Free standing modular architectural beam system

Abstract
A freestanding framework having a plurality of generally vertically disposed support columns supporting a plurality of generally horizontally disposed overhead beams. The overhead beams include a portion that provides a raceway for the delivery of an electrical conduit, and a lower portion formed as an open-sided rail. One or more barrier members are connected with the open-sided rail.
Description




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




Open office panel systems, commercialized heavily for the past twenty years, have a number of drawbacks. While they have been promoted as being versatile, movable systems that permit easy office re-arrangement, this has not proven to be the case. A complete partition or panel system involves numerous parts, and a completely assembled systems, have so many inter-dependent components and complicated fasteners that it is a difficult task, requiring special skills, in order to make adjustments in an open plan layout after the system has been installed. The complexities of the systems and number of parts involved make initial installation complex, and modification of an existing system involves similar difficulties.




Open office panel systems also have functional drawbacks. Such panels typically are thin and flimsy. Moreover, such panels were originally developed prior to the availability of personal computers and heavy use of power and communications wiring for desk top and work station applications. Attempts have been made to accommodate electrical and electronic wiring in open office panel systems, but these attempts have met with limited success with wiring still being difficult, generally inadequate, or at least aesthetically unappealing, for the modern electronic office environment.




Open office panel systems generally provide load bearing walls, with desk tops, shelving, and storage units necessarily being mounted on the panels themselves. This requires that the panels be structurally capable of supporting such loads and it necessarily limits the variation of office furniture available to individual office workers to a limited range of wall hung furniture.




The concept and appearance of open panel systems also has produced some user dissatisfactions based on emotional considerations. The thin walls, open doorways and general sameness of appearance tends to create a feeling of monotony and produces a maze-like appearance in an office environment. Office workers get the feeling that they are in temporary quarters with little privacy or individuality or importance.




As a result of the obsolescence and growing dissatisfaction with conventional open plan partition systems, there has been renewed interest in traditional office desks and office furniture, notwithstanding the limitations in such systems that caused the development of the open office partition systems in the first place.




It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved free standing office furniture and wall system that possesses the desirable features of both free standing desks and panel systems while substantially overcoming the limitations in both systems.




SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




In accordance with the present invention, an improved free standing modular furniture and wall system comprises a series of compatible components including a free standing post and beam or archistructure system, a compatible free standing, non-load bearing wall system, and a compatible series of free standing desks and screens. All of the components are modular in nature, with a limited number of separate components providing an extremely wide array of office environment choices. All of the components are integrally designed for almost unlimited flexibility in layout and arrangement and re-arrangement of the office environment, maximum individual identity of the offices, aisleways, and common areas, and an almost unlimited ability to easily and invisibly bring safe electrical and electronic wiring to the individual work stations and to change such wiring at will without structural modifications or tools.











These and other features of the present invention are described in detail in connection with preferred embodiments of the invention, which are described in detail below and shown in the appended drawings.




BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS





FIG. 1

is a perspective view of an office layout employing the furniture system of the present invention.





FIG. 2

is a perspective view of a pocket door of the present invention.





FIG. 3

is a perspective view of a sliding full door and a sliding half door or window of the present invention.





FIG. 4

is a perspective, exploded view showing various components of the post and beam construction of the present invention.





FIG. 5

is a perspective, exploded view showing a wall section and wall post support.





FIG. 6

is a perspective view showing a short post and beam construction forming a railing and a post construction with light fixture.





FIG. 7

is an exploded, perspective view showing the manner in which a beam is connected to a post.





FIG. 8

is an exploded, perspective view similar to

FIG. 7

showing the electrical connections extending from the ceiling and from the floor through the post and into the beam.





FIG. 9

is a perspective view showing typical electrical connections in the beam construction.





FIG. 10

is a cross-sectional view of the beam of the present invention.





FIG. 11

is a cross-sectional view of the beam showing signage attached to the beam.





FIG. 12

is a cross-sectional view of the beam showing the attachment of a sliding door to the beam.





FIG. 13

is a cross-sectional view of the beam showing ceiling lighting incorporated into the beam.





FIG. 14

is a cross-sectional view of the beam showing the incorporation of lighting in the underside of the beam.





FIG. 15

is a perspective view showing a typical free standing wall construction in accordance with the present invention.





FIG. 16

is a pictorial perspective view showing the removal of a wall cover from the side of one wall section.





FIG. 17

is a perspective view showing four interconnected wall sections with the wall covers removed.





FIG. 18

is an exploded, perspective view showing a pair of wall sections connected at right angles by a wall connector.





FIG. 19

is a cross-sectional view showing the manner in which a top cap is mounted on the wall panel of the present invention.





FIG. 20

is a cross-sectional view showing a wall panel of the present invention with a wall top mounted on the wall panel.





FIG. 21

is a broken cross-sectional view showing the power routing and access means at the bottom of the wall panel.





FIG. 22

is a perspective view showing a wall panel with an electrical outlet mounted on the bottom thereof.





FIG. 23

is a perspective view showing the frame and electrical power fixtures of the wall panel.





FIG. 24

is a perspective view showing the frame and power fixtures of the present invention mounted with an under carpet flat power cable.





FIG. 25

is a perspective view similar to

FIG. 24

showing a floor power monument.





FIG. 26

is a perspective view similar to

FIG. 25

showing a flat wire cable hookup to the communication wiring in the panel system.





FIG. 27

is a perspective view, partially broken away, showing the manner in which the flat wire cable is connected into the communication wiring of the present invention.





FIG. 28

is a perspective view of a desk of the present invention.





FIG. 29

is a top view of the desk of FIG.


28


.





FIG. 30

is a front elevational view of the desk of FIG.


28


.





FIG. 31

is an end elevational view of the desk of FIG.


28


.





FIG. 32

is a perspective view a desk of the type shown in

FIG. 28

employing a privacy screen.





FIG. 33

is a top plan view of the desk of FIG.


32


.





FIG. 34

is a front elevational view of the desk of FIG.


32


.





FIG. 35

is an end view of the desk of FIG.


32


.





FIG. 36

is a perspective view of the desk of

FIG. 28

employing tall top panels and a storage unit.





FIG. 37

is a top plan view of the desk of FIG.


36


.





FIG. 38

is a front plan view of the desk of FIG.


36


.





FIG. 39

is an end elevational view of the desk of FIG.


36


.





FIG. 40

is a perspective view of an L-shaped desk of the present invention.





FIG. 41

is a top plan view of the desk of FIG.


40


.





FIG. 42

is a front elevational view of the desk of FIG.


40


.





FIG. 43

is a perspective view showing the underside of the desk of FIG.


40


.





FIG. 44

is a perspective view of the desk of

FIG. 40

employing top tall panels, a shelf, and a storage unit.





FIG. 45

is a top plan view of the desk of FIG.


44


.





FIG. 46

is a front elevational view of the-desk of FIG.


44


.





FIG. 47

is an exploded view of the desk of

FIG. 40

employing tall top panels and a storage unit.





FIG. 48

is a perspective view of the desk of the present invention, showing the enclosure of the desk area by means of extended bottom panels and short top panels as screening.





FIG. 49

is a perspective view of the underside of the desk of the present invention, showing the electrical connections of the bottom panels with their panel covers removed





FIG. 50

is an exploded view of the desk top of the desk of the present invention showing the electrical connections in the beam support underneath the desk top.





FIG. 51

is a perspective view of a closet and file in accordance with the present invention.





FIG. 52

is a perspective view of a file cabinet in accordance with the present invention.











DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS




Referring to the drawings,

FIG. 1

discloses a perspective view of a typical office lay-out employing the furniture and wall system of the present invention. The system


10


comprises three basic elements: free standing desks


12


and


14


; a free standing wall shown generally as


16


; and a free standing post and beam assembly, sometimes referred to as archistructure and shown generally by numeral


17


. These three elements, combined together, create a highly individualized office environment with clearly defined aisleways and offices, and with a maximum amount of flexibility of doors, windows, and wall constructions. All of the components in this system are modular and all are easily assemblable and disassemblable for revision of the floor plan. While all of the components are related and closely compatible, at the same time they are free standing and separable.




Describing briefly the system components shown in

FIG. 1

, desk


12


is free standing and includes a work surface and pedestal mounting. The desk is free standing but abuts on one end the free standing wall


16


. Another free standing desk


14


in the form of an “L” is positioned on the other side of partial wall


16


. This desk is surrounded by a screen in the form of a series of back panels


18


, to which shelves


20


are mounted in a manner described below.




The wall section system


16


comprises a plurality of lower wall sections


22


connected end to end in alignment, or at right angles by means of corner connectors


24


. The lower wall sections are uniform in size and are constructed so that a number of components can be mounted on top of the lower wall sections. Some wall sections have a flat top cap


26


mounted on the top of the section. In other cases, a short wall top


28


or a short glass panel


30


is mounted on top of the wall section. In other cases, a tall wall top


32


is mounted on top of the lower wall sections. End connectors


34


are connected at the ends of some wall sections in order to make a doorway. A closed doorway may be provided by a separate pocket door unit


36


. The pocket door unit has a sliding door


38


that fits within a recess in a pocket panel


40


(see FIG.


2


).




The post and beam or “archistructure” system consists of a plurality of beams


42


, all substantially the same, mounted on posts


44


. The posts shown in

FIG. 1

are wall posts that are mounted on the top of wall post supports or connectors


24


at ends of panels. The beams provide an improved definition of office and aisleway spaces and also provide a load supporting mechanism for supporting sliding full doors


46


and half doors or windows


48


. A variety of other components described below also can be supported by or housed in the beams.




While the post and beam construction of the present invention is designed to be a free standing unit that is completely separate from the ceiling, if desired, a post extension


50


can be employed on top of a post in order to extend the post construction to or through the ceiling. This may be done in order to convey electrical wires to or from ceiling fixtures or to fasten the post to a ceiling beam in the event that a straight wall is constructed and there are no right angle walls to provide lateral support.




Another component shown in

FIG. 1

is a beam


52


of the same construction as beam


42


mounted on a short pole


54


and attached to a conventional end connector


34


at the end. This beam may be provided with a top cap


56


similar to the top cap provided for the lower wall sections and can thus serve as a low railing.




Detailed descriptions of the various components mentioned generally above are shown in the succeeding drawings. In

FIG. 2

, a pocket door is shown. The door rolls out of the pocket section


40


by means of a wheel


58


on the leading edge of the bottom of the door.




A full door


46


is shown mounted on a beam


42


in

FIG. 3. A

half door


48


is shown adjacent the full door. The half door is slidably mounted over a wall section


22


. An end connector


34


and wall post


44


support an end of beam


42


. A cover


60


fits over the junction between the wall post and the beam so as to cover the fasteners by which the two are connected.




An exploded view of the beam and post construction components is shown in FIG.


4


. The beams are attached to a wall by means of wall mounts


62


. When a corner post


64


is employed, it is attached to the floor by means of a floor mount


66


. Alternately, as shown in

FIG. 1

, a wall post support or end connector


34


may be employed, a shorter wall post


44


being mounted on the top thereof. The exterior cover of post


34


is not shown in this figure.




When the beam is attached to the ceiling, a ceiling extension support or ceiling pass through support


68


is employed. A ceiling pass through member or post extension


50


can be employed for extending the post upwardly through the ceiling for conveying electrical conduit or the like. A beam post connector


70


is employed for connecting post


64


to beam


42


. U-shaped cover


60


is employed when a post appears at the end of a wall. A right angle cover


72


is employed at a right angle corner, as shown in

FIG. 4

, while plate


74


is employed to cover the end of a Tee connection.




A wall post support member


34


is shown mounted to a lower section of wall


16


in FIG.


5


. In this figure, wall post


44


is shown raised above its normal resting position on the top of post


34


in order to show the manner in which a conduit


75


extends upwardly through the floor support and the wall post mounted on top.





FIG. 6

shows a different type of post assembly


76


having a light


78


mounted on the top thereof. This corner fixture could also be a sign post, clock, piece of art or the like.




The manner in which the beams are mounted on posts is shown in

FIGS. 7 and 8

. The beam-post connector


70


is square and has an opening


80


through the center leading to the interior of post


44


. It is fastened on the top of the post by means of fasteners


82


which are received in appropriate retainers


84


extruded integrally in post


44


. Mounting plate


86


has a lower portion


88


extending downwardly therefrom that fits in a mating opening


90


in beam-post connector


70


and is fastened therein by bolt


92


. The mounting plate is attached in retainers


94


in extruded beam


42


by means of threaded fasteners


96


that extend through openings in the four corners of plate


86


.




As shown in

FIG. 8

, when the post is extended through the ceiling in order to reach an electrical outlet


98


or the like, a ceiling extension support


68


is mounted on the top of beam-post connector


70


, and the ceiling extension support is enclosed by rectangular post extension


50


. Electrical conduit


100


may extend from electrical outlet


98


downwardly through the pole to electrical distribution below. Also, electrical conduit


102


may extend between the interior of the pole and the upper surface of the beam, which can serve as a raceway for electrical conduit.




The construction of the beam


42


is shown in more detail in

FIGS. 9-14

. Beam


42


is an extruded member formed in the shape of an “H” with two vertically spaced cross bars. Vertical sides


104


of the beam are thus connected together by an upper cross bar


106


and a lower cross bar


108


. The lower edges of sides


104


are provided with upwardly turned flanges


110


.




As shown in

FIG. 9

, the upper surface of beam


42


constitutes a recess


116


with an open top. One use for this recess is to run electrical conduit. Conventional connectors


112


can be employed to interconnect separate components of conduit by means of mating connectors


114


on the ends of the conduits. This construction is conventional. These electrical components can be mounted in the recess


116


in the top of the beam.




On the underside of lower cross bar


108


, three J-shaped rails


118


are mounted. As shown in

FIG. 12

, doors


46


can be suspended in these rails by means of rollers


120


mounted on brackets


122


at the tops of the doors. The doors are mounted in separate rails so that they will slide by each other to open and close the door.




As shown in

FIG. 11

, a sign


124


can be mounted on flange


110


by means of a mating downwardly facing U-shaped flange


126


. A thumb screw


128


can be employed to lock the flanges together at a desired location.




Upper receptacle


116


can also be employed to house a ceiling light


130


. This can consist of an upwardly facing reflector


132


and a pair of florescent lights


134


and a deflector


136


, causing the light to be deflected in the manner shown. A similar light


138


can be mounted in the recess


140


on the underside of the beam (FIG.


14


). Light


138


comprises a reflector


142


, a pair of parallel florescent lights


144


, and a diffusion grating


146


.




The archistructure beam thus serves to support suspended elements, to provide upward and downward lighting and to serve as a raceway for electrical conduit. The function as a raceway is particularly important when there is a break in the lower panels, such as a doorway. With the break in the lower panel, there is no way to pass electrical conduit across the gap without a post and beam extending over the gap.




The novel modular wall construction


16


of the present invention is shown in

FIGS. 15-27

. Aesthetically, the wall sections appear substantially different from conventional thin open plan partitions. The wall section of the present invention is the same width or thickness (the terms are used interchangeably herein) as a conventional wall, which is about four and five-eighths (4-⅝) inches thick. The wall thus conveys a thick, sturdy impression. The walls of the present invention comprise two separate components, a plurality of uniform interconnected lower wall sections


22


and a variety of optional components mounted on the lower wall sections. The lower wall sections are designed to be load-supporting to the extent that components can be mounted on top of them. They are not, however, designed to support loads in cantilevered fashion off the side of the wall panels, contrary to most conventional partition systems. The upper wall sections, on the otter hand, are completely non-load bearing and may be made of light materials, such as Styrofoam or the like, which provide an appearance of thickness and height and yet are very light. The window components


30


and


148


may be of conventional construction or can be open frames. A pocket door


36


as described above can be attached to one end of the wall system.




Referring to

FIG. 16

, several wall sections


22


are shown connected together end to end. The sides of the wall sections are covered by removable wall covers


150


. These clip easily onto the wall sections and can be removed easily to provide complete access to the interior of the wall sections. As shown in

FIG. 17

where the wall covers have been removed, each wall section comprises a rectangular frame


152


consisting of a pair of spaced vertical support members


154


at opposite ends thereof and a pair of spaced horizontal beam


156


and


158


at the upper and lower sides of the frame. Adjacent sections of frame are bolted together by bolts


160


. It should be noted that the frame, and particularly the vertical support members, are substantially less wide or thick than the wall itself, thus leaving a substantial gap in between the vertical support posts and the wall covers. This is quite important to the wire handling advantages of the present invention.




On the upper and lower portions of each end of the frame, outwardly extending plates


162


are mounted. These plates serve an important function. As shown in

FIG. 27

, when two sections of frame are bolted together ends


164


of the plates come into contact with each other and cause the two sections of frame to be maintained in alignment. A gap


166


is provided between the ends of the plates so that the plates are held in fixed position with respect to each other.




As shown in

FIG. 20

, plates


162


also serve as a widened support flange for the top cap and top wall section mounted on the lower section.




The lower plate


162


also supports wall cover


150


. A downwardly extending lip on a flange


170


attached to the wall cover fits within an opening in the lower plate


162


and the flange rests on


162


, supporting wall cover


150


. The wall cover thus can be pivoted outwardly and inwardly from the top edge around the pivotal connection of flange


170


and the opening in plate


162


.




The upper portion of cover


150


is held in a vertical position by means of a resilient clip


172


attached to the inner surface of the wall cover at a position substantially above the bottom. This clip resiliently engages the underside of the inner side of a wire tray or trough


174


, which is in turn mounted in the frame and extends between the vertical support members


154


.




Wire tray


174


has a partially closed bottom


176


and sides


178


but has an open top and open ends. The tray extends outwardly to the sides substantially beyond the vertical support members


154


(which preferably are 1-{fraction (1/4 )} inch tubing) such that sides


178


are adjacent the inner surfaces of wall covers


150


. Clips


172


engage the outer edge of the wire tray, preferably at the bottom, by means of projections


180


or the like on the wire tray or other such conventional resilient connection.




The wire tray is for communications wires and is metallic so that it shields the communications wires from the power wires which are mounted below the wire tray.




As shown in

FIGS. 19 and 20

, the upper end


182


of wall cover


150


is spaced below the lower edge


184


of top cap


26


or lower edge


186


of wall top


32


. This makes it possible for communications wires


190


to be inserted into the interior of the wall sections in a sideways direction through a slot


188


between the top cap or wall top and the top of the wall cover. The wiring will then fall down into the wire tray and be retained there.




This provides an extremely important advantage for the present invention. As shown, when it is desired to string a new communications wire along an entire length of wall through a number of interconnected wall sections, all one has to do is stuff the wire sideways through slot


188


in the adjoining wall sections and the wire will naturally fall into its proper position in the wire tray. There is no need to remove the wall covers and no need to string the wire through any frame openings. The wall can thus accommodate wide variation and frequent changes in communications (typically computer and telephone) wiring without disassembly of the wall system.




The bottom of each wall section is supported on the ground at each end by means of a wide (preferably 4 inches) disc shaped feet


192


which are mounted to the lower beam


158


by means of a threaded sleeve


194


that extends through the beam and is welded thereto. A threaded shaft


196


extends upwardly from foot


192


and is received in threaded sleeve


194


. The height of the wall section can be adjusted conveniently by means of a nut


198


formed on the top of shaft


196


. Rotation of this nut serves to raise and lower foot


192


. Nut


198


is easily accessible simply by unclipping and removing one of the wall covers


150


, and it is not necessary to seek access to the adjustment mechanism in any obscure location. While the foot mechanism is basically conventional, the foot itself is quite a bit wider than normal in order to provide additional stability for the wall system and to permit a wall section to stand on its own or to be fastened to the floor structure through provided holes. The adjustment provides a vertical travel of one and one-half (1-½) inches desirably so as to provide a wall height of a minimum of one (1) inch from the floor and a maximum of about two and one-half (2-½) inches from the floor.




At the underside of the wall panel and resting on the floor is a power cable chase


200


. This power cable chase runs the entire length of each wall section and continuous contiguously from wall section to wall section. Chase


200


includes vertical side walls


202


, upper flanges


204


attached to the top of the side walls and flaring outwardly, and lower flanges


206


attached to the lower edges of the side walls and extending outwardly to lower ends that contact the floor. A central web


208


extends horizontally between side walls


202


. The chase thus presents an open top receptacle


210


between the opposite sides of the chase. This receptacle serves as a chase or support tray for power cables


212


. The outwardly flared lower flanges


206


extend over feet


192


and conceal them from view, as well as concealing the other mechanical hardware on the underside of the wall sections.




As shown in

FIG. 20

, power cables


212


can be easily inserted into power chase


200


with the walls in place simply by threading the power cables sideways over the edge of flange


204


and allowing the power cables to drop into receptacle


210


. While it appears from

FIG. 20

that plate


162


would interfere with the passage of the wire downwardly into the receptacle, by reference to

FIG. 24

or


25


it can be seen that the upper edge of flange


204


is recessed at the point where it intersects plate


162


. Wires can thus be laid on top of the plate or can be threaded under the plate through the recess in the flange at the ends of each wall sections.





FIGS. 21 and 22

show how the power chase can be used as a means for connecting electrical outlets at any desired position along the power chase. An electrical outlet assembly


214


comprises a plug receptacle


216


that is positioned vertically at the lower end of wall cover


150


. The wall outlet assembly further includes a back portion


218


extending from the lower rear of outlet


216


under the lower edge of wall cover


150


upwardly and inwardly along flange


206


, upwardly along flange


202


, and then upwardly and outwardly along flange


204


. Back portion


218


carries the electrical conduit to a terminal


220


at the top of the back portion, and this terminal is connected to standard connectors for power cables. A flange


222


extends parallel to the upper portion of flange


218


on the inner side of flange


204


, and a threaded lock screw


224


extends through flange


222


to clamp the receptacle assembly at any desired longitudinal position along the power chase. As shown in

FIG. 22

, by loosening lock screw


224


, the receptacle can be slid from one end to the other of the wall section as desired and then locked into place.





FIGS. 23

,


24


, and


25


are similar and show the manner in which the wall sections can be wired into electrical power. In

FIG. 23

, conventional connectors


228


are suspended from the underside of wire tray


174


. Any number of connectors (shown in phantom) can be connected together to form two, four, six, eight or more power terminals. Cable


230


is an illustrative inlet or infeed cable leading from a floor or wall monument to a connector


232


which connects to one of the terminals of connector


228


. One outlet cable


234


can extend downwardly to a connector


236


leading to a desk or to a face mounted outlet


214


of the type shown in FIG.


21


. Another outlet conduit


238


extends in the generous space between the wall cover and relatively narrow vertical support member


154


directly into the next wall section where it interconnects with another connector


228


. With the standard connectors, individual wall sections can easily be wired together with any number of power cables simply by plugging plugs in after unclipping the wall covers. Nothing has to be threaded through any opening in any support members and all the cables can be inserted sideways into the walls. This considerably facilitates installation.





FIG. 24

shows a means by which power can be obtained from an under carpet flat cable


240


. A cable


242


connected to connector


228


leads to a terminal box


234


which in turn electrically connects under carpet flat cable with cable


242


.





FIG. 25

shows the manner in which a cable


246


can be connected to a source of power from a floor monument


248


.





FIG. 26

shows the manner in which communications wiring, such as telephone wiring, can be connected to the wire tray


174


. A typical twenty-five (25) pair flat wire cable


250


extending from under a carpet feeds upwardly into the wire tray. As shown in

FIG. 7

, a terminal connector


252


connects to a bus mechanism


254


into which individual telephone lines


256


can be plugged. Phones can be connected and disconnected easily by removing the wall cover and simply reaching in and plugging in or unplugging the phone. Any other type of conventional telephone wiring system or computer wiring system also would be compatible with this system.




The corner post mechanism


34


attached to the ends of individual wall sections is shown in

FIG. 18

with reference to an exemplary right angle connection. The corner post mechanism comprises a metal column


260


having flat sides with openings


262


therein facing the ends of the wall sections. The end column is bolted to the ends of the wall sections through these openings


262


. A top cap


264


fits downwardly on the top of the end connector, with a downwardly extending flange


266


serving to attach the top to the connector by means of one of the bolts attaching the connector to the end of the wall section. An appropriate cover


268


(which is a right angle cover in

FIG. 18

) fits over the metal column


260


to enclose the column. The cover could have three sides if being attached to the end of a single wall section or a single side if attached to a Tee connection wherein three wall sections are interconnected. The end connector column is supported by a plurality of legs


270


. The column is formed so that electrical and electronic wiring can pass from one wall section to the other through the connector, or it can extend upwardly through a connector to a post mechanism (as illustrated in FIGS.


4


and


8


).




The wall tops mounted on the tops of lower wall sections


16


provide an important feature of the present invention. These wall tops can be short tops


28


or tall tops


32


or any customer specified size higher or lower. Since the wall tops function as room dividers and do not need to function to support wall hung furniture, they can be made inexpensively and yet have a variety of attractive finishes. Desirably, they are formed of a rigid foam plastic such as Styrofoam or the like formed on a rigid base formed of wood


274


or other suitable material. The base can be attached to a cap


276


similar to top cap


26


that fits over plate


162


and is bolted to beam


156


by threaded fastener


278


, with each wall top section being bolted to the beam in at least two locations. The surface of the wall top can be decorated with any number of surface textures and materials. A particularly desirable material is a flocking


280


which can be sprayed on the material and gives it an expensive velour appearance at a very reasonable price.




Plate


162


stabilizes wall top


32


in a vertical position and the bolt fastener attachment holds the wall top in proper alignment with the lower wall section on which it is mounted. Because the wall top is light and non-load bearing, complex and expensive fastening and frame mechanisms are not necessary.




To install and remove wall tops or top caps, it is only necessary to unclip the wall cover and bolt or unbolt the desired fixture.




The archistructure and wall system of the present invention contemplate that the furniture will not be wall suspended but will be free standing. To this end, the present invention incorporates a series of free standing modular desks having interchangeable components that provide a wide variety of individually selectible office desk environments, without requiring special wall structures or wall modifications.




A basic desk unit


12


is disclosed in

FIGS. 28-31

. The desk unit


12


comprises a pair of spaced half width pedestals


282


, each having drawers


284


. Files are stored longitudinally in the drawers instead of widthwise across the drawers. Each desk has a floating desk top


286


, which is spaced above the pedestals and attached to the pedestals by means of a transverse support beam


290


mounted on the underside of the work top and corner braces


292


interconnecting the support beams at the ends with the pedestals


284


(see FIG.


50


). The support beam and corner braces desirably are formed sheet metal members, with beam


290


comprising an open top tray that serves to house electrical components. Corner brace


292


comprises a hollow sheet metal brace having a horizontal leg attached to the corner of beam


290


and a vertical leg attached to the inside of the pedestal. The position of the vertical leg can be varied on the pedestal by slotted bolt openings


291


or the like in order to vary the height of the desk top for individual preferences. Electrical cables


294


extend through an opening


296


in the underside of beam


290


and through a mating opening


298


in brace


292


and then through an exit opening


300


in the vertical leg of brace


292


. This cable then extends to a terminal connector


302


which can be connected to an infeed source of electrical power. As with the wall sections, power can be received in any number of ways. A floor monument positioned at the bottom rear of the pedestal would be one typical way to transfer power to the desk via terminal


302


and cable


294


. Power also can be delivered to the desk by one of the power cables carried by an adjacent wall section or through a post connector. As shown in

FIG. 1

, desk


12


abuts a wall section on one end thereof. Power cables carried in this wall section could be connected to terminal


302


in the interior of the pedestal or in the interior of the wall section.




The infeed cable


294


is connected to a terminal bus


304


of conventional design. A wire tray


306


is attached to the rear edge


308


of beam


290


and outlets


310


mounted in the trays extend through openings


312


in wall


308


and plug into bus


304


. Thus, power cable


294


provides power to a pair of outlets mounted in the wire tray. Another power cable


314


can be connected to the bus and can exit the beam by means of a recess


316


in a side


318


of the beam. This power cable can lead to a computer, lighting or other electrical apparatus. All of these electrical connections can be altered easily by lifting the table top and plugging or unplugging the electrical components. Alternatively, the desk top can be provided with one or more access doors


320


for gaining access to the outlets without lifting the desk top. Referring to

FIGS. 28-31

, the pedestals are desirably about seven and one-half (7-½) inches wide. The back of the desk can be open or it can be covered by lower back panels


322


, which are desirably about fifteen (15) inches wide. As shown, the desk top desirably extends about halfway over the pedestals so that wiring can be tucked under the edge of the desk between the pedestal and desk top. The same wiring would then run through the wire tray at the back of the desk.




The construction of the lower bottom panels of the desk is shown in FIG.


49


. Bottom panels


322


are load bearing panels and comprise a rectangular metal frame


324


preferably formed of channel material. The frame can include a transverse plate


326


in the middle thereof to support electrical outlets


328


which are mounted in openings


330


. Electrical conduit


332


extends through adjacent panel sections (which are bolted together) via openings


334


in the frame. As shown in

FIG. 49

, electrical outlet


328


can provide electrical power to the electrically operated devices at the desk. The panels


322


can be covered with decorative covers and can use the same type of cover as employed in the wall sections, if desired.




In addition to the basic desk unit, a number of optional features can be included. As shown in

FIG. 32

, the desk can be provided with a privacy screen


334


which can be bolted on the top of panels


322


. The privacy screen shown in

FIGS. 32-35

is not intended to be a load bearing screen and therefore can be made of the same lightweight type of construction as wall tops


28


and


32


. The desk panels, however, are designed to be substantially thinner than the wall panels so as to distinguish between the screens and panels used for a desk and walls.




As shown in

FIG. 35

, the rear edge of desk top


286


terminates short of privacy screen


334


, leaving a gap


336


at the back of the desk. This permits wires to be inserted at the rear edge of the desk top so that they can be carried in wire tray


306


.

FIG. 34

shows a gap


338


between the desk top and pedestal so that wires can run under the sides of the desk top as well.





FIGS. 36-39

show another type of panel that can be mounted on the basic desk construction shown in FIG.


28


. In this embodiment, load bearing top panels


340


are bolted to the top of lower panels


322


and are formed in a similar manner. End panels


342


positioned at right angles to panels


340


are attached to the top of pedestals


282


. As shown in

FIG. 49

, spacers


344


are positioned between upper and lower panels so as to leave a gap


346


between the upper and lower panels. These same spacers are employed between panels


342


and the pedestals. A rubber or elastomer blade


348


conceals the gap above the pedestal but still permits wires to be tucked in the gap and concealed in the hollow space between panel


342


and pedestal


382


. Thus, even with load bearing top panels, it is still possible to conceal wires between the upper and lower panel sections.




A storage unit


350


is mounted on the load bearing panels above the desk top. Details of the storage unit are shown in the exploded view in

FIG. 47

, wherein the storage unit is shown to have a door


352


, a top panel


354


, and a lower panel


356


that is attached in the manner of a shelf.




The manner in which a shelf


358


is attached to the wall panel is shown in

FIG. 49. A

stamped metal support bracket


360


below the shelf has a U-shaped rear member


362


with a flange that abuts the panel. This flange can be bolted to the panel. The U-shaped rear member provides a groove behind the shelf for concealing electrical wires. It should be noted that there is a gap


364


(see

FIG. 38

) between the sides of the desk top


286


and side panels


342


which permits wires to be tucked under the side edges of the desk top.




A modification of the desk construction of

FIG. 28

is shown in

FIGS. 40-43

. In this embodiment, the pedestals


322


are positioned at right angles and an additional right angle desk top section


366


is attached at right angles to one end of desk top


286


. Both sections of desk top employ support beams


290


, with these beams being bolted together where they intersect. Additional support braces


368


are provided for additional support at the corner of the desk. The other features of this type of unit are substantially the same as the previous embodiments.




The L-shaped desk also can have top panels and storage units and shelves mounted on the top panels, as shown in

FIGS. 44-46

. The storage unit


350


is mounted in the same manner as previously described. The shelf unit is mounted in a similar manner and is attached to the storage unit at one end.




Still another modification of the desk unit of the present invention is shown in FIG.


48


. In this unit, a desk top


286


is mounted to a pedestal at one end and to a lower support panel


322


at the other end by the same type of beam and brace arrangement for the

FIG. 32

embodiment. In this arrangement, however, the lower support panels not only form back panels but they also form side panels and extend all the way around behind the desk unit. Half height top panels


370


are positioned above the lower panels on one side of the desk in order to vary the aesthetic appearance of the desk unit.




As can be seen, a number of different variations can be achieved with a relatively small number of components. It is important to note that the desk units can include their own screens and panels, even load-bearing panels, and these desks and panels can be arranged independently of the walls and post and beam archistructure. Thus, it is possible to obtain the benefit of wall mounted shelves and storage units without placing limitations on the wall and archistructure system. The wall and archistructure system can thus be employed for space definition, privacy, individuality, and the like, while the load supporting panels used in the desk system can be designed for the more functional aspects of work efficiency and productivity. Even though these units are independent, they are the same height and all include the same type of wiring connections that permit ample power and communications wiring to be distributed to the proper location without the wiring being visible.




Other arrangements of the desk, top panels, storage units, and shelves are possible. The present description is intended to be exemplary only.




Two other elements designed to be compatible with the present invention are shown in

FIGS. 51 and 52

.

FIG. 51

shows a combination personal closet and file


374


, with the personal closet


376


being mounted on top of a file unit


378


, with the same type of space or groove


380


between the upper and lower sections to create the same compatibility appearance with the other units in the system. The grooves can be provided so that wiring can be hidden in the grooves.





FIG. 52

discloses a file storage unit


384


with upper and lower sections


386


and


388


being separated by a groove


390


that is compatible with the grooves in the other elements of the furniture. The groove again can be deep enough to provide a means for concealing wiring that must pass around the storage unit.




It should be understood that the foregoing is merely exemplary of the preferred practice of the present invention and that various changes and modifications may be made in the arrangements and details of construction of the embodiments disclosed herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.




The embodiments of the present invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:



Claims
  • 1. A furniture system, comprising:a freestanding framework including a plurality of generally vertically disposed support columns and a plurality of generally horizontally disposed overhead beams interconnecting the support columns, the support columns having a lower portion thereof adapted to abut a base surface, the beams having an upper portion that provides a raceway for the delivery of an electrical conduit and at least one beam having a lower portion with an open-sided rail; a first barrier member having a first barrier connector capable of releasably securing the barrier member to the rail; and a wall panel connected to one of the support columns beneath the overhead beams and spaced from the overhead beams.
  • 2. The furniture system of claim 1, further comprising a column extension connecting said framework with a ceiling.
  • 3. The furniture system of claim 1, wherein the base surface comprises a floor.
  • 4. The furniture system of claim 1 wherein the rail and barrier member connector are configured to permit the barrier member to be manually slid generally horizontally along the rail.
  • 5. The furniture system of claim 4 wherein the support columns and the overhead beams are detachably interconnected to facilitate assembly and disassembly of the furniture system.
  • 6. The furniture system of claim 1 further comprising an information display element connected to the framework.
  • 7. The furniture system of claim 6 wherein the information display element comprises a sign.
  • 8. The furniture system of claim 5 further comprising a freestanding work surface located adjacent the framework.
  • 9. The furniture system of claim 7 further comprising a cover connected to at least one of the beams.
  • 10. The furniture system of claim 7 further comprising a lighting element connected to the framework.
  • 11. The furniture system of claim 10 wherein the lighting element is connected to one of the overhead beams.
  • 12. The furniture system of claim 7 further comprising a second barrier member connected to the rail.
  • 13. The furniture system of claim 12 wherein at least one of the first and second barrier members includes printed information.
  • 14. The furniture system of claim 12 wherein the first and second barrier members are capable of being readily reconfigured from a first position to a second separate position.
  • 15. The furniture system of claim 12 wherein the support column includes a power receptacle in a lower portion thereof.
  • 16. A furniture system, comprising:a freestanding framework including a plurality of generally vertically disposed support columns and a plurality of generally horizontally disposed overhead beams interconnecting the support columns, the support columns and overhead beams detachably interconnected in an end-to-end fashion to form a rigid structure configured to be positioned above a base surface, the support columns having a lower portion thereof adapted to abut a base surface and thereby support the framework, at least one of the beams having an upper portion that provides a raceway for the delivery of an electrical conduit and a lower portion with an open-sided generally J-shaped rail; and a plurality of barrier members having barrier connectors capable of securing the barrier member to the rail such that the barrier members may be readily positioned and reconfigured to multiple positions along the rail.
  • 17. The furniture system of claim 16 wherein the rail and barrier member connectors are configured to permit the barrier members to be manually slid generally horizontally along the rail.
  • 18. The furniture system of claim 16, further comprising a column extension connecting said framework with a ceiling.
  • 19. The furniture system of claim 16, wherein the base surface comprises a floor.
  • 20. The furniture system of claim 17 wherein the support columns and the overhead beams are detachably interconnected to facilitate assembly and disassembly of the furniture system.
  • 21. The furniture system of claim 20 further comprising a panel connected to at least one of the support columns beneath beneath the overhead beams.
  • 22. The furniture system of claim 20 further comprising a cover connected to at least one of the beams.
  • 23. The furniture system of claim 21 further comprising a lighting element connected to the framework.
  • 24. The furniture system of claim 23 wherein the lighting element is connected to one of the overhead beams.
  • 25. The furniture system of claim 16 wherein at least one of the barrier members includes printed information.
  • 26. The furniture system of claim 17 wherein the support column includes a power receptacle in a lower portion thereof.
  • 27. The furniture system of claim 21 wherein a gap is provided between the panel and one of the overhead beams.
  • 28. The furniture system of claim 20 further comprising an information display element connected to the framework.
  • 29. The furniture system of claim 28 wherein the information display element comprises a sign.
  • 30. The furniture system of claim 29 further comprising a freestanding work surface located adjacent the framework.
  • 31. A furniture system, comprising:a freestanding framework including a plurality of generally vertically disposed support columns and a plurality of generally horizontally disposed overhead beams interconnecting the support columns, the beams having a raceway for the delivery of an electrical member and at least one beam having a lower portion with an open-sided rail; and a first barrier member having a first barrier connector capable of securing the barrier member to the rail, wherein the framework and the barrier member together define one or more work spaces which include at least one worksurface therein.
  • 32. The furniture system of claim 31, wherein said first barrier connector comprises a downwardly facing flange.
  • 33. The furniture system of claim 31, wherein the support columns and the overhead beams are detachably interconnected to facilitate assembly and disassembly of the furniture system.
  • 34. The furniture system of claim 31, wherein at least one of said support columns is connected with a floor.
  • 35. The furniture system of claim 31, wherein at least one of said support columns comprises a lower support post and an upper support post.
  • 36. The furniture system of claim 33, further comprising a panel connected to one of the support columns beneath the overhead beams.
  • 37. The furniture system of claim 33, further comprising a second barrier member connected to the rail.
  • 38. The furniture system of claim 36, wherein the panel is spaced from the overhead beams.
  • 39. The furniture system of claim 35, wherein said lower support post extends between a floor and said upper support post.
  • 40. A furniture system, comprising:a freestanding framework including a plurality of generally vertically disposed support columns and a plurality of generally horizontally disposed overhead beams interconnecting the support columns, the support columns and overhead beams detachably interconnected in an end-to-end fashion to form a rigid structure, at least one of the beams having a raceway for the delivery of an electrical member and a lower portion with an open-sided generally J-shaped rail; and a plurality of barrier members having barrier connectors capable of securing the respective barrier member to the rail such that the barrier members may be readily positioned and reconfigured to multiple positions along the rail, wherein the framework and the barrier members together define one or more work spaces.
  • 41. The furniture system of claim 40, wherein said barrier connectors comprise downwardly facing flanges.
  • 42. The furniture system of claim 40, wherein the support columns and the overhead beams are detachably interconnected to facilitate assembly and disassembly of the furniture system.
  • 43. The furniture system of claim 40, wherein at least one of said support columns is connected with a floor.
Parent Case Info

This application is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 09/347,097, entitled “Free Standing Modular Architectural Beam System,” filed Jul. 2, 1999, now abandoned; which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/398,855, entitled “Free Standing Modular Furniture and Wall System,” filed Mar. 6, 1995, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,974,742; which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser: No. 07/921,314, entitled “Free Standing Modular Furniture and Wall System,” filed Jul. 28, 1992, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,394,658; which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 07/787,678, entitled “Free Standing Modular Furniture and Wall System,” filed Nov. 4, 1991, now abandoned; which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 07/226,433, entitled “Free Standing Modular Furniture and Wall System,” filed Jul. 29, 1988, now abandoned; all of which are incorporated by reference in their entireties.

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Continuations (5)
Number Date Country
Parent 09/347097 Jul 1999 US
Child 09/840774 US
Parent 08/398855 Mar 1995 US
Child 09/347097 US
Parent 07/921314 Jul 1992 US
Child 08/398855 US
Parent 07/787678 Nov 1991 US
Child 07/921314 US
Parent 07/226433 Jul 1988 US
Child 07/787678 US