side and a left side, a first drawer slide assembly coupled to the right side of the drawer and also coupled to the first track mount assembly, and a second drawer slide assembly coupled to the left side of the drawer and also coupled to the second track mount assembly. The drawer is configured to be slidably engaged with the first track mount assembly through the first drawer slide assembly and to be slidably engaged with the second mount assembly through the second drawer slide assembly when the drawer is coupled to the first and second track mount assembly. In embodiments defining a cavity, the drawer is configured to be slidably engaged with the first track mount assembly through the first drawer slide assembly and to be slidably engaged with the second mount assembly through the second drawer slide assembly when the drawer is coupled to the first and second track mount assembly within the cavity and is moved between a closed position and an extended position. The closed position is defined wherein the entire drawer is positioned within the cavity and the extended position defined wherein a portion of the drawer is positioned outside the cavity.
The cabinet assembly overcomes the disadvantages in the related art related to the detaching, moving and reattaching of elongated guide members to the sides of the cabinets in order to adjust the height of a drawer within the cabinet, and in certain embodiments within the cavity of the cabinet. Specifically, in accordance with the present disclosure, the track mount assemblies can easily be coupled to, and uncoupled from, the respective adjustment strips without requiring the detachment of the adjustment strips from the respective sides of the cabinet in order to change the relative location of the respective drawer within the cabinet. In this way, the initial positioning, and repositioning, of the drawers within the cabinet at a desired height can quickly and easily be accomplished.
Referring now to the figures, wherein like numerals indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views, embodiments of a cabinet assembly 10 including a drawer 12 are shown throughout the figures and described in detail below. The cabinet assembly 10 has an adjustment mechanism 11 for enabling an operator to adjust a height of the drawer 12. As shown in
The cabinet assembly 10 may include feet, wheels, and/or the like such that the cabinet assembly 10 can rest or be positioned against a floor of the garage, workroom, etc. As shown in
In one embodiment, the cabinet 16 of the cabinet assembly 10 has a back 22, opposing sides 24, 26, the bottom 18, and a top 28. The cabinet 16 further has a height H extending from the bottom 18 to the top 28. In an embodiment, a worktop 29 is positioned on the top 28 of the cabinet 16. The worktop 29 may be formed from any suitable worktop material, such as various forms and/or compositions of wood. The worktop 29 may cover just the cabinet assembly 10, or may extend over a plurality of cabinets of the cabinet system 14 such as shown in
The back 22, the sides 24, 26, the bottom 18, and the top 28 of the cabinet 16 define a cavity 30 having an opening 32, and the cabinet 16 may further include doors 34 for covering the opening 32. A drawer(s) 12 is disposed within the cavity 30, and is accessible through the opening 32 of the cavity 30. In an alternative embodiment, the drawer 12 may have a drawer face, with the drawer face covering at least a portion of the opening 32 of the cavity 30. In this alternative embodiment, cabinet doors 34 may not be required.
In an embodiment, the cabinet assembly 10 includes at least one drawer 12, and the at least one drawer 12 may be of the pull-out style. That is, the drawer 12 is adapted to slide between a closed position (where the entire drawer 12 is disposed within the cavity 30 of the cabinet 16) and an extended position (where at least a portion of the drawer 12 is positioned outside of the cavity 30 of the cabinet 16, as shown in
As shown in
It is to be appreciated that the first 50 and second 52 drawer slide assemblies include similar operational components, although one or more of the components may be arranged differently for attachment to a particular side 36, 38 of the drawer 12. To this end, details of the first 50 and second 52 drawer slide assemblies are therefore described below with reference to the second drawer slide assembly 52 only.
With reference to
As previously mentioned, the moveable member 60 is moveably supported by the base member 54 such that the moveable member 60 can move relative to the base member 54. The moveable member 60 also slides along the track member 63 as the drawer 12 is moved between the closed and expanded positions. In a non-limiting example, the movement of the moveable member 60 is accomplished utilizing ball bearings, which enables the moveable member 60 to smoothly and noiselessly slide along the base member 54 and the track member 63 as the drawer 12 is moved between the closed and extended positions. It is to be appreciated that movement of the moveable member 60 may be accomplished utilizing any suitable means.
Referring to
Referring back to
As shown at least in
The base 76 of the housing 70 defines apertures 86, with one of the apertures 86 located about the forward housing end 74 and the other aperture 86 located about the rearward housing end 72, as shown in
In an embodiment, the second track mount assembly 68 has at least one fixed locator 92 (such as a prong, pin, or other suitable extension) extending from the forward housing end 74 in a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis A defined by the housing 70. In the illustrated embodiment, the second track mount assembly 68 has a support 90 disposed within and fixedly mounted to the housing 70 at the forward housing end 74, and the fixed locators 92 are attached or integral with the support 90. In a non-limiting example, the support 90 may be welded to the housing 70. In another non-limiting example, the support 90 may be mounted to the housing 70 utilizing one or more fasteners. As shown, the support 90 has a pair of locators 92 extending from the support 90 beyond the forward housing end 74 and parallel to the longitudinal axis A defined by the housing 70. The locators 92 are adapted to be inserted into slots of a vertical adjustment strip mounted to the cabinet 16, as described in further detail below.
The second track mount assembly 68 further includes a mount 96 disposed within and fixedly mounted to the housing 70 about the rearward housing end 72. The mount 96 defines an aperture 97, and the second track mount assembly 68 further includes a post 98 disposed through the aperture 97 and secured utilizing a suitable securing device, such as cotter pin 100 (as shown in
The second track mount assembly 68 further includes the adjustment mechanism 11, which has at least one moveable locator 104 (such as a prong, pin, or other suitable extension) located about the rearward housing end 72 and extending in a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis A defined by the housing 70. The moveable locator 104 is moveable relative to the housing 70 along the longitudinal axis A between retracted and protruding positions. The moveable locator 104 is biased outwardly and extends from the rearward housing end 72 when in the protruding position (as shown in
As best shown in
The housing 70 of the second track mount assembly 68 further defines an access 120, such as an opening having any suitable configuration, adjacent the end plate 112 of the moveable insert 102. During adjustment of a drawer 12 height, an operator can insert his/her finger into the access 120 and contact the end plate 112 of the moveable insert 102. This is illustrated in
In an embodiment, and as shown in
As shown at least in
As shown in
Adjustment of the drawer 12 height of the cabinet assembly 10 is described below at least with reference to
Then, the operator inserts his/her finger or other suitable device into the access 120 defined in the housing 70 (such as shown in
Upon releasing pressure from the end plate 112, the biasing member 118 expands and moves the moveable insert 102 outwardly toward rearward housing end 72 and into the protruding position (again, as shown in
The same procedure above may be followed for coupling the first track mount assembly 66 to the other side 24 of the cabinet 16. Typically, the track mount assemblies 66, 68 are mounted so that the track mount assemblies 66, 68 lie within the same horizontal plane. In this way, the drawer 12 which is subsequently attached to the track mount assemblies 66, 68 is level.
Once the track mount assemblies 66, 68 are secured to the cabinet 16, the drawer 16 can be installed as previously described by coupling the drawer slide assemblies 50, 52 with the respective sides 36, 38 of the drawer 12.
In alternative embodiments, the cabinet 16 of the cabinet assembly 10 includes the opposing sides 24, 26 as described above, but does not include one or more of the back 22, bottom 18, or top 28. Accordingly, in these embodiments, the cabinet assembly 10 takes on the form of a racking assembly or any other structure not specifically enclosed to define a cavity that includes the drawer 16 supported therein.
In these alternative embodiments, the first, second, third and fourth adjustment strips 122, 124, 128 are mounted to the opposing sides 24, 26 in a manner similar to what is described and illustrated above, with the second adjustment strips 128 opposite the first adjustment strip 122 along side 26 and the fourth adjustment strip opposite the second adjustment strip 124 along side 24. The first and second track mounting assemblies 66, 68 and drawers 12 (including the drawer slide assemblies 50, 52) can be installed in the manner described above to complete the cabinet assembly 10.
The invention has been described in an illustrative manner, and it is be understood that the terminology which has been used is intended to be in the nature of words of description rather than of limitation. It is now apparent to those skilled in the art that many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is, therefore, to be understood that the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.
The present invention claims priority to U.S. provisional application 62/485,445, filed Apr. 14, 2017, entitled “Cabinet Assembly Having an Adjustment Mechanism”, the disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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62485445 | Apr 2017 | US |